Giving Gun Owners the Finger

Say Uncle directs us to the loopy tale of former Bridgeport City Councilman Joel Gonzales, who cut off his finger in 1994 to protest private gun ownership.

The ridiculously over-dramatic Mr. Gonzales seems to think someone on eBay will give him $50,000 or more for the contraption he used to self-amputate. He plans to give half the money to a zoo, plus fund the insane fixations he deems "activism," including "strengthening gun control laws."

He apparently did it because he thinks the NRA controls the speaker lists at public hearings, and wanted to make his proposal to eliminate "gun crime" heard--that is, "amputating the trigger fingers (index) of anyone who use a firearm to commit a premeditaded [sic] crime."

"When I did it, people said I was crazy. I wonder what they are saying now," speculates Gonzales.

I think "crazy" about covers it, Joel.

But you might want to get a second opinion.

Despite All My Belly-Aching, I Couldn't Resist...

...and just devoured the first 3 chapters of "Out of the Gray Zone."

This is good stuff. I see Bill St. Clair is passionate in his praise:

"Wow! Claire and Aaron have hit the ball out of the park, hit it out of the city, hit it out of orbit, hit the moon, and put a hole clean through. And that's an understatement. Tears dripped from my face. Tears of joy. Tears of anger sated. Tears of hope for our world. May it never get as bad as they envisioned. May we, each contributing as he or she can, prevent that future, and listen to that inner voice of what is right, what is decent, what is necessary, what must be. And make it so."

Now I need to go work for a few hours so I can be back in time for my 10-year-old son's electric guitar recital.

No rest for the wicked, or some such...

"Out of the Gray Zone" Arrived...

...in yesterday's mail, along with a very nice t-shirt. I got my order in early and got an autographed copy.

Can't wait to get to it--right now, in addition to working 7 days a week (plus many evenings) on my "real" job (which is typical for April through August), maintaining this blog, researching and writing my monthly GUNS Magazine "Rights Watch" column, giving the wife and kids the time of day, and keeping my house and yard chores from getting to the point where it would be easier just to torch the place, my time to read and then write reviews is a tad limited.

On that front, "Failing the Test," about JPFO's BATFU expose video, will appear in the next issue of GUNS, in stores around May 30--I'll do an announcement when it hits the shelves.

The editor gave me the green light to put something together on "The Black Arrow" in addition to my regular column, so that's another project in waiting. And I'm smack-dab in the middle of "Enemies Foreign and Domestic," which I want to read in one sitting, but which I'm finding difficulty getting to until bedtime--which means I generally make it about a page-and-a-half before exhaustion takes over.

But I'll get to "Out of the Gray Zone." It's just a question of when.

Oh, look--a package from the PO box--why, it looks like another book...

Crime Gun Solutions--Who These Guys ARE

The names of the chief operators are: Joseph J. Vince Jr., Partner, Gerald A. Nunziato, Partner, Ronald Schuman, Partner, and Robert A. Ricker, Senior Executive Consultant.

"Crime Gun Solutions LLC (CGS) partners include the former Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms (BATF) Special Agent In Charge of the National Tracing Center, the former Chief of the BATF Headquarters Firearm Enforcement Division and the Crime Gun Analysis Branch, and the former BATF Criminal Enforcement Information Systems Development Program Manager."

Yep. BATFU careerists.

"CGS has worked with city law departments, State Attorney Generals’ Offices, major police departments, and private law firms in an effort to assist them in acquiring, analyzing, and utilizing crime-gun information."

So they're paid either by anti-gun politicians using money taxed from We the People, or by law firms suing gun makers?

"CGS has been praised for their work in educating judges and juries on the various aspects of using crime-gun information."

Yeah, "praised" by enemies of the Second Amendment. And ain't it ironic--no one is "educating judges and juries on various aspects of" the Constitution, the intent of the Framers, the Second Amendment, jury nullification...

I question the use of the photo of what looks like a dead guy on their home page--this looks like a real crime scene photo. Is it, and if so, who authorized its use in a for-profit venture?

I also find it very interesting that our old pal Robert Ricker is entrenched in the core of this cabal.

He was named CCRKBA's "Gun Rights Defender of the Month" back in February of 1999 [they have since removed this from their site, but it is preserved via The Wayback Machine. Bad move deleting it, Alan--our side shouldn't be the ones erasing history; you could have explained it by just admitting you were betrayed along with everyone else.]

