Common Sense In Chicago: Commentary finally points out that the legal right to stand your ground, while new to the statutes of Florida, is nothing new in most of the US. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-0510150312oct16,0,2172805.column?coll=chi-ed_opinion_columnists-utl --- US Murder Rate Hits 40-Year Low: Note the different factors and distributions of of murder rates in the US. This is good reason to suspect anyone who claims to peg homicide rates to one single factor. http://www.washtimes.com/national/20051017-101154-3532r.htm --- Dolly Parton Reminisces: Dolly Parton recalls drawing an illegally concealed handgun on her first visit to New York City. http://www.southflorida.com/news/sfl-rgswnvconsc2oct17,0,4155342.story?coll=sfe-news-wire --- UN Seeks New Restrictions On Private Ownership Of Firearms: Few details about the actual treaty are furnished in this article about the joint efforts of the UN and the International Action Network on Small Arms to abolish private ownership of firearms. http://www.freemarketnews.com/WorldNews.asp?nid=1363 --- Brady Bunch Sues Again: The Brady Bunch has filed a lawsuit against a pawn shop in North Carolina for selling a shotgun that was eventually used to kill a deputy sheriff. http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=55110 --- Rule Five Reminder: A British Army officer forgot her holstered pistol and 13 blank cartridges in a public restroom during a military exercise. My CWP students receive training on what to do with their handguns when using restrooms. (Rule Five: Maintain control of your firearm.) http://news.scotsman.com/uk.cfm?id=2100002005 --- Maine College Respects RKBA: Article discusses the widespread use of firearms at one small liberal arts college. http://kennebecjournal.mainetoday.com/news/local/2059070.shtml --- Utah "Celebrity" To Sell Gun Store: Dell Schanze, a controversial Utah businessman who was recently involved in questionable self-defense incident, is selling his gun store to a more established competitor. http://www.sltrib.com/business/ci_3126583 --- Attention Arizonans: From the Arizona State Rifle & Pistol Association regarding the upcoming meeting of the Game & Fish Commission: Note: Agenda edited to items of more interest of members. Be sure to note items 10 and 11. Friday, October 21, 2005, Arizona Game and Fish Commission at the Embassy Suites 2333 E. Thomas Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85016. A public meeting of the Arizona Game and Fish Commission will be held on October 21, 2005, and as authorized by A.R.S. § 17-201(D), the Commission will discuss and may vote to take action on the following matters: Public Session begins immediately following the Executive Session, but no later than 9:00 a.m. 3. Presenter: Bob Broscheid, Habitat Branch Chief. An Update on Current Issues, Planning Efforts, and Proposed Projects on State and Federal Lands in Arizona and Other Matters Related Thereto. The Commission will be briefed on the latest developments relating to the implementation of land and resource management plans and projects on state and federal lands in Arizona and other matters related hereto. The update addresses decisions or activities since the September 2005 Commission meeting. The Commission may vote to take action on, or provide the Department direction on, items covered in the update. 8. Presenter: Mark Weise, Development Branch Chief. Maughan Petition to Close a Road on State Trust Land Approximately Ten Miles West of Springerville, Arizona. The Department will be asking the Commission to vote to approve a petition submitted by Rex Maughan to close a road on State Trust Land located approximately ten miles west of Springerville, Arizona 9. Presenter: Anthony Guiles, Legislative Liaison. State and Federal Legislation. The Commission will be briefed on the status of State and Federal legislation. The Commission may vote to take a position or provide direction to the Department for coordination, action, or proposed changes to legislation or other elective issues related to Department responsibilities. 10. Presenter: Marty Macurak, Assistant Director. Statewide Shooting Range Briefing. The Commission will be given an update of department activities related to shooting range support and development statewide. The update covers activities that have October 2005 Commission Agenda 3 occurred since the September 2005 commission meeting. The Commission may vote to take action on, or provide the department direction on, items covered in the update. 11. Presenter: Marty Macurak, Assistant Director. Briefing on operations options for the Ben Avery Clay Target Center and Ben Avery Shooting Range. The Commission will be provided with an assessment of operations options for the Ben Avery Shooting Facility main range and Clay Target Center. The options include a request for proposals for vendor operation; staff operation; or an Intergovernmental Agreement with the city of Phoenix to operate part or all of the range. The Commission may vote to take action on, or provide the department with direction on, options to operate all shooting activities at Ben Avery Shooting Range. 14. Call to the Public. Those persons wishing to speak should complete a speaker's card and present it to the host. Unless prior approval has been granted by the Chairman, comments will be limited to no more than three minutes. No discussion or action will be taken by the Commission. Any items requiring further discussion or action will be included on a future Commission meeting agenda. Lunch Break (at Time Certain 12:30 p.m.) The Afternoon Public Session begins immediately following the lunch break, but no later than 1:30 p.m. 17. Presenter: Richard Rico, Assistant Director, Special Services. Petition for Rule Change by Mr. Glen Phillips Requesting the Commission Amend R12-4-114 Issuance of Nonpermit-tags and Hunt Permit-tags. Mr. Glen Phillips has submitted a petition requesting the Commission amend R12-4-114 to exempt individuals over 70 years of age (with a Pioneer License) from the big game draw for all deer and elk hunts with greater than 250 permits with the result being they would automatically receive a tag if they apply for one of these hunts. The Commission may vote to approve or deny the petition and may provide the Department with further direction on this issue. 21. Director's and Chairman's Reports. The Director and the Chairman will report on recent Department and Commission activities. An update on the Director's current goals and objectives may be provided during the briefing. This item will be informational only and no action will be taken at this meeting. If further discussion is necessary, those items requiring discussion may be placed on a future Commission meeting agenda. 22. Commissioners' Reports. The Commissioners will report on their recent activities related to Game and Fish Commission duties and responsibilities. This item will be informational only and no action will be taken at this meeting. If further discussion is necessary, those items requiring discussion may be placed on a future Commission meeting agenda. October 2005 Commission Agenda 5 24. Future Agenda Items. The agenda may be revised and additional items may be added prior to the meeting as authorized by A.R.S. §38-431.02. In that event, an addendum to the agenda will be noticed and posted prior to the meeting at Department offices. Commission agenda items not noticed for a specific time may be taken out of order.October 2005 Commission Agenda 6 --- From CCRKBA: ACTION ALERT: Stop Frivolous Lawsuits Against Firearms Industry Now! The U.S. House of Representatives is scheduled to take up S.397, the Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, on Wednesday, October 19th. This bill that would prohibit lawsuits against manufacturers, distributors and dealers in firearms for unlawful acts committed by purchasers of those firearms. The purpose of these "nuisance" lawsuits is not to win a big award, but to bleed manufacturers and dealers dry with continuing legal costs, a "death of a thousand lawsuits." If this isn't stopped, within a few years there will be no gun manufacturers or dealers left. S.397 passed the U.S. Senate in July on a 61-35 vote. A similar bill in the House has more than 250 co-sponsors. Due to minor differences in the bill, it is important that the House act on the Senate version of the bill, S.397. If a different version passed in the House, the bill would have to go to a conference committee and would likely die this year. Passage of S.397 (as passed by the Senate) will send the bill directly to President Bush for his signature. Enactment of this bill is critical if the American gun industry is to remain competitive. Please call your U.S Representative at 202-225-3121 and ask him or her to vote in favor of S. 397 on Wednesday. --- From SAF: NEWS RELEASE SAF BLASTS LOUISIANA NEWSPAPER OVER OUTRAGEOUS POSITION ON CIVIL RIGHTS BELLEVUE, WA - The Baton Rouge Advocate newspaper's editorial board needs to take a deep breath and reconsider its willingness to abandon a civil right so easily, merely on the grounds that an "extraordinary situation" might arise, the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) said today in a sharply-worded letter to the newspaper. On Monday, the newspaper editorialized against a move to stop the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) from imposing a gun ban at an evacuation site outside Baker, LA. The ban was part of the rules FEMA set down for displaced Hurricane Katrina victims who are moving into the temporary housing facility. However, FEMA attorneys began re-evaluating the rules following inquiries by Gun Week, a newspaper owned by SAF. When SAF learned of the ban, it threatened legal action. "It seems rather easy for the newspaper to suggest that a civil right be surrendered in the interest of a little security," wrote SAF founder Alan Gottlieb. "I wonder under what so-called 'extraordinary situation' might the Advocate editors just as quickly argue that citizens give up their right to free speech, or a free press. "The right to keep and bear arms is an individual civil right," Gottlieb said, "protected by the U.S. Constitution and Louisiana's state constitution, and recognized as an individual right by the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans. Evidently, the Advocate editors stubbornly disagree, but the Bill of Rights is an all-or-nothing proposition not subject to the whims of a newspaper. "Neither SAF, nor any other gun rights organization, advocates unsafe or irresponsible use of firearms," Gottlieb stated. "But we will not stand by while a Washington D.C. bureaucracy, or any local government entity, presumes to have the authority to suspend a constitutional right. The New Orleans case, in which we were joined by the National Rifle Association, shows we're serious about protecting citizens against illegal search and seizure, and violations of due process. This isn't just about firearms, it's about civil rights, and if a newspaper doesn't understand that, the editors need a refresher course in Journalism. "Frankly," Gottlieb concluded, "I'm astonished that a newspaper, which owes its very existence to the First Amendment, is so quick to consider the Second Amendment expendable. It is disappointing that the press constantly fails to see the correlation. If you so easily dismiss one constitutional right, you might as well dismiss them all." --- From GOA: URGENT! URGENT! URGENT! Change In Status Of Gun Bill -- Immediate calls needed to your Representative Gun Owners of America E-Mail Alert 8001 Forbes Place, Suite 102, Springfield, VA 22151 Phone: 703-321-8585 / FAX: 703-321-8408 http://www.gunowners.org Monday, October 17, 2005 Last week, a bill containing a mandatory trigger lock requirement looked to be dormant on Capitol Hill. The prevailing wisdom was that the bill was dead for the year. However, given the mercurial nature of legislation and legislative bodies, one can never be certain of what is going to happen as long as Congress is in session. One event that can always shake up the legislative calendar is experiencing a leadership change -- such as when pro-gun House Majority Leader Tom DeLay stepped down from