Category Archives: Gun Rights

Quote of the day–Ly Chho

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I am a new NRA member. I have been a citizen for only fourteen years. I believe in the Constitution and the Second Amendment, and when I see Obama, I see Communism, and I am afraid. I believe he is going to win the election. Do you have any plans in place if this happens?


Ly Chho
October 9, 2008
A question for NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre.
Via Kevin Baker.
[Kevin reports Mrs. Ly Chho, was born of Chinese parents in Cambodia, raised and schooled in Taiwan, and hence “she should know”.–Joe]

Full court press until election day?

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One might reasonably speculate that the NRA is going to engage in a full court press against Barack Abomination Obama starting today and continuing until election day.


Here are some hints of what we will see today:



The news should be out of the bag by now. It’s 8:00 in PA but I haven’t seen what is being said yet and I really need to get back to bed and get some sleep.

Quote of the day–Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach

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Fear not those who argue but those who dodge.


Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach
[Ebner-Eschenbach is apparently the originator of the “stopped clock is right twice a day” quote:



Even a stopped clock is right twice every day. After some years, it can boast of a long series of successes.


Which wouldn’t be a bad QOTD during this political season as well. But back to fear and dodging…


Obama dodges. What does he mean when he says the following?



“I think we have two conflicting traditions in this country.” (gun ownership and restrictions on guns)
Politico, 2/11/08


“I think that local jurisdictions have the capability to institute their own gun laws.”
BaltimoreSun.com, 2/15/08


He could settle all this by promising, as President of the United States, to veto any gun control restriction bill that reaches his desk. But he doesn’t.


Gun owners have something to fear in Obama as a person in power.–Joe]

Quote of the day–Lyle @ UltiMAK

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Health care is a right the same as guns are a right. You have the right to provide it, or to purchase it as you are able, and government should have no role in the matter except as protector of your rights.

I know that wasn’t the framework of the question however. Honestly put, the question would have been, “Do you believe free healthcare, paid by someone else under threats from the government, is your right?”

But liberty isn’t even on the table for discussion in this election. How can we be bothered with such abstractions as liberty when we’re worried about the crisis-of-the-day, and who is going to take care of us and keep us all safe, happy and warm?


Lyle @ UltiMAK
October 8, 2008
In the comments.
[We have a long way to go. Sometimes it takes Lyle and others to put it in proper perspective.–Joe]

Court rules gun shirt promotes violence

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This is a little bit into my gray area. I disagree with the judge but I can see his point even if he overstates it with the shirt in question:



“The impact of violence is so great that it now has equal importance as the issue of illegal drug use in schools,” U.S. District Judge James Knoll Gardner wrote in an opinion handed down this week.

“There is nowhere that is truly safe or immune from the problem of school violence, from the one-room schoolhouse to America’s largest universities,” Gardner said.

“Students,” he said, “have no constitutional right to promote violence in our public schools.”


What this judge apparently doesn’t understand that his own orders are carried out with the threat of violence. There is illegal violence and there is legal, even praiseworthy violence. I don’t see that the shirt advocated anything illegal or immoral:
 




According the court order and the article the complete text on the back of the shirt says, “Special Issue-Resident-Lifetime License–United States Terrorist Hunting Permit–Permit No. 91101 Gun Owner-No Bag Limit”. The front of the shirt has a gun on the pocket which has a gun and says, “Volunteer, Homeland Security”.


And how does this “promote violence in the school system”? It is promoting the rapid stopping of illegal violence using legal violence. If the shirt advocated hunting Muslims, blacks, Jews, or some other ethic, racial, or religiously identified group I would agree with him. But not this. Terrorists are not, or at least shouldn’t be, a protected group.


I must conclude this is another case of simplistic minds either refusing to or being unable to see the total picture.

Buy your Aimpoint before Christmas

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The NRA has a special deal going on with Midway and Aimpoint.

NRA expands advertising on Obama

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Via the Apex of the Triangle of Death:



Fairfax, VA-Today the National Rifle Association Political Victory Fund (NRA-PVF) expanded its advertising campaign with the release of additional commercials further detailing Sen. Barack Obama’s long anti-gun record in battleground states across the country. The NRA-PVF commercials began airing Monday in Virginia, North Carolina, Florida, Ohio, Minnesota and Michigan.


