The Case Formerly Known As Parker: ...But that ban is in jeopardy. The
law was struck down by a federal appeals court this year, and now the
District is asking the Supreme Court to weigh in. Both sides of the gun
debate are apprehensive..."It will be the biggest ruling on the Second
Amendment ever," Paul Helmke, president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent
Gun Violence. "You get nervous when you see something with far-reaching
implications." Even the National Rifle Association, which thinks it
might have an advantage with a conservative-leaning high court, is
uneasy. (Let's not forget that the NRA actually opposed the initial
lawsuit.)
http://www.washingtontimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071005/METRO/110050056/1004
Related Article: The D.C. residents who successfully challenged the
District's handgun ban urged the U.S. Supreme Court yesterday to review
the case, saying it presents a "unique opportunity" for the court to
recognize that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual's right to
"keep and bear arms." It is rare for the winning side to agree with the
losing side that its legal victory should be reviewed, but the residents
and their attorneys have a greater goal: a ruling by the justices that
would allow courts across the country to strike gun prohibitions and gun
control measures that they think infringe on an individual's rights.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/04/AR2007100402327.html
Wayne LaPierre Chimes In: Despite what you may have read at places like
MSNBC.com, the Supreme Court hasn't yet decided if it will take the D.C.
Gun Ban Case (currently known as D.C. v. Heller). I saw a story the
other day that made it sound like the high court was guaranteed to hear
the case. Well, not quite...So turn off NBC and CNN, and tune in to
Ginny and Cam at NRAnews.com. They'll let you know what's really going
on with news that's important to you.
http://www.nranews.com/blogarticle.aspx?blogPostId=315
---
From GOA: It may be a cliche, but it is true: This letter is written
not in anger, but in sorrow and concern. It is written to our friends
about NRA staff who, tragically, have taken a course which, we believe,
would be disastrous for the Second Amendment and the pro-gun
movement...But those who staff the NRA, without consulting the
membership, have now made a series of strange and dangerous alliances
with the likes of Chuck Schumer, Carolyn McCarthy, and Pat Leahy. And we
believe that, if allowed to continue, this will produce anti-gun
policies which the NRA staff will bitterly regret.
http://www.gunowners.org/a100407.htm
Related Article:
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewCulture.asp?Page=/Culture/archive/200710/CUL20071005b.html
---
Counter-Suit Against Bloomberg OK'd: Questioning the legality of tactics
used by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg to sue gun dealers, a federal
judge in Atlanta has allowed a defamation suit by a Smyrna gun shop
against Bloomberg and other New York City officials to go forward.
Senior U.S. District Judge J. Owen Forrester rejected arguments by New
York officials to dismiss the suit brought by Adventure Outdoors Inc. -
one of 27 shops, eight of them in Georgia, facing Bloomberg's suit in
New York. Although the judge dismissed the Smyrna gun seller's
negligence claims against New York officials, he declared that six of 13
potentially defamatory statements were actionable and cleared the way
for a tortious interference with business claim.
http://www.dailyreportonline.com/Editorial/News/new_singleEdit.asp?individual_SQL=10%2F5%2F2007%4017034_Public_.htm
---
Ohio Law Needs Fix: In case you missed it, the Ohio Supreme Court has
forever removed any doubt about transportation of unloaded firearms in
Ohio being broken. In a decision that surprised no one, the Court ruled
that ammunition being readily at hand places anyone transporting any
firearm in Ohio in jeopardy of arrest and prosecution. What does
"readily at hand" mean? Anything the police want it to...
http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/article3984.html
---
Mental Preparedness?: Two armored car guards were shot and killed by a
robber as they removed deposits from a bank ATM in a brazen daylight
heist Thursday, setting off a sweeping search for the killer that shut
down a nearby mall and several schools...The robber approached the car
from behind shortly after 8 a.m., shot one guard in the chest, then went
around the vehicle and shot the second guard as he tried to unholster
his gun, police said. Johnson said neither the victims nor a third guard
who was injured fired a shot. (It sounds as though they might not even
have been wearing ballistic vests.)
http://www.newsmax.com/us/armored_car_shooting/2007/10/04/38278.html
---
Meanwhile, In Texas...: Two teens are dead following a botched robbery
of a 20-year-old security guard who fought back early Thursday in
southwest Dallas, police said...The guard, Dedrick Howard, was using a
laptop computer in his vehicle when he was approached by three young
men, said Sgt. Ray Beaudreault, a homicide detective. They ordered him
out of the vehicle, and one of the robbers, later identified as Vann,
had a handgun, Beaudreault said. But Howard grabbed an semiautomatic SKS
carbine and opened fire, killing Vann, Beaudreault said.
http://www.star-telegram.com/news/story/256689.html
---
Hmm...: A loaded handgun was found in an airport men's room beyond a
security checkpoint, leading to a brief evacuation of the concourse,
federal officials said. Authorities were investigating who owned the gun
and how it got in the men's room trash can at Tucson International
Airport, Transportation Security Administration spokesman Christopher
White. (Ordinarily, this would have been a Rule Five reminder, had it
not been that the gun was found beyond the security checkpoint. I
suppose it's possible that someone unintentionally carried the gun that
far, then dumped it when he realized his [and the TSA's] error.)
