VCDL's meeting schedule: http://www.vcdl.org/meetings.html
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Abbreviations used in VA-ALERT: http://www.vcdl.org/help/abbr.html
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1. Legislation being heard this week
2. Virginia gun owners to testify in Maryland?
3. A letter from an anti-gunner
4. Be careful - fake "reporter" at Lobby Day rally
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1. Legislation being heard this week
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This week some of the gun bills will be heard in two committees. If
you can come to these two meetings to show support, please do so.
On Tuesday the Senate Local Government will meet in Senate Room B at 2
PM.
The following bill will be heard:
SB 268, Senator Whipple, allows local government to ban guns on
property owned by that locality. This
bill would destroy preemption and would create a web of complicated
gun laws that would do nothing to
deter criminals, but would make it much harder for a law-abiding
citizen to be able to carry a handgun for
self-defense. Crimes are committed on government property and people
need to be able to protect
themselves wherever they may be. This bill targets law-abiding
citizens by making the mere possession of
a firearm on the wrong piece of real estate a criminal act. STRONGLY
OPPOSE.
-
On Thursday the House Militia, Police, and Public Safety subcommittee
#1 will probably meet in the 4th Floor West conference room at 5 PM.
I am awaiting confirmation and will let you know for sure as soon as I
hear.
The following bills will be probably be heard. Again, I will confirm
when I get the official word:
• HB 26 Concealed handgun permit; documentation and information
provided by applicant.
• HB 52 Concealed handgun permit; failure to produce upon demand of a
law-enforcement officer, penalty.
• HB 684 Concealed weapons; prohibits a person from carrying a
concealed butterfly knife.
• HB 871 Concealed handgun permit applications; right to ore tenus
hearing.
• HB 879 Firearms; locality may adopt an ordinance that prohibits
thereof in libraries.
• HB 995 Firearms; purchaser may present military identification card
or concealed handgun permit.
• HB 1151 Concealed weapons; prohibits a person from carrying a
concealed butterfly knife.
• HB 1209 Machine guns; Superintendent of VSP to be notified in
writing of change of address of registrant.
• HB 1217 Firearm safety education program; school boards to offer in
elementary grades.
• HB 1234 Criminal history record check; required to transfer firearm
from firearms show vendor.
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2. Virginia gun owners to testify in Maryland?
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Some Maryland legislators have been encouraging Virginia gun owners to
come to Maryland to testify on HB 52, a bill that would honor Virginia
CHPs in Maryland.
The bill is going to be heard at 1 PM on Tuesday, January 26th, in the
House Judiciary Committee, room 100, in Annapolis, MD. Get there
early to sign up to speak on HB 52.
If it is critical to you to protect yourself just as you can in states
like Tennessee, North Carolina, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and West
Virginia using your Virginia CHP, then let the Judiciary Committee
hear that. If you would come to Maryland more often and spend more
money there because you could carry, testify to that, too.
If you can't make it to testify in person, then you can email your
testimony to the bill's Patron, Delegate Michael Smigiel:
michael.smigiel@house.state.md.us
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3. A letter from an anti-gunner
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I received a letter on Saturday, which as I began to read it I quickly
realized it was from an anti-gunner. I stopped reading at that point
to see if this one followed all the same patterns I have seen over the
years.
First I looked to see if it was from New England. Yep, the postmark
was from New Jersey - no surprise there.
Next I looked to see if it had the writer's name and/or address.
Nope, no indication in the letter of either and no return address on
the envelope. It was simply signed "Can't Understand You." Also, par
for the course. The writers always tend to be cowardly - not wanting
to hear what I have to say in response to their accusations and
colorful language by not providing any kind of information on how to
contact them.
Here is the letter. Notice the typical paranoid and insulting tone of
the letter:
"It is only fitting that an organization like yours would fester in
the state that is home to the most infamous of all gun worshipping
organizations. [PVC: Hmmm, well Virginia has VCDL, GOA, NRA, and the
Firearms Coalition. I wonder which one this refers to?
] "Seriously, you people are all certifiably crazy. Keep your guns in
Virginia and don't bother the rest of us in the other forty-nine
states. You are pathetic and insecure. I guess your meaningless and
unfulfilling lives are made whole when you are packing a pistol.
[PVC: Nothing wrong with carrying a revolver, either!] Maybe it
makes you feel like real men. [PVC: Lots of women carry guns, too,
and their numbers are climbing rapidly.]
"Try not to shoot some innocent unarmed person with one of your
precious guns. [PVC: So it's OK to do so with a gun that I don't
really like?
] "Sincerely,
"Can't Understand You" [PVC: It should have been signed "I think you
are just like me and I hate and distrust myself."]
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4. Be careful - fake "reporter" at Lobby Day rally
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There was a person who claimed to be an independent reporter at the
anti-gun Lobby Day rally who was going around "interviewing" gun
owners. I heard that the person was saying offensive things to get a
reaction from gun owners (probably for propaganda purposes). She
later laid down with the other anti-gunners during the lie-in.
Don't give an interview to anyone you don't know with reasonable
certainty is a member of the real press. If you can't calmly handle
antagonistic questions, then don't do the interview, or refer them to
me.
Also, it was excellent that almost all of you stayed away from the
anti-gun rally. It really showed just what a tiny group they had,
something that press did not miss.
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VA-ALERT is a project of the Virginia Citizens Defense League, Inc.
(VCDL). VCDL is an all-volunteer, non-partisan grassroots organization
dedicated to defending the human rights of all Virginians. The Right to
Keep and Bear Arms is a fundamental human right.
VCDL web page: http://www.vcdl.org [http://www.vcdl.org/]