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June 3, 2005 is the sixteenth anniversary of the brutal 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre of peaceful pro-democracy protestors by the communist Chinese Government. Many Americans remember the infamous photo of the unarmed Chinese student standing in front of a column of armored tanks, blocking their path. What most Americans did not see were the color photos of smashed and bloody bodies of protestors all over the ground, making the ground look somewhat like the top of a giant pizza. The following are links to the encyclopedia entry for "Tiananmen Square", which is also provided below: http://www.encyclopedia.com/html/t/tiananme.asp http://www.encyclopedia.com/printable.asp?url=/ssi/t/tiananme.html The following...

Within hours of the Assault Weapon Ban bill A2466 passing the Assembly, Senator Frank Padavan (R-Queens) introduced the bill in the Senate S5504. This bill repeals the existing Assault Weapon definition and replaces it with new definition language. The bill has been referred to Senator Bruno's Rules committee bypassing usual the usual channel of Senator Volker's Codes committee. Some facts about new Assault Weapon Ban bill A2466/S5504 Bans all semi-auto rifles that have a detachable magazine and one or more of the following. Pistol grip (no further definition) Thumbhole, telescoping or folding stock Compensator (porting) Muzzle brake Bans all semi-auto...

MAINE VOICES: Jim Verdolini Who are the real bullies in gun ban debate? Copyright © 2005 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc. E-mail this story to a friend About the Author Jim Verdolini is a resident of Portland. I take considerable exception, and not a small amount of umbrage, at the recent commentary about "Gun Bullies" that appeared in the paper May 11. Columnist Bill Nemitz writes of recent threatening letters sent to legislators who have proposed a variety of gun bills this year. Despite a token denial, the essence of his piece was that nutty gun owners bully harmless legislators who...

Tuesday, May 17, 2005 Bill to ban assault weapons dead until 2007 By PAUL CARRIER, Portland Press Herald Writer Copyright © 2005 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc. E-mail this story to a friend AUGUSTA — State lawmakers have refused to outlaw so-called assault weapons, but the measure's sponsor, Democratic Sen. Ethan Strimling of Portland, has vowed to rework the bill and submit it to the next Legislature if he is re-elected in 2006. The assault-weapons ban was the first of three major gun-control bills to work its way through the Legislature this session; two others are still under review. The remaining...

Wednesday, May 11, 2005 COLUMN: Bill Nemitz Gun 'bullies' spread fear in Augusta Copyright © 2005 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc. E-mail this story to a friend She knows that simply asking the question is enough to set them off. But Cathie Whittenburg, executive director of Maine Citizens Against Handgun Violence, can't help herself. "What ever happened to civility?" Whittenburg asked Tuesday as her group's legislative agenda - or what's left of it - limped toward the end of the session. "There's a level of anger here that you don't see with other bills. And these people, you know, are armed!"...

Assault weapons ban not sensible as a state-level firearms regulation Copyright © 2005 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc. E-mail this story to a friend The federal ban on certain types of assault weapons made sense. Police credit the now-expired legislation for ridding urban streets of guns used by gangs to tip the balance of firepower toward the bad guys. What doesn't make sense, however, is for Maine to try to implement its own ban on assault weapons. State Sen. Ethan Strimling, a Portland Democrat, is the moving force behind a bill to do that. The measure had a hearing on Tuesday...

Tuesday, May 3, 2005 Assault-weapons ban needless, owners say By PAUL CARRIER, Portland Press Herald Writer Copyright © 2005 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc. E-mail this story to a friend Also on this page: Today's Question -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ADVERTISEMENT -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Question Each day, we ask MaineToday.com readers for their reactions to events in the news: Assault Weapons Ban Legislators are considering an assault weapons ban for Maine similar to the federal ban that expired recently. The Maine Chiefs of Police Association, Maine Citizens Against Handgun Violence and Maine Million Mom March against violence are among the groups supporting the legislation. The...

Legislator proposes assault weapons ban AUGUSTA - A leading supporter of a proposed ban on assault weapons warned Monday that it was only a matter of time before someone is killed with one of the targeted guns. But gun rights advocates told lawmakers that Sen. Ethan Strimling's bill would chip away at their constitutional protections and serve no useful purpose. Strimling, D-Portland, told the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee that his bill would fill a gap left by the expiration of a federal assault weapons ban last September after being in effect for a decade. He said seven other...

Despite dire predictions that America's streets would be awash in military-style guns, the expiration of the decade-long assault weapons ban in September has not set off a sustained surge in the weapons' sales, gun makers and sellers say. It also has not caused any noticeable increase in gun crime in the past seven months, according to several city police departments. The uneventful expiration of the assault weapons ban did not surprise gun owners, nor did it surprise some advocates of gun control. Rather, it underscored what many of them had said all along: that the ban was porous - so...

Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, I rise to speak about a common sense bill that will protect American citizens and law enforcement officers. The Assault Weapons Ban and Law Enforcement Protection Act is designed to restore and strengthen the ban on assault weapons that expired on September 13, 2004. The Government Accountability Office recently reported that 47 people on the terrorist watch list legally purchased firearms in this country last year. I personally believe that a person on the terrorist watch list, who isn't allowed to board a commercial airliner, should not be able to purchase any weapon. But they especially...

Law enforcement authorities have broken up a network of international arms smugglers who sold black-market assault rifles in the United States and were plotting to import military weapons - including anti-aircraft missiles and antitank guns - from Eastern Europe, federal and New York City officials announced yesterday. The arms dealers sold the weapons to a confidential informer working with the F.B.I. who told them he was buying the arms for Al Qaeda, said David N. Kelley, the United States attorney in Manhattan, at a news conference. Mr. Kelley said the dealers were not associated with any terrorist organization but were...

Soldiers who have completed military service can hold on to the army’s latest assault rifle from April 1, but they will have to pay for the pleasure.The government says the weapons must first have their fully automatic capability disabled – and owners have to foot the bill. Friday’s ruling means Swiss soldiers can, for the first time, take home the SIG 90 assault rifle. Previously, they had only been allowed to keep the older SIG 57 rifle and regulation pistols. But in a break with tradition, those who don’t want to be separated from their personal weapon will have to...

Press Release New Yorkers Against Gun Violence New York, NY www.nyagv.org nyagv@nyagv.org Early this afternoon New Yorkers Against Gun Violence (NYAGV) held a press conference concerning Sunday afternoon's shooting spree at the Hudson Valley Mall where a 24-year old man armed with an assault rifle injured two people before being subdued. Reports stated that the weapon used was a Hesse Model 47 (a copy cat version of the banned AK-47 assault weapon). In addition, the shooter was able to squeeze off approximately 60 rounds and may have reloaded one time. Despite New York State's ban on certain assault weapons (passed...

A03371 Summary: SAME AS No same as SPONSOR Bing COSPNSR Eddington, Englebright, Paulin, Dinowitz, Cook, Seddio, Lavelle, Ortiz, Stringer, Espaillat, Benedetto MLTSPNSR Brennan, Cymbrowitz, Diaz L, Diaz R, Gordon, Gottfried, Hooper, Lafayette, Peoples, Pheffer, Sanders, Towns, Wright Rpld S265.00 sub 22 (e) sub (iv) & (v), amd SS265,00, 265.20 & 400.05, Pen L Adds semiautomatic rifles, shotguns or pistols or a replica or a duplicate thereof manufactured on October 1, 1993 and semiautomatic rifles, shotguns or semiautomatic pistols lawfully possessed prior to September 14, 1994 to the definition of assault weapon; provides for the superintendent of the division of...

Terrorism as an Excuse Another CBS campaign. By John R. Lott Jr. Who could oppose laws preventing terrorists from getting guns? Obviously no one. But it would be nice if laws accomplished something more than simply making it more difficult for Americans to own guns. Ironically the day before CBS finally released its report on the 60 Minutes Memogate scandal, 60 Minutes was again stirring up fears about how terrorists would use 50-caliber rifles to attack Americans. Last year it was the semi-automatic assault-weapons ban before it expired. Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D., N.Y.) claimed the ban was "the most...

The 1994 assault-weapons ban has expired, and our nation is again vulnerable to guns known to most in the law enforcement community as "the weapons of choice for criminals." The Federal Assault Weapons Act was passed by Congress in 1994 as part of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act and signed into law by President Clinton on September 13, 1994. I am proud to be the author of H.R. 5099, reinstating the assault-weapons ban. My legislation will make Florida and the nation safer. In contrast, the House leadership opposed reauthorizing the 1994 Assault Weapons Act and President Bush,...

Adam Noble (Nov. 4), whose opinion I respect, responded in the Exponent to a letter by Bill Arevalo (Oct. 27), a student who frequents his university while carrying a loaded gun concealed on his person. Mr. Noble expressed his disdain with the carrying of arms on campus. However, he should visit Tel Aviv University in Israel, where it is possible to see some students coming to study with fully automatic assault rifles (me included) as well as privately owned pistols. This does not infringe upon its academic atmosphere at all. As far as I know, there has never been a...

[note: old news - 1989 - shows Specter character] S-747, The DeConcini Gun Bill Passes The Senate Judiciary Committee Are you getting the feeling these days that in the future you may have fewer types of firearms to sell? Recent events in Washington seem to indicate you are correct--and that the number of guns on the prohibited list may continue to grow. On July 7, the Bush Administration ordered that the temporary import suspension on 50 semiautomatic firearms be made permanent on 43 of the guns. Then 13 days later, the Senate Judiciary Committee surprised even most of its members...

I tried to post the anti-gun article, titled "Don't relax, assault weapons are near you - Alleged plot case puts high-powered issue in spotlight" located at , but due to copyright complaints, it is not allowed. If you have missed the anti-gun bleating of the left during the election cycle, go to the above url and read this drivel. Then, do as I did and write this anti-gun GOOFBALL a "nasty gram". Here is the letter I wrote him... Dear Mr. Thomason, I just read your article, "Don't relax, assault weapons are near you" online. Since democrats figured they'd best...

A judge has ruled that state legislation can't supersede Denver's gun laws because the state constitution gives home rule cities supremacy in issues of local concern. A new court ruling upholding most of Denver's gun ordinances is invaluable on two counts: It underscores the importance of home rule and it highlights the obvious - Denver is not the same as a small town, and when it comes to guns it shouldn't be treated like one. Deputy City Attorney David Broadwell said it this way in his opening brief: "Simply put, a bullet fired in Denver - whether maliciously by a...