http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/10/04/ap4189682.html
http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/local/64889.php
---
"Assault Weapons" vs. "Patrol Rifles": ...In the end, an "assault
weapon" is a "patrol rifle," is a homeland defense rifle, etc. To put it
another way, "a rose by another name . ..." To put it still another way,
whether a gun is an instrument of evil, or a lifesaver, boils down to
the intent and actions of the person holding it, rather than the
cosmetic features or designation it bears. (The certificate on my wall
reads "NRA Law Enforcement Patrol Rifle Instructor." The carbine that
lies alongside my bed at night is a "home-defense rifle.")
http://armedandsafe.blogspot.com/2007/10/assault-weapons-vs-patrol-rifles.html
---
Armed Woman Chases Invaders From Home: Wolcott police said officers
arrived at 4:41 a.m. at the site of a home invasion on Chestnut Drive.
Police said a woman was home alone with her sister when the two men
entered the house. Police said the homeowner was armed with a gun and
chased the men out of the house.
http://www.wfsb.com/news/14268769/detail.html
---
Support For Ice-Cream-Parlor Manager: We harbor a great deal of sympathy
for 21-year-old David Fielding, the VCU art student who was working at
the Baskin-Robbins on Forest Hill Avenue in early September when a
career criminal walked in with a gun to rob the place - only three weeks
after another robbery at the site. So do a lot of other people who
question the decision by Richmond Commonwealth's Attorney Michael
Herring to seek a charge against Fielding of reckless discharge of a
firearm...
http://www.timesdispatch.com/cva/ric/opinion.apx.-content-articles-RTD-2007-10-03-0007.html
---
Meanwhile, In Tennessee...: The Student Government Association will hear
a proposal today from Liberal Arts Senator Matthew Hurtt attempting to
make it legal for students and faculty to carry guns on campus. The
rational behind this resolution is that MTSU will become safer once
students are able to defend themselves using firearms, assuming they
have the proper licenses and permits to own and carry a weapon...All in
all, it doesn't sound like too bad of a proposal, unless you actually
take into account the behavior of college students and the reality of
guns and their owners. The people who want to carry guns on campus may
want to do so in order to protect themselves, but what this really means
is that they will be using them, or tempted to, out of fear...
http://media.www.mtsusidelines.com/media/storage/paper202/news/2007/10/04/Opinions/Keep-Guns.Off.Campus-3010350.shtml
Related Article:
http://www.murfreesboropost.com/news.php?viewStory=6830
---
Teacher In Oregon CCW Suit Speaks: Site offers a sequence of three audio
clips.
http://www.larslarson.com/pg/jsp/charts/streamingAudioMaster.jsp?dispid=362&headerDest=L3BnL2pzcC9tZWRpYS9mbGFzaHdlbGNvbWUuanNwP3BpZD0xMTI3NyZwbGF5bGlzdD10cnVlJmNoYXJ0dHlwZT1jaGFydCZjaGFydElEPTM2MiZwbGF5bGlzdFNpemU9MzA=
Her Students Comment: For some South Medford High School students, the
news that English teacher Shirley Katz is "Jane Doe" in a lawsuit
asserting her right to carry a gun on campus came as a surprise. But
some of her pupils said they have had a hunch for weeks that Katz was
the anonymous plaintiff in the case challenging the Medford School
Board's policy prohibiting employees from carrying concealed weapons on
school grounds..."I think she should be able to have the gun to protect
herself and the students in case he did come to school," said sophomore
Amanda Mena, who is in Shirley Katz's class. Sophomore Derek Cline
disagreed. "I don't think teachers should be able to carry guns," Derek
said. "If she has a personal issue and she thinks she is going to be
attacked, she shouldn't get students in the way." "Getting caught in the
crossfire would not be cool," added sophomore Aya Underwood. (Yes, it's
clearly better if the intruder in the school can fire at his own leisure.)
http://www.mailtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071004/NEWS/710040307/-1/LIFE
---
Paintball Hazards: ...Since then, masks and protective vests and gloves
have sharply reduced eye injuries and bruises. In addition, closer
supervision has been imposed at paintball parks, where rules governing
distances between shooters and targets have also helped to curtail
serious injuries. Still, paintball players must continue to unscrew
their guns' compressed-gas cylinders for recharge during play and at the
end of the day. The valve design that proved deadly in the Contois case
can loosen on the side that keeps gas under pressure in the cylinder. A
player can then unwittingly release the valve, turning a charged
cylinder into a dangerous rocket...
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/05/us/05paintball.html?_r=1&oref=slogin&ref=us&pagewanted=all
---
Custom Riflesmith Profiled: Todd Ramirez is one of those rare people who
transformed a passion into a career. As a teenager in the Rio Grande
Valley town of McAllen, Ramirez was looking for his future. He enjoyed
working on guns, so he enrolled at the Colorado School of Trades to
learn the craft..."What I like is, after all the metal work is down and
you have laid out the stock, is probably seeing both of them come
together," Ramirez said. After a pause, however, he added, "But what is
better is that once all the components are finished and you see them put
together, that is when it is the prettiest - the finished product."
http://www.tylerpaper.com/article/20071004/SPORTS02/710030370
--
Stephen P. Wenger
Firearm safety - It's a matter
for education, not legislation.
http://www.spw-duf.info