These ads, which expose the truth about Obama’s record opposing the rights of law-abiding gun owners, are currently running in Pennsylvania, New Mexico, and Colorado. The media spots feature a variety of people from all walks of life, including war veterans, hunters, families and former law enforcement officers criticizing the many anti-gun and anti-hunter votes cast by Obama as a state and as a U.S. Senator. NRA-PVF is also running Spanish-language commercials in several states.


In an attempt to suppress free speech rights protected under the First Amendment, Obama’s campaign has threatened television stations to stop airing the NRA-PVF ads under threat of revocation their FCC licenses. NRA-PVF has provided documented evidence to support the statements about Obama’s record in the ads.


Commercials may be viewed at www.gunbanobama.com.

Quote of the day–Carl Bogus

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We felt that, for a variety of reasons, the collective rights model was under represented in the debate, and wanted to give scholars an opportunity to enhance or further illuminate the collective rights position. Sometimes a more balanced debate is best served by an unbalanced symposium. I did not, therefore, invite anyone who I knew subscribed to the individual rights model.


Carl Bogus
June 12, 2001
Email regarding a Chicago-Kent symposium on the Second Amendment which only invited, and allowed, anti-gun owner viewpoints to be presented. This was done under the “community leadership” of Barack No Guns Allowed Obama–see also Obama and the Attempt to Destroy the Second Amendment.
[And would Mr. Bogus would say a more balanced trial of a black man is best served by the judge, both lawyers, and all the people on the jury being members of the KKK?–Joe]

Obama’s motivation for gun control

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Howard Nemerov gives us some info on possible motivation for Obama’s support for gun control:

In politics, it is often difficult to determine why a person supports a policy. Fortunately, numbers speak louder than words: In this case, follow the money to understand Obama’s support of registration.

One of Obama’s biggest donors is the law firm of Skadden, Arps, Meagher and Flom, LLP, which contributed $340,264 to his presidential campaign as of September 2, 2008.[12] Skadden, Arps represents the inventors of a “firearm safety system,” patent number 6499243, which adds a biometric activator that links a gun to one owner. The “Summary of the Invention” section of the patent application notes:

The safety system further makes use of a person’s fingerprint data, which is a unique personal property that is highly suitable for tracking and control.[13] [Emphasis added]

Sidley Austin LLP has contributed $350,302 to Obama.[14] Sidley Austin represents the inventors of the “Gun identification kit,” patent number 7380706. This invention provides a way for every gun to have a spent cartidge case made available for entry into a ballistic “fingerprint” database. Of course, such a database is useful only if all firearms are entered into it:

Because the vast majority of publicly owned firearms have not been used in the commission of a crime, they will not show up in [such a] database. It would therefore be desirable to provide a means for increasing the number of firearms for which…information and data is available.

The inventors’ solution to this? Pass a law mandating that every gun is registered (serial number matched with shell casing and owner data, all permanently recorded):

One means of populating [such a] database would be to mandate that ballistic information be obtained and entered into the database for all firearms.[15]

$350,000 for supporting gun licensing? Sounds like motive to me. Why else would Obama be so cagey on guns? We know it’s not about making people safer because no one has been able to answer Just One Question.

So, when Obama says he “won’t take your guns” keep in mind he didn’t say he wouldn’t register them. See Nemorov’s post for more about the wisdom of that. Obama says Chicago is different from Cheyenne. See my post on community policy for a response to that.

ACLU is trying to slap down the ATF

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I would like to think this is the beginning of the realization that the ATF is not known for it’s recognition of civil rights and there are lots of other opportunities for the ACLU to put some out of control government types in their place, but I’m not that hopeful:



The ACLU filed the case on April 18, 2006, on behalf of Karen J. Kilpatrick, who claimed that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) violated her Free Speech rights.



Kilpatrick was driving her blue van in Pensacola on April 19, 2004, with the slogans “Remember the Children of Waco” and “Boo ATF” written on some of the windows when she was pulled over by police for questioning by the ATF.



The ACLU argues in the lawsuit that her First Amendment Rights to Free Speech and her Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure were violated when officers detained her for an hour, searched her car without consent, and ordered her to remove the writing on the side of her van.



“The ATF’s actions were unconstitutional and there was no legal justification to stop and question Ms. Kilpatrick.  We believe that the ATF was trying to silence Ms. Kilpatrick and the 911 call substantiates this position,” said Bert Oram, ACLU cooperating counsel.

