VA-ALERT: VCDL Update 3/19/16

Post by **OakRidgeStars** » Sat, 19 Mar 2016 09:33:50

VA-ALERT: VCDL Update 3/19/16

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Not yet a Virginia Citizens Defense League member? Join VCDL at: http://www.vcdl.org/join
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VCDL's meeting schedule: http://www.vcdl.org/meetings
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Abbreviations used in VA-ALERT: http://www.vcdl.org/help/abbr.html
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VA-ALERT archives: http://www.listbox.com/member/archive/727/=now
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1. NOVA Armory update and action item
2. More information on Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland
3. Poll to hit - another try to classify guns as a disease
4. [FL] A look at a shooting in Florida
5. Notes on reciprocity with Maine
6. And some wonder why we have a crime problem
7. New Danville indoor range seeking approval
8. Note on Fox News and Judge Nepolitano
9. Positive report for Goochland Clerks Office
10. Survivor of TV shooting ready to return to work
11. Man shot while trying to rob store in Newport News
12. Bloomberg Business: Dems have been trying to license gun owners since 1968
13. Why the FBI's justifiable homicide statistics are misleading
14. A video that every pro-gunner can support [video]
15. Daily Beast: Shotguns preferred to AR-15s
16. Armed civilians save lives and reduce the number killed in mass shootings
17. Concealed handgun permit holders stop 4 violent crimes in 5 days
18. Several states push legislation to allow concealed weapons on college campuses
19. [MD] Baltimore murders reach 340 as December ends
20. [IL] 2,887 shooting victims in gun-controlled Chicago in 2015
21. [NV] Driver hits dozens of pedestrians in 'intentional' act in Las Vegas
22. [CA] Police may confiscate guns without notice to owner
23. Kurt Russell: 'I have guns' and 'now is not a good time to lay' them down

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1. NOVA Armory update and action item
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The tyrants in the area near NOVA Armory continue to pressure the landlord. Let’s give the landlord some positive input and thanks for renting to NOVA Armory.

Email: kvrealty@kv-realty.com

Suggested subject: Thank you for supporting NOVA Armory!

Suggested message:

Dear Ms. Varley,

Thank you for supporting NOVA Armory! I look forward to their store opening on March 26th. No lawful business should be put through all the false accusations and acrimony that NOVA Armory has, nor should you have to be put through it either. Once the store is up and running the opposition will lose interest, just as they have with other gun stores in the Arlington area in the last year.

Sincerely,
[YOUR NAME]

--

In appreciation for the support of gun owners, NOVA Armory is making this offer for Saturday, March 26:

"I hope you will join us Saturday morning at 0900 for our Grand Opening ribbon cutting ceremony! The first 100 customers will receive free Armory gear. You can also register for our FREE GUN COUPON GIVE-AWAY (a $500 coupon that can be applied to your choice of gun ordered through NOVA Armory- No purchase necessary, void where prohibited, must be present to register, must pass NICS check, drawing registration will be from 0900-1800 on Sat 3/26/2016) We will draw the winning name at high noon, on Sunday, 3/27/2016. Winner will have 30-days to place an order from either our available stock in-store or from our website."

—

Some articles on NOVA Armory battle to open:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/vi ... story.html

or

http://tinyurl.com/zceayac

-

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/vi ... ge%2Fstory

or

http://tinyurl.com/h4542dw

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2. More information on Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland
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In my haste to get out the alert on opposing Judge Garland, I didn’t include some articles for information on Garland’s background::

http://m.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/ ... un-rights/

-

http://www.breitbart.com/big-government ... -it-d-o-a/

-

http://www.ammoland.com/2016/03/nra-opp ... eme-court/

-

http://arbalestquarrel.com/justice-for- ... amendment/

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3. Poll to hit - another try to classify guns as a disease
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http://www.medpagetoday.com/PublicHealt ... EobjhC&s=1

or

http://tinyurl.com/hutmer2

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4. [FL] A look at a shooting in Florida
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A woman gets a remote alarm notification that someone is breaking into her home. She immediately calls 911 and heads back home. She arrives before the police and confronts the burglar. Shots are fired and the criminal is killed.

For her safety, a better course would have been to wait for the police before approaching her house and letting the police confront the criminal.

Of note, one of the victim’s relatives said this, I kid you not:

"'You have to look at it from every child’s point of view that was raised in the hood,' Harris continued. 'You have to understand … how he gonna get his money to have clothes to go to school? You have to look at it from his point of view.’”

So, breaking into houses and stealing is OK as long as you are doing it to buy clothes for school? <eye roll>

Thanks to member Paul Bjarnason for the link:

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2016/03 ... y-suspect/

or

http://tinyurl.com/h76gdc6

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5. Notes on reciprocity with Maine
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I received this from Gary Slider with handgunlaw.us regarding Constitutional vs. permitted carry in Maine:

Maine is also stating that you need a Maine Resident or Non-Resident permit to carry in Arcadia National Park. Even permits they honor are not valid there. Also you need a permit they issue or honor to carry in their state parks. Maine is really screwed and is a trap for those carrying now, even with a permit they honor.

Acadia National Park (Maine Permit required; 12 M.R.S. §756)
State Parks (Permit required; open carry not permitted; 12 M.R.S. § 1803(7))
Regular archery hunting-deer only (Permit required; 12 MRS § 11403)
Employees’ vehicles on work premises (Permit required; vehicle must be locked and firearm
must not be visible; 26 M.R.S. §600)
Allagash Wilderness Waterway Rule 2.19D

You can see that for yourself here. http://www.maine.gov/dps/msp/licenses/w ... rmits.html

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6. And some wonder why we have a crime problem
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Thanks to member Billy Huckleberry for the link:

http://www.dailypress.com/news/dp-nws-c ... story.html

Courts records show many crimes, but few prison terms

Many of the most dangerous crimes committed in Hampton Roads go unpunished, a Daily Press analysis of court records and Virginia State Police crime incident data has found.

Thousands of reported incidents of homicide, assault with weapons and robbery never make it to a judge or jury for a decision.

Thousands of cases are dropped, dismissed for insufficient evidence or disposed of in a plea deal that includes no prison term.

The crime incident data was compiled from 10 years' worth of annual Virginia State Police reports.

<SNIP>

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7. New Danville indoor range seeking approval
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We need more editorial boards like this one in Virginia:

http://www.godanriver.com/opinion/edito ... 1e39c.html

or

http://tinyurl.com/zo48ysq

City should approve the indoor gun range

A government that trusts its people with the private ownership of pistols, shotguns and rifles should understand that practice is an essential part of responsible gun ownership. And there’s no better place to practice than at a well-designed and well-run shooting range.

That’s what Phil Strader wants to build here — a safe, highly-regulated and controlled place for gun owners to practice using their firearms in Danville.

Strader, a Danville native, former Danville police officer and firearms instructor, wants to open an indoor shooting range on land between Riverside Drive and Apollo Avenue; the range would be accessible from Camelot Court.

The proposed shooting range is now working its way through the city’s approval system. We urge Danville City Council to approve the special use permit that will allow the indoor shooting range project to move forward.

The issue here is safety, and one of the best ways for gun owners to be safe is for them to practice.

Strader’s project will have two 25-yard long, eight-lane wide, sound-proof ranges. Following federal, state and local laws, the project will have four-foot concrete walls and no windows.

“Other buildings built like this have zero sound outside,” Strader said. “It will barely register on a sound meter — there will be very little, if any, sound outside.”

The project will also offer local gun owners training and gun sales.

“I’ve done this for a living for 20 years,” Strader said. “I can guarantee this will be the nicest indoor shooting range on the East Coast.”

The only opposition we’ve heard to this project came from the Danville School Board, which was allowed to comment on the project because the proposed range is within 300 feet of Westwood and Bonner middle schools. While the location near schools is perhaps not the perfect spot, it poses less of a threat — or impact on them — than many other activities students today are exposed to in Danville.

While the school board unanimously voted against this proposal, the Danville Planning Commission unanimously voted for it, sending it to Danville City Council.

People own firearms for all kinds of reasons, but they all need a place to practice their skills. We support the approval of this project.

“It’s no secret I’m pro-Second Amendment,” Strader told one of our reporters. “This will be a place where people who have gotten a gun and a concealed-carry permit can get more practice.”

Editorials are the consensus view of the Danville Register & Bee’s editorial board: Publisher Steven W. Kaylor, Editor Robert D. Benson and Assistant Editor Charles Wilborn.

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8. Note on Fox News and Judge Nepolitano
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Item #9 "Very scary: Where we stand as a nation - including the 2A” on 3/12/16 implied that Judge Napolitano had been fired by Fox News. Member James Granoski sent me an email saying that implication is inaccurate:

"While he no longer has his own show Freedom Watch, he still works for Fox News and FOX Business Network as a senior judicial analyst.”

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9. Positive report for Goochland Clerks Office
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Thanks to member Joe Ligon for sharing this:

Also wanted to give you a good story about the Goochland Clerks Office. I physically lost my permit (along with my hunting and drivers license) recently and went in the clerks office last Friday the 18th of December and filled out the request for a replacement permit. I received my replacement in the mail Saturday the 19th. They had to move pretty quick to get that turned around in less than a day (and of course the USPS moved pretty fast too)

Just wanted to pass along a good word about permits and getting them.

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10. Survivor of TV shooting ready to return to work
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Vicki Gardner is such a wonderful breath of fresh air. The prayers for her to survive were answered. After being shot by a crazed journalist, is she now calling for more gun control, like so many victims and their families do?

No. She understands that guns are just an inanimate object.

Thanks to member Mark Shinn for sharing this:

http://tinyurl.com/z2zwsfk

or

http://wtop.com/virginia/2015/12/surviv ... n-to-work/

Survivor of Va. TV shooting ready to return to work
By Kathy Stewart
December 28, 2015

Vicki Gardner, who survived a shooting on live TV in August, is looking forward to to returning to work now that her final surgery is behind her.

WDBJ TV reporter Alison Parker and cameraman Adam Ward died when they were gunned down by a former co-worker of the Roanoke news station. Gardner was answering questions about Smith Mountain Lake in a live interview with Parker when the first shots rang out. She played dead and was shot in the back by gunman Vester Flanagan.

In an interview with CNNMoney’s Brian Stelter, Gardner said she believes the gunman ran out of bullets.

“It is hard to even accept that a human being could do that,” she said.

Although Gardner still has some healing to do, she says she is looking ahead to 2016 especially now that her third, and likely final, surgery is behind her. “I think that it’s over with now. It is the recovery, the physical, mental,” she says.

She wants to return to work in the New Year even though the shootings happened just outside of her office. Gardner is the executive director of the Smith Mountain Lake Regional Chamber of Commerce.

She says although she’s seen evil first hand, she has been overwhelmed by the outpouring of support, “all of the cards, the letters and gifts.” Gardner says she is thankful to be surrounded by her community.

“I have seen the best that society can do,” she said. “It’s just so amazing, I would have never guessed that there was so much good in this world.”

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11. Man shot while trying to rob store in Newport News
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Hmmm. Actually the solution to shootings, such are this one, is simple: don’t rob stores and you won’t get shot! (I can picture all the criminals saying, “Darn! Why didn’t I think of that?”)

Thanks to member Ruslan Ketenchiev for sharing this:

http://tinyurl.com/hshcuuv

or

http://www.pilotonline.com/news/local/c ... 241f4.html

Man shot while trying to rob store in Newport News
By Katherine Hafner, The Virginian-Pilot
December 28, 2015

A man was shot after he attempted to rob a business Monday night, police said.

Police received word of a robbery at a Metro PCS store at 731 J. Clyde Morris Blvd. around 7:15 p.m., according to a police news release.

A man had entered the store with a gun, his face covered, and attempted to commit a robbery.

An employee of the store then shot the man, who was taken to the hospital with unspecified injuries, officials said in the statement.

Police said they did not know the man's condition. No further information about the incident was available.

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12. Bloomberg Business: Dems have been trying to license gun owners since 1968
**************************************************

Thanks to member Walter Jackson for sharing this:

http://tinyurl.com/jy7yn3f

or

http://www.breitbart.com/big-government ... ince-1968/

Bloomberg Business: Democrats Have Been Trying To License Gun Owners Since 1968
by AWR Hawkins
December 27, 2015

When he President Lyndon Baines Johnson signed the Gun Control Act of 1968, he signed a bill a that did not contain two of the items he wanted most–licensing requirements for all gun owners and registration for every gun in the country.

LBJ responded to the omission of licensing and registration with words that proved to be a template for how Democrats would use mental illness as a springboard from which to push gun control in the 21st century. He said, “If guns are to be kept out of the hands of the criminal, out of the hands of the insane, and out of the hands of the irresponsible, then we must have licensing.”

And, according to Bloomberg Business, it was LBJ who began to single out an enemy in the debate–to speak in a way as to try to make it seem that the people really wanted gun control, but the evil “gun lobby” was denying the peoples’ choice. LBJ said, “The voices that blocked these safeguards were not the voices of an aroused nation. They were the voices of a powerful lobby, a gun lobby.”

Another aspect of LBJ’s gun control push that proved a template for 21st century Democrats was his eagerness to seize on the emotion of tragic events. President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in November 1963, Malcolm X in 1965, and Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy in 1968. Following the ’68 assassinations, LBJ responded by telling his chief domestic affairs advisor, “We’re going to get something out of this.” And LBJ then began pushing licensing for all gun owners and registration for all guns.

But his push was rejected by Congress.

The one thing he did secure was the pattern that Democrats have followed for nearly 50 years. After a heinous event like Sandy Hook Elementary , the DC Navy Yard, or Umpqua Community College, Democrats emerge determined “to get something out of [the tragedy],” and they frame it in the language of stopping “the criminal” and “the insane.” When they fail–as they consistently have during Obama’s presidency–they then malign the “gun lobby” and pretend the it is actually preventing Congress from securing the gun control the American people allegedly want.

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13. Why the FBI's justifiable homicide statistics are misleading
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Thanks to member Rick Evans for sharing this:

http://tinyurl.com/pyfqt6v

or

http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm? ... id=2705913

Why the FBI’s Justifiable Homicide Statistics Are a Misleading Measure of Defensive Gun Use
by Clayton E. Cramer, College of Western Idaho
December 19, 2015

Abstract:
As part of the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports system, the FBI gathers and reports both civilian and police officer justifiable homicide statistics. The methods by which these numbers are gathered make them gross undercounts of the actual legal, defensive homicides by citizens. Furthermore, comparing the civilian justifiable homicide numbers to criminal homicides for public policy cost/benefit analysis understates the crime reducing effects of civilian gun ownership.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 11

Keywords: gun violence

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14. A video that every pro-gunner can support [video]
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Sunny Lohmann demolishes stupid celebrity anti-gun PSA. Enjoy!

Thanks to member Walter Jackson for sharing this:

http://tinyurl.com/qz6jnw9

or

http://freedomoutpost.com/2015/12/now-t ... n-support/

Now This is an “End Gun Violence” Video Every Pro-Gunner Can Support!
by Tim Brown
December 29, 2015

You may recall that just a few weeks ago, Michael Bloomberg's anti-gun group Everytown for Gun Safety produced a video public service announcement (PSA) in which Hollywood celebrities mindlessly chanted "We can end gun violence." Among the stars who joined the mantra were Julianne Moore, Jennifer Aniston, Amy Schumer, Kevin Bacon, Michael J. Fox, Sofia Vergara, Sarah Silverman, Ty Burrell, and Nick Offerman. Now another has entered that very PSA, but this woman is a Second Amendment supporter, and her name is Sunny Lohmann.

Sunny spliced herself into the PSA that is tied to WeCanEndGunViolence.org. Take a look, but be warned, some of this is pretty funny!

Among some of the finer points that Sunny makes is that taking guns away would immediately stop gun violence like magic, just like Paris, right? There isn't any gun violence there, is there?

And hey, if we can get rid of gun violence like magic, then why not rid ourselves of things like drug addiction, speech violence, poverty and bad smells. Bad smells… yes, she actually said it!

Of course, Sunny also asks a very pointed questions in her spliced entries. "Is it mean if we're shooting the bad guys?"

Why take away people's guns? Is it to force them to use knives, baseball bats… or even poison? [PVC: That is how a person in India just killed 14 people - he drugged them and then slit their throats.] Well, that is what some people would resort to, but the idea is so that tyrants can control the people, period.

And how would this utopian ending of gun violence be accomplished? Sunny says, "All we have to do is take away your rights. Don't worry, you'll be fine."

After over 2 minutes of video, even Sunny is bored with the droning on of the moronic mantra and asks, "Can we end this PSA?"

Indeed we can end the PSA, but sadly Bloomberg's Everytown followed up the star-studded PSA with another PSA pushing the same agenda that featured members of the National Basketball Association.

Frankly, I think the video is not only comical, but shows the absolute absurdity of anti-gunners and the hypocrisy of the majority of those celebrities in the video, as many of them have made their living in films that portray the use of gun violence both for good and bad. As with those who want to take Americans' guns, I say to the celebrities, "You first," as in stop being involved in any film that uses guns at all. Let's see how that works out for you.

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15. Daily Beast: Shotguns preferred to AR-15s
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AWR Hawkins takes the Daily Beast to task for not bothering with research when writing an article on guns.

Thanks to member Walter Jackson for sharing this:

http://tinyurl.com/gwoo37r

or

http://www.breitbart.com/big-government ... s-carnage/

Daily Beast: Shotguns Preferred to AR-15s Because They ‘Lack Capacity for Mass Carnage’
by AWR Hawkins
December 24, 2015

On December 22, The Daily Beast criticized the ongoing availability of AR-15s, suggesting shotguns are a sufficient type of weapon but are largely rejected as a substitute for ARs because they “lack capacity for mass carnage.”

The Daily Beast column is framed around guns seen at a gun show. The column’s author describes seeing a table full of “mid-level AR-15s” of various brands–DPMS, Smith & Wesson, and Bushmaster. He referenced talking to the gun show vendor about more expensive brands, such as Daniel Defense, and ultimately, concluded that ARs are “popular with boys who never quite grew up.”

The author then saw a table containing only hunting rifles and shotguns and suggested that these weapons were sufficient for the exercise of the Second Amendment but could not satisfy because they “lack the capacity for mass carnage.” He also suggested they “lack the military hoo-hah that apparently makes ARs” popular with those boys who never matured to manhood.

Lost on The Daily Beast is the fact that shotguns such as the Mossberg 500, the Remington 870, and the Benelli M4 can be outfitted with as much “military hoo-hah” as the mind can imagine. Moreover, because they are shotguns, they are far deadlier in close quarters than an AR-15.

An AR-15 shoots one bullet less than a quarter-inch wide every time the trigger is pulled, but a shotgun shoots multiple lead “shots,” which emerge from the end of the barrel in a grouping, or “pattern,” which is about 9 to 12 inches in diameter and close to the end of the barrel, but which expands the farther the grouping of shots travels. This pattern of shot–versus the single bullet of an AR-15–makes the shotgun perfect for situations where a homeowner may face multiple aggressors. Such a homeowner can take out two or three aggressors with one properly placed shotgun blast.

Will he kill all three home invaders with one trigger pull? It’s possible. But a far more-likely scenario is that he will kill one and wound two so badly that the attack will end.

This type of operation also makes shotguns perfect weapons for mass carnage. And The Daily Beast apparently forgot about the September 16, 2013, Navy Yard shooting, in which Aaron Alexis used a pump shotgun to mow down 12 innocents before law enforcement killed him.

The draw of AR-15s is that they provide something missing from shotguns–namely, the ability to make mid-to-long range shots, as well. Whereas the pattern of shot fired from a shotgun loses effectiveness the farther it travels–and normal birdshot loads can be completely ineffective by the time they travel 40 to 50 yards–shots covering hundreds of yards are possible with an AR.

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16. Armed civilians save lives and reduce the number killed in mass shootings
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Amen.

Thanks to member Victoria Bingham for sharing this:

http://tinyurl.com/ofzsprs

or

http://www.sott.net/article/309363-Arme ... 10-minutes

Armed civilians save lives and reduce the number killed in mass shootings ... Citizens can respond in 10 seconds (police take 10 minutes)
by J. D. Heyes, Natural News
December 28, 2015

To hear the anti-Second Amendment Left tell it, carrying a firearm for protection - of one's self and of the lives of those around him or her - is a myth perpetuated by the NRA and other gun rights groups and firearm manufacturers.

Writing in the Huffington Post, "cartoonist and blogger" Walker Bragman's attempt to sully the truth and misrepresent the data was typical of a liberal hit job on the effect that guns really have in American society:

"John Lott Jr. and professor Gary Kleck, a criminologist, argue that guns are frequently used for self defense. These claims have also been debunked by peer review. A study by Philip J. Cook and Jens Ludwig titled 'Guns in America: National Survey on Private Ownership and Use of Firearms,' found that Kleck's defensive gun use numbers are 'far too high' to the point of suggesting bias, as are numbers by similar studies. The National Institute of Justice found that there is even an overestimation in Cook and Ludwig's study. Another study by the Berkley Media Studies Group found similar discrepancies with Kleck's and Lott's defensive gun use claims. According to the Harvard Injury Control Research Center a gun in the home is more likely to be used to commit suicide or to threaten or kill an intimate than used to deter an attacker."

Yes, guns do prevent crimes and death

Talk about study bias. Firstly, none of the sources Bragman utilized support the Second Amendment, and secondly, many of the claims the studies (and Bragman) attempt to make are done out of context or in an attempt to mislead. For instance, guns in the home are more likely utilized for suicide because firearms-related suicide deaths account for two-thirds of all firearm deaths each year. That kind of puts a different perspective on the data used by Bragman - doesn't it?

Also, he doesn't say that firearms are never used in self-defense; he merely claims that Kleck's figures are outsized (which is debatable given the study sources). So how can gun use in self defense figures be "debunked?"

In fact, according to a compilation of self-defense cases posted at the website Ammoland, use of firearms in self-defense is not only quite common, but they are often credited with dramatically limiting the carnage a bad guy (or gal) with a gun seeks to inflict on society. Cases in point:

-- John Hendricks of Chicago was driving his personal vehicle for Uber one evening, and had just dropped off a passenger, when he saw a man holler, draw a handgun and start shooting at a nearby crowd. In fact, one of the shooter's bullets struck Hendricks' vehicle, the Chicago Tribune reported. Hendricks pulled his own weapon, shot the armed assailant and called 911. When police arrived, Hendricks walked up to them with his hands raised and his concealed carry license in hand. There is no telling how many people he saved with that action.

-- In Portland, Oregon, a man was turned away from a nightclub and that apparently angered him. He returned wearing a mask and carrying a firearm, shooting one of the bouncers and two other people at the club, wounding one critically, as reported by KOIN. That night, Jonathan Baer was also working as a bouncer and, because he had a concealed carry license, was packing a handgun. He shot and killed the attacker (and was cleared of any wrongdoing by police). Soon after, police discovered multiple bags of varied ammunition, and hundreds of rounds loaded in several magazines that fit a semi-automatic Glock handgun. There is no telling how many more people the suspect was preparing to kill.

And so on. And while Left-wing anti-gun media regularly reports that such uses are "rare," they fail to report that in many cases, if an armed attacker is merely confronted by someone with a gun - where there are no shots ever fired - that is enough to end the confrontation and save lives.

Even the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention find firearms to be an "important crime deterrent.”

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17. Concealed handgun permit holders stop 4 violent crimes in 5 days
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Actually this goes on day-after-day across America as 13 million concealed handgun permit holders go about their lives.

Thanks to member Rick Evans for sharing this:

This kind of stuff never happens ... right?

http://tinyurl.com/jptk3y4

or

http://crimeresearch.org/2015/12/concea ... five-days/

CONCEALED HANDGUN PERMIT HOLDERS STOP FOUR VIOLENT CRIMES IN FIVE DAYS
December 26, 2015

Macon, Georgia, December 26, 2015:

A Warner Robins man told police that he shot and killed a man who tried to rob him.

According to police, it happened around 8:10 p.m. on Christmas night on the 100 block of Oakridge Drive.

. . . Antonio Bagley, 29, told [police] Jerrell Walker tried to rob him so he fired his pistol at him. Walker later died from a gunshot wound to the torso.

Bagley has not been charged, and the case is still under investigation.

Miramar, Florida, December 23, 2015:

A would-be thief was shot and killed by a Miramar restaurant employee during an armed robbery attempt Wednesday night, police said.

The incident happened at Captain Max Seafood on State Road 7 around 5:30 p.m., Miramar Police spokeswoman Tania Rues said.

According to Rues, the suspect entered the eatery wearing a ski mask and gloves. The employee fired several shots, killing the suspect, Rues said.

At least one customer and other employees were in the restaurant at the time but no other injuries were reported.

Gary, Indiana, December 22, 2015:

A northern Indiana man was killed and his girlfriend shot after trying to rob two Illinois men looking to buy a vehicle from a Craigslist ad, police said.

