comments in () by Stephen P. Wenger
Who's Afraid of the NRA?: In politics, conventional wisdom can be slow
to die, even when the so-called wisdom is neither true nor wise. So I
was reminded on a recent visit to Capitol Hill, when I asked several
lawmakers and senior members of their staffs to explain the Democrats'
timidity about standing up to the National Rifle Association by
pressing needed measures to curb gun violence. House Speaker Nancy
Pelosi and President Obama tossed cold water a few weeks back on
Attorney General Eric Holder's well-founded enthusiasm for reviving
the assault weapons ban that Congress and the Bush White House let
expire in 2004. I was struck by a common thread in the responses I
heard: Enactment of the original 1994 assault weapons ban cost
Democrats control of Congress…
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/09/opinion/09sat4.html?_r=3&ref=opinion
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Tenth Amendment Smokescreen: Several states have sanctimoniously
passed resolutions that are worthless trash demanding nothing designed
to placate a half-asleep public. They mean nothing, have no effect in
law, the spineless "servants" who introduce them know this, and act
just so they can say, Oh what a good boy am I. Let one, just one,
introduce such a bill with backbone and teeth, that truly repulses
federal government intrusions and attacks on the 10th Amendment, and
I'll change my tune. I guess that would be Montana, which has enacted
a 10th-Amendment-based statute called the Montana Firearms Freedom
Act. A nice rumor sheet about the bill has blazed across the web. My
first hand details on the bill are posted below… (Alan shares some
interesting insights into the planned court battle over the Montana
law, which is serving as a model for a few other states. This is item
five on the linked page.)
http://www.gunlaws.com/Page9Folder/PageNine-64.htm
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AK-47, Home-Defense Rifle: Investigators said blood DNA and forensic
evidence from a southwest Atlanta crime scene helped lead police to
the capture of Standard bar shooting suspect, Jonathon Redding. Police
said, two days after the murder at the Standard bar, Redding was shot
while trying to commit a home invasion. Officials said Redding came to
the Harmony Plaza One apartments on January 9 and attempted a home
invasion of Apt. 6, Building F. "All of a sudden we heard shooting. It
was about five shots," said witness Terry Williams. Bullet holes can
still be seen through the window at the apartment unit. Police said
Redding didn't realize that the home owner had an AK-47 of his [sic]
and shot back at Redding, hitting him in the arm and shoulder… (It's
unclear, due to an apparently missing word, if both shooters were
armed with AK-47 clones. Redding's wounds, however, are typical in
that they appear to be in the gun-side arm and shoulder. This is why
it's important to be able to access a firearm and shoot with either
hand.)
http://www.myfoxatlanta.com/dpp/news/local_news/Forensic_Evidence_Led_to_Redding_Arrest_050809
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With Friends Like These…: A 7-year-old boy who was allegedly shot in
the head by a couple who thought he and three other people were
trespassing on their property died Saturday, authorities said… Sheila
Muhs and her husband, Gayle Muhs, both 45, were charged with
second-degree felony counts of aggravated assault in the shootings
Thursday. They were being held at Liberty County Jail with bail set at
$25,000 each and had not yet retained an attorney, Bishop said… Bishop
said the district attorney could upgrade the charges to murder on
Monday, but investigators were "still trying to get the circumstances
behind the incident." …Bishop said the area includes a dirt road,
trees and overgrown brush and that it wasn't uncommon for people to go
off-roading there. The Houston Chronicle reported that a sign in front
of the suspects' home reads: "Trespassers will be shot. Survivers will
be reshot!! Smile I will." …
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30650051/
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Hawaii May Ban Pocket Knives: Hawaii, the island paradise that has
long been a haven for tyrannical government denial of civil rights,
with virtual bans on the Second Amendment, has introduced a bill to
ban pocket knives of any type. Knives are theoretically protected
under the Second Amendment, whose careful wording protects "arms" and
not just firearms. No criminal activity or intent is required. Mere
possession of the private property is all that's needed, if the bill
passes… (According to the 2006 edition of David Wong's Knife Laws of
the Fifty States [http://www.knifelawsonline.com/knifehome/], open and
concealed carry of folding knives and fixed-blade knives, with the
exception of dirks and daggers, are both currently legal in Hawaii.
Possession of switchblades and butterfly [balisong] knives is
currently banned.)
http://www.gunlaws.com/PageNineIndex.htm
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Germany to Ban Paintball: The German government is planning to ban
paintball and laser shooting games in reaction to the recent school
massacre in which 15 people died. Under legislation agreed by the
ruling coalition of the chancellor, Angela Merkel, using air rifles
to shoot paint-filled pellets at opponents is likely to be made
illegal, and would be punishable with fines of up to €5,000 (£4,480)…
The government has found itself under pressure to tighten gun laws in
Germany in what has become one of the main issues before a general
election in September. "This so-called game plays down violence,
leading to the danger that people have fewer inhibitions about
shooting each other," said Dieter Wiefelsputz, of the Social
Democrats… (The gist of this was in an earlier linked article about
the forthcoming firearm restrictions but, since two different list
members sent me links to this article, some list members may not have
taken note of it.)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/may/08/germany-paintball-school-massacre
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