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Restaurant Carry Bill Has Committee Hearing On Thursday

June 7, 2012 by 3 Comments

The North Carolina State Senate’s Judiciary II Committee will hold hearings tomorrow on HB 111 which would allow concealed carry in restaurants and eating establishments. The bill would not let the person carrying concealed consume alcohol. HB 111 passed the State House over a year ago on March 30, 2011.

JUDICIARY II
10:00 AM 1124 LB
HB 451 DWLR Penalties Increased/Vehicle Seizures
HB 199 Req. DV Victim/List Prior Action Against Def
HB 235 Bonnie’s Law
HB 111 Handgun Permit Valid in Parks & Restaurants

HB 199 will be a PCS re: copper theft
HB 235 will have a PCS re:
HB 111 will have a PCS

Grass Roots North Carolina is asking NC residents to contact their State Senator to urge passage. You can find your Senator here if you don’t already know his or her name.

I am a bit concerned about the notation of a proposed committee substitute (PCS). No text is posted on the General Assembly’s website. Given the recent attempt to hijack a bill about mechanics lien and bond law changes so as to negate the Bateman win, I think a close eye must be kept on this legislation.

UPDATE: Grass Roots North Carolina just sent out an e-mail alert on this bill noting that after if it passes Judiciary II it will then go not to the floor of the Senate but to the Finance Committee.

Republicans Trying to Kill Restaurant Carry?

Plans to send HB 111 to Finance Committee rather than floor.
Could it be that the Republicans who purport to serve you in the NC Senate are more concerned about polls than about your safety in restaurants? It would appear so, in fact so much so that they appear to be playing word games about the fate of HB 111.

Here is the story… A short time ago, folks from the office of Senate President Pro-Tem Phil Berger promised GRNC President Paul Valone that HB 111 would get a hearing in the Senate Judiciary II Committee. This would seem to indicate that it would next be headed to the Senate floor for a vote. BUT HOLD ON… NOT SO FAST! It appears they wish to play both sides of the board. Rather than planning to pass it out to the floor, GRNC has learned that Senate J-II Committee plans to pass it on to the Finance Committee. Now the first reaction among GRNC staff is that Finance would simply be a place where they might be sending HB 111 to die.

MAYBE THERE IS MORE TO THE STORY… WE HOPE SO!

Fearing the worst, we have been on the phone with staffers who are now assuring us that this move is being made to keep it alive because all other non-financial committee hearings are about to be shut down for the session. We certainly hope this to be the case. We also feel very strongly that you should contact them and impart your most fervent desire that this is the case. In short tell them that you want HB 111 sent to the Senate Floor for a vote.

Immediate Action Required

Contact the Senate Judiciary II Committee

Cut-and-paste email list of members to contact:

Austin.Allran@ncleg.net, Warren.Daniel@ncleg.net, Buck.Newton@ncleg.net, Chris.Carney@ncleg.net, Doug.Berger@ncleg.net, Stan.Bingham@ncleg.net, Harris.Blake@ncleg.net, Dan.Blue@ncleg.net, Charlie.Dannelly@ncleg.net, Jim.Davis@ncleg.net, Don.East@ncleg.net, Fletcher.Hartsell@ncleg.net, Edward.Jones@ncleg.net, Floyd.McKissick@ncleg.net, Tommy.Tucker@ncleg.net, Don.Vaughan@ncleg.net, Tom.Apodaca@ncleg.net, Phil.Berger@ncleg.net

NOTE: SOME EMAIL READERS AUTOMATICALLY HYPERLINK EMAIL ADDRESSES. FOR A VERSION THAT IS PLAIN TEXT AND EASIER TO COPY AND PASTE ON THE WEBSITE CLICK HERE

Deliver This Message

Dear Senator:

I will make this short and sweet. I want you to keep the promises you made to Grass Roots North Carolina on HB 111, Restaurant Carry. Send HB 111 to the floor of the Senate and then pass it into law.

I will be watching this matter closely through Grass Roots North Carolina’s alerts.

Sincerely,

A Concerned Voter

UPDATE: Sean at An NC Gun Blog has a very good review of the substitute language in HB 111. The bill has been passed out of the Senate Judiciary II committee and will now go before the Finance Committee.

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A Hard-Core Demonstration Of Fishing Hook Removal

June 6, 2012 by 1 Comment

Summer is the season a lot of folks will be out fishing. I’ve been hooked before and I’ve seen other hooked before. If you know what you are doing it is relatively painless to remove the hook without causing further damage.

All I can say after watching this video which gives an excellent demonstration of removing a hook from your leg is that Chad Hoover of Kayak Bassin’ is one dedicated teacher. Not many people I know – and I include myself here – would actually stick a treble hook in their own leg to show how to properly remove it.

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A Valid Question

June 6, 2012 by 1 Comment

Rep. Jason Chaffetz (D-UT) appeared on FoxNews yesterday to discuss Operation Fast and Furious and why the Justice Department has blown off yet again a deadline set by Congress to produce materials. He was interviewed by Fox’s Bill Hemmer who asked what I consider a valid question: “Is it time for you folks to put up or shut up?” It was asked in the context of the investigation and how the Congressional leadership seems willing to let deadlines slide, to let Holder stonewall, and to fail to follow up with concrete action such as a contempt citation.

Machiavelli said the Prince must be both a lion and a fox. So far we’ve seen the fox but there is no sign of the lion other than the cowardly lion of the Wizard of Oz when it comes to the Republican leadership trio of Boehner, Cantor, and McCarthy. I think you can see the frustration of Rep. Chaffetz in this interview and I’m sure Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) must be fuming over their inaction.

Watch the latest video at video.foxnews.com

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On, Wisconsin!

June 6, 2012 by 1 Comment
On, Wisconsin! On, Wisconsin!
Grand old Badger State!
We, your loyal sons and daughters,
Hail thee, good and great.
On, Wisconsin! On, Wisconsin!
Champion of the right,
“Forward”, our motto,
God will give thee might!
 Last night was a mostly good night for the GOP in Wisconsin. I say mostly because they lost one of the State Senate recall elections which will give the Democrats control of the Wisconsin State Senate by a 17-16 margin.
Gov. Scott Walker (R-WI), Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch (R-WI), and three Republican state senators won their recall elections yesterday. The lone Democrat to win was John Lehman who beat the incumbent Van Wanggaard in Racine. Lehman had previously held that State Senate set so he wasn’t an unknown to the voters and, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, that district is one of the most competitive in Wisconsin.
Regarding John Lehman, he had served in the State Assembly for five terms and then one term in the State Senate. The only thing I can find on his campaign website regarding gun rights is this:

We cannot afford to have concealed weapons in our schools and we need to trust our local elected officials when deciding where weapons are permitted or prohibited.

Other than that, I’m not sure how a Democrat controlled State Senate will impact gun rights in Wisconsin. According to Wisconsin Gun Owners, both Lehman and Wanggaard were rated “F” on gun rights in their first match-up in 2010. Moreover, Wanggaard was not one of the sponsors of the bill approving shall-issue concealed carry in Wisconsin though he did vote for final passage of the bill. That bill passed the State Senate 25-8 which means it was passed with both Democrats and Republicans voting for it.

As with anything political, only time will tell how the change in control of the Wisconsin State Senate will impact gun rights in the Badger State.

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D-Day Plus 68 Years

June 6, 2012 by

At this time 68 years ago, paratroopers of the 82nd Airborne Division as well as the 101st Airborne Division were stumbling around in the dark in the Normandy countryside trying to find their comrades. Despite being dropped in the wrong areas and having their units scattered about, these brave men had already begun the battle to drive the Nazis out of France.

Below is some archival footage of the 82nd All-American Division as it prepared to take off for France.

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NRA-ILA On Scott Walker’s Win In Wisconsin

June 6, 2012 by 1 Comment

Chris Cox and the NRA-ILA are celebrating what looks to be an overwhelming victory by Gov. Scott Walker in Wisconsin recall election. They released this statement a short while ago.

Thanks to your votes and efforts, Scott Walker has won the recall election for Governor in Wisconsin defeating rabidly anti-gun Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett.

Scott Walker has proven his dedication to the Second Amendment by signing into law right-to-carry legislation, castle doctrine legislation, and the Hunting Heritage Act during his short tenure as Wisconsin’s chief executive. Scott Walker also supported statewide preemption of firearm laws and an amendment to the Wisconsin Constitution guaranteeing the individual right to keep and bear arms. In contrast, Tom Barrett has a career-long “F” rating from NRA-PVF and has supported bans on commonly owned firearms, supported exposing hunters to prosecution, and has consistently opposed common sense self-defense legislation.

Your NRA was fully vested in this race with a comprehensive campaign that included tens of millions of online ads and hundreds of thousands of television, radio and print ads before today’s recall election. The media campaign was also supplemented by a concentrated advocacy and get-out-the-vote phone and mail program. All-in-all, almost two million pieces of advocacy mail were sent and phone calls made in this remarkable victory for freedom.

The NRA’s media campaign was complemented with a strong grassroots effort, utilizing field coordinators to conduct literature drops, canvassing and volunteer efforts across the state in the months before the election.

Together we made a difference in this race. But, as always, what mattered most in this race was your vote. Thanks to gun owners in Wisconsin, one of the strongest pro-gun Governors in the country will continue working to support our fundamental, individual Right to Keep and Bear Arms.

I bet the managers of those two Gander Mountain stores which refused to let the NRA-ILA hold their previously scheduled grassroots training sessions are feeling a little stupid right now. I still plan to shop elsewhere given Gander Mountain’s actions.

