Department of Education - A List member Comments: Sometime after 9/11
when Homeland Security was formed, there were internal recommendations
for security of government offices that included number of guards, how
trained, how armed, etc., etc.  Because no one understood just how much
funding would be required for each government entity, they were left
responsible for paying for their own equipment, including guns.  Thus,
DOE pays for their own guns, even though their security is done by GSA
contact cops or federal SS policemen.  They have a "reaction force" that
needs equipment and shotguns is one of the items of equipment they
need.  If a scan were done of all of the other stuff bought by DOE (and
other government offices) you would find gas masks, EMP resistant
radios, etc., etc.

Speaking of Which...: ...Unlike officers with the Pentagon Force
Protection Agency who gunned down shooter John Patrick Bedell last week,
most security guards at federal buildings in the Washington region are
employed by private firms that have contracts with the Federal
Protective Service. The FPS, part of the Department of Homeland
Security, provides security at more than 9,000 federal buildings across
the country and uses about 15,000 contract security guards to support
about 1,200 officers, inspectors and administrative staffers, according
to agency officials. A House hearing Tuesday will focus on the FPS's
future and its response to a 2009 Government Accountability Office
investigation that exposed security gaps at 10 major federal buildings.
The GAO report also faulted the FPS for inconsistent training and poor
oversight of private guards. Next month, Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman
(I-Conn.) plans to introduce legislation that addresses the agency's
future and broader threats and security measures at all civilian and
military facilities, aides said...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/10/AR2010031003955.html

And a Related Commentary:

http://www.examiner.com/x-4525-Seattle-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2010m3d10-Why-does-Department-of-Education-need-12gauge-shotguns
---

After McDonald?: ... First, certain restrictions on the purchase of
firearms will likely be overturned. California maintains a "safe gun
roster" of handguns that manufacturers have successfully submitted for
safety testing. Following the Heller decision, the District adopted
California's roster. The roster is very specific, and handgun models are
certified "safe" right down to the color. The District rejected
applications to register two-tone guns, discontinued models, and guns
not on the California roster. Three plaintiffs filed suit, alleging that
this policy violated constitutional protections against irrational
administrative regulations. The District relented, expanding its roster
to include the "safe handguns" listings for Maryland and
Massachusetts... Second, jurisdictions will be forced to allow some form
of handgun carry, either open or concealed. Outright bans on concealed
carry cited in cases from the mid-1800's come from a time when it was
assumed that only brigands carried handguns concealed, and it was an
unquestioned right of the people to carry arms openly wherever they
went. States and localities will not be able to delete the right to bear
arms from the right to keep and bear arms...

http://www.cato-at-liberty.org/2010/03/10/gun-control-after-mcdonald/
---

Complementary Rallies: April 19th looks to be a big day for gun rights.
On the 235th anniversary of the "shot heard 'round the world," the
Washington Monument grounds in D.C. will be the scene of the Second
Amendment March  (actually more a rally than a "march"), from 10 AM to 4
PM (also discussed here). Follow the link for much more information.
For those who can't make it all the way to Washington, click here for
developing information on coordinated state marches. What I really want
to talk about, though, is another event on April 19th - not at all far
from the main march in D.C. itself.  I refer to the Restore the
Constitution Rally, mustering at Ft. Hunt National Park, and from there,
moving to Gravelly Point Park - only about a mile from the D.C National
Mall.
Why a separate rally, near D.C., but not in it?  Because the point of
the Restore the Constitution Rally is for it to be a visibly (peaceably)
armed rally, which would, of course, be more than a little illegal in
D.C. - and an argument can still be made for the idea that the time for
open (very open) defiance of gun laws has not yet arrived...

http://www.examiner.com/x-2581-St-Louis-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2010m3d10-April-19th-Libertys-show-of-force
---

NRA Outranks Big Brother in Poll: The National Rifle Association has a
higher mean approval rating among likely voters than Barack Obama. This
and other fascinating facts emerged from the Democracy Corps/Third Way
national security survey released this week. According to its liberal
authors, the "sobering" results of the survey provide "a wake-up call
for President Obama, his party and progressives on national security."
.. Another less noted but highly significant result was that 42 percent
of likely voters self-identified as conservative but just 21 percent as
liberal. The poll also documented the decline in Obamamania; "drop-off"
voters, those who voted in 2008 but are not likely to vote in 2010, were
much more likely to be those who voted for Mr. Obama and congressional
Democrats in the last election. The liberal authors of the study argued
that, "Democrats will need to pursue new steps to forge a closer bond
with the military institutions and culture" while separately advocating
that they forge ahead with repealing the "don't ask/don't tell" law
regarding homosexuals in the military. Good luck with that one. Maybe
Democrats should run the idea by some NRA members first.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/mar/11/the-nra-outshoots-obama/
---

Firearms Freedom Acts: Utah has become the third state to adopt a law
exempting guns and ammunition made, sold and used in the state from
massive federal regulations under the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,
Firearms and Explosives, and supporters say about 30 more states have
some sort of plan for their own exemptions in the works. Officials in
Utah say they expect a lawsuit over their direct challenge to Washington
if the federal government succeeds in its current case against Montana's
law. Gary Marbut of the Montana Shooting Sports Association, who has
spearheaded the Montana law, now describes himself as a sort of
"godfather" to the national campaign. He confirmed Montana, Tennessee
and Utah have enacted such laws. "Wyoming and South Dakota, they have
passed legislation and it's on their governors' desks," he said. "We
learned today Oklahoma's House has passed a plan over to the Senate.
Idaho's House has just passed it along. Alaska's has passed the House
and is in the Senate Judiciary committee," he said... (It's worth
clicking the link to look at the map, if only to see how few states have
not yet initiated action in this field.)

http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=127490
---

One More Gun-Free Zone Shooting: By now most of you know about the
shooting at Ohio State University early yesterday morning. At around
3:30am, Nathaniel Brown, who was reportedly serving a suspension for a
poor job performance review, entered the university's maintenance
building and began shooting. Building supervisor Larry Wallington was
killed and operations shift leader Henry Butler wounded. Brown killed
himself before police could arrest him. Gun control advocates will point
to this as an example of why guns have no place in schools or the
workplace. The problem with this logic is that it was already illegal
for Brown to bring a gun into the maintenance building. Not only is it a
violation of workplace policy but it is also banned by Ohio law since it
is a building on school property. None of that deterred Brown from
carrying out his murderous plan of revenge. The gun ban did, however,
ensure that nobody was able to fight back...

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-2206-Cleveland-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2010m3d10-Gun-bans-and-workplace-violence
---

Harvard Is Creating an Anti-RKBA Database: A new firearms research
database launched by the Harvard School of Public Health purports to
make scholarly articles more accessible to reporters, law enforcement,
public health officials, policymakers, and the general public. But gun
owners are right to worry that the database will not be even-handed in
reporting both sides of gun ownership. The release from the Harvard
School of Public Health claims, "With the new availability of gun
violence data and research, one of the primary goals of the website is
to help those in law enforcement, public health and government develop
best practices and smarter approaches to curbing gun crime and
violence." But a quick check of online work from the school shows an
unbalanced treatment of gun ownership, with a high incidence of items of
research on gun appearances in suicides... (Note the word VERITAS on the
Harvard emblem - that's Latin for "truth.")

http://www.gunreports.com/news/news/Harvard-Online-Firearms-Research-database-Public-Health_1896-1.html?ET=gunreports:e662:183810a:&st=email
---

Massachusetts Supremes Reject RKBA Defense in Trigger-Lock Case: In a
case that had drawn attention from the Gun Owners Action League and the
Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, the Supreme Judicial Court today
upheld a state law requiring trigger locks on guns kept in people's
homes. In a victory for law enforcement and advocates of gun control,
the state's highest court ruled that the Second Amendment does not
currently apply to states and therefore Massachusetts has the power to
regulate gun ownership. "We conclude that the legal obligation safely to
secure firearms in [state law] is not unconstitutional,'' Justice Ralph
Gants wrote for the unanimous court. In a companion ruling, it upheld
the convictions of a New Bedford man who had argued that the Second
Amendment right to bear arms trumped state law making it a crime for an
unlicensed person to have a handgun...

http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2010/03/_in_a_victory_f.html
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gamKqZ1Y1OSIR9L_uLEQks7ZNSJAD9EBTS980

A state trooper who lives in Sandwich won't have to sweat a second
prosecution on a charge that he improperly stored his department-issued
gun. Cape and Islands District Attorney Michael O'Keefe said he won't
refile charges against state police Lt. Richard Bolduc, despite
yesterday's ruling by the state Supreme Judicial Court that upholds the
state's gun storage laws... Bolduc was charged in a June 2008 incident
in which his son, who was 12 at the time, grabbed his father's Sig Sauer
P226 .40-caliber handgun from an unlocked bureau in their Sandwich home.
The boy took the unloaded gun to a neighbor's house, pointed it at a
5-year-old girl and pulled the trigger. During the follow-up
investigation, police found a loaded clip in the same drawer where the
boy grabbed the gun... (It's hard not to wonder if a private citizen
would get the same pass. Rule Five: Maintain control of your firearm.)

http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100311/NEWS/3110313/-1/NEWSMAP
---

Ohio Supremes to Hear Cleveland Appeal: If Cleveland had its way, every
gun in the city would have to be registered, no one would carry a weapon
openly and assault weapons would be banned. All three of those rules,
however - and there are others the city would like to impose - run
contrary to an Ohio gun law that took effect three years ago
establishing one set of firearm rules for everyone from Lake Erie down
to the Ohio River. The city has had its tougher gun restrictions on hold
ever since House Bill 347 passed while it has battled the state to a
draw in court over whether the local rules are legal. Now, the Ohio
Supreme Court has decided it will hear the case to settle the dispute
for once and for all. A lower court sided with the state, saying only
federal and state codes could restrict firearms. But an appeals court
backed the city, saying the state gun law is not "general law"...

http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2010/03/cleveland_to_fight_for_its_gun.html
---

More Infringements in Maryland Would Waste Scarce Funds: Maryland
politicians should be focusing on the state's budget crisis. Instead,
some lawmakers are wasting the remaining days of the legislative session
to pass more gun-control laws. These efforts to limit freedom should be
shot down. One of the slew of proposed gun laws getting serious
attention is the Firearm Safety Act of 2010, which was introduced by
state Sen. Brian E. Frosh, Montgomery County Democrat. The bill promises
to tighten up Maryland's supposedly "lax" registration and licensing
laws, but its main legacy will be to waste money. By diverting funds
from crime policies that work - like more cops on the beat - and
discouraging gun ownership, the proposal will increase crime.
Registration programs in Hawaii, the District of Columbia and Chicago
can't point to any crimes that have been solved as a result of gun
registration. In Canada, since the 1930s and up to a few years ago, the
government could point to only three handgun crimes solved using
registration information...

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/mar/11/registering-guns-in-maryland/
---

New Mexico Governor Signs Restaurant-Carry Bill: Governor Bill
Richardson today signed a bill that removes the ban on concealed carry
licensees from bringing their weapons into New Mexico restaurants with
beer and wine licenses. However, Governor Richardson is ordering
additional safeguards to address public safety concerns surrounding the
bill... "My decision to sign this bill came after much contemplation and
thought. I heard strong opinions from both those for and against the
bill," Governor Richardson said. "As the Governor of a western state, I
know well the deep feelings that come with such a measure, but I also
understand those feelings and beliefs must be tempered by the enactment
of certain safeguards." Under current New Mexico statute and regulation,
there is no clear and explicit prohibition on the consumption of alcohol
while carrying a concealed weapon. Governor Richardson is directing the
New Mexico Department of Public Safety to revise its regulations to make
it clear that consumption of alcohol while carrying a concealed weapon
is prohibited. Governor Richardson is also encouraging the legislature
to consider legislation that would make such a prohibition unequivocal
in state statute... (While this bill is overdue, I am troubled that the
governor intends to amend the law by means of a DPS administrative rule.
Aside from being a violation of the separation of powers, many visitors
to New Mexico may not realize how much more restrictive DPS
administrative rule are than the statutes. For example, the rules limit
concealed carry to one handgun, something that is not in the statutes.)

http://www.governor.state.nm.us/press/2010/march/031010_02.pdf
---

New Mexico Gunners Protest Fairground Ban: A local gun rights advocacy
group is taking aim at the Otero County Fairgrounds over posted signs
that prohibit guns on the premises. Members of the Alamogordo Second
Amendment Task Force say about a handful of signs posted near the
fairground's entrances, as well as others spread across the grounds, are
illegal. "We want (the gun) restriction removed from the fairground's
signs, plain and simple," said Chris Dearstyne, a member of Alamogordo
2ATF. "There is no ulterior motive. We want to get people's rights
restored in areas where those rights can be infringed upon." The signs
to which Dearstyne is referring display three restrictions with which
people must comply before entering the fairgrounds: No pets (except
service animals), no guns and no alcohol. The group delivered a letter
to the fairgrounds earlier this week. They also distributed an e-mail
copy of the letter to its members, as well as to the Daily News. The
letter requests the "removal of all signage posted on the fairgrounds
property restricting the carrying of arms." It references an Otero
County ordinance 96-04 that was signed Feb. 19, 1996, that states " It
is therefore ordained by the Board of County Commissioners that no law,
rule, regulation, and/or ordinance infringing on, regulating or
otherwise affecting the right of the citizens to bear arms of their
choice shall be enacted, imposed or ordained in Otero County." The
letter further references Article II, Section 6 of the New Mexico
Constitution, which states: " No municipality or county shall regulate,
in any way, an incident of the right to keep and bear arms." "That's
pretty straightforward to me," Dearstyne said...

http://www.alamogordonews.com/ci_14652402
---

New Restaurant-Carry Bill Advances in Tennessee: A new guns-in-bars bill
cleared its first legislative hurdle Wednesday, a step toward allowing
handgun-carry permit holders to go armed in restaurants that sell
alcohol [emphases added]. A similar bill passed the General Assembly
last year but was overturned by a Davidson County court that said it was
unconstitutionally vague. While the state is appealing the Chancery
Court ruling, "we don't know what the courts are going to do. So we
would rather come back and make it clear for the permit holder where he
can carry and not carry," Rep. Curry Todd, R-Collierville, the bill's
sponsor, told House Criminal Practice and Procedure Committee members...
The House bill must clear several more panels before reaching the House
floor. The Senate bill is expected to begin moving next week, Rep. Todd
said. After last year's bill was passed, Gov. Bredesen vetoed it, but
legislators easily overrode the veto. Restaurateurs sued and, on Nov.
20, Davidson County Chancellor Claudia Bonnyman ruled the law
unconstitutionally vague.

http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2010/mar/11/new-guns-in-bars-bill-advances/
---

Open Carry Suffers Partial Defeat in Oklahoma: A proposal to allow
unrestricted open carrying of weapons was shot down by legislative
procedures Wednesday in the state House of Representatives. But a
proposal to allow those with permits to carry concealed weapons to also
carry them out in the open is still alive and may be attached to another
bill today, the last day House members can act on House-generated bills.
Both proposals were filed as amendments to House Bill 2538, which would
have allowed a gun owner who has a permit to carry a concealed firearm
to put a loaded weapon on the dashboard or seat of a vehicle. Oklahoma
only allows concealed gun permits, and gun owners with permits must
conceal the weapons in their vehicles. Both efforts failed as Rep. Sue
Tibbs, the author of HB 2538, eventually withdrew the measure after more
than an hour of debate and legislative maneuvering. Before withdrawing
her bill, Tibbs, R-Tulsa, had accepted an amendment by Rep. David Derby,
R-Owasso, which would allow those with concealed carry permits to carry
the weapons in the open. She also had accepted an amendment by Rep. Mike
Reynolds, R-Oklahoma City, that would allow any person to carry a rifle,
shotgun or pistol at any time if the person has a reasonable fear of
bodily harm...

http://newsok.com/article/3445516
---

The Predictable California Response: A California lawmaker has stepped
into a growing gun rights debate by introducing legislation that would
essentially outlaw what's called the "open carry" of unloaded weapons on
public property. The measure, which was first introduced last month but
is not expected to have its first hearing until April, is meant to
address the growing "open carry" movement, in which some gun owners have
taken to meeting in coffee shops, parks, and restaurants while wearing
holstered weapons to raise awareness about gun rights... Assembly Member
Salda�a said she was compelled to introduce the bill to limit the open
carry law in California, which is one of at least 38 states that allows
the display of unconcealed weapons, following a gathering of some 60
armed open carry advocates at a southern California beach... Stanford
University law professor Robert Weisberg, an expert on gun laws, says
it's unlikely that the California legislature would endorse Salda�a's
bill. "The great majority from both political parties don't want to
cross the gun lobby," he says... (What the California legislature really
needs to do in response to the open-carry demonstrations is to mandate
the issuance of CWP's to all qualified applicants. Often ignored is that
fact that the law that banned most open carry of loaded firearms in
California [PC 12031] was signed by then-governor Ronald Reagan.)

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2010/0310/California-lawmaker-would-outlaw-open-carry-gun-right
---

Shooting at Fleeing Vehicles: Charges have been filed against three men
in the shooting death of a 1-year-old baby girl in Roland [AR]. Both
19-year-old Michael Clemente and 17-year-old Aaron Bowen are charged
with 1st Degree Murder for the death of Elaine Keene, as well as charges
of 1st Degree Burglary, Robbery, and Child Neglect. Police say the two
men beat and robbed Devin Jeremiah at his home on Feb. 27th. Jeremiah
allegedly fired shots at the vehicle Clemente and Bowen used to flee the
scene in. Baby Elaine was a passenger in the vehicle. Her mother,
Heather Jones, was the driver. Shots fired by Jeremiah struck the baby.
She was taken to Arkansas Children's Hospital, and died two days later.
Jeremiah has been charged with 2nd Degree Murder, but he is not in
custody yet. Sequoyah County Sheriff Ron Lockhart says Jeremiah and his
attorney have arranged to turn himself in Wednesday morning. He has also
been charged with two counts of Shooting with Intent to Kill, one charge
each for shots he fired at Clemente and Bowen... (I have repeatedly
pointed out the good fortune of some homeowners or businessmen not to be
charged for firing at fleeing robbers. Generally, deadly force is not
justified once the threat has ended and it is difficult to argue that
robbers or burglars fleeing the scene still pose a threat, unless they
are shooting while doing so.)

http://www.kfsm.com/news/kfsm-news-roland-shooting-charges-filed,0,4080972.story
---

Rule Three Reminder: Phoenix police say an officer accidentally shot a
gun-toting assault suspect in the shoulder, critically injuring him.
Sgt. Tommy Thompson, of the Phoenix Police Department, says officers
were at an apartment complex on Wednesday night looking for the
27-year-old man, who had been accused of pistol-whipping someone earlier
in the day. When they saw him come out of an apartment, they moved in to
arrest him. Thompson says a plainclothes police sergeant came around a
corner and unexpectedly found himself face-to-face with the suspect,
startling the sergeant. The officer's gun discharged. Thompson says the
suspect had a pistol tucked in his waistband. The 36-year-old sergeant
will be placed on administrative leave, standard practice in
officer-involved shootings. (Rule Three: Keep your finger out of the
trigger guard, up on the frame, until your sights are on the target and
you're prepared to fire.)

http://www.azdailysun.com/news/state-and-regional/article_1c2194bc-4adc-5b8f-a759-4e250f28510d.html
---

More on the Airsoft Bust:

http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/agents-of-incompetence-atf/?singlepage=true
http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/agents-of-incompetence-atf-seizes-toys-then-touts-their-danger-part-ii/?singlepage=true
---

How Long Will Britain Tolerate This?: Kevin Garwood, 61, is a triple
black belt holder and has developed special "cane work" courses for
people over 50 to help them to stand up to yobs and drunks. The course
is based on martial arts from around the world that use the sabre,
bayonet and staff, which have been adapted specifically for stick users
with limited mobility. Typical moves include throws, takedowns and 'neck
hooks' which use the crook of the stick for locks and strangleholds as
well as gentle exercises using the 3ft long canes. His students, aged 50
to 76, all use an NHS walking stick and list strokes, severe diabetes,
heart attacks, triple bypasses and arthritis among their medical
complaints. Mr Garwood, from Gorleston, Norfolk, started up the classes
after older women attending his yoga class said they did not like to go
out after dark... (This is great, so long as his students don't end up
being prosecuted for using excessive force. Actually, what he shows in
the video looks a bit complex for non-athletes. Most people who are
willing to strike with a cane can get by with four oblique strokes -
from the ground up toward either shoulder and back down - and one
stroke, straight up from the ground into the groin of the assailant. In
all these strokes, both hands remain on the upper part of the cane.)

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/7404905/Pensioners-taught-to-use-walking-stick-in-self-defence.html
---

Tangentially Related: ...For the first time, the group that carried out
the Sept. 11 attacks and has prided itself on its ideological purism
seems to be eyeing a more pragmatic and arguably more dangerous shift in
tactics. The emerging message appears to be: Big successes are great,
but sometimes simply trying can be just as good. U.S. officials and
counterterrorism experts say the airline attack and last November's
shooting at Fort Hood, Texas, prove that simple, well-played smaller
attacks against the United States can be just as devastating to the
democratic giant as complex and riskier ones. In a recent Internet
posting, U.S.-born al-Qaida spokesman Adam Gadahn made a public pitch
for such smaller, single acts of jihad. "Even apparently unsuccessful
attacks on Western mass transportation systems can bring major cities to
a halt, cost the enemy billions and send his corporations into
bankruptcy," Gadahn said in a video released and translated by
U.S.-based Site Intelligence Group, which monitors Islamic militant
message traffic. It's a message that officials believe has been evolving
for the last year and has turned upside down the prevailing wisdom that
the next al-Qaida attack against the U.S. must be bigger and bolder than
the one on Sept. 11, 2001...

http://newsmax.com/Newsfront/US-Al-Qaida-Lone/2010/03/11/id/352310

--
Stephen P. Wenger, KE7QBY

Firearm safety - It's a matter
for education, not legislation.

The tactics and skills to use a firearm
in self-defense don't come naturally
with the right to keep and bear arms.

http://www.spw-duf.info

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