Here It Comes: ...The case highlights a major obstacle facing the United
States as it tries to meet a demand from Mexico to curb the flow of arms
from the states to drug cartels. The federal system for tracking gun
sales, crafted over the years to avoid infringements on Second Amendment
rights, makes it difficult to spot suspicious trends quickly and to
identify people buying for smugglers, law enforcement officials say. As
a result, in some states along the Southwest border where firearms are
lightly regulated, gun smugglers can evade detection for months or
years. In Texas, New Mexico and Arizona, dealers can sell an unlimited
number of rifles to anyone with a driver's license and a clean criminal
record without reporting the sales to the government. At gun shows in
these states, there is even less regulation. Private sellers, unlike
licensed dealers, are not obligated to record the buyer's name, much
less report the sale to the A.T.F... Federal agents say about 90 percent
of the 12,000 pistols and rifles the Mexican authorities recovered from
drug dealers last year and asked to be traced came from dealers in the
United States, most of them in Texas and Arizona... (Clearly, a demand
from Mexico outweighs our on Constitution.)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/15/us/15guns.html?_r=1&hp=&pagewanted=all
---
From Which American Gun Shop Was This Purchased?: A woman was arrested
guarding an arsenal that included an anti-aircraft machine gun - the
first weapon of its kind seized in Mexico, police said Tuesday. The
arsenal belonged to a group linked to the powerful Beltran Leyva drug
cartel, federal police coordinator Gen. Rodolfo Cruz said. It also
included ammunition, five rifles, a grenade and part of a grenade
launcher. Mexican drug cartels, battling a fierce crackdown by soldiers
and federal police, have increasingly gotten hold of higher-powered
weapons, even military-grade arms such as grenades and machine guns.
That has left police - particularly state and municipal forces - grossly
outgunned, and many officers have quit following attacks. Cruz said the
confiscated .50-caliber, anti-aircraft machine gun can fire 800 rounds
per minute and is capable of penetrating armor from more than 5,000
feet. Police on a routine patrol Monday found the gun fitted atop an SUV
at a house in northern Sonora state. Authorities did not release any
other details about the gun, including its make, where it was
manufactured, or where it was sold... The ATF says the grenades are
mostly smuggled in through Central America, and have been traced back to
the militaries of many countries, from South Korea to Spain and Israel.
Some may be leftovers from the Central American civil wars...
ttp://www.azdailysun.com/articles/2009/04/15/news/world/20090415_world_194531.txt
Police in Mexico have seized an anti-aircraft machine gun in the state
of Sonora, near the US border. They also found ammunition and other
heavy weapons. A woman has been arrested. The seizure took place two
days before US President Barack Obama is due to visit his Mexican
counterpart, President Felipe Calder�n. High on the agenda of the talks
between the two will be the bloody drug war currently being waged,
mainly with US weapons, by the Mexican drug cartels. Mr Calder�n has
made ending the drug war the spearhead of his term in office. US
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has promised him both financial and
material aid to accomplish his goal. It is also in the interests of the
US to curb the violence of the drug gangs as it often spills over the
border into the United States.
http://www.radionetherlands.nl/news/international/6258148/Mexican-police-seize-antiaircraft-gun
---
ABC Lies Exposed: "If I only had a gun," ABC's recent segment of
"20/20," treated viewers to a biased and deeply flawed "study" promoting
the opinion that armed citizens are incapable of stopping active killers
in mass homicides. On Monday, "Myths of Armed Self-Defense" exposed
"20/20's" fallacy of the omnipotent killer, noting that personality
characteristics of such killers actually make them more, not less,
vulnerable to armed defense. Today, we discuss the advice "20/20" gave
viewers unfortunate enough to find themselves in active killer scenarios...
http://www.examiner.com/x-2698-Charlotte-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2009m4d15-Armed-selfdefense--The-Stopwatch-of-Death
New information has surfaced about the depth of bias that surfaced on
ABC's 20/20 hit piece that aired Friday, April 10 with Diane Sawyer as
the host. The National Shooting Sports Foundation revealed Monday that
it had been "asked numerous times by 20/20 Senior Producer Muriel
Pearson to participate in the story, but understanding the piece was a
set-up, we refused." NSSF is a firearms industry umbrella group that
offers education about firearms safety and programs including "Don't Lie
for the Other Guy," aimed at helping the industry deter illegal straw
purchases. Its biggest annual effort is the Shooting, Hunting and
Outdoor Trade (SHOT) Show, a huge exhibition of new products in the
shooting, hunting and law enforcement fields...
