Free Republic

WASHINGTON — Representative Elijah E. Cummings of Maryland was at the grocery store the other day when he ran into an elderly black woman who expressed growing concern about President Obama’s safety. Why, she asked, wasn’t he being better protected by his Secret Service agents? The furor that led to this week’s resignation of the director of the Secret Service resonated deeply among blacks, outraged that those supposed to be guarding the first black president were somehow falling down on the job — and suspicious even without evidence that it may be deliberate. “It is something that is widespread in...

Representative Elijah E. Cummings of Maryland was at the grocery store the other day when he ran into an elderly black woman who expressed growing concern about President Obama’s safety. Why, she asked, wasn’t he being better protected by his Secret Service agents? The furor that led to this week’s resignation of the director of the Secret Service resonated deeply among blacks, outraged that those supposed to be guarding the first black president were somehow falling down on the job — and suspicious even without evidence that it may be deliberate. “It is something that is widespread in black circles,”...

Via 90 Miles, Venezuela Launches Disarmament Program. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is launching a nationwide initiative to encourage civilians to surrender their weapons, in an urgent attempt to stem the tide of violence in his country, which has the second-highest murder rate in the world. What they really meant to say: Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is launching a nationwide initiative to encourage civilians to surrender their weapons because his communist policies have failed and the people are starting to notice. He must double-down with the tyranny and, to do so, must first disarm his victims. History is full of examples:...

A trio of anti-gun U. S. Senators are attempting to bully Kroger Corporation into banning open carry in their stores, regardless of state and federal laws. Sens. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) sent a letter to Kroger Co. CEO, W. Rodney McMullen, on Tuesday asking him to implement storewide policies that would prevent individuals from openly carrying firearms into Kroger locations. “We write today to urge you to adopt a policy that would prohibit the open carry of firearms in your stores,” the letter stated. “In doing so, Kroger would be sending an important message...

People believe that crime has gotten worse. But over the past two decades, murder and robbery in the U.S. are down by more than half, and rape by a third, even as complaints about “rape culture” grow louder.... Since crime is down, the media find the few cities, such as Indianapolis and Bismarck, North Dakota, where crime is up. If they can’t find increased crime, they focus on rare, lurid cases like mass shootings and serial killers. Even as life gets safer, people get the impression that the world is falling apart. Then rule-makers overreact.

Gov. Jerry Brown has signed a bill making California the first state that allows family members to ask a judge to remove firearms from a relative who appears to pose a threat. Brown announced the bill signing Tuesday. It was proposed by several Democrats and responds to a deadly rampage in May near the University of California, Santa Barbara. …

The Islamic State has issued a global call to lone wolves. One could be standing behind you on the bus, walking next you at the mall or sitting in the next cubicle. In the age of the Islamic State and solo terrorism, gun-free zones are simply an invitation for a terrorist attack. In Moore, Okla., the life-saving value of the Second Amendment was proved once again. It may be our secret weapon in the ongoing war against terrorism.

Gun control in Britain passed in stages, beginning just after World War I and continuing in a reactionary fashion with increasing strictness through the 1990s. When the final stage arrived in 1997, and virtually all handguns were banned via the Firearms Act, the promise was a reduction in crime and greater safety for the British people. But the result was the emergence of Britain as the "most violent country in Europe." Britain began placing restrictions on gun ownership after World War I with the Firearms Act of 1920. .... The Firearms Act of 1920 did not ban guns. Rather, it...

When a gunman attempted to murder Rep. Gabriel Giffords in January 2011, the country was shocked by what was widely interpreted as an act that symbolized the incivility that had transformed American politics. That assumption, which was primarily aimed at undermining the Tea Party movement that had swept the midterm elections months before in the 2010 midterms, was soon debunked when we learned the shooter was an apolitical madman. But liberals have never ceased yapping about the implications of their opponents’ alleged meanness. Now it turns out the person who is doing the most to give the lie to this...

Never before have I felt so naked. Now more than ever, I wish I was armed. And I’m not alone. Any and all home-grown Islamic terrorism should be able, if need be, to be met by a well-armed civilian militia. The United Kingdom has had two beheadings of members of the public in the last two years, with neither police nor civilians able to prevent it. It has prohibitive gun laws. With news of the ISIS plot to randomly abduct members of the Australian public and behead them, Australian sentiment on guns is dramatically shifting. It appears Australians are finally...

