Free Republic

In a scenario that has recurred all over the nation, a restaurant in Georgia briefly put up a "NO GUNS" sign, became educated, and took it down.  This is the usual course of events that has occurred as antiquated gun laws have been reformed.   Georgia recently passed  a bill that reformed one of the last laws in the nation that forbid armed citizens from eating in restaurants that also serve alcohol.  Louisiana passed a similar reform shortly after, becoming the 50th state in the nation to have this freedom.   From wrdw.com in Augusta, Georgia: "I come up and see...

THIS IS FOR THE SOUTH AND MIDWEST (NORTHEAST, WEST, AND CALIFORNIA are in separate threads and updates are coming, see links below) This is an update of previous threads. There are numerous important House Primary Races! And places where we can WIN! PLEASE contribute! And if you can't contribute money ... the least we can do is go to their pages and give them a "like" or a tweet. All of these candidates are involved in primaries that are close (or could be close) against generally more moderate or liberal Republicans. All of these districts are winnable in November. Georgia:...

In a field that already has six candidates — Lt. Colonel Stephen Simpson, businessman Mike Collins, pastor Jody Hice, state Rep. Donna Sheldon and Brian Slowinski —, attendees of the Monroe 10th Congressional debate on Tuesday were introduced to a seventh: former U.S. Marine Mitchell Swan, who only recently entered a race that the others have been in for months. There wasn’t even standing room left for those who arrived late. Jody Hice, who hails from the area, held a barbeque behind the event’s location for his supporters. Politics and barbeque are an undeniably popular pairing in the Peach State,...

GeorgiaCarry.org  has  been suing the city of Carrollton, Georgia for nearly a year.  The City banned the carry of firearms on a miles long walking trail that circles the city.  The  trail has about 6 miles completed out of 16 planned miles. Now that Governor Deal has signed HB 60 into law, the city has lost even the pretence of a defense for its ordinance, no. 70-77. HB 60 made the Georgia strong preemption law stronger.  Here is a discussion of the preemption change at GeorgiaCarry.org: MORE PREEMPTION OF LOCAL GUN RESTRICTIONS ON PUBLIC PROPERTY: House Bill 60 restricts...

Undocumented immigrant students will gather at noon Monday at the University of Georgia Arch to protest a ban that bars them from the state’s top-tier universities. Demonstrators plan to burn high school diplomas and march to the office of UGA President Jere Morehead and demand that he make a statement in support of reversing the 2010 State Board of Regents policy that keeps undocumented immigrants out of institutions like UGA, said Eduardo Samaniego of the Georgia Dreamers Alliance, one of the groups organizing Monday’s protest. Samaniego said protestors want to speak directly to Morehead and will commit “civil disobedience” in...

Governor Deal signed Georgia's modest gun law reform today, 23 April, 2014.  Gun law reform has been stalled in Georgia for several years, leading to the measure that makes several modest changes in Georgia's law.   None of the changes are particularly radical.   All, with one possible  exception, have been adopted in other states before this law was passed.  From FoxNews.com: The bill makes several changes to state law. It allows those with a license to carry to bring a gun into a bar without restriction and into some government buildings that don't have certain security measures. It also allows...

ALPHARETTA, Ga. — In the crowded Georgia GOP Senate primary, Karen Handel could be hitting her stride at just the right time. The former Georgia secretary of State’s underfunded campaign has struggled to break out of the seven-way race, but a recent slight against her lack of a college degree from her top opponent has given her a new and salient opening. Boosted by an endorsement from former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and missteps from her male opponents, Handel may have hit a sweet spot with less than a month to go before the May 20 primary to succeed retiring...

Earnest 'Barry' Elliot 3/11/1955 - 4/12/2014

If you’re hoping to escape from big city crime, look elsewhere. These places actually defy the stereotype of smaller cities being safer. When you see small towns on TV and in movies, they’re almost always idyllic places where the American dream is thriving and neighbors all know each other. That, and unless you’re watching a whodunnit, no one’s ever the victim of a crime. In reality, small cities are surprisingly similar to all the others, meaning that there are good ones and bad. While the Movoto Real Estate Blog has been writing lately about America’s safest places, we thought we’d...

HB60, as the bill finally came to be know after a tortuous trip through the Georgia Legislature, finally passed the house today 112 to 58, and now awaits action from Governor Deal.  The Governor has this to say, on his reelection website: "As governor, Deal has signed every pro-gun rights bill to reach his desk."   He makes the promise that he will continue to do the same.  From georgieacarry.org, he has these options: A) He may sign the bill and it becomes law on July 1, 2014 B) He may veto the bill and send it back to the...

