Free Republic

EL PASO, Texas (AP) - A U.S. Border Patrol agent in El Paso shot at a group of people hurling rocks at him from across the Rio Grande on Thursday. No one was injured. Robert Boatright, assistant chief patrol agent for the Border Patrol in El Paso, said the group of suspected illegal immigrants threw the rocks after running back across the river from the United States when they spotted the agent. They threw the rocks from about 25 yards away. The agent, who Boatright did not identify, fired at least once. Ciudad Juarez police officers went to the area...

National Rifle Association leader Wayne LaPierre slammed New Orleans authorities Monday for seizing legal firearms from lawful residents. "What we’ve seen in Louisiana - the breakdown of law and order in the aftermath of disaster - is exactly the kind of situation where the Second Amendment was intended to allow citizens to protect themselves, " LaPierre said. "When law enforcement isn’t available, Americans turn to the one right that protects all the others - the right to keep and bear arms," LaPierre said. "This attempt to repeal the Second Amendment should be condemned." The New York Times reported last Thursday...

I'm seriously considering purchasing a DSA FAL rifle in 308, but really don't know much about them, so I thought I'd post a thread to learn some more. I want this rifle to accurately reach out to 500-600 yards, but not be too large to preclude it from CQB usage. My main questions are as follows: What type receiver should I get? Type I, II, or III? What is the best method of mounting an optic to this rifle, such as an Aimpoint or Leupuld 3-9X? Are the rail interface handguards worth the $250 price that DSA sells them for?...

Fairfax, VA—Oklahoma Governor Brad Henry (D) signed into law today a National Rifle Association (NRA)-backed bill to prohibit employers from banning locked firearms in company parking lots. The law comes as an improvement of a similar bill passed last year, and is originally the result of last year’s firings of Weyerhauser employees for storing personal firearms in their cars on company property. The new law provides employer liability protection against third party criminal acts, while allowing individual employees to sue their employer for non-compliance. In the event that an employee sues and wins the right to store a locked firearm...

JUNEAU -- A Senate committee is thinking of adding one more provision to an anti-gun-control bill. The proposed amendment would guarantee in state law that Alaskans have a right to carry and store weapons in their vehicle, even if there is a municipal law against it or their employer prohibits it.

Dear Fellow Citizens In the never-ending battle to destroy our constitution, more "big lie" propaganda is being dumped on our elected officials. The rhetoric given forth by the Violence Policy Center (VPC) so easily deceived the legislators of California, resulting in the banning of fifty caliber rifles because they are powerful and their bullets punch holes when they strike. Even single shot .50 cal rifles were banned. It's hard to believe we live in such a dark time that someone has actually banned a single shot rifle. But as you will see, this is the cleverest of all gun bans,...

The long list of bad ideas whose time should never come grew by one last week, courtesy of the Virginia Citizens Defense League. Members indicated they would turn to the General Assembly or courts to force colleges and universities to drop campus gun restrictions that exceed state law. The reason? At Virginia Tech, the Second Amendment purists learned, a student with a concealed-carry permit faces disciplinary action for taking a gun to class. Tech bans all firearms, regardless of permits, except for those carried by police. The Defense League might be on solid legal ground regarding a university's power to...

The family of a White River Township man shot and killed a year ago by a neighbor is trying to change Indiana’s self-defense law, which shielded the shooter from criminal prosecution. Civilians should have to follow rules similar to what police must obey in a shooting and should have to attend classes before getting a permit to own a weapon, the family says. Family members are working with State Rep. David Frizzell, who represents part of White River Township, to make the changes. “As citizens, we do have the right to defend ourselves,” said Terry Doty, uncle of the man...

MEXICO CITY (AP) "We were always taking the initiative," said Lavolpe, who received a congratulatory call from President Vicente Fox. "For 90 minutes there was only one team on the field." The crowd booed the U.S. national anthem and a spattering of fans chanted "Osama! Osama!" before play started, and shortly after Lewis' goal.

ORLANDO, Fla. -- An agent with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency was been suspended after video surfaced showing the man shooting himself during a gun safety class in front of a group of Orlando fourth-graders, according to Local 6 News. An investigation has been launched to determine who leaked the home video of the undercover DEA agent shooting himself at an event sponsored by the Orlando Minority Youth Golf Association. Before the shooting, the agent was videotaped talking about how certain weapons are popular with rap artists. "This is a Glock 40," the agent said on the tape. "Fifty Cent,...

DATE: January 20, 2005 TO: USF & NRA Members and Friends FROM: Marion P. Hammer NRA Past President Executive Director Unified Sportsmen of Florida SUBJECT: SB-436 Use of Force/Castle Doctrine Hearing Scheduled The Senate Criminal Justice Committee will hold a hearing on SB-436 by Senator Peaden and others on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 from 2:00PM - 4:00PM. Please immediately send email to members of the Senate Criminal Justice Committee and URGE THEM TO SUPPORT SB-436 by Sen. Peaden. IN THE SUBJECT LINE OF YOUR EMAIL PUT: SUPPORT SB-436 - Use of Force/Restoring the Castle Doctrine (Below is a list of...

Can't post from the Arizona Republic, so here is the link: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/0102nraprez02.html/

Do you want to carry in National Parks in your state (assume no state law against it)? Please read on! VCDL has finally got a Petition for Rule Making (PRM) ready to present to the Department of the Interior. Unlike writing letters to the Department of the Interior or signing regular petitions, all of which the DOI can ignore, the PRM will force the DOI to consider allowing permit holders to carry in National Parks. They will have to hold a public comment period. I will advise when that happens, as then we will need lots of comments sent to...

I tell you, coming back yearly to the United States is stranger than dwarf-tossing, maybe up there with licking toads. It’s like watching something dead that you once cared for decompose in time-lapse photography. The country is in lockdown. I live in Guadalajara a couple of blocks from the US consulate, a fortress. Big concrete stop’em-bombs circle it, disguised as planters. Iron bars spaced a couple of inches apart rise all around. I’d take a picture to show you but I would end up in Guantanamo. The Mexicans say the bars are to keep the gringos in. Really they are...

I'm looking to purchase a battle rifle next year in .308, and can't decide what I want to get. I love the AR-15 rifles in 5.56mm, but have heard some bad things about reliability of the AR-10s. Also, the recoil is apparently more from this rifle than the other 308 semi-autos. But the AR-10 does have the advantage of having the same manual of arms as an AR-15. Another consideration is the Springfield M1A Scout. The M1A was ranked #1 by Boston T. Party in his "Gun Bible", and has a lot going for it. Finally, there is the FN-FAL....

It seemed simple enough. Falls Church officials recently drafted a policy that would require city workers to call 911 immediately if anyone stepped onto city property carrying a gun. Police who responded would check to see if the gun was properly licensed and report their findings to city officials. ............snip.................. About 30 people, pistols strapped to their hips, strode into the council's meeting this week protesting the policy and warning that it violates their constitutional right to bear arms -- and possibly state laws, as well.

This was posted over on thehighroad.org. Also, Phil VanCleave, head of VCDL, has a thread posted over on packing.org. There is currently a country wide campaign started this week to get the secretary of the Interior, (who packs herself) to change the policy and let CCW holders in U.S. Parks. Perhaps some of you have read this at Packing.org already. We should continue to contact the Secretary of the Interior, who could make the change without Congress' approval: Ms. Gale Norton Secretary of the Interior U.S. Department of the Interior Dept. HG, 1849 C Street, NW Washington, DC 20240 Phone:...

When 18-year-old Skye Hansen of Murray arrived at the Heber Valley Gun Club Saturday morning, she had never been trap shooting before. By late afternoon she was begging her mom to buy her a shotgun for her birthday -- and making plans to take up duck hunting. Trap is a game in which a small disk, or clay pigeon, is launched away from a shotgun shooter. It demands good vision and reflexes, and breaking a "bird" delivers instant gratification. "I love guns," Hansen said. "It's something that you can control, but it is so powerful it can blow things up....

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- A college student who took a cell phone call from her mother in a movie theater was pepper sprayed by an officer and charged with disorderly conduct, along with her boyfriend. Warronnica Harris, 23, was at the Muvico theater at BayWalk Saturday night, watching the opening credits to Catwoman when her cell phone rang. "It was my mom calling me," Harris said. "It was a family emergency." Harris said she spoke so quietly that her mother couldn't hear her. Then Officer John Douglas shone a flashlight in her eyes. He asked Harris and her boyfriend, Terrell...

As horrifying as it is to contemplate, the next gunfight may not be at the O-K Corral; it might be in our own community. Shock and dismay are the emotions most often expressed at recent events either seen or read about in Reston of people walking our streets and dining in our restaurants with pistols on their hips. And it is perfectly legal. In many of my columns I have talked about a rightward tilt of the Virginia General Assembly. In no area is that tilt to ultra-conservatism more evident than with gun control. The minimal laws that existed in...