From: Philip Van Cleave <philip@virginiasystems.com>Add to Contacts
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1. John Stewart's satirical take on BATFE's Operation Fast and Furious (video)
2. July 4th week - teach a friend to shoot week!
3. VCDL picnic on August 6 at the Pocahontas State Park in Chesterfield
4. Speaker for July 21st VCDL meeting in Fairfax
5. New laws taking effect July 1st
6. Reminder on loaded rifles/handguns while hunting on VA waterways
7. "Cars and Coffee Williamsburg" now Second Amendment unfriendly
8. Roanoke Times Editorial on new air gun law
9. Why have a gun? Nothing ever happens here!
10. Who needs a gun in Chicago?
11. Man wants to open a gun store in downtown Gastonia
12. Who needs a gun while pumping gas?
13. Obama weak on gun control
14. TSA now storming public places 8,000 times a year
15. Helmke to leave Brady Center
16. Wisconsin passes their first concealed carry permit law!
17. Remember the pharmacist Walgreens fired?
18. The flash mob attack -- how to defend?
19. Five ridiculous gun myths everyone believes (thanks to the movies)
20. Video of Fairfax Board of Supervisor hearing on pneumatic guns
21. Chicago Police Chief claims lack of gun control is racist (duct tape item)
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1. John Stewart's satirical take on BATFE's Operation Fast and Furious (video)
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Funny, but with some good points. Thanks to Brian Green for the link:
From thedailyshow.com: http://tinyurl.com/4yt53l2
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2. July 4th week - teach a friend to shoot week!
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Our own Executive member Patricia Webb, who is also the Virginia Coordinator for the Second Amendment Sisters, is starting an annual campaign for every July 4th week to "Teach a friend to shoot" week.
This is an excellent idea and a way to expand the ranks of gun owners significantly. Once exposed to the fun of shooting, your friends will be hooked for life! BBBWWAAAHAAHAAHAA! (Evil laugh for the benefit of the antis, who are recoiling in horror at the thought of this campaign.)
Here is Pat's thoughts - let's turn them into action!
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I am proposing a campaign to make July National Firearms Heritage Month and the first week of July "Teach A Friend To Shoot" week. The concept behind this is that July 4th is Independence Day and the birth of our country would have been impossible if the RKBA did not exist. This right is still important today to keep us safe as a Nation and to preserve our form of government and the unique liberties we enjoy as a nation of free men and women. Over the years I have found, as many of you have, that the best cure for fear of firearms is a day at the range. In addition, it is highly evident that college students and women in particular are a voting demographic who's knowledge of guns and the shooting sports is limited to what they see on TV, movies and the evening news. In addition, students are often influenced by teachers and professors who are rabidly against self defense. Not a flattering view at all.
If each of the grassroots RKBA organizations launches a program to promote this idea we could have a positive impact on the general public's view of gun owners. It would mean a coordinated effort in contacting gun stores, ranges and general memberships. The ranges and gun stores could offer promotions at their discretion and individuals could teach friends to shoot or introduce them to their favorite shooting sport by taking them to a match. Private ranges could have a "Welcome Day" where they invite the community in to see what shooting sports are all about or offer firearms safety courses, concealed carry courses, etc. It would be up to each range, store, or person exactly how to celebrate, but they should all be encouraged to report back about the events and the responses.
Individuals can and will play an instrumental role in the promotion of this by encouraging their local gun stores and clubs to participate and pointing out that it will mean increased sales and a greater voting base when new firearms laws are proposed. Education is always the key, in so many ways. Safety is paramount and a firearms safety course is the perfect place to start.
Public perception is our biggest friend and also our biggest enemy. This would offer a viable and inexpensive way to positively effect that perception.
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3. VCDL picnic on August 6 at the Pocahontas State Park in Chesterfield
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Mark your calendars!
To celebrate the Governor McDonnell's directive earlier this year to allow both open and concealed carry in State Parks, VCDL is having a picnic on Saturday, August 6, at the Pocahontas State Park in Chesterfield county from 11 AM to 2 PM.
And don't forget that State Forests will be allowing carry on July 7th!
We are planning some guest speakers, who will be announced at a later date.
The picnic is open to the public and is free (there is a $5 parking fee that the parks charge for each vehicle entering the park, with exceptions for military and the disabled). If you are planning on attending, please RSVP to:
picnics@vcdl.org
Use a subject line that say "Attending" followed by the number in your party, like this, "Attending 3"
If you can help with set up and tear down, please indicate so in your email to picnics@vcdl.org
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4. Speaker for July 21st VCDL meeting in Fairfax
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Tom Pike, Coach of the Nova Sharp Shooters and Mavericks Junior Air Rifle teams who testified at the recent Fairfax County Board of Supervisors hearing, will be the guest speaker at the July 21st VCDL membership meeting in Annandale.
After the hearing at the Fairfax County Government Center many VCDL members had questions for him about junior shooting. Tom will have a presentation on the state of junior rifle shooting in the northern Virginia area including the Potomac High School Rifle League and college scholarships for rifle shooting. He will also bring some junior shooters with their rifles and gear for you to see.
Let's show support for the future of the shooting sports and our right to keep and bear arms!
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5. New laws taking effect July 1st
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EM John Pierce emailed me this:
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From monachuslex.com: http://tinyurl.com/6a4frdm
New Virginia Gun Laws Take Effect July 1st
Posted on June 26, 2011 by John Pierce
While this has been a landmark year for gun rights across the country with Wisconsin passing a carry bill and Wyoming moving to constitutional carry, Virginia continues to lead the way by passing pro-gun bills at an astonishing rate. Lead by the tireless efforts of the Virginia Citizens Defense League, Virginia gun owners have much to look forward to on July 1st.
Shooting Air Guns Safely on Private Property
SB 757 allows someone on private property to be able to discharge an air gun (e.g. BB, Airsoft, or paintball) as long as they have permission from the property owner to do so and reasonable care is taken to ensure that the projectile does not cross the bounds of the property. Any local ordinances to the contrary, which many localities have, are preempted.
Adding a Firearm to the List of Items Protected From the Creditor Process
SB 839 amends Virginia's Homestead laws to add one firearm, not to exceed $3,000 in value, to the list of items that every householder shall be entitled to hold exempt from creditor process. This is an astonishingly important bill from a legal and public policy perspective because it recognizes that a firearm is an essential element of a citizens 'homestead', on par with the family bible.
Improvements to the Concealed Handgun Permit Issuance System
HB 1552 amends the language relating to the issuance of de facto concealed handgun permits. Current law states that if a court does not issue a permit or find that the applicant is disqualified, within 45 days of receipt of the application, the clerk is to certify the application and send it to the applicant. The certified application then serves as a de facto permit until the actual permit is issued or the applicant is found to be disqualified. This bill requires the clerk to mail or e-mail the certified application to the applicant within five business days of the expiration of the 45-day period.
Replacing a Lost or Stolen Handgun Carry Permit
HB 1856 requires the Circuit Court Clerk to replace a lost or stolen permit within ten days of getting a notarized statement of the loss for a fee of $5
Allowing Members of the Military to Use Pentagon Orders to Prove Residency
HB 1857 clarifies that a member of the military may provide permanent orders assigning him to the Pentagon for purposes of providing documentation of residency when purchasing a firearm from a licensed dealer.
Protection From Abuse of Preliminary Protective Orders
HB 1779 makes the prohibition on purchasing and transporting a firearm applicable to persons subject to preliminary protective orders only after a petition alleging abuse or neglect has been filed. Under current law, persons subject to a preliminary protective order are prohibited from purchasing or transporting a firearm regardless of any allegation which has the potential for significant abuse.
Other Due Process Improvements
HB 1699 clarifies the process by which a person acquitted of a crime by reason of insanity, adjudicated legally incompetent or mentally incapacitated, or involuntarily admitted or ordered to outpatient treatment may petition the courts for relief from disability.
HB 1411 provides that a person convicted of reckless handling of a firearm while hunting may lose their right to hunt and trap for a period of 1 to 5 years. Current law allows up to a lifetime hunting and trapping prohibition for a first conviction of reckless handling of a firearm while hunting.
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6. Reminder on loaded rifles/handguns while hunting on VA waterways
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Probably something we ought to fix, but for now, here it is:
From leg1.state.va.us: http://tinyurl.com/3dkouep
4VAC15-270-40. Shooting or carrying rifle or pistol over public inland waters.
It shall be unlawful to shoot a rifle or pistol at wild birds or animals on or over the public inland waters of this Commonwealth; provided, however that licensed trappers may shoot a .22 caliber rimfire rifle or pistol on or over public inland waters for the purpose of dispatching a trapped animal. It shall be unlawful to carry a loaded rifle or pistol on a boat or other floating device on the public inland waters for the purpose of hunting wild birds and wild animals; provided, however, that unloaded rifles or pistols may be transported by boat from one point to another. Nothing in this regulation applies to department personnel conducting wildlife management activities on the public waters of the Commonwealth.
Statutory Authority
SS 29.1-103, 29.1-501, and 29.1-502 of the Code of Virginia.
Historical Notes
Derived from VR325-02-25 S 4; amended, Virginia Register Volume 24, Issue 6, eff. July 1, 2008.
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7. "Cars and Coffee Williamsburg" now Second Amendment unfriendly
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"Cars and Coffee Williamsburg" - another organization to avoid like the plague!
James D. emailed me this:
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Philip,
As a concealed carry holder and avid car enthusiast who participitated in car cruise in's, I was advised that a local Saturday meeting and show cars event was now anti-second amendment. Please pass this along.
Perhaps we can send them a message =) Personally I am tired of the antigunners and their mindless rants.. [PVC: That makes two of us.]
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Sam Stevens
Safety Guidelines - Please read
To all members / potential attendees of Cars and Coffee Williamsburg; In hopes of creating a family friendly atmosphere that might best serve all of our enthusiast friends, both I and the assistant coordinators felt it best early on to establish ...basic guidelines to ensure your personal safety. To that end our: No Rev, No Burnout, and later No Loud music, No Fighting policy has served well to provide a Zero Incident, Zero Accident record now spanning almost one year at Cars and Coffee Williamsburg. You are ALL to be commended for your individual efforts regarding safety. Self-policing in a free society is by far preferable to some other means of event security. That having been said; today I must go on record with an additional guideline. A guideline that I am sure you will agree is a measure that more completely considers the safety of all attendees to our event, vice the inconvenience to the few affected by it.
The possession of personal weapons and/or firearms, concealed by permit, or otherwise carried at or to the event known as: Cars & Coffee Williamsburg is now formally Prohibited. While Cars and Coffee Williamsburg recognizes an individual's right to "Keep and Bear Arms" as right guaranteed by the Constitution, we feel that Firearms are inappropriate at the Cars & Coffee Williamsburg event. [PVC: Having the means to protect yourself is NEVER inappropriate, sir.] I hope that each of you agree and will join with me in assuming the responsibility to continue enforcing our policies and now this additional basic guideline. You may do so best by: passing the word to new attendees when inviting them to join us.. or by informing me of the presence of firearms at our event - Immediately. This additional basic guideline is in place as of today: June 21st 2011 at all future Cars and Coffee Williamsburg events. Sam Stevens, Event Coordinator: Cars & Coffee Williamsburg " [PVC: Sheesh, Sam. So everyone is to be commended on their safety record, and as a reward, they are to be disarmed? What would you have done if they had a bad safety record? Sounds like elitism and double-talk is alive and well with the "Cars and Coffee Williamsburg" leadership.]
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From the Cars and Coffee Williamsburg website (wix.com): http://tinyurl.com/3m7wtv5
"Our Policy at Cars & Coffee Williamsburg is SIMPLE:
Provide a safe and inviting venue that any visitor would feel comfortable bringing the whole family along on their next visit. That means we strictly enforce a No Burnout - No Rev - No Fighting and ABSOLUTELY NO FIREARMS policy.
It is requested that our patrons promote this simple policy along to nearby new visitors when necessary for the safety of all. This safety first approach is what guarantees our future within the community.
Our policy continues to deliver a Zero Incident - Accident Free - PERFECT RECORD!" [PVC: Yeah, until some crazy person shows up and starts murdering helpless Cars and Coffee members.]
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8. Roanoke Times Editorial on new air gun law
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Here we go again with the usual, yyyyaaaawwwwnnnn, "blood in the streets," this time projected to be caused by BB-gun owners. No facts to back up an assertion? Just fear-monger!
EM Dave Hicks emailed me this:
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From roanoke.com: http://tinyurl.com/5w362xh
Editorial: Another notch for the NRA
Bang! Bang! Local bans on shooting air guns in urban areas fall at lawmakers' hands.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Forget Ralphie's boyhood lust for an "official Red Ryder Carbine-Action 200-Shot Range Model Air Rifle."
There's nothing harmless about adult air guns powerful enough to drop a man-sized boar.
They're out there. And now built-up urban areas like Roanoke no longer can prohibit shooting pneumatic guns of any kind on private property, thanks to a change in state law that goes into effect July 1.
Local officials are hopping mad. And rightly so. Micro-managing local governments is hardly a new pastime for Virginia's General Assembly. Nor is protecting gun owners from any interference in their free exercise of Second Amendment rights.
The combination, though, carries a particular sting for densely developed localities, where shooting bans are only reasonable to protect public safety.
But the new state law puts an expiration date on those bans so long as shooting is "conducted with reasonable care to prevent a projectile from crossing the bounds of the property."
That standard is so vague that Roanoke's attorney has advised police not to try to enforce the city's ban once the overriding statute takes effect, though the council could not bring itself this week to change the city code.
Blacksburg's council reluctantly brought the town code in line last week. Other localities will have to follow suit.
State Sen. Roscoe Reynolds, D-Henry County, says he sponsored the successful legislation this year at the request of a National Rifle Association lobbyist who worried that some people haven't been able to shoot air guns even when they could do so safely.
But his poorly written legislation leaves people at the mercy of their neighbors' good sense.
Not to worry. Reynolds says if the statute is overly broad, there will be repercussions and the law will be changed.
It's fair to wonder what tragedy will be great enough to stir sufficient outrage to achieve that.
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9. Why have a gun? Nothing ever happens here!
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Dale Hawley emailed me this:
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Hey Philip,
You can add this to your "why would you need a gun in a nice town like Staunton" file.
From whsv.com: http://tinyurl.com/5toxf4k
Home Invasion Suspect Pleads Guilty
An Augusta county man is on his way to prison after pleading guilty to his role in a home invasion robbery.
Updated: Jun 23, 2011
Reporter: Melanie Lofton
An Augusta county man is on his way to prison after pleading guilty to his role in a home invasion robbery.
This afternoon Joseph Bates pleaded guilty to burglary and grand larceny. He was sentenced to 10 years behind bars on each count, with five years two months suspended.
The charges stem from an incident last June, in which police say Bates and Ronald Hutton went into a Staunton home with a gun, and tied up the man inside.
The duo made off with a laptop computer, a knife and several other items. An abduction charge against Bates was dropped in exchange for his guilty plea.
Hutton pleaded guilty in the case in January. He's currently serving 12 years and two months on his charges.
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10. Who needs a gun in Chicago?
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You would think that an off-duty police officer would need a gun in Chicago. In truth, everyone law-abiding person needs one, ESPECIALLY in Chicago. But when this officer was being robbed, he didn't have his own gun with him, so he had to borrow a gun from the criminal.
Now that I think about it, since the off-duty officer was dressed as a clown at the time of the robbery, if he did have his own gun, it would probably have a sign pop-out of the barrel with the word "Bang!" on it when he pulled the trigger!
Eric Hammond emailed me this:
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From chicagotribune.com: http://tinyurl.com/3rwa3ou
Cops: Teen fatally shot trying to rob off-duty cop
By Jeremy Gorner
Tribune reporter
June 18, 2011
An off-duty Chicago police officer dressed up as a clown for a South Side fundraiser shot and killed a teen who held him at gunpoint tonight after the event, authorities said.
The officer, who is assigned to the Near North police district, was in his clown outfit for a fundraiser for a day-care business. The event, attended by a group of 50 children, was near West 87th Street and South Damen Avenue.
At 10:10 p.m. after the event ended, the officer went to his car and a teen approached him, asking him for money, authorities said. When the officer said he had no money, the teen pulled a gun on him, authorities said.
During a struggle with the teen, the officer grabbed hold of the gun, opened fire and killed him.
The officer sustained minor injuries, according to a release from police News Affairs.
A weapon was recovered from the scene.
One person was also taken into custody.
The Independent Police Review Authority is investigating.
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11. Man wants to open a gun store in downtown Gastonia
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You would swear that instead of a gun store, a porn shop was being opened in Gastonia. More local government foolishness. Let's hope City Council shows more sense. Perhaps a few of you in the local area might want to attend the City Council meeting to support the new gun store.
David Blunt emailed me this:
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From charlotteobserver.com: http://tinyurl.com/3efl2xa
Man wants to open a gun store in downtown Gastonia
By Rad Berky
NewsChannel 36
Tuesday, Jun. 21, 2011
The Gastonia City Council will decide Tuesday night if a gun store is the kind of business that is wanted in the downtown area.
Robert McAlister wants to open the gun store in a building he owns at 365 West Franklin Boulevard. McAlister owns a cell phone store that takes up half the building and wants to put the gun shop in the other half.
"We are basically going to start as a small gun store but our goal is to open up a full sporting goods store," said McAlister.
The Gastonia Planning Commission voted 6-1 last month to deny approval for a gun store with most members saying that is not the type of business that would fit with the type of businesses the city was trying to get to open in the area.
Following the planning commission vote, McAlister appealed so now the city council will vote on the proposed store.
The gun shop would have an abandoned gas station as one neighbor. There is also a cemetery across the street and the Clark Tire and Auto shop.
"Most of the people who shop in a gun store are good citizens," said Chris Lampkin, owner of the tire store. "They are trying to do things the legal way, so I don't think it will hurt our business at all."
McAlister points out that there are already four pawn shops that sell guns on West Franklin Boulevard, including one shop that is right across the street from where the new Gastonia Conference Center is being built.
"They are there for the sale. We are getting into the business to not just sell weapons but the accessories and education. We want to be a store," he said.
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12. Who needs a gun while pumping gas [VIDEO]?
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John Oliver emailed me this:
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From fox.daytonsnewssource.com: http://tinyurl.com/5v57nwq
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13. Obama weak on gun control
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More crocodile tears from the Associated Press and the gun haters. I think that the botched "Operation Fast and Furious," which was meant to give the Obama Administration an excuse to push for gun control, is instead going to be another big setback for gun control.
A VA-ALERT reader emailed me this:
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From abcnews.go.com: http://tinyurl.com/44gu2ct
PROMISES, PROMISES: Obama yet to Act on Gun Safety
By ERICA WERNER Associated Press
WASHINGTON June 20, 2011 (AP)
More than five months after Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was shot in the head, the White House has yet to take any new steps on gun violence, even though that's what President Barack Obama called for in the wake of the shooting.
The silence from the administration is drawing criticism from gun control activists and even some of Obama's Democratic allies. Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., told the president in a letter last week that the administration "has not shown the leadership to combat gun violence."
It's in keeping with Obama's general stance on gun issues since taking office: Outspoken earlier in his political career in favor of tougher gun measures, he's treaded carefully since becoming president, almost never raising the topic except when asked and offering, at most, tepid support for legislation he once embraced, such as re-enacting a ban on assault weapons.
White House spokesman Eric Schultz said in a statement that the Justice Department is "consulting with the key stakeholders to identify common-sense measures that would improve American safety and security while fully respecting Second Amendment rights."
Schultz declined to comment beyond that, but whatever the administration produces is likely to fall well short of the steps activists would like to see, such as legislation banning the kind of high-capacity ammunition clips used in the Giffords shooting. Any significant change of that kind would require legislation, but with Congress hostile toward any gun-control bills, the administration sees that avenue as closed.
