2009 – Page 74 – Shall Not Be Questioned

I’m Glad One Of Us Can Still Get Orders

I’m really glad that Caleb’s Blackwater code book still works. Â I had to burn mine over the winter when the patriots started to zero in on my position. Â I’m glad one of us can still decode the signal! Otherwise the truth would be sure to come out.

Yes folks, we’re all in constant communication with Blackwater/Xe, trying to lull gun owning Americans into a sense of security, so that the Blackwater/Xe mercs can make the rounds disarming everyone. Â Everyone else was clearly too blind to see it, but the true patriots were able to find the truth. Â The truth that our week there was a lot more than just Para paying for a place to shoot, and one Blackwater senior , former Navy Seal and Virginia Beach Police Officer, giving us a 15 minute tour. Â They never let us wander around the facility freely, and take pictures of pretty much whatever we wanted to. Â Every week we get a bunch of marching orders, but without the code book, I’m screwed. Â I guess it will be a FEMA camp for me when they end up going door to door.

But while we’re all being water boarded by the Blackwater torture division in the FEMA camps, we can rest easily knowing their are true patriots out there standing up for our paintball rights, with a bold and daring flashing of the shocker, sure to send any Blackwater/Xe merc running, or at least tricked into believing he’s missed his mark and shot off a finger.

The 90s Called, They Want Their Villains Back

Capitol Ideas points to this SEIU ad targeting State Senator Pat Browne. Â I think it’s high time that SEIU found some new villains. Â I mean, I know running against Bush is getting a bit overdone, but how long has Gingrich been out of elected office now?

One Cop’s View of Gun Ownership

Some very good advice, I think:

What do you do? Do you have a gun? Where is it? Is it loaded? Is it locked away or gun-locked? What are your chances of surviving an attack without a weapon compared to having one?

Iâ€™m not saying go buy the gun. Iâ€™m saying that if you already have one and you havenâ€™t shot it or cleaned it in, letâ€™s say, the last year, or if it is in the closet, unloaded and/or locked down, the fact is, you will not be able to get to it in time.

Crooks are deathly afraid of being shot. They donâ€™t like being bitten by dogs or locked up by the cops, or going down with the swine flu either, but theyÂ really donâ€™t like being shot.

Criminals pick on the weak, and yes, the naÃ¯ve, and those that will offer the least threat to them as they commit the crime. If you have a weapon, clean it up, oil it up, shoot it and then decide if you need to have it in the home. Thatâ€™s a tough question if you have kids.

I am an advocate of this philosophy. Â I have told a few people I don’t think a gun is for them because I didn’t think they’d be serious about practicing with it, learning how to use it properly, or thinking seriously about storage options.

Too many people buy them as talismans — objects stashed away and largely not thought about in the closets or drawers, offering peace of mind and the illusion of safety. Â And so it sits, waiting for a theft, or waiting for an accident.

What Effective Activism Looks Like

I’m very happy to see that Jason, EVC for Pennsylvania’s 19th Congressional District, and fellow blogger, engaging in some smart activism:

But Jason Epperson, who lives in Spring Garden Township close to the city line, said the proposal won’t do any good unless criminals are prosecuted and jailed.

Show up to the meeting, get mentioned in the press. Â That’s a good day as a pro-2A activist. Â It looks like the City of York is aiming to pass an resolution, calling on the legislature to act, rather than an ordinance. Â This is at least not a violation of state law.

But they are still promoting something that, even based on abstract legal theory is wrong. Straw purchasing is a crime in Pennsylvania. Transferring a handgun without going through an FFL or the County Sheriff is a crime in Pennsylvania. Both serious. If the state is unable to meet its burden in proving either of these crimes, lowering the burden is not an acceptable solution.

Many people, particularly poor people, who are more likely to live in bad neighborhoods where theft is a problem, who are unlikely to keep track of current developments in state law, are going to be the ones that end up unfairly prosecuted under these laws. Middle class people will report their guns stolen. They have insurance, and presumably feel good about the relationship between their community and its police force. That’s not true for all neighborhoods and all demographic groups. Â The Second Amendment is not qualified with “the right of the middle and wealthy classes to keep and bear arms.” Â It’s also a right for the guy stuck in a crappy, crime ridden neighborhood, and working two jobs to keep his family’s head above water. Â Who can’t afford a lawyer, can’t afford a fine, who might not be aware of the law, and might not feel that remarkably comfortable talking to the police. Â He should not be punished because he was the victim of a crime.

Web Site Fail

From Capitol Ideas:

Looks Like Rep. Doug Reichley …
… may have a challenger in 2010. Patrick Slattery, a health care industry worker fromÂ Lower Macungie Twp. in Lehigh County, writes this morning to let us know he’s decided to throw his hat into the ring for next year’s contest in theÂ 134th House District.
A look atÂ Mr. Slattery’s campaign Web page reveals that he has a wife, family and an MBA. He also goes to church and appears to be active in environmental causes. Annoyingly, however, neither the Web site nor his press release make any mention of whether he’s a Republican or Democrat.
In the absence of such information, we’re pleased to inform the voters of theÂ 134th District thatÂ Mr. Slattery will be the firstÂ Bull Moose candidate since 1912. So please join us in a hearty welcome to the state’s newestÂ Bull Moose candidate. We’re glad to have you back.

