April 2007 – Page 3 – Shall Not Be Questioned

M950 out of battery detonation update

I discovered Calico is still in business. They managed to survive the hi-cap magazine ban. So I gave them a call.

While they have never heard of the exact failure mode I had, they said that with the older bolt design (which my gun has), they have seen a few rare cases of the gun firing out of battery as the bolt is closing. As Armed Canadian pointed out the bolt was damaged when the shell ruptured. For around $100 they’ll repair the bolt and upgrade it to the current design. If I ship them the whole gun they’ll clear the barrel, inspect everything, and test fire it.

The people in charge of the gun club where the accident occurred are interested in what happened, so I’m going to do a little show and tell there (any maybe give them my eyeglass lens to stick up on the bulletin board), and then I’ll probably ship the gun off to Calico.

Article in the Rutgers Observer

This article in the Rutgers Observer is worthy of some perusal.Â They have a comment section, so feel free to (politely and respectfully) inform them of our viewpoint on the issue:

Five weeks ago, Cho Seung-Hui used a credit card to purchase a Glock 19 handgun and a box of ammunition. He paid $571.

In the mid-90’s Bubba Clinton signed a ban on assault rifles with no conceivable civilian use during a period when Democrats across the country were trying to impose modest gun controls. However, pandering to the NRA, Republicans have done their best to ward off even the slightest gun controls, exemplified in President Bush allowing the aforesaid ban to lapse in 2004.

Yes, even though the killer didn’t use an “assault weapon”, we nontheless have to once again ban bayonet lugs and flash hiders.

Single Issue Voter?

Reader KathyH brought up something in the comments about single issue voting, which got me interested.Â Â Just out of curiosity, how many of you folks are single issue voters?

I am not, generally, believe it or not.Â I’ve never voted for someone outright hostile to gun-rights, but I have voted for politicians who were less than staunch allies because I agreed with them on other things.Â Despite the fact that I think our senior senator, Arlen Specter, is batty and often annoying, I’ve consistently voted for him, because on a lot of other issues, I agree with him on.

I also voted against Rick Santorum, despite is strong support of gun rights, because while I’m willing to accept some token social conservatism, he took the issue to new and insane heights, and I thought he deserved to get kneecapped because of it.

My major issues tend to change from election cycle to election cycle, but 2008 presidential it’s shaping to be:

Foreign Policy
Supreme Court
Smaller government
Firearms Policy

I actually suspect 2008 won’t feature much gun control, so I think that issue could end up being off the table.Â It will come down to the other three.Â I can’t rank in any order, because it depends greatly on how much the candidate offends or supports each view.Â My support for Richardson over other Democrats reflects my desire to see gun control completely off the agenda, but that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t vote for Guiliani over Richardson, if Richardson proposed something like, pulling our of Iraq and leaving the field to Iran and Al-Qaeda.

I’m also very concerned with seeing judges appointed to the Supreme Court who follow what the law says, rather than what they wish it to be.Â I tend to agree more with Republicans on this issue than Democrats.Â Though I support keeping abortion legal, I don’t favor how the Supreme Court chose to go about doing it.Â So I don’t get quite that worked up as your averge Democrat when someone says they think Roe was wrongly decided.

Gun control ranks high in my political calculus, but it’s not overwhelmingly dominant.Â This means I will probably never vote for a candidate who is explicitly running on a campaign of gun control, but other things can offend me as well.

Putting the “C” in Crazy

While the Pennsylvania media is busy writing about how insane Pennsylvania gun owners are, I decided to look up the person who was apparently responsible for the banner which gave the people allied against us all the ammo they need:

Alan Kiser

Warning, the web page will annoy you with cheesy music. I happen to believe that people who assault my ears with cheesy music because I loaded their page should most definitely be hung from the tree of liberty. Leave it to a third party dude to bring the crazy to the party eh?

Constitution Party of Pennsylvania

Ahhh! More crappy music! I love the use of vibrato on some sections that just kind of bashes you over the head. I think it might have stolen my wallet too.

Now I’m not bashing third parties here folks. They serve a very valuable purpose in making the two main political parties, who are about as worthless as the dirt on the bottom of my shoe, seem sane and reasonable. The sad part is that I support a lot of constitutionalist views. I just can’t abide by the freaky religious stuff and rhetoric that underlies much of what the CP does.

Glad I Didn’t Go!

This is one for the “How Not to Win Column”:

HARRISBURG — A sign waved at a gun supporters’ rally Tuesday outraged lawmakers who interpreted it as suggesting the lynching of a Philadelphia legislator and said they would report the incident to police as a death threat.

Two men stunned onlookers by raising the banner criticizing Democratic Rep. Angel Cruz, sponsor of a bill that would create a registry of gun owners and require people to pay a yearly $10 fee for each gun or face state police confiscation of their weapons. Cruz should be “hung from the tree of liberty for treasonous acts against the Constitution,” the sign read.

Are you friggin kidding me?Â Look, I’m against the gun registration as much as anyone, and I’d like nothing more than to see Cruz pay a political price for it.Â But let’s get real here.Â The proper remedy for a politician going against their political oath is to throw them out of office, not to suggest they ought to be hanged.Â This just makes us look insane.

The sign was “over the top,” Cruz said, but he said attendees had a right to express their opinions. He said people outside of Philadelphia don’t understand what it’s like in a city where “five or six killings” happen a day.

In the rest of Pennsylvania, “they don’t hunt human beings like they do in Philadelphia,” said Cruz, whose bill is before the House Judiciary Committee.

Imagine that.Â Lots of guns, and we don’t kill each other. Â Maybe Philadelphia has a criminal problem rather than a gun problem?

