Free Republic

Public-opinion polls about “universal background checks” for gun sales show widespread support. While President Obama and Mayor Bloomberg talk about “gun sales,” the actual legislation moving through Congress aims to regulate far more than sales. It would turn almost every gun owner into a felon. The trick is that the language under consideration applies not only to sales but also to “transfers,” which are defined to include innocent activities such as letting your spouse borrow your gun for a few hours. Consider, for example, Senate bill S.649, which the Senate will soon take up for debate. The background-check portion of...

Tonight (4/5/2013) clever MSNBC Maddow was playing clips of NRA Wayne Wayne LaPierre responding to the question: ‘What is wrong with these different proposed gun laws like background checks and magazine sizes?’ (clip of Megan Kelly question ) with ‘Because criminals won’t follow them only law abiding citizens will’(LaPierre response) .Now I could easily come up with arguments pros/cons of using that as a general guideline for rejecting laws. But then Maddow throws in her punch line : ”No one else but the NRA uses that argument against laws to be passed, that we shouldn’t pass laws that won’t be...

In response to the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, lawmakers in Indiana are looking to pass a bill that would require at least one teacher, principal or staff member to carry a firearm in every school in the state. Proponents of Senate Bill 1 argue that having armed personnel in schools would help to keep students and teachers safe, providing both a deterrent and a line of defense against a deranged gunman — an approach to school security that is fully endorsed by the National Rifle Association’s National School Shield Program. “I’ve been approached by...

The lamestream media told you: It's only reasonable, and studies show the overwhelming majority of Americans support universal background checks. We're not talking about registering guns. The Uninvited Ombudsman notes however that: How soon we forget. When the NICS computer was built and turned on by attorney general Janet Reno, in compliance with the Brady bill in 1994, she announced that the system not only would not erase records immediately after a gun-buyer background check as required by law, it could NOT erase records at all. She said it with a straight face, to Congress. The Justice Dept. under Bill...

Despite a major push from the White House, more states have cut back on gun regulations rather than pass gun-control reforms in the wake of the mass shootings in Newtown, Conn., The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.

In the coming days, CBS’s 60 Minutes is going to air an interview with parents who lost a child in the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT. One of the issues that cropped up during the discussion is Connecticut’s recent decision to ban standard (‘high’) capacity magazines that hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition. “The legislature has decided to limit the size of magazines to ten rounds in Connecticut,” said Television Journalist Scott Pelley to the group, “The gunman at Sandy Hook was using magazines holding 30 rounds; now, I’ve heard the argument made that...

Dear friends, I am sure that you saw the Drudge Report today and other news outlets which stated that Connecticut's new gun laws have passed and will be signed by Gov. Malloy this afternoon. My dear friends, this is only the beginning of such a law... that there... you can bank on! My dear friends, this is only the beginning of such a law... that there... you can bank on! Here in Connecticut whatever the progressive Left wants they are going to get. They TOTALLY dominate the state House and Senate and Dannel P. Malloy our Gov. is an exact...

Individuals 55 and older would lose their right to keep and bear arms under a provision that’s expected to be included as part of a comprehensive United Nations Global Arms Trade Treaty. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon spoke about the impetus behind the controversial measure at press conference over the weekend in New York City, the site of the final negotiations between the 193 Member States. “Regulating the international transfers of both weapons and ammunition is a key component of a robust arms trade treaty, as is limiting civilian access to small arms and munitions,” said Ban Ki-moon. “There’s an...

Well, the title says it all, are Missouri bureaucrats handing over gun owner information to the federal government? The answer is that it’s difficult to say at this point what’s going on. Although, to paraphrase Bill Shakespeare, ‘There is something rotten in The Show Me State.’ To explicate, on Tuesday, concerned lawmakers in the state senate subpoenaed records from the Missouri Department of Revenue, requesting all documents “between the Department of Revenue and any federal agency, including but not limited to, the Department of Homeland Security or FEMA, regarding changes in procedures for the issuance of Missouri driver’s license or...

In what might be music to the ears of those who support tougher gun laws, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced on Thursday that universal background checks will be included as part of the baseline gun control bill that the Senate will debate next month. “Later tonight, I will start the process of bringing a bill to reduce gun violence to the Senate floor,” Reid said in a statement. “This bill will include the provisions on background checks, school safety and gun trafficking reported by the Judiciary Committee.” “I hope negotiations will continue over the upcoming break to reach a...

DENVER — Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper signed into law Wednesday three sweeping gun-control measures that put the Western state at the forefront of a national movement to restrict firearms in the wake of two mass shootings. The Democratic governor signed the bills in his office surrounded by Democratic legislators despite a weeks-long campaign waged by gun-rights advocates and Republicans urging him to veto the legislation. Also in attendance was Jane Dougherty, whose sister was killed in the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. in December 2012. The bills, taking effect July 1, mandate background checks for all...

Magpul Industries, an Erie, Colorado, based manufacturer of firearms accessories, is moving out of the state following the passage of new gun-control laws - and taking hundreds of jobs and millions of dollars of commerce with it.Magpul's Chief Operating Office, Doug Smith told the Denver Post:"Our moving efforts are underway. It's going to be a phased approach, and until the move is complete, we're going to continue manufacturing magazines in Colorado."Within the next 30-days we will manufacture our first magazine outside the state of Colorado."Colorado Governor, John Hickenlooper signed three new gun bills into law today which requires background checks for private and...

An Albertville, Alabama homeowner shot and killed a burglar shortly before 9:00 p.m. on Tuesday, March 12. The homeowner fired one shot from a shotgun, killing the intruder who had broken in his front door, and then called 911. When the Albertville Police arrived on the scene, they found 41-year-old Jamison Lynn Lacey deceased. The local NBC affiliate reports that “the homeowner had been having problems with someone burglarizing his rental home.” So he waited in the rental house. And when the burglar, Lacey, returned, he parked his pickup truck in the driveway of the house and broke in the...

The recent cultural madness surrounding guns in America offers a chilling example of the selective outrage and cynical manipulation employed by the cultural elites of our country. Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qISmi78Y86A The New American 12 March 2013

More gun laws = fewer deaths, 50-state study says By By LINDSEY TANNER, AP Medical Writer – 14 hours ago CHICAGO (AP) — States with the most gun control laws have the fewest gun-related deaths, according to a study that suggests sheer quantity of measures might make a difference. But the research leaves many questions unanswered and won't settle the debate over how policymakers should respond to recent high-profile acts of gun violence. In the dozen or so states with the most gun control-related laws, far fewer people were shot to death or killed themselves with guns than in the...

The study found that a higher number of firearm laws in a state is associated with a lower rate of firearm fatalities in the state, overall and for suicides and homicides individually. However the study could not determine cause-and-effect relationships because of limitations inherent in the study design. States with more intensive regulation of gun ownership, sales, and storage tended to have lower rates of gun-related fatalities, researchers said. With state-level gun laws from 2007 to 2010 rated on a "legislative strength" scale, states in the top quartile had gun-related fatality rates more than 40% lower than states in the...

An Alabama city is considering an ordinance that would allow law enforcement to disarm citizens who appear to be acting “unruly” during a natural disaster or statewide crisis. Guntersville Mayor Leigh Dollar spoke to local news affiliate ABC 31 about the impetus behind what’s been described as the ‘emergency powers resolution.’ “We are not trying to infringe upon anyone constitutional rights whatsoever. It’s just to protect the workers working out there in a disaster,” Dollar said. In April of 2011, the city was hit by tornadoes causing lawmakers to rethink the way in which power is delegated during a state...

Protesters from across the state of Colorado scaled the steps up to the capitol building in Denver, rallying against the proposed gun control measures legislators will be voting on later this year. It was called the Denver Day of Resistance. An estimated 400 to 500 people made it to the rally, and passers-by showed their support by honking regularly as they drove past the crowd. There was no counter-protest, there was no conflict with the police, just a few hundred people cheering, singing, praying and showing their support for gun rights. It was one “hallelujah” short of preaching to the...

The current push toward gun control is being presented in a particularly dangerous and dishonest manner. It is being framed in terms of mental health and packaged in a way that almost guarantees victory for the advocates of control. The debating point proffered is, “How do we keep guns away from the mentally ill?” Thus far, President Obama’s answer has been vague and administrative enough to avoid the need for Congressional approval. (snip) State-controlled psychiatry is a terrifying weapon, especially when it is used to determine who has rights. Every individual should be able to be eccentric, different, and even...

Parents of a deaf child named Hunter were told by his Nebraska public preschool that they must change his name because he was in violation of the school district’s weapons policy. To sign his name, the three-year-old crosses his index and middle fingers then wags his hands. This sign apparently appeared to school officials to represent a gun. Grand Island Public Schools’ policy section 8470 — Weapons in Schools states: “Students are forbidden to knowingly and voluntarily possess, handle, transmit or use any instrument in school, on school grounds or at school functions that is a firearm, weapon, or looks...