Brandon Johnson, 22, was shot several times about a block from his home in Gary, Indiana, after he pulled a gun on the would-be buyers and tried to rob them, officials said. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The would-be car buyers — a 55-year-old man from Olympia Fields and a 65-year-old from Chicago Heights — called police around 7 p.m. Sunday to report a shooting on Gary’s west side. They told officers that they made arrangements to make a purchase from Craigslist, when the man and woman they planned to meet with tried to rob them.

Detroit, Michigan, December 24, 2015:

Bill Kessler was still shaken Wednesday after shooting a large dog that had hold of his beagle, Daisy.

“The big dog came charging at my dog, I thought he had her by the throat, but it turned out he had her shoulder,” the 65-year-old Port Huron man said.

Kessler was walking with Daisy on North Boulevard about 12:30 p.m. Tuesday when the attack occurred.

Kessler said he was on the sidewalk when the large dog charged.

“Before he got to me I got my pepper spray out and sprayed him but that didn’t stop him,” he said. “After the pepper spray the dog started attacking mine, I tried kicking it, but it was so aggressive I took out my gun and shot it.”

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18. Several states push legislation to allow concealed weapons on college campuses
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This is a nationwide trend and our General Assembly is dragging its heels.

http://tinyurl.com/zeh235a

or

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/201 ... d-weapons/

Several states push legislation to allow concealed weapons on college campuses
by David Sherfinski, The Washington Times
December 27, 2015

Amid a spate of shootings across the country in 2015, including several at colleges, many states now are pushing legislation to allow concealed weapons to be carried on campuses so that students and faculty can defend themselves.

It’s the latest instance of both gun control and pro-Second Amendment supporters taking their fight away from Capitol Hill, where action on firearms is stalled, and to the states, where lawmakers are feverishly debating and writing new policies.

The most high-profile example is Texas, where lawmakers passed a bill that will allow people to carry guns on public university campuses starting Aug. 1, 2016, with some exceptions and carve-outs.

“Texas was a big victory for us this year,” said Michael Newburn, a spokesman for the group Students for Concealed Carry.

More than a dozen states saw bills introduced to allow for concealed weapons on public school campuses. Texas was the only state to adopt the policy, and the issue is still pending in Ohio.

California, however, pushed the other way. Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill to ban concealed weapons at elementary, secondary and college campuses.

Andy Pelosi, a spokesman for the group Campaign to Keep Guns off Campus, said while his side succeeded in heading off most of the efforts, they don’t think they’ve won the issue by any means.

“I think our side had a very successful year defeating legislation, but we know that these victories tend to be temporary, as the gun lobby will and does refile bills in most of these states,” Mr. Pelosi said.

The shooting spree that killed nine people at Umpqua Community College in Oregon in October drew increased attention to the issue, as did campus shooting incidents in Arizona and Texas.

But Larry Arnold, director of the Texas Concealed Handgun Association, says momentum on the issue actually started picking up in the wake of the December 2012 school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, when people raced to figure out the best way to protect school campuses from such massacres.

“After that, we really started to see the K-12 schools looking at it,” Mr. Arnold said. “We have at least 70 school districts that have teacher carry one way or the other.”

The campus carry law in Texas is still in an ongoing process, as universities have the ability to approve exceptions and carve-outs that could complicate matters. Rice University and Texas Christian University are two of the private schools that already have opted out.

“It’s a big muddle right now — everybody’s hyperventilating,” Mr. Arnold said.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton did issue a recent opinion saying that a court would likely find a university in violation of the law if it prohibits concealed carry in a “substantial number” of classrooms or delegates the decision on concealed carry to individual professors.

Mr. Paxton’s opinion also said schools that ban handguns in dorms would “effectively prohibit” licensed holders in those facilities from carrying, in violation of the law.

The state Democratic Party said universities should challenge Mr. Paxton’s opinion.

“A broad coalition of law enforcement officers, faculty, parents and students agree that Texas universities should not allow guns on their campuses, in dorm rooms and especially in classrooms,” said Manny Garcia, deputy executive director of the Texas Democratic Party. “Put simply: Campus carry does not make our schools any safer — it creates more problems than solutions.”

But a University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll from earlier this year found that while 37 percent of voters were against campus carry, 25 percent said they would allow handguns anywhere on campus and another 26 percent said they would allow them if the schools determined where they would be allowed.

The Aug. 1, 2016, effective date of the law has attracted some attention: It’s the 50th anniversary of when Charles Whitman scaled a clock tower at the University of Texas and killed more than a dozen people in one of the country’s most infamous mass shooting incidents.

Mr. Arnold said civilians carrying firearms back then prevented what could have been a worse outcome.

“He was very limited in the targets that he could seek because there were people, civilians on the ground, shooting back,” he said.

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19. [MD] Baltimore murders reach 340 as December ends
**************************************************

Yep - we need gun control just like Maryland has. That way we can double our homicide rate to match theirs!

