About once a month, Dave Kopel produces a free e-mail Newsletter containing short summaries and links to important new research and writing involving the Second Amendment and firearms policy. The newsletter also reports on Kopel's latest writing.
The content of this newsletter is produced by the Second Amendment Project at the Independence Institute, a think tank in Golden, Colorado. The newsletter is electronically distributed by the Second Amendment Foundation in Bellevue, Washington. Thus, the Second Amendment Foundation will be given your e-mail address.
Archive of past issues.
Dave Kopel's Second Amendment Newsletter. October 25, 2005.
Dave Kopel's Second Amendment Project is based at the Independence
Institute, a free-market think tank in Golden, Colorado.
http://www.independenceinstitute.org
Delivery of this newsletter comes courtesy of the Second Amendment Foundation, in Bellevue, Washington
Please visit Dave Kopel's website, containing articles on the Second Amendment and other freedom topics.
Table of Contents for this issue
1. Blogging by Kopel: VICTORY on abusive lawsuits; Brazil; Armed women in Kashmir and Jordan. Harriet Miers' pro-gun article.
Dangerous proposal to weaken Posse Comitatus Act.
2. New translations of Kopel articles: Encyclopedia articles on gun laws of Mexico (in Spanish); A World without Guns (in Portuguese).
3. Law and Lawsuits: NYC threatens Cops; FEMA Gun Ban; Legal Cases
4. International: African and Arabian Small Arms Conventions; Armenian Presents; Canadian gun policies and culture; Dunblane Killer
5. States: Alaska; Brady Campaign Smears Florida; Michigan and Wisconsin CCR
6. Research: VPC Study; Canadian Statistics
7. Culture: Rifle 7th Most Important Tool; New Quigley Book; Nurse's RKBA Blog; Schumer and Feinstein Carry Concealed
1. Blogging by Kopel
Dave's other blog entries can be accessed online off Kopel's Corner at:
http://www.davidkopel.org/Corner/Latest.htm
Brazil Gun Prohibition Referendum
David Kopel
The Volokh Conspiracy
October 23, 2005
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2005_10_23-2005_10_29.shtml#1130104005
Brazilian voters today will decide whether to prohibit the commercial
sale or manufacture of all firearms and ammunition, except for police
and military use. Polling stations, which use computer voting, close at
5 p.m. First results are expected around 8 p.m., and final results
around midnight. Brazil's President Lula has strongly supported gun
prohibition, and pushed it through the legislature, only to have the
Brazilian Supreme Court declare the prohibition unconstitutional. Lula
has also proposed a United Nations tax on ammunition to pay for
"development" (that is, a UN-sponsored transfer of money to corrupt
governments such as his).
Various polls showed the referendum with as high as 76-83% approval
months ago. But a superb campaign, lead by "Vote Não" has educated the
public about the dangers of gun prohibition--including the fact that
citizens would be defenseless against criminals (who will keep their
guns no matter what the law says) and against totalitarian government.
The latest polls show the referendum failing by a 10-18% margin, and
Lula is now distancing himself from the referendum.
The referendum was strongly supported by the international gun
prohibition movement, which mobilized scores of celebrities and other
notables to campaign for the referendum. The prohibitionists made no
secret of their plan to use Brazil as a springboard for prohibition in
other countries--starting with the rest of Latin America, and South
Africa.
Even with a "Não" vote, Brazil's gun laws will remain extremely
repressive, as they are deliberately designed to make gun licensing
unaffordable to poor people.
Still, a victory for self-defense and civil liberties advocates in
Brazil would be a stunning repudiation of the international gun
prohibition movement. Although the Brazilian vote has received only a
little attention in the United States, its long-term significance for
the survival of the Second Amendment is enormous. It would be
difficult, and perhaps impossible, for a robust Second Amendment to
survive in the United States if the prohibition movement achieved its
goals in the rest of the world.
A law student or other scholar who can read Portuguese could write a
very interesting and important article on the subject of Brazilian gun
laws and the recent campaign for prohibition.
UPDATE: With 71% of polling places reporting, the "Não" votes are ahead
65%-35%. If no vote stays over 60%--a landslide--the damage to the
international gun prohibition movement will be especially severe.
The overwhelming public rejection of disarming innocent citizens may be
playing an important role in the development of rights consciousness in
Brazil. Consider this comment from an American working for a Brazilian
gun prohibition group:
"Their whole campaign (against the ban) was imported from the United
States. They just translated a lot of material from the NRA. Now, a lot
of Brazilians are insisting on their right to bear arms, they don't
even have a pseudo right to bear arms. It's not in their Constitution,"
said Jessica Galeria, an American who researches gun violence with the
Viva Rio think tank.
It's true that Brazil--unlike the United States, Guatemala, or
Mexico--does not have an explicit constitutional right to arms. But
various provisions of the Brazilian Constitution imply the right to
possess the means to defend oneself.
For example, Article 5, section 11 states:
the home is the inviolable asylum of the individual, and no one may
enter it without the dweller's consent, save in the case of "flagrante
delicto" or disaster, or to give help, or, during the day, by court
order;
Note that the above provision is limited not limited to "state action."
The right to exclude burglars from the home is just as strong as the
right to exclude rogue police.
More generally, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights recognizes a
right to forcibly resist tyranny (a purpose of arms-bearing which was
repeatedly stated in the "Vote Não" campaign).
And the natural right of self-defense is one of the foundations of the
Western and Catholic traditions of natural law--recognized by Thomas
Aquinas and by the current Catechism of the Catholic Church (see, e.g.,
sections 2263-65). Surely the long Catholic tradition of the legitimacy
of forcible self-defense is of some relevance in the
rights-consciousness of an overwhelmingly Catholic nation. (I realize,
of course, that Brazilian Bishops urged a "yes" vote on the referendum;
the majority of the laity obviously disagreed with them, as the laity
has every right to do, according to Catholic doctrine, in prudential
matters of public affairs). Perhaps the referendum will encourage a
future Brazilian government to recognize the obviously strong respect
that Brazilians have for the right of self-defense, and to amend the
Constitution to provide more explicit protections against the invasions
of natural rights that might be attempted should a Lula-type ruler gain
power some day in the future.
MORE UPDATE: With 75% of the vote counted, Reuters has called the
election for "Não," and the prohibitionists have conceded.
ANOTHER UPDATE: With 92% of the vote in, the results are 64% to 36%.
For those of you who read Portuguese, two articles I've written, which
have been translated into Portuguese, are available here.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Congress Bans Abusive Anti-Gun Lawsuits:
David Kopel
The Volokh Conspiracy
October 20, 2005
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2005_10_16-2005_10_22.shtml#1129830865
At approximately noon, Eastern Time, the House of Representatives voted
to pass S. 397, 283-144. The bill, known as the "Protection of Lawful
Commerce in Arms Act," has been endorsed by the White House, and now
goes to the President for his signature.
The bill is the culmination a decade of tort reform work, aimed at
addressing the problem of abusive lawsuits against gun manufacturers.
The bill is an excellent exercise of the congressional power over
interstate commerce, for precisely the purpose for which Congress was
originally granted that power: the bill is necessary and proper to stop
local governments from interfering with interstate commerce, including
by attempting to use a verdict in a single state court to impose
national firearms controls which have been rejected by Congress and by
all state governments.
S. 397 is also a proper exercise of Congressional power under section 5
of the 14th Amendment, to prevent local governments, including local
courts, from infringing the Second Amendment rights (and the parallel
state constitutional rights in 44 states) which are guaranteed to all
law-abiding Americans.
In addition, the bill is also a necessary and proper exercise of the
Congressional war power, because the civilian firearms industry is now,
and always has been, essential to the production of firearms for the
military. Without a robust civilian firearms industry, manufacturers
who had to produce only for a military or police market would have to
charge much higher prices, and would innovate far less. Almost every
gun ever used by the U.S. military was originally developed for the
civilian market. Accordingly, the Department of Defense stated that is
"strongly supports" S. 397 because the bill "would help safeguard our
national security by limiting unnecessary lawsuits against an industry
that plays a critical role in meeting the procurement needs of our men
and women in uniform."
Thirty-four states had already enacted their own laws to prohibit such
suits, but Congressional action was necessary to ensure that a single
court in one of the hold-out states did not attempt to destroy the U.S.
firearms industry, or to impose the will of a single judge as a
national system of firearms restrictions.
The Brady Center, the instigator of the abusive suits, has already
expressed its intention to fight the new federal law in court.
Significantly, no court anywhere in the United States has ever ruled in
favor of similar challenges to the state statutes restricting abusive
lawsuits against Second Amendment rights.
The Senate added two unrelated items to S. 397, both of which have
caused concern among some Second Amendment activists:
First, the bill increases the already severe mandatory minimum
sentences for use of armor-piercing ammunition in a violent or drug
trafficking crime. Mandatory minimums are generally a bad idea, but
since actual armor-piercing ammunition, as defined by federal law, is
very rare, the practical effect of the new sentences will be very
small.
Second, the bill requires all licensed firearms dealers to include a
locking mechanism with each handgun they sale. Almost every American
manufacturer already includes a lock (either an internal lock or, more
commonly, a cable lock or trigger lock), with every new gun.
Accordingly, the main effect of S. 397's lock provision will be to
force sellers of used handguns to raise their price by several dollars
to provide customers an item that the customer may not need. (For
example, the customer may already own a gun safe, or may plan to keep
the handgun always ready for self-defense, so that it should not be
locked up.)
The bill also provides civil immunity for persons who use locking
devices. There have been a few state court cases in which guns were
effectively treated as ultra-hazardous products, and gun owners whose
guns were stolen and used in a crime were found civilly liable, even
though their guns had been stored in a safe.
Both of the extra provisions have slippery slope risks: Senator Kennedy
and a significant number of Senators favor expanding the definition of
"armor-piercing" ammunition so as to include the vast majority of
conventional rifle ammunition. And several states have enacted
dangerous laws which require handguns to be locked up, and thus
inaccessible for emergency self-defense.
However, the future dangers of slippery slopes are far outweighed by
the immediate threat posed by abusive lawsuits. On the whole, S. 397 is
an immense victory for constitutional rights.
For background on the abusive lawsuit issue, you may wish to read some
of the ten articles I've written on the subject, including the 1995
Seton Hall Legislative Journal article which argued that courts should
protect the Second Amendment from abusive lawsuits, just as they
protected the First Amendment from abusive lawsuits in New York Times
v. Sullivan. But even better than judicially-created protection is
legislatively-created protection. Today's bi-partisan vote is a
tremendous victory for the constitutional rights of citizens, and is
the result of Congress exercising its powers for precisely the
pro-freedom reasons for which those powers were granted to Congress by
the American people.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bellicose Women, Part XXX:
David Kopel
The Volokh Conspiracy
October 14, 2005
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2005_10_09-2005_10_15.shtml#1129329839
Jordanian brigadier general Aisha Bint Al Hussein carries on a long and honorable tradition of expertise
at arms among Bedouin women. As reported by StrategyPage:
"In the 19th century, when firearms became common among the Bedouin,
women became even more lethal as warriors, because firing a rifle did
not require the muscle of the older weapons (swords, spears and bows.)
In Saudi Arabia...the older women still remember the freedom women had
as recently as the 1950s. During that time, Islamic conservatives began
imposing more restrictions on women as the Bedouin nomads settled down.
But in Jordan, the women still have much freedom, in the ancient
Bedouin tradition. This causes some friction, as the urban and rural
Arabs adopted a much more restrictive attitude towards women. However,
the old ways are remembered, and are increasingly being seen as the
future for women in the Middle East."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bellicose Women, Part XXIX, India:
David Kopel
The Volokh Conspiracy
October 14, 2005
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2005_10_09-2005_10_15.shtml#1129321059
Since September 11, 2001, Glenn Reynolds has run at least 28 items
about "bellicose women" taking up arms to defend their families and
communities from terrorists. Thanks to the excellent pro-rights
newsletter "News from the Sight," I found that Muslim women in Kashmir
(many of the men are working in Gulf States) have founded a Village
Defense Committee to protect their towns from Islamic terrorists. One
mother explains, "It is an amazing feeling to hold a gun in one's hand
for a noble cause...I am proud to be fighting a jihad against these
marauders who cheated us of our dignity and honor."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Miers on the Right to Keep and Bear Arms:
David Kopel
The Volokh Conspiracy
October 3, 2005
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2005_10_02-2005_10_08.shtml#1128378033
The New Republic's fine &c blog points to a 1992 article she wrote for
the Texas Lawyer. In the article, she points to three infamous multiple
homicides in Texas: the 1966 Texas Tower Shooting, in which a man
climbed the clock tower at the University of Texas, and shot 14 people.
(He was finally stopped when two policemen and a civilian rushed the
building.) The second was the 1991 Killeen massacre, where a man
entered a Luby's Cafeteria, and methodically slaughtered unarmed 23
people. (The incident played a major role in Texas rescinding its ban
on carrying concealed handguns, and enacting a Shall Issue permit law.)
The third incident in Miers' article had taken place recently; a man
murdered two judges and two lawyers in a Fort Worth courthouse.
"How does a free society prevent" such crimes, she asked. She then explained:
The same liberties that ensure a free society make the innocent
vulnerable to those who prevent rights and privileges and commit
senseless and cruel acts. Those precious liberties include free speech,
freedom to assemble, freedom of liberties, access to public places, the
right to bear arms and freedom from constant surveillance. We are not
willing to sacrifice these rights because of the acts of maniacs.
Miers, however, rejected the notion that "precious liberties",
including "the right to bear arms," should be sacrificed in the name of
crime prevention. Quite obviously, she was referring to the "right to
bear arms" as an individual right.
It's technically possible that she was referring only to the Texas
Constitutional arms right, which clearly is individual, rather than to
the Second Amendment. However, the context of the quote does not seem
so constricted, and even to describe the Texas right a precious liberty
says a good deal about Ms. Miers' thinking.
She then explained the true solution to crime:
We will be successful in solving our massive crime problems only when
we attack the root causes....
We all can be active in some way to address the social issues that
foster criminal behavior, such as: lack of self-esteem or hope in some
segments of our society, poverty, lack of health care (particularly
mental health care), lack of education, and family dysfunction.
I agree, and have argued in the Barry Law Review that much-improved
pre-school programs for at-risk boys would be far more effective, in
the long run, at reducing violent crime than would gun control or even
more draconian "conservative" federal criminal laws.
As far as I know, you have to go back to Louis Brandeis to find a
Supreme Court nominee whose pre-nomination writing extolled the right
of armed self-defense. (I'll fill in the details on him in a subsequent
post.) And even Brandeis had not specifically mentioned "the right to
bear arms" as one of the "precious liberties" that "We are not willing
to sacrifice."
Many web writers have raised legitimate questions about Miers. In terms
of the right to arms, however, Americans who love their precious
liberties need not hope about the unknown, but need only expect her to
be consistent with what she has already said.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bush's Terrible Idea:
David Kopel
The Volokh Conspiracy
September 28, 2005
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2005_09_25-2005_10_01.shtml#1127923525
President Bush and Senator John Warner (R-Vir.) are pushing to create
additional loopholes in the Posse Comitatus Act, the law that prohibits
use of the military in domestic law enforcement. The drug enforcement
loopholes created in the 1980s have already led to the deaths of
innocent Americans. A "disaster" loophole could be even more dangerous.
The fact that local, state, and federal governments bungled some of the
initial response to Hurricane Katrina is not a good reason to destroy
the principle of separation of the military from civil law
enforcement--a principle at least as important to civil liberties as
the separation of church and state.
Gene Healy of the Cato Institute is the leading spokesman for the
pro-liberty side on the Posse Comitatus issue. A chapter I wrote in a
Cato book a few years ago provides some historical background, and
details the terrible results of the drug war loophole in the Posse
Comitatus Act. You can also watch a RealVideo/Audio of a 2002 Cato
Institute panel on the PCA, in which Rep. Bob Barr, Stephen Halbrook,
Paul Schott Stevens, and I discuss proposals to weaken or eliminate the
PCA.
2. Translations of Kopel
1. Mexican Gun Laws / Leyes del Arme de México.
For English:
http://www.davekopel.com/Espanol/Mexican-Gun-Laws.htm
Por Español:
http://www.davekopel.com/Espanol/México.htm
2. Imagine a World Without Arms:
Imagine um mundo sem armas.
Portuguese translation:
http://www.davekopel.com/Português/Imagine-um-mundo-sem-armas.htm
Spanish translation:
Un mundo sin armas de fuego
http://www.davekopel.com/Espanol/Un-mundo-sin-armas-de-fuego.htm
3. Law and Lawsuits
Letter to Dan Young, U.S. House of Representatives
U.S. Department of Justice
February 18. 2005
http://www.nysrpa.org/FOPA-DOJltrTSA.pdf
Very important letter from the US DOJ on the subject of NYC police
threatening to arrest law officers in transit at New York city airports
with arrest for illegal firearms possession. DOJ explains that federal
law exempts some transit of guns from NYC's licensing laws.
Gun Possession Now OK at FEMA Housing
Associated Press (LA)
http://www.kansas.com/mld/kansas/news/12988032.htm
Under pressure from SAF and NRA, FEMA abandons its
ban on firearms at trailer parks established to house
Hurricane Katrina victims.
Suit Challenging County Gun Ban Can Proceed
Michelle Maitre
The Oakland Tribune (CA)
October 1, 2005
http://www.rsrgroup.com/opnindnews10_3_05.php
A Federal judge ruled RKBA advocates can argue that their free-speech
rights are violated by an Alameda County ordinance that bans guns on
county property.
Court Reverses Previous Rulings, Throws out Challenges to Gun Law
Ryan Keith
Associated Press (IL)
October 6, 2005
http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/gunlaws06.html
Under the court's previous reasoning, someone committing murder while
simply possessing a gun would get a lighter sentence than someone who
commits aggravated battery but actually uses a gun to do it.
Insurance Cases:
Taurus Holdings, Inc. v. U.S. Fidelity and Guaranty, Inc.
Justice Raoul Cantero, Supreme Court of Florida
September 22, 2005
http://www.floridasupremecourt.org/decisions/2005/sc04-771.pdf
The Florida Supreme Court analyzed insurance coverage of a company sued
by cities over guns it made. The court held that there was no coverage
by the insurance companies for the costs of such suits.
Insurer Not Required to Defend Homeowner Who Shot Intruder
John Caher
New York Law Journal
September 16, 2005
http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1126775114950
A man who killed an intruder in his home in self-defense is not
entitled to insurance defense in a wrongful death action, a divided
Albany appellate panel ruled in a case of first impression.
4. International
Africa
West African Draft Convention on Small Arms Out
Graphic Ghana
October 11, 2005
http://www.graphicghana.info/article.asp?artid=8485
A Draft convention on controlling small arms and light weapons prepared
by a coalition of anti-gun groups in West Africa has been
presented to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
Arab World
Arab League, Germany Sign Agreement on Small Arms Control
Xinhua News Agency
October 10, 2005
http://english.people.com.cn/200510/11/eng20051011_213741.html
The Arab League and Germany signed an agreement on small arms and light
weapons control in the Arab world, Egypt's official MENA news agency
reported. Under the agreement, Germany will provide money to the league
for holding the first Arab meeting on small arms and light weapons
control among Arab countries.
Armenia
Embarrassed Markarian Promises 'Stricter' Gun Control
Astghik Bedevian
Armenia Liberty (Armenia)
October 6, 2005
Prime Minister Andranik Markarian pledged late Wednesday to be more
careful in presenting government officials and friends with firearms
and effectively admitted that one of those "gifts" was used in a recent
high-profile murder. Guns are otherwise illegal in Armenia without
police permission.
Canada
"As I Please": Lorne Gunter's Web Log
Lorne Gunter
The National Post (Canada)
http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/news/comment/blog/gunter.html?p
Gunter is a journalist on the website of The National Post, one of
Canada's two national dailies. He often covers guns and crime issues
Fathers Under Fire
Candis McLean
June 13, 2005
http://www.equalparenting-bc.ca/testimonials/swanson_jeremy.htm
Dads who own guns are increasingly being labeled "dangerous" by
therapists, cops and ex-wives who want to keep them from their kids.
European Union
EU Backs Need for Treaty on Global Arms Sales
Reuters News
October 3, 2005
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L03608916.htm
European Union foreign ministers have backed the idea of creating an
international treaty controlling the sale of small arms and called on
the United Nations to take the lead.
Japan
Brazen air-gun attacks shock 'safe' Japan
Mainichi Daily News (Japan)
October 7, 2005
http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/national/news/20051007p2a00m0na010000c.html
A recent spate of air-gun attacks, including the bold shooting of a
rear window of a car on an expressway in Wakayama Prefecture, has many
Japanese on edge.
Russia
Russia Tries to Outlaw the AK-47
James Dunnigan
The Strategy Page
August 30, 2005
http://www.strategypage.com/dls/articles/200583023444.asp
Russia wants the UN to pass rules outlawing unauthorized use of Russian
weapons designs. Russia hopes to piggyback this on a UN effort to limit
the illegal distribution of assault rifles in the hope of getting
patent royalties.
South Africa
Follow Brazilian lead and close the arms industry: Opinion Column
Terry Crawford-Browne
Cape Times (South Africa)
October 13, 2005
http://www.capetimes.co.za/index.php?fSectionId=273&fArticleId=2944665
A South African pundit strongly urges the South Africans to follow
Brazil's lead on the subject of firearms control. The expectation was
that Brazil would outlaw civilian arms ownership.
United Kingdom
Hunting campaigners lose appeal against UK ban
Reuters News (UK)
October 13, 2005
http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?
type=topNews&storyID=2005-10-13T092841Z_01_MCC321300_RTRUKOC_0_UK-BRITAIN-HUNTING.xml&archived=False
Nine Law Lords on unanimously ruled against a legal challenge
in which the Countryside Alliance claimed that the Hunting Act, which
bans hunting with dogs, was invalid.
Secret Files Reveal Dunblane Blunders
David Lister
The Times Online (UK)
October 3, 2005
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-1808640,00.html#cid=OTC-RSS&attr=Britain
The Dunblane killer Thomas Hamilton might have been stripped of his
firearms license had prosecutors heeded police reports about his
worrying behavior towards children, according to secret files to be
released today. Reaction to the crime caused the ban of
handguns in the United Kingdom.
5. States
Alaska
New Anti-Gun Control Law Set for Alaska
Matt Volz
The Associated Press
Monday, October 17, 2005; 4:08 AM
http://www.gazettetimes.com/articles/2005/10/15/news/the_west/satwst02.txt
A new "anti-gun-control law" (usually called pre-emption legislation)
in Alaska will allow handgun owners to carry concealed weapons without
a permit in the seven Alaska cities where permits are now required.
Florida
Warning tourists about dangerous Floridians is cheap shot by Brady group
Tom Lyons
Sarasota Herald-Tribune (FL)
October 11, 2005
http://www.heraldtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051011/COLUMNIST36/510110409/-1/OPINION04
"The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence has people in Florida
handing out what purports to be an important warning to newly arrived
tourists. The literature tells the arrivals that Florida, thanks to a
new "Stand Your Ground" law, has become a far more dangerous place."
Brady Bunch Poster
Jeff Soyer
Alphecca: An occasional blog by a libertarian, gay gun nut in Vermont
September 30, 2005
http://www.alphecca.com/mt_alphecca_archives/001663.html
Soyer offers samples of Brady Campaign literature about travel in
Florida and his and his readers' analysis of the Campaign's tactics and
message.
Statement on Public Relations Effort of the Brady Campaign to Use the Florida Tourism Industry to Gain Visibility for Their Views
Press Release
Business Wire
October 5, 2005
'Visit Florida,' speaking for the Florida Tourism community announces
its opinion of the Brady Campaign's tactics.
Brady Scare Tactics
Patricksemmens.com: A web log
October 10, 2005
http://patricksemmens.com/2005/10/brady-scare-tactics.html
Semmens suggests similar warnings about the effects of gun legislation
for his own area, that being the District of Columbia.
Letter: Gun legislation seeks to support law-abiding Floridians
Marion P. Hammer
St. Petersburg Times (FL)
October 10, 2005
http://www.sptimes.com/2005/10/10/Opinion/Gun_legislation_seeks.shtml
Hammer, former President of the NRA, takes issue with the newspaper's
opposition to legislation to protect workers legally possessing
firearms from being fired by their employers.
Michigan
Gun Control Groups Take Aim at Mich. Bill
Associated Press (MI)
September 21, 2004
http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/0905/261953.html
"Earlier this year, gun control advocates failed to block a Florida
bill allowing people to use deadly force in the street to defend
themselves. The advocates vow not to let that happen in Michigan."
North Carolina
Council Considers New Gun Ordinance
Shawn Flynn
News 14 Carolina
October 11. 2005
http://www.news14charlotte.com/content/local_news/?ArID=104419&SecID=2
The Charlotte City Council is considering an ordinance that would crack
down on the display of small handguns in public.
Virginia
Virginia Gubernatorial Candidate Kilgore Panders to the Gun Lobby and its Reckless Disregard of Gun Trafficking
Press Release
U.S. Newswire (Brady Campaign)
October 7, 2005
http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=54733
The Brady Campaign criticizes Gubernatorial Candidate Jerry W.
Kilgore's efforts to repeal Virginia's 'One Gun a Month' bill.
NRA Backs Democrat For Va. Attorney General
Chris L. Jenkins
The Washington Post
September 30, 2005
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/29/AR2005092902186_pf.html
The NRA supports Virginia Sen. R. Creigh Deeds, who is running for
attorney general. Deeds has a pro-RKBA legislative record.
Wisconsin
Bill Would Remove Hurdles to Youth Hunting
Jerry Davis
LaCrosse Tribune (WI)
October 6, 2005
http://www.rivervalleynewspapers.com/articles/2005/10/06/outdoors/01second.txt
Wisconsin law currently requires youth to be a minimum of twelve years
old before being introduced to hunting or hunting-related activities.
Gun Foes Ready for Fight: Concealed Weapons Bill is Back in Play
David Callender
The Capital Times
September 29, 2005
http://www.madison.com/tct/news/stories/index.php?ntid=55946&ntpid=0
"Opponents today pledged to step up their efforts to halt a bill that
would allow Wisconsin residents to legally carry concealed handguns."
6. Research
Annual Report When Men Murder Women
PR Newswire (VPC)
September 27, 2005
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?
ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/09-27-2005/0004132935&EDATE=
This annual report details national and state-by-state information on
female homicides involving one female murder victim and one male
offender. The VPC releases the study each year to coincide with
Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October.
United Nations Report Validates Old Adage 'An Armed Society is a Polite Society'
Press Release
Illinois State Rifle Association
September 20, 2005
http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=53648
"Based on a crime survey of the world's top industrialized countries,
the U.N. report indicates that a resident of the United Kingdom is
nearly 3 times more likely to become a victim of violent assault than
is a citizen of the United States."
Canadian Research
Suicides and the "Gun Deaths" Fraud
Gary Mauser
The Fraser Forum
September 2005
http://www.fraserinstitute.ca/shared/readmore.asp?sNav=pb&id=790
Canadian reporting claiming that 'gun deaths' have declined is the result of a meaningless statistic.
Letter to MP Garry Breitkreuz
Library Of Parliament (Canada)
June 27, 2005
http://www.garrybreitkreuz.com/publications/2005_lp_minsent_06_27.doc
"There is little research dealing with the effectiveness of mandatory
minimum sentences in Canada, particularly in the area of firearms
legislation."
E-mail to Lyne Casavant, Research Officer, Canadian Parliament
Kathleen Davis
Statistics Canada
June 27, 2005
http://www.garrybreitkreuz.com/publications/2005_statscan_min_06_27.doc
"We cannot measure the effectiveness of the mandatory minimum
sentencing provisions pertaining to firearms."
7. Culture
The 20 Most Important Tools: No. 7 The Rifle
David M. Ewalt
Forbes
August 23, 2005
http://www.forbes.com/personaltech/2005/08/23/technology-firearms-rifle_cx_de_0823rifle.html
"Forbes.com readers, editors and a panel of experts rank the rifle as
the 7th most important tool of all time, in terms of its impact on
human civilization."
Stayin' Alive: Armed and Female in an Unsafe World
Paxton Quigley
Merrill Press
2005
This book may be ordered from:
Merill Press
Post Office Box 1682, Bellevue, WA 98009
(425)454-7009, Fax (425)451-3959,
www.merrilpress.com or online at:
Merrill's description reads "The new bible of women's self-defense.
This important book dispels popular myths about guns and discusses the
pros and cons of means of self protection for women."
Paxton Quigley's new book, Stayin' Alive
Tiffany Lindsay
Merrill Press, Press Release
September 14, 2005
http://www.network54.com/Forum/33620/message/
1126736187/Paxton+Quigley's+new+book,+Stayin'+Alive
"Paxton Quigley, both a liberal Democrat and advocate of women's gun rights says in her new book,
Stayin' Alive: Armed and Female in an Unsafe World (Merril Press, 2005), women who take their
guns out of their homes and legally carry them concealed reduce violent crimes, rape, and death."
Xavier Thoughts
"Xavier"
A Nurse with a Gun: Web Log
http://xavierthoughts.blogspot.com/
Thoughts on gun ownership and shooting by an atypical blogger.
Second Amendment Hypocrites: Senators Schumer and Feinstein
Jim Kouri
American Chronicle: California Political Daily
September 23, 2005
http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/viewArticle.asp?articleID=2553
"...there are outspoken opponents of gun ownership, such as Senators
Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Diane Feinstein (D-CA), who are carrying
concealed weapons, according to WABC Radio's Mark Levin."
Rosa Parks
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/24/AR2005102402053.html
Excerpt:
"As an adult, she recalled watching her grandfather guard the front
door with a shotgun as the Ku Klux Klan paraded down their road."
[...]
"'I thought back to the time when I used to sit up all night and didn't sleep,
and my grandfather would have his gun right by the fireplace, or if he had his
one-horse wagon going anywhere, he always had his gun in the back of the wagon…'"
This newsletter is compiled with help from Dr. Rob S. Rice. Dr. Rice's
newest non-fiction will hit bookstores on November 1st, the naval section of
'Fighting Techniques of the Early Modern World,' from Amber Books. Dr.
Rice is also a poet, novelist, and factotum of matters electronic to
Dave Kopel.
Al Qaeda delenda est!
