US Blamed Again In Mexican Drug Killings: ...Weapons have been smuggled
into Mexico for decades. For instance, the .38 Special used in 1994 to
assassinate presidential candidate Luis Donaldo Colosio here in Tijuana
was traced to a gun sale in Arizona. Mexico is a rich market for
smugglers because it bans high-caliber automatic weapons - even police
are prohibited from using them - and has strict gun laws that make it
extremely difficult for members of the public to buy handguns. But law
enforcement officers on both sides of the border have never seen
anything like the flood of guns now surging into Mexico. The increase
has been stoked by the cartel war and by the ease of buying high-powered
weapons since the U.S. assault weapons ban was not renewed in 2004,
William Newell, a special agent in charge of the ATF's Phoenix office,
said in an interview.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/28/AR2007102801654.html?hpid=topnews
Meanwhile, Mexico Seeks More US Funds...: ...Though the money would be
used to help modernize Mexico's crime-fighting abilities, some
left-leaning politicians worried the pact would give U.S. agents access
to state secrets and erode Mexico's Independence...President Felipe
Calder�n's government has responded by saying the aid would be in the
form of equipment and training, and that Mexico would not be flooded by
U.S. agents.
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/1028drugaid29.html
---
Public Support For "Gun Control" Wanes: As many of you already know, the
latest polls show that more and more of our fellow citizens are finding
the truth - that gun control laws do absolutely nothing whatsoever to
curb crime. The evidence is so overwhelming that even the CDC (Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention) reviewed many independent studies to
see which if any gun control measures work, and found that there is zero
evidence of a single gun law being able to reduce violent crime. (Graph
included.)
http://dustinsgunblog.blogspot.com/2007/10/good-news-americans-are-finding-out.html
---
Jazz Historian Wants "Gun Control" Debate: ...I think that Weathers is
correct, but what we actually have before us is a confusion about the
nature of rights. The NRA always couches its argument as a defense of
our American rights as opposed to governmental control. But it is a
reason why highways are engineered as well as they can be. The driver
has the right to travel as safely as possible. Citizens of America
should have as much of a right to safety from gun violence as possible.
But they probably will not understand the issue until the talk takes up
more space in our political life.
http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2007/10/29/2007-10-29_heres_a_bold_proposal_lets_talk_about_gu.html
---
Oregon Editorialists Oppose School CCW: A Salem OR newspaper reprints
three editorials from around the state opposing the courtroom bid by a
Medford high-school teacher for her school to honor her carry permit.
(Remember that the two most popular majors among the lower 50% of
college students are education and journalism. At least the editorials
are labeled as opinion.)
http://www.statesmanjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071029/OPINION/71028025/1048
---
School Shooting Ranges Debated: Shooting ranges in public schools offer
students gun safety education but might send mixed messages about
zero-tolerance policies. "It is a good idea. For one thing, the ranges
teach everybody gun safety in a school, and they actually get to operate
firearms," Richard A. Pearson, executive director of the Illinois State
Rifle Association, said...Some believe shooting ranges could have a
negative effect on schools. University High School does not have a
shooting range on their school grounds, and they do not plan to
incorporate one. "Two issues come to mind. One is our hard, fast rule
about no weapons in school. With all the incidences that have occurred
in schools across the country, we would be opposed to having weapons,
especially firearms, in the building at any time," Steve Wilder,
assistant principal at University High School, said. (That's
"incidents," Steve.)
http://media.www.dailyvidette.com/media/storage/paper420/news/2007/10/29/News/Allowing.Gun.Ranges.In.Schools.Receives.Criticism-3061062.shtml
---
Arizona Skeet Shooter Suspended For Shotgun Shells At School:
High-school senior Kim Peters carries an Olympic identification badge
and an Arizona skeet-shooting members' card, but neither got her out of
a four-day suspension for bringing shotgun shells onto school
grounds...But the hobby got Peters into trouble last week. Willow Canyon
High School administrators disciplined Peters after a security guard
noticed two unopened boxes of the shells sitting in the back seat of the
student's white sport utility vehicle. There was no gun.
