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This in today - mayors and other things -
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NRA-ILA Grassroots Alert Vol. 13, No. 17 04/28/06
States with updates this issue: Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Indiana,
Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New York, New
York City, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina,
Virginia, and West Virginia.
ANTI-GUN MAYORS HATCH SCHEME
Anti-gun New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R) convened a meeting
with a cadre of like-minded mayors this week to discuss "reducing gun
violence."
Among the attendees was Anthony Williams (D), Mayor of Washington, D.C.,
where handguns have been banned for decades, but where the violent crime
rate remains stratospheric. Predictably, the outcome of the meeting was
yet another call for more restrictive gun laws to reduce crime.
According to Bloomberg, NRA represents a minority of opinion when it
comes to Americans' views on gun laws. "I think when you look at the
numbers, when you do surveys, it's a very small number of people who
actually believe that people should be carrying concealed weapons.on the
streets of our cities." Bloomberg said. "Those kinds of extremist
positions are held by very few people." Apparently Bloomberg doesn't
realize that Right-to-Carry is both popular and the law of the land in
40 of our 50 states, and only two states deny their citizens the right
to protect themselves and their families outside of the home.
Commenting on Bloomberg's assertion, NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris W.
Cox said, "The rest of the country does not want or care for his elitist
gun control policies. It's an elitist mindset that is typical of Mayor
Bloomberg and his policies. This elitist mindset is captured perfectly
by the list of concealed permit holders in New York City--the mayor's
political cronies, a handful of wealthy Wall Street executives and all
of his movie-star friends."
Typical of their elitism, the mayors' excluded a true gun safety
organization at the summit. On Monday, Larry Keane, Senior VP and
General Counsel for the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF),
transmitted a letter to Mayor Bloomberg requesting his group's inclusion
at the event. In providing Bloomberg with NSSF's law enforcement and
gun safety credentials, Keane cited: 1) the City of Boston's
acknowledgement in dropping its suit against the gun industry that,
"members of the industry and [NSSF] are genuinely concerned with and are
committed to the safe, legal and responsible sale and distribution and
use of their products"; 2) its "Don't Lie for the Other Guy" straw
purchase prevention and awareness program, that has been praised by
BATFE; 3) its support of enforcing existing laws against truly corrupt
or criminal FFLs; and 4) "Project Childsafe" that is funded by U.S.
Department of Justice grants and the firearm industry. More than 30
million free safety kits, that include a cable-style firearm locking
device and key safety messages about safe handling and storage of
firearms, have been distributed. These kits have also been provided to
the New York City Patrolmen's Benevolent Association with firearm safety
kits for its thousands of members.
One would think that any summit that truly sought to explore possible
and proven solutions to reducing gun violence would be balanced, and
would include those who have expertise in these matters. However, one
would be wrong, as this summit was nothing more than a PR opportunity
for Mayor Bloomberg and his cronies to promote their anti-gun rhetoric
and propaganda.
.AND SPEAKING OF BLOOMBERG
Not all the hot-air, anti-gun rhetoric actually occurred at the mayors'
anti-gun summit, as just a couple of days prior, Mayor Bloomberg was
displaying his hypocrisy in full force. A story in the April 22 edition
of The New York Times reported how, as a boy, Hizzoner owned a rifle.
Nothing nefarious or wrong with that, of course. However, listen to
some of the points the Mayor raised in the article. "When I was 15 or
so, I had a .22-caliber rifle, but I used it only at the range.Part of
my hearing's gone because of it." Had Mayor Bloomberg followed the
instruct of NRA, which recommends always using ear (and eye) protection
when shooting, perhaps his apparently frequent trips to the range with
his trusty .22 rifle would not have had such a deleterious effect on his
ears. Of course, we welcome the Mayor or any other once and former gun
enthusiast to contact NRA or visit our numerous websites to ensure that
their experiences with firearms are not only enjoyable, but more
importantly, safe.
