The right of the citizens to bear arms in defense of themselves and the State …
Our opponents like to suggest the idea that Fast and Furious was actually a plot to drive trace numbers from Mexico up to make the case for new gun controls is crazy talk whipped up by Fox News. Now that right-wing militia rag known as Investors Business Daily is fanning the flames of this conspiracy.
I’m generally to quick to try to put a fork in screwball conspiracies, but I don’t find this one far fetched. In fact, it’s really the only explanation that fits the facts.
King County, Washington, home of Seattle, is passing an ordinance requiring all swimmers to wear a life preserver. Generally speaking, I would imagine if you’re actually swimming in the water, you probably know how to swim. If you don’t know how to swim, and you’re swimming in the water, you’re probably actually drowning. Presumably King County wants to stave off the possibility of someone who does not know how to swim trying to do it, and drowning.
Personally, I think all this interference with natural selection is going to come back and bite us in the ass in a few generations.
I for one feel a lot safer that our wonderful federal overseers have seen to rid the county (my the county) of the scourge of fake cosmetics at local flea markets.
I’ve been having a hard time sleeping because of all the hope and change, but now I will sleep like a baby knowing our federal friends are on the case. Obviously preventing petty fraud is well beyond the capabilities of state government, surely requiring strict federal intervention.
To be sure, I think the government has a role in preventing fraud. My main beef here is priorities, and which particular sovereign is doing this. I’m going to bet not expending federal monies sending guns to Mexican drug cartels is probably a better life saving proposition than raiding flea markets in Solebury Township, PA.
I guess I should just be happy they didn’t send in the SWAT team with helicopters.
The real risk in shaking up the leadership of ATF is that the Administration would take the inevitable position that it’s time for some adult leadership at ATF. Unfortunately, that appears to be coming in the form of Andrew Traver replacing Ken Melson This may not end up being a successful ploy by the Administration, but the obvious path toward political cover. While Obama can’t ram him through the Senate necessarily, he can always recess appoint him.
The Pennsylvania Senate just voted on Castle Doctrine this evening. PA Independent says the vote was 45-5, but the state website hasn’t yet updated with the roll call.
It now goes for the Governor’s signature.
Hey, when it comes to gay rights groups who hire former Massachusetts senators who partially made gun control a huge part of their political careers, well, they are 2 for 2 in being ousted amid “management differences.”
In the first case of Cheryl Jacques, she lasted a whooping 11 months after considering it “a difference in management philosophy” that Human Rights Campaign went 0-11 on gay rights ballot initiatives under her watch. In the second case of Jarrett Barrios, he just resigned after it came out that he cut a deal with AT&T for GLAAD to advocate for policies completely unrelated to their mission in exchange for donations. He must have been going for a record since he doubled Cheryl’s time with clocking an entire 22 months with the organization before scandal erupted.
So might I suggest to the boards of these organizations that former politicians who make their political careers on low hanging fruit (like gun control in Massachusetts) may not be the best folks to lead national organizations that actually have to consider real strategy and not piss off grassroots members. Just a suggestion.
It’s rather unusual for a politician to veto nanny state legislation, but Rick Perry has vetoed the texting while driving law passed by the legislature, considering it “a government effort to micromanage the behavior of adults.”
One of the main reasons to be against this kind of legislation is that it does not work. It’s a feel good measure, and one that is only going to result in yet another crime that will help fill state coffers when ordinary people are fined. We already lose most of our rights when we get behind the wheel.
Pennsylvania Senate Democrats put out a press release about an event hosted by a state senator on “gun safety.” I immediately wondered whether this version of “gun safety” was about gun control or actually using firearms safely. It’s tough to say:
State Sen. Judy Schwank (D-Berks) joined with several law enforcement officials today to hold a gun safety event at her district office. The event was intended to promote safe handling and storing of personal firearms.
“Proper storage and handling of firearms, especially in homes with small children, is crucial,†Schwank said. “It is my hope that through this event and the information we provide here today, more gun owners can keep their families safe through proper gun storage.â€
At the event, Sen. Schwank and Berks County District Attorney John Adams discussed the importance of properly securing guns with a gun lock.
There’s nothing in there that indicates a call for more gun control. But, we also know that the last Democratic candidate for governor kept using vague talking points on “gun locks” that actually translated into mandatory locked storage that has already been ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court – so some of her colleagues do have a history of taking some rather extreme liberties with the topic of gun locks as a matter of policy. Hopefully, she meant this event as strictly education and outreach rather than endorsing any kind of further restrictions on how we use firearms.
Unfortunately, there’s no grade on an NRA questionnaire by which to guide any assumptions about policies that may have been discussed. Her district, while certainly home to many local anti-gun politicians, was previously held by an NRA A-rated lawmaker who won their endorsement. The other potential signal for us would be the previous Castle Doctrine vote in the Senate, but that was on March 8 and she wasn’t elected until March 15 and did not actually take office until April 5. The only vote on the bill since she’s been in office has only been in a committee.
UPDATE: From a reader who attended the event: “I was at this event, and spoke with the Senator afterwards. For disclosure let me state that I volunteered with Medaglia’s campaign against her.
She supports HB40, and we should see her vote on that this week. She also thinks that current law is ‘sufficient’ when it comes to storage of firearms. So at this time at least she is not publicly calling for mandatory ‘safe storage’ laws.” Huge kudos for his efforts, and I’m glad that we know she appears to be ready to vote with us! To all of you who doubted in the comments based off nothing other than the press release or things you haven’t confirmed on your own, please let this be a reminder that getting involved is absolutely key to making a real difference on the issue.
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal that ruled NRA did not have standing to challenge the Lost and Stolen ordinances appearing around the Commonwealth. This basically means that a lawsuit will have to be brought by someone actually prosecuted under some of these ordinances, which as far as I know has not yet occurred. For a law our opponents tell us is an important law enforcement tool, badly needed to fight gun trafficking, you’d think they could point to at least one prosecution?
None of the higher ups knew about it? That’s funny since this morning, the House Oversight and Government Committee uploaded this video that highlights how ATF’s Acting Director was briefed on the program to knowingly run guns into Mexico weekly last year. Rep. Darrell Issa says that the ATF leadership was actually “excited” by the program to the point that they sat around watching these sales happen on video.