A government official involved in the talks said that suggestions under consideration include ways to improve the background check system dealers use to avoid selling guns to criminals, which activists say is ineffective and riddled with loopholes. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the private deliberations.
Some improvements could be made administratively, such as by providing states clearer guidelines on how to get criminal information to the federal government for the background check database. Although such steps are not nearly as bold as activist groups, including the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, would like to see, they still hope to see something -- and soon.
"We're coming on the six-month mark since the shooting and still nothing from the administration," said Paul Helmke, president of the Brady Campaign. "It's time for some action."
The Justice Department deliberations began in March, after the president broke his usual silence on guns in an opinion piece in Giffords' hometown newspaper, the Arizona Daily Star. In it, he called for "a new discussion on how we can keep America safe for all our people."
Even then Obama steered clear of ambitious declarations, timelines or goals, but he did call for "sound and effective steps" to keep guns out of the hands of criminals, including strengthening background checks. Obama said that "if we're serious about keeping guns away from someone who's made up his mind to kill, then we can't allow a situation where a responsible seller denies him a weapon at one store, but he effortlessly buys the same gun someplace else."
Helmke and others interpreted that as support for closing what's called the "gun-show loophole," which allows private sellers to sell firearms at gun shows and elsewhere without conducting background checks. Activist groups say that some 40 percent of gun sales are conducted without background checks.
But doing that would require legislation, and the National Rifle Association and other pro-gun groups are adamantly opposed. The NRA has not been involved in the Justice Department talks, but the National Shooting Sports Foundation has, and a spokesman said that when they met at the Justice Department, gun-control measures didn't even come up.
"The topics discussed at the meeting were limited strictly to improving and enhancing the current background check system," said spokesman Ted Novin, explaining that closing the gun-show loophole would amount to expanding the system, not improving it, and his group doesn't support an expansion. "No gun-control measures of any kind were discussed during the meeting, nor would this organization support any such proposals that would curtail the lawful commerce of firearms or the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens," Novin said.
With that kind of opposition from gun-rights groups, an election year approaching and attention focused on the economy, prospects for congressional action are dim. And the Obama administration, in turn, appears unlikely even to try to do anything more than make modest changes that don't fundamentally alter the nation's gun policies.
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14. TSA now storming public places 8,000 times a year
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The natural progression of government over time is towards total control of the populace - a "police state." Our government is no different, sadly. And the beat goes on.
Jeanne Titus emailed me this:
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I would like to draw VCDL's attention to Subject article from American Thinker today (linked below) which I believe your readers would find of great interest.
Note that there were no arrests made in these "raids", NO threats were received regarding the Tampa bus station, and that, in addition to federal and state law enforcement agencies, outside bureaucrats were also involved.
How long before these raids extend to other public places, such as malls and restaurants where, at least in VA, citizens are legally allowed to carry guns? I doubt that the outside bureaucrats involved in these raids (and, sadly, perhaps many state officials as well), are going to be familiar with any particular state's gun laws. This could very well lead to citizens being arrested and their legally carried guns confiscated during these raids.
And please note carefully the comments used to justify these raids from the various officials quoted in the article.
Virginia's citizens need to be advised of this because these unconstitutional (in my opinion) raids will come to VA sooner or later unless we stop them. This is very alarming, to say the least, and smells of a police state.
From americanthinker.com: http://tinyurl.com/3zqk4tt
June 20, 2011
TSA Now Storming Public Places 8,000 Times a Year
By Tara Servatius
Americans must decide if, in the name of homeland security, they are willing to allow TSA operatives to storm public places in their communities with no warning, pat them down, and search their bags. And they better decide quickly.
Bus travelers were shocked when jackbooted TSA officers in black SWAT-style uniforms descended unannounced upon the Tampa Greyhound bus station in April with local, state and federal law enforcement agencies and federal bureaucrats in tow.
A news report by ABC Action News in Tampa showed passengers being given the signature pat downs Americans are used to watching the Transportation Security Administration screeners perform at our airports. Canine teams sniffed their bags and the buses they rode. Immigration officials hunted for large sums of cash as part of an anti-smuggling initiative.
The TSA clearly intends for these out-of-nowhere swarms by its officers at community transit centers, bus stops and public events to become a routine and accepted part of American life.
The TSA has conducted 8,000 of these security sweeps across the country in the past year alone, TSA chief John Pistole told a Senate committee June 14. They are part of its VIPR (Visible Intermodal Prevention and Response) program, which targets public transit related places.
All of which is enough to make you wonder if we are watching the formation of the "civilian national security force" President Obama called for on the campaign trail "that is just as powerful, just as strong and just as well funded" as the military.
The VIPR swarm on Wednesday, the TSA's largest so far, was such a shocking display of the agency's power that it set the blogosphere abuzz.
In a massive flex of muscle most people didn't know the TSA had, the agency led dozens of federal and state law enforcement agencies in a VIPR exercise that covered three states and 5,000 square miles. According to the Marietta Times, the sweep used reconnaissance aircraft and "multiple airborne assets, including Blackhawk helicopters and fixed wing aircraft as well as waterborne and surface teams."