The article also makes apparent that the Mayor is not pleased with the
manner in which his parents comported themselves. When discussing
people with children in their homes owning guns, Bloomberg noted,
"That's like waving a red flag in front of a kid." Unless the Mayor's
rifle was stored outside of his home, we guess he would now admonish his
parents for letting him have a firearm, as a child, in their home. The
Mayor did get one thing right, though, when he noted, ".the big problem
we have is there's an enormous number of guns in the hands of criminals
sold illegally." (emphasis added) Too bad Hizzoner's actions don't
match his words, as the Mayor's crusade for laws that will be ignored by
criminals, yet obeyed by law-abiding citizens marches on unabated.
FEDERAL LEGISLATIVE ROUNDUP
While Mayor Bloomberg works to erode our rights, NRA is concentrating on
strengthening them. There are a number of pro-gun bills pending in
Congress that require your action. Please review these legislative
initiatives and be sure to contact your U.S. Representative at (202)
225-3121, and your U.S. Senators at (202) 224-3121, and urge him or her
to cosponsor and support these measures. Additional contact information
can be found using the "Write Your Representatives" feature at
www.NRAILA.org.
. H.R. 5092-This bill would improve BATFE's process for punishing FFLs
and establish guidelines for BATFE investigations. This bill was
drafted in large part to address recent BATFE abuses at Richmond,
Va.-area gun shows highlighted in hearings before the U.S. House
Judiciary Committee's Subcommitee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland
Security.
. S. 2599/H.R. 5013-Legislation to prohibit the confiscation of lawfully
owned firearms during states of emergency. Would guarantee legal
recourse for victims of illegal gun seizures
. H.R. 1384-This bill would remove several antiquated and unnecessary
restrictions imposed on interstate firearms business since 1968.
.S. 1082/H.R. 1288-Legislation to repeal the draconian D.C. gun ban and
restore the right of lawful District residents to own firearms to defend
themselves and their families.
. H.R. 4547-Federal legislation requiring recognition of out-of-state
Right-to-Carry permits.
. H.R. 5005-This measure will codify congressional policies, roll back
restrictions, and correct errors in federal firearm laws.
Again, please contact your U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators and
urge them to cosponsor and support these measures. For additional
information on these bills, please visit www.NRAILA.org.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NRA-ILA Grassroots Alert Vol. 13, No. 17 04/28/06
States with updates this issue: Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Indiana,
Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New York, New
York City, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina,
Virginia, and West Virginia.
ANTI-GUN MAYORS HATCH SCHEME
Anti-gun New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R) convened a meeting
with a cadre of like-minded mayors this week to discuss "reducing gun
violence."
Among the attendees was Anthony Williams (D), Mayor of Washington, D.C.,
where handguns have been banned for decades, but where the violent crime
rate remains stratospheric. Predictably, the outcome of the meeting was
yet another call for more restrictive gun laws to reduce crime.
According to Bloomberg, NRA represents a minority of opinion when it
comes to Americans' views on gun laws. "I think when you look at the
numbers, when you do surveys, it's a very small number of people who
actually believe that people should be carrying concealed weapons.on the
streets of our cities." Bloomberg said. "Those kinds of extremist
positions are held by very few people." Apparently Bloomberg doesn't
realize that Right-to-Carry is both popular and the law of the land in
40 of our 50 states, and only two states deny their citizens the right
to protect themselves and their families outside of the home.
Commenting on Bloomberg's assertion, NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris W.
Cox said, "The rest of the country does not want or care for his elitist
gun control policies. It's an elitist mindset that is typical of Mayor
Bloomberg and his policies. This elitist mindset is captured perfectly
by the list of concealed permit holders in New York City--the mayor's
political cronies, a handful of wealthy Wall Street executives and all
of his movie-star friends."
