Keep and Bear Arms - Gun Owners Home Page

CCW and Churches: Does the state have a role to play?
Submitted by: Rick Schwartz
Website: http://hubpages.com/author/Jack+Burton/hot/

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"Our Constitution makes it very clear that there should be a hands off approach to any entanglement between government and churches. The Supreme Court has amplified it though the years and the lawmakers have pretty clear direction that if they make any laws impacting churches there must either be"

"(1) a darn good reason why, or"

"(2) that the law impacts generally everyone the same way and that the churches' religious charter has nothing to do with the law ..."

"It is not up to the state to determine what behaviour a church member must discuss with, and seek approval from his pastor, or what the state-mandated default position a church should have concerning the theological question of self-defense." ...

The Promise of Change
Submitted by: Bruce W. Krafft

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"Nothing short of the U.S presidential race could have eclipsed the incompetence and the dishonesty of the Bush administration. At a time when our nation faces some of its toughest challenges ... this administration has lacked both the policy foresight and the support of the American people to effect any meaningful change. ..." ...

"... domestic policy under the Bush administration has been horribly misguided ... High school shootings and other gun violence incidents are ever-raging, yet constitutional debates over the interpretation of the Second Amendment cloud the fact that this the 'right to bear arms' is an anachronistic impediment to the vital public policy that is needed to fight the culture of gun violence in the U.S." ...

The Right to Bear Arms: A View from Canada
Submitted by: Bruce W. Krafft

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... "Being a Toronto-area lawyer, I certainly can't speak for the average Canadian on the subject of the Second Amendment; few of my countrymen, naturally, would have a clue as to its contents or that of its twenty-six siblings. I'd expect, though, that those of the informed few who read of a pending U.S. Supreme Court decision reacted as I did -- by taking off their mythical toques and scratching their heads." ...

"Things certainly are different above the forty-ninth parallel. While we admittedly have our fair share of gun-control issues and controversy in Canada, at least our law-makers aren't faced with an arguable gun-ownership right being inscribed in our constitution in all-but-indelible ink." ...

Ted Nugent's Advice To Grads
Submitted by: New York State Rifle & Pistol Association
Website: http://www.nysrpa.org

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"Rock star Ted Nugent is giving advice to high school and college graduates."

"In an op-ed piece today, in the Detroit News Nugent's advice for work includes...nobody owes you a thing, the only free lunches are at the homeless shelter, get a job and if you are lazy you will not succeed."

"Nugent, who is a member of the National Rifle Association, writes 'Find your passion in life, your calling, something you crave, that special thing that makes you giddy.'" ...

IN: Agenda: The principles behind editorial positions
Submitted by: Bruce W. Krafft

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"This newspaper has been part of the community for 135 years. Like all businesses, organizations and individuals, it benefits from the community. It also has an obligation to contribute to the community's well-being."

"One way The Tribune meets its responsibility is in the expression of editorial positions. Two themes that run through Tribune editorials are respect for personal freedom and civil rights of all people." ...

"We support the Second Amendment to the Constitution and do not believe that sensible gun control and the Constitution are in conflict. Gun sales should be subject to a waiting period that allows purchasers' qualifications to be verified. Violations of gun laws should be aggressively investigated and prosecuted." ...

PA: Long-running debate over 'secret weapons'
Submitted by: Bruce W. Krafft

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"Concerning the issue of gun control and the right to bear arms, we - editorially speaking - usually have marched down the middle of the road, criticizing the extremists shouting at us from each berm." ...

"As it is, we have one fringe claiming the government can and should confiscate everyone's guns, and the other fringe claiming that we'd all be better off if everyone carried a gun."

"We do not question the right of law-abiding citizens to protect their homes, but we have questioned why so many people have acquired licenses to carry concealed weapons, and we wonder why many of them feel the need to do so." ...
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Submitter's Note: They get licenses so they won't be arrested and thrown in prison for exercising their G-d given, fundamental, individual, human and civil right to carry the safest and most effective self-defense tool in existence.

WV: W.Va. DNR investigates bear attack (Another view)
Submitted by: West Virginia Citizens Defense League, Inc.
Website: http://www.wvcdl.org/

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"Bear attacks are rare but wildlife officials are investigating the second such incident in West Virginia within a month."

"The latest attack occurred Saturday night at a motel parking lot in Bluefield. Conservation officers with the Division of Natural Resources say a motel guest reported that a bear bit off the tip of one of his fingers. ..."

"Conservation officers set a trap at the motel and caught a bear. But they haven't determined whether it was the one that bit the man."

"On May 14, a Hardy County man was bitten on the leg when he fell trying to escape a bear that showed up at his home."

"Conservation Officer A.S. Damewood says most bears flee when they sense an approaching human."

WV: State conversation[sic] officer: Black bear attacks uncommon
Submitted by: West Virginia Citizens Defense League, Inc.
Website: http://www.wvcdl.org/

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"An investigation was continuing Monday into an alleged bear bite at a Bluefield motels parking lot, but the officer handling the case said black bear attacks are not common."

"Late Saturday night, a guest at the Bluefield Holiday Inn reported that a bear bit the tip of one of his fingers off. He was later treated at Bluefield Regional Medical Center and released. A bear was later caught in a live trap set near the motel's dumpster, but the man said it was not the one that bit him." ...
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Submitter's Note: Danger can come on two legs or four. This time, the bear attack happened in a hotel parking lot! Be prepared, everywhere, every time.

South Africa: Unarmed victims beaten, burned to death
Submitted by: Bruce W. Krafft

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"An outbreak of xenophobic violence has resulted in the murders of 56 people and forced thousands more to take shelter in camps, community halls and churches across South Africa the victims are foreigners who are strictly forbidden from owning guns."

"Foreigners in Gauteng Province are suffering from gunshot and stab wounds, while many others have been raped, fatally beaten and burned alive."

"Thomas Eastes, national chairman of Gun Owners of South Africa, said foreigners are unable to defend themselves from such atrocities because they are not allowed to be armed in South Africa. He believes the rise in crime and chaos is chiefly a result of the Firearms Control Act passed by the South African Parliament." ...

Video Commentary on Obama
Submitted by: Dustin
Website: http://dustinsgunblog.blogspot.com/

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"Eric Shelton has posted a video commentary describing Obama's stance against civilian ownership of handguns, including Eric's 90 year old heirloom Colt 1903 Pocket Hammerless in .32 ACP manufactured in 1918 that he inherited from his Grandfather. The title of Eric's video is 'Obama Hates my Grandfather'"

"'. . . Barack Obama would still like to take my family heirloom, would still ban personal property & confiscate this from me . . . I don't know if that's the Hope or Change for America that you're looking for, but it doesn't sound like the land of the Free, to me.'" ...

PA: Pennsylvania: Gun Ordinances Voided
Submitted by: New York State Rifle & Pistol Association
Website: http://www.nysrpa.org

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FULL TEXT BELOW

A judge ruled that the City of Philadelphia could not enforce new ordinances that would ban assault weapons and limit handgun purchases to one per person per month. The judge, Jane Cutler Greenspan of the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, ruled in favor of the National Rifle Association, which argued that only the legislature had the right to make gun laws. But Judge Greenspan denied on procedural grounds the associations request to overturn three other gun ordinances. One would allow guns to be removed from people who were declared to be a risk to themselves or others, and another would do the same for those under a protection-from-abuse order. The third would require the reporting of lost or stolen guns.

OH: City of Cincinnati: 'The laws, like taxes, are for the little people'
Submitted by: Bruce W. Krafft

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"'....Only the little people pay taxes.'
- Leona Helmsley, 'The Queen of Mean'"

"It appears that the City of Cincinnati, through their inaction, has updated and revised Leona's original phrase."

"The law is for you to obey, but not for them."

"In my first article on this subject, I detailed my interactions with the City of Cincinnati and their refusal to remove 'No Firearms' signs from City Parks. My odyssey began soon after Sub. HB347 became law in March 2007. After working for months to educate the City of the changes in the law, it seems all to have been in vain."

"You see, the City didn't need me to inform them about the changes in the law; they knew it the entire time. ..." ...

PA: Judge strikes down some Philadelphia gun laws
Submitted by: Bruce W. Krafft

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"A Philadelphia judge today sided with the National Rifle Association and struck down city ordinances banning assault weapons and limiting handgun purchases to one a month."

"In a blow to the city's attempt to write its own gun laws, Common Pleas Court Judge Jane Cutler-Greenspan ruled that Philadelphia should be permanently prevented from enforcing the laws that the City Council passed unanimously in April."

"But Greenspan gave city officials a consolation prize by declining to strike down three other laws on procedural grounds, indicating that the NRA and other plaintiffs did not have legal standing to challenge those laws."

"Lawyers on both sides of the emotional issue hailed the split decision in a positive light." ...

Canada: Mayor triggers gun club anger
Submitted by: Bruce W. Krafft

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"Gun enthusiasts, including an Olympic sport shooter, confronted Toronto Mayor David Miller yesterday over his plan to shut down two shooting ranges on city property and ban all new gun clubs, persuading his executive committee to offer a kind of reprieve."

"After nearly six hours of hearings and debate, the mayor and his executive committee voted to recommend that city council allow the two gun clubs - one in the rafters of Union Station, the other in a Scarborough community centre - to relocate to private property, since the city's proposed ban would not affect existing gun clubs on private land." ...

FBI: Some watch-list hits not reported
Submitted by: Anonymous

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"State and local police officers fail to notify federal authorities about encounters with possible terrorism suspects up to 10 times a day, a senior FBI official said."

"The rate of failure represents missed opportunities to verify possible matches to suspects on the government's terrorist watch list or to remove individuals from the list whose names had been added by mistake, Leonard Boyle, director of the bureau's Terrorist Screening Center (TSC), said in an interview."

"Police are asked to contact the center when routine computerized background checks on individuals who may have violated traffic rules or been involved in a domestic disturbance trigger electronic alerts from the TSC." ...

TX: Official impersonator
Submitted by: Bruce W. Krafft

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"First the Harris County Sheriff's Office lost a multimillion-dollar civil rights lawsuit after deputies falsely arrested two brothers who had innocently photographed a drug raid from their own property. Now a federal lawsuit alleges, persuasively, that the Sheriff's Office has shown a pattern of retaliating against people who complain that their civil rights have been violated."

"Like the first, the latest lawsuit also cites the arrest and prosecution of Sean and Erik Ibarra ..."

"The suit also alleges that on New Year's Day, deputies wrongly arrested municipal court Judge April Walker and charged her with impersonating a public official a neat trick, considering she is, in fact, a public official." ...

TX: Houston police officer charged with making a terroristic threat
Submitted by: Bruce W. Krafft

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FULL TEXT BELOW:

A Houston police officer is facing charges after an altercation in a parking lot on the southwest side of town.

The department said Officer Thomas Lam was off duty early Sunday morning when he and a friend got in a fight with a couple over a parking space.

Officer Lam allegedly threatened the couple. He's been charged with making a terroristic threat.

The officer's friend is charged with assault.

GA: Former BPS officer charged with extortion
Submitted by: Bruce W. Krafft

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"A former Bainbridge Public Safety officer was arrested by Georgia Bureau of Investigation and Federal Bureau of Investigations officers after work on Monday, according to a report by WALB News and confirmed by Bainbridge Public Safety Chief Larry Funderburke."

"Chad Smith, now a Baker County Sheriff's deputy, appeared in court on Tuesday facing extortion charges."

"Prosecutors in the case said that Smith accepted money from a Colquitt County woman for not turning her in for a probation violation."

"Smith was released on an unsecured bond and has been suspended from his job without pay."

"Smith joined BPS in August 2006 and had attained the rank of corporal before resigning in early 2008." ...

OH: Woman Calls Police for Help, Gets Violently Strip Searched
Submitted by: Bruce W. Krafft

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"The victim was kept in a cell for six hours, was not allowed to make a phone call or to get medical assistance for cuts and bruises she received." ...

"Hope Steffey's night started with a call to police for help. It ended with her face down, naked, and sobbing on a jail cell floor. Now, the sheriff's deputies from Stark County, Ohio who allegedly used excessive force during a strip search 15 months ago face a federal lawsuit, and recently released video won't help their case."

"According to the policy of the sheriff's office, strip searches conducted must be with officers of the same sex as the person arrested. In Steffey's case, both men and women ripped her pants down." ...

CA: Police chief's arrest is a major jolt to sleepy Northern California community of Blue Lake
Submitted by: Bruce W. Krafft

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"Just beyond the reach of the North Coast fog, this little community of 1,150 basked until recently under the protection of a police force of just four officers."

"Four officers packing 31 submachine guns."

"The Blue Lake police force was armed on a par with a big-city SWAT team. And no Blue Lakers knew until Police Chief David Gundersen's life began to very publicly unravel."

"In February, Humboldt County sheriff's deputies arrested Gundersen on suspicion of crimes in his own bedroom."

"Prosecutors have charged him with 33 counts, alleging that the chief repeatedly drugged his wife, a Blue Lake police sergeant, and forced her to have sex." ...

CT: New Haven Officer Charged In Sexual Assault
Submitted by: Bruce W. Krafft

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FULL TEXT BELOW:

A New Haven police officer was arrested on Wednesday on charges of sexual assault.

Police said the arrest was the result of an internal investigation into Officer Anthony Maio launched in April.

Maio was charged with sexual assault in the fourth degree and unlawful restraint stemming from a complaint.

Police said the charges against Maio stem from an early-morning incident on April 19 at a New Haven business while he was on duty.

TN: Police officer charged with soliciting a minor
Submitted by: Bruce W. Krafft

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FULL TEXT BELOW:

A West Tennessee police officer has been arrested on charges of soliciting a minor and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation arrested Scotts Hill officer Jonathan Henley, 26, in Henderson County on Friday. He was released Sunday on $25,000 bond.

A complaint filed against Henley in General Sessions court accuses him of sending text messages to a 15-year-old girl in May asking for sex.

Neither Henley nor Police Chief Jessie Powers could immediately be reached for comment.

Henley is scheduled to appear in court Tuesday.

DC: Chief Lanier: "More Extreme Tactics" Necessary
Submitted by: Anonymous

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"Police Chief Cathy Lanier and Mayor Adrian M. Fenty today announced new measures to fight a rash of shootings in Ward 5, saying officers will be stationed in designated neighborhoods and stopping all vehicles attempting to enter. Anyone with no legitimate reason to enter, authorities said, will be turned away. ..." ...

"The tactics already are causing some to complain that they violate civil liberties, but Interim D.C. Attorney General Peter Nickles said a similar effort in New York city several years ago was upheld in court."

"'We're not picking on people,' Nickles said. 'If people want to sue, the courthouse is open.'" ...
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KABA Note: So because they are violating everyone's rights, it is okay.

DC: Chief Lanier plans to seal off rough hoods in latest effort to stop wave of violence (another view)
Submitted by: Anonymous

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"D.C. police will seal off entire neighborhoods, set up checkpoints and kick out strangers under a new program that D.C. officials hope will help them rescue the city from its out-of-control violence."

"... At least six officers will man cordons around those zones and demand identification from people coming in and out of them. Anyone who doesn't live there, work there or have 'legitimate reason' to be there will be sent away or face arrest ..." ...

"Shelley Broderick, president of the D.C.-area American Civil Liberties Union and the dean of the University of the District of Columbia's law school, said the plan was 'cockamamie.'"

"'I think they tried this in Russia and it failed,' she said. ..." ...

TX: Dallas police suspend bait car program following death
Submitted by: Anonymous

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"A stolen theft decoy car being monitored by police crashed into another car as officers tried to disable it, killing the elderly driver of the second car, police said."

"The bait car program has been halted in Dallas as police investigate why the vehicle couldn't be disabled. Bait cars, equipped with cameras and tracking equipment, are used by law enforcement around the country as theft deterrents."

"Officers saw the bait vehicle shortly before the crash Monday afternoon. They called for dispatchers to hit the kill switch but an error message came up, presumably because the accident had already occurred, police Chief David Kunkle said at a news conference Tuesday." ...

IL: Experts say DNA doesn't match former officer charged in rapes
Submitted by: Bruce W. Krafft

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FULL TEXT BELOW

Two forensic scientists say hair and DNA collected in 2 of the four rapes a former Bloomington police officer is accused of committing matched only the victims.

The scientists both testified Tuesday morning in the trial of former Bloomington police sergeant Jeff Pelo.

A third witness, FBI analyst Stephen Shaw, said polyester fibers found on duct tape used to tie up one woman were microscopically similar to those in a ski mask found in Pelo's home.

Pelo has pleaded not guilty to 35 charges. He's accused of raping the four women between 2002 and 2005 and stalking a fifth while he was a police officer.

The trial is in its fourth week as prosecutors work their way through more than 100 witnesses.

CT: Bridgeport officer charged with assault
Submitted by: Bruce W. Krafft

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"Ansonia police have arrested Bridgeport police officer on charges he kidnapped and hit a fellow Bridgeport officer during a domestic dispute."

"Thirty-two-year-old Andre Orbegozo ... was charged with second-degree assault with a firearm and second-degree kidnapping with a firearm."

"Police say Ansonia officers were sent to investigate about 3:30 a.m. Wednesday at Griffin Hospital in Derby, where Orbegozo and the victim went after the incident."

"Police say the woman ... was taken from her Ansonia home at gunpoint. Police said Orbegozo then forced the woman to walk into a heavily wooded area behind Ansonia High School to a site nearby a city reservoir and struck the woman in the head with a firearm, causing a serious cut." ...

Canada: Marnina's Scary Bling Seized by Kelowna Airport Security
Submitted by: Anonymous

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"Zealous and diligent Kelowna airport security staff uncovered a gun yesterday that passenger Marnina Norys of Toronto, ON sought to carry on to her 11:45am flight home. ..."

"... As Norys was feeding her carry-on luggage through the x-ray a security worker commented on her 1 3/4 inch long sterling silver pendant shaped like an antique Colt '45, which, during it's Wild West heyday was known as the 'Peacemaker.'"

"... the security agent searching the bags indicated that it was not the threat of harm that was at issue."

"'It's what it represents,' said the agent ... The young woman wore a slightly disgusted look and appeared to believe that it should be obvious to anyone that the item was offensive."

"'That's censorship, not security!' exclaimed an incredulous Norys, but was greeted with nothing but blank stares ..." ...

Canada: Apology over order to stash six-shooter -- Guard was wrong to make woman remove gun-replica pendant, government says
Submitted by: Anonymous

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"As a doctoral student in social and political thought, Marnina Norys has often pondered the pitfalls of favouring rules over judgment, though the topic was far from her mind as she stood in the security line at the Kelowna, B.C., airport on Monday."

"That all changed when a security officer spied Ms. Norys's necklace and piped up."

"'That's a replica,' the officer said with a look of disapproval, referring to the four-centimetre-long, sterling silver pendant, shaped like an antique Colt .45 Peacemaker revolver, dangling from Ms. Norys's neck." ...

"... 'when I said, 'It can't be any danger, what are you talking about,' the agent said, 'Well, it's what it represents.'" ...

TX: A Place in Time
Submitted by: New York State Rifle & Pistol Association
Website: http://www.nysrpa.org

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"The little town of Boerne, nestled in the Texas hill country between Austin and San Antonio, is famous for antiques, sauerkraut, and reverence for its German heritage. Driving into town on Highway 87, you immediately see German names everywhere. The streets, the shops, the local directory. And one name that pops up with great regularity is Toepperwein."

"If that name rings a bell, it should: Adolph Toepperwein was Americas most famous exhibition shooter from 1900 until the early 1950s. He was also Boernes most famous son. And today, the shooting club where Ad Toepperwein got his start still occupies its old range just north of town, hanging on in the face of encroaching housing developments." ...

NY: New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Announces 2008 Annual Meeting
Submitted by: New York State Rifle & Pistol Association
Website: http://www.nysrpa.org

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"The New York State Rifle & Pistol Association announced today that its 2008 annual meeting will be held on Saturday, June 14th at the Wallkill Rod & Gun Club (316 Bruyn Turnpike, Wallkill, NY). The event will run from 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM. Tickets are $10.00, and include a 'chicken bake' dinner."

"The meeting will include an NRA 'mix and mingle' event featuring guest speaker and NRA President John Sigler, and an NRA-ILA grassroots seminar. Tom King, NYSRPA President and NRA Director, will also speak. Pro-Second Amendment legislators scheduled to attend: Assembly members Greg Ball, Aileen Gunther and Tom Kirwan, and NYS Senator John Bonacic." ...