When did the TSA get this powerful? Last year, Pistole told USA Today he wanted to "take the TSA to the next level," building it into a "national-security, counterterrorism organization, fully integrated into U.S. government efforts."
What few people realize is how far Pistole has already come in his quest. This is apparently what that next level looks like. More than 300 law enforcement and military personnel swept through a 100-mile stretch of the Ohio Valley alone, examining the area's industrial infrastructure, the Charleston Gazette reported.
Federal air marshals, the Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Coast Guard, the FBI, the Office of Homeland Security and two dozen other federal, state and local agencies teamed up to scour the state's roads, bridges, water supply and transit centers under the TSA's leadership.
What is remarkable about these security swarms is that they don't just involve federal, state and local law enforcement officials. The TSA brings in squads of bureaucrats from state and federal agencies as well, everything from transportation departments to departments of natural resources.
The TSA had received no specific threats about the Tampa bus station before the April sweep, reporters were told.
They were there "to sort of invent the wheel in advance in case we have to if there ever is specific intelligence requiring us to be here," said Gary Milano with the Department of Homeland Security in an ABC News Action television report. "This way us and our partners are ready to move in at a moment's notice."
Federal immigration officials from Customs and Border Patrol swept the station with the TSA, looking for "immigration violations, threats to national security" and "bulk cash smuggling." (How the bulk cash smuggling investigation related to national security was never explained.)
"We'll be back," Milano told reporters. "We won't say when we'll be back. This way the bad guys are on notice we'll be back."
The TSA gave the same vague answers when asked about the three-state sweep this week. That sweep wasn't in response to any specific security threat, either.
The purpose was to "have a visible presence and let people know we're out here," Michael Cleveland, federal security director for TSA operations in West Virginia told the Gazette. "It can be a deterrent."
It might be -- if Americans are willing to live this way.
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15. Helmke to leave Brady Center
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Board member Bruce Jackson emailed me this. Bruce called me this week and in his best "Paul Helmke" voice, said "Hi! I'm Paul Helmke and I'm looking for a job!":
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From journalgazette.net: http://tinyurl.com/6fho6xt
Helmke to leave Brady Center
Former mayor undecided about next step
Angela Mapes Turner | The Journal Gazette
June 23, 2011
Former three-term Fort Wayne Mayor Paul Helmke said Thursday he'll step down July 10 as president of the Brady Campaign and the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence.
Helmke, 62, said he's undecided about his next career move and whether he'll stay in Washington or return to Fort Wayne, where he maintains a home. Helmke, a Republican, was Fort Wayne mayor from 1988 to 2000.
July 10 marks the end of the five-year commitment Helmke made when hired as president by the Brady boards in 2006. He plans to remain with the organization through the end of July, although not as president, to help with the transition to new leadership. Brady Vice President Dennis Henigan will serve as acting president while the Brady boards search for a new leader.
The Brady Campaign, in announcing Helmke's departure, noted many accomplishments of his tenure. Leaders of the board spoke highly of his leadership, saying he has made the organization's voice louder and its movement stronger. [PVC: Well at least he made them louder, kind of like nails going down a blackboard.
]"He is a man of the highest integrity who has worked tirelessly to keep Americans safer for so many years, long before his tenure with us," Sarah Brady, chair of the Brady organizations, said in a statement, speaking also on behalf of her husband, Brady Campaign namesake Jim Brady. "We both will miss him as a friend and a leader." [PVC: Because of his, er, effectiveness, I'm going to miss him, too!]
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16. Wisconsin passes their first concealed carry permit law!
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Illinois will soon be standing alone as not allowing for some kind of carry by its citizens. (I know, I know - Hawaii's concealed carry law is a joke.) But Illinois is under pressure and Wisconsin's new concealed carry permit law only increases that pressure to get with the program.
Bruce Jackson emailed me this:
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From ccrkba.org: http://tinyurl.com/3etasjq
CCRKBA APPLAUDS WISCONSIN LAWMAKERS FOR ADOPTING CONCEALED CARRY
Tuesday, June 21st, 2011
BELLEVUE, WA - The Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms congratulated the Wisconsin Assembly for its 68-27 vote Tuesday that passed the state's long-sought concealed carry measure, which Gov. Scott Walker has said he would sign.
"Badger State citizens have worked long and hard on this landmark accomplishment," noted CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb. "We are delighted that the bill passed with an overwhelming bipartisan majority. Wisconsin was long overdue in this action. Now Wisconsin residents can enjoy the same rights as citizens in most other states. It is a pity, however, that this required a change in control of the state legislature and the governor's office, a fact not lost on gun owners from coast to coast."
Former Gov. Jim Doyle, a Democrat, had twice vetoed concealed carry legislation adopted by state lawmakers who would not override either veto, due to party partisanship.
"Not surprisingly," Gottlieb noted, "gun prohibitionists have been predicting all kinds of calamity if concealed carry comes to the state. As we have seen in other states where such common-sense personal safety laws have been adopted, we're confident that the good citizens of Wisconsin will soon prove those predictions were unfounded.
