Georgia Republicans continue to cost their state money and fun:  the organizers of a large September music festival in downtown Atlanta have canceled the event after government officials said they could not restrict patrons from carrying guns into the venue, WXIA NBC-11 in Atlanta reports.

Scheduled for mid-September in Atlanta’s Piedmont Park, the festival has attracted tens of thousands of music fans, generating millions of dollars in income for area businesses like bars and hotels.  Organizers had announced that they would not allow patrons to bring weapons into the concert site.

Georgia state law mandates that people can carry any legal firearm in any public space, and organizers who have permits to hold events in those spaces are powerless to try to protect their patrons from people with guns.  Curiously, the law would allow festival organizers to prevent people from bringing knives, nunchucks, spears, swords (broad or epee), throwing stars and other non-gunpowder-based weapons that are less lethal into the concert site.  The law also does not prevent organizers from banning gunpowder-based items like firecrackers or dynamite, so it appears that Georgia lawmakers only want to coddle people who need to carry guns everywhere because they’re a-scared.

“Hey Midtown fans – due to circumstances beyond our control, Music Midtown will no longer be taking place this year,” organizers posted on the festival’s website.  “We were looking forward to reuniting in September and hope we can all get back to enjoying the festival together again soon.