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Politicizing The Tucson Shooting Even More

January 28, 2011 by 1 Comment

From reading this Brady Campaign press release, it looks like they and their fellow traveler friends are pushing the Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee to hold hearings on the Tucson shooting.

Gun Violence Prevention Groups Applaud Push For Congressional Hearings On Tucson Shootings

Jan 28, 2011

WASHINGTON, D.C. – National gun violence prevention groups applauded a written request made today by the Democratic members of the House Judiciary Committee calling for a hearing to address gun violence in the wake of the shootings in Tucson, AZ that killed six and wounded 13 others, including Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.

“Congress for too long has ignored the 30,000 Americans killed and another 70,000 injured by gun violence every year,” said Paul Helmke, President of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. “Now is the time for action. We are grateful that the Democrats on the Judiciary Committee are pushing the House leadership to hold hearings on gun violence. It’s the right thing to do for our nation, and for the way too many families and communities that suffer from gun violence.”

The letter requests a hearing that is narrowly tailored to address specific weaknesses with our gun laws that permit shootings like the one in Tucson to take place. “The Arizona shooting is only the latest is a long line of mass killings made possible by easy access to large capacity ammunition magazines,” said Kristen Rand, Legislative Director of the Violence Policy Center. “Congress can help prevent tragedies like Tucson from occurring by adopting simple and reasonable proposals like Rep. Carolyn McCarthy’s legislation, H.R. 308.”

The Judiciary Democrats urged Chairman Lamar Smith to convene a hearing sometime within the next month. “Chairman Smith has a real opportunity to make a difference here,” said Josh Horwitz, Executive Director of the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence. “Once Congress realizes that this is not a Left/Right issue but a Right/Wrong issue maybe we can usher some sanity back into the debate about our nation’s broken gun laws.”

Horwitz may be correct that this is a Right/Wrong issue but not in the way he wants you to think. It is wrong to push laws that would have had no impact in Tucson except to further burden the rest of us law-abiding gun owners. It would be right for Congressman Smith to tell them to take hike.

Here is a link to the House Judiciary Committee website with a list of the members. Just a quick look at the Democrat members and I see many who are listed as co-sponsors of HR 308. To expect them to not politicize the hearings is like expecting the sun to set in the East. It ain’t going to happen. I would suggest if your Congressman is on this list to send them an email saying you oppose this effort.

UPDATE: Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, says no hearings. According to a story in the Los Angeles Times, Rep. Smith said:

Smith, in his response, said the committee should review the database, known as the National Instant Criminal Background Check System “at the appropriate time.” But hearings now might affect criminal proceedings in which Loughner’s “mental status is likely to be a key issue,” he said.

“Jared Loughner has not been found to be mentally ill,” Smith said. “It is inappropriate for Congress to hold hearings on NICS that presume otherwise while Loughner is facing trial.”

Imagine that – a politician who believes enough in the rule of law and fair trials that he won’t allow grandstanding in the committee he chairs.

As to the Democrats on the Judiciary Committee, 10 out of the 16 are co-sponsors of McCarthy’s HR 308.

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VPC Blames The Tool

January 28, 2011 by 1 Comment

The Violence Policy Center just released a study on homicide rates in the African-American community. The report, Black Homicide Victimization in the United States: An Analysis of 2008 Homicide Data, examined homicides across the nation where the victim was an African-American using 2008 data from FBI reports.

The study reports that Missouri leads the nation with the highest black homicide victimization rate. This is the number of homicides of African-Americans per 100,000 residents. Missouri is followed by Pennsylvania, Indiana, Michigan, and Tennessee. At the bottom were states like North Dakota, Vermont, Wyoming, and Utah.

The rates can be deceiving. For example, North Dakota is ranked last as it had no African-American homicide victims. Neighboring South Dakota which had only two homicides with black victims ranked 22nd. The low overall population of the state of South Dakota exaggerates the homicide rate.

What is also interesting in this report is that states with high African-American populations such as Alabama, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Georgia rank in the middle of the pack. These states also have much less restrictive gun laws than states like California which ranks 7th overall.

The report’s conclusion:

For blacks, like all victims of homicide, guns—usually handguns—are far and away the number one murder tool. Successful efforts to reduce America’s black homicide toll must put a focus on reducing access and exposure to firearms.

For the Violence Policy Center it is much easier to just blame an inanimate object than to look at the underlying causes. Nowhere in the report are actual underlying causes of crime like level of gang membership or poverty rate even considered. The Violence Policy Center had a chance to do some serious research on a serious issue. They didn’t because all they were looking for was another reason to blame the tool and not the criminal.

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Interesting Sights On This Steyr M40 A1

January 28, 2011 by 2 Comments

Tactical Gear magazine tries out the Steyr M40 A1 at the SHOT Show. They love the sights.

Steyr’s US website describes these sights as:

The unique trapezoid sight offers a new dimension in rapid target acquisition. The sight’s shape guides the eye onto the target, and thus the target is captured exactly and quickly.

Has anyone had a chance to try this pistol or the 9mm version out yet? If so, I’d love to hear your comments on it.

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SAF Reacts To New Jersey AG’s Response

January 27, 2011 by

The Second Amendment Foundation released this reaction to the Attorney General of New Jersey’s response to their lawsuit, Muller v. Maenza, challenging that state’s concealed carry provisions:

SAF REACTS TO NEW JERSEY RESPONSE IN RIGHT-TO-CARRY LAWSUIT
For Immediate Release: 1/27/2011

BELLEVUE, WA – The New Jersey Attorney General’s motion to dismiss a recently-filed Second Amendment Foundation lawsuit against the state’s subjective handgun carry laws was “predictable and disappointing,” SAF said today.

The lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the Garden State’s “justifiable need” gun permit standard also involves the Association of New Jersey Rifle and Pistol Clubs and six private citizens. It was filed in November in federal court.

The Attorney General’s brief asserted, “When a handgun is carried in public, the serious risks and dangers of misuse and accidental use are borne by the public.”

“That is a pretty lame argument,” said SAF Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb. “Considering that there are more than 6.2 million law-abiding citizens licensed to carry in 48 states, and that many of these people have either intervened in, or prevented crimes by their mere presence, New Jersey’s position on this issue simply defies common sense.”

Gottlieb said the very nature of New Jersey’s “justifiable need” requirement is arbitrary, discriminatory and “wide open to official abuse.”

“We are disappointed but not surprised by the State’s response to our lawsuit,” noted ANJRPC President Scott Bach. “The right to defend yourself with a firearm outside the home has long been disparaged in the Garden State, and if necessary we are prepared to take this lawsuit all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court to change that.”

SAF is also challenging gun permit provisions in neighboring New York and Maryland, and has filed a federal challenge to North Carolina’s Emergency Powers Act. Additionally, SAF filed a lawsuit against Attorney General Eric Holder over enforcement of provisions in the 1968 Gun Control Act that prevent American citizens living abroad from purchasing firearms in this country. SAF won Second Amendment incorporation in its lawsuit against the Chicago handgun ban, McDonald v. City of Chicago.

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An Alternative To JaPete’s Common Nonsense

January 27, 2011 by

Brady Campaign board member Joan Peterson who goes by JaPete online has a website called Common Gunsense. She calls it a blog to advocate for “common-sense” gun legislation. Many gun bloggers and podcasters have tried to engage her in dialogue without success. She eventually calls them “mean spirited” and bans them from commenting on her blog.

There is an alternative!

Gail Pepin has started her own blog called Uncommon Gunsense. For those that don’t know Gail, she is a Registered Nurse, IDPA competitor, and part of the ProArms podcast crew. She is also Massad Ayoob’s significant other and helps Mas with the Massad Ayoob Group.

Gail got fed up with people being banned on JaPete’s site so started Uncommon Gunsense as the alternative. As she says:

Tired of false promises of thoughtful reflection about the issue of guns and gun violence?

Tired of the misperceptions and the culture of gun violence in America?

Tired of misrepresentation of facts and the censuring of posts that don’t support a given agenda?

Then it’s time for some Uncommon Gunsense.

Comments here will be unmoderated, post what you can’t get posted on other blogs.

Welcome Gail to the blogging world and visit her blog by going here.

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More On The Micro-Nines

January 27, 2011 by

Guns America, the online sales and auction website, has a video from the SHOT Show about the Sig P290 that they have just released.

Bob Mayne of the Handgun World Show podcast just released an audio review of the Kimber Solo 9. You can listen to it here or download from iTunes. He rates it a 7 on a 10-point scale. Bob explains why in the podcast.

If you like to listen to podcasts and you haven’t listened to the Handgun World Show, you should start. It is part of the Gun Rights Radio Network. Bob is just a regular guy who makes it a point to emphasize he is not ex-military or ex-law enforcement. It is one of my favorite podcasts out there.

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Sons of Guns

January 27, 2011 by 2 Comments

I watched both episodes of Sons of Guns tonight. It is the Discovery Channel’s new reality TV show featuring a custom gun manufacturer in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I’d say the show is kind of a blend of American Chopper with the family bickering (but not as nasty) and Monster Garage with its machine shop ingenuity.

The first episode featured the modern and the historic. Red Jacket was commissioned to construct a suppressed Saiga 12 shotgun. After one misfire because it was too loud, they succeeded in reducing the sound to 144 db. Even better, the shotgun is available for sale from Red Jacket for $2500 plus NFA tax stamp.

The historic was a Confederate cannon made in 1862 from the church bells of New Orleans. It was valued at $250,000 and the owner wanted to know if it was safe to fire. After having it X-rayed, they took it out to the field and had a go with it. For something that hadn’t been fired since 1865, it held together and was as accurate as could be expected.

Overall, I enjoyed the show. I think they overdid Will’s daughter Stephanie trying to control Will’s child-like impulsiveness but it wouldn’t be a “reality TV show” without a bit of the bickering.

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In News From The Country Formerly Known As Great Britain

January 27, 2011 by

A Canadian couple run afoul of airport security at Gatwick Airport recently.

It may be three inches long and made of plastic – but that didn’t stop a toy soldier’s gun being branded a “firearm” by zealous airport officials.

Ken Lloyd and his wife bought the “signaller crouching” figurine during a recent visit to the Royal Signals Museum at Blandford Garrison.

But when the box containing the figure passed through the scanning machine at Gatwick airport, security officials declared the tiny plastic rifle a “firearm”.

 Mrs. Lloyd eventually had to ship the 3-inch toy gun home by mail. However, before she could do that, the Royal Mail insisted that it be scanned by the X-ray machine. The Lloyds did receive the figurine’s SA80 rifle about 5 days after they returned home to Canada.

If these security officials ever get tired of working in the UK, I’m sure TSA has a place just waiting for them!

H/T Cam Edwards

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Good For Pete Brownell For Standing His Ground With ThinkProgress

January 26, 2011 by 3 Comments

Pete Brownell, President and CEO of Brownells, Inc and NRA board member, was interviewed at the SHOT Show by a reporter from ThinkProgress. I think they were trying for a repeat of their “report” supposedly indicating that a number of SHOT Show attendees didn’t see a need for standard capacity magazines. They failed.

ThinkProgress asked Mr. Brownell about a report from the Center for Public Integrity which tried to make a link between monetary support for the NRA and the NRA’s fight against restrictions on standard capacity magazines. The Center for Public Integrity bills itself as a center for investigative journalism in the public interest. The majority of their funding comes from foundations including, as you might guess, the Joyce Foundation.

The CPI report entitled “High-Capacity Magazine Sellers Raise Millions for NRA” attempted to portray the donations from MidwayUSA owners Larry and Brenda Potterfield as payoff of sorts to the NRA in exchange for lobbying against restrictions on magazine capacity. The report also noted that Pete Brownell and Ronnie Barrett serve on the NRA Board and Brenda Potterfield is on the Board of Directors of the NRA Foundation. Given that all three have companies that sell products that the anti’s love to hate, the report took this as prima facie evidence of the NRA kowtowing to “the gun industry.” They quote Josh Sugarman of the Violence Policy Center as their authority on this.

When ThinkProgress questioned Mr. Brownell on connections between NRA stances and his service on the Board, he said:

The NRA has always been active in the public interest. They’ve been a defender of the Second Amendment. It’s not because of financial interest, it’s because they defend the Second Amendment, what the founders, the original people that wrote this, were intending, what they actually wrote down. So they defend the Second Amendment. They don’t necessarily say, “We’re going to do this because someone is writing me a check.” […]

We need leaders to lead organizations, and the one place they get leaders is the military. The other place they get leaders are politicians and really the third place they get them are entrepreneurs. You can’t just get leadership from one area because then you’ll become pretty myopic in that area as an organization.

Listening to the audio recording posted along with the ThinkProgress interview, you could almost hear the disappointment in the reporter’s voice that he hadn’t gotten another “gotcha” interview. Nonetheless, he couldn’t resist throwing in this little tidbit to conclude his article after Mr. Brownell said standard capacity magazines give the defender an advantage:

Indeed, high-capacity magazines are an advantage. And one such clip was an advantage for Jared Loughner in Tucson this month, who was subdued by attendees at Rep. Gabrielle Giffords’ (D-AZ) constituent event only after he stopped to reload his 31-bullet clip.

People with an agenda just don’t want to get it, do they?

H/T Brownells