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Source: The Libertarian Enterprise Author: Chuck Bridgeland Posted on 05.15.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “My own particular ‘little pony’ is a close to stock Bulgarian surplus Makarov. Around about 2001 or so AIM Surplus or one of the other surplus gun vendors had a ‘buy 2 for $99 each’ deal. I hit up my usual FFL about it, and he said ‘I can do better than that.’ All told, with whatever profit he made, plus our dear then Governor’s (SPIT!) pound of flesh, I got it for $136, out the door, for the full kit (’target’ grip, original grip, two magazines, cleaning tool and holster). The barrel was unscuffed, so I suspect it had never been shot.” (05/11/08) Link: http://www.ncc-1776.org/tle2008/tle467-20080511-07.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: The Libertarian Enterprise Author: Chris Claypoole Posted on 05.15.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “My favorite pistol is the CZ B SA in .40 S&W. The first time I fired it at the range it was like I had been shooting with it for years. It happens to fit my hand extraordinarily well, and the grip angle and three-dot sights make sighting fast and easy. The all-steel construction gives it considerable heft, reducing recoil quite a lot compared with polymer guns (I also have a Glock 22). These features let me bring it back on target quickly after each round.” (05/11/08) Link: http://www.ncc-1776.org/tle2008/tle467-20080511-06.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: New American Author: John McManus Posted on 05.14.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “Aaron Zelman is executive director of Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership, a pro-Second Amendment group based in Milwaukee.THE NEW AMERICAN: What is your organization’s main goal? Aaron Zelman: Our main goal is to destroy gun control. We are an organization that believes we have the moral authority to point out to the rest of the world the evils that have come from gun control and how humanity has suffered because of gun-control schemes.” (05/08) Link: http://thenewamerican.com/node/8042 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: The Libertarian Enterprise Author: Russell D. Longcore Posted on 05.14.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “Remember the Mel Gibson scene in the movie Lethal Weapon, where character Sgt. Martin Riggs goes to the gun range and shoots a smiley face on a silhouette target from about 75 feet? My Glock .45 allows me to shoot smiley faces at will. I’m an insurance claims adjuster by profession. I’ve had a few close calls doing field investigations over the years. Let me tell you three quick stories.” (05/11/08) Link: http://www.ncc-1776.org/tle2008/tle467-20080511-04.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Maine Antique Digest Author: Robert Kyle Posted on 05.13.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “While America awaits the decision from the Supreme Court of the United States about whether Washington, D.C.’s handgun ban violates the Second Amendment, we’ll take advantage of the legal cease-fire to have a closer look at this landmark case. By the time the Supreme Court heard District of Columbia v. Heller on March 18, the case had been in the works for six years. It was not initiated by the NRA (National Rifle Association) or the six plaintiffs but by a businessman, lawyer, and private citizen who said he has never owned a gun.” (05/13/08) Link: http://www.maineantiquedigest.com/stories/?id=639 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: The Libertarian Enterprise Author: Gary Marbut Posted on 05.13.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “As a veteran handgun and self defense instructor, I can tell you that there is no ‘best’ handgun, except perhaps for one criteria. Somebody once asked the inventor of modern combat handgunning Jeff Cooper what the best gun is for a gunfight. He said, ‘That’s simple. It’s the one you have with you.’ I agree, in spades.” (05/11/08) Link: http://www.ncc-1776.org/tle2008/tle467-20080511-05.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Buckeye Firearms Association Author: Tim Inwood Posted on 05.12.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “For many years the United States Government could not deprive you of your rights, without due process of law and a felony conviction. However, since the passage of the Lautenberg Amendment in 1996 tens of thousands of Americans have been deprived of their right to keep and bear arms for mere misdemeanors. Lautenberg’s logic is if you commit any violent act then you should be deprived the use of firearms. The law enacted in 1996 was retroactive, meaning it not only affected future action but past actions as well. … This law has irritated me for twelve years, as it clearly is unconstitutional. Finally, the legality of this act will face the scrutiny of the United States Supreme Court.” (05/12/08) Link: http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/node/5660 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: The Libertarian Enterprise Author: Curt Howland Posted on 05.12.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “Some handguns have long and illustrious histories. Some are beautiful, handsome or ‘fine,’ and there are even awe-inspiring movie stars like the custom long-barrel AutoMag used by Dirty Harry. I have a work horse. It’s not pretty, shoots a half-assed round, isn’t fast, isn’t special in any way. But it’s mine.” (05/11/08) Link: http://www.ncc-1776.org/tle2008/tle467-20080511-03.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: The Libertarian Enterprise Author: L. Neil Smith Posted on 05.11.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “On the desk beside my keyboard lies an artifact that I have kept at my side for more than half of my life. We’ve been through a lot together. Both of us have undergone a lot of changes over the years, but both of us, deep down inside, remain essentially the same as we began. The object in question started its existence as a ‘Colt Super .38 Automatic,’ one of the first few — according to a letter I used to have from the company historian — manufactured by the Hartford armsmaker when they retooled to make civilian weapons again after World War II. I was born in 1946; the pistol and I are about the same age.” (05/11/08) Link: http://www.ncc-1776.org/tle2008/tle467-20080511-02.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Buckeye Firearms Association Author: Breda Posted on 05.08.