100 years of Gun Control…the Progressive’s “Long Con”

Socialist Progressive’s have patience, I’ll give them that, and it is that patience that has given them so many victories in their long con.  They are the architect masters of the slippery slope.  They are so good at what they do that for the past 100+ years they have continued to chip away at the Second Amendment, the only thing that truly keeps them at bay, and yet the majority of Americans think they have more gun rights than ever before.

In fact, this past 100 years have crippled the 2nd Amendment to the point that it hardly resembles what our founding fathers intended.  Do you think that Adams and Jefferson, Franklin and Paine, Washington and Hancock, who had all resisted and fought against tyranny would actually require a free citizen to ask permission in order to exercise a right?  But yet, in most states that is exactly what is required if you wish to carry a firearm.

The Continental Army used the most advanced firearms of the day to defeat the British, yet the right to bear arms has been gelded in modern times to limit any ability to resist oppression.

Yet in the past 100 years, slowly…ever slowly…the rights have been eroded one at a time.  Every time these infringements were passed off as necessary to protect people, to protect the children.  Guns were demonized even though they were inanimate objects while the right to bear them was undermined.

Bypassing the post Civil War’s racist orgins of gun control that I previously touched upon, we’ll start in the Act that has been called the death of inalienable rights; The Sullivan Act of 1911.

New York state senator Timothy Sullivan, a corrupt Tammany Hall politician, represented New York’s Red Hook district. Commercial travelers passing through the district would be relieved of their valuables by armed robbers. In order to protect themselves and their property, travelers armed themselves. This raised the risk of, and reduced the profit from, robbery. Sullivan’s outlaw constituents demanded that Sullivan introduce a law that would prohibit concealed carry of pistols, blackjacks, and daggers, thus reducing the risk to robbers from armed victims.

The criminals, of course, were already breaking the law and had no intention of being deterred by the Sullivan Act from their business activity of armed robbery. Thus, the effect of the Sullivan Act was precisely what the criminals intended. It made their life of crime easier.

The Sullivan Act basically dictates that a US Citizen is required to ask the government for permission before they are allowed to exercise their rights.  If something requires permission then permission can be denied.  This is akin to asking the government permission to vote every election and the politician in charge denying you because he doesn’t like who you are going to vote for.

Twenty years later, the Federal Government passed the National Firearms Act of 1934.  Where the founding fathers declared independence based heavily on the unfair and punitive taxes levied by the king, the Act of 1934 created a whole new tax burden on the public.  In general, imposes a statutory excise tax on the manufacture and transfer of certain firearms and mandates the registration of those firearms.  The hope was that the Act would tax these weapons out of existence.

Thirty some years later, the government was at it once again when they passed the Gun Control Act of 1968.  This gun control measure would not only infringe upon the 2nd Amendment but would also dictate to businesses how they would run and force them to operate under the auspices of the Federal Government.  Hence the creation of the Federal Firearms Licence and the formation of the ATF as a wing of the Internal Revenue Service.  They would become autonomous in 1972.

Just shy of 20 years later, the Progressive’s learned a new trick and used a ludicrous euphemism when they passed the Firearm Owners Protection Act.  The only way that this act protected firearm owners was in the twisted minds of the gun control zealots who thought to protect firearm owners by denying them firearms.  By outlawing a number of firearms including automatic weapons made after the signing of the Act, the law basically made a de facto ban on them as older guns would eventually breakdown and become useless. The act further limited the firearms available to the general public as well as bolstering the ATF’s ability to track firearm owners.  The ATF Firearms Tracing System (FTS) contains hundreds of millions of firearm tracing and registration records, and consists of several databases.

A scant 8 years later in 1994 the Federal Assault Weapons Ban was passed.  Like the 1986 Act, this ban outlawed any so called “assault weapon” manufactured past the date of its signing.  Fortunately for the millions of gun owners in America who like these weapons and liberty in general, this is where the tide began to turn.  The pro gun contingent in Congress put a 10 year sunset ban on the bill.  In 2004, the bill was not extended and a small taste of liberty was returned to the land.

It was also around this time that gun owners as a whole started to wake up and see the long con that was being run on them by gun hating progressives who thirst for control.  Below is a graphic depicting the rise in the Right to Carry firearms in America starting in 1986.  It was in 1994, after the AWB that things really started to pick up.

In the past 26 years we have went from a country in which it was ILLEGAL to carry a gun in 15 states (an additional 26 states could deny you for no good reason at all) to being allowed to carry in 49 states with only 8 states who could arbitrarily deny you your right.  There are even 4 states that allow their citizens to carry freely without any need to seek permission from the Government.  These Constitutional Carry states are the archetype that I hope the rest of the country will follow in due time.

 

It is not only in carrying that people have begun to wake up.  But with the passage of Firearms Freedom Acts in a number of states.  By passing this Act States are trying to undo the damage and infringements that the gun control progressives have slowly insinuated through the country these passed 100+ years.

Despite the resurgence of the 2nd Amendment, remember, the Right to Keep and Bear Arms has been bludgeoned over the passed 100 years and it was only recently in 2008 with the Supreme Court Decision in Heller v DC that the Government first acknowledged judicially that the 2nd Amendment was an individual right.

That ruling, I remind you was 5-4.  That is how close we were to losing and the progressive gun control zealots from winning.  But don’t think for one second that the long con is over.  As I said, the enemies of liberty are patient.  And if one avenue is closed to them such as the passing legislation, then they will seek out others.  These can be found in Obama’s militantly anti gun judicial nominees and his full on support of the UN’s gun control measure, the UN Arms Trade Treaty.

In order to maintain America as the Land of the Free we must continue to be vigilant against the con men who would try and convince us that our rights are negotiable or are up to compromise.  The fight may seem never ending…but that doesn’t mean it can’t be won.

 

 

Federal Court Rules you do NOT have right to carry firearms

That’s right.  The 2nd and 4th Federal Court of Appeals have heard arguments dealing with the carrying of firearms outside of the home and one has ruled it is NOT a constitutionally guaranteed right.

In both New York and Maryland, where the lawsuits were brought, the states have enacted draconian permit systems that favor the wealthy and well connected.  While the rest of us must ASK to exercise our constitutional right a la Oliver Twist.

In Maryland, in order to be allowed to carry a weapon outside of your home you must provide the overlords issuing authority with evidence to “verify threats occurring beyond their residence”.  Apparently, the state of Maryland only allows psychics to carry outside of the home.  Or maybe criminals in Maryland have begun to send their victims correspondences ahead of time.  I mean, it’s not like random crime ever happens in Baltimore.

This requirement is not only unconstitutional but also bigoted and insulting.  In the eyes of Maryland, the easiest way to verify these future threats is to be rich or famous or a public figure.  It’s pretty much a tough luck attitude with regards to us everyday Joes and Jills who just want to protect ourselves from a mugger or a rapist.

The 4th Circuit Court of Appeals is set to render a decision within the next month or so.

With New York and the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals, the case covered the same issue, the need for a “verifiable threat” before being issued a CCW.  Since New York is also a “may-issue” state the level of threat is left to the issuing authority.  While in most of New York the difficulty to get a CCW is on par with Maryland, in New York City it is nigh impossible to do so.

Unless you are buddy buddy with hypocrite Mayor Bloomberg or a mega millionaire that is.  In a city of 8 MILLION people, the number of permits to carry (as a private citizen – non business) awarded annually is in the dozens.  I won’t even do the math to point out how ridiculous that number is, based on the total population. Plus, you need to pay the $400+ that is non-refundable when they deny you.

The main issue of the suit was New York’s Sullivan Act which, when passed 101 years ago, which made New York State a may issue state to begin with.

The 2nd Circuit Court wasted no time in hurrying their decision stating that based on the Supreme Court ruling in Heller that the 2nd Amendment’s core right is within the home and that any infringement that can be placed on carrying outside of the home may be done so.  In other words, the de facto ban that New York City has in place is allowed to stand.

Now, both of these cases will undoubtedly go before the Supreme Court to be decided definitively.  To all the readers who claim they are pro gun, yet voted for Obama I wonder if you will be hoping as much as I, that the high court hears these cases before one of the Heller Five steps down.  I mean, you keep telling me that Obama is so pro gun, I wonder if you would like the fate of the Second Amendment to rest in the hands of Kagan or Sotomayor?

 

Obama’s incarnation of Hitler’s Youth

Too often, debate in America seems to end with the rhetorical firebombing of one side (usually liberals) calling those that disagree with them Nazis or Hitler.  Ironic since Hitler and Nazis were socialists, but I digress.

But sometimes, when the veil of hidden agendas is thin and something doesn’t stay under the radar, one can be amazed at just how similar the Obama Administration resembles the Third Reich.

In this matter I am speaking specifically of Obama’s Youth Brigade, euphemistically called by the administration the FEMA Corp.

Before we get into the FEMA Corp, let’s rundown the Hitler Youth group.  The HY were a paramilitary organization created by Adolf Hitler in 1922 comprising of German boys from the age of 14-18.  The HY was organized into local cells on a community level (Community Organizer…that sounds familiar).  Such cells had weekly meetings at which various Nazi doctrines were taught by adult HY leaders. Regional leaders typically organized rallies and field exercises in which several dozen Hitler Youth cells would participate.

As a paramilitary organization, the Hitler Youth could be and were used as an armed auxiliary force to perform a variety of duties such as being active in fire brigades and assisting with recovery efforts from natural disasters and later Allied bombings.  The Hitler Youth also assisted in such organizations as the Reich Postal Service, fire services, Reich radio service and served among anti-aircraft defense crews.

All in all, the Hitler Youth served as Hitler’s Homeland Defense contingent of people that were wholly and completely under his thrall and could be used at a moments notice to quell any unrest within the Reich under the auspices of disaster relief.  Members of HY were indoctrinated from the moment they joined in order to be completely behind their leader did not hesitate to instill their leaders vision.

Fast forward some 90+ years and we have President Obama saying this in 2008 in Colorado:

 “We cannot continue to rely on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives that we’ve set. We’ve got to have a civilian national security force that’s just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded.”

A civilian national security force?  I doubt he was talking about private militias, and I guess the National Guard wasn’t what he had in mind.  Why?  Because neither of those groups would be directly under his control.  Rather, they would answer to either a free citizen, or a state.  But a “civilian national security force” under the purview of FEMA would answer directly to him.  And when you hand select who will be allowed to join this force you are all ready weeding out the possibility of dissent.

Let’s talk about this force and who are members of it.  In October, the Dept of Homeland Security graduated its first class of 231 Homeland Youth. These young adults, aged 18-24, were recruited from the President’s AmeriCorp volunteers and represent the first wave of DHS’s youth corps, designed specifically to create a full time, paid, standing army of FEMA Youth across the country.

Americorp participants aged 18-24?  I challenge you to pick out a demographic that would be MORE pliable to Obama’s indoctrination.  This is his bread and butter constituency, the one that got him elected twice and the one that his economy has robbed of a future.  Of course they will view being a part of the Obama’s Youth Brigade as proof that their chosen Messiah can do no wrong and is there to help them.  I mean…its either this or living with your parents because you can’t get a job in this economy.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I am all for disaster relief…but my question is what do they need billions of rounds of ammunition and armored fighting vehicles for?

The Department of Homeland Defense has in the past six months purchased in excess of 1.2 BILLION rounds of ammuntion to be doled out to FEMA, the Social Security Administration, the TSA and other traditionally non military organizations.

I guess in Obama’s America tradition is something to be torn down to be replaced by his vision.

So, what do we have?  We have a paramilitary organization who are true believers and followers of Obama and who will not question the orders given.  They have been indoctrinated to follow their orders and have been heavily armed and equipped to crackdown on dissent or opposition.  And they come under the guise of disaster relief and help from the government.  If this isn’t a redux of the Hitler’s Youth Brigade I do not know what is.

These are interesting times we live in.  No wonder Obama refuses to nominate anyone other than rabid anti gun judges to judicial posts.  The Second Amendment is his last hurdle in order to get what he wants, complete control.  He rules America by Executive Order, he has no need for silly little things like Federal Budgets, he flaunts his disdain for the citizenry openly and his contempt for the Constitution is palpable.

If one wants to see how this is run on a smaller level, one need look no further than Mayor Bloomberg of New York.  He has all but disarmed his populace, rules by fiat, and during the Hurricane Sandy recovery denied access to Brooklyn to the National Guard because he didn’t want anyone in his city that didn’t answer directly to him…citizenry be damned.

And I am not saying that in four years Obama will try to further circumvent the constitution by running for President again, he doesn’t have too.  If he is allowed to lay the ground work that undermines not only the Constitution but also the very nature of being American, then he has won.  It doesn’t matter who takes over after because the bell cannot be un-rung, and if a follower of his wins then the precipitous slide speeds all the faster.

These are interesting times indeed.  The next four years may fully and wholly dictate the future of America unlike any since the Revolution.

 

 

Gun owners face media lynching regardless of guilt or innocence

Once again the liberal press and gun control zealots are going out of their way to make criminals look like saints and victims look like monsters.

This can be seen in the case of George Zimmerman who defended himself from a savage beating at the hands of Trayvon Martin.  The police on the scene, who witnessed first hand Zimmerman’s injuries, declared that he had acted in self defense and released him.  But when the press heard that a man named George Zimmerman had shot a black “kid” named Trayvon, they swooped in like media Valkyrie in order to paint this as a hate crime.

I can all but guarantee you that if George Zimmerman used his mothers maiden name and went by Jorge Guiterrez (not sure of his mom’s Peruvian maiden name so just used that as an example) then this case would never have seen the light of day.  Plus, when it was discovered that George was a registered Democrat the Liberal Press would have fled the story in a heart beat.

Because the truth doesn’t fit into their narrative…they hear that a guy named Zimmerman shot an unarmed black “kid” and all of a sudden they paint Zimmerman as a white, extreme conservative, tea partier who shot Martin based solely on race.  Zimmerman never had a chance.  They media had tried and convicted him on his name and because doing so was good for ratings they justified it to themselves.

NBC went so far as to doctor recordings in order to make it appear that Zimmerman was racist. The liberal media doesn’t let a little thing like truth get in the way of a good sensationalized story after all.

Then there are the photos of the Zimmerman and Martin.  For the first few weeks of the story the only picture you saw of Zimmerman was his mug shot, which as usual for mug shots, did not paint him in a good light.  On the other hand, the media had no qualms showing pictures of Martin as a happy bubbly child.  Of course, the pictures they used were taken 5 years prior when Martin was just a boy…not the 6″+ thug life living, tatooed gansta that he presented himself to the world as.

The reason I bring up the Zimmerman case is because I have just read of another story in which the media is spinning a pair of burglars into angelic kids fooling around and a man defending his home as a gun toting maniac gunning them down.

In Little Falls, Minnesota on Thanksgiving, a 17 and 18 year old pair of cousins break into the house of a senior citizen with the intention of robbing him.  Unfortunately for them, homeowner Byron Smith (who had suffered previous break-ins for a loss of over $10,000) was home and armed.

Mr. Smith ended the lives of both of these criminals who had broken into his house.

Normally, I would celebrate this as a moment of real life defense.  Unfortunately Mr. Smith seemed to have gone overboard with the defense of his home and after shooting the criminals, “more times than he needed to” he claims, shot the 18 year old in the head to end the suffering.

The story takes an even odder twist after that.  Smith wraps the bodies in tarps and puts them in his basement and doesn’t call the police until the following day, explaining that he didn’t want to bother anyone on Thanksgiving.  While thoughtful, probably not the best way to go legally.  Of course, he could have been in a state of shock; who knows how people will react in both those high stress moments and the subsequent aftermath?

Now, what do I see when I see this story online?  Pictures of the two burglars in the best photos that can be found of them and Mr. Smith’s mug shot which is not flattering in the least.  From the visual alone we are being  bombarded with bias.  Instead of seeing two criminals who broke into an old mans house with a lead pipe you see two kids with bright smiles who are said to be popular in school.  As if popularity makes you incapable of crime.

Like I said, I am not sure where I fall on this story.  Shooting two home invaders is no doubt an intense situation and who can really say how they will react?  Smith, who is facing 2nd Degree Murder charges may very well be convicted but it should be based on the facts, not the bias media’s attempt to railroad him by casting a pair of criminals as saints and an old man defending his home as the devil.  The media wants to paint him as this monster but maybe he was just suffering from shock over what happened.

Trials are usually used to determine little things like guilt or innocence, at least they used to be.  Now the media basically reports who is innocent and who is guilty without so much as waiting for the jury.

I don’t know what was going through Smith’s mind that day when these criminals armed with a lead pipe entered his home.  I’ll bet you dollars to donuts though, that those two criminals would be alive today if they hadn’t broken into Smith’s house on Thanksgiving and tried to rob him. But I guess that bit of deductive reasoning isn’t as sexy as liberally biased sensationalism “journalism”.

All in all, as a gun owner remember this, if you ever find yourself needed to use your firearm to defend yourself, regardless of how justified, expect a high tech lynching from the media.

 

Kentucky flips the script on gun buyback programs & Heinlein views in Action

As you may recall, I have utter disdain for gun buyback programs.  With that being said I was greatly amused that the State of Kentucky has done a one-eighty on the idea and have begun a sell back program.

The program has been in place for 15 years now and as you can imagine, the gun control zealots are still bemoaning the “inevitability” of blood running in the streets.  Even after a decade and a half of positive results, some are still criticizing the program such as Kenton County Commonwealth Attorney Rob Sanders.

“In my experience, the guns that end up there are dangerous weapons, poorly made, often damaged or really don’t have value unless you’re looking for an inexpensive firearm.  And if you’re looking for a cheap gun, you’re usually up to no good.”

Apparently Mr. Sanders doesn’t believe that poor people have a right to protect themselves and their family against crime.  Or maybe he is speaking from a position of bigoted elitism stating that all poor people are criminals.

Fortunately, when this bill was proposed and passed in 1998,  then State Rep. Bob Damron, D-Nicholasville, didn’t let baseless and bigoted claims prevent him from moving forward with this gun sell back program.  He argued that in his rural district the police told him that they were forced to destroy firearms that were better than they were being issued.  Damron’s bill allowed the police to keep some weapons for departmental use while sending the bulk of them to the Kentucky State Police for auction.

Not surprisingly due to the political nature of the position, a number of police chiefs, nearly unanimously in Northern Kentucky opposed the measure, going so far as circumventing the law and stockpiling these weapons to avoid following the law.  In 2000 though the Kentucky Assembly amended the law requiring that the weapons be turned over for auction within 90 days.