Daniel Defense is supporting efforts to repeal the ban on suppressors for hunting in the state of Georgia. To this end, they have developed a pre-composed email that will be sent to your local Representative and Senator as well as members of the Game, Fish, and Parks Committee. Georgia is currently the number two state in the number of suppressors registered under the National Firearms Act. If Senate Bill 93 is passed, Georgia will become the 32nd that allows suppressors for hunting. The link to the email is here.

Georgia Republican Congressman Paul Broun, whose 10th District seat includes much of the Athens area, has a considerable lead in the crowded GOP field seeking their party’s nomination to run for the U.S. Senate, according to a recent survey by left-leaning Public Policy Polling. The survey, commissioned by progressive advocacy group Better Georgia, also shows Broun in a dead heat with Michelle Nunn, Democratic frontrunner for her party’s nomination to seek the Senate seat in the November general election. Broun’s numbers in that matchup are better than the rest of the GOP field. With primary balloting a little more than...

Burned Georgia Tech student dies from injuries The Georgia Tech graduate student burned over 90 percent of his body last month died Thursday, the Institute said. Saamer Akhshabi was burned in a Feb. 4 explosion inside his apartment, where investigators found a suspected Molotov cocktail and several plastic bottles filled with gasoline and kerosene. Akhshabi, 26, was transported in critical condition to Grady Memorial Hospital, where he died early Thursday, Georgia Tech shared with the campus. "We have worked closely with other law enforcement agencies during the investigation of this tragic incident," Robert Connolly, interim police chief for Georgia Tech,...

Use of Silencers is encouraged in Europe Photo Courtesy Gun World Gun mufflers, also known as suppressors or silencers, have been approved for hunting in Georgia by the Senate. The bill passed the senate 43-10.  SB 93 will be considered by the house next.  A BILL to be entitled an Act to amend Part 1 of Article 1 of Chapter 3 of Title 27 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to general provisions regarding hunting, so as to authorize the use of suppressors on hunting firearms under certain circumstances; to provide for suspension of hunting privileges for...

They offered more insight Monday. #According to Flowery Branch Police Chief David Spillers, Homer resident Dustin Cody Holcombe and a female were walking toward their car that morning when they were “confronted” by Battle. #“Battle was armed with a handgun pointing it at Holcombe and (the female) and talking in a threatening manner,” Spillers said in a news release. “Holcombe retrieved a firearm from his vehicle and stated that in shooting Battle it was his intention to defend himself and (the female).” #Spillers offered no further theories on what might have been said between Battle and Holcombe, or anything else...

Last year, second amendment supporters struggled to push an omnibus gun reform bill in the Georgia legislature.  They struggled.  There were conflicts between groups that claimed similar aims.   The bill stalled and ran out of time in the Senate. This year, a very similar bill, HB 875, has sailed through the house committee and has passed the House by a more than two to one margin.    Here is a list of who voted for or against the bill.  It has been assigned to the Judiciary Non-Civil Committee, the same committee it was assigned to last year.  The members of...

When a DeKalb County woman returned home early Tuesday to find two teenagers in her home, she knew she needed to protect herself. She grabbed her gun. The woman, who asked not to be identified, told Channel 2 Action News she walked into her Tucker home as one teen ran out the back door and the other tackled her to the ground.

Rep. Paul Broun has landed the first endorsement from a national tea party group in the crowded Georgia GOP Senate primary, with the nascent Madison Project set to back his candidacy Tuesday. In its endorsement, which was shared early with Post Politics, the group says Broun has been the House's fiercest conservative, bar none. "...few come to the ankles of Paul Broun in terms of a proven commitment to constitutional governance," the group will say in a release. "It is not an exaggeration to say that Congressman Paul Broun has sustained the most conservative voting record over the longest period...

Feds deny requests from 3 states to require proof-of-citizenship on voter registration forms WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — The U.S. Election Assistance Commission found Friday that heightened proof-of-citizenship requirements likely would hinder eligible citizens from voting in federal elections, handing down a ruling that denied requests from Kansas, Arizona and Georgia to modify the registration form for their residents. The decision came just hours before a court-imposed deadline in a lawsuit filed in federal court by Kansas and Arizona that seeks to force the commission to modify state-specific requirements for registering to vote in those states. Georgia, which has a similar...

Georgia's Public Safety and Homeland Security committee has passed HB 875,  a reform of the state's weapon laws.    The bill has been characterized by wabe.org as removing restrictions on the legal carry of guns in "bars, churches, and some government buildings."   College students who have a permit to carry a weapon, and who violate the ban on carrying on campus, would have the penalty for doing so reduced to a maximum fine of $100.  From wabe.org: The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Rick Jasperse, R-Jasper, said college students have Second Amendment rights, too. However, the bill reforms Georgia weapons law...