by I came across the picture below on Tumblr. I think it illustrates perfectly the love many of us have for both guns and books.
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So Much For “Truth Telling”
The Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence (sic) – the group formerly known as the Legal Community Against Violence or LCAV – is holding an event entitled Truth Telling: The Media’s Role in the Conversation on Guns on October 25th. It will be held at the University of California Hastings College of the Law.
The Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence & Opus2 International
are pleased to present:Truth Telling: The Media’s Role in the Conversation on GunsOCTOBER 25, 2012 | 6 – 8:30 PM
UC Hastings College of the Law
Louis B. Mayer Lounge
198 McAllister Street | San FranciscoRSVP REQUIREDFree to Members, UC Hastings Students and Faculty
$12 All Other Students | $20 Non-Members
The Law Center reserves the right to refuse admittance.
Following an hors d’oeuvres and wine reception, a diverse group of
journalists from local and national news outlets will share their
perspective on the role the media plays in the national conversation on
guns, particularly in an election year.As the “information age” has become
incredibly fast-moving and complex, the media’s power to inform,
educate, and persuade has also grown. Meanwhile, the topic of gun
violence in America remains complicated and fueled by passionate beliefs
from all sides.
What are some of the challenges journalists
and news agencies face when trying to tell the truth about America’s
gun laws? What impact does the national political debate have on the
media’s approach to this issue? How is “new media” affecting the way in
which this conversation is cultivated?
Please join us to find out the answers to these questions and more. Come and ask your own questions for our panelists!
JOINING THE PANEL:
- MARK FOLLMAN, Senior Editor, Mother Jones
- KRIS HUNDLEY, Staff Writer, Tampa Bay Times
- BOB EGELKO, Staff Writer, San Francisco Chronicle
- SCOTT JOHNSON, Violence Reporting Fellow, The Oakland Tribune
- ABBY STERLING, Producer, CBS 5 San Francisco
MODERATED BY:
RORY LITTLE, UC Hastings Professor of Law
Unfortunately, the former LCAV really doesn’t want to hear anything other than their version of “the truth” as told by sycophantic reporters.
Notice that little disclaimer about “the right to refuse admittance”? This means that if they know you are associated with gun rights you are to be excluded from their little soiree. They don’t want their worldview tainted by dissenting questions.
Josh Berger, a director of the CalGuns Foundation, had purchased tickets to this event. You can guess what he had waiting in the mail for him when he returned from the Gun Rights Policy Conference in Orlando. It was not the tickets he had ordered but rather a refund of his money with the note below.
Truth telling is a joke when you are dealing with the gun prohibitionists. The only “truth” they want to hear is their own skewed version of it.
A GRPC Roundup
I won’t be able to do much in the way of posting about the Gun Rights Policy Conference today due to work and teaching tonight. However, I wanted to post some links to stories and posts about the conference.
USAToday had a story on the conference which featured a picture of Miguel of the GunFreeZone blog wearing his Gunwalker T-shirt and holding up the SAF’s Keep Calm and Carry poster. I’m still looking for the video from a local Orlando TV station that featured the backs of my and Miguel’s heads. Still, a picture in USAToday definitely trumps that!
Kenn Blanchard has video up of Emily Miller’s speech at the conference which can be seen here. It presents a much more accurate picture than that of a certain so-called gun blogger who was responsible for the Gun Blog Black List being formed. I refuse to link to him but I’m sure you can find it by using Google as he is the master of search engine optimization (SEO).
Robb Allen whom I got to meet for the first time has a series of posts up on the conference including this one.
Here is Joe Huffman’s take on the first day of the GRPC. It was a pleasure to finally meet Joe.
The now famous Miguel has a number of posts up on the conference and they can be found here, here, and here.
Congratulations to Sean Caranna of Florida Carry and the blog All Nine Yars for being named a Defender of Liberty award recipient by the SAF.
Derek Ward, the author of Zombie Strike and a gun blogger, was at the conference. I enjoyed meeting Derek and he has a number of posts on GRPC up on his blog.
All in all it was a good conference and I’ll be posting more on it through out the week.
Madison Rising At GRPC
Madison Rising performed both nights at the Gun Rights Policy Conference and I think they were a big hit despite the amount of gray hair that many of us had.
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| (L-R) Alex Bodnar, Steve Padelski, Sam Fishman, us, Dave Bray |
In one of those stranger than fiction coincidences, we got an email on Saturday from the Complementary Spouse’s 69-year old uncle with a link to Madison Rising playing The Star Spangled Banner saying how it was an amazing rendition. We, of course, rubbed it in a little by saying we just heard it in person.
There are many ways to get the message of freedom out. Madison Rising is one of them and a damn good one at that.
It Can Still Be Done
The film Assaulted: Civil Rights Under Fire still needs funding to get it off the ground. As of this afternoon, Kris Koenig is still $37,750 short of the needed $65,000 to conduct the initial interviews and there are only four more days to raise it on Kickstarter.
I had the opportunity to meet Kris and his assistant Anita this weekend at the Gun Rights Policy Conference. They are good people and they are dedicated to the Second Amendment. Kris conducted a number of filmed interviews for the film this weekend and is off to a good start.
Kris has the contacts and the commitment from public television to get this program on the air. However, as I said in the opening paragraph, he needs money to finish the project. Personally, I have raised my own pledge four-fold because I believe in this project.
The readers of this blog are backers of gun rights or they wouldn’t be reading my blog. Here is my challenge: if everyone who reads my blog in next couple of days would only pledge $5 it would put this project over the top.