"It is disappointing," he observed, "that some church leaders continue to criticize the legislation, and encourage fear of legally-armed citizens. They must have forgotten the victims of the March 2005 shooting in Brookfield during an evangelical church meeting, who could not defend themselves against Terry Ratzmann. Perhaps they also forgot that an armed private citizen, serving as a security volunteer, stopped a gunman from opening fire at the New Life Church in Colorado Springs in 2007.
"Wisconsin's new law will enhance public safety," Gottlieb concluded. "We have faith in Wisconsin citizens, who are no different than Americans in other states who already enjoy full exercise of their right to bear arms. This leaves only Illinois in the firearms rights dark ages, but we're patient."
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17. Remember the pharmacist Walgreens fired?
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A few weeks ago, Walgreens fired an employee for using his gun to save the lives of his fellow co-workers from a criminal attack.
Will Walgreens now see the foolishness and the danger of its actions in doing so? Four people paid the price for there being no one legally armed at a pharmacy in New York.
Stephen Wenger emailed me this:
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Four people were shot to death Sunday morning at a pharmacy on New York's Long Island in what police said looked like a robbery gone wrong. The gunfire erupted at about 10:20 a.m. inside Haven Drugs, a family-owned pharmacy in a small cluster of medical offices in suburban Medford, about 60 miles east of New York City. Police rushed to the scene after getting a call about gunfire from a witness in the pharmacy's parking lot. When they arrived, they found two employees and two customers dead, said Suffolk County Police Department's Chief of Detectives, Dominick Varrone. The pharmacy had opened for business at 10 a.m., and Varrone said investigators' initial belief was that a single gunman was responsible for the bloodbath, and that the motive was robbery... (Mere weeks ago, Walgreens fired a pharmacist at one of its Michigan stores for firing shots and driving off armed robbers who were herding employees into the rear of the store. No doubt, those robbers were simply trying to avoid any embarrassment for the employees getting robbed, by removing them from public view, and intended them no harm.)
From azstarnet.com: http://tinyurl.com/3pj9pe2
Funerals for 2 victims in NY pharmacy slayings
Associated Press | Saturday, June 25, 2011
Funerals have been held for a pharmacist and a customer gunned down in the Father's Day massacre at a pharmacy on Long Island.
Friends and family mourned pharmacist Raymond Ferguson and Jaime Taccetta on Saturday in separate services. The funeral for the 45-year-old Ferguson was held in Forest Hills, Queens, while the 33-year-old Taccetta was remembered at services in Lake Ronkonkoma (ron-KONK'-uh-muh).
Authorities say they were killed along with two other people on June 19 at Haven Drugs in Medford, N.Y., by a man seeking to rob painkillers.
David Laffer is charged with first-degree murder and resisting arrest charges in the shooting. His wife, Melinda Brady, is charged with robbery and obstruction charges.
Funerals were held Friday for the two other victims _ 17-year-old Jennifer Mejia and 71-year-old Bryon Sheffield.
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18. The flash mob attack -- how to defend?
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Dwight Rider emailed me this:
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From warriortalknews.com: http://tinyurl.com/5wsgwmq
The Flash Mob Attack - How To Defend?
06/26/2011
Posted by Gabe Suarez
COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - All eight suspects are in custody after a brutal attack in Five Points early Monday morning which left the teenage victim in critical condition, according to Columbia police.
CHICAGO, IL (WLS) -- The recent series of mob-style attacks on Chicago's Near North Side mark the first major hurdles facing Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Chicago's new police superintendent Garry McCarthy. The latest attack happened Tuesday night. A witness tells WGN 15-20 teens beat and robbed two people at Chicago and Wabash
AKRON, OH -- Out of nowhere, the six were attacked by dozens of teenage boys, who shouted ''This is our world'' and ''This is a black world'' as they confronted Marshall and his family.
NO. VIRGINIA -- Three people were beaten by mobs in Northern Virginia in two separate incidents that occurred within five minutes of each other on Saturday night, authorities said.
These events have consumed the discussion at most self-defense focused websites in the last few weeks. Accompanying the discussion is the usual hand wringing regarding what to do if one is beset by a gang of thugs bent on your destruction. Well, I have my views on this which will no doubt shock the senses of the Doodley Doo Rights of the gun world.
First, this was not some group of young teenaged honor students. In all cases it was a group of urban thugs. Second, they were not there to practice for their debate on the ills of capitalism. Third, they understand only one thing...violence. So understand who they are and be ready to speak their language.
1). Don't go to stupid places with stupid people to do stupid things. Simple but often ignored. Listen, we do not live in a fair world where everyone respects everyone else. Nor where everyone gets along. You may in fact be totally color-blind in a socio-ethnic sort of way, but not everyone is. So even if your liberal sociology professor thinks it is a cool thing to take a stroll at midnight through a ethnically homogenous part of town (different ethnicity that you), it is still a stupid idea.
2). Always have a method to defend yourself. Even if it is not socially acceptable, or in line with the rules of the day, having some sort of weapon is essential. Right about now, some of the Doodley Doo Rights are screaming that I am telling people to violate the law. Well, go and google these stories. Look at the faces of the victims...specially the one on life support right now. Put yourself in their shoes. Your choice is to arm yourself in violation of the rules, or to take the raping, beating and robbery? What would you choose?