"Just last month, for instance, in a major article on the growing number of lawsuits filed against firearms companies by big-city anti-gun politicians, The Washington Post reported that 'Bob Ricker of the American Shooting Sports Council, a trade association for gunmakers, vowed that his members won’t be intimidated into an out-of-court settlement, regardless of how many cities line up against them.

"Ricker also said the swarm of tobacco plaintiffs’ lawyers suggests that the suits against the industry are frivolous, the work of an opportunistic gang of legal predators.

"‘We’ll be able to show that what these lawyers are actually after is money,’ he said, a contention certain to become part of the gun manufacturers’ defense."

Now Robert Ricker is a leading voice FOR suing gun makers:

"Robert A. Ricker, former Assistant General Counsel for the National Rifle Association and former Executive Director of the American Shooting Sports Council, was scheduled to testify today in the NAACP's landmark lawsuit against the gun industry.

"Ricker recently revealed that the gun industry has long known its practices aid criminal access to guns yet has done nothing about it. According to a declaration he filed in another case, 'many manufacturers and distributors consistently refuse to address the problem of the 'felons among us.' They instead hide behind the fiction that as long as a retail dealer has a valid federal firearms license to sell guns, no attention to the dealer's business practices is required by its suppliers.'"

So was Robert Ricker lying then or is he lying now? How can we tell? And why would anyone give testimony from this Judas any credibility at all?

[Thanks to correspondent Bob Lewis for tracking down the CGS website!]

Crime Gun Solutions--Who ARE These Guys?

Research led me to a post on The Freeholder from a month ago about Gerald Nunziato, a former BATFU careerist now a partner in a venture called "Crime Gun Solutions."

Per the Houston Chronicle: "'If it wasn't for criminals, there wouldn't be a gun industry in this country,' Nunziato said, adding that the claims of the NRA and other gun-rights groups that they are protecting law-abiding citizens with their policies are false.

"'The only people it's protecting are criminals.'"

So who is behind "Crime Gun Solutions"? Seems to be a bunch of ex-BATFUers and pals.

They’re at the forefront of trying to take militia suitable firearms away from We the People, throwing meaningless statistics into the mix just to sound authoritative: “Since the law’s enactment, the number of assault weapons at crime scenes has dropped 45% according to Crime Gun Solutions LLC, a consulting firm.”

If you read the fine print over at the Brady Center, you'll discover "firearms listed in this data are considered by BATFU to be 'crime guns,' which means they have been...[among other things--DC] suspected of having been used in a crime.[emphasis added--DC "

"Former ATF experts at Crime Gun Solutions, LLC, including the former Special Agent in Charge of ATF's National Tracing Center [that would be Nunziato--DC], analyzed the data for the Brady Center and support the study's conclusions."

CEO Joe Vince received special acknowledgement at the IACP Conference IACP (International Association of Chiefs of Police) Crime Gun Interdiction Strategies for the 21st Century Summit.

The report introduces itself with quotes from Bill Clinton and Janet Reno. It provides a blueprint for achieving self-fulfilling gun control goals. This summit” was supported through a grant from the Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance,” that is, We the People were coerced into paying for this plot against our rights.

The Constitution and legitimate delegated authority and individual rights are not considerations. Nowhere in the summit report is the Second Amendment even mentioned.

Crime Gun Solutions is emerging as a leading subversive threat to the right to keep and bear arms. We'd all do well to keep a watchful eye on this group.

Of immediate concern: Where do they get their funding from? Do anti-gun groups like Brady Center pay for "research"? Does CGS receive money from any taxpayer-funded agency at any level of government? Who are the major investors who own it?

Be nice to track the ninja down and pull his mask off...

In the mean time, don't let the media get away with referring to them as "a consulting group" without acknowledging that they are agenda-driven. Ditto for any "authoritative" claims citing them as a credible reference. Write editors to correct the record whenever you see this occur.

These guys didn't succeed in disarming us when they were in jackboots. Now that they've discovered a more lucrative gig (and any bets that they also have healthy retirement benefits and pensions courtesy of the people they wish to disarm?), they may actually be more of a threat.

Treat them that way.

About Part One...

There seems to be some confusion that I wrote the Open Letter to NRA.

Nah, I don't writ that gud. I just did the brief intro.

It's by MicroBalrog, which I can see now was not made as clear as it could have been. He is a 20-year-old Israeli who cares more about the Second Amemdment than most Americans.

Anyway, just to make sure there's no confusion, I inserted "By Boris Karpa" (his real name) into that piece.

I hope this clears things up. I haven't had this much trouble since I wrote "Gone With the Wind."

Oh, My! What a Surprise!

"But the measure being written by Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., would give the FBI new power to issue administrative subpoenas, which are not reviewed by a judge or grand jury, for quickly obtaining records, electronic data or other evidence in terrorism investigations, according to aides for the GOP majority on the committee who briefed reporters Wednesday."

Well, Hell--it's not like there's a Second Amendment in this country to protect other supposed unalienable rights. Or a second political party, for that matter...

Squeeze, baby!

NRA AWOL on Second Amendment Protection Act--Part Two

First, go to NRA-ILA's site search.

Type in "HR 1703" or "H.R. 1703".

Make sure the boxes to search ALL sections are checked.

Click either "Boolean Expression" or "All Words".

Select "All Issues" from the "Display Information" pulldown menu.

Click the "Search" button.

Or don't. All that will happen is you'll get the message "No documents were found."

MicroBalrog wrote an impassioned plea in Part One.

Here's a response he managed to track down from "the most powerful lobbying group in Washington":

Though the NRA-ILA has limited resources, we are doing our best to have the biggest impact. Right now that means we must pass HR 800, the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act. If that doesn't pass, our manufacturers and dealers will be sued out of business and we'll all be in a world of hurt. We are focusing our lobbying efforts on attainable and necessary legislation and then we'll move on to our second tier of legislation. While HR 1703 is a good bill, it will not come out of committee no matter how hard we lobby on the bill. There are other politics in play regarding the bill sponsor in which the NRA plays no role at all. Unfortunately, that means Congressman Paul is at the mercy of the committee and it's chairman. Someday we'll be able to pass similar legislation, but right now we have to make sure the firearm industry is not destroyed.

Sincerely,
Joel Brewer
NRA-ILA

Did you get that? Poor NRA, with its 4 million members, can't do two things at once at the federal level. Informing gun owners about this bill would simply put too much of a strain on the system, and distract ILA from its primary effort.

Besides, the bill has no chance of passing--why, it will never get out of committee. By not lifting a finger, NRA makes this a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Would it make it out of committee if some political leadership was displayed?

I mean, it's not like gun owners and $20 Million from NRA had anything to do with the reelection of George Bush...

NRA AWOL on Second Amendment Protection Act--Part One

MicroBalrog doesn't understand why NRA is mum on HR 1703, the Second Amendment Protection Act:

An Open Letter to the National Rifle Association
By Boris Karpa

Honorable and estimable Directors of the National Rifle Association!

For years, members of the Association were reading - both in the newspapers and in your Grassroots Alerts - about the National Rifle Association. About how the National Rifle Association is the most powerful lobby in Washington. About how the NRA donates millions to campaigns of candidates it supports. About how the NRA never compromises unless it absolutely, totally has to [well, okay, we ended up coming to grips with reality, there].

You gave fiery speeches about how we should become extremists and demand the right to self-defense. You said that our guns are the guarantee of freedom. You waved rifles in the air, screaming that the enemies of that freedom will be able to get those rifles - when they pry them for your cold, dead hands.

You might have never in this - or maybe you didn’t. What matters is that, after you repeated those things often enough, we started believing them too - maybe because they are really true. We came to believe - like Patrick Henry, Thomas Jefferson, Samuel Adams, like the Minutemen at Concord and the New-Orleans Greys at the Alamo - that freedom is worth fighting for.

You promised us something truly wonderful - a world where we will all be free like the Founding Fathers intended us to be. You promised you’ll be here for us, fighting for freedom all the way, rain or shine.

Honorable and estimable Directors! Today, you lobby for a lawsuit protection bill - claiming that without it the gun industry would be ruined. Seeing as how the lawsuit strategy of te anti-gun crowd has so far had few if any results, this might or might not be true - but you totally ignore the Second Amendment Protection Act, lingering away in committee - headed by a Congressman that is rated A by both the Association and your "extremist" competitors at the GOA. Yet you tell us that there is no way that the NRA - with all the power you boasted and the promises you made - can dislodge that bill one inch.

I want you to think of all the promises you made. All the times you spoke about responsibility. About honesty. About freedom. And tell me, will you be able to look in the mirror tomorrow morning, knowing all you said was just a sick, twisted lie? Or maybe it really was what it sounded like - a promise?

Keep your promise. Support HR-1703.

[The NRA can be contacted by phone: 800-392-8683
or via this page: https://secure.nraila.org/Contact.aspx]

The Last Gun Shop Update

They're still fighting for their lives...if anybody cares...

