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SAF Files Supreme Court Brief in Chicago Gun Ban Challenge
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Bruce Krafft
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"The [SAF] today filed its much-anticipated brief to the United States Supreme Court in the case of McDonald v. Chicago, which challenges the constitutionality of that city's ban on handguns."
"SAF is joined in the lawsuit by [ISRA] and four individual plaintiffs. They are represented by attorney Alan Gura, who successfully argued the landmark Heller case before the high court in 2008, leading to a ruling that the Second Amendment affirms and protects an individual right to keep and bear arms beyond the scope of serving in a militia."
"The McDonald case not only challenges the Chicago ban, but also brings up the question of application of the right to keep and bear arms to the states through the 14th Amendment." ... |
Leviathan's Orphans
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Bruce Krafft
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"Her son needs her at home. The Empire demands her services in its war on Afghanistan. Since nobody is able to provide the child with a suitable home while she's away, the mother quite sensibly decided that her first duty was to her child."
"So Alexis Hutchinson of Oakland, California, an Army Specialist -- and, what's infinitely more important, a single mother to her11-month-old son, Kamani -- may wind up in prison. ..." ...
"Alexis' predicament resulted from a moment of bureaucratic whimsy: Initially told that she would be granted an extension to make suitable child care arrangements, she was told at the last moment that this decision had been rescinded and that she was to report for deployment irrespective of her child's needs." ... |
The Brady Campaign for defenseless soldiers
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Bruce Krafft
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"Reason Magazine's Jacob Sullum recently wrote a scathing criticism of the policy that rendered the victims of the Ft. Hood atrocity defensless against their cowardly attacker.""Neither Smith nor the other victims of Hasan's assault had guns because soldiers on military bases within the United States generally are not allowed to carry them. Last week's shootings, which killed 13 people and wounded more than 30, demonstrated once again the folly of 'gun-free zones,' which attract and assist people bent on mass murder instead of deterring them." "The soldier disarmament policy to which Sullum refers is not just a Ft. Hood rule--the Ft. Hood victims were disarmed pursuant to a military-wide policy ..." ... |
Bloomberg's Phantom Mayors Against Illegal Guns
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Bruce Krafft
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"Billionaire anti-gun zealot Michael Bloomberg, mayor of New York City, recently appeared on 'Meet the Press.' Host David Gregory asked him, 'How can you muster the clout and the power to take on the NRA?' Bloomberg raised some eyebrows with his response."
"'If you look at what the real numbers are, I think that we can pull together here and raise enough money . . . to take on this issue and explain to Congress this is just an outrage,' said Bloomberg."
"Having called your Second Amendment rights an 'outrage,' Bloomberg went on to add, 'I'm going to not only do that myself, I'm going to ask plenty of other people to do it. If you want to beat the NRA, you have to go out and get your message out. And it costs money to do that.'" ... |
Obama administration criminalizes gun ownership
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Bruce Krafft
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"In early America a gun was an essential part of survival. In fact, owning a gun and knowing how to use it was considered an obligation to one's self as well as to one's family and community. ... Today it is no less a tool of freedom. It is a tool of freedom from becoming the victim of a home invasion. It is a tool of freedom on the streets ... Firearms are also a recreational tool for the shooting sportsman, and are still used in the 21st century to put meat on the table, some for pleasure and others out of necessity. ..."
"Cora Weiss is one of those people that hate such things as the Second Amendment. She is a career peacenik and president of the UN affiliate The Hague for Peace. ..." ... |
Veterans' needs, gun control issues tragically merge at Fort Hood
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Bruce Krafft
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"This week, we marked Veterans Day, originally known as Armistice Day, marking the end of World War I, the War to end all wars. Instead, we have the 80th commemoration, and tens of thousands of new veterans in a war of never end."
"This Veterans Day, above all, has demonstrated that the U.S. War on Terror and the NRA’s War of Terror have consequences."
"This week, the consequence of misguided policies have had tragic consequences."
"The massacre at Fort Hood, Texas, only the latest mass shooting, points up the reality that sending soldiers to war, especially an unending war with an undefined enemy, affects society at home for the long term." ... |
Senate Should Expand Hearing into Fort Hood Shooting
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Bruce Krafft
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"This week, the Senate Homeland Security Committee will hold hearings into the recent mass shooting at Ft.Hood in Texas. A press release ... stated: 'This murderous attack should be examined from every angle to make sure nothing like this occurs again.'" ...
"'We would also like to encourage the Homeland Security Committee to expand these hearings and look at all of the mass shootings this country has suffered in the past few years,' said Ron Pinciaro, Director of [Connecticut Against Gun Violence]. ..."
"Recent mass shootings should be examined to determine if there are common threads. ..." ...
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Submitter's Note: The 'common thread' that immediately comes to my mind is that all of these shootings took place in "gun free" zones. |
The Second Amendment--Not an argument of extremes
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Bruce Krafft
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"More than 30,000 Americans were killed by firearms in 2006. That’s like the tragedies of Fort Hood and Columbine happening three times a day, every day, or the World Trade Center 10 times a year. It doesn't matter who we are—Democrat, Republican, Mormon, non-Mormon, man, woman—we can all agree that the fact that more preschoolers are killed by guns than police officers are killed by gunfire in the line of duty is disturbing. Why do we put up with it?"
"Time and again, gun lobbyists revive the tired 'slippery slope' argument to oppose even common sense gun laws, such as mandatory background checks. This lobby claims any law—regardless of how reasonable—to limit gun use in any way is part of an agenda to blanket-ban firearms from everyone ..." ... |
CNN Again Touts Apparent Rise in Militia Activity
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R. Smith
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"On Monday’s American Morning, CNN’s Jim Acosta rehashed a three-month-old report from the left-wing Southern Poverty Law Center about the apparent rise in militia activity in the U.S., and extensively featured a militia from Michigan whose members purportedly 'could not specify which of their constitutional rights are being peeled away.'"
"Acosta didn’t use any specific ideological labels to classify the militias during his report, which aired just before the bottom of the 7 am Eastern hour, but it was clear that the featured militia, the Southeast Michigan Volunteer Militia, held right-of-center views, as its members expressed concern about gun rights, anti-Obama sentiment, and even flew the yellow Gadsden flag ..." ... |
A Detroit Victim
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Bruce Krafft
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"The victim got out of his car, knocked out the other driver's window and began to pull the man out of the vehicle. The 29-year-old then shot at the 33-year-old, hitting him twice ..." "Yeah, that sure sounds like a victim to me. Which must make the guy who defended himself the victimizer."
"I'd say Christine MacDonald of The Detroit News is one 'Authorized Journalist' who understands exactly what's expected of her."
"UPDATE: Mack asks me in comments what I'm talking about, and says the word 'victim' appears nowhere in the article.
That's probably because The Detroit News practices 'Authorized Journalism,' and doesn't feel compelled to issue corrections or retractions when it's so much easier just to change things and hope no one notices." ... |
Video: Michigan militias rise up in response to concerns over gun control and President Obama
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Bruce Krafft
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"In the video below CNN gives an excellent report on the rise of militias with a special focus on one militia in Michigan. The Southern Poverty Law Center did a report earlier which revealed that militias have grown rapidly since the election of President Obama. The CNN report dives deeper into the reasons for the rise in militia numbers."
"Two main reasons are given by militia members for their increased popularity. First many members worry about the degradation of the second amendment. ... The second reason for militia activity is simply distrust of President Obama. ..."
"As the CNN panel notes the militia members really have no evidence to back up the concerns over gun rights ..." ...
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Submitter's Note: Nothing but campaign promises, anti-gun rhetoric about US guns 'causing' problems in Mexico, and subtle pushes to close the (non-existant) gun show loophole. |
Firearms community furious over ouster of pro-gun Seattle talk host; can you spell BOYCOTT?
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Bruce Krafft
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"If it were still in vogue to tar and feather people or ride them out of town on a rail, the management at Seattle's Fisher Broadcasting just might be running from a mob."
"The cause of this is last Thursday's (Nov. 12) unceremonious ouster of veteran conservative talk show host Kirby Wilbur after 16 years on the air, the last several of which have been in the morning slot, 5-9 a.m., where he dominated the local airwaves. The other day at a gun show in Puyallup, there was serious talk of a boycott of all advertisers on all Fisher stations ..."
"Wilbur has been the Northwest’s premier conservative voice for the past 16 years, and he has been a staunch defender of gun rights throughout that period ..." |
GOP amendment allows 'mentally incapacitated' vets to buy guns
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Bruce Krafft
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"A provision in a Senate bill quietly adopted in 2008 yet to reach a vote would allow veterans in the FBI's criminal background system listed as 'mentally incapacitated' to purchase firearms."
"The provision is coming under fire in the wake of a mass shooting at Ft. Hood Army base earlier this month which killed 13. The new law would allow vets on the FBI list to buy weapons if they haven't been ruled ineligible by a judicial body." ...
