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VPC inadvertently exposes myth of gun control as 'public safety'
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"The Violence Policy Center's Josh Sugarmann claims that with Obama having signed restrictive new tobacco legislation into law, gunmakers are now the 'last unregulated industry.'" ...

"... my point is that Sugarmann claims that all the gun laws on the books are apparently not 'safety measures.'"

"Yet these are sales standards, not product safety standards."

"Now wait a second--you mean those tens of thousands of gun laws aren't about safety? I agree, of course, but I didn't expect the forcible citizen disarmament cheerleaders to come out and admit it."

Gun Control: Answering an L.A. Times letter . . .
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"How much can I quote under Fair Use?"

"Some of the time I'm on the lookout for error in gun control issues. Part of what many gun rights activists do is educate the electorate in what it is about guns as a powerful multi-faceted part of our liberty culture. My own mission is that it's not even about guns, but about personal burdens no one can assume for you, only to your regret. The armed citizen in the United States does not fight tyranny by a gun directly, the armed citizen discredits go-nowhere anti-crime programs which, by themselves, tyrannize taxpayers. The armed citizen -- under citizen authority and law -- impeaches the very need for so many such programs on the face of them ..." ...

Support our right to bear arms
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"For those of you who would like to severely restrict our right to bear arms, I would like to give you some food for thought. Do you realize that if on 9-11 those four airline pilots had been carrying a .45 under their coats, the Twin Towers would probably still be standing, several thousand people would still be living ..."

"We once were the strongest nation in the world and yet we made it possible for four criminals with a $3 box cutter to alter our country forever."

"... Why is it that four criminals in a 16-foot dinghy with a 20-horse Evinrude motor and a couple of AK47s could take over a ship that is twice the length of a football field and 22 stories high from keel to bridge. ..." ...

When in Scottsdale...
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"...avoid Duke's Sports Bar & Grill like the plague. [More]"

"That is, unless you enjoy being dissed and endangered by an ignoramus."

"People realize alcohol and guns don't mix...This is going back to the Wyatt Earp days of the Wild Wild West...I will get the biggest, brightest sign I can get up the hour it passes"

"Good grief. Yeah, you just keep enabling people to get drunk, Al, and then sending them on down the road." ...

Guns, grades and government
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"Reading a recent post by our own Austin Gun Rights Examiner, your Texas Statehouse Examiner decided to look at his findings and see what they mean in relation to the 2009 legislative session, and to do a little opining of his own."

"Texas is a gun-loving state. You dont have to look too far for the proof. In 2009, a host of bills concerning gun rights made it to the floor of the Texas Legislature, and while other commentators have covered them thoroughly, it should give us a starting point to consider gun rights as a whole."

"Notable among this years legislative discussion was the passage of a measure okaying 21 year-old gun owners to carry concealed weapons onto state college campuses. ..." ...

A Letter to the New York Times
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"... Your Op-Ed piece, 'A Threat We Can't Ignore,' has probably generated an avalanche of invective ..." ...

"Yes, the NRA is soliciting contributions to ensure that gun ownership and other Second Amendment rights are preserved. Call it scare tactics if you will. But if you really want to be frightened and alarmed, read the headlines in the metro section of any U.S. newspaper or on the evening TV news. Google key words such as 'shot, stabbed, accosted, robbed, or assaulted,' and you will have a full evening of horrific reading."

"Mr. Herbert, those who have permits to carry a concealed weapon have undergone background checks, inquiries, investigations, and scrutiny that no street tough would ever submit to ..." ...

Less Than 24 Percent of Guns Seized by Mexican Authorities in 2008 Were Traced Back to U.S.
Submitted by: Anonymous

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"Less than 24 percent of the guns seized last year by Mexican authorities, mostly from drug trafficking organizations, were traced back to the United States, according to data released in a report by the Government Accountability Office."

"Of the 30,000 guns seized by Mexican authorities in 2008, only 7,200, or approximately 24 percent, were submitted to the U.S. for tracing. Of those 7,200 firearms, 6,700 (or about 22 percent) were actually determined to have originated in the United States."

"The country of origin for the remaining 22,800 guns seized by Mexico that were not traced cannot be known." ...

A Threat We Can't Ignore
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"Even with the murders that have already occurred, Americans are not paying enough attention to the frightening connection between the right-wing hate-mongers who continue to slither among us and the gun crazies who believe a well-aimed bullet is the ticket to all their dreams." ...

"As if the wackos weren't dangerous enough to begin with, the fuel to further inflame them is available in the over-the-top rhetoric of the National Rifle Association, which has relentlessly pounded the bogus theme that Barack Obama is planning to take away people's guns. The group's anti-Obama Web site is called gunbanobama.com." ...

Purported judicial activism of Sotomayor and what that means
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"Since most conservatives believe in gun rights, are they willing to abide by a strict reading of the Second Amendment? It states: 'A well regulated Militia ...' The opening phrase (grammatically) is an adverbial, participial phrase, which governs the independent clause that is the subject of the sentence."

"In short, it tells us the condition under which we have 'the right to keep and bear arms.' Therefore, the only people who have a right to keep and bear arms are those who are either in a state militia or are likely to be in one maybe 1 percent of those in America who have arms today." ...
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Submitter's Note: A) the SCOTUS disagreed, 2) the founders disagreed and iii) Federal Statute disagrees.

In New Book, 'Lethal Logic,' a Leading Advocate for Sensible Gun Laws Tears Down Gun Lobby's Bumper Sticker Slogans
Submitted by: NYSRPA-PVF
Website: http://www.nysrpa-pvf.org

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"June 26 is the first anniversary of the Supreme Court's DC v. Heller decision. It is also the official publication date of an important new book by a tireless crusader in the fight against gun violence in America."

"The author, Dennis Henigan, has long been one of the nation's most prominent advocates for stronger gun laws ... Henigan founded the Brady Center's Legal Action Project twenty years ago to represent gun violence victims in lawsuits against the gun industry and his legal team has recovered millions of dollars in damages for victims against gun manufacturers and sellers. ... Henigan is now Vice President for Law and Policy at the Brady Center." ...

Gun Lobby Questions Accuracy of Terrorist Watch List
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"Here's Chris Cox, top lobbyist for the [NRA], explaining in a statement to The Washington Post that the group opposes efforts to prevent those on the FBI's terrorist watch list from buying weapons, because some of those folks might be on the list erroneously."

"The NRA cited a Justice Department inspector general's report in March that found that about 24,000 of 400,000 people on the list ... were named based on outdated or irrelevant information in FBI files, sometimes after their cases had been closed."

"'Law-abiding Americans should not be treated like terrorists,' Cox said ... 'To deny law-abiding people due process and their Second Amendment rights based on a secret list is not how we do things in America.'" ...

800 Gun Buyers on Terrorist List
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"The Congressional watchdog group, The Government Accountability Office (GAO), is reporting that there have been 800 gun buyers who were on the terrorist watch list. The list is maintained by the FBI and is a factor that is supposed to disqualify someone from buying a gun in the United States. The question is, of course, how did these 800 people slip through that crack and obtain guns." ...
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Submitter's Note: Perhaps the 'loophole' is that nasty old "presumption of innocence". We should just chuck that out, along with jury trials, prohibitions against torture to extract confessions and 'Star Chamber' proceedings, lettres de cachet, etc..

GAO Cites Gun Sales to Those on Watch List
Submitted by: Nathan James

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"People named on the government's terrorism watch list have successfully purchased firearms hundreds of times since 2004, government investigators reported yesterday. In one case, a known or suspected terrorist was able to obtain an explosives license, the Government Accountability Office reported." ...

"Citing a 'terror gap,' Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) and Reps. John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.) and Robert C. Scott (D-Va.) released the study, and Lautenberg introduced legislation yesterday to give the U.S. attorney general authority to stop the sale of guns or explosives to terrorists." ...
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KABA Note: Interesting how the Times moved from preventing "people named on the government's terrorism watch list" from buying guns to "stop[ping] the sale of guns or explosives to terrorists". Guilt by association: If you are on the watchlist, you must be a terrorist.

The Terror Watch List: No Good for Gun Control
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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... "... Senator Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey introduced legislation that would allow the Attorney General to ban gun sales to people on the terror watch list. ..."

"Senator Lautenberg might want to consider the ramifications of such a law more thoroughly before he pushes it through the Congress. The terror watch list (which includes both known terrorists and those who are merely a suspect) is a notoriously imprecise tool laden with irrelevant excess information. The ACLU says that the list contains more than a million names and variants thereof, which the FBI claims constitute a mere 400,000 individuals all told. ..." ...

Lautenbergs legislation cloaks anti-gun senators true intention
Submitted by: Anonymous

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"On Monday, anti-gun New Jersey Senator Frank Lautenberg announced the 'Denying Firearms and Explosives to Dangerous Terrorists Act of 2009,' a bill that would give unprecedented authority to the Attorney General to prohibit someone from exercising his or her Second Amendment rights based on nothing more than mere suspicion." ...

"Lautenberg isn't nearly as interested in protecting this country from terrorists as he is in disarming its citizens. He just wants to hand Eric Holder the authority to deny as many people as possible their rights under the Second Amendment. As Gottlieb observed, Lautenberg has devoted his political career to 'stripping as many citizens as possible of their firearm civil rights.' ..." ...

Mexican Scapegoats: First the Addicts, Now the Guns
Submitted by: Anonymous

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... "What is somewhat disconcerting about this GAO report, and other similar studies, is the acceptance as fact that restricting gun ownership laws in the United States will help Mexico control violence in Mexico. It is a flawed assumption, one rooted in troglodyte Mexican gun control laws some of the strictest in the world. For Mexico, controlling U.S. gun ownership laws is nothing more than its latest political scapegoat for its failure to protect its people from drug cartel violence." ...

TN: Blountville homeowner holds burglary suspect at gunpoint until deputies arrive
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"A Blountville homeowner held an intruder at gunpoint when he spotted him going into his travel camper Tuesday morning."

"The Reedy Creek Lane resident told Sullivan County Sheriff's deputies he first thought a relative had entered his camper, which was parked in his driveway."

"When he discovered the man was a stranger, he went to get his gun."

"He returned with his pistol to find the man inside his car, which was parked next to the camper, according to a sheriff's office spokesman."

"The homeowner held the man at gunpoint until deputies arrived to arrest him." ...

FL: Homeowner Kills Robbery Suspect In Altamonte Springs
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"A masked suspect was shot and killed outside an Altamonte Springs home."

"Deputies arrived on the scene just before 4 a.m. Friday on the 300 block of Magnolia Street just off of Ronald Regan Boulevard."

"A woman woke up when she heard someone trying to kick in the door of her home. Seminole County Sheriff's deputies say that's when her husband went to the door and shot twice at Donald Salaam. Salaam, 21, was hit once in the chest."

"The wife was on the phone with a 911 dispatcher when the shots were fired."

"Investigators say it appears the homeowner was justified." ...

OH: Man Shoots Pit Bull Attacking Teen
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"A man shot a pit bull in the leg Thursday evening to stop the dog from attacking a teenager."

"Police said the dog tore part of the 15-year-old boy's ear and bit his arm and leg ..."

"According to police, the attack was the culmination of an argument among neighbors on Diane Place on the south side. The argument escalated into a fight involving the boy and others on the street."

"A witness told detectives they heard the owner of the dog say 'sic 'em' before releasing the animal to attack the boy."

"'During the fight, the male released the dog and it bit one of the people they were fighting,' Sgt. Thomas Nance told 10TV News. 'Another man approached and shot the dog as it was attacking the 15-year-old.'" ...

MN: Would-be Burglar Shot to Death
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"An apartment break-in ended in a shooting, with the tenant killing the intruder. ..." ...

"It's been an emotional night for Sara Graham. 'I thought he was drunk and trying to rob me; I did not know he was,' says Graham. She begins to cry and can't finish her sentence."

"She was sleeping in her apartment when a man walked in in the middle of the night. She yelled at him to leave, and he did."

"'No clue who he is,' notes Graham."

"But the intruder came back, this time entering another apartment. The tenant told police the man refused to leave and tried to pick a fight with him. The apartment owner grabbed his shotgun, and when the intruder attacked again, the tenant fired. It was a fatal shot." ...

The Price of Liberty is...Hot Dog Gruel?
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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Some of you may have noticed that Tuesday's postings were light. This was because the poster was in jail, having had the temerity to think for himself in our court system. In his own words then:

"As you readers may recall from earlier postings, I had jury duty yesterday for King County Superior Court. You may also recall that back in January I emailed them, in good faith, a list of principles (you know, those freedoms us libertarian terrorists advocate for, despite government objections) I held that I thought would disqualify me from jury duty."

"Other than an acknowledgment of receipt of my objections, no substantive action on them was taken by the Court." ...

WA: Wash. Supreme Court hears case on Internet filters
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"The state Supreme Court was set to hear arguments Tuesday on whether it's constitutional for public libraries to refuse to disable their Internet filters for adults who want access to sites that have been blocked."