Selling a product with sex

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These pictures are via an email from Johnathan on an email list I’m on:



Some people on the left are complaining that Sarah Palin supporters are shallow and all enthused with her because she is good looking. I’m sure that has something to do with it. But her views on most topics are a big boost as well. Still it is hard to defend against the assertion if she were not so hot that she wouldn’t have gotten picked.


But one has to wonder why the Democrats are so upset by it. Weren’t they smart enough to know that sex sells? I can hardly believe that. After all wasn’t that one of Bill Clinton’s appeal to a lot of women voters? And if the democrats thought the male voter who thinks with the head between his legs was an important demographic they should have chosen a woman–after all they have lots of politically experienced women on their side to choose from. Here are some examples:







So what’s is there for them to complain about?


Oh, now I see. They would still be stuck with the same problem–trying to sell an inferior product at a higher price.


Further evidence of the inferiority of the left will be supplied next weekend at the Gun Blogger Rendezvous in the form of pictures of Ashley Varner from the NRA who will be attending–another reason for gun bloggers and readers to attend. She knows her stuff and it’s not just because the male brain turns to mush when in her presence.

We are winning

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I got a call tonight from Barb’s sister who lives in California. I had talked to her and her husband about guns in years past and while not really opposed to them they wouldn’t want one in their house.


Barb had talked to her last weekend and I knew she were planning to join the NRA just to annoy her liberal friends and neighbors. I also knew their daughter who is in college in Missouri wants to get a gun so she can defend herself. I didn’t know that Barb’s sister and her husband are planning to take up shooting as a hobby. She asked me about ranges and do they rent? And she wanted a recommendation for a gun to start out with. I told her a .22 to lessen the chances of picking up bad habits and reduce the cost.


I also sent her a link to the NRA yard signs so they can tweak the neighbors without even flashing their membership cards.


I need to get them up here for Boomershoot next spring. That will give them some goals.

Pick on Joshua Horwitz day

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As I reported in my previous post Joshua Horwitz, executive director of the Education Fund to Stop Gun Violence, is now working from home to save money but that didn’t stop him from talking about stuff he didn’t know anything about to the D.C. City Council yesterday:



A gun-control advocate told the D.C. Council’s public safety committee Wednesday that officials should consider adopting a complex method of ballistics tracking to help identify guns used in the city.


“In crime scenes, what we find are cartridges and no guns,” said Joshua Horwitz, executive director of the Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence. “Microstamping can provide the link between the gun and cartridge.”


Mr. Horwitz’s comments came during a hearing before the council’s Committee on Public Safety and the Judiciary regarding gun laws in the District.


Apparently he didn’t realize one or more of the following facts:



  • There are no microstamped guns in production.
  • Requiring guns to be microstamped would indirectly be a ban on guns in D.C.
  • The Supreme Court said complete gun bans are unconstitutional.
  • There are over 200 million guns in the U.S. that are not microstamped and no criminal with room temperature I.Q. would use a microstamped gun. Those with sub room temperature I.Q. will get caught without having a microstamped gun.
  • Microstamping is easily defeated:

But we already knew these guys are clueless about guns and microstamping.


P.S. Some gun bloggers erroneously compared the suggested microstamping to Maryland and New York’s “ballistic fingerprint” programs. These are very different things and cannot be directly compared. See my Microstamping research post for details on the differences.

Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence cut backs

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Joshua Horwitz spins it as a positive thing but they are cutting way back on their office space and people are working from home to save money.


Also notice their web site says there are no job opportunities but they are accepting interns at no pay.


It’s a good first step. When they turn off the phones and the only public presence they have is an aging web site that whines about the “Gun Show Loophole” we can consider them politically dead.

Abortion rights versus gun rights–What media bias?

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As Lyle pointed out the other day some interesting comparisons can be made between the way the left deals with abortion versus guns. Here is another example:



McCain and Obama on the issues


ABORTION


McCain: Opposes abortion rights…
Obama: Favors abortion rights.


GUN CONTROL


McCain: Voted against ban on assault-type weapons but in favor of requiring background checks at gun shows. Voted to shield gun-makers and dealers from civil suits. “I believe the Second Amendment ought to be preserved — which means no gun control.”