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “The state of Ohio says that I am now allowed to carry a concealed handgun. The license itself is a little plastic thing, similar to my drivers license. I keep looking at it, somewhat bemused. It bears a photo of me looking grim, some personal information, and a number that I can only assume represents my place in the line of people who have applied and been accepted before me, and those that will come after. Such a simple thing, and yet. … As we pulled out of the driveway and headed down the street, Mike said, ‘There. It’s official. You are a now free person, no longer a subject.’ I looked over at him and started laughing. I felt my world change. It’s a wild feeling — enormous freedom and enormous responsibility all at once.” (05/08/08) Link: http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/node/5644 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Center For Individual Freedom Author: staff Posted on 05.07.08 by R. Lee Wrights “The checks are in the mail. Those would be the so-called economic stimulus, or tax rebate, checks, rushed out to about 75 percent of Americans by Congress. The checks represent a pittance of your very own money (or, in the case of those who pay little or no taxes, someone else’s money) being returned to you (or, in the case of those who pay little or no taxes, falling like manna from government, as it is supposed to, according to some of them).” (05/07/08) Link: http://tinyurl.com/59d3jv Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Liberty For All Author: CCRKBA staff Posted on 05.06.08 by R. Lee Wrights “Anti-gun Chicago Mayor Richard Daley has taken one more step toward turning his city into a police state by planning to give police fully automatic M4 carbines, while still fighting to block the gun rights of citizens not only in Chicago but throughout Illinois, the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms said today.” (05/06/08) Link: http://www.libertyforall.net/?p=1295 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Times Free Press Author: Joan Garrett Posted on 05.06.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “East Brainerd resident Monica Dobbs hikes 100 miles of the Appalachian Trail every winter with friends and craves the quiet days without cell phones, television and work. Hikers who want to leave their daily lives behind sleep next to strangers in shelters, and many trade their real names for trail names. They sometimes can walk two or three days to find a town or a phone.While leaving society behind is refreshing, being alone in the woods also can be terrifying. ‘It’s an invitation for a disaster,’ said Ms. Dobbs, a 28-year-old hairdresser, who plans to take a 9 mm handgun with her on her next trek.” (05/05/08) Link: http://tinyurl.com/6c3hkm Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: The Vindicator Author: Murrie Gene Kinney Jr Posted on 05.05.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “Gun control may fit into any equation concerning crime, but it does not, in any form or fashion, have a place in the United States of America. In 1974, Dr. Mark Borinsky, a victim of gun violence, founded the ‘National Council to Control Handguns.’ In 2001, it was renamed ‘The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence.’ Each year this organization rates each state, with a number grade similar to school grading, from 0 to 100. A ‘100′ would mean that the state has the tightest controls in place and the ‘0′ rating means simply that the state has no gun controls in place.” (05/03/08) Link: http://www.thevindicator.com/articles/2008/05/03/opinion/opinion64.txt Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: LewRockwell.Com Author: Tricia Shore Posted on 05.02.08 by Thomas L. Knapp “The well-educated, homeschooling, breastfeeding mom at one of the Southern California homeschool park days that we attend, has summed me up as a libertarian. I use the small ‘l’ variety only because I’ve yet to register as an actual Libertarian: ‘I like what I’ve read about Libertarians,’ she told me, ‘but I have a problem with the gun thing.’ Uh-oh. ‘The gun thing’ is something that I thought I understood until I met my capital ‘l’ Libertarian husband over ten years ago. ‘Guns protect us from the government,’ he told me, which I thought at the time was a statement made only by anti-government freakish types. I now respect such supposed freakish types much more than I used to.” (05/02/08) Link: http://www.lewrockwell.com/shore/shore16.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Liberty For All Author: SAF staff Posted on 05.01.08 by R. Lee Wrights “The California Supreme Court made the right decision in rejecting an appeal by the City of San Francisco that sought to uphold its handgun ban, the Second Amendment Foundation said. SAF was joined in a lawsuit against the handgun ban by the National Rifle Association, Law Enforcement Alliance of America, California Association of Firearms Retailers and San Francisco residents.” (05/01/08) Link: http://www.libertyforall.net/?p=1289 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: River Cities\\\' Reader Author: Garry Reed Posted on 05.01.08 by Thomas L. Knapp “Seventeen-year-old Amon Schute is social drek. He’s sneering, jeering, and hateful. He proves it with ostentatious displays of filthy jeans, long, matted hair, body piercings, and tattoos. He’s exactly the kind of kid you’d expect to spend his entire adult life in lockup. Sixteen-year-old Coy Minyon is a social cipher. He’s weak, meek, and fearful. He proves it with a timorous mask of ultra-conservative clothing, neatly groomed hair, unobtrusive appearance, and a permanent muted existence that makes him invisible to the world. He’s exactly the kind of kid you’d expect to spend his entire adult life in total obscurity. Amon and Coy are best friends. Together they plan to gun down a bunch of people in a public place and then off themselves in a blaze of everlasting glory.” (04/30/08) Link: http://tinyurl.com/53kls3 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Buckeye Firearms Association Author: Chad Baus Posted on 04.30.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “Gun ban extremists and others who oppose the right of self defense are fond of saying that when a person is in danger, the best thing to do is to call 911 and let the police take care of it. But what happens when you dial 911 and the police tell you to wait … and wait … and wait? One Columbus-area business owner was wise enough to have made his own plans for that very eventuality.” (04/28/08) Link: http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/node/5621 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Christian Science Monitor Author: Peter A. Gudmundsson Posted on 04.29.08 by Thomas L. Knapp “The Supreme Court will issue a major interpretation of the Second Amendment in coming weeks. But even as both sides in the gun debate await the D.C. v. Heller ruling, the gun industry should set its sights on a different target: certification. It should develop and adopt a private licensing and certification program fashioned on the highly successful scuba diving industry model to provide safety, legal, and marksmanship training to all gun owners and users. Such a private mandate will ensure a base of safer and more knowledgeable gun users and develop a fresh and lucrative revenue source for the whole industry. … For decades, the international Scuba diving community has required all divers to obtain certifications from one of two private associations, the National Association of Underwater Instructors and the Professional Association of Diving Instructors.” (04/29/08) Link: http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/0429/p09s02-coop.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Counter Currents Author: Timothy Gatto Posted on 04.28.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “The political situation in the United States is different at this particular time than in any other time that I have witnessed in my 57 years on this planet. This is the only time in my life that I can ever remember when the right and the left agree more with each other than the so-called ‘centrists’ of the GOP and the Democratic Party. Those that lean left, like myself, are afraid of losing their civil liberties, afraid of the corporate control of the mainstream media, afraid of the government’s surveillance of our personal activities, afraid of violations of the second amendment when it comes to gun ownership and are thoroughly disgusted with the governments clampdown on our 1st Amendment rights on free speech.” (04/28/08) Link: http://www.countercurrents.org/gatto280408.htm Filed under: 2AM Commentary and LAND Commentary and PND Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Enter Stage Right Author: J.B. Williams Posted on 04.28.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “And that’s why Jefferson also reminds us that ‘Every generation needs a new revolution.’ It’s also why the Second Amendment was written, as Jefferson stated so well, Every citizen should be a soldier. This was the case with the Greeks and Romans, and must be that of every free state.’ Contrary to conventional thinking, our guns are not just for hunting. They are for defending our lawful earnings and property, our individual freedom and liberty, against an increasingly intrusive power-hungry government which must take from our most productive citizens against their will, in order to deliver on the promises of expanding government powers.” (04/28/08) Link: http://tinyurl.com/4dz78u Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: The Libertarian Enterprise Author: Jim Lesczynski Posted on 04.28.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “There is something about a good teen angst novel that really resonates with me, even as a 42-year-old. You’d think a quarter of a century since leaving high school would have given me some detachment, and it has for the most part. But every once in awhile, the old feelings of frustration, anger and cynicism come rushing back as vividly as if I were 16 all over again. Re-reading Catcher in the Rye, for example, makes me feel like a teenager, and not in a good way. Darian Worden’s powerful first novel, Bring a Gun to School Day, had a similarly disturbing effect. Erik Shylding, like Holden Caulfield before him, is the perfect embodiment of the alienated male teen of his day. Of course, in Holden Caulfield’s day, a fascination with guns would have characterized him as a healthy, normal young man. Times have changed.” (04/27/08) Link: http://www.ncc-1776.org/tle2008/tle465-20080427-02.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Reason Author: Steve Chapman Posted on 04.28.08 by Thomas L. Knapp “When a rash of gun murders takes place, it makes sense for the police to do one of two things: renew tactics that have been effective in the past at curbing homicides, or embrace ideas that have not been tried before. But those options don’t appeal to Chicago Police Supt. Jody Weis. What he proposes is a crackdown on assault weapons. I’m tempted to say this is the moral equivalent of a placebo — a sugar pill that is irrelevant to the malady at hand. But that would be unfair. Placebos, after all, sometimes have a positive effect. Assault weapons bans, not so much.” (04/24/08) Link: http://www.reason.com/news/show/126162.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Buckeye Firearms Association Author: Mark Noble Posted on 04.27.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “A few days ago, the Dayton Daily News ran a piece proclaiming that ‘Students for Concealed Carry on Campus is fighting for the right to be armed at school.’ The reality is that all students have an inherent right to be armed … Students for Concealed Carry on Campus are merely pressing legislators to bring their civil liberties in line with their existing inherent rights. Officials are none too happy with this effort … According to CNN, Gene Ferrara, the police chief at the University of Cincinnati (UC) said ‘I don’t think the answer to bullets flying is to send more bullets flying.’ One wonders why campus police are armed at all if they object so strongly to armed intervention to stop violent criminal attacks.” (04/25/08) Link: http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/node/5625 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Tampa Tribune Author: Marion P. Hammar Posted on 04.27.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “Levy claims that our right to have firearms locked in our cars in a parking lot is not about the Second Amendment but about the mythical right of corporations to usurp the Constitution and ban guns. But Levy didn’t pull it off because we can see the truth. And the price he’s asking us to pay for permission to do business with an anti-gun corporation could mean losing our lives — and that price is as clear as the sky is blue. The Legislature passed, and Gov. Charlie Crist signed, a law to preserve the self-defense rights of law-abiding men and women in public parking lots. It reaffirms existing rights that have been jeopardized by politically motivated corporate policies. Big business fought this measure, feigning corporate ‘private property rights’ — a baseless argument considering that business consents to laws that limit property rights.” (04/25/08) Link: http://tinyurl.com/4vuskv Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Buckeye Firearms Association Author: David Codrea Posted on 04.24.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “I have worked on college and university campuses most of my adult life — first as a student, now as a professor. I have grown quite accustomed to the idea of citizen concealed carry. I know that such policies … do not increase crime; in contrast, data suggests these allowances deter all but the most brazen (or stupid) criminals. Most importantly, I also realize that criminals can and will carry weapons anywhere they wish, despite the law. Concealed carry is analogous to driving down the highway. I know that at any moment, any of the thousands of drivers could swerve and kill me head-on. … But day after year after decade, they do not. Why not? They are decent people, and well-intentioned, just like you and me.” (04/24/08) Link: http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/node/5614 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Cato Institute Author: Robert A. Levy Posted on 04.23.08 by Thomas L. Knapp “The U.S. Supreme Court will soon decide a Second Amendment challenge to the gun ban in Washington, D.C. I am co-counsel to Dick Heller in District of Columbia v. Heller, so I take a backseat to no one when it comes to vindicating Second Amendment rights. But the ‘Take Your Guns to Work’ law signed by Florida Gov. Charlie Crist last week, with vigorous backing from the National Rifle Association, has nothing to do with the Second Amendment. It has everything to do with violating the rights of private property owners.” (04/22/08) Link: http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=9349 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Disloyal Opposition Author: JD Tuccille Posted on 04.23.08 by Thomas L. Knapp “Just how susceptible are societies to top-down change, with government using the force of law to impose the preferences of one faction on the unwilling members of another faction? In 2002, an intriguing and underappreciated book was published by Oxford University Press that addressed just that question. Can Gun Control Work?, by James B. Jacobs, Warren E. Burger Professor of Law and Director of the Center for Research in Crime and Justice at New York University, purports to address only the practicality of restricting firearms ownership in the United States, but it really applies to all circumstances in which governments try to impose policies disliked by significant percentages of their subject populations.” (04/22/08) Link: http://tinyurl.com/5b7fmk Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Fox News Author: John R. Lott, Jr. Posted on 04.22.08 by Steve Trinward “Americans’ fears over the safety of schools continues. Last Monday, three colleges and four K-to-12 schools were shut down by threats of violence. This week over 25,000 college students at 300 chapters in 44 states belong to a group, Students for Concealed Carry on College Campuses, that will carry empty handgun holsters to protest their concerns about not being able to defend themselves. With the first anniversary of the Virginia Tech attack last week and the discussions that it created, we clearly have not been able to put that and other attacks behind us. There are good reasons why the safety measures adopted over the last year to speed up response times or hiring more police haven’t eliminated the fear people feel.” [editor’s note: In the RRND forum, this is of course preaching to the choir, but it is nice to see some MSM coverage of the reality - SAT] (04/22/08) Link: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,352006,00.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and PND Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Independent Institute Author: Don B. Kates Posted on 04.17.08 by Thomas L. Knapp “April 16 marks one year since the massacre at Virginia Tech by mentally disturbed student Seung-Hui Cho. Last week the university offered anguished parents a settlement of $100,000 per murdered child. There are three things wrong with this: First, even in financial terms, it is hopelessly inadequate to redress the deaths of these talented young people. Second, it does nothing to correct the useless, symbolic policy which facilitated their deaths. Third, if you don’t think that the policy is wrong,Virginia Tech has no liability for the deaths it facilitated. That policy is the ‘gun-free zone.’ Even if the victims had possessed permits to carry a gun, Virginia Tech forbade them to have that means of self-defense while on campus. This ensured that only the killer (who, of course, violated the ‘gun-free zone’ policy just as he violated the laws against murder) and uniformed police would have guns.” (04/16/08) Link: http://www.independent.org/newsroom/article.asp?id=2173 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: New York Times Author: David Codrea Posted on 04.17.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “The original name of Mr. Horwitz’[s] group was the National Coalition to Ban Handguns. There is no reason to think that goal has changed, yet he presents the ‘gun show loophole’ argument as the centerpiece of his legislative agenda � even though a Bureau of Justice Statistics survey concluded that over 99% of criminals get their guns from other sources. I am glad he has ‘resolved to do all [he] can to prevent another similar tragedy,’ but with thousands of citizen disarmament laws on the books at the federal, state and municipal level, I’m wondering when enough will be enough. In truth, we’ve tried things Mr. Horwitz’[s] way, and all anyone will ever be able to do continuing down that path is ‘watch in horror.’ And go to memorials.” (04/16/08) Link: http://topics.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/04/16/arguing-for-gun-choice/ Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Buckeye Firearms Association Author: Brent Greer Posted on 04.16.