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Link: Who'da thunk? Guns best crime deterrent after all.
Deeds said this probably is the largest unified law enforcement statement in support of the 2nd Amendment ever, and includes nearly a dozen organizations that represent tens of thousands of police officers across the country, dozens of state attorneys general, dozens of prosecutors and a long list of federal law enforcement experts up to and including federal judges.
It's impossible to know exactly how often guns stop criminals. Would-be victims don't usually report crimes that don't happen. But people use guns in self-defense every day. The Cato Institute's Tom Palmer says just showing his gun to muggers once saved his life. "It equalizes unequals," Palmer told "20/20." "If someone gets into your house, which would you rather have, a handgun or a telephone? You can call the police if you want, and they'll get there, and they'll take a picture of your dead body. But they can't get there in time to save your life. The first line of defense is you."
Link: SouthCoastToday.com: Rochester resident held purse-snatching suspect at gunpoint.
"It just didn't add up, so I called 911 and asked them if they were looking for anyone." Based on the description provided by the police, Mr. Correia realized that his guest was a wanted man. "When it dawned on him that I was talking to the police, he jumped out of his chair. That's when I pulled my gun. I told him to sit back down, that the police were on their way, and he did." "I've had my permit since I was 18, and that's the first time I've ever pointed a gun at another human being. I hope I never have to do it again. I tried to be a nice guy, but he had nothing to lose at that point. He knew he was going to jail." Minutes later, eight cruisers and about a dozen police officers arrived on the scene. "He was OK with me but became combative with the police, which was weird," Mr. Correia said. Asked what he might have done had the suspect lunged at him instead of sitting back down he said: "That would have been the tough part. But by then I was just protecting my family. This guy needed to be in jail."
The ongoing struggle for power between Tymoshenko and Yushchenko may be determined by the current gas talks with Russia, and the outcome may determine Ukraine's future relationship with Russia--Tymoshenko's hard line, or Yushchenko's more moderate stance. Though both are considered reformers, Yushchenko's ties to Soros give one pause.
Link: Kyiv Post. Russia plays president, premier against each other in gas talks.
The leader who succeeds in gas negotiations with Russia will gain the most influence in determining relations between the two nations, experts said.
Link: An Empty Holster Protest.
Across the United States, thousands of college students are preparing to send their administrators a clear message: that a so-called "gun-free zone" only puts college students and faculty at risk of a madman. Back in October, the first Empty Holster Protest took place on 125 college campuses. Organizers of the spring protest are hoping that the second protest will be even bigger. The group Students for Concealed Carry put it this way: "While opponents may argue that guns have no place in institutions of higher learning, SCC contends that it is the rapes, the assaults, and the uncontested, execution-style massacres that have no place in America's colleges. The students of the Empty Holster Protest respectfully ask that steps be taken to take the advantage away from those who seek to harm the innocent." It's high time we have this debate. But you can expect the gun-banners to treat these students with contempt. A few months ago, Peter Hamm of the Brady Campaign suggested that students who oppose these gun-free zones drop out of college rather than fight for what's right. Can you imagine the outrage that would have caused if Hamm had been talking about a student's right to free speech, rather than his right of self-defense? These young adults have the facts on their side. A "No Guns Allowed" policy doesn't stop a cold-blooded killer. It only stops those who might be able and willing to fight back.
This reminds me of a recent article in CRPA's Firing Line, about how conservatives recognize the world is not perfect and use ISO Standard 9******** ("very, very good"), whereas liberals use a standard of "perfection" -- a beautiful model since the inevitable failure of liberal solutions inevitably results in ever more need for additional liberal solutions. BTW, several Starbucks regulars told me when they stopped by Starbucks this morning, after last night's meeting to achieve the promised perfection, their Starbucks could not provide them with coffee due to failure to start/clean the machines the previous night.
Link: Starbucks Promises Customers Perfection: Financial News - Yahoo! Finance.
SEATTLE (AP) -- A day after shutting down most of its U.S. shops for three hours to retrain baristas on espresso basics, Starbucks is welcoming customers back Wednesday with a new promise posted in stores: "Your drink should be perfect, every time. If not, let us know and we'll make it right."
Link (WND): McCain fortune traced to organized crime.
John McCain's personal fortune traces back to organized crime in Arizona, through his father-in-law, according to a report published by a multi-news agency team called Investigative Reporters and Editors Inc.
What if every American household mailed its CFL's to the local Congressman (unbroken, of course)?
Link (WND): New light bulbs can poison you.
WASHINGTON – Despite a congressional mandate banning the sale of common incandescent light bulbs by 2012, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is warning that their compact fluorescent replacements are not safe to use everywhere.
Two unrelated moviegoers were stabbed while viewing horror flick in Fullerton theater: http://cbs2.com/local/Stabbing.Fullerton.The.2.662553.html
FIREARMS REFRESHER COURSE--author unknown
"Those who hammer their guns into plows will plow for those who do not."~ Thomas Jefferson
1. An armed man is a citizen. An unarmed man is a subject.
2. A gun in the hand is better than a cop on the phone.
3. Colt: The original point and click interface.
4. Gun control is not about guns; it's about control.
5. If guns are outlawed, can we use swords?
6. If guns cause crime, then pencils cause misspelled words.
7. Free men do not ask permission to bear arms.
8. If you don't know your rights, you don't have any.
9. Those who trade liberty for security have neither.
10. The United States Constitution (c)1791. All Rights Reserved.
11. What part of "shall not be infringed" do you not understand?
12. The Second Amendment is in place in case the politicians ignore the others.
13. 64,999,987 firearms owners killed no one yesterday.
14. Guns only have two enemies; rust and politicians.
15. Know guns, know peace, know safety. No guns, no peace, no safety.
16. You don't shoot to kill; you shoot to stay alive.
17. 911: Government sponsored Dial-a-Prayer.
18. Assault is a behavior, not a device.
19. Criminals love gun control; it makes their jobs safer.
20. If guns cause crime, then matches cause arson.
21. Only a government that is afraid of its citizens tries to control them.
22. You have only the rights you are willing to fight for.
23. Enforce the gun control laws we ALREADY have; don't make more.
24. When you remove the people's right to bear arms, you create slaves.
25. The American Revolution would never have happened with gun control.
"Calling an illegal alien an "undocumented immigrant" is like calling a drug dealer an "unlicensed pharmacist
IF YOU DON'T STAND BEHIND OUR TROOPS, PLEASE, FEEL FREE TO STAND IN FRONT OF THEM !!!
Link: Tiger's escape prompts plan for new barricade | starbulletin.com | News | /2008/02/23/.
City officials are scrambling to construct an extended, fenced enclosure at a Honolulu Zoo exhibit, after Thursday's brief escape by Berani, a 245-pound Sumatran tiger.
Link (WND): School shooter studied Hamas, says friend.
A former Northern Illinois University newspaper reporter says the killer who gunned down five innocent students in an apparently unprovoked attack liked to study Arabic and the terror group Hamas.
Link (WND): Study: 3 in 4 U.S. mosques preach anti-West extremism.
An undercover survey of more than 100 mosques and Islamic schools in America has exposed widespread radicalism, including the alarming finding that 3 in 4 Islamic centers are hotbeds of anti-Western extremism, WND has learned.
Link: John Lott's Website: Man has three defensive gun uses this year.
According to WISH TV channel 8, a man in Indianapolis has used a gun defensively three times in less than two months
Link: Artist hanged herself after aborting her twins - Telegraph.
An artist killed herself after aborting her twins when she was eight weeks pregnant, leaving a note saying: "I should never have had an abortion. I see now I would have been a good mum."
Link: NRA-ILA :: News Releases.
Friday, February 22, 2008
Fairfax, Va. - At the request of the Bush Administration and 51 members of the United States Senate led by Senator Mike Crapo (R-ID), the National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service prohibition of firearms on agency land will be revised in the following weeks. The National Rifle Association (NRA) is leading the effort to amend the existing policy regarding the carrying and transportation of firearms in National Parks and wildlife refuges.
“Law-abiding citizens should not be prohibited from protecting themselves and their families while enjoying America’s National Parks and wildlife refuges,” said Chris W. Cox, NRA chief lobbyist. “Under this proposal, federal parks and wildlife refuges will mirror the state firearm laws for state parks. This is an important step in the right direction.”
