Posted on 10/29/2008 6:52:03 PM PDT by neverdem
WAYNE COUNTY - The individual right to keep and bear arms, and whether that right deserves restrictions, has caught John McCain and Barack Obama paradoxically fighting for gun control laws in the past. Today, they are cheerleaders of the Second Amendment, according to public statements.
Wayne County gun owners and the national gun lobbies, however, have mixed feelings - and some fears - on the day when either the Democrat or the Republican takes the White House. Will they take my guns, some of my guns, or no guns?
Peter Snyder, a life-long Republican and hunter from Lake Ariel, does not believe Obama will take his hunting rifles.
“I think if they do away with hunting in this country, they are going to do away with animal control,” said Snyder, of controlling the animal population. “I feel that hunting is a right, and I don’t think anyone is going to do away with hunting.”
McCain is jumping on the gun-bandwagon only to rally more voters, he said. Besides, he added: “The next president is going to have a lot of things to worry about other than gun control.”
Possible gun restrictions do indeed rattle the bones of others.
“Obama has some people saying that he is for the Second Amendment,” said Frank Golden, chairman of the county Republican committee. “I’m here to tell you he’s not.” Gun owners “are terrified and they should be” of an Obama presidency, said Golden. “He’s comin’ in to get them (guns), if he gets in” the White House.
McCain has not always been the love child of the National Rifle Association (NRA), like he is today. The Arizona senator has supported instant background checks of all buyers at gun shows, mandatory trigger locks, and sponsored successful legislation that placed restrictions on political advertisements by groups like the NRA.
He has supported pro-gun platforms, like opposing the 1994 semi-automatic assault weapons ban that restricted magazine capacity and banned the manufacturing of some these guns, among other measures.
But McCain did “entertain” supporting the 1994 ban, which was set to expire in 2004, during the 2000 Republican presidential primaries, according to Gun Owners of America (GOA).
GOA, a Second Amendment lobbying group, gave McCain an “F-” rating in 2006 for his gun positions. John Velleco, the GOA’s director of federal affairs, put it this way for gun-minded voters.
Troubling vs. disturbing
“(McCain’s) presidency would be troubling. Obama’s would be disturbing,” said Velleco. It appears McCain is supporting pro-gun initiatives lately, but is it a “true ideological shift” or political pandering, he asked.
“I am in no way out to make him ... a pro-gun hero,” he said. “When he ran for president in 2000, (McCain) made a wide turn to the left on the gun issue. I guess he figured George Bush had that issue locked.”
The Democratic presidential nominee, on the other hand, has a stronger record of regulating guns - mostly semi-automatic assault weapons and handguns - than his opponent, the record clearly shows.
Mike Jones owns Northeast Firearms, a sizable gun shop on Main Street in Honesdale, loaded with rifles, shotguns and handguns. An AK-47, once banned by the now-expired federal assault weapons law, hangs on one wall.
“I don’t want to be biased on this, but if he (Obama) gets in, we better worry,” said Jones, of the gun issue. He said Obama has yet to truly assure him that guns will be left alone in his administration.
“I would like to know if there is something to sway me,” said Jones. He said, however, that the Democrat’s record - to this point - speaks for itself. Obama has supported and voted for gun restrictions, early in his career as an Illinois state senator and most recently as a U.S. senator.
In a questionnaire sponsored by a Chicago political group, Obama, who was running for the U.S. Senate at the time, was asked if he supported “legislation to ban the manufacture, sale and possession of handguns?” He wrote: “While a complete ban on handguns is not politically practicable, I believe reasonable restrictions on the sale and possession of handguns are necessary to protect the public safety. In the Illinois Senate last year, I supported a package of bills to limit individual Illinoisans to purchasing one handgun a month.”
In 2004, he told the Chicago Tribune, “I am consistently on record and will continue to be on record as opposing concealed carry.”
Although, he has said “what works in Chicago may not work in Cheyenne,” Wyoming. Handguns are banned in Chicago.
He has also supported banning some semi-automatic weapons (he voted for Illinois legislation), renewing the federal assault weapons ban, mandating background checks for all buyers at gun shows, and limiting the sale of handgun ammunition, according to public statements and documents.
Synder said an assault weapon ban is not a legitimate concern for hunters.
“We don’t need assault weapons to go in and shoot a deer, or there would be nothing left,” he said. The Obama and McCain campaigns did not respond to a request for comment.
Fine line
Obama walks the fine line of the gun control movement - which heralds public safety - and the unrestrictive nature of the Second Amendment.
"I believe in the Second Amendment," he recently said in Ohio, the Associated Press reported. "I believe in people's lawful right to bear arms. I will not take your shotgun away. I will not take your rifle away. I won't take your handgun away."
When the Supreme Court ruled that the Washington D.C. handgun ban was unconstitutional - Obama supported the ban, McCain didn’t - Obama released a statement saying “if we can act responsibly, we can both protect the constitutional right to bear arms and keep our community ... safe.”
The National Rifle Association (NRA), however, calls Obama the “most anti-gun president in American History.” The powerful gun lobby published a website called gunbanobama.com. They now publicly support McCain. Velleco admitted that McCain’s gun position is hard to pin down. He compared McCain to a “moving target.” Jones said anything is possible when government officials put guns into their cross hairs.
“Everybody says, they’re not going to take our guns. They did it in Canada,” he said.
Canadian handgun ownership is mainly restricted to police, security guards, members of gun clubs or collectors, according to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
“I don’t like a ban on anything because once they start with something it’s only a matter of time,” said Jones. Neither McCain nor Obama owns a gun, according to the AP.
My father claimed to have killed a rooster with a Ma Deuce during WWII. (It was attacking his tank.) Single shot took the head clean off. I never met any witnesses to this, but I’ve seen and heard enough about his shooting to believe it. He did pretty much the same thing to a running jack rabbit with a .300 Savage. It wasn’t even his rifle.
Damn. I held that thing years ago and almost dropped the plastic for around $1200. Pet it for me tonight.
Thanks. I’m a gunstore owner/gunsmith and these elitist, $30,000 shotgun shootin’, latte lappers really piss me off. I despise them and their underhanded tactics. We are being assailed by fake bastards like this and those idiots at the “American Hunters & Shooters Association.” They are not 2nd Amendment supporters!
Just wait until next Wednesday if Obambi wins. There will be sales records broken, bad economy or not.
My first answer was nobody, but after reading your response, I must agree.
After WACO and the armed Government Thugs kidnapping that poor little Cuban boy and sending him back to live under Communism, I would put nothing past these wonderful “Progressives”.
I will pray that the people in this country aren't that stupid, but I will be prepared just in case they are.
Think AMMO
Your weapon is useless without it.
“Well, McCain is not perfect at a “C” rating, but compared to Obamao’s “F” rating he is darn near Charlton Heston.”
McCain probably isn’t as bad as Obama on this issue, but an NRA “C” rating is terrible. NRA gives an “A” to just about anyone, including those who vote for gun control, so long as the gun control is supported by NRA.
Obama won’t immediately ban guns, but a Democrat controlled Congress will try just about everything else to enact a defacto gun ban, including licensing, registration, ammunition taxes, gun-free (no safety) zones etc.
We musn’t forget that even under current law, a gun owner takes a risk whenever he/she drives past a government school with a firearm in the car. It wouldn’t take any change in federal law for a Hussein Obama administration to set up a few BATFE check points around government schools, and start making arrests.
What do they have? A database full of these “lifelong Republican” fools?
You’d need a fork lift to carry that cop. I just wish I had a picture of the two police officers I saw downtown. We are talking 6-700 pounds of LEO standing on four flat feet.
Good find!
They will not take our guns. Instead, the stealth way to deal the second amendment a death is to heavily tax ammunition (CA tried to do this several years ago by placing say a 50 cent per shell tax on each load).
Buy more ammo now while you can afford it.
October 10, 2008
Fellow Sportsman,
Hello, my name is Rich Pearson and I have been active in the firearm rights movement for over 40 years. For the past 15 years, I have served in the Illinois state capitol as the chief lobbyist for the Illinois State Rifle Association.
I lobbied Barack Obama extensively while he was an Illinois State Senator. As a result of that experience, I know Obama’s attitudes toward guns and gun owners better than anyone. The truth be told, in all my years in the Capitol I have never met a legislator who harbors more contempt for the law-abiding firearm owner than Barack Obama.
Although Obama claims to be an advocate for the 2nd Amendment, his voting record in the Illinois Senate paints a very different picture. While a state senator, Obama voted for a bill that would ban nearly every hunting rifle, shotgun and target rifle owned by Illinois citizens. That same bill would authorize the state police to raid homes of gun owners and forcibly confiscate banned guns. Obama supported a bill that would shut down law-abiding firearm manufacturers including Springfield Armory, Armalite, Rock River Arms and Les Baer. Obama also voted for a bill that would prohibit law-abiding citizens from purchasing more than one gun per month.
Without a doubt, Barack Obama has proven himself to be an enemy of the law abiding firearm owner. At the same time, Obama has proven himself to be a friend to the hardened criminal. While a state senator, Obama voted 4 times against legislation that would allow a homeowner to use a firearm in defense of home and family.
Does Barack Obama still sound to you like a “friend” of the law-abiding gun owner?
And speaking of friends, you can always tell a person by the company they keep. Obama counts among his friends the Rev. Michael Pfleger - a renegade Chicago priest who has openly called for the murder of gun shop owners and pro-gun legislators. Then there is his buddy Richard Daley, the mayor of Chicago who has declared that if it were up to him, nobody would be allowed to own a gun. And let’s not forget Obama’s pal George Soros - the guy who has pumped millions of dollars into the UN’s international effort to disarm law-abiding citizens.
Obama has shown that he is more than willing to use other people’s money to fund his campaign to take your guns away from you. While a board member of the leftist Joyce Foundation, Barack Obama wrote checks for tens of millions of dollars to extremist gun control organizations such as the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence and the Violence Policy Center.
Does Barack Obama still sound to you like a “friend” of the law-abiding gun owner?
420 E. Locust, P.O. Box 637, Chatsworth, IL 60921 Phone: (815) 635-3198 or (815) 635-3166 Fax: (815) 635-3723 Website: www.isra.org
Open Letter to Sportsmen:10/10/08:page 2
By now, I’m sure that many of you have received mailings from an organization called “American Hunters and Shooters Association(AHSA)” talking about what a swell fellow Obama is and how he honors the 2nd Amendment and how you will never have to worry about Obama coming to take your guns. Let me make it perfectly clear - everything the AHSA says about Obama is pure hogwash. The AHSA is headed by a group of left-wing elitists who subscribe to the British view of hunting and shooting. That is, a state of affairs where hunting and shooting are reserved for the wealthy upper-crust who can afford guided hunts on exclusive private reserves. The AHSA is not your friend, never will be.
In closing, I’d like to remind you that I’m a guy who has actually gone nose to nose with Obama on gun rights issues. The Obama I know cannot even begin to identify with this nation’s outdoor traditions. The Obama I know sees you, the law abiding gun owner, as nothing but a low-class lummox who is easily swayed by the flash of a smile and a ration of rosy rhetoric. The Obama I know is a stony-faced liar who has honed his skill at getting what he wants - so long as people are willing to give it to him.
That’s the Barack Obama I know.
Sincerely,
(original signed)
Richard A. Pearson
Executive Director
Illinois State Rifle Association
I have the original PDF FReep mail me if you want it.
Exactly. BTW, I hope business is good for you right now too.
Carlos Hathcock had some 1000+ yard kills with an M-2. "Pretty accurate," indeed.
Yes he did... But the one that was most amazing was the shot that cut the frame of the "mule" bicycle into two pieces, in an attempt to avoid having to kill a child being used as a "mule." It was after the child being used as a "mule" picked up one of the AK-47s he was transporting and shot back that Hathcock took him out.
Regards,
Raven6
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