"The American Civil Liberties Union of Washington filed the lawsuit against the five-county North Central Regional Library District in Eastern Washington in 2006, seeking to have the district ordered to provide unblocked access to the Internet when adults request it."

"The ACLU is representing three library users and the pro-gun Second Amendment Foundation in the case that the U.S. District Court in Spokane has asked the state Supreme Court to review." ...

Lautenberg Controversy Shows Watch List Weakness, notes Gun Law Expert
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"'Although Lautenberg probably did not expect it, an anti-gun bill he's sponsoring reveals a crisis for all Americans' civil rights in the whole government watch list program,' says gun rights expert John M. Snyder."

"Sen. Frank Lautenberg ... says he wants to deny the right to buy a firearm to anyone who is on the government's terrorist watch list ...' Snyder continued."

"'While media coverage emphasizes that the Lautenberg proposal would enable the attorney general to block gun sales to anyone on the list, it generally fails to inform the public about the nature of the list itself'"

"... 'The list itself is a big mystery. To my knowledge, there has not yet been significant information revealed about it ...'" ...

State Dept. Nominee Harold Koh is an Anti-Gun Radical
Submitted by: Nathan Slavik
Website: http://www.opposingviews.com

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"Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has scheduled a Wednesday vote on a State Department nominee who supports gun control on a global scale."

"While advocates of the Second Amendment have come to expect that appointees of President Barack Obama would be hostile to the rights of gun owners, the president's nominee for legal advisor to the State Department reaches a whole new level of anti-gun extremism."

"Harold Hongju Koh, who served at the State Department under the Clinton administration, is a self-described 'trans-nationalist' who believes that our laws -- and our Constitution -- should be brought into conformity with international agreements." ...

Lautenberg bill will harass gun owners, not terrorists
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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... "We already know who some in government consider to be 'Homegrown Terrorists.' We've seen how mere ideology is often enough to cause official suspicion. And some urge more than just denial of rights without due process, actually issuing shrill demands for Stalinist purges."

"In America."

"It's evident those intent on mandating a government monopoly of force will stop at nothing. They're going to keep on coming, inventing new lies, resurrecting old ones, devising legislative and regulatory edicts, bans, conditions...all of which will have absolutely no effect except to harass and exclude those inclined to obey them."

"Some of us are not so inclined, and will not surrender our rights just because tyrants, traitors and fools demand it."

GAO: More money needed to combat Mexican violence
Submitted by: Larry

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"The U.S. needs to provide Mexico with more money to effectively combat gun trafficking operations that fuel the high levels of violence along its border with the U.S., according to a government agency watchdog."

"While organized efforts to curb the flow of guns to the border region are only recently being put in place, the Government Accountability Office, in its report released Friday, said the U.S. and Mexico are hampered by a lack of dedicated funding, the continued delay of a Spanish-language gun tracing system, and corruption within the Mexican government." ...
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Hat tip to www.strike-the-root.com

NY: Fight state taking away gun rights
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"Government takeovers of the private sector have emboldened bureaucrats at all levels to take over every aspect of our lives and silence those who disagree with them."

"State Sen. Eric Schneiderman from Washington Heights and his gang of downstate and Albany anti-gun-rights Democrats have, along with the Democrat Assembly, introduced bills that would outlaw virtually all handguns in New York state."

"In reality, Senate Bill S4397 and companion bill A6468 have little to do with identifying spent cartridges and guns used in crimes but everything to do with the legislators' insidious, methodical agenda to confiscate all firearms from American citizens." ...

AZ: Mad Max Rules: The Arizona Legislature's Mandatory Handgun Ownership Laws
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"Just when you thought our gun-lovin' legislature had gone as far over the deep end into Mad Max territory as possible, our lawmakers up and make gun ownership mandatory for all lads and ladies 21 and above."

"Okay, so not explicitly ..."

"Under Senate Bill 1270, you'll no longer need a CCW permit to carry a CCW. Wanna hide your pistol so the po-lice can't see it. No worries. The Arizona state Senate is looking out for your Second Amendment rights."

"See, all these restrictions, they just get in the way of upright, God-fearin' Ameri-cuns. The bad guys, they conceal their guns all the time. And they don't need to take some durn class in gun safety. So why should the rest of us?" ...

MA: Do Massachusetts Gun Laws apply to all? (Part II)
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"In Part I, I set the groundwork for this discussion by providing the details that the so-called mainstream media won't. I finished by asking some basic questions:"

"Why would the SJC take up this case on appeal?"

