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First There Were the Birthers…

August 24, 2010 by

Now there are the Existers. According to the Borowitz Report, one in five Americans does not believe Barack Obama exists.

“The Birthers say that Obama’s lack of a birth certificate means he was born in Kenya,” says Jerrilene Rance, a leading Exister. “We believe it’s proof that he was never born.”

Ms. Rance says that while President George W. Bush was criticized for disappearing every August, “Obama is never there to begin with.”

 I can’t speak to the legitimacy of their claims but I do know that a bunch of angry fishermen plan a protest in Vineyard Haven to coincide with the Obama family vacation.

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Gun Owners Against Illegal Mayors

August 24, 2010 by

First there was Michael Bloomberg’s group Mayors Against Illegal Guns. And, given the legal problems of many of the mayors in that group, we have Gun Owners Against Illegal Mayors. If you would like to read the rap sheets of some of these gun control advocates, go here.

While they may be against guns, some of them appear to be pro-embezzlement, pro-bribery, pro-perjury, pro-extortion, and, incredible as it may seem, pro-child porn.

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Ft. Hood Report Implementation Bears Watching

August 24, 2010 by 3 Comments

Thanks to CalGunLaws.com, we have the letter from Secretary of Defense Robert Gates along with the DoD Implementation of Recommendations for the Independent Review related to Ft. Hood that was sent to the upper echelon of the Department of Defense.

In the wake of the Ft. Hood shootings by Major Nidal Hasan, a blue ribbon panel was assembled to study the shootings and ways to prevent them in the future. They came back with a report entitled Protecting the Force: Lessons from Fort Hood. It examined everything from emergency response to mental health issues.

One of the recommendations had to do with private firearms owned by servicemen and women. It found that the Department of Defense did not have a policy governing privately owned weapons and recommended that the Department study the need for one. This was Recommendation 3.8.

The implementation document states with regard to Recommendation 3.8:

The Independent Review found that the Department does not have a policy governing Privately Owned Weapons. In the absence of such policy, the individual Services have established Privately Owned Weapons policies, which set minimum standards and task installation commanders to establish installation-specific requirements. These policies do not apply to personnel who live off installation.

  • TheUnder Secretary of Defense for Intelligence put into formal coordination a Secretary-issued Department-wide Interim Guidance Message. By early 2011, the interim guidance will be incorporated into a revision of DoD 5200.08-R (Physical Security Program).

In his transmittal letter, Secretary Gates said:

As the Department takes steps to strengthen its approach to force protection, I ask leaders and commanders across the force to remain mindful of the unique requirements of the profession of arms – that military service is grounded in an oath to support and protect our Constitution, but also may necessitate the sacrifice of some of the very rights we defend.

The two combined together leads me to ask which rights Secretary Gates thinks may be need to be sacrificed. Does he mean a right to privacy concerning medical and mental health records or does he mean the Second Amendment rights of those who serve our nation in its armed services? Whatever the case, it bears watching.

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Appleseed Project on Fox

August 20, 2010 by 2 Comments

The Appleseed Project made FoxNews on Wednesday. The interview with Jack Dailey aka Fred from Shotgun News was pretty decent. However, as it always seems, they have to interview someone who suspects them of being covert militia recruiters.

The segment is called Teaching History with a Twist.

Watch the latest video at <a href=”http://video.foxnews.com”>video.foxnews.com</a>

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An Open Letter To President Obama – Investors.com

August 20, 2010 by

An Open Letter To President Obama – Investors.com

After reading this open letter to Obama by Jeffrey Howard, all I can do is say wow!

It starts off:

In today’s dangerous world, we need a president with experience, leadership and courage. Unfortunately, you have shown us little of those traits.

He concludes it by saying:

I do not resent you for your good fortune — you worked hard to become president and won the election fair and square. I do, however, despise your policies and the damage they are visiting on our nation, its economy and our future. I have dedicated my remaining years to fighting you and your policies and protecting our children’s futures.

I may well end up destroyed financially from the results of your misguided and dangerous actions — but you will never break me psychologically or crush my spirit. I am a Marine, I have a wonderful wife and family, and last but not least, I live in the greatest nation in the world. I shall work to my last breath to keep it that way, and you, sir, shall fail to destroy that dream.

Read the whole thing. It is worth a few minutes of your time.

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What You Don’t Read in the News

August 19, 2010 by 1 Comment

One of the biggest beefs many people have with the mainstream media is in their self-appointed role as “gatekeepers”. In other words, they decide in the words of the New York Times what is “all the news fit to print.”

So imagine my surprise about stumbling across an article on the “South American Conference on Interdiction and Regional Security of Small Arms & Light Weapons”. The article was in the Latin American Herald Tribune out of Caracas, Venezuela. The article published an address by Ann Ganzer, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Threat Reduction, Export Controls, and Negotiations in the Department of State. She is also the Director of Conventional Arms Threat Reduction in the Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation. When I see the words “small arms”, “State Department”, and “Latin America” in one story I begin to get nervous.

The conference was August 4-6 in Buenos Aires, Argentina but the one and only report of it seems to have been from this obscure English language paper out of Venezuela. A quick Google search confirms it.

There was not anything really new in the address but it did some indications of what to expect from the Department of State regarding small arms, regional agreements, and treaties.

For example on the Arms Trade Treaty she said:

Another significant U.S. strategic step came in October 2009 when Secretary of State Clinton described a long-standing U.S. commitment to strong international standards on the international arms trade, outlining U.S. conditions for supporting an Arms Trade Treaty (ATT). In the words of Secretary Clinton “The United States is committed to actively pursuing a strong and robust treaty that contains the highest possible, legally binding standards for the international transfer of conventional weapons.” We consider the Secretary’s remarks an important first step toward a significant and meaningful international treaty.

