Keep and Bear Arms - Gun Owners Home Page

What is EDC?
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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In this increasingly unsafe world, we as individuals need to adjust our behaviors to better ensure the safety of ourselves and our loved ones. We first need to be situationally aware of our surroundings, actively observing what is going on around us and looking for possible threats. Threats can be very obvious, as a traditional bank robber would be, or they could be something much more subtle, like a van parked next to your car when there are only two cars in the entire parking lot. Avoiding conflict is always the best strategy to live your life by, but when that is no longer an option, you must be prepared!

America is being held hostage by loony demands
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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Take the example of guns. In America, there is a broad majority across the public that agrees that aspects of the current gun laws are unsustainable. There are guns that our service personnel use on the battlefield that do not need to be sold to the public for hunting or self-defense. Or consider the fact that the Uvalde shooter bought the weapons he used in his cowardly, bloody massacre of children immediately after his own 18th birthday. Because he legally could. Though he would have had to wait another three years to buy a beer at a bar.

CA: Californias tough gun laws have made the state safer than the rest of the country
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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The most predictable response by the gun lobby and its political mouthpieces to calls for stricter gun laws in the wake of mass shootings is that tough laws dont work.

Youve probably heard all the arguments: That we already have tough laws on the books, that the problem is they arent enforced. Or that the legislation most often proposed wouldnt have stopped the latest perpetrator of the latest gun-related horror, such as Uvalde gunman Salvador Ramos.

None of that is true, and California, which has some of the strictest gun laws in the nation, is the proof.

Gaetz says he supports voters arming themselves at polls Submitted by: Mark A. Taff Website: http://www.marktaff.com	There are no comments on this story Post Comments \| Read Comments
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) on Thursday said he supports voters arming themselves when headed to the polls in an effort to protect against intimidation. I sort of like [Kentucky Republican Rep. Thomas] Massies legislation that maybe everyone whos a voter or on their way to vote ought to have the opportunity to carry a firearm to ensure that theyre not subject to any intimidation, Gaetz said.

Im Pro-Second Amendment. But if the Libs Want to Get Rid of It, Heres What Theyd Have to Do.
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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For those who believe it will be impossible to do this, Moore offers stats on gun ownership. We are not a country of gun nuts. 77 percent of all Americans do NOT own a gun! If three-quarters of the country has decided they have no need for a gun, three-quarters of the country may also decide they have no need for an archaic amendment that allows retired accountants to own 47 assault weapons. LETS ORGANIZE THE 77 percent!

Go for it. The coalition of Americans that would have to be convinced grows larger and more diverse by the day. Surely, some of the energy of Brady, Everytown, One Pulse, Guns Down, and other gun control groups can be put toward a long-term project of this kind.

Can this Texas Republican clinch a long-shot guns deal?
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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A successful gun vote could boost Cornyn in any future race for Senate GOP leader. Yet the risks of failure are even clearer and whatever bipartisan agreement that wont go too far for Cornyn may not be enough for Democratic negotiators. Cornyn, who assured one home-state radio host this week that Second Amendment restrictions are not gonna happen, voted against expanding background checks in 2013.

Even if Democrats and Cornyn can meet in the middle on trying to stop the American scourge of mass shootings, he will then have to sell the plan to a GOP conference historically disinterested in gun policy reforms.

House Dem declares gun control will happen even if it means abolishing filibuster or expanding Supreme Court
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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Rep. Mondaire Jones said Thursday Democrats will abolish the Senate filibuster and pack the Supreme Court in order to pass more restrictions on guns, as the House prepares to advance a package of gun bills next week.

Jones, D-N.Y., made the comments at a House Judiciary Committee markup on a package called the "Protecting Our Kids Act." The emergency committee meeting was called by Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., in response to the mass shootings in Uvalde, Texas, and Buffalo, New York, in recent weeks.

How Often Are Guns Used for Self-Defense?
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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As the country reels from a pair of devastating mass shootings, the gun lobby has doubled down on the notion that a good guy with a gun is the only thing that can stop a bad guy with a gun. That maxim is central to the National Rifle Associations decades-long mission to relax gun laws and increase gun sales. Right-leaning media outlets have amplified that message in recent years by reporting that instances of self-defense by law-abiding owners actually outnumber gun crimes.

But is it true?

WA: Washington political candidate not arrested, claims self-defense. Heres what the law says
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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After shooting at a suspected car thief on Monday, Pierce County Council candidate Josh Harris has not been arrested or charged by police. Harris said that he fired shots in self-defense at the man in the vehicle because he tried to run him over.

Harris, who has a concealed weapon permit, fired at least four rounds from a 9mm handgun at the driver, saying he only did so to protect my life.

Harris filed in May to run as a Republican for the Pierce County Council District 7 seat to represent Gig Harbor and Key Peninsulas, Fox Island, and parts of north and west Tacoma, according to previous News Tribune reporting.

MT: Whitefish Women's Firearm Academy expands, adds self-defense classes
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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The Womens Firearm Academy (WFA) in Whitefish expanded its classes to help ensure that women have the opportunity to learn how to defend themselves in a variety of different situations.

The WFA originally only taught gun safety but when John Delmonico took over, they included more self-defense-oriented classes. The classes also go in-depth on the legal, mental, and physical preparations for different situations.

Where Supreme Court stands on Second Amendment
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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Dick Anthony Heller, a D.C. special police officer, was authorized to carry a handgun while on duty. He applied for a one-year license for the handgun he wished to keep at home, but his application was denied. In 2007, Heller sued the District of Columbia, arguing that parts of the code violated his Second Amendment right to keep a firearm in his home without a license.

The Supreme Court held that the ban on registering handguns and the requirement to keep guns in the home disassembled or nonfunctional with a trigger lock mechanism violates the Second Amendment. Justice Scalia delivered the opinion for the 5-to-4 majority.

NC: Put more guns in the hands of older people
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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One thing our legislatures can do now is enact a law allowing seniors 65 and above to carry a concealed weapon without a license or other restrictions in addition to Open-Carry laws already on the books in many states.

Here are a few common sense reasons to pass this law ASAP:

1. Very few crimes are committed by this age group and many if not most seniors are living on fixed incomes and cant afford expensive classes, licenses, or other legal obstacles to carrying a concealed weapon for self-defense.

GA: Man shot, killed while allegedly trying to break into DeKalb home
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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A DeKalb County man shot and killed another man who was allegedly trying to break into his apartment Thursday morning, according to police.

DeKalb officers arrived at a complex in the 2800 block of Panthersville Court around 1:45 a.m. and found a man dead from a gunshot wound, a news release states.

Investigators believe the apartment resident, who has not been charged, was acting in self-defense when he fatally shot the alleged intruder, police said.

NC: Gov. Cooper Calls for Gun Ban
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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Governor Roy Cooper recently requested that the General Assembly pass legislation to violate Second Amendment rights. He wants a so-called assault weapons ban bill, to ban many commonly-owned rifles, shotguns, and handguns that law-abiding citizens use for self-defense and sport, and also legislation to allow Second Amendment rights to be suspended and property to be seized following baseless accusations without due process. This surprises no one, as the anti-gun Gov. Cooper has previously vetoed legislation that would have strengthened Second Amendment rights for law-abiding citizens, such as the bill to repeal the archaic pistol permit system and the bill to allow churches that are private property to set their own security policies.

Kyle Rittenhouse reveals how 'false narratives' upended life as lawyer preps defamation suits
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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Kyle Rittenhouse said the media's "false narratives" about him and the Kenosha shooting upended his life, detailing that something as simple as going to Walmart has become impossible.

"Everywhere I go, I have to have security. I can't go to Walmart. I can't go to Target. I have to have somebody with me because there are people out there that want to hurt me because of the false narratives," Rittenhouse told Fox News Digital in a phone interview Thursday. "I don't believe I'll have a fair shake at getting a job because a place may not want to hire me because they may have seen something that was written about me. And they may have that false narrative in their head."

"Do Something" Is Not A Serious Policy And Will Not Prevent Mass Shootings
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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He showed this was, for him, a partisan political approach.

"Do Something" is not a serious policy, but the actual policies that he listed are extremely troubling. I think it's comforting for simple-minded people to think that restricting the natural right to keep and bear arms would solve all of our problems, that destroying the Constitution would solve our problems.