Link (HNN): Why DC's Gun Law Is Unconstitutional.
Link: Kyiv Post. Ukrainian directors at work on Holodomor films.
As Ukraine observes the 75-year commemoration of the Holodomor this year, two film projects are under production to throw spotlight on the Soviet-imposed famine-genocide of 1932-33 that killed millions of Ukrainians.
....
“Kobzar” is the fictional story of an American boy who gets stranded in Ukraine in the early 1930s and ends up as a guide for a blind kobzar, one of the traveling bards who played the bandura, a traditional Ukrainian instrument. He survives after witnessing NKVD executions in 1934.
....
“The story unfolds against the backdrop of the Holodomor, but it is a story of how a young boy survived in the most tragic and dire circumstances,” said Peter Borisow, one of the film’s backers and president of the Hollywood Trident Foundation, an organization founded in 2001 that connects professionals working in the entertainment industry interested in Ukrainian affairs.
....
Part of the problems is that many Ukrainians themselves deny the Holodomor was genocide against Ukrainians. The Party of the Regions and Communist Party of Ukraine, both supported by millions of Ukrainians, voted against recognizing the Holodomor as genocide in parliament.
Meanwhile, the Jewish people thrived in tolerant, Western societies, where they developed an extensive record of the Holocaust and financed its memory through museums, libraries, and films in particular.Since 2000 in fact, more than 40 documentaries and 20 feature films depicting the Jewish Holocaust were produced worldwide; several hundreds were produced since World War II.
Shedding light on the Holodomor has been gaining pace through efforts by Ukraine’s president Viktor Yushchenko, who has urged the international community to recognize the catastrophe as genocide.
A shopkeeper could face a murder charge following a fatal struggle with a knife-wielding raider.
Link (WND): 'Any person' has right to gun, state says.
Montana officials are saying that the United States already has resolved any questions about the 2nd Amendment's application, defining that "any person" has the right to bears arms.
BRIGHTON, Tenn. - Police say a man attempting to rape a girl and a woman was shot and killed after one escaped and alerted her nearby cousin.
Link (WND): McCain aide linked to Russian billionaire.
Deripaska, whose net worth is estimated to exceed $13 billion, is widely reported to be a close ally of Putin.
Good. Perhaps at last Ukrainians will finally be treated fairly when applying for immigration or travel. Link: Kyiv Post. US Senate urges NATO to put Ukraine, Georgia, on track for alliance membership.
Russia has made clear that it opposes an expansion of NATO to include the two former Soviet republics. This week Russia threatened to target Ukraine with nuclear missiles if it should join the alliance.
Link (WND): Author: George Soros brains behind McCain-Feingold.
The Reform Institute opened its doors in July 2001, with John McCain listed as chairman on the organization's homepage and Arianna Huffington listed as a member of the Advisory Committee. "McCain's Reform Institute for Campaign and Election Issues received generous funding from several Pewgate foundations, including the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Jerome Kohlberg, Jr. Revocable Trust, and George Soros' Open Society Institute," wrote Horowitz and Poe in "The Shadow Party." After studying the Reform Institute's website, Horowitz and Poe concluded that "almost all of McCain's funders who have contributed more than $50,000 are left-wing foundations." WND previously has reported McCain used the Reform Institute to provide salaries for his 2000 presidential campaign staff, including Rich Davis, McCain's campaign manager, who received six figure compensation from the Reform Institute in 2003 and 2004, first as a consultant, then as the Reform Institute's president.
Link (Doug Giles): Welcome to the Clash.
Listen, Dr. Numbnuts, all the talk you guys have been doing about proper precautions on campus, all the extra fat security cops you've recently employed with faster golf carts, shinier badges and long range pepper spray are no threat to a perp with a gun and the attitude to use it. A chunky butt security guard with a plastic dollar store badge and a 6-year-old can of mace on a golf cart is no help when the hellion shows up in your auditorium with a 12 gauge and three handguns. Yes, if your foe has a gun, then he has a solid and deadly advantage, and the cops can't get there fast enough to do much about it. Yes sir/madam, when this type of stuff hits the fan your campus must have deadly force on the spot to counter deadly force. Duh. That is unless, of course, you're cool with our kids being killed. I, However, am not.
