Thursday, November 16, 2006

SAF's Strange Bedfellow

A United States citizen who now lives in Great Britain has joined with the country’s leading gun owner rights organization in a federal lawsuit that says nonresident citizens are unfairly being targeted by existing laws that restrict gun ownership to those who live in the U.S.

Attorneys William B. Mateja, a principal in the Dallas and Washington, D.C., offices of Fish & Richardson P.C., and Alan Gura of Alexandria, Va.’s Gura & Possessky, PLLC, filed the federal claim today on behalf of London, England, resident Maxwell Hodgkins and the Bellevue, Wash.-based Second Amendment Foundation.
William B. Mateja...William B. Mateja...

Where have I heard that name before...? Oh, yeah, he's the guy CCRKBA's Gun Week slammed for maintaining--in court, in an attempt to legally destroy Dr. Timothy Emerson's life, that:
"There is no individual right contained within the Second Amendment.…It protects only a collective right to bear arms.”
I guess Alan & Co. haven't learned their lesson about getting in bed with...uh...mercenaries...

He That Hath No Sword

St. Paul Minnesota churches aren't bound by a state law requiring private property owners to either post a sign or verbally inform people when concealed handguns are barred from their parking lots and sanctuaries, a judge has ruled...
So I guess the rest of us aren't bound to read minds?

Talk about a law "respecting an establishment of religion"... So churches get to be super entities unbound by edicts affecting atheists?

Why anyone would go to a church or a store that would rather see them dead than armed--other than to leave a card--is beyond me anyway.

[Via Cousin G]

Ron Paul on Guns

The Second Amendment is not about hunting deer or keeping a pistol in your nightstand. It is not about protecting oneself against common criminals. It is about preventing tyranny. The founders knew that unarmed citizens would never be able to overthrow a tyrannical government as they did. They envisioned government as a servant, not a master, of the American people...

The notion that the Second Amendment confers rights only upon organized state-run militias is preposterous; the amendment is meaningless unless it protects the gun rights of individuals.
What? Nothing about his being a sportsman and enforcing existing gun laws? Well, gee, no wonder NRA management wanted to torpedo the guy...

Wayne Fincher Update: 11/16

Paul Davis on Hollis Wayne Fincher

Victims Share Their Story

Violence can come upon you at any time, at any place. In California the legislature has decided that you do not have the right to adequately protect yourself while out in public, you are supposed to rely upon the police.

Where were the police in this incident?

JR does a great job illustrating the horrors suffered by the defenseless when goblins attack.

"Chip" Thompson for President!

Tommy Thompson


Former Gov. Tommy Thompson said he's considering the possibility of running for the White House in 2008...

He said issues such as health care and his appeal as a Midwesterner make him a potentially viable candidate.

That plus his being so damned traceable.

Oh, wait--he backed out of that deal. He just wants the rest of us to insert those chips his company makes.

Plus he signed legislation mandating schools become Predator Empowerment Zones, which ought to put him in the chips with scholastic soul mateWayne LaPierre. Sounds just like the kind of guy I want to give super political power to.

The Republicans certainly are positioning their best and their brightest in the vanguard for '08, aren't they?

In the Spirit of Bipartisanship

Sen. Dianne Feinstein said Tuesday she may introduce a bill requiring local officials to approve if a sports team tries to leave town with the city's name still attached...

Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pa., said he was sympathetic to Feinstein's concerns, noting that he fought the proposed move of the Philadelphia Eagles to Phoenix in the 1980s.
Nice to see that both sides of the aisle have such a healthy respect for the principles of federalism and enumerated powers.

When you can usurp and trample with impunity, is it any surprise they also treat the Bill of Rights--and particularly the Second Amendment--with such contempt?

This Day in History: November 16

On this day in 1776, Hessian Lieutenant General Wilhelm von Knyphausen and a force of 3,000 Hessian mercenaries and 5,000 Redcoats lay siege to Fort Washington at the northern end and highest point of Manhattan Island.

Wednesday, November 15, 2006

We're the Only Ones Making You Feel Good All Under Enough

A Portland police officer pleaded guilty Monday to two counts of official misconduct for asking two women to show him their underwear during a traffic stop in July.
Honest to God, I don't go looking for these...

[More from "The Only Ones" files...]

[Thanks to Bud]

Don't They Mean "Insecurity Van"?


TWO masked gunmen robbed a security van at a petrol station yesterday and escaped with tens of thousands of pounds.

The robbers threatened the two-man van crew with a semiautomatic gun as they filled up a cash machine at the garage.

That's some security. Why is it I assume the guards were unarmed?

Oh, that's right--it's the UK. Stupid question, forget I asked it...

We're the Only Ones Elite and Tactical Enough

A court hearing is scheduled for Tuesday for four Chicago Police officers accused of using their badges to break into homes and rob them...[They] targeted both known drug dealers and innocent residents. They face home invasion, kidnapping and armed violence charges.

Prosecutors say the officers from the elite “special operations section,” abused their authority to terrorize and steal from people.
As opposed to Chicago cops legally terrorizing and stealing from people, I suppose...

[More from "The Only Ones" files...]

[Via Cousin G]

Insanity in the UK

We need to reach out to our fellow Americans and help them understand the difference between fact and emotion as it pertains to guns. It is not now, nor has it ever been, enough to preach to the choir.


No doubt. I'm open to suggestions on how this can be done.

Oh, the Humanitas!

Although the guards are known for their plumed helmets and halberds, some also pack guns. Security is also provided by plainclothes agents and Italian police, who patrol outside the square and stand ready as sharpshooters atop buildings during public ceremonies...

