Obama Vulnerable on RKBA: Pennsylvania sportsmen aren't "bitter" about
their guns and balk at what they call Sen. Barack Obama's double-talk in
courting their support. In a state that boasts one of the country's
highest per capita rates of membership in the National Rifle Association
(NRA), Mr. Obama's stance that Second Amendment gun rights are
compatible with new tough gun laws falls flat. And it didn't help when
he said the state's "bitter" small-town voters hurt by the economy were
not supporting him because they "cling" to religion, guns and
anti-immigrant views...The Obama campaign the next day touted an
endorsement by the American Hunters and Shooters Association (AHSA), a
national group that promotes some new gun control measures and describes
itself as an alternative to the NRA's "radical" gun rights views.
Critics say the group is a front for the gun control lobby because it
promotes outlawing some caliber of guns and certain types of ammunition
and the abolition of firearm sales at gun shows.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/article/20080419/NATION/121864374/1002
Related Commentary by Ann Coulter:
http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=26075&s=rcmp
---
A Virginia Tech Reminder: ...Nine months before the shootings, graduate
student Bradford B. Wiles wrote a letter to The Roanoke Times in
response to a campus manhunt for a murder suspect. "I am licensed to
carry a concealed handgun in the commonwealth of Virginia," Wiles wrote.
"However, because I am a Virginia Tech student, I am prohibited from
carrying at school because of Virginia Tech's student policy..." The
published response from University Vice President Larry Hincker was one
of ridicule. "[I]t is absolutely mind-boggling to see the opinions of
Bradford Wiles," he wrote, using terms like "out of touch ... inane
[and] absurd" to underscore his points. "Guns don't belong in
classrooms," he concluded. "They never will. Virginia Tech has a very
sound policy preventing same."
http://topics.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/04/16/guns-on-campus-could-they-prevent-a-repeat/
---
Louisiana Student Senate Supports Campus Carry: Barely reaching quorum,
the Student Senate met Thursday evening in an irregular meeting where it
supported guns on campus and opposed raising the legal smoking age.
After much debate, the Senate passed a resolution endorsing Louisiana
legislation to allow guns on campus. The student resolution supports
Louisiana House of Representatives Bill No. 199, now under consideration
in the House. If passed, the bill will authorize concealed handgun
permit holders to bring their firearms onto Louisiana's higher education
campuses.
http://media.www.lsureveille.com/media/storage/paper868/news/2008/04/18/News/Student.Senate.Supports.State.Legislatures.Gun.Bill-3334480.shtml
---
Ohio State ROTC Pulls Blue Guns: Ohio State University's ROTC cadets
have ended the decades-long practice of combat training with mock rifles
on the main campus because of public edginess in the wake of the
Virginia Tech shootings, officials said. Since the decision was made a
couple of weeks ago, tactical training with rubber replicas of an M-16
rifle has been moved indoors, or cadets have trained without rifles,
said Navy Capt. Steven Noce, who heads the university's ROTC program.
The tactical training, typically conducted around the ROTC building near
Ohio Stadium, has generated a few calls to police from concerned people
in the past year, Noce said. A year ago this week, a gunman at Virginia
Tech killed 32 people.
http://dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2008/04/18/ROTC.ART_ART_04-18-08_A1_I59VCC7.html?sid=101
---
Open-Carry Walk to Commemorate Patriots Day: In commemoration of the
"shot heard round the world" that started the American Revolution 233
years ago, two local men have organized an "open carry" walk in Urbana
for Saturday, April 19, "Patriots' Day." ..."Back in March, I saw an
article about an incident that happened in Hilliard, where a man was
minding his own business, not doing anything wrong, and he was harassed
by the police," Horch said. "We were hanging out a couple weeks ago at
Mike's place, and we usually get together every year on Patriots' Day to
do something, and it just dawned on me that we should do this." Horch
said open-carry is legal in Ohio, but many residents need to be reminded
of that fact...
http://www.urbanacitizen.com/main.asp?SectionID=3&SubSectionID=5&ArticleID=147653&TM=32442.59
---
God and Guns: ...I think a healthy society needs both God and guns: it
benefits from a belief in some kind of higher purpose to life on earth,
and it requires a self-reliant citizenry. If you lack either of those
twin props, you wind up with today's Europe - a present-tense Eutopia
mired in fatalism. A while back, I was struck by the words of Oscar van
den Boogaard, a Dutch gay humanist (which is pretty much the trifecta of
Eurocool). Reflecting on the Continent's accelerating Islamification, he
concluded that the jig was up for the Europe he loved, but what could he
do? "I am not a warrior, but who is?" he shrugged. "I have never learned
to fight for my freedom. I was only good at enjoying it."
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=Y2RjNzdlMjczZmU0MDdiZDVhMzY0ZmFiZTRlZDJjZDc=
---
Oops, Wrong House, Minnesota Version: Steve Remer chased burglars from
his Buffalo, Minn home with a gun after finding his bedroom door tied
shut and unfamiliar noises around the house...Remer was startled out of
his sleep by some strange creaking noises he thought were caused by the
wind. When he tried to open his door, he found it had been tied
shut...Then, Remer heard an unfamiliar voice in the hallway. He grabbed
his .357 handgun from the closet and chased the intruder down the stairs
and out the front door, firing several shots at their stolen SUV on the
way out...Steve Remer thanked police for catching the criminals, saying
some people may have been more defenseless than he. Remer bought the gun
a few years ago for protection, but never thought he would use it.
