Gun Rights News Roundup

Articles, news stories, and op-eds of interest to gun owners:

Columnist Kurt Hoffman discusses the Brady agenda:

For readers who have long followed the gun rights issue, today's article might not be news--it is, after all, mostly about a bill that was introduced in the U.S. Senate 15 years ago. For folks new to the debate, though, I hope to shed an instructive light on just where these "reasonable gun laws" are headed, if groups like the Brady Campaign have their way.

Yesterday, in writing about gun control groups' impatience with what they view as foot-dragging in regard to pursuit of new, more restrictive gun laws, I quoted Brady Campaign president Paul Helmke:

The president should make it clear that efforts to disrupt trafficking in illegal guns and stockpiling of private arsenals are not a threat to law-abiding gun owners.

As I pointed out yesterday, Helmke's mention of "stockpiling private arsenals" prompted me to wonder if the Brady Campaign is now advocating limits on the total number of firearms and/or the amount of ammunition a citizen may own. That, in turn, reminded me that such limits would not be a new objective for the Brady Campaign.

Enter S. 1878 (from the 103rd Congressional session), the "Gun Violence Prevention Act of 1994," sometimes referred to colloquially as the "Brady Act II." ...

[North Carolina] Gun sales up, ammo supplies low:

Besides being the President of the United States, Barack Obama is also being dubbed by some the gun salesman of the year. That's because since elected, gun sales have skyrocketed nationwide including here in Eastern Carolina. WITN headed to one firearm store in Jamesville in Martin County where sales have jumped 70% since Obama took office.

Store managers say sales are good at Mackey's in Jamesville, which bills itself as one of the largest firearm shops in the world. Since President Barack Obama took office, store managers tell us their customers are buying everything they can, in fear gun laws could change.

Store manager Charles Hayes says "Like when it snows down here, everybody buys out the grocery store and it really doesn't make a lot of sense, same with guns. They thought their rights were going to be infringed and so they keep saying before my rights go away, I want to buy a handgun." ...

Howard Nemerov asks: Does Violence Policy Center represent the people (Part II)?:

... Two people perform most of VPC’s public outreach: Executive Director Josh Sugarman and Legislative Director Kristen Rand. Between 2003 and 2007, as revenues decreased 49.9%, both Sugarman’s and Rand’s salaries increased 5.9%. But because revenues decreased, these two top earners––each of whom earned $132,894 in salary and $3,987 in benefits in 2007––went from 15.5% of total revenue in 2003 to 32.7% in 2007, more than doubling their slice of the pie (111.3% increase). Having just two employees taking home about one-third of total revenue may not be a long-term success strategy for a normal business, but it works when normal profitability concerns don’t exist. To understand the financial circumstances of VPC, one must understand their definition of “public support,” which accounted for 91.8% of VPC’s total revenue between 2003 and 2007.And to understand VPC’s “public support,” one must understand the Joyce Foundation, because VPC’s primary “public donor” is the Joyce Foundation.

At the Joyce Foundation site, selecting “Gun Violence” on their “Grant List” page displays a roster of Who’s Who in gun control: e.g. Violence Policy Center, Mayors Fund to Advance New York City, Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence. Joyce Foundation spent $9,475,883 on gun control research between 2005 and 2007. By comparison, the entire gun rights industry contributed a total of $3,188,704 for the four years of the 2006 and 2008 election cycles. ...

Gunowners of America slams Sen. Orrin Hatch for protecting Arlen Specter:

Gun Owners of America today slammed Senator Orrin Hatch for meddling in a Pennsylvania election.

Senator Hatch this week assailed the candidacy of pro-gun former Representative Pat Toomey, claiming that Toomey could not get elected in Pennsylvania in a race against liberal Republican-turned-Democrat Arlen Specter.

"Orrin Hatch seems more interested in protecting his liberal anti-gun buddy Arlen Specter than he is in electing a real pro-gun conservative," said Tim Macy, Vice-Chairman of Gun Owners of America.

Hatch also predicted that the National Republican Senatorial Committee, of which he is vice chairman, will not support Toomey. ...

[Ohio] Lawmaker's bill would allow Alaska-style concealed carry (i.e., no permit needed, but permits available for out of state reciprocity / recognition purposes):

For the second time in two years, an area legislator is attempting to change the concealed and carry law via a new bill. State Rep. John Adams, R-Sidney, last week introduced House Bill 129 — a measure that seeks to change the current concealed and carry law. The proposal would not require residents who are legally allowed to carry, possess and purchase firearms to obtain a permit to do so. Other changes include stripping the stipulation requiring permit holders to carry the permit while carrying a firearms as well as informing approaching law enforcement officials that a person is carrying a concealed weapon.

"I introduced this last year in the General Assembly and it only had one committee hearing," Adams said. "We made some changes to it."

Adams said the most glaring change comes in the form of stripping the requirement of obtaining a permit to carry a concealed weapon. The change, Adams said, is aimed at protecting the rights of law-abiding citizens.

"You still have to go through the training and keep the paper that says you went through the training," Adams said. "All it does is eliminate the licensing aspect, but it does allow you to choose to go through that process. It's a hybrid — you can do either."

The bill, which Adams likened to the Alaska-style Carry, also repeals mandates for re-qualification. The proposal also would allow the weapons to be carried on college campuses. ...

[New York] Proposed infringements blasted:

State legislation that would require renewal of pistol permits every five years was blasted in Batavia Thursday as another bureaucratic restriction that would burden upstate New Yorkers and do nothing to cut down on crime.

"This is just another way to raise revenue for New York,'' state Sen. Michael Ranzenhofer said during a pre-noon news conference outside the old county courthouse at Main and Ellicott streets.

The Amherst Republican, whose district includes Genesee County, headed up the news conference aimed at rallying opposition to the renewal legislation that has already passed in the state Assembly and is due for consideration soon in the state Senate. [emphasis added]

Ranzenhofer said the bill, sponsored by downstate senators, represents an added tax on upstate sportsmen and could be voted on in the Senate in the next week or two. ...

Comment: Readers in New York may want to contact their elected servants to voice their displeasure at the prospect of yet more infringements to their fundamental human rights, and to urge said servants to oppose passage of further infringements to those rights.