3). Avoid if you can. If you are standing around and see a group of twenty young urban thugs about two blocks away yelling, "kill whitey", and lookin at your reflection in the store window, realize that you have not been in the sun in a while, here is my advice - "RUN". If it looks like trouble, it probably is. The gang is not there to debate the effects of american corporate expansion on the development of the urban neighborhoods with you.
4). If you cannot avoid, attack...brutally and viciously. This is not the time to worry about some goofbal fear monger's articles about being sued, nor about anything of the sort. It is time to deploy your weapons and attack the leaders. Listne folks, there is disparity of force by the sheer number against you and the knowledge you have based on thse prior flash mob events.
If you have limited yourself by the rules and only have a knife, be certain you know how to use it. Make it big enough that it will cause extreme pain and bleeding when you stab the attacker. This is not the place for a legally carried tomato peeler that is two inches or less. You need a fixed or folding knife that is at least 4 inches long.
When the time comes, do not flash the knife like you are some crocodile dundee type guy ("that's not a knife"). Stab the first man deep and hard in his face and move to the next guy and repeat the exercise. Do the same to anyone within reach. When their buddies reel back, screaming in horror and pain, holding their bloodied faces with eyeballs hanging out, it will create hesitation. Use that time to disengage.
If you have a pistol, please make sure it is a modern high capacity weapon with a couple of spare magazines in your belt. The Suarez International company gun, a Glock 17 with three magazines, yields a sum total of 52 rounds. Figure three rounds per man, and you can reduce an angry mob of panga swinging killers into a fleeing group of bloodied bad guys. Draw it and yell, "Get The F*** Back!" If they do, run away. If they do not, shoot the first man in the face. The rest will take care of itself.
It really is very simple. Might you get into trouble? Sure, but being in jail because you stabbed three guys on the street is far better than being in the hospital having holes drilled into your head to relieve the pressure on your brain while the female members of your party are getting HIV exams in the next room. The only way to defeat brutality is with extreme and greater brutality.
Keep that in mind, arm yourself properly and if it comes, be brutal.
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19. Five ridiculous gun myths everyone believes (thanks to the movies)
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James Durso emailed me this:
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From cracked.com: http://tinyurl.com/2wbhaeu
[SNIP]
5 Ridiculous Gun Myths Everyone Believes (Thanks to Movies)
By: Robert Evans June 15, 2010
Even in gun-crazy America, most of us aren't shooting things as part of our day-to-day routine. So most Americans actually know very little about guns. Hollywood writers realized this a long time ago and, being writers, used it as an excuse to never do any fact-checking ever again.
#5. Silencers Turn Gunfire Into a Gentle Whisper
Where You've Seen It:
In The Line Of Fire, Die Hard 2, No Country For Old Men, Shooter, practically every James Bond movie.
The Myth:
Cautious spies and assassins know that if you're going to take out a bad guy in an office or a library, be sure to use a silencer. It turns the concussive "bang" into a neutered "ptew."
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20. Video of Fairfax Board of Supervisor hearing on pneumatic guns
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Tom Pike sent me this email:
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Video of the hearing can be watched here:
http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/cable/chan ... arings.asx
The air rifle rules discussion starts at 02:46:20 and my testimony starts at 03:06:25.
The part where they mess up the laws starts at 03:25:50.
The more I watch Supervisor McKay the more upset I get. His comments that if people want to shoot airguns in Fairfax county they should just buy a place that meets the county regulations really shows his elitist attitude. Not all residents of Fairfax county can afford to buy a home on over an acre of land in the allowed zone of western and southern parts of the county. Not everyone wants to live on the edges of the county, some people want to live closer in to their jobs. Also his comment that people can't practice golf in their back yard is wrong to. It is very easy to practice golf in your back yard if you spend about $60 on a net to stop the golf balls from going into your neighbors yard. Air guns are the same way, it is very easy to construct a safe backstop for air gun shooting, air soft is even easier.
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21. Chicago Police Chief claims lack of gun control is racist (duct tape item)
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"Slavery. Segregation. Black codes. Jim Crow. What, what did they all have in common? Anybody getting scared? Government sponsored racism. Now I want you to connect one more dot on that chain of the African American history in this country, and tell me if I'm crazy. Federal gun laws that facilitate the flow of illegal firearms into our urban centers across this country that are killing our black and brown children. ... We've got to get the gun debate back to center, and it's got to come with the recognition of who's paying the price for the gun manufacturers being rich and living in gated communities." --Chicago Police Chief Garry McCarthy
Gee, Chief, I was going to say that the common denominator for slavery, segregation, black code, and Jim Crow was GUN CONTROL! Chicago now has a police chief who thinks that minorities need more gun control to be safe! Chief McCarthy is surely being cheered on, and laughed at, by the real racists.
Here's the video. Watch at the risk of your own sanity and remember that this guy controls a huge police force:
http://tinyurl.com/6k8vyn8
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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/]