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “On Wednesday, April 16, gun control and anti self defense organizations are planning a series of protests around the nation to commemorate the one year anniversary of the mass murders at Virginia Tech. Remember? This was a likely preventable tragedy, had university administrators not openly scoffed at the common-sense proposal to permit students, faculty and staff the means to defend themselves. Instead, a man opened fire on students in two locations, killing more than 30. … Campuses where open thought and discussion are allegedly encouraged are shut down, and reasonable proposals and debate to enable students to protect themselves are dismissed out of hand with no comprehension of the unintended consequences.” (04/15/08) Link: http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/node/5597 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Heartland Institute Author: Maureen Martin Posted on 04.15.08 by R. Lee Wrights “Chicago’s public school officials have been busing students to Springfield to act as ‘grief’ machines to advocate passage of stronger gun control measures by the Illinois legislature. Using children as props to score political points is shameless, not to mention pointless, as even some of the students themselves recognize. Chicago has some of the strongest gun ban measures on the books in any city in the United States, yet guns are still on the streets in the hands of gang members and the teenage death toll mounts. This is not unusual — gun violence is on the rise in cities across the country where stringent gun control laws are in place.” (04/15/08) Link: http://www.heartland.org/Article.cfm?artId=23101 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Conservative Voice Author: Larry Pratt Posted on 04.15.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “April 16 is the anniversary of the Virginia Tech massacre. We are certain to hear about the need to keep guns out of the hands of bad guys. Of course, that means more gun control. Schools are generally gun free zones by law. There are exceptions, the biggest being all of Utah’s state-run universities. No school shootings have occurred in that state. But the multiple killings that have occurred at various schools around the country have all taken place in areas which have been legally rendered as gun free zones.” (04/14/08) Link: http://www.theconservativevoice.com/article/31740.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Center For Individual Freedom Author: staff Posted on 04.14.08 by R. Lee Wrights “If Barack Obama is elected President of the United States, he is going to send ugly, burly men to your house and confiscate your guns, which will be melted down and reformed into windmills. All civilian ammunition will be transferred to Yucca Mountain, to be stored with nuclear waste. Well, perhaps that’s a bit overstated, it being campaign season and all, but we need to get your attention.” (04/10/08) Link: http://tinyurl.com/6ptgkw Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Liberty For All Author: CCRKBA staff Posted on 04.14.08 by R. Lee Wrights “The Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms praised the Florida Legislature today for passing a measure that expands and protects the right of Sunshine State gun owners to have firearms locked in their cars while they are working. The so-called ‘take-your-guns-to-work’ measure prohibits business owners from banning firearms that are kept locked in cars by their employees when those vehicles are parked on company property.” [editor’s note: Violating employers’ property rights neither “expands” nor “protects” employees’ gun rights. All it does is set another rights-violating precedent - TLK] (04/14/08) Link: http://www.libertyforall.net/?p=1266 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Unknown News Author: Hazel Burke Posted on 04.14.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “At one time Mahatma Gandhi was regarded as a dangerous criminal. He was even jailed by the British Empire. A little brown man wearing what we could consider the equivalent of homespun diapers helped defeat the greatest empire in the history of the world! Later, another proponent of non-violent resistance, Martin Luther King, was regarded by the FBI as the most dangerous man in the USA. MLK rocked ‘The World’ and shook up The System. The Second Amendment is a great thing, a foundation of the Constitution. But we won’t beat The System with guns. That would only make The System stronger. Enlightenment is the goal, with information, brains and love as the tools. We need to persuade people, not make enemies out of them. And isn’t that also the lesson of Iraq? The US lost the war there, and is losing the ‘War on Terror,’ because unless the U.S. is prepared to kill EVERYONE in Iraq and every believer in Islam, it cannot win this war with bombs and bullets.” (04/13/08) Link: http://www.unknownnews.org/080419-sd13Su-HB.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Las Vegas Review-Journal Author: Vin Suprynowicz Posted on 04.13.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “Back in the 1920s and 1930s, the forward-thinking German ‘Weimar’ republic effectively banned firearms possession by just about anyone but the military, the government police, and the ruling ‘Junker’ class, members of whom were allowed to keep their fancy hunting rifles. The ban was particularly effective among the ethnic minorities, such as the Jews. Was this effective in keeping the Jews from killing each other with handguns? Yes! Later, when millions of Jews were rounded up and sent to concentration camps including Auschwitz and Buchenwald to be exterminated — despite the fact that on some mornings the other prisoners were each given water and a piece of bread, while the Jewish prisoners were not allowed to either eat or drink — did the Jews kill anyone with a handgun in order to get some food or water to keep themselves or their loved ones from starving. No! They couldn’t, because they had no handguns! You see how well that works?” (04/13/08) Link: http://www.lvrj.com/opinion/17591004.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Democrat and Chronicle Author: James Ganrielle Posted on 04.12.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “The Supreme Court is poised to decide if Second Amendment rights are violated when citizens are denied firearms ownership for personal use when they’re not affiliated with a state-regulated militia. The Second Amendment … has evoked much debate as to whether it was intended only to preserve a state militia’s right. However, this interpretation is inconsistent with the Bill of Rights. Framers of the Constitution limited government powers and added the Bill of Rights to secure the ‘inalienable’ individual freedoms they believed were essential to a successful Republic.” (04/11/08) Link: http://tinyurl.com/3qrauw Filed under: 2AM Commentary and PND Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Good for the Country Author: John Longenecker Posted on 04.12.