The United States looks forward to working with others as we move toward PrepComs in 2011 and 2012, as we prepare for the start of the treaty negotiations in 2012.

On the Inter-American Convention against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives and other Related Materials – CIFTA – she said:

We are continuing consultations with the Senate today and seek prompt ratification. While this is pending, the U.S. is in compliance with the Convention implementing many of its commitments.

Lest we forget, CIFTA is the treaty, if approved, that could force reloaders to get a license to reload ammunition because it would be considered manufacturing. It would probably also mean the end of cover girls in the Dillon Precision Blue Press catalog.

She concluded the speech saying:

I have no doubt the security of the Americas will be significantly and positively impacted if we work together, learn from each other, and share information about interdiction, border security training, and other programs offered by members of the international community. As citizens of responsible states and fellow members of international organizations, it is incumbent upon all of us to do whatever it takes to put an end to the illicit proliferation of small arms and light weapons.

Frankly, I hope this conference ended up as your typical junket with a lot of drinking, partying, and not much really getting done. All I can say is that it is hard to keep up with these under the radar attempts at gun control. It is even harder if the mainstream media doesn’t think we need to know about it.

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Clayton Cramer’s Blog: How To Make Sure You Don’t Accidentally Visit Organizations That Don’t Want You

August 19, 2010 by

Clayton Cramer’s Blog: How To Make (Sure) You Don’t Accidentally Visit Organizations That Don’t Want You

In other words, how to starve copyright troll RightHaven LLC out of business by refusing to have anything to do with Stephens Media websites.

I installed the Add-On in Firefox and it works just dandy. If you use Chrome, check the comments in Clayton’s post for instructions for it.

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Illinois’s FOID Card Challenged

August 19, 2010 by 2 Comments

When one thinks of organizations supporting pro-gun rights litigation, immediately think of either the NRA or the Second Amendment Foundation. In California, this can be expanded to include the CalGuns Foundation and the California Rifle and Pistol Association. This explains, in part, why the case of Mishaga v. Monken which challenges Illinois’s Firearm Owner’s Identification law flew under the radar. You do not think of the Mountain States Legal Foundation which is providing legal assistance in both this case and the suit against the Nevada State Park system, Baker v. Biaggi et al.

That may well be changing. Jim Manley, the staff attorney for MSLF handling their firearms litigation, shared this in an email to me:

MSLF is committed to protecting individual rights and that commitment extends to protecting the right to keep and bear arms. To that end, MSLF filed amicus briefs in Heller and McDonald. MSLF also represents the students suing the University of Colorado to overturn that school’s concealed carry ban.

In this case, Mishaga v. Monken, the Illinois State Police are being sued by Ellen Mishaga for violating her Second and Fourteenth Amendment rights. Mrs. Mishaga is a resident of Ohio who frequently visits friends in Illinois on overnight trips. While staying in her friend’s home, she wants to be able to have a loaded firearm for self-protection. However, this would violate the Firearm Owners Identification Card Act, 430 ILCS 65/2 (10), which requires non-residents to keep their firearms unloaded and enclosed in a case. The other exceptions to the requirement to have a FOID card involve law enforcement officials, non-resident hunters, or competitors in shooting competitions – none of which apply to her. The full list can be found here.

As the suit states with regard to her Second Amendment rights:

9. The Second Amendment guarantees, inter alia, the right to possess and use firearms in a home for personal security.

10. An overnight guest has a legitimate expectation of personal security in her host’s home and an overnight guest has the same Second Amendment right to possess and use firearms that the overnight guest has in her own home.

Mrs. Mishaga twice applied for an Illinois FOID card and both times her application was rejected. The rejection was because she did not have an Illinois driver’s license or Illinois identification card. As a resident of the state of Ohio she is precluded from having either form of identification. The suit notes that “Illinois law recognizes the right of Illinois residents to keep and bear arms, Ill. Const. Art I, Sec. 22; 430 ICLS 65/1 et seq.” Therefore, the suit claims:

The right to travel, guaranteed by the privileges and immunities clauses of Article IV and the Fourteenth Amendment, is violated when a State discriminates against citizens of other States where there is no substantial reason for the discrimination beyond the mere fact that they are citizens of other States.

Specifically, with regard to Illinois:

Illinois law prohibits Ms. Mishaga from possessing a functional firearm for self-defense when she is an overnight guest in her friends’ Illinois home because she is not a resident of Illinois. 430 ILCS 65/2; 65/4; 65/14.

By prohibiting Ms. Mishaga from possessing a functional firearm, Defendant
currently maintains and actively enforces a set of laws, customs, practices, and policies under color of state law that discriminate against citizens of other States, including Ms. Mishaga, and thereby deprives Ms. Mishaga of the right to travel, in violation of the privileges and immunities clauses of Article IV and the Fourteenth Amendment.

The suit is seeking a permanent injunction against the enforcement of the FOID card requirement on out-of-state residents or, as an alternative, to process Mrs. Mishaga’s application for a FOID card. The lawsuit is filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois.

The full complaint can be found here.

While I, of course, want all the post-McDonald litigation to succeed, I especially want Mrs. Mishaga to prevail in her case. The Complementary Spouse’s mother lives on the Illinois side of the river in Metro St. Louis. Whenever we go out to visit, I must lock up and unload my firearm in Kentucky before we cross the Ohio River even though I have a concealed carry permit. If we go into St. Louis, we must travel through East St. Louis which has one of the highest crime rates in the nation. I drive through there in that gray area between being in Condition Yellow and being in Condition Orange. It is that bad.

I plan on sending a donation to MSLF. You can find out more about them here.