Leonard Embody is no stranger to police. MORE Click to read more headlines from Davidson County.More >> He's been arrested or detained numerous times for walking around town with guns. His charges were all eventually dismissed, which may explain why he wasn't arrested on Wednesday as he paraded up and down the sidewalk in front of Hillsboro High School. Witnesses say Embody was pacing Hillsboro Road, dressed much like a soldier, and it had a lot of people nervous. So nervous that 911 dispatchers had their hands full.

A top Republican House member on Wednesday proposed eliminating the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, writing a bill that would freeze all hiring at the troubled agency and require the Justice Department to come up with a plan for transferring its duties to other agencies. Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner Jr., the Wisconsin Republican who wrote the bill, called it both a chance to streamline government and to clean up an agency that’s been criticized from the right and the left for botched gun-running operations.

Following the release of new footage that seems to show now former-Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice punching his then-fiancée in the face, it’s important to remember that the prosecutor who let Rice off with a slap on the wrist is now trying to throw the book at a young mother of two who tried to protect herself and her family from violence. Atlantic County Prosecutor Jim McClain approved an application for admitting Rice into New Jersey’s Pre-Trial Intervention program that allowed the NFL star to avoid jail time. Instead, Rice has to undergo counseling and will be immediately incarcerated...

An upstate New York lawmaker said the loss of manufacturing jobs in the state last month is due to an anti-gun administration that has ignored pleas from local officials to be involved in the negotiating process. “Remington talks have come to a halt,” said Assemblyman Marc W. Butler (R.-Newport), whose district includes the Village of Ilion, where the Remington Outdoor Company has been located for almost 200 years. “We are losing 105 jobs at the Ilion primary plant,” said Butler. In February he predicted long-term consequences of Remington’s decision to expand to Huntsville, Ala., instead of Ilion, N.Y. The small...

I have been going across forums associated with gun owners in CA (i.e. Calgunst.net) with other fellow members seeking support from the firearms community in regard to a situation we have in CA. Recently, the overzealous anti-gun DeLeon had put together a bill called SB808, which requires us to register any home-built firearms and 80% receivers as firearms regardless if they are complete or not. This includes applying for serial numbers from the ATF. It's currently not a federal requirement to register a non-serialized firearm built from an 80% receiver. California is seeking to not only require any and all...

The Washington Alliance for Gun Responsibility launched its TV advertising campaign yesterday to promote Initiative 594, a statewide ballot measure to broaden background checks on all gun purchases. The ad, titled "Prevent," features former Bellingham Chief of Police Don Pierce. Citing FBI data, in the ad, Pierce credits current background check laws with stopping more than 40,000 people — "felons, domestic abusers, you name it" — from purchasing guns in Washington state.

It happened in Omaha, Nebraska early on Tuesday morning.  Barb Haley was home alone, with her dog, Dozer.   Her husband was traveling for work.   She awoke to go to the restroom when Dozer ran out of the bedroom, barking.    Barb found the garage door open and drawers that appeared as if someone had rifled through them.   When she heard a crash, she retrieved her husband's pistol from the nightstand. If this is the correct timeline, it would have been better for her to retrieve the pistol when the Dozer alerted.  It is not a good idea to leave an...

A SWAT team raided co-owner Joe Palumbo's Albion Gun Shop without a warrant. They were acting on orders from the Narcotics Enforcement Unit, who asked the shop to hand over a customer list so they could determine how many people had purchased New York SAFE Act compliant rifles. The gun owner was forced to present approximately 170 sales records. Under the state's anti-gun law, this intrusion was completely legal.

A NY SAFE Act investigation has begun at a business in a neighboring county. The Albion Gun Shop, located on Hamilton St. in the Town of Albion in Orleans County, has received a "request" from the New York State Police for records of all persons who have purchased a bullet button AR-15 from the store since the SAFE Act was passed and signed into law in January of 2013, A bullet button AR-15 is a rifle that has been modified with a special feature that makes a semiautomatic rifle's magazine permanent, or not detachable without a special tool. The...

In light of recent mass shootings – primarily in so-called ‘gun-free zones’ – that have left dozens dead and even more injured, Americans have become increasingly divided regarding how such tragedies might be avoided in the future.While some have concluded that stricter gun control laws would keep citizens safe by limiting legal access to firearms, plenty of others recognize that a well-armed populace can act as a deterrent to would-be violent criminals. As federal authorities consider imposing legislation that would make the ownership of certain weapons illegal, local law enforcement officials are speaking out against such proposals. One such voice is...