Now though, after $7 million worth of bullet proof vests and other police needs have been funded directly by this program, the police are among its biggest supporters. Though the support isn’t universal, and you will always have the gun control zealots try to undermine the rights of the citizenry with outlandish claims and sensationalism, it seems that Kentucky is on the right path and that the gun sell back program will continue on its successful path.

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An armed society is a polite society. Manners are good when one may have to back up his acts with his life. -Robert Heinlein 

I’m a fan of Heinlein.  If you are uninitiated with his writing, you may be familiar with the movie Starship Troopers which was loosely based on his novel of the same name.  Heinlein was a science fiction writer who used the otherworldly landscapes to promote a libertarian philosophy.  As the above quote can attest to, Heinlein believed you are responsible for your own actions and when those actions have consequences you will act with greater care.

Why do I bring up Heinlein?  Because I detest Black Friday.  The day after Thanksgiving when people act like animals in order to get a discount on some materialistic good.  Every year you hear stories of the worst of people coming through on Black Friday, people being trampled why others do nothing to help, punches thrown over this bauble or that.

Imagine my surprise and delight when I heard about the following tale from a Sears store in San Antonio.  Being Black Friday, a long line existed heading into the store as people decide that the hours upon hours they wait in line are worth wasting in order to save a couple of bucks.  Of course, some people don’t like waiting, some people think that they can do whatever they want because everyone else are sheep and will be cowed by a dominant personality.

That is what one line cutting rude and violent man thought at least.  When the doors opened he sprinted in front of the line pushing and shoving his way to get in front of everyone.  As you can imagine some people didn’t care for his attitude or his line cutting ways and told him to go back to the end of the line.  The line cutters response was to start punching people in the face.

I can only imagine that he was bigger than the other men and women in the line so he felt confident that he would just muscle his way past those weaker than him.  What he didn’t expect, was when one man who he punched in the face responded by pulling a handgun out and pointed it at him.

Like cowards always do, the line cutting assaulter ran away and shopping continued normally.  The armed citizen will not face any charges as he had a CCW and acted right and proper in his response to the assault.

Will Mr. Face Punching Scumbag start throwing punches next time to get ahead in line?  Something tells me, probably not.  I think he got a lesson his parents neglected to give him years ago…actions have consequences.

But in an unarmed society, where the big man rules without challenge, where gangs can use muscle to oppress the weak, there are no consequences for the strong, only fallout for the weak.

 I am free because I know that I alone am morally responsible for everything I do. -Robert Heinlein

 

How to Stop Obama’s Gun Control Agenda

Yesterday, I touched on the topic of some states passing the Firearms Freedom Act. Originally introduced and passed in Montana, the FFA declares that any firearms made and retained in-state are beyond the authority of Congress under its constitutional power to regulate commerce among the states.  This is probably the best way to defeat Obama’s gun control agenda that we have at the present.

So, in its purest form, without restriction, the FFA would allow a firearm that is built and kept within a state to remain un-infringed from gun control zealots and bureaucratic miasmas.

The only reason the Federal Government can come up with to justify its jurisdiction over firearms in the first place is through the Commerce Clause, which allows them to regulate interstate trade.  The leap between regulating trade and infringing on the Second Amendment rights of Americans is a governmental overreach and is as insincere as it is cravenness.

If every state were to pass a true Firearm Freedom Act, then the unconstitutional infringements and taxes found in the ludicrously named Firearm Owners Protection Act would be circumvented completely.  FFA also shields states from Obama’s desire for a Semi Automatic Rifle Ban.

In theory, if Texas were to pass a full FFA, they could forge, assemble and sell machine guns, suppressors and large capacity magazines within the state without having to jump through the Federal hoops.  Remember, these things are legal all ready, but they require excessive Federal taxes to be paid while also needing to be registered as well as being subject to approval by the Federal Government in the first place.  Those three requirements in and of themselves are an affront to the Second Amendment AND to States’ Rights.

Upon passage, even if a ban of these or semi automatic rifles were to pass through Congress, so long as the weapon was built in Texas and stayed there, the Federal Government would have no justification for interceding since the the whole premise of Federal Gun Control is based off the Commerce Clause.

While the Federal Government uses the Commerce Clause to justify its gun control policy, State FFA’s are a 10th Amendment challenge to this overreach.

8 States have all ready passed an FFA while 26 others have either introduced legislation or are intending to soon.  I encourage everyone to contact your state representatives and let them know that this is something that you want to see move forward.

Here is a map of the states that have passed or are considering passing an FFA

 

 

 

How Obama Will Ban Guns without Congressional Approval

In Edgar Allen Poe’s short story “The Purloined Letter”, the criminal fools the police by hiding the stolen letter in plain sight.  While the police were expecting all these elaborate twists and turns, the thief just cleverly disguised his crime simply so that nearly none could deduce it.

So too, does President Obama plan on banning guns in such an outright simple way.  And in so doing making it all the more nefarious.

Will Obama try to continue to push for the UN Arms Trade Treaty that will cripple the industry and force a national firearms registration for all participants of said treaty?  Yes.

Will Obama continue to pack the courts with militantly anti-gun judges?  Yes.

But these are just misdirection.  Because, while Second Amendment activists can rouse the masses and fight against such moves by entreating our Senators against such madness, Obama will quietly be changing the rules to which he need not seek permission from anyone.

The law he would utilize is all ready on the books and will undermine the 2nd Amendment by criminalizing millions of guns currently in the possession of law abiding citizens.

I speak of the Gun Control Act of 1968.  How can Obama accomplish the banning of so many guns?  Simple…he will just reclassify them.  All Obama has to do is instruct the BATF to classify semiautomatic firearms and multiple capacity ammunition feeding devices as Title 2 National Firearms Act items under the Gun Control Act of 1968.

Title II of the Gun Control Act of 1968 is a revision of the National Firearms Act of 1934, and pertains to machine guns, short or “sawed-off” shotguns and rifles, and so-called “destructive devices” (including grenades, mortars, rocket launchers, large projectiles, and other heavy ordnance). Acquisition of these weapons is subject to prior approval of the Attorney General, and federal registration is required for possession. Generally, a $200 tax is imposed upon each transfer or making of any Title II weapon.

With the reclassification of so called “Assault Rifles” and large capacity magazines to fall under Title II, the Federal Government can all but ban outright millions upon millions of guns.  Unless you expect Eric “we must brainwash people against guns” Holder or others of his ilk to be doling out approval for these weapons.

Can’t happen?  But it has…and relatively recently.  In 1994 during the Clinton Administration, the one that brought us the last so called “Assault” Weapons Ban, the USAS-12, Striker 12 and Streetsweeper shotguns were all reclassified requiring them to be registered, taxed and confiscated if approval wasn’t extended.

So, not only does Obama have the means to reclassify a whole slew of weapons that he deems unfit for private citizens, he even has a precedent to go off of.

I’m not saying that the sky is falling…i’m saying it has all ready crashed and now we have to fight to try and mitigate the damage as best we can.

One of the best ways to go about doing that is push your state into passing a Firearms Freedom Act.  Basically, any weapon that is made in the state and retained therein would not be regulated or fall under the purview of the Federal government since it isn’t involved in interstate commerce.

States rights vs Federal infringements.

 

Attorney Generals of the Gun Control Zealot Army

Apparently, Obama isn’t the only threat to the Second Amendment (no kidding right?).  As I wrote about last week with Pennsylvania’s Democrat AG-elect Kathleen Kane, Attorney Generals are given broad powers on the interpretation and implementation of gun related issues such as reciprocity agreements between states and how to interpret gun laws.

While Kane seeks to undermine every reciprocity agreement on the books for Pennsylvania, Florida’s Republican Attorney General, Pamela Jo Bondi, seeks to harass law abiding citizens outright and make it as inconvenient and troublesome as possible to legally carry a concealed weapon.

Florida is one of only six remaining states that do not allow the Open Carrying of Firearms so concealed carry is the only option.

The case before the Florida Supreme Court, Mackey v State of Florida, is to determine whether an investigatory stop, and a search and seizure of a person suspected to be carrying a concealed firearm, is lawful.

Bondi’s argument before the court is that anyone is vulnerable to an investigatory stop and a search and seizure because carrying a concealed firearm, in and of itself, is illegal. In addition, having a permit is an affirmative defense, or excuse for a crime, so the stop and search is reasonable.  In other words, everyone who carries a gun will be considered a criminal…forfeiting their 4th Amendment rights against unlawful search and seizures and will be treated like a criminal until their “affirmative defense” of having a license is accepted.

Think of it like this, you are driving down the road, doing nothing wrong, following the speed limit and you are pulled over, dragged out of your car, thrown in handcuffs and detained against your will while the police search through your car.  Eventually they look at your license to make sure you are at least 16 and then they let you go.  It doesn’t matter if you’re 45 years old, driving a car without a license is a crime and they will assume that everyone driving is a criminal committing a felony.

THAT is what the interpretation of everyone carrying a weapon is a felon equates to.  It’s just downright un-American.

Of course, as gun control zealots are wont to do, Bondi stops reading the statute at the point that is convenient for her infringing ways.  If she were to read further she would note that the section she is reading from concerning concealed carrying for firearms states: “This section [carrying concealed weapons] does not apply to a person licensed to carry a concealed weapon.”  Seeing as this language is written directly into the section that deals with concealed carry, it would seem that the license isn’t an exception but rather the rule.

To extrapolate the previous analogy further, you are in your car and driving, you are doing nothing wrong and as such you are not subject to the aforementioned  rights infringing, detainment and search.  But if you start doing 150 mph swerving around like a maniac on the run from something, then it may be reasonable to suspect that you are up to something and a stop and search would be authorized, mainly because you are breaking the law by going so fast and driving recklessly to begin with.

To wit, carrying a gun in and of itself should never be legal cause for reasonable suspicion and therefore  gun owners should have no fear from 4th Amendment violations simply from practicing their 2nd Amendment rights.

Bondi and the State of Florida argue that since only 5% of the population is licensed to carry the chances that a person carrying aren’t license statistically favor the trampling of the civil rights of Floridians and that Constitutional protections of unlawful search and seizures can be ignored.

If one were to accept Bondi’s reasoning, that the assumption that someone carrying a weapon is committing a felony, then we might as well toss out the 2nd, 4th, 9th and 14th Amendments to the Constitution because we are assuming guilt instead of innocence for a certain segment of society.

I have always hated hypocrites and Bondi is a raging one.  If you recall, Bondi was at the Republican National Convention when she stated: “It is time to stop those who ignore the Constitution when it’s expedient!”

Indeed, AG Bondi…perhaps its high time that you started taking your own advice.

 

Philadelphia…city of brotherly thugs

Oh Pennsylvania, what has happened to you?  Not only do we elect a Bloomberg backed anti gun zealot for Attorney General, you allow Philadelphia to be run by an incompetent moron who allows the continual harassment of law abiding citizens by over zealous and bullying cops.  Fitting that the Liberty Bell cracked in Philadelphia.

First, lets talk about Kathleen G Kane.  The G, one could believe stands for “gun killing” since Kane seems hellbent on doing everything in her power to infringe upon the 2nd Amendment Rights of Pennsylvanians.

Kane received a perfect score on CeaseFirePA’s questionnaire. For those outside of the state CeaseFirePA is basically a statewide version of the Brady Campaign who follow similar paths toward the infringements of rights of the populace.  In particular Kane has committed to a review of all concealed carry reciprocity agreements currently in place between Pennsylvania and other states,including Florida, and renegotiating or terminating those that do not meet Pennsylvania’s standards.

A PERFECT SCORE!?!?!  While I couldn’t find the questionnaire sent out to candidates I did find a written response to it from a state Senatorial candidate.  Basically, for Kane to get a perfect score she agreed with every Right infringing suggestion that CeasefirePA wants to push forward.  Currently  Pennsylvanians enjoy reciprocity with 28 other states, when Rights Killing Kane gets through with it who knows how many will be left.

She wants to ban “assault weapons”, spend millions on Gun Violence Task Forces, strip the state of preemption and allow local government to make up their own gun laws, and believes that the right to keep and bear arms is not an individuals constitutional right.

Good job Pennsylvania, you elected a Bloomberg clone for our Attorney General whose main function for the next four years, BECAUSE SHE SAID IT WILL BE, is to crush our right to keep and bear arms.  Bloomberg’s  $600,000 was well spent apparently.

Speaking of Bloomberg and his cadre of Constitution hating Mayors against guns, Mayor Nutter of Philadelphia is once again turning a blind eye and letting the rogue element of his police force get out of hand.

Open carry of a firearm within the city limits of Philadelphia is legal with a Pennsylvania License to Carry a Firearm.  In the rest of the state the LTCF is not needed to Open Carry.  Perhaps, since Nutter and the city of Brotherly thugs are not used to Open Carriers the first instance of Police harassment and brutality could be overlooked as a lack of education.

I am speaking of the incident in that took place in 2011 with Mark Fiorino being assaulted by the Philadelphia PD (for open carrying) and threatened to being murdered for doing nothing wrong.  He was awarded $25,000 (paid for by the taxpayers because Nutter and the guilty cops don’t have to pony up money for breaking the law) and was promised that the entire police department would be re-educated so such an incident would not happen again.

Well, apparently since Nutter and his crooked police force don’t have to actually pay for the crimes they commit (enjoy that Philly taxpayers?) they decide to ignore things like ethics and the law and have once again harassed an Open Carrier in Philadelphia.  This time, Joshua Rodriquez was simply on his way to the barber shop when he was bullied by badge wearing thugs.  These officers tried to brow beat Mr. Rodriquez with lies about the legality of what he was doing and tried to make a public spectacle of him.  Fortunately for Josh he,  like Fiorino, was recording the incident and as such has evidence of the harassment.

I hope that once again this type of thuggish behavior by the PPD is properly dealt with and a suit is won by Mr. Rodriquez.  Perhaps after another tax payer funded abuse settlement the denizens of Philadelphia will decide to elect someone better than Nutter, who doesn’t condone the actions of these keystone koppers

All in all I am worried Pennsylvania.  Sure, Pittsburgh has shades of blue but at least the county is up to thinking for itself and its Police Department, while initially having issues with Open Carry know how to learn from their mistakes and aren’t corrupt like Philadelphia.

But with Nutter and his thug force running Philadelphia into the ground and Kathleen “Gun Killer” Kane soon to run the Attorney General’s office I am having my doubts about the future of the Second Amendment in the Commonwealth.

And to the big talkers in the State Houses that have promised pro gun bills like Constitutional Carry, holding municipality officials liable for passing unconstitutional gun control laws and the Firearm Freedom Act, I am sorely disappointed in your being nothing but paper tigers.  Or perhaps paper RINO’s is more appropriate.

WAKE UP PENNSYLVANIA, the death of the Second Amendment comes right quick.  Philadelphia can’t be sold to New Jersey (wouldn’t that be nice) so we have to battle against the city that has lost all sense of history in order to save the Commonwealth.

Hold your legislators accountable to the promises they made concerning the 2nd Amendment and do not let them negotiate those promises away to the whims of foul fetid fuming foggy filthy Philadelphia.

I’m feelin ya John…I’m feelin ya.

.

 

Don’t Mess With Texas

So Barack Obama won the election and a lot of states are calling for secession.  Usually I would take this in the same vein as someone saying “if the other guy wins, I’m moving to Canada”.  But this time, I thought I would take a deeper look into the matter.

First of all, one must ask if secession is actually legal.  The answer, not only is it legal but it is plainly stated by the US Constitution as well as being out rightly encouraged by the Declaration of Independence.

To wit:

Tenth Amendment of the US Constitution:

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

Declaration of Independence:

That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government

That pretty much covers the legality of it.  Since there is no actual prohibition to secession in the Constitution, in fact 3 states specifically (Virginia, New York and Rhode Island) reserved the right to secede when they ratified the Constitution, it can not be construed as anything but legal.

And what was the American Revolution if not a secession from the British Empire?

Speaking of warfare, you may be wondering about the Civil War.  Doesn’t that prove that secession is illegal? No, it only proved that, when allowed to act outside his lawfully limited authority, a U.S. president is capable of unleashing horrendous violence against the lives, liberty, and property of those whom he pretends to serve.

Unlike what Richard Nixon would later exclaim (“When the President does it, it’s not illegal”), if the President does something that goes against the Constitution or that he has no lawful right to do, it doesn’t all of a sudden make it right and legal.

So not only was the Civil War an unjustified response for the Union it also crippled States Rights forever.  Because at the end of the day, if a state cannot leave a government that becomes destructive and that it no longer believes in, the State itself becomes a slave.

The founding of this nation was that of Colonies seceding from a government it found intolerable.  Less than 100 years later the government formed would play out the same dance, but this time it was the oppressive government that would win.  Now, it is ironic that I call the Union oppressive as they have been characterized as acting in the war with the pretense of freeing slaves but in truth it was to keep the South in the Union and the fertile Southern plantations as a part of the United States.

Don’t believe me?  This is what ole Abe Lincoln had to say on the matter in a letter to Horace Greeley in 1862:

My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that.

Was slavery an issue?  Yes.  Was it the main one? No.  To think it was would be akin to thinking that the first Gulf War was about protecting Kuwait and not about oil.

Oh, and by the way, what were the southerners using to defend themselves from Northern Aggression? That’s right, firearms.

So now we know that it is Constitutionally legal, is encouraged by our Founding Fathers and can only be stopped by a federal government that puts itself above the will of the people and its states (sorry abe but its true) let us look now as to whether it is feasible.

Since the election last week, citizens from all 50 states have started petitions to secede.  Now, while I do not understand the notion of sending a petition to the White House, who will now have your name and information, should they want to try and hang you for treason (yeah, secession is legal if you win, its treason if you lose. Founding Fathers understood that, the South faced that truth) lets discuss some of those states.

Just because you WANT to secede from the Union does not make it possible for you to actually survive if you did.  Take for instance Kansas.  What if ONLY Kansas seceded to make its own country.  It is a land locked state with no waterway access.  It ranks 32nd in the nations GDP and is not tremendously popular as a tourist destination.  Plus, depending on the wrath of the US Federal Government, the corporations that make their headquarters within Kansas may be forced to relocate if pressured by the US.  With these factors piling up, Kansas could quickly become like an interior African country without the bloodshed and genocide.

If we take North Dakota on the other hand, they are facing an energy boom, are known as the Saudi Arabia of Wind Energy and can continue to export that to the US or to Canada.  Though land locked like Kansas they have the option of opening up relations with Canada who may not be seeking retribution like the US might.  With the energy production and low taxes North Dakota could resemble an economy similar to those found in the Middle East.

Those are bad and neutral economic outcomes for two states.  Now its time for a good outcome and with that I turn to the state that is the namesake of this article; Texas.