Republican Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, of Cranberry, a strong supporter of gun owners’ rights who helped organize the rally, said the sign contained “horrible statements” that had no place in a conversation about politics and policy. The people involved did not represent the event organizers, he said.

Geez guys, you even pissed off Daryl Metcalfe! Â He’s one of the staunchest supporters of gun rights in the legislature.

“The overwhelming majority of gun owners are not criminals. …They are not madmen, and they shouldn’t be treated as such. They’re hunters and sportsmen,” said Rep. Jesse White, a Democrat who represents portions of Washington, Beaver and Allegheny counties.

He’s right.Â It’s a pity a few bozos had to suggest otherwise.

No Thanks

Mike S. Adams of Townhall has an idea on how to prevent future tragedies:

Because there are two ways to buy a handgun in North Carolina (with a CCW or with a one-time pistol purchase permit) there are two types of people who are able to buy guns; 1) Those with a CCW who have been subjected to criminal background checks, have released full medical and psychiatric records, and have taken a firearms safety course. 2) Those who obtained a purchase permit by submitting to a criminal background check, without releasing medical and psychiatric records, and without taking a firearms safety course.

At this point in the column Iâ€™m ready to unleash the first three steps in my four-step proposal for preventing mass killings on college campuses. The first two steps will not surprise my readers but the third will:

All states should allow citizens to apply for a CCW. All states should allow those with a CCW to buy guns without a separate pistol purchase permit.
All states should eliminate pistol purchase permits immediately.

So you’re suggesting that we license gun owners, essentially.Â How is that different from what the gun controllers are suggesting?Â You don’t license a right.

Hat Tip to War On Guns

Fred Thompson? Why Not

I’ve heard Fred Thompson say enough good things lately to really start hoping he runs. I am currently registered as a Libertarian, which means I don’t vote in primaries in Pennsylvania, but I would gladly switch my registration to either of the two parties if they can front someone I’d be willing to vote for.

I was thinking I might actually register Democrat so I could vote for Bill Richardson, but if Fred decides to throw his hat into the ring, I’ll register Republican and vote for him. Given that my other choice are the three stooges on the Republican ticket, Thompson seems like he might be a breath of fresh air.

It’s still early yet, and there’s plenty of time to disappoint, but given that Obama might actually beat Hillary, I might find myself hard pressed to find a Republican I won’t vote for given that choice.

UPDATE: Be sure to check out Frank J’s Daily Fred Thompson Fact

PA Gun Registration – House Bill 760

I have gotten an update on the status of the Pennsylvania Gun Registration bill from Representative Sam Rohrer. Here’s the relevant excerpt:

The provisions of House Bill 760 are, in my opinion, unconstitutional, impractical and simply outrageous. Without question, a requirement to register all firearms with the State Police, to submit to fingerprinting, to provide full home address and social security number or be guilty of a summary offense as House Bill 760 would require, is an example of the clear violation of the citizenâ€™s right to keep and bear arms. For any member to sponsor, cosponsor or support legislation that clearly infringes upon constitutionally identified and guaranteed rights raises a serious question as to whether this action violates the oath that Members took to defend and protect the citizenâ€™s rights as guaranteed in the Constitutions of the United States and of Pennsylvania.

House Bill 760 would not only impose a violation of our constitutional rights through invasive government requirements, it would also tax our right to own firearms through a $10.00 tax to be levied every year on each firearm.

On Wednesday, April 18, 2007, Representative Caltagirone, who is the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, was quoted in the Pittsburgh Tribune Review. In reference to the House Bill 760 moving out of Judiciary Committee, Representative Caltagirone said, â€œItâ€™s not going anywhere.â€ His decision has much to do with the responses from each and every one of you.

Good work on both the part of Representative Rohrer and Pennsylvania gun owners. But he goes on to remind us that we have to remain vigalilent. It’s been my opinion that HB 760 was never meant to get anywhere, but serves as political cover for one-gun-a-month. By giving gun rights advocates something to focus their energies on, that had no chance of passing, it would wear us out in the fight to make sure gun rationing never becomes law in the commonwealth.

I think he’s right this bill isn’t going anywhere, but beware of gun rationing. That issue won’t go away.

Gun Rights Conference Today in Harrisburg

The Allegheny County Sportsman’s League (sort of like PA’s version of VCDL) is holding a Gun Rights Conference today in Harrisburg:

We all knew the challenges we would face after last yearâ€™s election and our darkest fears are being realized. The only way to defeat this is to join together once again and show those who would take our freedoms that we will not yield.

We will join together for an early preemptive strike on our issues by having a lobbying and education day, focusing on freshmen legislators, and connect that with launching our pro-gun agenda, as we did last year. Members of the Pennsylvania grassroots and gun ownerâ€™s coalition, which has been so successful for us on other issues, met with Representative Daryl Metcalfe in early December to devise a strategy for the upcoming session so that we would be prepared to deal with these issues. The date we have agreed upon is April 24^th and we will combine our meeting and lobbying with another Pro-Gun Press conference to introduce our pro-gun/pro-sportsmen agenda of legislation. We can also use this opportunity to excoriate the anti-gun forces, legislators and issues.

I went to the last rally at Harrisburg last September, where the house defeated, pretty overwhelmingly, the gun control wishlist of the Philadelphia politicians in the Committee of the Whole.Â I feel bad that I can’t get to this one to cover it, especially given that I have a freshman state representative, but I could end up short on vacation this year.Â Maybe next time.

Why The Hughes Amendment Must Go

It’s destroying our history.Â If it weren’t for the FOPA provision that made registering new machine guns illegal, this piece of our history wouldn’t be at risk.