That is not true and we have a Natural Right of self-defense to guard against tyranny in the Second Amendment. This is something that makes us American.

The gun industry is doing just fine
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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Despite the carnage caused by firearms, the business of manufacturing, marketing, and selling guns to Americans is thriving. What is worse, it appears that efforts to control and regulate the industry may only increase sales.

During the early part of the COVID-19 pandemic, gun purchases accelerated. More than 5 million adults becoming first-time gun owners compared to 2.4 million in 2019, according to a survey published by the Annals of Internal Medicine. Approximately half of all new gun owners were female, and nearly half were people of color. Month after month, sales of guns have surpassed 1 million units for 33 months in a row.

Canadas gun reform laws: Would they work in the US?
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus government introduced legislation Monday that would put a freeze on importing, buying or selling handguns, while its neighboring nation gears up for an intense debate over its own gun laws.

The announcement came on the heels of the deadly mass shooting at a Uvalde, Texas, elementary school, and as the debate over U.S. gun laws is intensifying. If passed, the legislation would mark Canadas strongest gun control measures in more than 40 years.

NRA Statement in Response to Biden's Address
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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What we dont support are senseless policies like no-cash bail that create a revolving door justice system that only endangers good citizens. And, we will fight any proposal that will disarm law-abiding Americans.

And, America does have a critical mental health crisis. Many are sick, too few people are able to recognize their illness, and even less get help. The sad reality is there are too few resources for those who need it. Over the last 60 years, the number of beds available at psychiatric hospitals in America has dropped by 96 percent. In 1955, there were an estimated 340 beds per 100,000 people with mental health illnesses.

CO: Concealed carry permits spiking in certain Colorado counties
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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Across the state, more and more Coloradans are applying for, and receiving concealed carry permits, with 41,660 new permits issued in 2021.

That represents a 10% increase from 2020 when just under 38,000 new permits were issued.

Yet certain counties are seeing bigger spikes than others. In Arapahoe County, for example, more than 4,000 new permits were issued in 2021.

We saw almost a doubling in our number of concealed handgun permits issued, Sheriff Tyler Brown said.

It Took Two British Civil Wars to Plant the Seeds of American Liberty
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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The Anglo-American ideal of the rule of law embodies Rutherfords principle. [S]overeignty was inherent in the people, and was granted only conditionally to kings by the people.

Like previous resistance theorists, Rutherford extrapolated a right of resistance from the natural right of self-defense. One way a well-ordered society preserved a proper balance of power was ensuring that government did not have all the weapons: To denude the people of [arms] because they may abuse the prince, is to expose them to violence and oppression, unjustly: for one king may more easily abuse [arms] than all the people; one may more easily fail than a community.

5 books that try to help explain the unexplainable: the U.S. gun violence epidemic
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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More than 45,000 people in the U.S. were killed by guns in 2020, the Centers for Disease Control reported recently. That year, firearms became the leading cause of death for American children. On average, gun violence kills nine children every day.

While these statistics are startling, they can dull the senses, at the same time that solutions seem increasingly hard to come by. Here are five books that help us go beyond the numbers: telling the stories of victims of American gun violence, and explaining how we got here and how we might get out.

First Look: Springfield Armory XD-M Elite 4.5" OSP 10mm
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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Springfield Armory is adding a new pistol to their popular XD-M Elite series the XD-M Elite 4.5" OSP 10mm. This new optics-ready pistol sports a 4.5 inch match grade Melonite finished barrel and an ergonomic frame which houses a double-column stainless steel magazine that provides a 16-round capacity in the two included magazines.

This newest addition to the XD-M Elite line of pistols gives shooters and outdoor enthusiasts a great option for a powerful and capable defensive pistol, says Steve Kramer, Vice President of Marketing for Springfield Armory.

WV: To Arm, or Not to Arm, School Teachers
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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The murders of 19 students and two teachers in Uvalde, Texas, has renewed the debate over whether to arm schoolteachers. At least 28 states, including Texas, already allow teachers or staff to arm themselves, and neighboring Ohio is about to join that list.

The Ohio legislature this week passed and sent to Governor Mike DeWine legislation that allows local school boards to authorize teachers and staff to bring a gun into the classroom after they undergo tactical training on how to respond to critical incidents.