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/1029shoot1029.html
---
Oops, Wrong House: New from overnight, police say an elderly man in
Gastonia took matters into his own hands when a robber broke into his
home...The homeowner said he didn't know what to think when the crook
came inside. He was shaken up and shot the intruder. The burglar ran
off, and police say he was later found on South Myrtle School Road.
http://www.wbtv.com/home/10859751.html
---
No Charges In Shooting Of Burglar: A prosecutor cited Oklahoma's "Stand
Your Ground" law in announcing that no charges would be filed against a
man who shot and killed a teen who appeared to be a burglar... While on
the phone with dispatchers, Dorrell ordered Stuever to lie on the ground
until the police could come. When Stuever would not comply, Dorrell
fired five shots in his direction, but did not hit Stuever. Dorrell told
police that he shot Stuever when the teen charged at him. Stuever died
at the scene. (Warning shots are usually not a good idea and the
homeowner reduced his ammo supply by five rounds to fire them.)
http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?articleID=071028_1_A27_hApro53278
---
New York Man Challenges Safety Of Police Range: ...Mr. Plante, who owns
three parcels in the area including a 12-unit apartment building, said
the shooting lasts until 9 p.m. making it difficult to sleep. He is also
worried for the safety of his children and others, saying there are no
signs in the area saying there is a firing range nearby, or any other
safety measures. Police Chief Bernhard Peter said the range is
surrounded by barricade tape, similar to that which is put up around
crime scenes, as well as a couple of dozen warning signs, No Trespassing
signs and signs indicating the premises are under police surveillance.
http://www.zwire.com/site/index.cfm?newsid=18959091&BRD=248&PAG=461&dept_id=462341&rfi=8
---
Meanwhile, In Minnesota...: ...I have never asked the city to stop using
the range. I have asked them to come into compliance with Chapter 87A of
the Shooting Range Protection Act of 2005. For 25 years I have allowed
the city and all agencies to use my driveway. Only when I threatened to
close off the driveway did the city decide to "accommodate" my request
to come into compliance. Its attempt, by adding another berm, failed to
reduce the noise to 63 decibels as required by law. Based upon my
readings, the noise produced by this range is from 76 decibels to 102
decibels...
http://www.sctimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007110260035
---
Scandal Smolders Over Officer Purchases Of Full-Auto Rifles: ...It may
be a felony under both state and federal law for an individual to be in
possession of one of the guns, which were purchased for about $200 each
by more than 30 officers and by an Albany County assistant district
attorney. The guns may not be transferred or sold by the Albany police
force without permission from the federal government, ATF officials
said. The guns, as well as ammunition and cleaning kits, were purchased
in multiple orders in 1993, 1994 and 1995, people with knowledge of the
situation said. A former assistant chief, William M. Murray, a gun
enthusiast who has since died, signed official departmental letters that
were used to buy the weapons from a Vermont manufacturer. "These weapons
will be used for official duties only, purchased by the department for
departmental use only," one of the letters from Murray states.
http://timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=634024&category=ALBANY&BCCode=LOCAL&newsdate=10/28/2007
---
Fort Huachuca Adds Weapons Training: Facing an evolving battlefield in
which Army intelligence soldiers are increasingly in the line of fire,
officials are teaching Fort Huachuca troops combat skills that until
recently were taught mainly to infantry units...At the beginning of the
conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, most U.S. Army soldiers not assigned
to combat units fired their weapons only during basic training. The next
time they touched a weapon was when they deployed. Officials began
noticing that once soldiers were deployed, they would either use their
weapons incorrectly or fire them accidentally, leading to serious
injuries and, in some cases, casualties among comrades, Jennings said,
though numbers of how often it's happened aren't available...The goal of
the training is similar to the motto held by Marines: "Every Marine is a
rifleman," said Tanja Linton, a Fort Huachuca spokeswoman.
http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/208681
---
Idaho Wants To Attract Firearm Makers: The Gem State, eager to attract
new jobs and industry, is positioning itself as the best possible home
for the nation's 200 small arms manufacturers - companies worth a
collective $2 billion per year but unwelcome in many of the states that
have long been their home...Almost by accident, Idaho has created a
business environment that gives gun makers exactly the tax and
regulatory climate they like. During the past decade, several small gun
manufacturers have relocated to Idaho. More may be on the way...
http://www.magicvalley.com/articles/2007/10/28/news/top_story/123529.txt
---
Remington Workers Vote On Union Contract: Negotiators from the United
Mine Workers of America Local 717, the union representing employees at
the Remington Arms Company plant in Ilion, have reached a third
tentative agreement with representatives from the company. After an
all-day negotiation session on Tuesday, UMWA District 2 Vice President
Edward Yankovich Jr., Local 717's chief negotiator, gave the union
members a presentation on the latest contract proposal Wednesday. "There
have been gains made in this agreement from the last one," said
Yankovich, although he would not go into specifics.
http://www.herkimertelegram.com/articles/2007/10/25/news/news02.txt
--
Stephen P. Wenger
Firearm safety - It's a matter
for education, not legislation.
http://www.spw-duf.info