"How would the SJC be viewed by the citizens of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts if they indeed were to rule against Runyan?"

"What if they rule in favor of Runyan? What, if any would be the short or long term ramifications?"

"Before I answer those hypothetical questions lets review some more historical context to help you understand where we are today." ...

AP Source: DHS to kill domestic satellite spying
Submitted by: Larry

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"Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano plans to kill a program begun by the Bush administration that would use U.S. spy satellites for domestic security and law enforcement, a government official said Monday."

"Napolitano recently reached her decision after the program was discussed with law enforcement officials, and she was told it was not an urgent issue, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk about it."

"The program was announced in 2007 and was to have the [DHS] use overhead and mapping imagery from existing satellites for homeland security and law enforcement purposes."

"The program ... has been delayed because of privacy and civil liberty concerns." ...
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Hat tip to www.antiwar.com

ATF Software Company: Another government entity goes into competition against the private sector
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"About a year ago, James LaMonte, founder and Chief Executive Officer of Coloseum software, was ready to release an innovative software package ... to reduce the number of minor errors on 4473's and other federally mandated records. But ATF rejected the variance request and asked for more information about the software. They issued conflicting opinions, and generally held up the process for several months ..."

"If ATF wouldn't approve dealers to use the software, Coloseum's run would be a short one, so LaMonte agreed to the meeting. When they met, ATF assured LaMonte that they were not working with any other software developers and that any information he shared about his program would be held in the strictest confidence. ..." ...

WA: Feds indict Zehm officer
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"A Spokane police officer should stand trial on charges of violating the civil rights of mentally ill janitor Otto Zehm and lying about the confrontation that resulted in Zehms death, a grand jury has decided." ...

"Zehm died March 20, 2006, two days after he was beaten with a baton, shocked multiple times with a Taser and hogtied. The case sparked a cry for more citizen oversight of law enforcement." ...

"Police officials initially said Zehm attacked Thompson, but they recanted that claim months later when surveillance video clearly showed Zehm retreating, holding a 2-liter plastic soda bottle in front of his face while Thompson struck him with a baton." ...

Canada: 250 cases under review in OPP officer probe
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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... "Mahoney-Bruer, 49, was arrested and charged last week with three counts of breach of trust and one count of attempting to obstruct justice after an investigation by the Ontario Provincial Police Professional Standards Bureau. The 12-year member of the force is accused of using false evidence to lay charges against three drivers last month. He has been suspended with pay."

"An additional 50 criminal charges including impaired driving, dangerous driving and non-traffic related charges in which Mahoney-Bruer was involved as an investigator, are also under review. Police say it's unclear how old some of the charges under review could be. The OPP says a 'small number' of charges have already been stayed by the Crown." ...

OH: More Ohio State students robbed at gunpoint; Buckeye state continues to enforce campus victim zones
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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"NBC Channel 4 in Columbus recently reported a crime alert for the Ohio State University Campus after two armed robberies last weekend." ...

"Once again, the students at OSU are at risk of being the victim of a violent crime, and the State of Ohio and The Ohio State University refuses to allow them the best means to fight back legal concealed carry. Despite the mountains of evidence to support allowing legal concealed carry by college age citizens, the self-proclaimed center of Ohio's educational community continues to keep their head buried in the sand." ...

AZ: Restaurants that allow guns will lose diner (third letter)
Submitted by: Bruce Krafft

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FULL TEXT BELOW:

Re: the June 13 article "Senators vote to allow firearms in restaurants that serve alcohol."

I would hate to see a waitress shot for bad service or bad food. I would rather die from secondhand smoke than gun smoke.

If a restaurant allows guns, then I will not go there. If all the restaurants allow guns, then I will just go home, fix my own food and smoke like a chimney.

Carrel Loveless

Accountant, Tucson

Canada: Gun registry hasn't 'saved a single life'
Submitted by: utahmilitia.com
Website: http://www.macpistol.com

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"As Parliament breaks for summer, the opposition is mobilizing to stop a private member's bill to scrap the long gun registry. Yet there is no convincing research showing that the gun registry has saved a single life."

"The homicide rate had fallen impressively before 2001, when the long gun registry started, but has remained relatively stable since. In 1991, the homicide rate was 2.7 per 100,000, in 1996, the homicide rate was down to 2.1 and by 2000, it had slid to 1.8. By 2005, the homicide rate had risen to 2.0."

"The gun registry had no impact on suicide rates either ..." ...