The Heirs of Liberty

"With nearly all the votes counted tonight, Philadelphians endorsed by a ratio of 4-1 a charter change that asks the state legislature and governor to let the city draft its own laws 'to prevent and reduce gun violence.'"

The Philadelphia electorate collectively merits a WarOnGuns "Eloi Award."

Welcome to the "City of Brotherly Love," home of Independence Hall: A UN World Heritage Site.

Remembering Norman

[From "Firearms Coalition"--click on "Latest Alerts" in left-hand frame, then select "Gun Rights Alert - 2nd Not Individual Right"]

Remember the Name "Norman Mordue."

I can't decide if I'd rather see it live in infamy or perish in obscurity.

I guess I'd want future generations to know who the traitors of early 21st Century America were--especially the ones who made peaceful redress by those earnestly seeking Constitutional adherance impossible.

You can't take it back, Norman. Your place in history is secure.

An Honest Man

Ian Hamet has guts and integrity:

"IMPORTANT UPDATE! Commenter Dave Cordea [sic] is absolutely correct, this idea is original to J. Neil Schulman, and I utterly forgot it. I must have read his piece in his book Stopping Power some eight or nine years ago. Here I am basking in plagiarized glory without even knowing it. :$ As pennance, Neil may direct me to write a post on a topic of his choosing, of up to 2,000 words, if he ever comes across this. Also, you all should read his first two books. Alongside Night is a roaring good time, and The Rainbow Cadenza gives serious, sobering thought to the phrase “make love, not war”. In fact, it should be translated into Chinese and published here in China, given demographic trends these days.

"So this great, brilliant, original piece that everyone loved? Not mine. Sorry."

Thank you, Mr. Hamet, for setting the record straight on this.

If You Have a Prudential Policy or Account, Cancel It

Follow-up to "Open Letter to Toyota":

The Prudential Spirit of Community Award

"What can a young volunteer do? There are literally millions of opportunities to make an important difference in the lives of others. Following are more than 300 specific projects that have actually been carried out over the past several years by young people who have won Prudential Spirit of Community Awards. Perhaps their activities will give you some ideas as to what you can do in your own neighborhood or town to help make life better for someone else.

"Promote Health and Safety

"Theodoros and Nikolaos Milonopoulos of Studio City, Calif. conducted a kids' petition campaign to ban the sale of gun bullets in Los Angeles."

Can't just sell insurance or financial services, can they?

If you do business with Prudential or Toyota, you are helping fund the undermining of the Republic as envisioned by the Founders.

Every Blade of Grass--An Open Letter to Toyota Management

In re: “Toyota Awards $1.12 Million in Scholarships to 100 High School Seniors” (PR Newswire)

“Theodoros Milonopoulos, a Toyota Community Scholar residing in Los Angeles, is a prime example of the dedication to community service exhibited by this year's class. Through his leadership and effort in the area of gun control, the City of Los Angeles banned .50 caliber sniper rifles, plus reauthorized the Federal Assault Weapons Ban. Also, this Scholar - along with the Los Angeles Police Department - organized a rally where 2,000 crime guns were melted down.

“Consequently, Milonopoulos, like many of the Scholars, found community service to be the roadmap to what he wants to do in the future. ‘I plan to become a lawyer after studying constitutional law. It is my dream to serve in Congress so that I can continue to be the voice for our nation's youth.’"

Congratulations, idiots. You just lost all future business from me and every gun owner reading this who cares about the Second Amendment.

Perhaps you think America is ripe for Japanese-style gun control.

You are outrageously mistaken.

As Admiral Yamamoto is reputed to have said, “You cannot invade America. There is a rifle behind every blade of grass.”

It’s going to stay that way—no matter what subversion blossoming tyrant wannabes like foolish little Theo and his enablers, like you, dream up.

You couldn’t just sell cars and trucks, and not tamper with sacred institutions in your host country? You had to go and make an enemy of men like me?

I’ve seen what happens when Japan succeeds in disarming its victims. I note the Japanese government still hasn’t apologized to the people of China for the Rape of Nanking. It looks like Japan is none too popular there right now.

I’m going to do what I can to make sure Toyota Motor Sales, USA, is none too popular here.

You can do one of two things:

1. Fire the idiots responsible for awarding Theo his grant and apologize to American gun owners, or
2. follow Mr. Garrison’s advice.

[Thanks to Say Uncle for the tip on this.]

Newsweek Has Killed More People than My Gun AND Teddy Kennedy's Car

10/05/15 UPDATE: This post is from 2005, so the internal links no longer work. Here's a relevant link that still does.

