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2nd Amendment Tag

Posted by Amy Miller on October 05, 2015 30 Comments
You'll be glad to know that anti-gun activists have finally found a scapegoat for last week's mass shooting at Umpqua Community College in Rosebud, Oregon. They haven't gone after the shooter(!), or the gun(!!), or the GOP(!!!); instead, they've decided to demand the head (and job) of Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin. Hanlin's force responded to the situation at Umpqua, took the initial lead in the investigation, and handled the massive media response.

At the close of a recently-finished press conference, Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin expressed his "most sincere appreciation to those most directly touched by this incident."

Posted by Fox News on Saturday, October 3, 2015
The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence has issued a statement demanding Hanlin's resignation following reports that Hanlin has expressed views contrary to the politically correct post-tragedy narrative espoused by pro-gun control advocates. From the Brady Campaign:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on October 02, 2015 41 Comments
I have a column at USA Today, Time to talk about gun free zones. Here is an excerpt:
Gun-free zones presume the good intentions of those entering the zone. And the overwhelming majority have such good intentions. But for those who have bad intentions, gun-free zones turn schools and other locations into shooting galleries. The good people are unarmed, the evil person is armed.... Gun-free zones achieve the opposite of what is intended. Rather than making good people safer, it puts them at the mercy of the evil people.
You know the drill. You go over to USA Today, read the whole thing, and share it on Facebook and Twitter. There has been an attempt by Think Progress and some others to dispute whether the campus and/or buildings were gun free zones, but it's pretty clear they were:

Posted by Amy Miller on October 02, 2015 99 Comments
Yesterday, a 26 year old man loaded a gun and committed mass murder at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon. New reports indicate that the man (whose name doesn't deserve any more ink on this site) killed at least 9 people and injured many more before police neutralized him. Four guns believed to belong to the shooter were recovered at the scene. Amid the horror comes the story of 30 year-old Chris Mintz, a student and Army veteran who was shot 7 times while trying to protect his classmates from the gunman. That's his picture at the top of the page---his actions earned him the spot. Mintz reportedly blocked the door to the classroom he was in to prevent the shooter from entering. When the shooter did manage to enter the room, Mintz was shot several times. He is currently recovering in a local hospital and is expected to survive. More from ABC News:
"I just hope that everyone else is OK," he told ABC News this morning. "I'm just worried about everyone else. The man’s actions in the fatal shooting, where 10 people died and seven, including himself, were injured, did not go unnoticed by his peers.

Posted by Amy Miller on October 01, 2015 71 Comments
At least 10 people were murdered today when a gunman opened fire at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon. According to authorities, the shooter was a 20 year old man. They haven't released his name, or any other information about him, but officials did confirm that he is dead. Now, investigators are looking at social media posts from as early as last night trying to figure out more about the shooter, and what motivated him to kill. More from CNN:
According to the source close to the investigation, authorities are looking at social media posts between a person they believe may have been the shooter, and others. The conversation happened Wednesday night on 4chan. In it, the writer talks about planning to carry out a shooting. Others egg him on, giving him suggestions on how to do it, and the type of weapons to use. The responses are mixed -- with some users characterizing the would-be gunman as a pathetic loser. Others called him a twisted hero. In the posts, there is a reference to the UC Santa Barbara shooter, who wrote a manifesto and videoed himself before opening fire a year ago. "This is the only time I'll ever be in the news. I'm so insignificant," reads an apparent post by the would-be Oregon gunman.
During a press conference, President Obama seized the opportunity to initiate another outright push for more gun control legislation, saying, "somehow, this has become routine." Watch:

Posted by Amy Miller on September 29, 2015 18 Comments
Earlier this month, Dana Loesch appeared in an NRA promo video asking women to take a second look at safe, legal handgun ownership as an effective form of self defense. It was awesome. Watch it if you haven't already: This video is the definition of speaking truth to power, and highlights an important difference between the conservative, pro-gun narrative, and what the left twists that narrative into. Anti-gun advocates feed off of the fear, sadness, and confusion that hits in the wake of mass or high profile shootings; they don't want you to know about the lives saved by guns---all they want is to convince Americans that their families would somehow be safer if only criminals had access to guns in a gun-free society.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on September 24, 2015 12 Comments
Gallup released an interesting poll this week showing that nearly half of all Americans view government as "an immediate threat to the rights and freedoms of ordinary citizens."  Interestingly, this is "similar to what was found in previous surveys conducted over the last five years"; however, "when this question was first asked in 2003, less than a third of Americans held this attitude." Gallup reports:
The latest results are from Gallup's Sept. 9-13 Governance poll. The lower percentage of Americans agreeing in 2003 that the federal government posed an immediate threat likely reflected the more positive attitudes about government evident after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The percentage gradually increased to 44% by 2006, and then reached the 46% to 49% range in four surveys conducted since 2010. The remarkable finding about these attitudes is how much they reflect apparent antipathy toward the party controlling the White House, rather than being a purely fundamental or fixed philosophical attitude about government.
It's no accident, for example, that when Democrats start and/or renew pushes for gun control, gun and ammo sales skyrocket. Of course, this isn't just about gun control; it encompasses everything from government surveillance to over-regulation to fundamental First Amendment rights.

