Great Satan, Inc.

Robb Allen has a great post about citizen engagement in legislation and how you need to be involved to get good laws, specifically good gun laws.  He notes that legislators aren’t experts on the issues they legislate.  That’s where you, the engaged and informed citizen, have a duty to write, call, or visit your elected officials.  Deeply flawed bills can be derailed by investing a little of your time in the process.  Stopping bad bills from becoming law is cheaper, easier, and safer than trying to overturn a bad law in our court system.

For instance, a politician trying to “do something” might be extremely uninformed about the standard magazine capacity for a firearm.  For the ambitious legislator, limiting magazine capacity might sound like a great way to “do something” about crime.  Making it a felony to possess a magazine that can hold more than ten rounds will prove that the politician is really serious when he/she/it is trying to do something about crime.  A courteous meeting with your politicritters could educate them about the range of standard capacities available, how the law will unjustly criminalize their voting base, negatively impact the poor, minorities, and women.

The alternative is; bad laws, a loss of rights, and hours wasted on internet forums complaining about how NRA let you down because they didn’t airdrop a team of lawyers and lobbyists in to rescue you from the city council/legislature/Governor your fellow citizens elected.  At the local and state level, it’s your job to engage your representatives!

Even if NRA has a lobbyist in your state, that lobbyist doesn’t have as much influence as large numbers of constituents calling a state senator, flooding a representative’s inbox with email, or overloading the governor’s phone system.

The NRA is the 800 pound gorilla for Federal gun legislation and elections.  At the state level in Arizona, the Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL) and the Arizona State Rifle and Pistol Association (ASRPA) are our 800 pound gorillas when it comes to gun rights.  If your state has an NRA affiliate like ASRPA, or a comparable Citizens Defense League, you should join immediately.  In California there is CalGuns and Florida has Florida Carry.  Just about every state has a group fighting for their resident’s rights.

After you’ve joined a group that protects your rights, you need to participate as well.  These groups get a reputation as 800 pound gorillas because their members demonstrate that they are watching, voting, and dethroning bad politicians.

If you don’t interact in the process, you are dependent on a few dedicated volunteers and a generous individual or two to protect your rights and interests.  If you aren’t gaining ground in your state, it’s probably time for you to get involved.

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The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) appears to be attempting to bypass the Gun Control Act, in turn, creating a national firearms registry.

On December 20th, 2010, Acting Director of ATF, Ken Melson, announced Demand Letters for Multiple Sales of Specific Long Guns in Four Border States. This action would require Federal Licensed Firearms dealers in California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas report purchaser information when two, or more, of certain long guns are purchased (semi-auto rifles) within five days. These reports would include the purchaser’s personal identifying information, as well as specific information on the rifles.

ATF outlined their intent with these three points:

1. The reporting requirement will apply only to FFLs doing business in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California, which are major source states for crime guns seized in Mexico and traced to federal firearms licensees.

2. The reporting requirement applies only to those rifles having all of the following characteristics:

• A semi-automatic action;
• A caliber greater than .22; and
• The ability to accept a detachable magazine.

3. We propose to implement this initiative as a pilot project for a period of one year.

While many take exception to the collection of this information, which is illegal under 18 USC §926(a), almost unnoticed is that this is a “pilot program” that would lay the groundwork for a nationwide gun registry.

The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) notes the Federal Register Notice does not limit the geographic scope of the reporting requirement.

Acting Director Melson noted in his 12/20 webcast that this is “a pilot project”.

The definition of a Pilot Program, courtesy of the National Institute of Standards and Technology:

The accepted definition of ‘pilot program’ means a limited roll out of a new system in order to test it under real world conditions, prior to use by an entire organization.

Almost all gun registries in history have turned into lists used by law enforcement to go door-to-door, disarming law abiding citizens by confiscating private property and a citizen’s primary means of self-defense. These confiscations were usually done under the guise of crime fighting measures, but in reality, resulted in oppressive control of law abiding citizens.

The ATF is seeking approval from the Office of Management and Budget to ignore the laws of the United States, for the greater good. Yes, a Federal Agency is asking another Federal Agency for permission to violate U.S. law and ignore Congress.

I doubt anybody would disagree with the stated goals of the ATF request, but there are ways to disrupt criminal smuggling enterprises without creating data files of law abiding citizens and burdening small businesses. Law enforcement operations that disrupt smuggling routes across our border with Mexico would surely accomplish more than additional paperwork.

NSSF recommends that you voice your concern by doing the following:

1. Call the Office of Management and Budget, Office of Information and Regulation Affairs, Department of Justice, Desk Officer at (202) 395-6466.

2. E-mail Barbara A. Terrell, ATF, Firearms Industry Programs Branch at Barbara.Terrell@atf.gov

3. Call your Senators and Representative: United States Capitol Switchboard: 202-224-3121

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I found a list of crazy Arizona laws today.  As I tried to verify the existence of these mythical laws, I came across numerous laws that I had been blissfully ignorant about. As a public service to my visitors, I’ll pass along these pearls of legislation, so you don’t end up in jail like Mongo.

