House Democrats Lack Traction: It is legislation that Rep. Carolyn McCarthy has worked to get passed since her husband was shot dead in 1993 by a deranged Long Island Rail Road passenger. The Mineola Democrat's bill to speed background checks for gun buyers had bipartisan support in both houses of Congress, and even had the blessing of the National Rifle Association. But moments before the final version would have passed the Senate in late September, the objection of a lone Republican senator put the bill on hold, where it remains Tuesday, six weeks later. http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/nation/ny-usdems1106,0,5976707.story --- Thompson Takes Pro-RKBA Stance In New Hampshire: ...Seeking to point out his differences with his fellow Republican presidential candidates, the former Tennessee senator and actor toured the Thompson Center Arms factory and spoke to more than 100 workers, some with tattoos on their necks. "You remind the people of the importance of their constitutional rights. I've been a strong supporter of the Second Amendment ever since I've been in politics; that's the way I've been yesterday, that's the way I am today and that's the way I'll be tomorrow," he said to cheers from the crowd, gathered in a concrete-floor warehouse. http://www.washingtontimes.com/article/20071106/NATION/111060024/1002 http://www.wmur.com/politics/14517365/detail.html --- Arkansas Lacks Castle Doctrine: ...Self-defense laws are called castle laws. They give a person the legal right to defend themselves with deadly force, regardless of where they are. Arkansas doesn't have castle laws leaving many self-defense cases for prosecutors and courts to decide...What this means is that if you're at home, and someone breaks in, if you feel like your life is in immediate danger, under Arkansas law you can use deadly force. Thanks to a new law, you can also use deadly force against an imminent threat in your yard, but that's only if they are attacking you... (This is not an article I would accept as legal advice.) http://www.todaysthv.com/news/news.aspx?storyid=55753 --- Virginia Grand Jury Clears Ice-Cream Parlor Manager: An ice-cream parlor manager who pursued and fatally shot an armed man who robbed the South Richmond store Sept. 6 will not stand trial. A Richmond grand jury yesterday declined to indict David Fielding, 21, in the shooting of Jerome Davis, 43, at the Baskin-Robbins store at 6940 Forest Hill Ave...Yesterday, the Richmond commonwealth's attorney's office presented evidence for a charge of reckless discharge of a firearm. The five-member panel concluded that Fielding's actions were a justifiable and excusable form of self-defense. At least four grand jurors must vote for an indictment. http://www.inrich.com/cva/ric/news.apx.-content-articles-RTD-2007-11-06-0143.html http://www.nbc12.com/news/state/11018166.html --- Illinois State Police Open Ranges To Hunters: The Illinois State Police will open their ranges to hunters so they can sight-in and test-fire their shotguns in a safe environment for the upcoming deer hunting season. Beginning Saturday, firing ranges in Elgin, Joliet, Pawnee, Effingham, DuQuoin, LaSalle and Pecatonica will be available to the public. "This annual program provides ISP and (Department of Natural Resources) firearm experts the opportunity to promote hunting safety in a controlled environment while ensuring the safe and appropriate use of shotguns," ISP Director Larry G. Trent said. http://www.thetimesonline.com/articles/2007/11/04/news/illiana/doc97011c9a1b00e2da86257388007ad31c.txt --- Canadian Teen Arrested For "Handgun" Offense: An Ottawa teen believes cops were too quick to pull the trigger on a mischief investigation that involved shaping his hand into a gun and yelling bang in a mock gunfight. Henrick Vierula told the Sun he doesn't deserve to be charged with multiple criminal offences after participating in a phenomena known as a "flash mob" at the Rideau Centre on Friday. http://ottsun.canoe.ca/News/OttawaAndRegion/2007/11/04/4629698-sun.html Related Item: http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Handgun --- From The Firearms Coalition: Tuesday November 6 is Election Day in many places around the country and GunVoters have an opportunity to make a dramatic impact on these elections. Voter turnout for off-year elections is traditionally very low and this year's are expected to continue this tradition. Low voter turnout means that each vote has more impact. GunVoters can make a big difference in any election, but during off-year elections like tomorrows, GunVoters could literally pick the winners. If you haven't been paying attention to elections in your area, now is your last chance to get up to speed and get out to the polls. We can't keep up with all of the candidates and elections being held around the country - even NRA's huge staff can't cover them all - so it's up to you to find out about your local elections. NRA's Political Victory Fund, www.NRAPVF.org, has information on many of the statewide and legislative races, but for local elections for City Council, County Commission, School Board, and such, you will need to find local grassroots groups or active election watchers for guidance. Most of you on this list are serious activists who follow election issues and candidates closely, but many of you only pay attention to federal or statewide elections and don't keep up with judicial and local candidates. If you're the expert, make sure everyone you know gets out to the polls and knows who to vote for. If you're not the expert, get busy on the internet or find your local expert and get out to the polls. This is a big opportunity to make a difference and set the tone for the elections of 2008. --- From AzCDL: Like it says in our brochure, AzCDL is an "all volunteer" organization. We need volunteers to help us at the Crossroads of the West gun show on November 30th through December 2nd at the Arizona State Fairgrounds in Phoenix: http://www.crossroadsgunshows.com/gunsched.htm If you can spare a few hours we would deeply appreciate your help - a significant number of members have joined at this gun show in prior years. Come on down and spend some time observing the other volunteers. When you feel ready, step on in. If proactive selling is not your forte, we still need volunteers to manage the table, help hand out magnets, flyers and brochures, and keep an eye on things. Volunteers who work the AzCDL table for a few hours will get into the gun show FREE! If your membership is coming up for renewal soon, stop on by the table and renew. Sustaining memberships get a FREE AzCDL T-Shirt. Not a member? Not a problem! You can join AzCDL at the gun show! Interested? Drop a line to president@AzCDL.org. These alerts are a project of the Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL), an all volunteer, non-profit, non-partisan grassroots organization. Join today! AzCDL - Protecting Your Freedom http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html Copyright © 2007 Arizona Citizens Defense League, Inc., all rights reserved. -- Stephen P. Wenger Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .