Obama Campaign Tries to Block NRA Ads: Barack Obama's presidential campaign has sent threatening letters to news agencies in Pennsylvania and Ohio to stop airing ads exposing his anti-gun record sponsored by the National Rifle Association Political Victory Fund (NRA-PVF). The kicker? NRA-PVF's Ohio's ads have not yet begun running. "Barack Obama and his campaign are terrified of the truth," declared Chris W. Cox, Chairman of NRA-PVF. "Sen. Obama's statements and support for restricting access to firearms, raising taxes on guns and ammunition and voting against the use of firearms for self-defense in the home are a matter of public record. NRA-PVF will make sure that everyone knows of Obama's abysmal record on guns and hunting..." http://www.nrapvf.org/news/Read.aspx?ID=11588&T=1 http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0908/Obama_seeks_to_take_down_NRA_ad.html?showall Related Commentary: http://hotair.com/archives/2008/09/25/ho-hum-obamas-lawyer-threatens-tv-stations-that-run-nra-ad/ --- Illinois Shooters Challenge Obama Claim: "One of the most blatant lies ever to come from a politician's mouth," is how the ISRA is characterizing a recent statement by U.S. Senator Barack Obama. Speaking in the latest issue of Field & Stream, Obama claims that Illinois sportsmen know him as an advocate for their rights. On the contrary, Obama's voting record while a state senator clearly indicates that he has nothing but contempt for the law-abiding firearm owner... "Nobody knows Obama's record on guns better than I do, and it's rotten to the core," said Pearson. "I've been involved in Illinois politics nearly as long as Obama has been alive. In that time, I have never encountered a legislator who was more hostile towards or more disinterested in sportsmen's rights than Barack Obama." http://www.isra.org/ http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=ind_focus.story&STORY=/www/story/09-24-2008/0004891533&EDATE=WED+Sep+24+2008,+09:24+AM --- Senate Democrats Support DC Infringements: Senate Democrats objected Thursday to an attempt by Kay Bailey Hutchinson, R-Texas, to take up House-passed legislation that would roll back District of Columbia gun laws. Majority Whip Richard J. Durbin , D-Ill., objected, calling the bill an attempt "take away the authority" of the city to write its own gun laws. Hutchinson said it is "the prerogative of Congress" to make laws affecting the District. [See Article I, Section 8, United States Constitution.] ...The senators who signed the letter include Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York and Dianne Feinstein of California, who had vowed to filibuster the measure after the House passed it 266-152 on Sept. 17... http://www.cqpolitics.com/wmspage.cfm?docID=cqmidday-000002961251 --- Ohio Cities Rescind Local Bans: Earlier this week Ohioans For Concealed Carry issued a cease and desist letter to the City of Independence in south-central Cuyahoga County, and on Tuesday afternoon we sent a request to the Village of Northfield in Summit County. Independence had a two year old park ban, and Northfield outlawed 'unconcealed' carrying of firearms, a first degree misdemeanor. These letters are just a few of many we've sent to communities all across Ohio this week seeking RC 9.68 compliance (local gun law repeals, park bans). On Wednesday night Ohioans For Concealed Carry president Jeff Garvas addressed the Northfield Council with respect to their aggressive open carry ban. We are pleased to announce that both cities appear to be moving in the right direction promptly. For the past two years we've been working to get Independence to repeal their ordinance and bring down their gun ban signs in parks and along State Route 21 near their historical society... http://www.ohioccw.org/content/view/4073/53/ --- Cleveland's Next: ... Attorney Ken Hanson has filed a motion to dismiss the charges on behalf of Damon, as well as asking for attorney fees and court costs for the willful violation of R.C. 9.68, the award of which is mandatory under the statute. It is anticipated that the ruling on this motion also will finally terminate Cleveland's attempts at local gun control. http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/node/6023 --- NYC Gun Charge Trumped by Federal Law: New York criminal defense law firm Tilem & Campbell (www.tilemandcampbell.com) announced today that all charges were dismissed against a client charged with possessing a loaded firearm in Bronx County, New York. The firm relied on the largely unknown federal travelers' defense which grants a defense to state gun charges for those traveling interstate with their firearms. The client was originally charged with a class "C" violent felony and was facing a