Texas has a thriving economy and no state income tax.  They have a varied economical model that includes energy, industry, technology and tourism.  Plus they have access to the Gulf of Mexico and have a history of being their own Country.  If Texas was their own country all ready, their GDP would rank 14th IN THE WORLD.  If any state could not only survive but thrive without being a part of the United States, it’s Texas.

Other states would most likely have to band together and make a larger government than their one state in order to survive.  Not that there is anything wrong with that, it is just the reality of the matter.

Legality and feasibility aside the next question faced is SHOULD a state secede?  Maybe I should rephrase, is it worth it to secede because a man like Obama is driving this country into the toilet known as European Socialism?

This one is a little tougher to answer.  I think that just because the man wants to destroy what America is all about; capitalism, individuality, self reliance etc., doesn’t mean that he can necessarily extend it past the next four years.  So is secession a knee jerk reaction in order to temporarily avoid an un-American ruler that will be removed from the position of leadership or is it a reaction to the trend in which one sees this nation moving.

If it’s the latter I can understand the notion of secession.  With Obama packing the courts with like minded individuals, and entitlement programs that will be politically costly for a politician to remove (Obamacare) and the fiscal cliff that Obama is driving us full bore off of, maybe casting off the shackles of the Great Experiment’s mutation and returning to the basic formula is the right move.

I mean, between his abject disregard for the Constitution, his hatred of guns, his willingness to hand over American sovereignty to the United Nations and the fact that a majority (small though it was) of Americans thought that was a good idea might be an indication that this country has become too divided.

The person to blame?  Barack Obama.  He has sowed class warfare, social warfare, racial warfare and now must reap what he has sowed.

If some people want to take their state of like minded individuals and peaceably leave this sinking ship that is Obama’s America then I don’t blame them.  With luck, we have learned enough in the past 260 years to improve on the formula and not make the same mistakes.

First thing a new nation should do?  Nice clear language for the Bill of Rights.  As plain a vernacular as possible so the meaning cannot be construed 2 centuries hence by those looking to subjugate the people’s protection of liberty.  After that, keep on with the no income tax Texas, you’re doing fine there.  Other than that, Texas seems pretty good to go.

I doubt anything will come of it, but if Obama spends the next four years killing this country like he has the first four years, and in 2016 the ignorant elect someone to maintain his direction, then maybe some states jumping ship might not seem so far fetched.

Though I am inclined to finish this off with “Remember the Alamo”, I think it is better to remember the Declaration of Independence and Constitution.  Too many seem to have forgotten.

 

Barack Obama’s Gun Control Record Revealed

Somehow, there are people who confess they are gun owners, who keep saying that Barack Obama is no threat to the Second Amendment.  They actually go so far as to say that he has strengthened the Second Amendment during his first term.

Short post today, first, as I have discussed before, he HAD to accept the Amendment to the Credit Card Reform bill that allowed carrying of firearms in National Parks.  He had the chance to allow guns in parks on its own and he refused.  That means HE WAS AGAINST THE BILL.

Then there are his Supreme Court Judges, specifically Sotomayor who lied to congress about her belief in the Second Amendment only to rule against its definition of an individual right the first time it came up.

Now, lets look at a quick rundown of where the President really stands on the issues:

Renews support for gun control through UN Arms Trade Treaty (Nov 2012) Calls to renew the Assault Weapons Ban (Oct 2012) I believe in 2nd Amendment, but not war weapons on streets. (Oct 2012) Fast-and-Furious: no prosecutions for Mexican gun/drug snafu. (Jun 2012) Tells Sarah Brady will continue to push gun control “under the radar” (March 2011) Opposed bill okaying illegal gun use in home invasions. (Aug 2008) Ok for states & cities to determine local gun laws. (Apr 2008) FactCheck: Yes, Obama endorsed Illinois handgun ban. (Apr 2008) Respect 2nd Amendment, but local gun bans ok. (Feb 2008) Provide some common-sense enforcement on gun licensing. (Jan 2008) 2000: cosponsored bill to limit purchases to 1 gun per month. (Oct 2007) Concealed carry OK for retired police officers. (Aug 2007) Stop unscrupulous gun dealers dumping guns in cities. (Jul 2007) Keep guns out of inner cities–but also problem of morality. (Oct 2006) Bush erred in failing to renew assault weapons ban. (Oct 2004) Ban semi-automatics, and more possession restrictions. (Jul 1998) Voted NO on prohibiting lawsuits against gun manufacturers. (Jul 2005)

That is Obama’s REAL record on the issue of the Second Amendment from his time in Chicago through this past week..  Lip service saying he “believes in the 2nd Amendment” but does everything he can to marginalize and eliminate it.  Voted for bans and draconian limits on purchasing.  Opposed measures to protect firearm industry from frivolous lawsuits hoping to bankrupt them. Pushing a treaty that will impose gun controls from a foreign entity.  And refuses to hold anyone accountable for a gun walking program that has killed Americans that was, despite his lies, begun under HIS administration to foster a public outcry for more gun control.

So if you are reading this and are a Obama supporter, that’s fine because you are free to support whosoever you choose in this country.

Just stop trying to pass off Obama like some 2nd Amendment Champion when in reality he is a gun grabbing Chicago politician who will be a gun control champion now that he doesn’t have to be re-elected anymore.  If you can look at a mountain of evidence of word and deed and keep your head buried in the sand then even Obama coming to your home, ripping the gun from your hand and pistol whipping you with it because he doesn’t believe you should have it, wouldn’t be enough to get your off the kool aid.

He hates the Second Amendment and has a record fighting against it that goes back 15 years. I fear if left unchecked, his reach into the future will be much longer.

 

Barack Obama is a Fabian Socialist

What is a Fabian Socialist and what does it have to do with guns?  Good questions, the answer of which hearkens back to over 2300 years ago to the Roman Republic and General Fabius Maximus.  Seeing as it is Veterans Day I figured it’s as good a time as any to work in a war story.

General Fabius earned the nickname Cuncator which is Latin for “the delayer” for his tactics used in the Second Punic War against Hannibal.

After the disastrous battles for the Romans at Trebia and Lake Trasimene and the loss of two Consular Armies and Hannibal all but at the gates of Rome, the Romans elected Fabius as Dictator.

Fabius employed a new strategy; understanding that the Carthaginians under Hannibal were a vastly superior fighting force opted not to meet them in pitched battle but rather keep his troops close and harry them as they went.  Small victories added up for Rome and Carthage could not find an enemy in which to engage for the coup de grace.

And so this war of attrition, this avoidance of pitched battle and the small wins of seeming little consequence, eventually turned the tide of the Second Punic War to the Romans favor and Hannibal, for all his superiority on the battlefield was left defeated.

Fabian Socialism follows the same concept.  Small, seemingly inconsequential increments, gradual nationalization of the economy through manipulation of the democratic process.  Hence we have Obamacare.

But let us further extrapolate this idea to how he will attack the Second Amendment.  Obama will not make the same mistake that Clinton did in 1994.  He will not engage in battle directly with the Second Amendment and thereby rousing the full might of the gun community.  What he will do instead are the gradual changes that the average person would not even recognize.  Nominations of anti gun Federal Appellate judges, Fast and Furious programs (before they fall apart and are discovered), UN Arms Trade Treaties, and the like.

I doubt Obama will lift up a piece of legislation that must be passed by Congress saying “this gun confiscation bill must be passed”.  No.  He push for a innocuous treaty, or nominate a closeted gun control zealot for the Supreme Court or simply circumvent the legislative process by Executive fiat.

He will attack the Second Amendment and try to kill it, not with a deathblow, but with a thousand tiny cuts.

Or at least, that is what he will try to do.  Eternal vigilance is the only defense.

 

Weekend Hodgepodge – How “under the radar” works and why Ron Paul is right

The attack on Liberty and Freedom is not always done in broad strokes and by crusading socialists and statists.  Often times it is done in a clandestine manner which makes it all the more nefarious.  The UN Arms Trade Treaty is one example of how Obama would use this under the radar method to further is gun control agenda and the appointment of gun control judges like Sotomayor and Kagan is another.

But even these actions are seen by people, whether they choose to believe or can even see the slippery slope to the loss of rights or not is up to them, but they can see it.

But to understand what an example of “under the radar” TRULY means, one simply need only look at the linchpin of what Ron Paul has been espousing for years.  Namely the Federal Reserve and the un-American and unconstitutional nature of it..

Below is an animated short that is as enjoyable as it is educational.  Seeing as it’s the weekend I encourage you to take the time and give it a look.  I know business majors who have spent years in college who didn’t get so thorough of an understanding about how our freedom is truly undermined by such an organization.  Below the clip I continue on with some points of the matter but its better to watch the clip first:

 

First off, I think the production value is fantastic.

But lets get on to the important points.  First, those truly were Thomas Jefferson’s words. They were in a letter written to Samuel Kercheval in 1816 and John Norvell in 1807.

Andrew Jackson did indeed, while on his deathbed being asked of his greatest accomplishment respond with “I…Killed…the Bank”.  While not his LAST words, they were among them.  His actually last words were to his family to be good and he’ll see them all in heaven.  He did say to the bank “You are a den of vipers and thieves. I have determined to rout you out, and by the Eternal, I will rout you out!” and he did just that.

John F Kennedy did sign executive order 11110.  Whether that led to his death 6 months later is up to conjecture but that is a whole other issue.