http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?contentId=6342742&version=2&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=3.2.1
---
Oops, Wrong House, Texas Version: An Oak Cliff homeowner told police
that he was awakened around 1:30 Friday morning by the sound of breaking
glass. The man grabbed a handgun and discovered two men inside his home
in the 6100 block of Teague Drive, according to police. One of the men
was still holding a board that they had used to break the window. Police
said the homeowner started shooting and hit one of the suspects in the
upper chest and jaw. That suspect is in critical condition at Baylor
Hospital. .. The case will be referred to a Grand Jury, but
investigators said the homeowner appeared to be justified in protecting
his life and property.
http://www.myfoxdfw.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?contentId=6339641&version=1&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=3.2.1
---
Pizza Hut Fires Driver for Defending Himself: A Des Moines pizza
delivery driver who was suspended after he shot an alleged armed robber
said today that he has been fired. James William Spiers III, 38, said
Pizza Hut officials asked for his resignation in exchange for at least
two months' pay and counseling. "I was terminated, but they're not going
to kick me to the curb," he said. "When they terminated me, I had asked
I they could provide me with counseling. That's all I asked for." Spiers
fired multiple shots at a man who allegedly put a gun to his head on
March 28 and demanded money at the Sutton Hill Apartments, 2100 S.E.
King Ave.
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080418/NEWS/80418009
---
Rule One, Rule Two Reminder: A 2-year-old boy accidentally shot in the
face outside his Deptford home Thursday afternoon was recovering at
Cooper University Hospital in critical but stable condition today,
authorities said. The boy's father is a Deptford Police officer,
Gloucester County authorities said...Bernie Weisenfeld, a spokesman for
the Gloucester County Prosecutor's Office, said two Deptford police
officers were on the patio behind the home, in a small cul-de-sac in the
Woodbury Gardens section, cleaning their service weapons around 4 p.m.
One of the firearms discharged accidentally around 4:07 p.m., when a 911
call was made, Weisenfeld said. (Rule One: All firearms are always
loaded. Rule Two: Don't let the muzzle cross anything you're not
prepared to shoot.)
http://www.policeone.com/patrol-issues/articles/1686398-2-year-old-son-of-N-J-officer-recovering-gunshot-wound/
---
Rule Three Reminder - Follow-Up: ...Neither of the boy's parents
displayed gross negligence that night as Whiteaker was cleaning his Sig
Sauer .40-caliber semiautomatic pistol, Sutter County District Attorney
Carl Adams said Friday. Whiteaker, 33, an 11-year veteran of the
Sheriff's Department, had finished cleaning the gun and was about to
replace it in its holster about 9:15 p.m., according to investigators.
Whiteaker, of Yuba City, had sent his son to another room to throw away
used rags. The deputy momentarily put down the weapon when his wife
handed him cleaning supplies, investigators said. At that moment, their
son, Tyler, returned to the room and picked up the gun, looking into the
barrel, Adams said... (The first step in gun-proofing children is to
teach them that they can see parents' firearms whenever they like - so
long as they ask first. Rule Three: Maintain control of your firearm.)
http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/856441.html
---
Air Marshal Training Downgraded: Their mission is to protect airline
passengers from acts of terror on U.S. flights. But in a special
investigation, former and current air marshals told CNN that the number
of marshals assigned to police flights is so low that the federal agency
overseeing them has drastically lowered its firearms and psychological
testing standards just so it can qualify new hires. More than a dozen
current and former marshals said that so many federal air marshals have
resigned and are not being replaced, airport screeners are being
employed to fill the dwindling ranks.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/04/16/griffin.marshal.training/index.html
Airport Screeners to Get More Security Training: Airport screeners are
about to get new security training designed to help them think
creatively about possible threats - including those they have never
thought of. "We have to prepare for attacks that don't fit our
procedures," such as the traveler who stuffed a block of cheese wrapped
in wire into a checked bag, Transportation Security Administration Kip
Hawley told reporters Friday. The screeners still will be vigilant for
someone trying to bring a gun on a plane, but they also want to look for
more offbeat threats, he said.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/18/AR2008041802432.html?hpid=sec-nation
---
Jim Cirillo's Tales of the Stakeout Squad: I recently read this new
release from Paladin Press. While there were a couple of accounts that I
heard differently from Jim (such as his near audition with Mae West),
there were many more accounts that were either new to me or clarified
previously conflicting material. While this book does not provide
instruction, it does give a great deal of insight into a man who made
some of the largest contributions to the tactics and techniques that
many of us teach.
http://www.paladin-press.com/detail.aspx?ID=1634
---
NRA-ILA Alerts: Alerts for various states are posted on the NRA-ILA website.
http://www.nraila.org/GrassrootsAlerts/read.aspx
---
There's a Reason God Put Those People on an Island: A stripper's
truncheon is an offensive weapon even though he uses it as a prop in his
policeman act, prosecutors claimed yesterday. Student Stuart Kennedy was
hauled into court after two female plain-clothes cops spotted him in a
fake police uniform. They followed him into the Paramount Bar in
Aberdeen and watched him perform as "Sergeant Eros" before charging him
with carrying offensive weapons, which also included a fake CS gas
canister. He was cleared at the city's sheriff court - but yesterday the
Crown challenged the ruling at the Appeal Court in Edinburgh.
http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/2008/04/18/stripper-s-truncheon-was-offensive-weapon-court-told-86908-20386309/
--
Stephen P. Wenger, KE7QBY
Firearm safety - It's a matter
for education, not legislation.
http://www.spw-duf.info
