It’s doubtful there are many, if any conservatives who would actually need to rethink a personal decision to carry around a phone disguised as a handgun. Nope–not conservatives, but those other guys …

C’mon … is there ANY upside, on any occasion, to be pulling out a phone that looks remarkably like a firearm? Police in jurisdictions far and wide are finding it necessary to repeatedly warn people against using them.

Kind of like the warnings on frozen pizzas to “bake before eating.”

According to the Chicago Tribune, Illinois Conservation Police officers recently stopped a stolen vehicle when they saw an apparent handgun sticking out of the waistband of an occupant in the car. An officer was able to quickly put the person in handcuffs before discovering that it was actually a cell phone in a plastic case shaped like a handgun.

Suicide by cop? Or would it be Darwinian justice?

It turned out the occupants of the car were all minors. The bust took place at Illinois Beach State Park in Zion, where the gun-shaped phone case was not in violation of any laws, so police returned the case to a parent … who was reminded of the dangers involved in carrying such a product, according to the Tribune.

The cases are illegal in some areas, such as Chicago. In 2015, an ordinance was introduced by Chicago Ald. Edward Burke to ban the phone cases. “I challenge any of you to look at this on a split-second basis,” he said at the time, as reported by the Tribune, “and be able to tell whether or not, if it’s sticking out of a pocket, it’s real or fake. So it just has no place in an urban area.”

The IDNR posted to its Facebook page a notice on the state park incident that says: “DO NOT carry products like this around!! It is dangerous and places all citizens and Officers in unnecessary risk of harm. … This incident serves as a reminder how quickly situations unfold for officers under high-stress conditions, often leaving fractions of a second to make critical decisions.”

A 2015 tweet by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Manitoba issued a terse warning, saying, “Cell phone case shaped like a gun = terrible idea”

Cell phone case shaped like a gun = terrible idea #rcmpmb #tossthecase pic.twitter.com/ukCwn5GUXJ

— RCMP Manitoba (@rcmpmb) August 12, 2015

From the New Jersey State Police in 2015 … “This cell phone case is a terrible idea. Officers do not have the luxury of time when making split-second decisions, while interacting with the public. We strongly recommend that you do not use this product both for your own safety and the safety of law enforcement officers.”

The NYPD 112th Precinct also asked people to #BeSmart …

I would NOT suggest purchasing this cell phone case, which was designed to look like a firearm. #BeSmart #BeSafe pic.twitter.com/swsWzD1sdY

— NYPD 112th Precinct (@NYPD112Pct) June 30, 2015

The gun cases have been available for several years on eBay and from overseas stores, providing still more evidence that the future of the human species is very much in doubt.

Now, a gun that folds up to look like a phone, well, that’s a different, true story … and much smarter.