Thanks to member Walter Jackson for sharing this:

http://tinyurl.com/htm6zy8

or

http://www.breitbart.com/big-government ... mber-ends/

Baltimore Murders Reach 340 as December Ends
by Warner Todd Huston
December 28, 2015

As December nears its end and so with it the year 2015, the number of homicides in Baltimore has surged to its highest rate since the 1990s with 340 deaths as of Monday, December 29.

While there were more murders in the past, Baltimore has reached a grim new milestone with its 340th murder making 2015 the worst year for murders on a per capita basis. And it should be noted that there is still three more days left to the year.

Authorities report that in 1993 there were 353 murders, making that year the most dangerous year on record. However, Baltimore had 100,000 more residents at that than today.

Murders in the city began to multiply after the riots over the death of Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old African American who died from a broken neck in April of 2015 while in police custody.

In fact, only a few months after Gray’s death and the ensuing riots, in July of this year the city suffered its highest monthly murder rate in 43 years.

The rise in murders came after police were told by city officials to stand down during the riots and in the ensuing months where police became the object of intense criticism as “part of the problem” in the city.

After increased scrutiny, many began to charge that the police were holding back and refusing to do their jobs to stop the increasing violence in the city, a charge that officers strenuously denied.

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20. [IL] 2,887 shooting victims in gun-controlled Chicago in 2015
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So, we need Universal Background Checks and permits to purchase guns and ammunition, do we? Because such things work so well in Illinois? This is the equivalent of 90 Virginia Tech massacres.

http://tinyurl.com/zj8kwme

or

http://www.breitbart.com/big-government ... year-date/

2,887 Shooting Victims In Gun-Controlled Chicago Year-To-Date
by AWR Hawkins
December 22, 2015

On December 22 the Chicago Tribune reported that the number of shooting victims in gun-controlled Chicago year-to-date is 2,887.

Nearly 3,000 shooting victims in a city with an “assault weapons” ban, a “violence tax” on every gun and bullet sold, strict limitations on the number of gun store and on the locations of said stores. and numerous other gun controls ubiquitously instituted to keep law-abiding citizens safer, but which actually make it far more difficult for law-abiding citizens to acquire the guns they need for self-defense.

The Chicago Tribune previously reported that there had already been 2,703 shootings and 440 deaths in Chicago by November 23. Now the Tribune reports that there have been a total of 2,887 shooting victims year-to-date in Chicago.

The Tribune reported two people shot dead and eight more wounded on Sunday alone.
12. Survivor of tv shooting ready to return to work
Breitbart News previously reported that Obama refused to admit the failure of Chicago gun control during a speech in the city on October 27. Instead, he blamed the city’s growing violence on states like Indiana and Wisconsin.

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21. [NV] Driver hits dozens of pedestrians in 'intentional' act in Las Vegas
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How can this be? The antis are always saying that only guns can cause this kind of damage.

Thanks to member Craig Faunce for sharing this link:

Let’s ban these assault vehicles! How many more have to die??? <eye roll>

http://tinyurl.com/nr9yo3e

or

http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/21/us/las-ve ... index.html

Las Vegas Strip sidewalk: Driver hits dozens of pedestrians in 'intentional' act
By Faith Karimi, Mariano Castillo and Dana Ford, CNN
December 21, 2015

(CNN) Authorities haven't said anything yet about what might have motivated a woman to drive her car onto a busy sidewalk along the Las Vegas Strip, but new details emerged Monday about what she told investigators she did before and after the crash.

Lakeisha N. Holloway, 24, is accused of killing one person and injuring more than three dozen when she struck pedestrians on the sidewalk.

She faces three charges, including murder with a deadly weapon, leaving the scene of an accident, and child abuse or neglect, according to a statement from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, and additional charges are likely.

According to her arrest report, Holloway told authorities that before the crash, she had been trying to rest or sleep in her car with her daughter, but that she kept getting run off by security at the properties where she stopped.

She wound up on the Strip, "a place she did not want to be," read the report. Police said she told them she wasn't under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Witnesses said Holloway was driving down Las Vegas Boulevard before her car jumped onto the sidewalk and started striking pedestrians.

She allegedly drove the 1996 Oldsmobile sedan with Oregon plates onto the sidewalk at different spots and hit more people before barreling down the road.

Holloway then left the scene and drove approximately 1 mile before driving onto the property of another hotel and contacting a security officer, asking that officer to call the police because she'd just hit several people, according to the arrest report.

"She would not explain why she drove onto the sidewalk but remembered a body bouncing off of her windshield, breaking it," it read.

'Not an act of terrorism'

Police arrived and arrested Holloway. Her 3-year-old daughter, who had been in the car with her, was unharmed.

Authorities ruled out terrorism but said an initial investigation showed the driver acted deliberately.

"This was not an act of terrorism," said Brett Zimmerman, a Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department deputy chief. "We are treating this as an intentional act."

Holloway went onto the sidewalk at least three or four times, according to Zimmerman.

Homicide division officials are looking at numerous surveillance videos from the Strip.

The person killed in the crash was identified Monday by the Clark County Coroner's Office as Jessica Valenzuela, 32, of Buckeye, Arizona. Authorities have said 37 other people were injured.

She 'just kept mowing people down'

Antonio Nassar said people scrambled to stop the woman as she drove on the sidewalk.

"The car rolled right in front of me. By the time I looked over to the right, all you could see was (her) driving away, and people were bouncing off the front of the car," Nassar told CNN affiliate KLAS.

"She rode the sidewalk, she came to a stop at the Paris intersection, people are punching into the window. ... She accelerated again and just kept mowing people down."

Another witness, Sofie Kitteroed, told CNN's "New Day" that bystanders rushed to the scene to help bleeding victims.

Emergency vehicles were trying to cut through traffic to get there, she said. Convoys of ambulances and police cars gathered at various spots, their lights flashing.

Justin Cochrane said he was having dinner at a patio restaurant when he suddenly saw the car.

It slowed down, turned toward the sidewalk and accelerated, he said.

The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department urged witnesses to flag down officers at the scene and give them a statement.

Our thoughts and prayers to the victims and their families involved in this tragic event tonight.
— LVMPD (@LVMPD) December 21, 2015

A portion of Las Vegas Boulevard was closed after the incident and was reopened Monday morning, the Police Department said.

One of the hospitals that treated the injured, University Medical Center, said that of the 15 patients who arrived, one died, two were discharged, three are in critical condition and nine are in serious condition. Of the patients at this hospital, five are Canadians, University Medical Center spokeswoman Danita Cohen said.

Pacific University, in Oregon, said Monday that four of its students were among the injured.

The four are members of the Pacific University wrestling team who were in Las Vegas for a tournament, university media relations director Joe Lang said. The injuries to the students were not life-threat12. Survivor of tv shooting ready to return to work12. Survivor of tv shooting ready to return to work12. Survivor of tv shooting ready to return to workening, he said.

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22. [CA] Police may confiscate guns without notice to owner
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I didn’t realize we had given California back to Mexico…

Thanks to members Bill Albritton and Clayton Rhoades for sharing this article:

http://tinyurl.com/h7lkhqp

or

http://www.breitbart.com/california/201 ... january-1/

Police May Confiscate Guns without Notice to Owner Starting January 1
by AWR Hawkins
December 29, 2015

Beginning January 1, police in California may confiscate firearms from gun owners thought to be a danger to themselves or others without giving the owner any notice.

This is the result of the implementation of “gun violence restraining orders” (GVROs), which go into effect New Year’s Day.

According to KPCC, GVROs “could be issued without prior knowledge of the person. In other words, a judge could issue the order without ever hearing from the person in question, if there are reasonable grounds to believe the person is a threat based on accounts from the family and police.” And since the order can be issued without the gun owner even being present to defend him or herself, confiscation can commence without any notice to the gun owner once the order is issued.

To be fair, Los Angeles Police Department Assistant Chief Michael Moore does not use the word “confiscate” when talking about confiscating firearms. Rather, Moore says, “The law gives us a vehicle to cause the person to surrender their weapons, to have a time out, if you will.”

KPCC reports that “California law already bans people from possessing guns if they’ve committed a violent crime or were involuntarily committed to a mental health facility.” And now, with GVROs, California law allows judges to bar people from possessing guns even if they have not committed a violent crime or were involuntarily committed. Because of this, Gun Owners of California Executive Director Sam Paredes warns that GVROs “may create a situation where law-abiding gun owners are put in jeopardy.”

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23. Kurt Russell: 'I have guns' and 'now is not a good time to lay' them down
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Thanks to member Bill Albritton for sharing this:

http://tinyurl.com/nh726pl

or

http://www.breitbart.com/big-hollywood/ ... -time-lay/

Kurt Russell: ‘I Have Guns’ and ‘Now Is Not a Good Time to Lay’ Them Down
by AWR Hawkins
December 27, 2015

During an interview with the Daily Mail, actor Kurt Russell affirmed the he owned guns and said that “now is not a good time to lay” them down.

Russell was reacting to questions about gun control in the wake of the San Bernardino terror attack, where Syed Farook and Tashfeen Malik shot and killed 14.

According to Mail Online, Russell said, “Sure I believe in the right to bear arms, as guaranteed under the Second Amendment of the American constitution.”

Responding to the San Bernardino attack in specific, he said, “Now is not a good time to lay down your weapons – how will you protect yourself? I am a libertarian, a hardcore one, and of course I have guns. I shoot things with them. I hunt game.”

On December 18 Russell defended the Second Amendment during an appearance on ABC’s The View. Russell argued that the Second Amendment gives citizens defense against government, saying:

When we’re dealing with things like, terrorism, we’re all going to have different opinions on how to do it—how to deal with it. Mine happens to be that, I think there’s a very strong reason the Founding Fathers had for the Second Amendment. And that is that no government ever hasn’t had to fight its own people, and its own people hasn’t had to fight its own government. We had our Civil War. If that Second Amendment hadn’t have been there, those people wouldn’t have had the opportunity to do what they considered defending their life, their way, their style of living. So I agree with that. I think that’s an important part of our existence. It’s basically that simple.

His statements on The View came less than two weeks after he told Hollywood Elsewhere, “It’s “absolutely insane [to] think gun control will change terrorists’ point of view.”

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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/]