Since the Sept. 11 attacks, the Vatican has tightened security in St. Peter's Square when the pope is present: Knapsacks, purses and camera bags are searched or passed through X-ray machines, and visitors must pass through metal-detection gates or submit to a metal-detecting wand check.
But...but...but that's inhuman!

Zoo.com: Preventing Kids from Realizing It's a Jungle Out There

It filters the results against a database of more than 50,000 "adult" words and phrases, to reduce the risk of children's exposure to inappropriate or harmful material on the Web. Content pertaining to guns, violence and unlawful drugs is also filtered.
What did Mr. Orwell say? Ignorance is strength...

Get 'em while they're young.

[Via Cousin G]

This Day in History: November 15

After 16 months of debate, the Continental Congress, sitting in its temporary capital of York, Pennsylvania, agrees to adopt the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union on this day in 1777. Not until March 1, 1781, would the last of the 13 states, Maryland, ratify the agreement.

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Stupid Party Says "Hillary in '08!"

John McCain is the most popular prospective presidential nominee for Republican Party supporters in the United States...Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani is second...
I guess the Republicans just got their sorry butts kicked because they're not liberal enough.

How About Some Straight Answers (For a Change)?

My friends in Santa Barbara got another reply from NRA in response to why the Association endorsed Bill Brown for sheriff:
Thank you for your response. When a candidate does not return a questionnaire, we do assume that it is because they are hostile to gun rights. There is always a possibility the candidate did not receive the questionnaire or forgot to return it. But in Sheriff Anderson's case, according to individuals who talked to him and know him, he was aware that he had not returned the questionnaire and he still never did return it.

Sincerely,

Erik Eckberg

NRA-ILA
Here's what I sent back:
I believe the correct question is not why Anderson was unrated. That’s a diversion from the real issue in this race. I would like someone from NRA HQ to go on record about what Bill Brown did, said and promised to receive an A rating. This nebulous “Bill Brown has worked with the NRA to defeat anti-gun legislation at the State Capitol” does not tell me why Brown deserves an A, AND AN ENDORSEMENT, which in anybody’s book ought to mean he’s a gun rights leader.

What bills did he help defeat? Specifically.

What work did he do for NRA to help defeat these bills? Give details.

What is Brown’s position on the Second Amendment and why won’t he state it for the record?

What is Brown’s position on “assault weapons”?

What is Brown’s position on concealed carry?

What is Brown’s position on .50 caliber rifles?

How does Brown define the militia?

Why did Brown endorse Gov. Moonbeam, who made gun control ads a centerpiece of his campaign?

What does Brown think “shall not be infringed” means?

People are catching on to NRA HQ duplicity. As a life member, I am sick of arrogant staffers equivocating, weasel-wording, avoiding giving direct answers to direct questions. I am sick of phony ratings. I am sick of slick talking.

How about a “for the record” reply to each of my specific concerns, Mr. Eckberg?

And when we’re done with Brown, we can move on to Shane Sklar and Judy Topinka.
I will, of course, post any response I get, unedited.

From the Birthplace of Liberty

A few doors down, her block captain, Lorraine Armstrong, thinks one answer to gun violence in her West Philadelphia neighborhood is for police to stop and frisk suspects.
What is it with these Cellblock Snitch types?

Always my favorite line that inevitably oozes bubbling and reeking to the surface in stories of this type:
"If you've got nothing to be guilty about, you should have no problem. I would put up with that level of inconvenience to make the neighborhood safer," he said.
Talk about someone with an appropriate name:
We've seen some of these tactics utilized in other places," said former City Councilman Michael A. Nutter, now a candidate for mayor and a proponent of stop-and-frisk.
Indeed we have, you nutter. And for you to suggest making it standard practice in the Birthplace of Liberty--and for the Heirs of Liberty to fall all over themselves demanding a freedom "buy back" in exchange for the fraudulent promise of safety, is one of the more sickening examples of how far increasingly large segments of our culture have allowed themselves to degenerate.
"I don't care whether you are black, white, purple or polka-dotted. If you have an illegal weapon, I expect a well-trained Philadelphia police officer to take that gun away."
At least Nutter's an equal opportunity tyrant wannabe. But I'm sure we were promised that Project Exile would end Philly's "gun problem."
"Guns are out there," said Carnegie-Mellon anticrime expert Alfred Blumstein, "but if you can reduce the carrying, you've made some important progress."
Professor, Carnegie Mellon just lost an ethical giant who championed gun rights. It's a shame that their voice on this issue now emanates from a stunted intellect like yours.
In Philadelphia, by contrast, an even larger share - 87 percent - of homicides are committed with guns, Johnson said, and more than 32,000 permits to carry concealed weapons have been issued to city residents since the state gun law made it easier in 1995.
Here we go with another predictable twist--it's the fault of all those law-abiding, nonviolent people who submit themselves to background checks to prove they're not criminals. If we can just disarm them...

This is the logic that has the inmates bleating for more. And they are the sheep who cancel out your vote, and impose their pathetic and disgusting dependence on collectivism and tyranny on the rest of us.


[Via Cousin G]

Wayne Fincher Update: 11/14

Militia Member Can Post Bond if He Agrees to Judge's Conditions

Don Bright on Wayne Fincher

Bond OK’d for Militia Leader

This Day in History: November 14

On this day in 1776, the St. James Chronicle of London carries an item announcing "The very identical Dr. Franklyn [Benjamin Franklin], whom Lord Chatham [former leading parliamentarian and colonial supporter William Pitt] so much caressed, and used to say he was proud in calling his friend, is now at the head of the rebellion in North America."