Arizonans with concealed weapons permits will be able to take a handgun into bars and restaurants that serve alcohol.

That’s under a bill signed into law by Gov. Jan Brewer on Monday.

It would require bar and restaurant owners who want to ban weapons to post a sign next to their liquor license. Drinking while carrying a weapon would be illegal.

The last point is a nice gesture, but it’s not unthinkable that such a law will greatly increase the likelihood that people will, in fact, drink alcohol while carrying a loaded firearm in a bar.

Opponents have said mixing guns and alcohol could cause violence, but supporters said people should be able to protect themselves at businesses that serve alcohol.

It’s a self-evidently bad idea for several reasons, not the least of which is the possibility that bartenders might be a bit more reluctant to cut off customers who have had too much if they think their patrons might be packing. It might be a good idea to keep an eye on the number of DUI-related traffic fatalities in the coming months.

It’s probably worth pointing out that as governor, Napolitano served as a check on the unique brand of wingnuttery found in the Republican-dominated Arizona state legislature, and she used her veto pen generously — including on a very similar guns-in-bars bill in 2005.

Now, with Brewer — a conservative Republican — in charge, Arizona has no voice of sanity at the top-levels of state government.

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Good news! The Washington Post reports that the D.C. City Council passed emergency legislation yesterday allowing the city’s bars to serve alcohol until 5 a.m. for four days during Inauguration week, concluding the morning after the Jan. 20 ceremony.

And it gets better — after last call, you don’t even have to go home or back to your hotel! The bars can serve food 24 hours these days, so once the booze stops flowing, you can simply order up some grub and wait until it starts back up in a few hours.

According to The Post, however, not everyone is thrilled by the prospect of 24-hour revelry. These party poopers tend to live in bar-filled neighborhoods like Adams Morgan.

The legislation quickly drew the ire of civic leaders, who complained that the council did not seek public input.

“I see the potential for why you’d want to do it, in terms of this being a historic election, but to just throw this down on neighborhoods?” said Bryan Weaver, head of the Adams Morgan advisory neighborhood commission. “To have 3 1/2 days of 24-hour service without any input from the community — there’s going to be hell to pay from a lot of neighborhood associations.”

Whatever. If an American is patriotic enough to travel thousands of miles to witness the inauguration of the new president, it should be their God-given right to order a good, stiff drink at 5 a.m on a Wednesday morning. After all, isn’t this precisely the kind of freedom that our forefathers fought and died to protect?