Pro-Gun Punditry: Wednesday's Buckeye State Roundabout
By Chris Chumita
There are more stories pertaining to our gun rights in Ohio then we can possibly draw attention to with individual daily commentary. But they are all worthy of mention.
What follows is our review of headlines from around the state though a pro-gun rights lens.
From a shooting at a hospital to a possible hiatus on the D.C. gun ban, these articles should be a part of your required reading!
Click on the "Read More..." link below for several days of headlines accompanied by short, concise pro-gun analysis.
2/20/07: Mansfield, Ohio: Police: Shooting Injures Teen At Hospital Entrance
From the article:
A 14-year-old boy chased down a 15-year-old boy and shot him in the face at the entrance to a hospital's emergency room, where the victim immediately sought treatment, authorities said Monday.
Gun laws do NOT prevent crime. It is illegal for a 14-year-old to carry a gun and most hospitals are posted as gun-free zones. None of those laws prevented the 14-year-old thug from shooting another boy in a gun-free zone.
2/19/07: National: Classifying Your Firearms into Oblivion
From the article:
In 2003, Akins Group Inc. developed the Akins Accelerator, a bumpfire stock for a Ruger 10/22 that can produce about 650 rounds/minute. The company received classification letters from the BATFE agreeing that the stock was not a firearm and therefore unregulated.
Akins performed approximately 18 months of testing, built injection molds based on the results, and began offering the Accelerator to the public in December of 2006.
True to form, the BATFE suddenly decided that the plastic stock was in fact a machine gun. The considerable time, effort, and of course money Akins invested into the project has been rendered essentially useless.
This is not the first time that the BATFE reclassified items after they initially approved them. It makes you wonder if it is an attempt to bankrupt the firearm industry.
2/16/07: National: Assault Rifles For Hunters?
From the article:
I call them "assault" rifles, which may upset some people. Excuse me, maybe I'm a traditionalist, but I see no place for these weapons among our hunting fraternity. I'll go so far as to call them "terrorist" rifles. They tell me that some companies are producing assault rifles that are "tackdrivers."
It looks like Jim Zumbo would fit in really good with the fake pro-gun organization, the American Hunters and Shooter's Association.
2/16/07: Columbus, Ohio: WHAT A PISTOL
From the article:
His humorous nature encases a treasure trove of tales about a man who has been at Ohio State either as a student-athlete, professor or coach for all but seven of the past 55 years, the past eight as pistol coach.
It is nice to see a positive story on shooting and it is great to see a college that has a shooting team.
2006-2007: National: Am I an Enemy of the US Government?
From the article:
Prior to July 7, 2003, I would never have asked myself that question. Now I find myself reflecting back to that day when I ponder, "How in the world did this mess get started?".
I am a Federally licensed firearms manufacturer. As a responsible member of my industry I always worked closely with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). I had always encountered good people at the local Atlanta field office. Very professional, very prompt, and yes even courteous.
Len Savage is a true hero and patriot. He helped save an innocent man from being railroaded by the ATF and helped exposure the fact that the ATF did not have a documented procedure on how to testing firearms. As a result, he now may be considered an enemy of the US government.
2/15/07: National: CCRKBA CHALLENGES MAYORS TO ‘CLOSE GOVERNMENT GUN LOOPHOLE’
From the article:
The Washington Post this week revealed that between February 2002 and September 2005, the Federal Bureau of Investigation reported 160 missing firearms. That is in addition to the 352 missing guns the FBI reported lost or stolen in a similar audit in 2002. The newspaper reported that at least 18 of those guns later turned up in connection with criminal investigations, and several had been used in armed robberies.
“Bloomberg and his buddies have been railing about all of the illegal guns they want to take off the streets,” said CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb. “Here’s an opportunity for them to put their energy into an effort that will not infringe in the least on the individual citizen’s right to keep and bear arms.
Mayor Bloomberg, will you help close the "government gun loophole'" or are you to busy disarming the law-abiding?
2/14/07: National: Hunting The 2nd Amendment
From the article:
But here's an example of an issue where Giuliani is not only in direct conflict with the Constitution, he is apparently even blissfully ignorant of what the Bill of Rights say and why they say what they say.
In California last weekend, he boasted that New York City's outright and complete ban on the private possession of firearms was a key tool in his fight to reduce crime. Actually, he was a little disingenuous about that. The total ban on firearms in New York predated Giuliani's administration as mayor. He may have enforced the laws more vigorously. But Giuliani has embraced the New York model of Soviet-style gun confiscation in his campaign for the White House.
Also from the article:
"I used gun control as mayor," he said. "I understand the Second Amendment. I understand the right to bear arms," adding, those kinds of restrictions would have no effect on hunting.
Also from the article:
What Giuliani presided over in New York City was not "gun control" as we have come to think about it in America. It was gun banishment. If Giuliani believes the firearms laws of New York City are in line with the Second Amendment's guarantee of the right to bear arms, he is simply using Orwellian doublespeak.
It is obvious that Giuliani does not respect our constitutional rights. If the trend continues, the 2008 presidential election is going to be a no-win situation for gun owners since all of the main contenders are anti-gun.
2/7/07: Washington DC: Barry Aims For Gun-Ban Hiatus
From the article:
D.C. Council member Marion Barry yesterday introduced legislation that would suspend the District's 30-year ban on handguns, providing gun owners a 90-day period to register weapons they would then be allowed to legally own.
Also from the article:
Mr. Barry's bill, which only applies to pistols, would allow D.C. residents with no criminal record to register guns for 90 days from the law's enactment. After the 90-day period, current gun restrictions would be reinstated.
Are constitutional rights should not have a "90 Day Window" in which they can be used. Also, what about the people who move into the district on day 91?