-----

Doc Brown at Right Justified refers us to a Reuters story on how incompetent and irresponsible reporting at Newsweek resulted in Muslim riots, leaving 16 dead and 100 injured.

Newsweek, of course, is a leading shill for the citizen disarmament crowd.

John Lott, in “Media Bias Against Guns” tells us:

“The 1999 special issue of Newsweek entitled ‘America Under the Gun’ provided over 15,000 words and numerous graphics on the topic of gun ownership, but not one mention of self-defense with a firearm. Under the heading ‘America's Weapons of Choice,’ the table captions were: ‘Top firearms traced to crimes, 1998’; ‘Firearm deaths per 100,000 people’; and ‘Percent of homicides using firearms.’ There was nothing at all on ‘Top firearms used in self-defense’ or ‘Rapes, homicides, and other crimes averted with firearms.’ The magazine's graphic, gut-wrenching pictures all showed people who had been wounded by guns. No images were offered of people who had used guns to save lives or prevent injuries.”

Per NRA, Newsweek is one of the “publications and media outlets [that] have assisted in the attack on Second Amendment rights. The editorial policies of some of the media sources listed portray firearms in a negative manner in an attempt to generate public support for restrictions on firearms ownership.”

Forget the title of this article.

How about “Newsweek Has Killed More People than Ted Bundy”?

Or “Newsweek Has Killed More People than the Manson Family”?

Guess What I'M Reading?

A STADIUM MASSACRE LEADS TO THE BANNING OF ALL SEMI-AUTOMATIC RIFLES. BUT WHO REALLY FIRED THE FATAL SHOTS, AND WHY?

I wish author Matthew Bracken hadn’t sent it to me. I’m working 7 days a week on my real job, many of those days over 12 hours. I’m up every morning early to post to this blog. I have the magazine deadline to worry about. A wife and two kids need my attention. The lawn doesn’t do itself.

And now I’m addicted to a massive page-turner.

I’m halfway through.

I can’t wait to get back.

There are free preview chapters you can check out online. Then do yourself a favor and BUY THIS BOOK.

I’ll be writing more about this later in my copious free time.

It’s really, really good.

NRA Filibusted

“The NRA has made no statement for or against the ‘nuclear option’. It has tried to please conservatives by posting news updates that are exclusively anti-filibuster and have posted no reference to conservative groups or authors that oppose the change in filibuster rules. The NRA has tried to salve Democrats by pointing out that they have not come out in support of any filibuster rule change.”

Typical Fairfax straddling and equivocation to protect their precious access above all else. John J. Cahill’s conclusion is that we members "should be proud" of this.

Sorry, Mr. Cahill—been down this road of avoidance and plausible deniability before. I don’t respect it in men and I don’t respect it in groups.

Wish I'D Said That

"Well, there ya go. Victims are always right, after all. Suffering a tragedy bestows infallibility upon the victim – a kind of karmic reward for having lost something.

"Which is why it makes so much sense to base law and policy on the hysterical ravings of angry, freaked-out victims. They and they alone possess the clarity of thought and the kind of wise, sober, carefully crafted ideas that make for good policy."

From Say Uncle via Drug War Rant, credited to Independent Worm at Hit and Run.

Federal Glass Control?

Why not? They issue mandates on toilet tanks.

Anyway, I was listening to the radio in my car yesterday, and the "news" had a story on about the recent "spate" of SoCal freeway shootings.

It seems the herbivores are getting spooked, and those with means are looking at ways to improve their chances in such an encounter. Inquiries to a local "bullet proof glass" installer have increased enough to where the station considered it worth interviewing the guy.

I didn't catch all the details, but the gist of his quote was you couldn't buy and install such glass without a federal permit.

That should come as news to Bulldog Direct Protective Systems Inc., "your 'One Stop Source' for Bullet Resistant Products for the Home, Office, or Vehicle."

According to their FAQ:

"Purchasing and Installing Bullet Resistant Glass Systems in the USA is perfectly legal. No Police or government permit is required. We do suggest contacting your local building / fire inspector with regards to building codes, inspections or / permits needed."

So what gives?

Is the news wrong or spreading disinformation?

Has some new "Homeland Security" edict come into play that Bulldog doesn't seem to know about?

I do know there are edicts regarding body armor.

Welcome to the Land of the Second Amendment--where you not only can't possess the means to actively defend yourself in many locales, but the means to passively protect yourself are also denied