Sebastian – Page 1021 – Shall Not Be Questioned

Ohio Carry Permits Saved from Fee Hike

It looks like the cost of a concealed carry permit in Ohio was going to be increased without too much debate until NRA stepped in around 1am this morning.

A fee increase for concealed-carry licenses survived inside House Bill 450 through the entire day Wednesday and even into early Thursday morning. But itâ€™s never too late for the National Rifle Association to make things happen.

The bill, which passed the Senate by an overwhelming margin several hours earlier in the evening, was called up for reconsideration just before 1 a.m. Thursday morning, after the NRA and others contacted Republican lawmakers and expressed concern about an amendment to the bill that would increase fees for concealed-carry permits.

The fee was stripped out because there seems to have been some major miscommunication on it. The hike was requested by the county sheriffs who lose money from their normal operating budgets every time they issue one. Some GOP lawmakers were told the increase was only about $3-5, but apparently it was worded so the fees could be hiked another $25.

Gun Industry Health

SayUncle has a pretty good summation of how the gun industry is doing.Â In short, hunting continues to decline, while the shooting sports and self-defense markets are running hot.Â I think the industry’s efforts to attempt to revive hunting are important, but agree with Uncle that they should recognize who’s driving their business right now.

My Kind of Politician, Part II

We’ve talked about Jerry Patterson, the Texas Land Comissioner, before.Â This time he’s taking a dim view of running for U.S. Senate if Kay Bailey Hutchinson runs for Governer:

“Just like Johnny Cash, I’d definitely take my guns to town,” Patterson said. “Living in D.C. would be tough only because of the lack of gun ranges and available ammunition.”

Paraphrasing his quote from a recent West Texas land controversy, Patterson added “No guns, no hunting, no Senate.”

That is perhaps the best reason I have ever heard from a politician for not running for an office.Â Read the whole thing.Â It’s a hoot.

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Encourages Law Breaking

They are taking the Mayor of Pittsburgh to task because he won’t sign an illegal law:

For all the mayor’s good words to council, that statement to state lawmakers would have been stronger if the city’s highest elected official had affixed his signature to it. That would have been real leadership.

Is real leadership being demonstrated by Philadelphia?Â A city that’s running out money to such a degree that they are closing fire stations and cutting back on other essential services, but yet has the money to fight for worthless gun control measures in Pennsylvania’s courts with almost no chance of prevailing?Â That’s the kind of leadership you want to see out of Pittsburgh?Â I think Mayor Ravenstahl has demonstrated leadership, which the Post-Gazette wouldn’t apparently recognized if they were slapped in the face with it.

Published in the Federal Register

The National Park Service rule allowing for concealed carry in National Parks has been published in the Federal Register.Â This starts the clock ticking for it to go into effect on January 9th.Â Bitter and I will be paying a visit to Valley Forge National Park, shortly thereafter, both armed with a lawfully concealed pistol, the way our founding fathers intended.

Damage Control

Gun Clubs in Massachusetts are talking about how safe they are:

“We look at safety so seriously that any accident, especially a fatal accident like this, is going to rock our members for years,” Wallace said.

“But this is so rare; if you look at other activities kids are involved in, shooting sports at the ranges is probably the safest activity kids can get involved in,” he said.

It’s all true, but most people are smart clubs are smart enough to know you don’t give an eight year old a micro-uzi and let him try to dump a magazine.

Gun Buyback Sponsor Convicted on Gun Charges

Convicted on federal weapons charges for being a felon-in-possession.Â He had sponsored gun buybacks in the past in cooperation with an organization that promotes giving up guns and violence as a means of solving problems.

NTRFR Testimony

Looks like someone’s beating a conviction for having an unregistered Title II firearm because of ATF mismanaging the registry.Â That’s not to say they can’t obtain convictions on other evidence, so don’t get any ideas.Â But it would appear they will have difficulty obtaining them of that is the only evidence of the crime.

World War II Veterans

Thirdpower has some.

Gun Nutty Pittsburgh

Allegheny County, which is home to Pittsburgh, issues more licenses to carry than any other county in the state:

About one in 20 people in Allegheny County has a permit to carry a concealed firearm, state police records show. With 60,000 licensed gun owners, the county has more than any county in the state. Statewide, more than 800,000 people can carry a concealed weapon.

That figure for the whole state is a lot higher than previously reported.Â Could be wrong, or it could be we’ve had an increase in the number of people seeking licenses.