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “I’ve written before that the Colleges refusing to recognize student rights are indecent. I write often that in forcing liberty enthusiast students to obtain ‘counseling,’ to face suspension or other punishment even for inquiring about handgun policy within right-to-carry states, they force adult students to choose between felony and funeral. This is indecent for public servants to tell the citizen authority how much authority we have. Indecent. It is technically wrong and tortious.” (04/11/08) Link: http://www.goodforthecountry.com/ Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: The Voyager Author: Ashley Faulkner Posted on 04.10.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “The Florida Senate passed a bill Wednesday that will allow workers to keep guns in their cars during the workday, even if the employer does not want to allow it. The bill, waiting to be signed into law by Gov. Charlie Crist, does not include workplaces like schools, nuclear power plants or places that involve national security. Also, the employees may only keep the guns locked in their cars, and only if they have a permit can they carry the weapon. Personally, I am not sure whether or not the bill is such a great idea. How much is a gun locked in the trunk of a car going to help when an attacker comes out of the shadows while an employee is walking out of the building?” (04/10/08) Link: http://tinyurl.com/622xd9 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Liberty For All Author: SAF staff Posted on 04.09.08 by R. Lee Wrights “‘With the passing of Charlton Heston over the weekend, America has lost a true patriot, and a man who stood up for all civil rights,’ said Alan Gottlieb, founder of the Second Amendment Foundation. Gottlieb said the former National Rifle Association president and Academy Award-winning actor was a ‘pillar of strength’ for the gun rights movement, and his passing is a sad event for the entire firearms community.” (04/09/08) Link: http://www.libertyforall.net/?p=1260 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Liberty For All Author: GOA staff Posted on 04.08.08 by R. Lee Wrights “The Post Office is wading into the gun control debate. That’s right, the U.S. Postal Service is trying to keep people from shipping replica or inert munitions through the mail. They have no authority in the law, since Congress has kept for itself the power to decide what can and cannot be shipped. But the Post Office is trying to say that replica or inert munitions are hazardous!” (04/08/08) Link: http://www.libertyforall.net/?p=1257 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Fox News Author: John R. Lott, Jr. Posted on 04.07.08 by Steve Trinward “Something happens to Democrats on the gun issue when they run for president. For John Kerry during 2004, it was awkwardly posing in brand new hunting gear at a seemingly endless series of hunting photo-ops. But in what will probably be the most improbable change, the Politico reported on Saturday that Barack Obama was making a big play for gun votes in Pennsylvania. It is not particularly surprising that this change is occurring with the crucial Pennsylvania primary soon approaching. With about one million of the country’s 12.5 million hunters …. Yet, it should be a hard sell. Obama has consistently supported gun control legislation that came up while he was in the Illinois state legislature and the U.S. Senate.” (04/07/08) Link: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,347690,00.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and CANDi Commentary and PND Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Liberty For All Author: CCRKBA staff Posted on 04.07.08 by R. Lee Wrights “Democrat Barack Obama on Tuesday insulted millions of legally-armed American citizens when he told a Pennsylvania newspaper that concealed carry poses a threat to innocent people, and he should immediately apologize for that remark, the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms said today. Senator Obama, quoted by the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, admitted, ‘I am not in favor of concealed weapons. I think that creates a potential atmosphere where more innocent people could (get shot during) altercations.’” (04/07/08) Link: http://www.libertyforall.net/?p=1256 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: The Price of Liberty Author: Colonel Dan Posted on 04.07.08 by Thomas L. Knapp “‘God, Guts and Guns made America great’ This little phrase is really insightful when you think about it. The essence of undeniable truth is oft times most profound in simple brevity. In this case, much of America’s greatness is summed up in just seven words. The three elements credited in that expression played more of a role in making America the greatest country in history than most other attributes we can name. In fact, many other contributing factors sprang from one, if not all three of these. Give this some thought and you’ll find the truth behind it is apparent.” (04/07/08) Link: http://www.thepriceofliberty.org/08/04/07/coloneldan.htm Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Roanoke Times Author: Bill Mashburn Posted on 04.03.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “As we await this summer’s Supreme Court decision on District of Columbia v. Heller, it is important we have a good understanding of the Second Amendment.First we must know the Founding Fathers of the new American republic had all been rigorously educated in the classical European tradition and were not just backwoodsmen with a love of guns. They had studied the writings of great philosophers like Nicollò Machiavelli, Cesare Beccaria, Hubo Grotius and Charles Montesquieu, who, without exception declared a democracy could not exist without the right of the citizens to have and bear arms.” (04/02/08) Link: http://www.roanoke.com/editorials/commentary/wb/156703 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Buckeye Firearms Association Author: Gerard Valentino Posted on 04.03.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “To hear the left scoff at the premise that an armed society is a polite society, you would think Americans are uncivilized barbarians just waiting for a chance to shoot each other. Such a backwards thought process isn’t limited to gun control, their distrust of average Americans is rampant in the left’s pantheon of ridiculous beliefs. Their duplicitous ways are exposed most readily when it comes to guns since they claim to champion the poor and then disarm them in the face of common criminals, and they claim to champion individual freedom except for when it comes to self-defense involving guns. Finally, their absurd notion that if everyone has to carry a gun then it proves society is unsafe flies in the face of common sense.” (04/02/08) Link: http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/node/5556 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Liberty For All Author: Jonathan David Morris Posted on 04.03.08 by R. Lee Wrights “Last summer, right around July 4th, it occurred to me I ought to support the Second Amendment. Not that I ever opposed it, per se. I just hadn’t thought about it before. But I realized last summer the right to keep and bear arms is crucial in this era of post-9/11 ‘vigilance.’ I even wrote an article about it, but never went further than endorsing this right. ‘I’m not opposed to the idea of owning … a gun,’ I said, ‘but I don’t believe I’ll need to any time soon.’ Why? Because ‘I buy my meat at the store and get along well with most of the folks I know.’” (04/03/08) Link: http://www.libertyforall.net/?p=1250 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: The Libertarian Enterprise Author: A.X.Perez Posted on 04.02.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “Listening to the arguments made before the Supreme in the Heller case I was impressed by how much more articulate Plaintiff’s counsel was compared to both the Defendant’s Counsel and the Solicitor General’s Counsel. Hopefully that will help get a favorable decision. However there are two points that he could have made just a little teeny tiny bit clearer …” (03/31/08) Link: http://www.ncc-1776.org/tle2008/tle462-20080330-07.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Patriot Ledger Author: Lauress Bean Posted on 04.01.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “To say the Second Amendment is some sort of group right is preposterous. Joel Mathis, on the other hand, made an interesting point bringing up O.W. Holmes’ observation that the First Amendment doesn’t give one the right to yell ‘fire’ in a crowded theater.This is true, but no one is allowed to stuff a rag into your mouth upon entering that theater to prevent you from doing just that. That would amount to prior constraint — a la a handgun ban preventing you from defending yourself. In fact, one would be obligated to yell if there was a fire. I don’t think Holmes was suggesting you quietly remove yourself from a burning theater leaving there the rest to die without warning anybody.” (04/01/08) Link: http://www.patriotledger.com/opinions/x377865510 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Intellectual Conservative Author: Seth Cooper Posted on 04.01.08 by Thomas L. Knapp “Could gun rights advocates really be wrong about the unconstitutionality of the District of Columbia’s handgun ban? Interestingly, one conservative professor thinks so. Amidst the buzz over the U.S. Supreme Court’s pending decision in District of Columbia v. Heller, Dr. Kevin R.C. Gutzman insists an original understanding of the Constitution supports the ban. But there is good reason to think Gutzman is wrong about the Constitution and the right to keep and bear arms. The Congressional power to exclusively legislate for the District should be directly limited by the Bill of Rights.” (04/01/08) Link: http://tinyurl.com/ywzgxs Filed under: 2AM Commentary and CANDi Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Ithaca Journal Author: Joe Lonsky Posted on 03.31.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “The ‘duh’ factor in limiting corruption in any organization is laced throughout our Constitution, termed ‘checks and balances.’ Regardless of your own personal views on whether people kill people or guns kill people the Second Amendment is one of these checks. This country was brought about by revolution: farmers and tradesmen rising up against a government that was taxing unfairly and, in general, oppressing them. The framers of the Constitution realized that this was an ongoing fact of humankind, which it addressed with the right to keep and bear arms and the encouragement to rise up and abolish your own government once it crossed the line from beneficial to thieving and corrupt.” (03/29/08) Link: http://tinyurl.com/2bv739 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: American Spectator Author: Emily Mullin Posted on 03.31.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “With school violence on the rise and campus shootings becoming increasingly more common, some states are rethinking their gun laws. Instead of putting more useless restrictions on guns, many of these states are looking into the possibility of allowing people with valid permits to carry concealed weapons on school grounds. Arizona State Senate Bill 1214, for example, would allow permit-holders of at least 21 years of age to carry concealed firearms at K-12 schools, community colleges and universities. Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Tennessee, South Carolina, Georgia, Idaho, and Washington all have similar concealed-carry legislation pending. Currently, Utah is the only state that allows guns at all public institutions of higher learning.” (03/31/08) Link: http://www.spectator.org/dsp_article.asp?art_id=12974 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Atlantic Free Press Author: Tom Chartier Posted on 03.31.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “It’s time to set a new precedent. For the past seven years Bush/Cheney and Co. have been doing an outstanding job trashing the US Constitution. That Military Commissions Act of 2006 was a real Neocon crowd-pleaser. However, it’s time for the State to take aim at another pillar of the Constitution. Coming under fire right now is the favorite target of the State, the Second Amendment.” (03/29/08) Link: http://atlanticfreepress.com/content/view/3638/32/ Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: What McAuliffe Said Blog Author: Mike H Posted on 03.31.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “The socalled ’series finale’ of Jericho lived up to its reputation as a thought provoking, inspiring multifaceted show. … Gray Anderson, the Mayor of Jericho, is at a ‘constitutional convention’ for the Allied States of America. He’s chatting in an elevator with another delegate. The delegate says there was a 20 minute orientation, an hour round table discussion, a two hour lunch, a 1000 member ‘town hall’ meeting and boom, no more Second Amendment. Gray says that it would be easier to ‘pacify’ the country if the people can’t shoot back’. WOW! This has NEVER been stated on any other show so bluntly. Let me tell you about Jericho.” (03/27/08) Link: http://whatmcauliffesaid.blogspot.com/2008/03/jericho.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and LAND Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Liberty For All Author: CCRKBA staff Posted on 03.31.08 by R. Lee Wrights “The Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms today is calling for an independent investigation of an in-flight discharge of a pistol carried by an armed U.S. Airways pilot to prevent any whitewashing, cover-up or scapegoating in the incident. CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb said the incident is alarming because of allegations that the pilot may have been following strict Transportation Security Administration (TSA) rules when the mishap occurred.” (03/31/08) Link: http://www.libertyforall.net/?p=1243 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Las Vegas Review-Journal Author: Vin Suprynowicz Posted on 03.30.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “Bill Wade, executive council chairman of the Coalition of National Park Service Retirees, told The Los Angeles Times last month that people could be discouraged from visiting certain parks, such as Shenandoah National Park in Virginia, where he served as superintendent, if they knew the Second Amendment was in force, there. ‘How many of you would want to go out there if you knew that people were running up and down the Appalachian Trail with guns?’ Gee, I don’t know, Bill. Do you avoid police stations because the law-abiding Americans there are armed? Military bases? Why would you come to America in the first place, if you didn’t like the idea of mere peasants ‘running up and down with guns?’” (03/30/08) Link: http://www.lvrj.com/opinion/17138006.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and PND Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Liberty Belles Author: Jennifer Freeman Posted on 03.26.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “At issue in the D.C. vs. Heller case is not only whether or not the Supreme Court will acknowledge that the Second Amendment applies to private citizens, but also to what extent the government can restrict our ability to exercise that right. … While it is doubtful that the Supreme Court decision will contain a long list of specifics in terms of regulation, their opinion should convey the Court’s opinion quite clearly and should be broad enough to cover a variety of scenarios. With that in mind, we would like to review several common anti-gun laws that serve no purpose other than to infringe or restrict the law-abiding citizen’s ability to own or possess a firearm.” (03/26/08) Link: http://www.libertybelles.org/articles/unreasonable.htm Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Fairfield County Weekly Author: Phil Maymin Posted on 03.26.08 by Thomas L. Knapp “It’s a trap. Whenever a politician says, ‘Let’s be reasonable,’ the ghosts of the founding fathers reach for their guns. Who decides what is reasonable? If you allow the government to decide what is a reasonable violation of your rights, then you no longer have unalienable rights to be protected by your elected officials, you have privileges granted to you by your prison warden.” (for publication 03/27/08) Link: http://www.fairfieldweekly.com/article.cfm?aid=6794 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: The Libertarian Enterprise Author: Dennis Wilson Posted on 03.25.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “This week, Gun owners had their day in court, when the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the DC v. Heller case, which involves a challenge to the DC gun ban. According to a Gun Owners of America email bulletin, at some point, Justice John Paul Stevens asked Alan Gura, the attorney for Dick Heller, if it would be proper to say that the right protected in the Second Amendment shall not be ‘unreasonably infringed?’ To our shock and horror, Gura answered ‘yes.’ He did qualify his answer somewhat by saying ‘we don’t know’ exactly what this ‘unreasonable standard looks like.’ But he conceded a significant amount of ground with his answer, because any ban would be ‘reasonable’ to Chuck Schumer and Sarah Brady.” (03/24/08) Link: http://www.ncc-1776.org/tle2008/tle461-20080323-07.html Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Liberty For All Author: GOA staff Posted on 03.24.08 by R. Lee Wrights “Gun owners had their day in court on Tuesday [March 18th], when the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the DC v. Heller case, which involves a challenge to the DC gun ban. Absent some world-shaking surprise, it is pretty clear that there are five votes on the Supreme Court to declare that the Second Amendment is an individual right. That fact alone should be enough to settle the argument over gun control and protect gun owners’ rights. But as we all know, that’s where the battle over the meaning of the Second Amendment begins.” (03/24/08) Link: http://www.libertyforall.net/?p=1233 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: Liberty For All Author: SAF staff Posted on 03.24.08 by R. Lee Wrights “Today’s [March 18th] oral arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of District of Columbia v Heller produced a clear victory for the individual citizen’s right to keep and bear arms, the Second Amendment Foundation said. ‘We are confident,’ said SAF founder Alan Gottlieb, ‘that the high court will hand down an opinion that affirms the Second Amendment means what it says.’” (03/24/08) Link: http://www.libertyforall.net/?p=1232 Filed under: 2AM Commentary and RRND Commentary | |
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Source: FindLaw Writ Author: Michael Dorf Posted on 03.24.08 by Mary Lou Seymour “[T]he Supreme Court appears poised to rule that the Second Amendment protects a private right to possess and use firearms. In doing so, it will raise a host of new questions, including: What counts as a protected ‘Arm?’ To whom may government deny the right to possess and use firearms? What standard of judicial scrutiny applies to laws burdening that right? Does the right afford the same protection against regulation or prohibition by the states as it affords |