"'Currently, when the Department of Veterans' Affairs (VA) appoints a fiduciary to assist a veteran with managing their financial affairs, VA also deems the veteran mentally incompetent and reports him or her to [NICS],' Burr's release wrote. ..." ... |
PA: Tax protest draws up to 2,000
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Bruce Krafft
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"Leaders of a protest that brought hundreds of people to Harrisburg over the weekend say they hope to send a message to state lawmakers about fiscal responsibility and taxes."
"Participants in the event hosted by the Pennsylvania Tea Party Patriots marched through the city to the state Capitol steps Saturday chanting 'Can you hear us now?' They carried signs protesting everything from abortion to gun control ..."
"The crowd ... was estimated by Capitol police at 1,500 to 2,000 people." ...
"Some marchers, who walked from City Island to the Capitol, openly carried handguns and M-16 rifles[sic] to show legislators they believe in their Second Amendment right to bear arms." ... |
FL: Firefighter honored with PBSO combat cross for saving officer's life
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Bruce Krafft
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"One of the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office's combat crosses given out Friday went to an unlikely candidate: a firefighter."
"It was the first combat cross the agency has given to someone who isn't a law enforcement officer. That's because County Fire-Rescue Capt. Edwin O'Berry helped stop an armed suspect who nearly beat a police officer to death. He stopped suspect Mauricio Cruz by shooting him." ...
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H/t to David Codrea who points out "in places like Chi-Town or DC or Virginia Tech, such an intervention is highly improbable thanks to policies [officers] enforce" ... |
TX: Houston, TX store manager shoots armed robber in self defense
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Bruce Krafft
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"A Houston, Texas armed robber was fatally shot by his would be victim."
"Police say that the armed robber entered the D and A game room at about noon and pulled out a gun, while demanding money. The manager was able to draw his own gun and shoot the robber in self defense. The injured criminal was transported to a nearby hospital, where he was later pronounced dead. Neither the manager nor any customers were harmed, and police have reportedly stated that manager will not face any charges for his self defense actions."
"Once again, gun ownership has allowed a law abiding citizen to defend themselves from a violent criminal. ..." ... |
TSA nominee questioned over FBI censure
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Bruce Krafft
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"Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) questioned President Obama's nominee to lead the nation's airport security agency Tuesday about a censure he received from the FBI in 1988."
"Erroll Southers, who was serving as an FBI special agent at the time of the censure, asked a co-worker's husband who worked for the San Diego Police Department to run a background check on his ex-wife's boyfriend." ...
"'I recognize that it was a mistake to have used my official connections to investigate the matter,' Southers said." ...
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H/t to David Codrea who observes "to me, a mistake is when I'm doing math and forget to carry the two..." |
TN: Tenn. Trooper Busted Due to 'Wildcard' Key
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Bruce Krafft
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"The Tennessee Department of Safety (TDOS) has suspended Trooper Brent Gobbell for 15 days without pay and imposed mandatory diversity training ... The disciplinary action follows an internal investigation into dissemination of an inappropriate email that was forwarded on October 9, 2009, by Trooper Gobbell's state email account to 787 users."
"The e-mail states, in part, 'You rob us, carjack us, and shoot at us. But, when a white police officer shoots a black gang member ... you call him a racist.' It also includes a list of racist epithets. The message concludes, 'There is nothing improper about this e-mail. Let's see which of you are proud enough to send it on ... BE PROUD TO BE WHITE!'" ... |
MA: Convicted Stoughton cop seeks compensation of at least $113,000 from town
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Bruce Krafft
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"A former Stoughton police sergeant convicted of attempted extortion in 2007 is seeking $113,000 in compensation from the town for overtime and time spent in court."
"David M. Cohen, who was released from prison on a stay of his sentence last month, filed the request through his attorney ..."
"In the letter dated Nov. 4, Cohen is seeking $113,000, which includes 87 accrued vacation days, 125 unused sick days, 144 hours of compensation time accrued for not using sick time, 152 hours of supervisor comp time, 481 hours for court appearances related to his criminal case, 280 hours of overtime to prepare for his case, at least 61 percent education incentive pay for 2007, and 61 percent for accrued stipends and benefits." ...
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H/t to Nicki F. who expresses her feelings amusingly if rather profanely here. |
Background checks on firearm sales up 4.3% in October
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Bruce Krafft
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"Background checks on the sale of firearms were up 4.3 percent in October, according to data released by the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS)."
"A total of 1,233,982 checks were reported for the month, up from 1,183,279 in October 2008. The 2009 year-to-date total for background checks is 11,403,417, an increase of 18.1 percent over the same time period last year." ... |
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