Dueling
Dueling in Arizona is an absolute no-no. You might think it was already illegal to have a duel in the street, but Arizona Revised Statute (ARS) 26-114 makes it a crime to promote a duel, be concerned in, connive to have, or even have knowledge of the pending gunfight without notifying “the proper authority”.  A violation of this law is punished as determined by court martial.

Tripping Horses
If you come to visit Arizona, make sure you don’t trip a horse, pony, mule, donkey or hinny. If you do, you could be facing a class 1 misdemeanor under ARS 13-2910-09.

Slaughtering Horses for Food
Arizona’s gastronomical diversity apparently has a wide range. ARS 3-2122 makes it illegal to slaughter horses for public consumption without first obtaining a license. This law also requires that the contact information and purchase data for each buyer of Trigger meat is retained for at least one year.

Gathering Cattle for Tournament or Contest
ARS 3-1301 makes it a Class 2 misdemeanor to use other people’s cattle for amusement or contest, if it’s done without their written permission. How’s a suburbanite going win a state fair ribbon if he can’t appropriate someone’s limosin?  Organized cow tipping is probably out of the question.

Toy Guns
ARS 13-3109 makes it a class 6 felony to give a child a toy pistol, if that toy pistol might discharge “dangerous and explosive substances”. This could probably be twisted to cover cap guns (explosive), Nerf guns, and spud guns. After all, you could put an eye out with that thing.

I’ll post more of these laws as I come across them.  If you hear about someone being arrested for giving a kid a toy gun and having duel with him or her, while eating a horse burger and riding a stolen prize winning Brahma bull, it wasn’t me.  Mongo did it.

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Sebastian over at Snow Flakes in Hell notes that Arizona has a slew of pro gun rights legislation in the pipeline this year. The proposed laws include the Firearms Freedom Act, legalizing defensive display of a firearm, allowing university professors to carry guns on school grounds, and eliminating the requirement for a permit to carry a concealed weapon (HB 2347 and SB 1102).

The New York Times points out:

There would still be an advantage to obtaining a permit; carrying a gun into a bar or restaurant that serves alcohol would require one, and the permit would be valid in some other states. Permit holders can also buy new guns without a background check.

Permit reciprocity between states, restaurant carry, and an easier process for gun purchases would still make it advantageous to obtain a Concealed Carry Weapons Permit. Under the proposed law, a CCW permit would also prevent law enforcement from confiscating a weapon possessed lawfully by a CCW permit holder. As expected, the sky is falling for gun banning, anti-civil rights groups like the Violence Policy Center and the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence.

“That’s sheer insanity,” said M. Kristen Rand, legislative director for the Violence Policy Center. “If you remove the background check requirement, you’re literally writing a death sentence for law enforcement officers, family members, just people in the street.”

No, Ms. Rand, criminals won’t be affected by any changes to our gun laws. Stricter gun laws never encumber criminals, just law abiding citizens. If you could get criminals to comply with laws, then we wouldn’t call them criminals.

“You have no laws meant to reduce gun violence and protect the public, and you have an active gun lobby there that wants to do away with even the bare threshold of laws you do have,” said Ladd Everitt of the Washington, D.C.-based national Coalition to Stop Gun Violence.

Contrary to what Everitt believes, we have a plethora of laws intended to reduce all types of violence, including violent crimes involving firearms. I’m sure that Everitt would be comforted to know that we still have capital punishment in Arizona. If the death penalty isn’t a good enough deterrent against gun violence, a background check surely isn’t going to stop it. Perhaps, these groups should campaign against violent people, instead of inanimate objects.

As a lifelong Arizona resident and a CCW permit holder, I support the passage of all of these bills, with one exception. I have reservations about Senate Bill 1102 allowing concealed carry without a permit. Arizona is a battleground against human and drug trafficking through our Southern border with Mexico. Phoenix has the second highest rate of kidnapping in the world, human smugglers often have running gun battles on our freeways, and home invasions have become routine.

We have a systematic failure to enforce several existing laws, due to vote pandering policies that circumvent the rule of law. These corrupt policies prevent law enforcement officers in many municipalities from arresting human smugglers and criminals, unless they have solid proof a serious crime has occurred. Allowing police to enforce all laws would solve this problem. Otherwise, our carry laws are one of the few ways law enforcement officers have to easily distinguish law abiding citizens from criminals.

Law abiding citizens open carry weapons, or carry with a CCW permit and notify an officer when encountered under current laws. A criminal won’t have a permit and can be easily removed from the streets for the weapons violation alone. If the bill allowing concealed carry without a permit passes, we will take away an effective tool for removing criminals from the streets.

I know my position puts me at odds with AzCDL, but I believe that passage of this bill will provide effective ammunition for the anti-civil rights groups. As an unintended consequence, these groups will be able to disingenuously point to any crime involving a firearm and claim that the crime is due to our “lax laws”, when the lack of enforcement our existing laws and borders would be the true cause. I believe passage of SB 1102 could cause the pendulum to swing against lawful gun owners, undoing much of the headway made on fully restoring our 2nd Amendment rights.

Kevin over at Exurban League has different concerns about this bill that you may find interesting.

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The first event of the 2009 NRA Annual Meeting and Exhibits, held in Phoenix, Arizona, was the Grassroots Workshop put on by the NRA Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) at the Sheraton. The grassroots activists were seated by state, so that they could begin networking with other politically active members.

The workshop started with a rousing speech by Dick Heller of the Heller vs. D.C. Supreme Court case. Mr. Heller made history recently when he won his case and the Supreme Court, for the first time ever, affirmed that the 2nd Amendment protects an individual’s right to keep and bear arms. Mr. Heller continues to fight for gun rights and encouraged attendees to fight for their rights by recruiting new NRA members and actively supporting political candidates who support gun rights.

The Powerful Gun Lobby (Voters)

The grassroots attendees are what the media and anti-gun activists refer to as “the powerful gun lobby.” Looking around the room, it was obvious that the media’s bogeyman was a room filled with 375 average, politically conscious, neighborhood housewives, fathers, sons and daughters – all ordinary Americans.

Various NRA staff gave moving speeches and highlighted current legislative initiatives that either help protect the rights of gun owners, or threaten those rights. President Obama was praised several times for his stimulus of the gun industry and bolstering the NRA’s membership roster.

I'm a bitter gun owner and I vote.

Attendees at the workshop were encouraged to write, or call, their congressmen in opposition or support of gun related legislation. The get-out-the-vote message was also very clear. The message – encourage other gun owners to register to vote, vote in all available elections, and to join the NRA.  Attendees were encouraged to exercise their rights to speak out, to peacefully assemble, to petition our government, to vote, and to keep and bear arms.  American exceptionalism at its finest!  We live in the only country in the world where these rights are enshrined.  The NRA wants people to exercise all of their rights in order to protect their freedoms and insure liberty for all.

For additional information on legislative issues, or how you can become involved, please go to the NRA-ILA webpage.

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Last Thursday, the President proclaimed, “More than 90 percent of the guns recovered in Mexico come from the United States, many from gun shops that line our shared border.”

Those of us who are concerned that our second amendment rights are about to be trampled on have more than a sneaking suspicion that this manufactured gun smuggling “crisis” is going to be used to justify gun bans and restrictions.

You can call me a conspiracy theorist and give me a tin foil hat,  but it turns out that 90 percent is really about 17 percent.

In a depends on the definition of “is” moment, Obama spokesperson Denis McDonough told FOX News on Saturday, “By recovered he means traceable, guns traced back to the United States.”   I admit, I haven’t had as much schoolin’ as most of the Obama administration’s posse, but I do know the definitions of both traceable and recovered, and they are quite different.

Follow this if you can folks, Here’s how they got to the 90 percent number:

In 2007-2008, the ATF submitted 11,000 guns to the ATF for tracing.

Those 11,000 firearms were part of the 29,000 firearms Mexican officials recovered at crime scenes.

ATF states that 0f the 11,000 firearms submitted to U.S. officials for tracing, 6,000 could be traced somewhere because of the serial numbers or other distinctive markings.

Of those 6,000 firearms, 5,114 or 90 percent, were found to have been smuggled from the U.S.

Wow, and I thought I had math defeciencies!

Let’s try that again without all of the BS:

29,000 firearms were recovered at crime scenes by Mexican officials.

Of those 29.000 firearms, 5,114 were found to have been smuggled into Mexico from the US.

That’s 17.6 percent.

The worst part about this story isn’t the blatant lying and manipulation of the facts, but that Obama’s spokespeople have repeatedly stated that they stand by the 90 percent statement.

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Here’s something the MSM has failed to mention so far about the incident in Pittsburgh today where 3 police officers were killed.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette made quick reference to the fact that the shooter, Richard Poplawski was dishonorably discharged from Marine Corps. basic training. The Department of Treasury Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms document TD ATF-391 states:

Section 922(g)(6) of the GCA makes it unlawful for persons who have
been discharged from the Armed Forces under dishonorable conditions to receive or possess firearms.

Richard Poplawski was a convicted felon, and could not have legally owned firearms. The guns that were used in Saturday’s shootings had to have been obtained illegally.

So, why is this important? Because the recent tragedies that have involved firearms could be the perfect excuse for the current administration to enact the “common sense” gun laws (meaning bans and restrictions on firearms for people who don’t commit felonies) that Obama has stated he favors.

Pennsylvania State and Federal firearms laws already in place, as well as any future gun laws would not have stopped this horrible occurrence today because Poplawski broke several of these laws in order to commit his heinous crimes. Only the responsible, law-abiding gun owner will be effected by more gun bans and restrictions, while the criminals will enjoy a climate where they can produce more victims.

Ed. Note: We are very saddened today by the events that occurred in Pittsburgh. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their loved ones. This article is not meant in any way to condone or justify Mr. Poplawski’s actions, which we find abhorrent. It is our hope that he is severely punished in our world, as well as the next.

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