Remember “Too big to fail”, yep.  That happened too.

This is what “under the radar” looks like.  Much like the Bank did in its first two incarnations, they were out in the open and the public was aware. They were brought down by brave men willing to stand up for what is right and took them down.

Just like when major gun control legislation was out in the open, like in 1994 with the Assault Weapons ban, Patriots stood up and voted the guilty out of office in a wave.

The bank learned the best way to do things is by the hidden hand.  Rename themselves the Federal Reserve.  How many people think that the Fed is a part of the government?  Did you?

So too will the gun control movement evolve.  They will say measures are needed for the children…to fight terrorism…to combat gun running.  They will name it something innocuous that, by its name alone, would incline acceptance…something like the “Patriot Act” and the UN Arms Trade Treaty…not the “Rights limiting act” or the UN Global Gun Control Treaty.

This is what under the radar looks like.  And if you didn’t know about the Fed until you read this, then you understand how effective it can be.

 

As Obama moves forward on gun control, States move to strengthen gun rights

Even before the Obama administration pulled back the curtain to reveal its anti-gun agenda to the naked light of day, individual states won victories and made moves in regards to the strengthening of gun rights.

First, and probably most importantly, is the constitutional amendment that passed overwhelmingly on election day in Louisiana.  Constitutional Amendment 2 was a ballot measure to amend the state constitution, thereby strengthening it against against legislative infringements and activist judges who would seek undermine the inalienable right.

A quick breakdown of the Amendment is as follows:

PROPOSED CHANGE: The proposed amendment would add language to the Constitution that says the right to possess a weapon is a fundamental right in Louisiana and any restriction must pass a “strict scrutiny” judicial review. The amendment also would remove language from the Constitution that explicitly gives the Legislature the authority to pass laws restricting the right to carry a concealed weapon.

A VOTE FOR would require that any laws restricting the right to keep and bear arms be subject to the highest level of judicial review, known as strict scrutiny. Also, the amendment would say that the right to keep and bear arms is a fundamental one in Louisiana. It would delete a line in the constitution that says the right to keep and bear arms shall not prevent the passage of laws to prohibit the carrying of concealed weapons. The deletion of that language does not mean the legislature would lose its right to pass concealed carry laws.

A VOTE AGAINST would retain the existing language in the Constitution which affirms that the right to keep and bear arms shall not be abridged but does not require strict scrutiny of arms laws and expressly allows the Legislature to regulate concealed weapons.
I added emphasis on the two main factors in the proposed change.  Highlighting that the right to keep and bear arms is a fundamental right elevates the right to the auspices of Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.  As it stood before, one could make the argument (and gun control zealots had) in Louisiana that bearing arms was akin to driving and could be granted and denied on a whim and regulated at the discretion of the legislature.

But now, the classification of the right as fundamental invokes specific legal tests used by courts to determine the carefully constrained conditions under which the Louisiana government can restrain such a right.  That is where strict scrutiny comes into play.  Strict scrutiny demands that any gun control measure that passes the legislature must be so narrow in its scope and so crucial the the welfare of the State of Louisiana that it is trumps the right in which it limits.  As it stood before, the level of scrutiny in Louisiana was “rational review”.

Rational review is the level in which activist judges get to most easily ignore the Constitution and rule by personal bias.  If a judge can rationalize their ruling (and really, a person can pretty much rationalize anything in their own mind), then they can rule based on that.  Strict scrutiny puts an end to that.

With the Constitutional Amendment 2 passing by a final vote percentage of 73.5% to 26.5%, Louisiana has the strongest most pro gun state Constitution in America.  It is also a blueprint for other states to follow in securing the right for its citizens against the coming wave of Federal infringements on the Second Amendment.

But it wasn’t only Louisiana that was on the move strengthening gun rights.  In Oklahoma, beginning on Nov. 1st of this year, the Open Carrying of firearms with a license was made legal throughout the state.  Didn’t hear about it?  I’m not surprised, the streets didn’t run red with blood, drunken shootouts didn’t take place in saloons,  panic and pandemonium didn’t run rampant and therefore the press didn’t really make mention of it.

Now, while I myself am an open carry supporter,  in truth I prefer constitutional carry.  Oklahoma, as part of a compromise when framing this bill, requires a license to carry openly or concealed.  On the bright side, Oklahoma will recognize the permits from all the states that issue them.

Speaking of open carry, the Texas legislature will pick up in January where they left off in 2011 (they meet every other year for 140 days) with House Bill 2756 that would allow Texans the right to open carry as well.

These are important developments because it means that while the Federal government and the Obama administration will be the most anti gun threat since 1994, the states are beginning to assert their own sovereignty in this matter.

Don’t believe me about 1994?  If I can direct your attention to the left coast, perpetual gun grabbing zealot Dianne Feinstein has declared that with an Obama victory she is going to move forward with another assualt weapons ban.  This one even more extreme than in 1994 as it would offer no grandfather clause so ALL platform weapons with a pistol grip and other arbitrary features would be confiscated outright.

Will it go anywhere?  Not with Republicans controlling the House.  But since when has that stopped Executive Order Obama from just doing what he wanted anyways because “it needs to be done now”?

My prediction for the next four years is a battle in Washington to hold ground in regards to the Second Amendment, but a battle in the State Capitols around the country for the strengthening of the right to keep and bear arms.

We’re not even a fortnight into November and the battle has been joined.  Tally-ho.

 

Obama moves forward with first gun control measure hours after election

That didn’t take too long.  Within hours of securing his second term as President, Obama moved forward to support renewing the debate over the UN Arms Trade Treaty.  By “renew debate” i mean that the only reason it had stalled in the first place was because Obama didn’t want to back it during an election year and now that the little hurdle of being re-elected has been cleared he doesn’t have to hedge his gun grabbing bets any more.

An official at the US mission says all the right things to the press:

“We will not accept any treaty that infringes on the constitutional rights of our citizens to bear arms.”

Now, they can say that but it doesn’t make it true.  The Arms Act as it stands does the following:

“The most recent draft treaty includes export/import controls that would require officials in an importing country to collect information on the ‘end user’ of a firearm, keep the information for 20 years, and provide the information to the country from which the gun was exported. In other words, if you bought a Beretta shotgun, you would be an ‘end user’ and the U.S. government would have to keep a record of you and notify the Italian government about your purchase. That is gun registration. If the U.S. refuses to implement this data collection on law-abiding American gun owners, other nations might be required to ban the export of firearms to the U.S.”

In short this is a gun registration that wouldn’t have to pass into law by both houses of Congress but is implemented by treaty.  A treaty that, while it would need a 2/3 majority in the Senate, could be accomplished by misdirection and out right lies to the people, who in turn could pressure enough on the fence Senators to foolishly vote for this treaty.

This act also allows for a foreign body, the United Nations, to control and dictate how US firearm manufacturers operate and as such runs the risk of crippling if not outright eliminating the industry in its entirety.

If there is no company to make new guns for private citizens then eventually citizens will run out of guns to buy. Another end around to eroding the Second Amendment.

In short, America would lose its own sovereignty with regards to how it handles its industry and civil rights.

When Barack Obama talks about “under the radar” THIS IS WHAT HE MEANS!

A number of people have kept telling me how good Obama was on the Second Amendment.  How we have National Park Carry now.  They ignored me when I told them that he had to sign it since it was an add on to a bill he needed to sign for his own credibility (Credit Card reform).  But now we see, and unfortunately we will continue to see for the next four years just how wrong you were.

The curtain has been pulled back and Obama has no fear of treading softly for re-election.  The attack began even before all the votes were counted.

Once more unto the breach dear friends, once more.

 

It is always darkest before the dawn

Well…that was disappointing   Not that Romney was a very impressive candidate or a champion of the 2nd Amendment, but he was still better than Mr. “I’m gonna abolish the 2nd Amendment under the radar” Obama.  Here’s a list of pros and cons that we can expect to see over the next 4 years.

I’ll start with the cons:

The Democrats maintained the Senate.  Meaning that anti gun Harry Reid is still calling the shots on what gets out of committee and what doesn’t.  Don’t expect to see too many pro gun bills moving forward.  They also have a majority to vote on Supreme Court Justices. The Republicans blew every possibility to take the Senate that they could.  Through ignorance, missteps and bumbled words the Republicans shot themselves in the foot.  I’m looking directly at Akin on this.

Obama, with his Senate Majority will push to have the UN Small Arms Treaty ratified thus crippling the gun industry and forcing a national registration of all privately owned guns in America.  While they need 2/3’s of the Senate to ratify, they still are in the drivers seat and you never know what they might promise in order to get a few weak willed Senators to come to cross the ailsle.

He WILL appoint at least one more anti gun Supreme Court Justice who will probably serve on the bench for 30 years.   I commented on this blog yesterday that it wasn’t that I was as worried at the next 4 years as I was for the next 40.  This was what i was referring too.  I suggest, if you are a gun owner, that you hope or pray that Scalia, Kennedy, Thomas, Alito and Roberts are in good health and stay that way.   Unfortunately, since Ginsberg is most likely to step down this term, instead of strengthening the 2nd Amendment Majority on the court we will simply tread water.  This was probably the most  damaging result of the election as it is.  We could have solidified the courts opinion that the right to keep and bear arms as an individual right for decades to come.  Now we are still one simple vote away from washing it from the books.