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Rep. Blake Farenthold – Wiretaps Should Have Raised Flashing Red Lights

June 6, 2012 by

Rep. Blake Farenthold (R-TX) was a guest of Cam Edwards on NRA News this evening. The topic of conversation was the revelations today that senior Justice Department officials were well aware of the details of Operation Fast and Furious much earlier than previously thought. The information comes from released applications for wiretaps.

Farenthold, based on his conversations with Chairman Issa, said that “there is enough in there that should not only have had a red flag raised but red flashing lights and a siren.”

More details on the wiretaps can be found in the letter sent today by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) to Attorney General Eric Holder.

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Canadians Cave On Arms Trade Treaty

June 5, 2012 by 6 Comments

The CBC reported yesterday afternoon that Canada has “modified its controversial position on a United Nations arms control treaty.”

In a new position paper submitted to the UN, the federal government has dropped its proposal to exclude all sporting and hunting firearms from the international Arms Trade Treaty, an agreement that seeks to regulate the import, export and transfer of all conventional weapons.

Last summer Canada surprised many and attracted heaps of scorn from countries such as Nigeria, Brazil, Mexico and Australia, when it changed its stance on the treaty and advocated for the exclusion of so-called “civilian” firearms.

The Mexicans were particularly critical of Canada’s stance according to the CBC. The Mexicans allege that the narco-terrorists are taking “hunting and sporting” firearms and converting them into “assault weapons.” As one commenter on the story said, he had never seen full auto bolt or lever action rifles but he supposed a genius gunsmith might be able to pull it off. I don’t think even a genius of the order of John Moses Browning could do that.

While I cannot find the position paper in question on Canadian government websites, here is the position that they do put forward on the Arms Trade Treaty from the UN Mission’s website. They note elsewhere that they support “in principle” the negotiation of the Arms Trade Treaty.

The illicit trade in small arms and light weapons has had a devastating impact on people throughout the world. There are currently in excess of 600 million small arms and light weapons in circulation. Small arms and light weapons alone are instrumental in the deaths of more than 350,000 people a year. The proliferation and misuse of small arms pose a serious threat to human security.

Combating the illicit trade in small arms effectively requires a comprehensive approach which focuses primarily on the humanitarian impact of the proliferation and misuse of small arms in terms of conflict prevention and the protection of civilians, while recognizing the existing and legitimate interests of firearms owners, producers, brokers, and retailers.

Canada supports full implementation of the UN Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects and remains active at the international, regional and sub-regional levels to tackle the problems stemming from the proliferation, excessive accumulation and misuse of small arms.

A group called Project Ploughshares is applauding the Canadian Government’s change saying they are pleased that it “toned down its call for exemptions on certain classes of firearms.”

One of the two Canadian gun rights organizations, the Canadian Shooting Sports Association, is said to be pleased with the language submitted by the Department of Foreign Affairs regarding the Arms Trade Treaty.

Tony Bernardo, executive director of the Canadian Shooting Sports Association, is also pleased with the changes.

“We would support this version of the Arms Trade Treaty document from Canada as it empowers independent nations to set their own discretionary policies regarding civilian-owned firearms within their borders.”

Bernardo said his take on the preamble is that Canada does not want “civilian” firearms included within the scope of the treaty.

In its position paper, Canada says it supports the inclusion of small arms, light weapons and ammunition within the ATT, “in keeping with the principle of national discretion.”

The CSSA, however, doesn’t have anything posted on their website. The other Canadian gun rights organization, the National Firearms Association, has not posted anything about this on their website nor was quoted by the CBC for their story.

As to why many governments around the world are pushing for the Arms Trade Treaty, I don’t think you need to look further than Chavez’s Venezuela where civilian ownership of firearms was just effectively banned.

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Keeping Democrats Drunk In Charlotte

June 5, 2012 by 2 Comments

The Democratic National Convention is going to be in Charlotte, North Carolina just after Labor Day.

North Carolina has state-run ABC Stores. For those living in more enlightened climes, ABC Stores are our liquor stores and not something with teacher supplies. Though, on second thought, a case could be made for that near the end of a long school year.

The ABC Stores are closed on Sundays and five holidays including Labor Day. Bars and restaurants in Charlotte are afraid they might run out of booze with all the Democrats in town so a bi-partisan group of Mecklenburg County legislators are seeking an exception.

A bipartisan coalition of Mecklenburg County legislators introduced a bill to the N.C. House making sure visitors to the Democratic National Convention can guzzle with gusto after getting off the plane.

The bill would keep the Alcoholic Beverage Control stores in Mecklenburg County open on Labor Day Monday for this year only.

The holiday exception means local stores wouldn’t be closed for two days in a row – so restaurants, hotels and caterers could stock up on spirits ahead of thousands of convention arrivals. The DNC runs Sept. 4-6.

“Whatever we can do to make the process smooth for members of the national media and members of the national political community visiting Charlotte,” said Rep. Bill Brawley, a Republican from Matthews and one of the sponsors of the bill. “I think good manners require us to do that.”

 Keeping Democrats drunk is something I think we can all agree on.