Let me put $5 into perspective. Five bucks is:
- 4 softdrinks at $1.25 each, or
- 1 fancy coffee drink at Starbucks plus the tip, or
- Less than the cost of a Big Mac meal at McDonalds
- The change scattered on the top of your dresser, or
- The cost of a big box of popcorn at the movies, or
- Less than the cost of a movie ticket.
I think you get the idea. Five bucks isn’t a lot of money in and of itself but if enough people donate five bucks it begins to add up.
So please, consider making a pledge to this project. You can make your pledge here.
Update On Otis McDonald’s Condition
Colleen and David Lawson, co-plaintiffs in McDonald v. Chicago, gave me an update on Otis McDonald’s condition and well as the circumstances that put him the hospital. This update is made with the permission of Mr. McDonald and his family.
He was standing at home and felt dizzy and did not fall, just let
himself crumple to the floor. After ten minutes, he felt well enough to
rise and out himself to bed, tho it was mid-afternoon. His kids found
him like that and rushed him to the hospital, where it was determined
that he had blood on his brain and put him in ICU. Subsequent tests
determined that surgery is not indicated at this point, and that it
discontinuing his blood pressure meds may be efficacious in relieving
that pressure. The docs felt he had been on them too long and didn’t
need them, and he reports a marked increase in feeling better this
morning, following discontinuance of the blood pressure meds. As of
last night, he was moved out of ICU and into a regular room. Although
visits are discouraged without prior consent of the family, Otis
welcomes your cards and has given permission for this status update to
be shared with any interested persons.
Cards and well wishes may be sent to:
Christ Community Hospital, 4440 W 95th St
Oak Lawn, IL 60453.
Otis McDonald sends his love and gratitude for your inquiries, prayers, and well-wishes.
Keep Otis McDonald In Your Prayers
Pastor Kenn Blanchard let me know earlier today that Second Amendment hero Otis McDonald was admitted to the ICU at a Chicago hospital. He was admitted for a cerebral blood clot. Mr. McDonald has been a fighter all of his life but this may be his toughest battle.
Kenn didn’t know Mr. McDonald’s current condition but requested prayers for him. I second that and would add that we need to keep his family in our prayers as well.
If I hear anything more about his condition, I’ll update this as soon as possible.
UPDATE: Mr. McDonald’s cerebral blood clot is a result of a fall at the airport in which he hit his head. He was on his way to the Gun Rights Policy Conference when he had his accident. I was informed by Colleen and David Lawson that this happened at home and he was feeling faint. He didn’t fall but merely lowered himself to the floor. He was brought to the hospital a little later that day.
UPDATE II: Julie Versnel reported at the Gun Rights Policy Conference that Mr. McDonald is on the mend. That’s good news!
A Question To Ponder
The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence (sic) is holding their gala event in New York City on Thursday, October 4th. They plan to honor B-list actors who’ve made public service announcements for them as well as highlight “men and women whose lives have been forever altered by gun violence.”
Included in the list of those “whose lives have been forever altered” was this:
Aurora theater shooting victims Ethan Rodriguez-Torrent (who escaped
without physical injury) and his friend Stephen Barton (who was shot in
the neck and shoulders), who had stopped in Denver to visit a friend
during their cross-country cycling trip;
How is Ethan Rodriguez-Torrent a “theater shooting victim” if he had no physical injuries? Is the Brady Center claiming the Mr. Rodriguez-Torrent has PTSD or other mental disorders other than hoplophobia, that is? Was just being in the theater enough to be able to claim victimhood?
I can understand calling the friend a victim as he was actually shot by the deranged student but I’m having a hard time accepting that Mr. Rodriguez-Torrent is a victim. By extension, if you’ve ever witnessed a hostile encounter, in person or on TV, then you are a shooting victim. I’ve watched the Zapruder film of JFK being assassinated in Dallas as well as have vague memories of watching Jack Ruby kill Lee Harvey Oswald on TV so does that make me a shooting victim?
By the dumbed-down standards of the Brady Center, I guess it does. I’m a victim, you’re a victim, we’re all victims now. Victim of what I’m still not sure but victims nonetheless.
Important Update On CCW At GRPC In Orlando – It’s Legal In The Hotel
Thanks to the industrious work of Miko Tempski, Board Member of the CCRKBA, we have the definitive answer on whether the Hyatt Regency Orlando Airport is considered a part of the airport for concealed carry purposes.
It is not!
Miko receved the following from the Orlando Police Department’s airport division a few minutes ago:
From: John O’Grady
Subject: Fwd: Airport Firearms Carry and attached hotel
To: miko.temski
Mr. Tempski, I am in receipt of the below email request. In short you are correct in your interpretation of the FSS. The Hyatt Hotel is it’s own property so legally carrying a weapon is OK. Carrying a firearm in the terminal is prohibited. If you have any other questions or concerns please contact me directly.
Regards, John O’Grady Orlando Police Department Division Commander Orlando International Airport
Thus while you can’t legally carry within the airport terminal, you can carry in the hotel itself. I just confirmed with the hotel that it can be accessed without entering the terminal.
Thanks again to Miko for getting a definitive answer from law enforcement. I should know not to trust public affairs and marketing!
UPDATE: Thanks to Markofafreeman in the comments below we have some directions on how to enter the hotel if you are driving without entering the terminal: If you drive, go up to the 4th floor parking, following the signs for
the Hyatt. As advertised, the entrance is right there and you don’t need
to enter via the terminal.
Ryan Cleckner On Cleaning Your Bolt Action Rifle
The National Shooting Sports Foundation has just released another in its series of YouTube videos featuring rifle shooting with Ryan Cleckner. In this video, he discusses how to properly clean your bolt action rifle along with the proper tools and solvents. After watching this video, I’m buying one of those Parker-Hale jags! They look like they make things a whole lot easier.