You know, given how both the Republicans and Democrats have been performing, I have to wonder if this is actually fail, or a brilliant campaign strategy.

Quote of the Day

Via Dave Kopel:

Heller is the product of a mature current of constitutional thought, spurred by private groups but also by committed academics, that had clearly become prominent in nationwide politics and culture and that, by 2008, had established itself as thoroughly mainstream. In sharp contrast, Griswold was the result of an early effort by an incipient movement for reproductive rights and sex equality that had yet to become highly visible on the nation’s cultural viewscreen. In this sense, Heller has far more in common with Brown v. Board of Education than with Griswoldâ€”in the particular sense that Brown, like Heller, was the culmination of a long process of advocacy, in a self-conscious effort to entrench a certain understanding of the Constitution in the interest of social reform. In short, Heller and Griswold have distinctive sociologies. While the two are both responsive to public convictions, the cultural backdrop for the two decisions was radically different.

That’s Cass Sunstein, appointee to the Obama Administration. Â He may be an animal rights whack job, but he may very well be the most pro-Second Amendment person nominated to serve in the administration (which isn’t saying much). Â Griswold is the case which created a right to privacy, specifically in matters of contraception. Â That case was expanded on in Roe and Lawrence.

That Heller is a closer cultural decedent of Brown is a very high compliment. Â That’s an accomplishment we can all take some measure of credit for.

Changes at Freedom Group

This morning The Outdoor Wire reports that the Chairman of The Freedom Group, Paul Miller, has resigned. No real information was given for the reason for his departure other than the standard other opportunities line. I guess if anyone wants to know, they might be able to conjure him up by saying the magic word three times fast.

Miller was another Cerberus staffer who sought board positions with outdoor groups. While the report states he will continue to serve the Remington Outdoor Foundation, no mention is made of any other directorship.

DC Voting Rights Could Be Back Up

Apparently they’ve been peppering Childers district in Mississippi and Ensigns home state of Nevada with literature in an attempt to help them both get re-elected:

The measure, sponsored by Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.), was thwarted earlier this year in the House when Rep. Travis Childers (D-Miss.) attached an amendment to the bill that would loosen the cityâ€™s gun laws and lessen penalties for violating local gun laws.

The DC Vote advocacy group has spent the summer pumping Childersâ€™ district with advertisements that denounce him for the amendment. It plans to continue the ads through September, adding a Nevada focus at some point to target Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.), who sponsored a similar amendment to the Senate version of the bill.

Yes, I’m sure in Mississippi and Nevada that DC style gun control will be a very popular issue! Â Go ahead and bring this turd back guys. Â We’re ready with some polish.

â€œWeâ€™ll continue to push for passage of a clean bill within this Congress. I donâ€™t know whatâ€™s going to happen with the NRA. Weâ€™re doing our part to continue to put pressure on people who are caving to the pressure of the NRA. So weâ€™ll see what happens, but weâ€™re definitely still hopeful.â€

Yeah, you keep doing that. Â I’m sure Senator Ensign and Congressman Childers appreciate the free campaign materials letting constituents know they support the Second Amendment.

This Is The Kind of Stuff I Mean

I have to sympathize with Representative Jean Schmidt (R-OH), faced with an upset constituent, who is pretty clearly taken in by the birther nonsense, presumably tries to get rid of her by whispering “I agree with you, but the courts don’t.” Â It’s one of the faults of politicians that they want everyone to like them. Â But that’s not an excuse for endorsing this kind of garbage.

I don’t like the guy any more than the birthers do. Â I took several days off from work, gave up weekends for two months to work gun shows, hit more than a few neighborhood in this county knocking on doors, went to area clubs, and made God knows how many phone calls to try to keep this guy from getting elected. Â And all this for John McCain, who a year prior I swore I would never vote for, let alone work to get elected. Â But we lost. Â Barack Obama is the legitimate President of the United States. Â Let’s concentrate on undoing that. Then we don’t have to worry about what’s on his birth certificate.

Henke on Rachel Maddow

I just watched Henke on Rachel Maddow a few minutes ago. Â While I share Jon’s concern about building a broad movement that not only can win, but have a mandate to actually govern, I don’t know if I can really join him in desiring a return to a movement governed by elites. Â Given the interconnectedness in today’s world, I don’t think it’s really possible or desirable to return to that. Â We do need to make an intellectual case for the movement, and I agree that the Birthers and other extremists fringe views get in the way of that, but in a world where anyone with an internet connection can have their own soap box, you’re stuck having to use persuasion. Â I think it’s important for people to speak out against bad ideas, but this movementÂ ain’tÂ ever going back to the days of Buckley. Â But the same is true for the left.