October 2009 – Page 13 – Shall Not Be Questioned

Too Fat to Be Governor?

Dave Kopel covers the latest in the New Jersey Governor’s race, and it may end up swinging on weight, namely Chris Christie’s portly proportions. I originally had a fair amount of optimism that Chris Christie’s campaign was going to pull it off, but the hope is rapidly dwindling as Corzine has narrowed and evened up the race. Corzine is outspending Christie three to one, and I just don’t see how that’s not going to help Corzine’s already surging numbers.

I’m not writing the Christie Campaign’s obituary yet, because when the race is close, it becomes a turnout game, and if Christie’s campaign has a strong turnout machine, they can win. But it’s very disappointing that New Jersey voters are shallow enough to give a governor they despise a second term, just because the other guy is fat.

Bloomberg Mayors Continue to Break State Laws

West Mifflin, Pennsylvania’s mayor is the latest to try and break state law by supporting municipal gun controls. Supported by his membership in Michael Bloomberg’s anti-gun group, the Borough Council will take up a proposal tonight to mandate that gun owners report their lost or stolen guns within an arbitrary time period, putting the burden of proof on the accused rather than the state. These ordinances are currently being challenged by the NRA in courts across the state.

Recently, Homestead Borough did the same thing, becoming the 10th city in Pennsylvania to violate the state preemption laws and the state Supreme Court’s Ortiz v. Commonwealth decision. Last night, Clairton became the 11th, though the first non-MAIG-mayor-lead city to do so. However, the proposal was pushed by extremely anti-gun Rep. David Levdansky who has recently taken up the charge of CeaseFirePA.

View Bloomberg’s Anti-Gun Mayors in Pennsylvania in a larger map

I’ve updated the map to reflect the mayors who are pushing Bloomberg’s agenda in violation of state law and the Supreme Court’s decision. At this point, it’s not enough to just track members and former members of the group. Bloomberg is hiring out from the Brady Campaign to try and undermine our state legislature and state courts.

AR-15 Lower Assembling Advice

It is very important to make sure you have the trigger guard pin extensions on your lower receiver properly support when you drive in the trigger guard pin. Don’t ask me how I learned I did not have it well enough supported.

Reasoned Discourse Strikes Again

A Washington gun control group sets up a Facebook promoting banning assault weapons in Washington State, and it’s quickly found by pro-Second Amendment Facebook users who are quick to correct all the lies and distortions. So what happens?

I can sympathize with a family who just wants to grieve in peace, but when your process of grieving involves taking away or limiting my constitutional rights, we’re not just going to sit back and let it happen, especially when the arguments involved are based on lies and distortions. The pro-2A has been fighting the assault weapons issue for two decades now, and we have it down to practically an immune response. I think that’s partly why groups like MAIG haven’t, so far, touched that issue.

Bad Liars

Jacob points out that Paul Helmke is a bad liar, and outlines why. They really don’t have any choice, though, other than to downplay the significance of McDonald. There’s a very high probability they are going to lose no matter what they do, and after playing up Heller as much as they did, then losing, they aren’t going to want to repeat that performance, so they’ve decided on a tactical retreat. Not good ground to fight on for them. There will be other fights, but they will be on the defensive from here on out, and they know that.

More on Bloomberg’s 95 40 Theses

From the Sarasota Herald Tribune, we find at least some of the secret recommendations. Yes, that’s right, MAIG isn’t nailing his 40 Theses up to any door, though we are trying to locate them. Let’s look at a few of them:

Greater funding for ATF. The bureau “lacks resources to effectively police gun trafficking across state and national borders,” according to The Washington Post’s report on the coalition recommendations. ATF also has too few inspectors.

Help pass ATF reform and we’ll talk. I’m not opposed to more money for ATF’s inspection arm, but they need to be nailing dealers for truly bad stuff, and not for crap like forgetting to put county in the right box, or failing to put a “Yes” instead of a “Y”.

More aggressive federal prosecution of violations, including those by people who fail the gun background check.

Of violent felons to fail the background check, fine. Of a guy who had a fight with pop when he was twenty, and didn’t realize that was a disabling conviction until he failed the background check? No. Not everyone who is prohibited from owning a gun is a hardened criminal, and not everyone who fails the background check will serve any public safety interest by taking up space in a federal prison that could be taken up by actual criminals.

Tightening oversight of gun shows, especially those whose weapons later turn up in crimes.

As long as that oversight doesn’t look like this. Competence on the part of ATF brass is a problem. It’s not just a matter of funding or attention.

More thorough tracing of seized weapons, and better sharing of that information with state and local law agencies.

Except that ATF and the FOP are opposed to this.

A new policy of stamping guns with a second, hidden serial number. This could help thwart the common practice of removing serial numbers on stolen guns.

Because criminals won’t learn where the hidden serial numbers are? How are you going to get them on there? There’s only so many ways to hide a serial number on the serial numbered part. Surely you don’t mean putting serial numbers on parts that can be replaced, right? Â I can still fix my gun without being guilty of obliterating a serial number, right? This was written by someone who doesn’t know much about guns, or how serial numbers are regulated.

This is just five recommendations though. What do the other 35 look like? We’ll try to find out, so stay tuned.

God Help Me, I Can Relate to Barney Frank

He was interviewed on NPR about the gay rights march that happened this Sunday:

I think too many people, frankly, who share my view that this is going to be a waste of time, are afraid to say so because they will be considered insufficiently devoted to the cause. Rather than chanting broad slogans about equality when most members of Congress won’t even be in D.C., time and energy would be better spent on old-fashioned lobbying for specific legislation. The most successful, militant, political organization in America is the National Rifle Association. And they’ve never had a march, they’ve never had a shoot-in. They don’t do anything other than lobby members. They write, and they call, and they talk to members.

Emphasis mine. There’s a tendency to any movement to want to oust heretics, and people that question the faith. But I can relate to Frank’s irreverence, and his assertion of all that comes along with it.

Getting Hunting Ban Overturned in the UK

It would be a good first step toward reversing the long slide. The question is whether the Tories will take up the issue. It appears they are willing, but don’t want to burn up a lot of political capital over this one issue, and end up getting bogged down in Parliament.

More on Those M4 Failures

Steve at the Firearms Blog takes a closer look at the actual report.

Must… Shoot… Trapdoor

You can never quite predict what gun is going to scratch your itch, but looking at Uncle’s refurbishing of an old Trapdoor Springfield, I feel like I just have to try shooting one of these, and maybe get one for myself.