Posted by Amy Miller on September 15, 2015 26 Comments
Real talk: the media does a terrible job of reporting on gun violence. America has seen a lot of tragedy this year, and each time that tragedy involved the use of a gun, the mainstream media took the opportunity to lay the blame not on the hand that pulled the trigger, but on the gun that contained the bullet. We don't trust guns as a matter of principle, and we certainly don't trust those who are experienced with firearms to make the decision to use them for protection. This needs to stop. The NRA may have found an "in" with one of the most vocal and important demographics: women. Their new ad, featuring firebrand pundit and mother Dana Loesch is simple, slick, and offers a simple message: women (and moms) who demand the right to defend themselves "are everything that makes America strong." Click 'play':

Posted by Amy Miller on September 02, 2015 36 Comments
Some Second Amendment advocacy organizations are putting their members on alert among concerns that anti-gun organizations are using social media to encourage members to target open carriers with police action. The Coalition to Stop Gun Violence has posted a series of messages on its page encouraging its followers to immediately call police if they feel uncomfortable in the presence of an openly-carried firearm. The Buckeye Firearms Association caught a screen grab from the Coalition's Facebook page: swatting This is a screenshot taken today (9/2/2015) of the Coalition's Facebook page, doubling down on their original call to action:

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on August 27, 2015 12 Comments
The day after the tragic on-camera murder of a Virginia-based local news crew, we're still piecing together what occurred. This is what we know so far. Thursday afternoon, NBC News took a deeper look into presumed gunman, Vester Flanagan, who was known on air as "Bryce Williams." After murdering the news crew, Flanagan fled, took his pursuit to social media, then turned the gun on himself, taking his own life. A former WDBJ employee, Flanagan was ordered to contact Health Advocate, the Employee Assistance Program after having multiple confrontations with photographers. After he was fired in 2013, he sued the station. According to NBC News, on the day Flanagan was terminated he became so violent, he had to be physically removed from his chair while station employees called 9-1-1. The photographer? Adam Ward, one of Flanagan's victims.

Posted by Amy Miller on August 26, 2015 18 Comments
This morning, Virginia reporter Alison Parker and her cameraman Adam Ward lost their lives after a former co-worker ambushed their live shot with his own camera and a handgun. The attack was aired on live TV, horrifying both their colleagues, and viewers of the WDBJ's early morning show. Ward managed to capture footage of the shooting before falling to the ground; things went dark on the broadcast, but his camera caught a shot of the gunman: A several-hour pursuit ended when authorities finally apprehended the suspect; he had shot himself in the head on Interstate 6 in Faquier County and later died in a Washington, DC-area trauma center.

Posted by Amy Miller on August 26, 2015 48 Comments
This morning, Virginia reporter Alison Parker and photographer Adam Ward were shot and killed during a live broadcast near Moneta, Virginia. The shooter, Vester Lee Flanagan, shot himself approximately five hours after the murders. Flanagan was previously employed by WDBJ as a reporter, but was dismissed after anger management issues boiled over between himself and the other members of the news team. WDBJ is currently using their live broadcast to talk about Flanagan's time with the station, and why he was fired.

Posted by Mike LaChance on August 23, 2015 18 Comments
Following the riots of this spring, Baltimore has found itself a city on the edge. In fact, Baltimore has now surpassed New York City in homicides for the year. Justin Fenton of the Baltimore Sun:
Baltimore has surpassed New York City in homicides Baltimore has surpassed New York City for homicides this year. A New York Police spokeswoman said the city had seen 208 homicides as of Wednesday. Baltimore recorded its 213th homicide Wednesday night. It's a seemingly impossible milestone -- New York has more than 8.4 million people, Baltimore just 620,000. New York peaked with 2,245 homicides in 1990, but that number has been tumbling and hit a historic low in 2014, with 328. Baltimore saw a peak of 353 killings in1993, and recorded 211 homicides in 2014. Baltimore surpasses the number of murders for all of last year, with more than four months to go. The dubious distinction comes as the mayor faces growing public criticism. Mike Hellgren reports. Adjusted for population, Baltimore's murder rate through Aug. 19 is 34 per 100,000 people, while New York's is so far this year 2.5 per 100,000. If New York had Baltimore's murder rate, it would have seen 2,874 killings already this year.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on August 15, 2015 66 Comments
Obama has stated that the "most frustrating part" of his presidency has been his inability to pass gun control legislation, and progressives are not going to give up on their gun grabbing goal any time soon. The Washington Post has published an article by E. J. Dionne entitled "How American can free itself from guns."  Dionne argues, much as Eric Holder did, that the key is to change the American mind about guns. Watch Eric Holder explain how we need to "brainwash" people against guns: Dionne doesn't use the word "brainwashing," but he makes the same comparison to public service messages about cigarettes.  He writes:

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on August 11, 2015 6 Comments
In no small part because this administration seems to dish up scandal and outrage on a seemingly weekly basis, the Fast and Furious scandal has yet to be fully investigated or resolved.  After Eric Holder cleared Eric Holder of any wrong-doing, and the mainstream media outlets began reporting, erroneously, that Fast and Furious was the same program that began under President Bush as Project Gunrunner, the story sort of faded from the public eye. Apparently intended by the Obama administration to, at least in part, serve as a rationale for more gun control regulations in the U.S., Operation Fast in Furious is back in this news. Last week, it was reported that the Garland, Texas terrorist, for whose acts ISIS claimed credit, purchased a gun through a Fast and Furious gun shop in 2010. And this week, we learn that the man charged in the murder of Border Patrol agent Brian Terry has received a plea deal from the U. S. government.  KVOA in Tuscon reports:
One of the men charged in the murder of U.S. Border Patrol agent Brian Terry pleaded guilty to one count of murder, Monday morning. Once a potential candidate for the death penalty after the murder of the agent, the drawn up plea deal now states that the U.S. and the defendant will ask for 360 months imprisonment, with credit for time served since his arrest in October 2012.

Posted by Mike LaChance on August 11, 2015 12 Comments
As a member of Generation X, I have a very clear memory of 1970's TV shows. In the days before cable, our choices were limited but the quality of many shows was much higher. Every week, my entire family would sit down together to watch certain programs and one of them was Little House on the Prairie, which was based on a classic series of books by real life settler Laura Ingalls Wilder. You've probably heard of the show and the books, but you may not have heard that Melissa Gilbert, who played Laura Ingalls on TV, is running for congress in Michigan. From the Detroit Free Press:
Melissa Gilbert running for Congress Actress Melissa Gilbert, best known for her portrayal of Laura Ingalls Wilder on NBC’s “Little House on the Prairie” in the 1970s and ‘80s, said Monday she will run for Congress in Michigan’s 8th District -- though her campaign will have to tamp down questions about a tax bill. Gilbert, who lives in Livingston County with her husband, actor Timothy Busfield, is running as a Democrat in a district that has been a Republican stronghold in recent elections: U.S. Rep. Mike Bishop, R-Rochester, won the race to replace former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Howell, last year, beating Democrat Eric Schertzing, 54%-42%.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on August 10, 2015 22 Comments
As I've noted previously, "If the gun grabbers can’t repeal the Second Amendment or get laws passed to infringe on our right to bear arms, they’ll simply tax guns and ammo until we can no longer afford to buy guns or use the ones we have.  At least that is their hope." And it's full steam ahead in Seattle, where they are moving forward with their "gun violence" tax.  David Workman explains:
The committee voted unanimously [Wednesday] to send the proposal to the full city council for consideration next Monday, according to the Seattle P-I.com. Monday's vote could set the stage for a legal confrontation, and there were hints that existing gun shops could move out of the city, and that gun owners living in Seattle will simply shop outside the city, thus thwarting any dreams that this tax will generate $300,000 to $500,000 annually for the city's gun control efforts. . . . . Another part of the Burgess gun control effort is a second proposed ordinance requiring the reporting of lost or stolen firearms to police within 24 hours that the theft or loss is discovered. This requirement also appears to go beyond state statute, and thus violate the preemption statute, passed in 1982, strengthened in 1985 and reinforced with the defeat of Seattle’s attempted parks ban three years ago when the state Supreme Court refused to hear Seattle’s appeal after the city lost at trial and at the appeals court.
The NRA argues that this is bad policy.  From the NRA-ILA website:

Posted by Andrew Branca on July 15, 2015 42 Comments
Dr. John R. Lott Jr., who runs the Crime Prevention Research Center (CPRC), today released yet another of the Center's outstanding reports, entitled: "Concealed Carry Permit Holders Across the US". (The full report is embedded at the bottom of this post.) The report's biggest takeaway was the continued acceleration of concealed carry licensing across the country. Those familiar with Dr. Lott's seminal book "More Guns Less Crime" will not be surprised to learn that murder rates in the United States continue to plummet even as concealed carry continues to skyrocket: murder rates v. CC The report revealed a change in demographics behind this ongoing acceleration of concealed carry licensing.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on July 12, 2015 4 Comments
New York's unpopular SAFE Act takes another hit this week as Cuomo suspends a plan to require background checks for the purchase of ammunition.  The New York Times reports:

The decision, which the administration did not publicize, was the result of an unusual deal the governor’s office reached with the State Senate’s Republican majority. The Senate’s Democratic minority and the speaker of the State Assembly condemned the move.

The background-check system was approved as part of the Safe Act, the set of tough gun control measures that Mr. Cuomo, a Democrat, persuaded lawmakers to pass in January 2013, shortly after the mass school shooting in Newtown, Conn.

Apparently, the suspension is based on the lack of an acceptable database:

On Friday, a top aide to Mr. Cuomo signed a memorandum of understanding suspending the portion of the Safe Act related to the background checks. The memorandum, citing “the lack of adequate technology,” said the database “cannot be established and/or function in the manner originally intended at this time.”

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