Free Republic

Kostas Moros@MorosKostasAmericans with CCW Permits Almost Never Commit Crime. When the landmark Bruen ruling was first published in June of 2022, politicians in the few remaining holdout states that did not issue concealed carry permits ("CCW permits") to regular citizens had a meltdown. New York Governor Kathy Hochul called it "outrageous", California Governor Gavin Newsom saidit was a "radical decision", and New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin described it as "bad constitutional law and even worse for public safety." Gun control groups were also apoplectic. Giffords claimed the ruling would would "escalate gun violence", "spur unlawful militia activity", "embolden those...

After its Facebook account was suspended, the popular American gun manufacturer Smith & Wesson thanked Elon Musk and X for supporting free speech amid what it called ongoing attacks against the First and Second Amendments. Andy Stone, a representative for Facebook's parent company, Meta, told Fox News Digital that the account jad been suspended in error and that it has since been restored. In a Friday post on X, however, Smith & Wesson emphasized the importance of Musk's stance on free speech, criticizing Meta for suspending their account after the platform flagged several of its posts for promoting the sale...

The Biden administration, with their takeover of the ATF, discontinued the publication of Firearms Commerce in the United States without announcement. Firearms Commerce of the United States was last published in May of 2021, shortly after the Biden Administration took residence in the White House. Many journalists and researchers, including myself, used the annual report as the basis of numerous articles about what was happening in the firearms industry. In January of 2023, at the SHOT SHOW in Las Vegas, I asked ATF representatives when the latest version of Firearms Commerce in the United States would be published. None had...

A federal judge denied a request to dismiss a gun charge against an illegal immigrant in Ohio who had been in the US for more than 15 years, rejecting the man’s argument that he has a right to bear arms. Carlos Serrano-Restrepo was charged earlier this year and was subsequently indicted for possession of a firearm by an alien unlawfully in the US, according to WSYX. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives began investigating and watching Serrano-Restrepo after he purchased at least 22 firearms, and claimed to be a US citizen on the firearms forms. Agents conducted a...

Ran across this on the Interwebs today. Migrants in Tyrol tried to pull the masks of festival-goers. Instead, they were chased down and beaten.Austria fights back! Krampus vs migrants (YouTube)Good to see those who fight for cherished traditions that are all too often cancelled for "security reasons" (i.e. fear of offending Muslims).It was only a few years ago the Austrian region of Tyrol wanted to cancel this festival altogether worried the grotesque Krampus masks would frighten immigrants.Austrian town reassures asylum-seekers over unusual Christmas tradition

In October, the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), the gun industry’s trade association, reported that Americans owned 4.9 million silencers as of July 2024 according to data provided by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).1 Compared to previous reporting, this updated total reflects an alarming surge in silencer sales: In the first six months of 2024 alone, Americans purchased and registered a staggering 1.4 million silencers.The data shows that between May 2021 and July 2024, a mere three-year span, Americans accumulated nearly as many silencers as were registered in the previous 87 years — since the National...

In a fascinating interview by Alarabia News on Youtube, Errol Musk, Elon Musk’s father, explains how Elon Musk moved from being a Democrat to being a fervent Trump supporter. Errol Musk lives in South Africa, where Elon was born and raised.In the video, Errol says that his son, Elon Musk, changed from a Democrat to a Trump supporter because he is rooted in reality. Errol says he lives in reality, not a leftist utopia. Errol says that in South Africa, he has to be armed all the time.“I live in a sort of real world. I’m not in America. I...

We try to be polite in talking about our political opponents, but sometimes it is impossible. Some of them are–there is no other way to put it–morons. Such as Senator Mazie Hirono, Democrat from Hawaii. I can’t find a good clip of her comments during Wednesday’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on bump stocks, but here is a report: Hirono began her opening remarks by referencing an earlier hearing in which the “entire panel” of witnesses agreed that “this nation is awash in guns.”She went on to stress the phrase “awash in guns” at least three more times, then said, “Meanwhile,...

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis just hinted at the possibility of open carry legislation coming before Florida lawmakers in the upcoming 2025 legislative session. In an interview with radio host Bob Rose on Nov. 4, Rose brought up his preference for open carry, the wearing or carrying of a firearm in a visible manner, over other potential legislative initiatives, specifically referencing Amendment 3 – a recently proposed ballot measure to legalize recreational marijuana that failed to pass. “I’d much rather have open carry than weed, but that’s just me, governor,” Rose said. In response, DeSantis hinted that open carry could indeed...

A federal judge in the Southern District of Illinois issued a permanent injunction Friday enjoining the state from enforcing the “assault weapons” ban contained in the Protect Illinois Communities Act (PICA). The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) was among the plaintiffs in the case. SAF founder Alan Gottlieb responded to the decision, calling Friday “a great day for gun rights.” The judge’s order allows 30 days before the injunction goes into force, giving the state that period of time in which to file an appeal.

Mandatory gun confiscation is a great idea — if Congress doesn’t act within the first hundred days of my administration, i will take executive action. 一 Kamala Harris

Mark Smith has written a thoughtful examination of how disarmament by the State of Israel enabled the most horrific massacre of Jews since World War II. At the 2024 Gun Rights Policy Conference in San Diego, Mark Smith was giving away copies of his latest book, Israel Disarmed: What the October 7 attack teaches Americans about the right to bear arms.The book exceeded my expectations. Mark is a Constitutional Scholar and a member of the United States Supreme Court bar. I expected a scholarly work and was not disappointed. I was pleasantly surprised to find a page-turning and exciting prologue...

In the weeks and months before Louisiana's Constitutional Carry law took effect on July 4th, critics proclaimed the new law would wreak havoc on the state; particularly in New Orleans, where officials tried to turn most of the French Quarter and downtown business district into a semi-gun-free zone where concealed carry licenses would still be required for folks to lawfully carry. Those plans haven't panned out, and for now, visitors and residents are still free to carry a concealed firearm without a state-issued permit, so long as they're legally allowed to own one. So has the new law led to...

The Sri Lankan government has issued a gun confiscation directive requiring all people with firearms and a permit to possess them for self-defense to turn the firearms, ammunition, and permits they possess to the military authorities. The firearms must be surrendered by November 7, 2024. From dailynews.lk: The Ministry of Defense has decided to temporarily take back all firearms and ammunition issued to civilians for self defense.According to the powers vested on the Defense Secretary by Section 6 (1) and 6 (2) of the 1916 Firearms Act No. 33, these firearms and ammunition issued to civilians for self defense are...

The City of Okeechobee, Florida adopted an illegal ordinance shortly before Hurricane Helene made landfall last week, which banned the sale of guns and ammunition and prohibited firearm possession in public by anyone other than law enforcement or members of the military. Donald C. Hagan, the Chief of the Okeechobee Police Department, signed the illegal ordinance, copies of which quickly rebounded around the internet. Chief Hagan did not immediately return calls or emails seeking his comments for this story.

On September 9, 2024, the Massachusetts Supreme Court held oral arguments in the cases of Commonwealth v Donnell. Another similar case in which a New Hampshire citizen worked in Massachusetts, Marquis, was consolidated with the Donnell case. Both cases involve New Hampshire citizens who had firearms in their automobiles in Massachusetts The case concerns whether Massachusetts can impose undue burdens on people from out of state who can legally carry weapons in their home state. It appears the court has received all the arguments in this case and will now consider them and file an opinion and order. It is...

This is openly totalitarian. If we don’t resist this, we’re done: “Just because you legally possess a gun in the sanctity of your locked home doesn't mean that we're not going to walk into that home and check to see if you're being responsible.” ... Kamala Harris literally said they will be doing a gun confiscation. What’s it going to take for everyone to realize these people are straight up communists and they are coming for our guns, our free speech and all our constitutional rights. Democrats are domestic terrorists.

Unearthed footage of Kamala reveals the extent of her anti-gun radicalism: “Just because you legally possess a gun in the sanctity of your locked home doesn't mean that we're not going to walk into that home and check to see if you're being responsible.” If she is elected, RIP 2A.

On August 30, 2024, Judge Iain D. Johnston of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois issued an order and opinion showing the ban on carrying concealed weapons on public transportation is unconstitutional. The ban is “as applied”. It is only applicable to the individuals before the court in this case. The Chicago Transit Authority is commonly referred to as the CTA. From the opinion and order: After an exhaustive review of the parties’ filings and the historical record,as required by Supreme Court precedent, the Court finds that Defendants failed to meet their burden to show...

The United States District Court for the Southern District of California (August 23, 2024) and the Supreme Judicial Court for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (August 27, 2024) reached opposite opinions on whether bladed weapons qualify as arms mentioned in the text of the Second Amendment. The Second Amendment reads: A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.In 2008, the Supreme Court examined the meaning of the words in the amendment. Heller found the meaning of “arms” to be the same at...