ABOUT PERMITLESS CARRY GUN LAWS

Want to carry a gun? Go ahead. No background check. No training. No registration. Take it anywhere you like. Hide it or carry it openly. Your call.

Take it to work. To church. To campus. A sporting event. A state park. Use it as a convenient place to rest your hand while arguing with a store clerk about return policies.

Do you have a history of violence related to mental illness? A felony record? An injunction ordering you to stay away from someone who is scared you might hurt them? If so, you’re not supposed to have a gun, much less carry one in public. But it may get a lot harder to catch you.

This is a glimpse of what life may be like in Florida if lawmakers pass the permitless-carry gun law Gov. Ron DeSantis is about to unveil. We haven’t seen it yet, but most of the above changes have been proposed in Florida before and came close to becoming law. All of them are permitted in at least one other state. …

Before they shred Florida’s gun laws, DeSantis and his allies in the Legislature should hear from Floridians who support the Second Amendment but want common-sense guidelines intended to keep everyone safe.

They should listen to the survivors of mass shootings, such as the Parkland students. …

This isn’t about scoring partisan points. It’s about suppressing violence and saving lives, about fighting fear and preventing heartbreak. Floridians should make it clear where their priorities lie — and politicians should stop scheming to nourish their ambitions with bloodshed.