Obama: Voted to leave gun-makers and dealers open to suit. Also, as Illinois state lawmaker, supported ban on all forms of semiautomatic weapons and tighter state restrictions generally on firearms.


Notice that even the title puts a positive spin on the repression of gun owners. It’s about “gun control”, not “guns”, not “gun rights”, not “the Second Amendment”, not “gun ownership”. Who wouldn’t be opposed to “uncontrolled guns”? Therefore the opposite of uncontrolled guns, or gun control, must be a good thing.


Compare the handling of guns versus abortion. Obama favors a right. McCain opposes a right.


What media bias?

Quote of the day–Counterintuitive Man

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The revolution will not be televised. It will not be brought to you in three parts by any sponsor, and it will not feature guns taken from cold dead fingers.


Counterintuitive Man
August 4, 2008
Counterintuitive Man says: “You can have my gun when you take it from my cold dead finger,” is a total myth!
[I agree. I think the entire mindset has to be changed before the RKBA has any teeth against a tyrannical government. In essence the attitude must be, “You can have my gun when you reanimate your cold dead fingers.” This changes the equation in two crucial ways: 1) It’s the government thug that is presumed to be dying and 2) It’s the individual that is presumed to be walking away from the engagement.–Joe]

Another NRA ad against Obama

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A retired law enforcement officer explains why voting for Obama is a bad idea.

Quote of the day–George S. Roof

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Any time I hear a politician cite common sense as a modifier in any sentence, I know he’s: 1) implied that I don’t have any; and 2) planning on stealing something from me. Since Pope Innocent II declared that the crossbow was an assault weapon in 1139 A.D., I’m not sure what definition these people are capable of. Vote wisely this November, and remember whose interest the name you select has in mind.


George S. Roof
September 30, 2008
Presidential election could shape future gun laws
[For sometime now “common sense” has been a phrase that immediately gets my fight (mostly) or flight response going but I never took the time to analyze it before. Thank you Mr. Roof.–Joe]

Quote of the day–Aldous Huxley

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There is, of course, no reason why the new totalitarianisms should resemble the old.  Government by clubs and firing squads, by artificial famine, mass imprisonment and mass deportation, is not merely inhumane (nobody cares much about that nowadays); it is demonstrably inefficient and, in an age of advanced technology, inefficiency is the sin against the Holy Ghost. A really efficient totalitarian state would be one in which the all-powerful executive of political bosses and their army of managers control a population of slaves who  do not have to be coerced, because they love their servitude. To make them love it is the task assigned, in present-day  totalitarian states, to ministries of propaganda, newspaper editors, and school teachers.

 

 ….[such propagandists] accomplish their greatest triumphs, not by doing something, but by refraining from doing.  Great is truth, but still greater, from a practical point of view, is silence about truth.  By simply not mentioning certain subjects… totalitarian propagandists have influenced opinion much more effectively than they could have done by the most eloquent denunciations, the most compelling of logical rebuttals.

 

Aldous Huxley
Brave New World, 1946 revised foreword
[In other words, far more important than what the media does say is what they don’t say. For example, on gun control, they don’t tell you no one has been able to answer Just One Question. For example when school funding, health care, or social security is being discussed they don’t tell you 90% of what the Federal Government does is not authorized by the U.S. Constitution.–Joe]

Gun safety–what media bias?

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What news organization would call the KKK and their ilk “public safety groups”? Don’t these groups think of themselves as protecting their white women from being raped or “polluting the race”? They were bigots and most of the press treats them like bigots. Yet we get this crap from a major newspaper, the Washington Post, where the anti-gun organizations are referred to as “gun safety groups” six times in the article. These are organizations that have never taught a single person a gun safety class. Having probably taught millions of people gun safety and with it’s 50,000 instructors it’s the NRA that is the leading gun safety group in this country and probably the world.


And I “love” this comment to the article:



How to spot an NRA member:
-lives anywhere South of DC or West of Pennsylvania, but east of California.
-Especially between Virginia and Texas
-sports mullet
-drives an old beat up pick up truck with bumper sticker that says “keep honking im reloading”
-still lives with mom at age 30
-lives in a trailer
-thinks voting 4 Bush is a good idea because he will make guns easier to obtain
-trash can filled with Bud cans
-wears an old faded out cap with a nascar logo
-reeks of the smell of urine and booze