his position recently. What we do know at this point is that the bill is before the Rules Committee today, and will most likely reach the House floor sometime this week. The underlying bill would help protect the firearms industry from frivolous lawsuits brought by cities, municipalities, and radical anti-gun interest groups. Unfortunately, the bill was amended on the Senate floor in July by anti-gun Democrat Senator Herb Kohl (WI), who added language requiring licensed gun dealers to supply a trigger lock device with every handgun sold. House leadership is now being pressured to quickly adopt the Senate version of the bill instead of taking up its own bill, which contains no gun control. While it is imperative that the Congress pass legislation to protect the firearms industry, this bill should not be used as a vehicle for a misguided gun control proposal. The Kohl amendment would effectively impose a "gun tax" on all handgun purchases. Worse, the amendment leads gun owners to the verge of mandatory trigger lock usage, which would actually endanger lives by rendering self-defense firearms useless. While the amendment does not require that gun owners use trigger locks at this point, it is easy to see how trigger locks, like automobile seatbelts or motorcycle helmets, can quickly become compulsory. Mandatory trigger locks has long been part of the agenda of anti-gun zealots. Though masquerading as a modest step, the amendment will inevitably serve as a stepping-stone to more onerous legislation. The House bill, introduced by Florida Congressman Cliff Stearns, could potentially help protect the gun industry, but it would do so without saddling American gun owners with yet another gun control law. H.R. 800, the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, garnered well over 250 cosponsors and would pass the House easily if the leadership would bring up this bill rather than its Senate counterpart. In that case, the bill would either go to a joint House-Senate conference, where the different bills would be reconciled, or back to the Senate, forcing that chamber to either pass a clean bill or explain to voters their refusal to protect the beleaguered gun industry. ACTION: Please ask your Representative to urge the House leadership to take up H.R. 800, which contains no gun control proposals, rather than its Senate counterpart. As GOA is the only national gun lobby insisting on a completely clean bill, it would be very helpful if you would circulate this alert widely throughout the pro-gun community. You can visit the Gun Owners Legislative Action Center at http://www.gunowners.org/activism.htm to send your Representative a pre-written e-mail message such as the one below. Or, you can call your Representative toll-free at 877-762-8762. --- Pre-written letter --- Dear Representative: I am saddened that the House is on the verge of passing gun control in the name of protecting the gun industry. The House should ditch S. 397 and use its own bill, H.R. 800, instead. H.R. 800, the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, garnered well over 250 cosponsors and would pass the House easily if the leadership would bring up this bill rather than its Senate counterpart. But S. 397 is gun control pure and simple. The Kohl trigger lock amendment would effectively impose a "gun tax" on all handgun purchases. Worse, the amendment leads gun owners to the verge of mandatory trigger lock usage, which would actually endanger lives by rendering self-defense firearms useless. While the amendment does not require that gun owners use trigger locks at this point, it is easy to see how trigger locks, like automobile seatbelts or motorcycle helmets, can quickly become compulsory. Mandatory trigger locks has long been part of the agenda of anti-gun zealots. Though masquerading as a modest step, the amendment will inevitably serve as a stepping-stone to more onerous legislation. Please tell the Speaker and the Majority Leader of the House that S. 397 is unacceptable to gun owners. Instead, send H.R. 800 to the Senate or tack it on as an amendment to some "must pass" legislation. Sincerely, **************************** --- From The NRA-ILA: Congress to Vote Tomorrow on Bill (S. 397) to Protect Firearms Manufacturers Dear Stephen Wenger: This Wednesday, October 19, the U.S. House of Representatives will consider S.397 the "Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act," critical NRA-backed legislation to prevent the nation's firearms manufacturers from being held responsible for the acts of criminals. As you know, this legislation would protect makers and sellers of firearms and ammunition from lawsuits that blame them for the criminal or unlawful acts of others. The U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passed S. 397 in July, but that action was only the first step. It's critical that we put a stop to these meritless, reckless lawsuits once and for all. The firearms industry has already spent a quarter of a billion dollars defending itself from these lawsuits designed to bankrupt them. With a major trial in one of these cases scheduled in just a few weeks, it is imperative that the U.S. House of Representatives pass S. 397 this week and send it to the President for his signature. This is our last and best opportunity to pass this critical, common sense legislation to protect the nation's firearms industry from these reckless lawsuits! If the anti-gun lobby succeeds in court, it could drive the firearms industry into bankruptcy or force changes in the way firearms and ammunition are sold. Please immediately call your U.S. Representative at (202) 225-3121 and urge him/her to pass S. 397 (as passed by the Senate)! You can also find contact information for your elected officials by using the "Write Your Representatives" (www.capwiz.com/nra/dbq/officials/ ) tool at http://www.NRAILA.org . Please make your call today! Please help us finish the job once and for all by contacting your U.S. Representative in Washington and urging him/her to pass S. 397. Sincerely, NRA-ILA -- Stephen P. Wenger Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .