John R Lott Jr on HR 822

John R. Lott Jr posted a great article about HR 822 titled "What's Wrong With Making It Easier to Carry a Gun Across State Lines?"

Take a look at HR 822, it is straight forward, essentially similar to existing Federal law that tells States that they must recognize drivers licenses issued by other States. HR 822 tells States that if they issue concealed carry permits, they must recognize concealed carry permits issued by other States. It is only a few paragraphs long, and is so simple that even my 5th grader understandood it. Really. I had him read it and explain it to verify my theory.

Interview on Gun Laws in CA

Well done interview:



In the interview CA State Assemblyman Anthony Portantino mentioned that he wanted to remove the "loophole" in California that does not yet deny American Citizens the ability to bear unloaded firearms who have not yet been granted a piece of paper by a mighty Sheriff, yet he failed to mention the fact that Thousands of California Residents are DENIED said piece of paper every single year because they write down on their application that the reason they wish to apply is simply because they wish to be able to defend their own life or the life of their loved ones while they are away from their own homes. Not to mention those of us who visit from out of State who are not even eligible to apply for a permit, nor are our own permits recognized.

That's right, apparently in California in the mind of many lawmakers your life is worth LESS than diamonds or dollars. If you are protecting cash being deposited at the bank you can get a permit. If you are defending life and limb, forget it.

My message to Anthony Portantino and any lawmakers who agree with him: It is time to Go HOME!

H/T to Sebastian

USCCA Concealed Carry Report

Have you signed up for the free USCCA Concealed Carry Report put out by the USCCA? It is 100% free, and has a lot of valuable insights and information in every release.

So much for the city of Brotherly Love

Perhaps they should rename Philadelphia the city of we hate law abiding gun owners. It doesn't exactly roll off the tongue, but it does fit the stated policy of the Philadelphia PD.

They plan to assume that all people who carry openly are common criminals until proven otherwise rather than the other way around. Why not take the current activity or demeanor of the law abiding citizen into consideration? How many common criminals have you ever heard of that even bother to use holsters much less carry a gun openly? Why not use common sense? It is evident to me that there is not much common sense nor brotherly love coming from the Top Brass of the Philadelphia PD.

Listen to the full details on what happened to Mark Fiorino. Here is part two of the story. Here is the audio of the full incident - be aware that the officer uses a lot of inappropriate language, so do not listen to this with any children in the room. Instead of an apology, the Philadelphia PD says to expect more of the same. Reprehensible. Disgusting. The top Brass at the Philadelphia PD should be ashamed of themselves.

H/T to Mark Walters who will be discussing this story this afternoon on Armed American Radio - don't miss it, always a great program.

Texas Senate Passes Campus Carry

From SCCC:

TEXAS SENATE PASSES “CAMPUS CARRY” BY VOTE OF 21 TO 10

On Monday, May 9, following months of parliamentary challenges, backroom negotiations, and public accusations, the Texas Senate finally passed legislation that would legalize licensed concealed carry (of handguns) at Texas public colleges. By a vote of 21 to 10, the Texas Senate agreed to add Senator Jeff Wentorth’s (R- San Antonio) “campus carry” amendment to SB 1581, a higher education finance bill authored by Senator Steve Ogden (R-Bryan). The bill itself passed by a vote of 19-12 and will now go to the Texas House. Texas Governor Rick Perry has repeatedly voiced his support for campus carry and promised to sign the legislation if it’s passed by the legislature.

W. Scott Lewis, Texas legislative director for Students for Concealed Carry on Campus, commented, “This has never been a question of securing majority support; it’s always been about overcoming the parliamentary hurdles laid out by a handful of Senators opposed to campus carry. Now that it’s gotten past the Senate’s infamous two-thirds rule, campus carry has more momentum than a runaway freight train.”

The language of Senator Wentworth’s amendment is very similar to his Senate Bill 354, which stalled in the Senate last month after two Senators abruptly withdrew support during a floor debate, dropping the number of supporters from 22 to 20. A longstanding tradition in the Texas Senate requires that two-thirds of the Senators present (21 of 31) agree to hear a bill.

After exploring various methods for getting his bill heard on the Senate floor, Senator Wentworth was finally able to attach his amendment to SB 1581 after an earlier amendment by Senator Judith Zaffirini (D-Laredo) changed the overall subject matter of the bill, allowing Senator Wentworth’s amendment to meet the “germaneness” test laid out in the Senate rules. Senator Ogden supported the amendment despite having previously opposed SB 354. Lewis concluded, “Despite all of the media hype, all of the fear mongering, and all of the misinformation, a vast majority of the Texas Senators tasked with researching and voting on this issue opted for empirical evidence over emotional rhetoric.”

###

ABOUT STUDENTS FOR CONCEALED CARRY ON CAMPUS - Students for Concealed Carry on Campus (SCCC) is a national, non-partisan, grassroots organization comprising over 44,000 college students, professors, college employees, parents of college students, and concerned citizens who believe that holders of state-issued concealed handgun licenses should be allowed the same measure of personal protection on college campuses that current laws afford them virtually everywhere else. SCCC has members in all fifty states and the District of Columbia. SCCC is not affiliated with the NRA or any other organization. SCCC extends an open invitation to publicly debate representatives from any organization or institution opposed to “campus carry.”

Governor Brewer Vetoes Campus Carry

In her veto letter yesterday afternoon, Governor Brewer claimed that she vetoed SB 1467 because she was concerned that the public right of way specified in the legislation was not properly defined within it. Is it just me, or does it seem fairly simple to you? If it's a sidewalk or a parking lot, and the public has the right to be there, then it is a public right of way area. If it's a place the general public is not allowed to be, it is not a public right of way area.

That is so simple even a 5th grader can understand it, but apparently it was too difficult for our Governor even with her entire staff to help her out. If they failed to help her figure it out, all she had to do was call me, and I would have been happy to give her a hand. I even happen to have a 6th grader here at home who could have helped her in a pinch if I was too busy at the moment.

She also gave a lame excuse about K-12 schools which were not even mentioned in the legislation at all.

Thanks to her Veto stamp, Students and Teachers will continue to be faced with the decision of getting an education in a defenseless victim zone here in Arizona, or moving to another state like Utah or Colorado where they are free to be prepared to defend their own life if they are threatened by an armed rapist or thug while they happen to be on the grounds of a University or College campus. The criminals either don't know how to read the gun free zone signs, or they simply have been choosing to ignore them. When you're in the dark, alone, and confronted by an armed thug, do you want to be armed with a gun or a cell phone? The gun would be right there at your side in your holster ready to go. The Police would be minutes away, likely to arrive in time only to draw outlines of chalk where they found the bodies of the disarmed victims at the scene of the crime.

The Gun Free Zone experiment is a dismal failure, which has turned competent individuals into helpless disarmed victims. It is well past time for us to stop treating our students and teachers like lab rats. They should be given back their natural right to choose whether or not they wish to be prepared to defend themselves, or to walk around with nothing but a cell phone in their pocket.

AZ: Ask Governor Brewer to Sign Campus Carry

From AZCDL:

Your Action Center letter to the Governor is waiting for you here:
http://capwiz.com/azcdl/issues/alert/?alertid=40883501 .

SB 1467, the AzCDL-requested Campus Carry bill passed out of the House on April 7, 2011 and was sent back to the Senate where it was forwarded to the Governor for her consideration.

SB 1467 simply prevents the governing boards of colleges and universities from prohibiting the “lawful possession or carrying of a weapon on a public right-of-way.” That covers streets, sidewalks, etc. open to public use.

We are already getting word that the anti-rights forces have begun contacting the Governor urging her to veto SB 1467 to make sure that campuses remain safe havens for criminals and dangerous places for students.

The anti-rights crowd has pulled out all the stops this year to prevent teachers, staff, and students in Arizona from having a safe learning environment. East Coast based national groups have beefed up their staff in Arizona. At the Capitol, they have spared no expense on lobbying, including holding a closed meeting with “freshmen” legislators (AzCDL tried to attend but we were stopped at the door). On college and university campuses, they have conducted a series of fear-mongering indoctrination sessions, disguised as “forums,” to stop Campus Carry. Sadly, they have also exploited the victims of the January Tucson shooting tragedy in order to intimidate nervous legislators.

Contact the Governor and let her know that you support the passage of SB 1467 and urge her to sign SB 1467 into law. Your Action Center letter to the Governor is waiting for you here:
http://capwiz.com/azcdl/issues/alert/?alertid=40883501 .

Stay tuned! When critical legislation moves, we will notify you via these Alerts.

A list of the firearms and self-defense related bills, along with links, that AzCDL is monitoring can be found at our website: http://www.azcdl.org/html/2011_bills.html .

These alerts are a project of the Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL), an all volunteer, non-profit, non-partisan grassroots organization. Renew your membership today! http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html .

You can also follow AzCDL on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDL , and during the legislative session, we send out updates via Twitter: http://twitter.com/AzCDL_Alerts

AzCDL’s Political Action Committee (PAC) is also on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDLPAC .

AzCDL – Protecting Your Freedom
http://www.azcdl.org/html/accomplishments.html .

Copyright © 2011 Arizona Citizens Defense League, Inc., all rights reserved.

AZCDL: Contact House Leadership

From AZCDL:

Much to the delight of anti-rights legislators and criminal empowerment groups, nearly all the House sponsored pro-rights firearms bills have languished without committee assignments or hearings. Meanwhile similar bills have moved swiftly through the Senate and are now under the control of House Leadership.

Your action is needed to ensure that the Senate bills are acted on.

The following Senate Bills have been assigned to the House Judiciary Committee.

SB 1201, the AzCDL-requested bill that says that if a state or local government building or event is going to post a "No Firearms" sign, then security measures must be in place to ensure that no one is capable of bringing in a firearm without detection.

SB 1391, a bill that would authorize and direct the Governor to enter into interstate compacts with other states that have a “Firearms Freedom Act” like the one that was passed last year in Arizona.

SB 1469, a bill that would strengthen current self-defense statutes by broadening the allowance for the use of force and provide greater protection for those forced tdefend themselves from an attacker.

The committee members need to hear from you, politely urging them to support these bills. A letter has been prepared, addressed to all committee members, and is waiting for you at our Legislative Action Center:
http://capwiz.com/azcdl/issues/alert/?alertid=36472501
Feel free to add text, or send it “as is.” When you are done, complete the “Sender Information” and click on “Send Message.”

Also in the House are the following pro-rights bills that the House Leadership has not yet assigned to a committee. Since House rules impose deadlines on committee hearings, we hope they are not trying to “run out the clock” by delaying assignments until the deadlines have passed.

SB 1467, the AzCDL-requested Campus Carry bill.

SB 1610, a bill that would establish the Colt Single Action Army Revolver as the state firearm.

SCR 1020, a proposed Constitutional Amendment that would protect crime victims from law suits by those who harm them. Assuming it passes out of the legislature, SCR 1020 will be sent to the Secretary of State to be placed on the ballot.

The House Leadership needs to hear from you, politely urging them to assign these bills to the appropriate committees right away. A letter has been prepared,addressed to the entire House Leadership, and is waiting for you at our Legislative Action Center:
http://capwiz.com/azcdl/issues/alert/?alertid=36503501
Feel free to edit the text, or send it “as is.” When you are done, complete the “Sender Information” and click on “Send Message.”

The time for action is now! Your freedom depends on it.

Stay tuned! When critical legislation moves, we will notify you via these Alerts.

A list of the firearms and self-defense related bills, along with links, that AzCDL is
monitoring can be found at our website: http://www.azcdl.org/html/2011_bills.html

These alerts are a project of the Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL), an all volunteer, non-profit, non-partisan grassroots organization. Renew your membership today! http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html

You can also follow AzCDL on Facebook:
http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDL , and during the legislative session, we send
out updates via Twitter: http://twitter.com/AzCDL_Alerts .

AzCDL’s Political Action Committee (PAC) is also on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDLPAC

LuckyGunner Special on 308 Ammo

LuckyGunner.com is offering a special promotion through Friday March 25th 2011 for $30 off bulk orders of 308 Ammunition. To take advantage of this limited time offer use coupon code "Magtech308-$30OFF" while checking out. Happy St Patrick's Day!

AZ: NRA-ILA Legislative Alert

From the NRA-ILA:

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Session continues in Phoenix and several bills reported previously need your support. The House Judiciary Committee is set to consider two bills important to not only Arizona’s firearm owners.

As reported last week, Senate Bill 1201 passed in the Senate on its final reading by a vote of 21 to 8, with one absent. This pro-gun bill is a comprehensive firearms reform measure which would make a number of improvements to Arizona’s carry laws. Most importantly, it would help put an end to “gun free” signs limiting your right to carry in most currently prohibited places and unsecured buildings. This reasonable right-to-carry reform legislation is designed to prohibit the arbitrary lines created by these signs which currently restrict your right to self-defense.

Also, Senate Bill 1469 had its first reading in the House yesterday and was referred to the House Judiciary Committee for consideration. This important self-defense reform would strengthen the current “Castle Doctrine” self-defense law by broadening the definition of reasonable use of force, including deadly force, to provide greater protection for those forced to defend themselves from an attacker.

Please contact members of the House Judiciary Committee listed here and respectfully urge them to vote in favor of SB 1201 and SB 1469.

Yesterday, the full Senate passed Senate Bill 1467 by a 21 to 7 vote, with two votes absent. With an NRA-backed amendment attached, SB 1467 would prohibit an educational institution from adopting or enforcing any policy prohibiting the possession of a concealed weapon by a permit holder or regulating the lawful transportation or storage of a firearm. SB 1467 will now move to the House for its next committee assignment.

On Monday, March 14, House Bill 2645 successfully passed out of the Senate Judiciary Committee by a vote of 7 to 1. The bill is designed to meet the requirements of the federal NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007 by enabling persons who have lost their firearm rights because of a mental health-related commitment or adjudication to petition a court to have them restored. Before granting a petition, the court would have to find that the person is not likely to act in a manner that is dangerous to public safety and that granting the requested relief would not be contrary to the public interest. This bill will ensure that people who can safely and responsibly possess firearms are not unnecessarily deprived of their rights.

HB 2645 now moves to the Senate floor to be scheduled for a vote by the full chamber.

Please keep checking your e-mail and www.NRAILA.org for further updates on SB 1467 and HB 2645.

Copyright 2011, National Rifle Association of America, Institute for Legislative Action. This may be reproduced. It may not be reproduced for commercial purposes. 11250 Waples Mill Road, Fairfax, VA 22030 800-392-8683

AZ: Campus Carry passes out of Senate

SB1467 Campus Carry Passed out of the Senate today 21 to 7 with 2 Senators not voting. It will go to the House next.

AZ 2011 Bills

There are a lot of great firearm related bills being considered in Arizona this year. There are also some bad firearm related bills. You can keep track of all of them from directly from the AZCDL 2011 Legislation Page. Each bill has a brief description and notes whether the AZCDL supports, opposes, or is neutral on the bill. It also has a link to the Arizona Legislature website with current bill status information such as bill text, votes, and even video of any related floor debates or committee hearings.

John Lott on Campus Carry

John R Lott Jr hits it out of the park once again with another great article that describes why attempting to create a so-called "gun free zone" on our college campuses is a ridiculous idea.

Some Democrats in AZ Lump Magazines with RPGs

20 Democrats in Arizona have signed on as Sponsors for HB 2711 which if passed and signed into law would lump people caught with unauthorized Rocket Propelled Grenades in the same boat as those caught holding magazines with capacities greater than 10 rounds of ammunition! Unbelievable.

Essentially, this group of sponsors wish to add so-called "large capacity ammunition feeding device" to a list of items that are called "prohibited weapons" which in Arizona currently includes bombs, RPGs, grenades, and other items. They wish to define their so-called "large capacity ammunition feeding device" essentially as any magazine, drum, or strip which either can handle or could be modified to handle more than ten rounds of ammunition. Perhaps someone should explain to them that magazines are not weapons? Or is that simply beyond their ability to grasp?

If this particular group of Democrats can't grasp the simple fact that a crazy terrorist who is willing to break laws that prohibit shooting people would probably not hesitate to break a ban against so-called "large capacity ammunition feeding devices," how in the world could we expect them to grasp something as difficult to comprehend as what the definition of a weapon is? For any of the twenty who happen to know how to read, here is the definition of what a weapon is just for you. Let me know if you would like me to read it for you, I can read it slowly if you would like:

Weapon: "any instrument or device for use in attack or defense in combat, fighting, or war, as a sword, rifle, or cannon." - so essentially, the only way a magazine by itself could really be used as a weapon, would be if I beat someone over the head with it. Somewhat effective at close range, but not optimal in most situations. A baseball bat would be more effective as a weapon than a so-called large capacity ammunition feeding device, but I certainly hope they don't plan to ban those next!

If signed into law this bad legislation could surprise any average law abiding citizen with a Class 4 Felony simply because they happen to be caught carrying a standard Glock 17 and a few standard capacity 17 round magazines on their person - the very same magazine used by many Police departments all around the US.

I am SO VERY GLAD that our legislature is not in the hands of the 20 Democrats who signed onto this bill, and I am going to e-mail each and every one of them to tell them exactly what I think about the legislation they so happily signed their names to.

Senator Boxer is Dancing in Blood

Not even a month has gone by and already Senator Boxer has announced that she plans to attack the freedoms of law abiding American citizens by introducing legislation that would make it illegal to bear arms without a special permission slip from the Feds. What part of "shall not infringe" does she not understand? What part of "Keep and BEAR arms" is unintelligible? The Second Amendment doesn't say anything about requiring a special piece of paper wrapped in plastic. The 2nd Amendment is my Permit. Period.

The dirt-bag terrorist who attacked innocent victims in Arizona last month broke the law when he filled out his background check form with lies stating he had never used any illegal drugs. He broke the law when he used the illegal drugs in the first place. He obviously broke the law when he started shooting innocent victims. Having one more broken law on the books would not have stopped him any more than what the existing draconian gun laws in New York City have done for the skyrocketing violent crime in New York City.

The only thing that can stop an armed terrorist dirt-bag is an armed potential victim - I say potential victim because an armed potential victim also has the potential of defending himself (or herself), quite the opposite of an unarmed defenseless victim. Infringing the rights of law abiding citizens with new pointless laws in the hope of stopping crazy people from doing crazy things is wishful thinking at best, and complete idiocy at worst. My vote is for the latter of the two.

AZ AG Responds to Bloomberg

As you have probably heard by now, Mayor Bloomberg is once again out and about trying to close up the so-called "gun show loophole" which doesn't yet prevent individual Americans from buying and selling their own personal property without conducting the criminal background check that is required of commercial gun dealers. If it isn't odd enough that Mayor Bloomberg isn't even asking the right questions, it should certainly be odd that he is asking them 2,400 miles away from the town he was hired to be the Mayor of.

Arizona Attorney General Tom Horn Agrees:

“I would suggest that Mayor Bloomberg consider the skyrocketing crime rate in New York City before he asks any more of his city’s police to leave town on these p.r. missions. According to the most recent FBI statistics, violent crime in New York City increased significantly in 2010 compared to data from 2009. Robbery went up 3.9 percent, forcible rape rose 13.9 percent, aggravated assault increased 8.8 percent and murder rose 12.3 percent. Clearly, the good men and women of the New York City Police Department have more pressing crimes to investigate than alleged violations at a gun show 2,400 miles away.”

Sheriff Joe had something to say about it as well.

Update 1: More from John R. Lott Jr.

My Thoughts on a Dirt-bag Terrorist

I send out my thoughts, prayers, and condolences to the families of the victims as well as to the victims themselves, who were the targets of the cold blooded attack by the dirt-bag terrorist in Tucson two and a half weeks ago. I won't use the name of the dirt-bag because I believe he has less dignity than a bag of dirt. A bag of dirt is never a cold blooded murderer. A bag of dirt would not be a terrorist. If the dirt-bag terrorist had as much dignity as a bag of dirt I would list the name his parents gave him, but he does not, so on this blog he will be known only as a dirt-bag.

As an Arizona resident, I have had a unique perspective as I have watched the media coverage unfold. The misinformation from the left that has been fed to us over the last two and a half weeks has been unbelievable even if not unexpected. Since the very first day of the attack, I believe the Lamestream media has managed to find and interview nearly every anti-gun cockroach in our entire Country, most of them spewing incoherent babble. In Tucson Sheriff Dupnik immediately blamed organizations and entire groups of people for the actions of the dirt-bag terrorist without even a hint of evidence to back up his words. Out of California, McCarthy, already famous for her description of a barrel shroud as a shoulder thing that goes up, proposed new legislation that would make it illegal to sell magazines that can hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition. Out of Long Island, we have Peter King proposing a thousand foot magical bubble that would surround all special people that Peter believes have more value than the rest of us, and the list of cockroaches crawling out of the woodwork just keeps growing as the days go by.

If we can all just step back one moment and take a rational look at the issues being discussed, perhaps I can offer some perspective. How can any new law make illegal actions more illegal than they already are? How can we prevent mad men from doing mad things? You can't stop crazy people from doing crazy things by making up crazy new laws. It's preposterous. There is no possible way to prevent acts of terrorism by determined dirt-bags. Any new restrictions on guns would only restrict the law abiding, just as the current laws that prohibit illegal drugs are ignored by the drug cartels that are running the multi trillion dollar drug market. We can't predict who will be the next terrorist dirt-bag, but we can prepare via training and preparation so that if the next terrorist pops up to attack innocent lives while one of us is nearby we can respond by defending ourselves, stopping the terrorist quickly with some well placed return fire. We just have to be prepared and aware of our surroundings.

As Ronald Reagan said:

"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free."

May we all continue to fight to maintain ALL of our Freedoms! May God Continue to Bless & Watch Over our Great Nation!

Bad news for California

This year Californians find themselves subject to 725 brand new laws, such as one law that could land parents in jail for not having an "approved" excuse for enough missed school days, and another law that makes it illegal to build a building that isn't "energy efficient" enough to make Al Gore smile.

To make matters worse for my friends in California, I recently met an anti-gun Progressive Liberal who is planning to move from Arizona to California because he feels there are not enough restrictions on our rights here in Arizona. He told me that while he "supports the 2nd Amendment" he doesn't feel anyone should actually be "allowed" to bear arms. When I asked him what part of bear arms he fails to understand when he claims to support the Second Amendment, he gave me a deer in the headlights look. Probably the same look he'll have if he is ever unlucky enough to get mugged in his currently unarmed defenseless state.

All I can say is good riddance, but to my friends in California I do send my condolences for yet another anti-freedom Progressive that will be heading your way.

AZ Campus Carry HB 2014

Representative Harper has filed Campus Carry HB 2014 for the 2011 Arizona Legislative Session.

Below is the key text of HB 2014:

NOTWITHSTANDING SUBSECTION D OF THIS SECTION, THE GOVERNING BOARD OF ANY UNIVERSITY, COLLEGE OR COMMUNITY COLLEGE SHALL NOT ENACT OR ENFORCE ANY POLICY OR RULE THAT PROHIBITS THE POSSESSION OF A CONCEALED WEAPON BY A PERSON WHO POSSESSES A VALID PERMIT RECOGNIZED OR ISSUED PURSUANT TO SECTION 13-3112 OR THE TRANSPORTATION OR STORAGE OF A FIREARM PURSUANT TO SECTION 12‑781.

Optimally I'd rather not have the CCW permit requirement, but that provision may be required to get the bill passed. You could think of this as a football game that we're winning, and we're trying for another 1st down as we fight towards the ultimate goal of fully restoring our freedoms.

Be sure to contact your representatives to ask for their support. It is high time we eliminate the existing defenseless victim zones at Arizona Colleges and Universities. The so-called "Gun Free Zone" is now well proven to be a failed experiment which has been utilizing our students and faculty as defenseless lab rats, many of which have paid the ultimate price. Although Liberal Progressives dream of it, I have yet to hear of a single Rapist, Murderer, or Criminal Psychopath who has actually disarmed himself voluntarily simply because he saw a Gun Free Zone sign posted on a wall.

You can read some of Representative Harper's comments on the bill at verdenews.com