Link: John Lott's Website: Concealed Handgun Permit Holder Stops Man being Beaten by Three People.
In Pittsfield Township, Michigan a permit holder stopped a man from being beaten:
We all suspected it. Now it's official. Link (WND): Top shrink concludes liberals are clinically nuts!.
For more than 35 years he has diagnosed and treated more than 1,500 patients as a board-certified clinical psychiatrist and examined more than 2,700 civil and criminal cases as a board-certified forensic psychiatrist. He received his medical and psychiatric training at the University of Chicago.
Rossiter says the kind of liberalism being displayed by the two major candidates for the Democratic Party presidential nomination can only be understood as a psychological disorder.
A Congress that cannot rectify this old problem is worthless. A rational reason cannot be articulated for these outdated park rules. I took my wife and daughter to Joshua Tree yesterday to (briefly) walk among the wildflowers. No way I would have them stay overnight there, defenseless against two- and four-legged predators.
Link: NRA-ILA :: Legislation.
Update On Right-To-Carry In National Parks And Wildlife Refuges Friday, February 15, 2008 The current regulations on possession of firearms in national parks--which generally prohibit possession, carry or transportation of loaded or uncased firearms--were proposed in 1982 and finalized in 1983. Similar restrictions apply in national wildlife refuges. It is now time to amend those regulations to reflect the changed legal situation with respect to state laws on carrying firearms.
The effect of these now-outdated regulations on people who carry firearms for self-protection was far from the forefront at the time these regulations were adopted. As of the end of 1982, only six states routinely allowed average citizens to carry handguns for self-defense. Now, 48 states have a process for issuance of licenses or permits to carry firearms, and 40 of those states provide the opportunity for average citizens to legally carry firearms for self-defense.
Starting in 2003, NRA staff began meeting with officials at the U.S. Department of the Interior to change this regulation and allow state law to govern the carrying and transportation of firearms in national parks and wildlife refuges -- as it does in national forests and on BLM lands. There was little resistance to such a policy change but also little action to make this change. Bureaucrats involved in this issue
Here is news video of Florida permit holder who repelled carjackers:
Here is a video incorporating yet another 911 call of a woman using a gun to defend against a home intruder:
Link: KSDK NewsChannel 5 - Woman Shoots Intruder, And It's Recorded On 911 Call.
DISPATCHER: "OK, Can you get to a room with a lock on it?" CALLER: "Yes I can." DISPATCHER: "OK, I'm going to tell you when it's okay to come out, okay?" The woman takes refuge in an upstairs bedroom, then eventually in a closet. CALLER: "He broke through the window again...." DISPATCHER: "OK, is he in the house?" CALLER: "Yes, I think he is." Two minutes into the call she tells them she is armed. DISPATCHER: "Does he normally carry weapons at all?" CALLER: "I got one today." DISPATCHER: "You got one what?" CALLER: "I got a weapon today." DISPATCHER: "OK, A gun? You have it... Is it in the room with you?" The dispatcher informs the arriving officers that the woman is armed; then, about five minutes after the call began, this final exchange: CALLER: "He's at the door now." DISPATCHER: "He's turning the door knob.. okay.. Is that him I hear?" CALLER: "Yeah." DISPATCHER: "Is there anything you can put.." CALLER: "What are you doing??? "STOP IT! STOP IT! STOP IT!".. DISPATCHER: "Okay.. he's in with her!" CALLER CONTINUES: "STOP IT! STOP IT! STOP IT! STOP IT! Stop it.. (begging) Please stop it..." The woman then shot the man.
Catching up on a few recent Defensive Gun Uses making it through the media filter:
To the list of plastic water buckets and bathtubs, now we can add dog leashes. A new CDC report notes how dangerous leashes and bungee cords are: At least 82 youths have died from the so-called "choking game," according to the first government count of fatalities from the tragic fad.
John Lott updates us on the recent massacre at a college in Illinois, one of only two states that completely bans concealed carry. Link: John Lott's Website: A couple of mentions about the Northern Illinois University Attack being in a gun free zone.
Link (SFGate.com): Store owner can't get Dellums' attention.
Ready, aim, buy: This past weekend's $250 apiece, no-questions-asked Oakland gun buyback turned into quite the zoo. One of the first guys to show up at the police-sponsored event was a dealer with 60 guns in his trunk. The next guy up had 30 guns. After that, the cops imposed a five-gun limit. "People said some of the guns were junk, but the ones that I saw weren't," said state Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata, who raised $80,000 to pay for the buybacks. "One of the guys who came up was a manager at the Allen Temple Senior Center," Perata said. "He had 12 guns from different residents - two from women over 90 years old."
Link: Putin warns Ukraine against joining Nato | World news | guardian.co.uk.
Russia could redirect its missiles towards Ukraine if the country joined Nato, Vladimir Putin warned today.
Receiving funds from Soros generally means the recipient is an enemy of freedom. (Another example: I posted previously about Soros' funding of a museum to commemorate young Soviet hero Pavlik Morozov, who turned his family into the KGB.)
Link (WND): John McCain funded by Soros since 2001.
As Sen. John McCain assumes the GOP front-runner mantle, his long-standing, but little-noticed association with left-wing donors such as George Soros and Teresa Heinz Kerry is receiving new attention among his Republican critics.
Link: Kansas.com | 02/08/2008 | Shooting in Mo. didn't make Huckabee rethink gun rights views.
"Thank goodness there was a police officer there to stop the killer," he added. "Had there not been a law-abiding person - in that case a police officer - to stop him, more people would have been killed."
On behalf of four million NRA members and 80 million American gun owners, we would like to thank Vice President Dick Cheney for his strong support of the individual rights view of the Second Amendment. Today, in his capacity as President of the United States Senate, Vice President Cheney signed on to the congressional amicus curiae brief affirming the individual rights view of the Second Amendment. As Americans, we are grateful and fortunate to have a friend of freedom in the Vice President.
Led by Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas), bi-partisan majorities of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives - in fact, the largest number of co-signers of a congressional amicus brief in American history - filed a strong brief in support of the individual rights view. 55 members of the Senate and 250 members of the House co-signed this brief along with the Vice President of the United States. This landmark brief argues that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual, fundamental right to Keep and Bear Arms; that any infringement on this right should be subject to the highest level of constitutional scrutiny; that D.C.'s categorical ban on handguns and self-defense in the home is unreasonable and unconstitutional under any level of review; and therefore, that the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit's opinion in this case should be upheld.
We would also like to thank the other parties who are filing briefs in support of freedom, including other pro-Second Amendment individuals and organizations, as well as an overwhelming majority of state attorneys general.
The NRA stated in its brief filed yesterday that "In adopting the Second Amendment, the Framers guaranteed an individual right to keep and bear arms for private purposes, not a collective right to keep and bear arms only in connection with state militia service." We remain hopeful that justice, freedom and the will of our founding fathers will prevail at our nation's High Court.
Zero tolerance urged for federal agent who left firearm in restroom, and who is allegedly tied to shock prosecution of drill instructor for transferring "machine gun" (mafunctioning semi-auto) to student.
Link: Bloggers attack feds after agent forgets gun in airport (WND).
Bloggers are raising their voices in unison calling for punishment for a federal agent who left her gun in a restroom inside the secured area at Milwaukee's airport.
Link: Leprosy outbreak causes concerns in Northwest Arkansas (KFSM.com).
So now, Bingham, and others like Mayoral candidate Nancy Jenkins, say government help is the next step. Jenkins says she's angered the federal government has been so lax with border patrol. She says, "We've just opened the borders and said, 'Come on in! Bring your diseases! Bring 'em!' Why are we doing that? Those who have it need to be quarantined and treated, or sent back to their country." Dr. Bingham is requesting the public take action, and write everyone from legislators, and presidential candidates, to Congress, and the Health Department. Shey says, "the only way to truly protect our community and our economic growth, is to think of this as a very important, panic-mode attempt to treat leprosy: before it gets out of hand." Doctors say leprosy will appear as a discoloration, or nodules, on the skin, especially the fingers, toes, arms, and face. With treatment, it is curable, but it can take from six months, to two years, to completely disappear. Springdale is also reporting over 100 cases of tuberculosis.
Link: Suspect in Ohio school stabbing dies - Yahoo! News.
PORTSMOUTH, Ohio - A man charged into a school where his estranged wife was a teacher Thursday morning, firing a gun before stabbing her as her fifth-grade class watched, police said. He later was found dead in his home after apparently shooting himself during a standoff with police.
email received today....
-------------------------------------
ALERT: A news conference is taking place next week and they need your help!
Randy Thomasson, President of Campaign for Children and Families is sponsoring a news conference urging parents to leave government schools. He needs to hear from parents ASAP who have recently left or are planning to leave public schools because of the new sexual indoctrination laws (SB777 and AB394).
If you or someone you know fits this description, please send an email message to ccf.email.5650@savecalifornia.com ASAP with your contact information. Please mention that we referred you.
Thank you,
Alan Schaeffer, President
Alliance for the Separation of School & State
1071 North Fulton Street, Fresno, CA 93728
559-499-1776 * Toll Free 888-325-1776
www.SchoolandState.org
Link: Idaho Press-Tribune.
BOISE — Idaho lawmakers are considering a bill that would strip the authority that administrators at public universities and community colleges have in keeping their campuses free of concealed weapons. A bill introduced in the state Senate on Wednesday would require the State Board of Education to set rules allowing concealed weapons on campuses, as long as permit holders first notify school administrators.
Link: Taking on the Courts.
Oklahoma's Governor Brad Henry and Attorney General Drew Edmondson are fighting for gun owners. The state of Oklahoma is appealing a judge's decision that said the state's law allowing legal gun owners to leave their firearms locked in their car while at work conflicts with the federal OSHA law, and that's good news. Oklahoma was one of the first states in the country to pass such legislation, only to see it caught up in a legal fight that's lasted for years. In the meantime, other states have followed Oklahoma's lead. You shouldn't give up your constitutional rights just because your employer is anti-gun. We wouldn't tolerate a company firing someone for having a Bible in their car, yet some companies have claimed they have the right to terminate you if you have ANYTHING they disapprove of in your vehicle parked on company property. These companies moan about property rights for businesses, but ignore the rights of individuals. I'm glad to see the state of Oklahoma isn't backing down from this challenge, and I hope they prevail in their appeal.
Abortion survivor Gianna Jessen is in the news again, this time for abridgment of her right to free speech. This is deja vu for me, since my own speech was banned after I posted about this good lady several years ago. Ladera Ranch Community Services (LARCS) banned me, along with my entire family, from posting on the community intranet, LaderaLife, for a period of six months. LARCS claimed my post was graphic, but my post simply referred to the fact she survived a saline abortion. My post contained no photograph and simply linked to a news story about her. That online news story had a beautiful photo of her, certainly nothing graphic.
Consider that LaderaLife, operated by the private developers of Ladera Ranch through LARCS and Ladera Ranch Maintenance Corporation (LARMAC), was the main community forum for this high-tech broadband-wired community of some 24,000 people, and thus had a quasi-public function. Consider that John McCain, supposed hero of campaign finance reform, locally pulled in maximum donations mainly from developer types and people who work with developers, according to the OC Register's political contribution database. Consider that John McCain, supposedly pro-life, was just endorsed by Republicans for Choice.
The anti-life crowd cannot respond with arguments, or insults, or shout these abortion survivors down. The only thing they can do is keep them from speaking, and keep us from speaking about them.
Link: Lawsuit after abortion survivor's speech banned (WorldNetDaily).
A lawsuit has been filed against the school district in Rapid City, S.D., after a facilities manager refused permission for a community group to use an auditorium to feature the testimony of an abortion survivor.
Link: ABC News: Captain America Is Packing Heat.
Berman: Does carrying a gun make you any less "super" of a super hero? Captain: The weapons don't make or unmake the man, or the hero, they're simply tools. I don't have the enhanced strength and speed that Steve did, so using other weapons might give me an edge against multiple attackers.
It's not too late for the Brady Campaign to adjust Illinois' score upward just a tad, possibly even five tads? Link: cbs2chicago.com - 5 Dead In Tinley Park Clothing Store Shooting.
TINLEY PARK, Ill. (CBS) ― Five people are dead in a shooting Saturday morning at a Lane Bryant clothing store in a strip mall in Tinley Park, and police say the gunman is still on the loose.