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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Now, the Obama campaign is circulating a photograph of Palin literally bragging about her support for the bridge, with a note titled “I supported the ‘Bridge to Nowhere’ and All I Got Was This Lousy T-Shirt.”

Here’s the picture worth a thousand fact-checks:

It’s from Palin’s 2006 campaign, explains an Obama aide, where “she’s proudly posing with a T-shirt that reads, ‘NOWHERE ALASKA 99901.’”

Now, from a distance, the entire fight over the bridge earmark could look silly, compared to bigger problems facing the country.

Obama is arguing, however, that the McCain campaign’s blatant lies, about issues small and large, reveal the GOP nominee’s approach to governance.

It is indeed striking that McCain picked this fight, touting his running mate’s “reform” record not through spin, or selective biography, but by flatly lying about her recent actions.