http://www.examiner.com/x-4525-Seattle-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2009m4d14-ABCs-antigun-bias-revealed-in-2020-antigun-hit-piece?cid=exrss-Seattle-Gun-Rights-Examiner
Do you think it's a good idea to be armed during a mass shooting? Diane
Sawyer and the producers of ABC's 20/20 aren't so sure. In fact, on
Friday, April 10, 2009, Sawyer spent a full hour trying desperately to
prove how dangerous guns are and how ordinary people can't possibly
defend themselves with firearms. The show's snarky title: "If I Only Had
A Gun." Slanted information filled the report, seemingly pulled from the
press releases of the Brady Campaign, with not a single dissenting
opinion. The most egregious slight of hand was a rigged experiment that
struggled to show why having a gun would do you no good in a Virginia
Tech style mass shooting... (I believe that's "sleight" of hand.)
http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/node/6631
---
The Beat Goes On: Gun sales in Rhode Island spiked during 2008 to their
highest level in at least a decade as firearms purchases in the state
mimicked a national trend. The surge continues in 2009 as gun sales in
Rhode Island are on track to rise nearly 50 percent, to 13,000 firearms.
Politics and economics are the prime causes, say gun dealers and others.
"I'm hearing two things," said Pawtucket police Chief George L. Kelley
III, president of the Rhode Island Police Chiefs Association. "The first
is [people] are afraid the president may change some of the laws, and
the second is the economy." Longtime gun owners agreed with Kelley. "A
year ago I would have leaned toward [saying] people were reverting back
to putting sustenance on the table," said Dennis Etchells, president of
the Federated Rhode Island Sportsmen's Clubs, an association of about 20
hunting and fishing clubs in the state. "Now a lot of it has to do with
the current presidential administration. The firearms industry exploded
after the election; a lot of people fear their Second Amendment rights
will be taken away." ...
http://www.projo.com/news/content/BZ_GUN_SALES_UP_15_04-15-09_B9DTTJS_v122.28ed6df.html
Fred Calcagno has owned American Sportsman, a gun shop in East Rochester
for 22 years. But since Barack Obama became president he's noticed a
spike in business. "Since the election sales have been up because across
the country, people are nervous that there are going to be more
restrictions on fire arms." He estimates sales have jumped between 10
and 25% in the last six months. "There's a huge demand across the
country and firearms, manufacturers are back-ordered so long that
distributors cant get items to sell," says Fred Calcagno. News 8 has
also discovered more people are carrying concealed weapons locally. In
Monroe County, gun permits are up. From January to April of 2008, there
were 511 applications. This year, that number is 634. That's an
increase of almost 20 percent...
http://rochesterhomepage.net/content/fulltext/?cid=84292
---
Open-Carry Suit Filed in Wisconsin: Today civil rights attorney John
Monroe filed a federal lawsuit against West Milwaukee and it's police
force for gross abuses of power against a man solely because the man was
legally carrying a holstered gun. A copy of the lawsuit can be found
here. The complaint alleges that police illegally detained, harassed,
and arrested Jesus Gonzales without cause in violation of the federal
constitution. Further, the complaint alleges that police unlawfully
demanded Gonzales' social security number in violation of Section 7 of
the Federal Privacy Act, arguably a felony under the Social Security Act
at 42 USC 408. Mr. Gonzales was never actually tried in court, but the
complaint alleges that the police have refused to return the property
confiscated from Mr. Gonzales. OpenCarry.org's co-founder John Pierce,
a law student at nearby Hamline University in Minneapolis, MN where open
carry is also legal, says that "the police have no more power to
confiscate openly carried handguns that they do to confiscate openly
carried cell phones." In Wisconsin, like most states, citizens can
openly carry handguns in public without any permit. Recently a Wisconsin
judge ruled that mere open carry of holstered handguns is not
"disorderly conduct" in Wisconsin...
http://www.examiner.com/x-2782-DC-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2009m4d14-Breaking-News-Federal-civil-rights-lawsuit-filed-against-West-Milwaukee?cid=exrss-DC-Gun-Rights-Examiner
The Complaint:
http://www.jpfo.org/pdf02/complaint.pdf
---
Pennsylvania Governor Calls for More Infringements: Prodded by the
shooting deaths of police officers in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, Gov.