mandatory minimum sentence of three and a half years in state prison and up to fifteen years in state prison if convicted; he was needless to say ecstatic with the outcome... (It's not clear why there is a discrepancy between the loaded-firearm charge and the federal stipulation that the firearm be unloaded unless the charge statement was false.) http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/new-york-law-firm-announces,555145.shtml --- Bloomberg "Honored" with Gun Color: The Wisconsin company that earned Mayor Bloomberg's ire by selling paint kits for rifles and handguns is firing back - by selling a bright-red shade called "Furious Mike." "As long as he keeps attacking, we'll keep fighting back," said Steve Lauer of Lauer Custom Weaponry, which sells kits in 145 colors. "He's just trying to put me out of business..." http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2008/09/24/2008-09-24_company_at_war_with_mike_bloomberg_names-2.html --- Neighbors Defend Texan Who Shot Burglar: The trial of a man accused of executing a teen who broke into his home with friends looking for snacks has many in this border city outraged. Not because of the crime, but because the man is facing a murder charge. In a state where the right to use deadly force to protect one's life and property is sacrosanct and frontier justice is still sometimes the norm - particularly on the violence-plagued Texas-Mexico border - prosecutors have to explain the decision to try Jose Luis Gonzalez. Even their future boss, the man who is running uncontested for Webb County district attorney in November, disagrees with the decision; he is Gonzalez's defense attorney... http://apnews.myway.com/article/20080925/D93E0OD00.html --- Detroit Police Lab Closed for Errors: The Police Department here shut down its crime laboratory on Thursday after an audit uncovered serious errors in numerous cases. The audit said sloppy work had probably resulted in wrongful convictions, and officials expect a wave of appeals in cases that the laboratory processed... David E. Balash, a retired State Police official who consults on firearms cases, said the audit's findings could lead to payouts of hundreds of millions of dollars in lawsuits... http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/26/us/26detroit.html?_r=1&ref=us&oref=slogin --- Lies, Damned lies and Statistics: I've noticed an interesting anti gun argument that (incorrectly) assumes gun owners are more likely to be killed by their own gun than to stop a criminal in their home, then assumes that such an (incorrect) statistic applies to each and every gun owner. This is one of the more flawed anti gun arguments I've heard, so I thought I would take a moment to discuss the flaws with such reasoning... (That should be "killed with their own guns," not "killed by their own guns.") http://www.learnaboutguns.com/2008/09/25/individuals-vs-statistics-anti-gun-groups-engage-in-flawed-profiling/ --- Finland Could Ban Privately Owned Handguns: Finland's Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen yesterday raised the prospect of radical reform of the country's gun laws in the wake of Tuesday's mass college shooting in which 11 people died, suggesting private handgun ownership should be banned. Declaring a day of national mourning, Mr Vanhanen said: "We have to tighten the law significantly ... handguns should no longer be used outside shooting ranges. "In terms of handguns that can easily be carried about, we have to think about whether they should be available for private people." The country has a long tradition of hunting and weapons-bearing, with about 1.6 million firearms in private hands - the third in the world behind the US and Yemen, studies say. But Tuesday's mass shooting, the second rampage in 10 months, has prompted renewed controversy about the role of guns in Finnish society... http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24399620-2703,00.html --- Why Do Finns Own So Many Guns?: ... They're hunters. The Finns have hunted and fished for food for thousands of years, with agriculture only catching up as a major food source in the 20th century. Today, hunting remains a popular weekend, or even after-work, activity. Finland is one of the largest European countries, and there are ample grounds for hunters. (Forests cover more than half of the country.) ... While Finns have a reputation for violence, firearms almost never enter the picture. Finland does have the highest murder rate in Western Europe, but those cases - commonly related to alcohol or domestic abuse - often involve knives rather than guns. http://www.slate.com/id/2200722/?GT1=38001 -- Stephen P. Wenger, KE7QBY Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .