Free Republic

TALLAHASSEE — Florida has more gun manufacturers than any other state except Texas, after a surge of nearly 350 percent in licenses for gun makers fueled by the nation's growing demand for firearms. The increase in gun manufacturing licenses since 2009 has strained the resources of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives — the federal law enforcement agency that monitors the nation's gun sales and distribution. As the number of licenses to make firearms grew nationally by nearly 250 percent from 3,040 licenses in 2009 to 10,503 last year, the number of special agents watching manufacturers has increased...

In a column In the Tampa Bay Times, a writer makes the claim that a law to protect the Second Amendment diminishes the First Amendment.  It is a stretch.  The statute, passed by the Florida legislature in 2011, makes it illegal for local governments to pass regulations and ordinances dealing with guns, gun possession, anything to  do with guns. The law was passed because politicians in large urban centers persistently ignored the previous preemption law.  Local ordinances and regulations created a patchwork of firearms law to entrap any Floridians who exercised their Second Amendment rights. The columnist referred to...

The alleged abuse happened during nap time, documents from the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office show. The details of the case are so disturbing and so unthinkable, that those who hear the facts have a visceral reaction. They wince. They make faces. Some look down and sigh.

Sami Osmakac toyed with the idea of blowing up Tampa Bay bridges or the sheriff’s office. The defense is arguing that Sami suffers from mental illness. The Tampa Tribune reportedL Sami Osmakac toyed with the idea of blowing up the bridges crossing Tampa Bay or detonating bombs at the sheriff’s office and police departments before settling on a plan to plant explosives in Tampa’s Hyde Park party district and then spraying first responders with automatic gunfire, according to recently released court documents. The planned January 2012 attack, Osmakac said in a “martyrdom video,” would be “payback for Sheikh Osama Bin...

Stuart Prescott, 48, of Suwannee Florida shot and killed Tyler Snellgrove, 18, also of Suwannee.  The shooting occurred on 13 September, 2014.  Deputies interviewed witnesses and obtained a warrant to search Prescott's house. Prescott was arrested and placed in Jail on the 14th or 15th of September, 2014. He was charged with 1st degree murder.  The only news at the time stated that Prescott come out onto the porch and had a confrontation with Snellgrove.  He went back inside, got a shotgun, came out and shot the younger man.  From wcjb.com: Sonja Reed says her grandson has known Prescott...

Hundreds of men women and children participated in an open carry march in Florida on the 4th of July.  On video posted on facebook, you can see the march stretching into the distance in front of and in back of the camera. You can also see the wfla video posted on wfla.com.  It is taken at a corner. That perspective makes the march look much smaller. From wfla.com: INVERNESS, FL (WFLA) – More than 300 people marched through the streets of Inverness in Citrus County to show their support for the Second Amendment on the morning of Fourth of...

Friday, July 8, 2016: LIVE streaming coverage of Donald Trump’s policy speech in Miami, FL at the Royal Poinciana Ballroom. Coverage will begin at 2:30 PM EDT. Miami, FL Watch the LIVE stream of the event below beginning at 2:30 PM EDT Royal Poinciana Ballroom

President Obama has endorsed former Florida Gov. Charlie Crist, who held office as a Republican but switched parties after losing the 2010 Senate race, in a bid to pick off a GOP-held congressional seat. "Gov. Charlie Crist has always put people above politics — and we need more of that in Washington," Obama said in a statement released by the Crist campaign. "I know he'll bring the people's voice to Congress, and I've got his back." The Democratic National Committee confirmed the endorsement to the Washington Examiner.

The home of the “Happiest Place on Earth” has been breeding killer jihadists and Muslim zealots for years. Omar Mateen, the cold-blooded mass murderer who gunned down 49 people at an Orlando gay nightclub and wounded 53 more before police took him out late Sunday, may have worked alone. But he operated in the larger context of a teeming, terror-coddling paradise. While tourists from around the world soak up sunshine and dreams at Disney World, Islamic extremism festers around them. Schools: The Muslim Students Association, founded by the radical Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood whose stated purpose is to wage “grand jihad”...

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) will reconsider his decision not to run for reelection, he told reporters Wednesday. Rubio reopened the door to running after speaking with Florida Lt. Gov. Carlos López-Cantera, a close friend of his who is running to replace him. Sunday's mass shooting at an Orlando nightclub that left 49 dead made him rethink his decision, Rubio said. “Obviously, I take very seriously everything that’s going on — not just Orlando, but in our country,” he said. “I enjoy my service here a lot. So I’ll go home later this week, and I’ll have some time with my...

We’ve gotten so used to politically correct obfuscation about Islam being a religion of peace that preaches tolerance and non-violence that Donald Trump’s words in his address Monday were startling: “Many of the principles of radical Islam are incompatible with Western values and institutions. Remember this, radical Islam is anti-woman, anti-gay and anti-American. I refuse to allow America to become a place where gay people, Christian people, Jewish people are targets of persecution and intimation by radical Islamic preachers of hate and violence.”

“Pray for Orlando" we read on Facebook and Twitter. Prayer is vitally important, but is there more we can do? As United Methodist Christians, we mourn with the victims and families of those wounded and killed in the shootings on June 12, 2016 in Orlando, Florida. We may even pray and wonder if anything could have been done to avert this heinous act. But should we do more? Is there anything that can be done to keep something similar from happening in the future? While we may not agree on a solution, many of us agree there is a problem....

Yet another terrorist mass killing takes place in a gun free zone, this time in Florida. The mass public killing that took place in Florida this morning at the self described “Olando’s hottest gay bar”. From the pulseorlandoclub.com:  Experience Pulse, a world of fun and fantasy. Orlando’s hottest gay bar located in the heart of downtown. Step inside Pulse and savor the taste of three unique worlds: The Lounge, Ultra Bar and The Adonis Room. Since 2004, Pulse has been serving up unmatched live entertainment and tantalizing liquid libations, courtesy of our renowned staff and entertainers. Check out our upcoming...

Mary Litwin.....Hey guys. Steve and Gerry and I met with the Social Services Doc at Flagler today, and she was so kind. It could have been a very difficult conversation, but that old fart know's his own mind, as well as anyone within listening distance all the time. The doctors agree that there is no chance that continued Life Support will get him any closer to ever coming off of the mechanically controlled assistance to live his life the way he wants to.They have assured me that he is not aware of what he is going through. Today, I signed...

Wednesday on CNN’s “New Day,” Democratic National Committee chairwoman Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) reacted to news that Nevada State Democratic chairwoman Roberta Lange had been harassed by supporters of Sen. Bernie Sanders’ (I-VT) presidential campaign who have alleged the process of delegate allotment has been unfair.

Image from wkrg.com The RG 23 is the quintessential cheap handgun.   It never had a good reputation.  Many have claimed a lack of reliability, so I suspect that quality control was not in the same class as the old Smith & Wesson revolvers. The rough trigger makes accuracy difficult, even for experienced shooters.  The steel inserts in ZAMAK alloy construction are corrosion cells waiting to happen.  The revolvers are so inexpensive, they are not economically worth repairing.  They sold, in 1969, for 19.95.  The current price on the used market is about $50. But, they are a gun.  They...

The young cybersleuth says he exposed security lapses on Florida elections websites, but the state says he committed a crime. David Levin, 31, of Estero, a political consultant and owner of a computer security firm, was booked Wednesday on three felony charges of unauthorized access to computer systems. Each count carries a maximum five-year prison sentence. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement said Levin illegally gained internal access to websites of the state Division of Elections and the Lee County elections office, which together hold data on more than 12 million Florida voters. FDLE said that after Levin gained access...

One man could cause a budget crisis in New Jersey — by moving out of the state. Billionaire David Tepper has moved from New Jersey to Florida, and the loss of his income tax could leave a $140 million hole. The 58-year-old founder of the hedge fund Appaloosa Management — who Forbes estimates is worth $11.4 billion — registered to vote in Florida in October, listing a Miami Beach condo as his permanent address, and he filed a court document in December declaring himself a resident of the tax-friendly state. He also opened a branch of ­Appaloosa in South Beach,...

Rules changes to the Republican National Convention could happen as soon as two weeks from now. The Republican National Committee is gathering in Hollywood, Florida, for its spring meeting later this month. This quarterly gathering includes a, Contest Committee meeting, Debates Committee meeting, and Standing Committee meeting on the rules. This is the last time RNC members will gather before the party’s convention in Cleveland later in July. Ross Little Jr., a Republican National Committeeman from Louisiana and Convention Rules Committee member, told Fox News Channel’s Gretchen Carlson Thursday that “small tweaks” to the convention rules could happen at the...