Ed Rendell will ask lawmakers today to enact a series of measures to
control gun violence. The Democratic governor will detail his proposal
at a Harrisburg news conference. Previewing the measures in Pittsburgh
yesterday, Mr. Rendell recalled the memorial service last week for the
three Pittsburgh police officers gunned down in Stanton Heights. Noting
that any number of legislators had attended similar events during years
of increasing gun violence, he argued that those lawmakers could pay a
more effective tribute to fallen officers by enacting common-sense gun
control laws... Mr. Rendell has advocated gun control measures in
Harrisburg in the past with little success. In particular, he has called
for a limit of one gun purchase a month to curb the problem of straw
dealers who legally purchase guns but then resell them on the black
market... (As I recall, Poplawski bought all of his firearms through
legal channels.)
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09105/962854-53.stm
---
Maine Committee Rejects Gun-Show Infringement: A gun control bill
supported by the father of one of the students killed at Columbine High
School was rejected by a legislative committee Monday in favor of a
voluntary measure. The Legislature's Criminal Justice and Public Safety
Committee voted down a bill sponsored by Rep. Anna Blodgett, D-Augusta,
that would have required unlicensed and private gun dealers to perform
instant background checks at gun shows. "I think I did as much as
anybody could do for that bill," Blodgett said. Last week, Tom Mauser -
whose son, Daniel, was one of 15 people killed in 1999 at the Colorado
high school - traveled to Maine to urge legislators to support the bill.
Blodgett said that, despite weeks of hard work, the bill faced tough
opposition from gun rights groups. "This is not against anybody except
the people who shouldn't own the guns," she said. The committee rejected
Blodgett's bill and two other gun-related bills...
http://kennebecjournal.mainetoday.com/news/local/6200525.html
---
Ohio Could Eliminate Permit Requirement: Representative John Adams
(R-78) of Sidney, Ohio has introduced House Bill 129. The bill is
identical to Adam's HB225 from 2007, and substantially similar to HB91
from 2005 and HB559 from 2004, the latter two having been sponsored by
Representative Tom Brinkman. HB129 would repeal many of the onerous
provisions of our current concealed carry law and allow law abiding
citizens to carry concealed without a license. Alaska-style CCW is an
exciting possibility for gun owners in Ohio. It shows Rep. Adams is in
touch with the most conservative of the gun owner base/constituency. It
is an important philosophical position. Vermont and Alaska already allow
citizens to carry concealed handguns without a license, but all other
states require a license (CHL) to carry a concealed handgun. Like
Alaska, this bill would leave the license in place so that people who
travel outside Ohio can have a license to take advantage of the many
states that already honor Ohio's license...
http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/node/6627
---
Ohio County Backs Off from Gun Ban: Last week, the northeast Ohio county
of Summit announced they were considering passing an ordinance to
prohibit county workers from carrying firearms while working or doing
county business, even while in personal vehicles. At the time, it was
stated that the reason for the proposed ban was "liability purposes",
according to Jason Dodson, chief of staff for County Executive Russ Pry.
Councilwoman Gloria Rodgers, who has stated she is planning to obtain a
concealed handgun license, immediately came out in opposition to the
proposal, calling it unnecessary and reminding that "people have a right
to protect themselves." Tom Morneweck, president of the American
Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 1229 which
covers county employees, stated that the Union has no opposition to
employees being legally armed and questioned whether banning in personal
vehicles would even be within the county's authority...
http://www.examiner.com/x-2206-Cleveland-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2009m4d14-Summit-County-backs-off-on-employee-gun-ban-proposal
---
Alaska Congressman Supports RKBA: Rep. Don Young was packing heat at a
public meeting, and the crowd fully supported it. Young addressed the
Second Amendment Task Force, a gun rights group, Monday in Fairbanks.
Young went straight to the meeting from the airport so he didn't have a
gun with him. But he gladly strapped on a borrowed holster with a Smith
& Wesson .44 Magnum in it. He said "this feels pretty good," and posed
for pictures with group members. About two dozen people in the
restaurant audience also had handguns holstered at their sides. Young is
a strong supporter of gun rights and praised the group's goals. He said,
"You can't have all the other parts of the Constitution unless you have
the Second Amendment."
http://www.aksuperstation.com/news/local/42985712.html
---
Colorado Congresswoman Opposes "AWB": Last month, Attorney General Eric
Holder announced that the Obama administration intends to push for the
reauthorization of the federal assault weapons ban, which expired in
2004. However, the administration is meeting resistance from many within
its own party, including Colorado Congresswoman Betsy Markey. In the
Fort Collins Coloradoan, Markey said: "I am a staunch supporter of
Second Amendment rights. I believe it is a mistake to deny
constitutional rights to all Americans because of the misdeeds of a
few." A statement like Markey's fails to see compromise in the
complexities of the gun control debate, and it thwarts common-sense
efforts to keep the most dangerous weapons out of the hands of criminals
and extremists...
http://www.coloradoan.com/article/20090414/OPINION04/904140326/1014/OPINION
---
Oops, Wrong Terrier: A 26-year-old man shot three Pit Bulls who were
allegedly attacking his dog, killing two, Thursday afternoon. The
incident occurred around 12:30 p.m. in the 5100 block of Pritchard
Drive. According to Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office spokesman John
Fortunato, the man said that his girlfriend alerted him to the fact that
their dog was being attacked by other dogs and he went into his rear
yard and found three Pit Bulls mauling his pet. Fortunato said the
suspect told officers that he tried to chase the dogs away, but when
that didn't work, he shot his gun at them, killing two of the dogs and
causing the other one to flee. The resident retrieved his injured
Terrier and transported it to a local veterinarian for treatment. No
charges were filed against the resident involved.
http://www.wwltv.com/topstories/stories/wwl040909tppitbulls.bb86c906.html
---
Unusual Seizure: Assault rifles, thousands of rounds of ammunition,
electronics and a number of other stolen goods were seized Tuesday in
connection with a crime syndicate that was busted last week, law
enforcement officials said. Many of the guns were antiques and included
hard-to-find firearms, such as a Tommy gun and a 30 caliber, belt fed,
tripod mounted Browning machine gun worth between $20,000 and $30,000,
officials estimate. The stolen goods were linked to Craig R. Erhorn, 23,
who was arrested last week in connection with a number of violent home
invasions, drug thefts and burglaries, Tucson police said...
http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/288749
---
Interesting Body Armor: Local media reported that the woman was
travelling on the bus on Saturday in the northeastern Brazilian state of
Bahia when it was held up by two armed men. The incident took place in
Bahia's capital, Salvador, where 58-year-old Ivonete Pereira travelling
to her summer home in the nearby town of Lauro de Freitas. Because of
frequent bus attacks in the region, she hid 150 reals (�45) in 20 and
10-real notes coiled inside the left cup of her bra. When the bus passed
through the Boca do Rio neighborhood, the robbers suddenly announced
their intention. A shoot out ensued with a police officer on the scene
and a stray bullet hit Miss Pereira. Her bra was stuffed with just
enough cash to absorb most of the impact, although she still had to be
taken to hospital to have the bullet removed. A retired police sergeant
was shot dead during the clash with the assailants, who managed to escape.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/southamerica/brazil/5152632/Bra-saves-womans-life-in-robbery-shooting.html
---
You Just Might Be a Right-Wing Extremist...: What and who exactly are
President Obama's homeland security officials afraid of these days? If
you are a member of an active conservative group that opposes abortion,
favors strict immigration enforcement, lobbies to protect Second
Amendment rights, protests big government, advocates federalism or
represents veterans who believe in any of the above, the answer is: You...
http://townhall.com/columnists/MichelleMalkin/2009/04/15/you_might_be_a_radicalized_right-wing_extremist_if%E2%80%A6?page=full
http://www.americanthinker.com/2009/04/dhs_rightwing_extremism_and_in_1.html
--
Stephen P. Wenger, KE7QBY
Firearm safety - It's a matter
for education, not legislation.
http://www.spw-duf.info