The problem with not taking the senate is that pro gun measures will hardly ever make it out of committee.  Harry Reid is still in control of the Senate.  The only way to stop gun control activist Justices is to filibuster and you can only go to that well so many times.

We will not get any pro gun legislation signed into law on its own.  We may get to attach some little crumbs to a bill that Obama needs to sign and get a symbolic victory but do not expect to see National Reciprocity for your CCW in the next four years, it will not happen.

Pros

It’s always darkest before the dawn.

It’s not much…but it is hope.  This wasn’t some mandate that Obama can cling to saying that the people have resoundingly propelled him back to the White House.  Romney was a flawed candidate but even still came within half a percentage point of winning.  Obama had 10 million LESS people vote for him this time.  Perhaps America is beginning to see where this President desires to take us and is waking up.  I hope so or the America that I new and loved, the one Reagan called a shining city on the hill will crumble into the sea.

If that city can still be found in 4 years I pray that someone like Reagan will be there to lead us back to it.

 

 

Election day perspective

I think all that is to be said about this election has been said.  Therefore, I am going to tell you the tale of American Patriot Samuel Whittemore.

Whittemore was an immigrant to this country.  Born in England in 1695 he fought for the Crown through 50 years of military service. At the age of 50 he served as Captain in His Majesty’s Royal Dragoons (an elite cavalry unit feared through much of the world) in Canada against the French in the War Austrian Succession then came back 13 years later to whoop up the French again in the French and Indian War.  Beating down the French at the age of 64 is just a taste of where this story is going.

Four years after laying a pair of smackdowns on the French in successive decades he led troops against Chief Pontiac in the bloody Indian Wars that raged across the Great Lakes region.  Not one to stay behind the lines he ending up winning a pair of dueling pistols from a warrior he just dispatched in bloody hand to hand combat.  Note that he was 68 years old at the time.

After serving in three American Wars before America was even a country, Samuel Whittemore decided that the colonies were a pretty nice place to settle down so he did just that in Massachusetts.  He ended up having a large family with 8 children.

But while his service to the crown was impressive, that is not what Samuel Whittemore is most remembered for.  To that end, it was what he did for the Revolution and the fierceness in the defense of his home.

On April 19th, 1775 the British were returning to their headquarters after the Battle of Lexington and Concord while being harried by the Colonial Militia.  The Redcoats finally got some separation from their pursuers and were passing through the town of Menotomy, Whittemore’s town.

Not letting a thing like being 80 years old stop him from doing anything, Whittemore took his musket, his prized dueling pistols and sword and ran outside to join the fray.

Whittemore, by himself, with no backup, positioned himself behind a stone wall, waited in ambush, and then single-handedly engaged the entire British 47th Regiment of Foot with nothing more than his musket and the pure liquid anger coursing through his veins.  His ambush had been successful – he fired off his musket at point-blank range, dropping the nearest soldier before anyone was the wiser.

Now, when you’re using a firearm that takes 20 seconds to reload, it’s kind of hard to go all Leonard Funk on a platoon of enemy infantry, but damn it if Whittemore wasn’t going to try.  With a company of Brits bearing down in him, he quick-drew his twin flintlock pistols and sent two hot rounds down range, dropping two grenadiers dead.  Then he unsheathed the ornate French sword he had wrenched from a dead Frenchmen 30 years prior during the taking of Louisbourg in Canada, and this 80-year-old warrior stood his ground in hand-to-hand combat against a couple dozen trained soldiers, each of which was probably a quarter of his age.

The Redcoats had time to assess and fired upon Whittemore, shooting him in the face.  They then marched up and bayonetted him 13 times.  I’d like to imagine he wounded a couple more Englishmen as he went down. The Brits, convinced that this man was sufficiently filled with holes, left him for dead kept on their march back to base, harassed the entire way by Whittemore’s fellow militiamen.

When the townspeople rushed out after the Redcoats moved on they found two amazing things.  First, miraculously, Samuel Whittemore was still alive and perhaps even more remarkably, he was loading his pistols in order to carry on the fight.  Remember: SHOT in the FACE and STABBED THIRTEEN TIMES.

Not only did he recover Whittemore survived the war and lived long enough to see the US Constitution ratified and George Washington become the first President.  He finally passed in 1793 at the age of 98.

In 2005 Massachusetts recognized Samuel Whittemore as an “Official State Hero”.

Just a fun story to tell anyone who complains about how voting is tough.

Sam Whittemore is tough. Voting…not so much.

 

 

The Rundown of guns in the news

It seems that a lot of things are happening all at once in regards to firearms, most good others bad.  Here’s the rundown:

Cook County (within which Chicago lies) went forward and voted 9-7 to impose tax on firearms purchased within the County.  Somehow, the County Council tried to spin this off as a way to combat the 443 murders that have taken place so far in Chicago.  Of course these elected officials wouldn’t ever consider that maybe Chicago’s ridiculous and unconstitutional gun control measures are the problem in the first place.  No no, they prefer to tax law abiding citizens, which will most likely go into a slush fund that will pay for some non sense that has nothing to do with crime prevention.

I’m not a Republican, but it sure does sound like a fun time at the post election party the GOP of Alabama will be having.  They State GOP will hold their official election night party at Hoover Tactical Firearms in suburban Birmingham.  In attendance will be Miss Alabama Anna Laura Bryan to sing the National Anthem and former Miss Alabama Amie Beth Dickinson Shaver who will be Mistress of Ceremonies.

In Montana, legislation is being pushed to allow firearms to be carried on campuses within that state.  Currently, the Board of Regents of each University can dictate whether to prohibit or allow firearms to be carried on campus.  Once again, Constitutional Rights are being delegated to a bureaucracy to see them infringed.  I hope that the Kern’s legislation, that seeks to abolish such criminal friendly zones, goes through and Montana joins states like Colorado, Utah and Oregon that do not allow Universities to make defenseless victims of their students.

His Mayor-ness once again puts his own highfalutin autocratic ways above the safety of his subjects.  Dictating that only his own personal police force will be armed during the wake of the Hurricane Sandy disaster, Bloomberg has denied entry to the National Guard who sought to bring aid and security to the unarmed masses of the City.

BLOOMBERG DENIED HELP FROM THE NATIONAL GUARD AFTER A HURRICANE!!!  

I think Bloomberg has finally lost his damn mind.  He thinks he actually is a king and that the peasant class is beneath him so why should he help them.  People are looting and killing and since Bloomberg has all ready made it so difficult for his serfs to be armed they suffer at the whims of criminals.  When the National Guard arrived to help restore order and help victims Bloomberg told them to stay out.  At a press conference he stated:

“We don’t need it, the NYPD is the only people we want on the street with guns.”

Read into that; if it’s between Bloomberg not being in control or the people of New York suffering his Mayor-ness will choose their suffering.  He will not relinquish any control and the benefit of the people of New York be damned. You see, Bloomberg can fire a cop or pressure a chief to do his bidding.  He cannot run roughshod over a Colonel or General.  Bloomberg is an egotistical and narcissistic madman.  But, New Yorkers did vote him in so, not to be harsh, the way Bloomberg has dismissed the needs of New Yorkers in wake of Hurricane Sandy (initially going forward with the Marathon, refusing help from outside) is a powerful reminder that you reap what you sow.

But hold on to hope New Yorkers…Mayor Bloomberg is in his final year of his term…unless of course he changes the rules again and allows himself to run past the term limits.  Either way…vote better next time.

Speaking of voting…I have decided to give a prediction of how the Presidential election will turn out.  Now, I could tell you that I expect a landslide, a nail biter, a tie.  I could spit out electoral numbers and suppositions to back my claims.  But, as educated readers I am sure you have seen numerous evidence regarding election numbers thus far.

With that being said…I am going to use a youtube clip to encapsulate how I feel this election will go.  A couple of things before you watch it.

In this dramatization, Romney is the guy in the black hat and Obama is the guy in the White hat.  They are surrounded by the bias liberal media.

In the dialogue replace “Green Beret Karate Tricks against all these boys” with “Sound Business experience against all these liberal media pundits”

Replace “Indian” with “Mormon”

And there you have it, life will imitate art tomorrow.  Enjoy

 

Weekend Hodgepodge

Another month has passed, so as I like to do I give you the past month of Facebook pictures that I have created.  With the election fast approaching and trying to get the most pro-gun congress elected to Washington I didn’t have as much time to dedicate to this as I would like so I only have a pair.  

 

You may recognize the model.  She is US Olympian Amanda Furrer.  My apologies to Larry Elder as I had mistakenly added an ‘s’ to his last name.

 

Now, this one with Mandela got a lot of negative buzz.  Apparently some people have clung to his criminal past and as such invalidate his later achievements.  I heard some really abhorrent things from people who painted Mandela as a monster who hates white people and wants to exterminate them.  To that, I just have to say that when Nelson Mandela was elected President he had the power to wipe out white South Africans from the country, either by genocide or by economically seizing everything from them.  There were many black South Africans who wanted him to do just that.  Mandela chose to bring the country together, learning from his criminal past that violence and retribution is not the way.

Regardless, I think that whatever you think of the man, the quote still is valid.

Finally, there is this gunfighters prayer.  I do not take credit for it.  It was tweeted from a soldier stationed in the middle east that GOA follows on twitter.

 

Amen.

 

Worse than Watergate, Obama deserves prison for Benghazi, not re-election

They say that the cover-up is always worse than the crime.  I tend to agree, but when you are covering up the murder of US Citizens in foreign country that you chose to let die due to political reasoning I tend to think the crime might be worse and the cover up just despicable.

After sifting through a number of reports and peculiarities, I see now that this administration willfully and knowingly allowed US citizens to die at the hands of terrorist extremists in order to maintain the narrative that President Obama had made progress in Middle East relations.  Anything to the contrary at this time could possibly undermine his re-election campaign.

The White House was not unaware of the danger that the Consulate or the Ambassador faced in Libya as the cables sent to Washington have been released, clearly stating that security was lacking, especially due to the increasing brazeness of Benghazi militias that did not expect reprisals.  The cable also included approx 10 locations of Al Qaeda cells and Islamic Militias.

So it wasn’t a surprise to the White House or Barack Obama that an attack occurred   From that bit alone one could say that Obama was caught flat footed and unprepared.  Not a good thing, but if that was the extent of it, it could be forgivable.  But instead of calling it what it was, our Commander in Chief decides to try to keep the true reasons of the attack under wraps to maintain his political image and blame the attack on a youtube video made some years ago that was “insulting” to muslims. Going so far as apologizing to THEM for the video that he said spurred them on to killing Americans.

Now we are getting somewhere about the man who currently inhabits the oval office.  He will use distraction and  straw men in order to avoid taking a stand that may be detrimental to himself.  He will toss the First Amendment of the Constitution under the bus if it is politically expedient for him to do so.  So far we have only gotten to the subterfuge.  Now, let’s get to the criminal…or at the very least, the morally reprehensible.

By ignoring the warnings and requests on the ground for bolstered reinforcements, Barack Obama allowed for the situation in Libya to culminate into a soft target for terrorists.  A target that these terrorists exploited because they hate America, not because of some stupid youtube video.  A video, that the majority of the world didn’t know existed until Obama tried using it to deflect his crumbling illusion of improving relations with the middle east.

In this way, by refusing to add a stronger presence on the ground ahead of time, Barack Obama is responsible for the death of Ambassador Stevens and Agent Sean Smith.

What is worse than their deaths, which happened soon after the attack and therefore most likely unavoidable due to Obama’s aforementioned dereliction, was the death of two former Navy Seals, Glenn Doherty and Tyrone Woods,  who fought there way to the Consulate in order to defend the survivors.

When the attack came these two former SEALs were not at the consulate but were about a mile away at the CIA annex.  They asked for leave to help suppress the terrorist attack and were denied twice.  Eventually they ignored the orders to stand down and fought there way to the Consulate to offer aid, killing an estimated 60 terrorists and rescuing the survivors and recovering the body of Agent Smith.  The Ambassador’s body was all ready among the crowd of terrorists being mutilated.

Led by the SEALs, the group made it back to the CIA annex.  The terrorists, not satisfied with just the Ambassador renewed their offensive and attacked the annex.  The fighting went on for FOUR MORE HOURS, with the SEALs on the rooftop holding back the terrorist forces with heavy machine gun fire.  They also had a laser painted on the mortar nest that was raining shells on them, and continued to ask for a gun ship to fly by and light up the targeted mortar.

Every time they asked for help they were denied.  And do not for one second think this was a fog of war issue like we live in the 18th Century and messages get delayed or miscommunicated.  The White House was WATCHING THIS LIVE, and could see the attack unfold in real time.

But instead of acting, instead of sending in a gun ship from Italy, a scant 480 miles away to light up the night and stop the attack dead in its tracks by sending the terrorists on a one way trip to hell, Obama decides to do nothing.  Not in the, there’s nothing I can do and I’m helpless nothing, but in the “I have plenty of options for relief but they all require escalating and setting the block around the Annex on fire and that might hurt me politically for my re-election so I’ll do nothing”.  In the worst case, instead of sending help Obama’s first order may very well have been to a lackey stating: “Find me something on youtube that I can blame this on and deflect it away from me”.

He could have had any plane from Italy light up the blocks around the annex inside of 2 hours.  He had TWO Tier 1 Special Operation Units available, including hostage rescuing counter-terrorist Delta Force, waiting around for the order that never came.  Hell, the SEAL on the roof was calling in coordinates of the enemy forces and painted the mortar nest with a laser so any type of smart bomb, naval bombardment or drone attack could have changed the outcome.

ANYTHING would have been better than this craven coward who occupies the Oval Office doing nothing.

But nothing is what he did.  He sat in the situation room and watched these brave men die.  Seven hours after the initial attack on the Consulate, Doherty and Woods died atop the rooftop of the annex when the terrorist mortar crew finally zeroed in on their position and dropped a round on top of them.

Seven hours…from the first shots fired.  Seven hours and Obama did nothing.

That was the crime.  Incompetence in the run up to the attack, and woeful dereliction of duty to protect American lives during a seven hour window in which he had a number of options.  He chose to focus on his re-election prospects and it cost at least 2 good men their lives.

Every despicable thing he has said since has been the cover up.

I say despicable because the only man in command who actually tried to help was General Carter Ham and he was arrested and relieved of his command because he wouldn’t just sit idly by and watch these brave men die.

General Ham, as head of Africom, received the same e-mails the White House received requesting help/support as the attack was taking place. General Ham immediately had a rapid response unit ready and communicated to the Pentagon that he had a unit ready.

General Ham then received the order to stand down. His response was to say “screw it”, he was going to help anyhow. Within 30 seconds to a minute after making the move to respond, his second in command apprehended General Ham and told him that he was now relieved of his command.

Guess who President Obama has nominated to replace General Ham as Head of US Africa Command?  Why, none other than General David Rodriguez, Gen. Ham’s second in command who stopped him from rescuing the besieged Americans.  I guess Obama likes to repay favors done for his campaign.

General Ham was also a hero in this story who gave as much as a General can in order to protect the lives of American’s…his career and his reputation.  By the time the Obama hit squad is done with him, General Ham will be made into some rogue cowboy caricature who was just looking for a fight.

President Obama disgusts me and how anyone could vote for the kind of callous and morally vacant man is beyond me.  He has proven himself to have utter contempt and disdain for not only American citizens “clinging to our bibles and guns” but also to the Constitution, his duty as commander in chief and to all those who would fight to protect this country and its citizens.

For covering up a break in at the Watergate hotel, Nixon was pardoned by Ford and never faced a trial.  For the death of these brave Americans and the extensive cover up that followed I would see Obama behind bars for his crimes against this country.

Charlie Woods, father of Tyrone Woods deserves justice for his son:

If in fact, those people in the White House were as courageous and had the moral strength that my son Ty had, immediately, within minutes of when they found there was a first attack they would have given permission and not denied permission for those C-130s to have gone up there. I don’t know much about weapons but it’s coming out right now that they actually had laser targets focused on the mortars that were being sent to kill my son and they refused to pull the trigger, they refused to send those C-130s.

I’m an attorney. This may not meet the legal test of murder but to me that is not only cowardice, but those people who made the decision and who knew about the decision and lied about it are murderers of my son.

Is this the kind of President you want in the White House?  The kind of man who puts his own re-election ahead of the lives of Americans?  Something to think about before you cast your ballot on Nov. 6th.

 

St. Gabriel Possenti – Patron Saint of Gun Owners

Today, being All Saint’s Day, I thought I would take a moment to bring to light a particular Saint and his story.  Saint Gabriel Possenti, the Patron Saint of Handgunners.

In 1860, Saint Possenti was attending seminary in the mountain village of Isola.  He was also dying of tuberculosis which would eventually take his life less than two years later.

When a group of 20 armed marauding bandits, from Garibaldi’s army, came to the village to pillage and rape, the villagers hid the best they could and hoped that the terror would pass them by. Everyone hid except for Gabriel Possenti.  With the permission of the Seminary Rector, Possenti, suffering from tuberculosis, gathered his strength and walked into the center of the town alone and unarmed.

One of the rogue soldiers had grabbed a young woman and was dragging her off to rape her and scoffed at the sickly monk being all alone and helpless.  Possenti moved quickly and stripped the soldier of his pistol and held him at gunpoint demanding the woman’s release.  As the bandit was doing so, one of his cohorts stumbled upon the scene and Possenti removed his pistol as well before the bandit realized what was going on.

With the woman freed and armed with two pistols the rest of the 20 men arrived to deal with the commotion.  At this point a small lizard was crossing the town square some distance away.  Possenti, took aim and fired, shooting the lizard with one shot (with the weapons of the time, it was an amazing feat).

The bandits quickly lost their nerve as they feared this sickly monk, while probably not be able to take them all out, could kill enough making their resolve crumble.  Possenti then ordered the men to lay down there weapons and to douse the fires that they had set around the town.  After that was done he marched the group out of town, ordering them never to return.

From that point on Gabriel Possenti was hailed as the Savior of Isola and was canonized in 1920 by Pope Benedict XV.

There are some who doubt this story, stating that Saint Possenti would have been too ill at the time to do such heroic acts and that such actions go against the church teachings.

To the former, that he was too ill to be able to perform such deeds, I say that is what makes it a miracle.  And to the second point of going against the churches teachings, this was disproved by Pope John Paul II when he cited Catholic Catechism 2265:

“legitimate defense can be not only a right but a grave duty for someone responsible for another’s life, the common good of the family or of the state.”

I’m not Catholic, so I’m not a big follower of Saints, but I find it oddly comforting that there would be a Patron Saint of Handgunners.  Whether the Vatican officially designates the title to Saint Possenti or not, I think he’s earned it.

Happy All Saint’s Day.