Typical of their elitism, the mayors' excluded a true gun safety
organization at the summit. On Monday, Larry Keane, Senior VP and
General Counsel for the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF),
transmitted a letter to Mayor Bloomberg requesting his group's inclusion
at the event. In providing Bloomberg with NSSF's law enforcement and
gun safety credentials, Keane cited: 1) the City of Boston's
acknowledgement in dropping its suit against the gun industry that,
"members of the industry and [NSSF] are genuinely concerned with and are
committed to the safe, legal and responsible sale and distribution and
use of their products"; 2) its "Don't Lie for the Other Guy" straw
purchase prevention and awareness program, that has been praised by
BATFE; 3) its support of enforcing existing laws against truly corrupt
or criminal FFLs; and 4) "Project Childsafe" that is funded by U.S.
Department of Justice grants and the firearm industry. More than 30
million free safety kits, that include a cable-style firearm locking
device and key safety messages about safe handling and storage of
firearms, have been distributed. These kits have also been provided to
the New York City Patrolmen's Benevolent Association with firearm safety
kits for its thousands of members.
One would think that any summit that truly sought to explore possible
and proven solutions to reducing gun violence would be balanced, and
would include those who have expertise in these matters. However, one
would be wrong, as this summit was nothing more than a PR opportunity
for Mayor Bloomberg and his cronies to promote their anti-gun rhetoric
and propaganda.
.AND SPEAKING OF BLOOMBERG
Not all the hot-air, anti-gun rhetoric actually occurred at the mayors'
anti-gun summit, as just a couple of days prior, Mayor Bloomberg was
displaying his hypocrisy in full force. A story in the April 22 edition
of The New York Times reported how, as a boy, Hizzoner owned a rifle.
Nothing nefarious or wrong with that, of course. However, listen to
some of the points the Mayor raised in the article. "When I was 15 or
so, I had a .22-caliber rifle, but I used it only at the range.Part of
my hearing's gone because of it." Had Mayor Bloomberg followed the
instruct of NRA, which recommends always using ear (and eye) protection
when shooting, perhaps his apparently frequent trips to the range with
his trusty .22 rifle would not have had such a deleterious effect on his
ears. Of course, we welcome the Mayor or any other once and former gun
enthusiast to contact NRA or visit our numerous websites to ensure that
their experiences with firearms are not only enjoyable, but more
importantly, safe.
The article also makes apparent that the Mayor is not pleased with the
manner in which his parents comported themselves. When discussing
people with children in their homes owning guns, Bloomberg noted,
"That's like waving a red flag in front of a kid." Unless the Mayor's
rifle was stored outside of his home, we guess he would now admonish his
parents for letting him have a firearm, as a child, in their home. The
Mayor did get one thing right, though, when he noted, ".the big problem
we have is there's an enormous number of guns in the hands of criminals
sold illegally." (emphasis added) Too bad Hizzoner's actions don't
match his words, as the Mayor's crusade for laws that will be ignored by
criminals, yet obeyed by law-abiding citizens marches on unabated.
FEDERAL LEGISLATIVE ROUNDUP
While Mayor Bloomberg works to erode our rights, NRA is concentrating on
strengthening them. There are a number of pro-gun bills pending in
Congress that require your action. Please review these legislative
initiatives and be sure to contact your U.S. Representative at (202)
225-3121, and your U.S. Senators at (202) 224-3121, and urge him or her
to cosponsor and support these measures. Additional contact information
can be found using the "Write Your Representatives" feature at
www.NRAILA.org.
. H.R. 5092-This bill would improve BATFE's process for punishing FFLs
and establish guidelines for BATFE investigations. This bill was
drafted in large part to address recent BATFE abuses at Richmond,
Va.-area gun shows highlighted in hearings before the U.S. House
Judiciary Committee's Subcommitee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland
Security.
. S. 2599/H.R. 5013-Legislation to prohibit the confiscation of lawfully
owned firearms during states of emergency. Would guarantee legal
recourse for victims of illegal gun seizures
. H.R. 1384-This bill would remove several antiquated and unnecessary
restrictions imposed on interstate firearms business since 1968.
.S. 1082/H.R. 1288-Legislation to repeal the draconian D.C. gun ban and
restore the right of lawful District residents to own firearms to defend
themselves and their families.
. H.R. 4547-Federal legislation requiring recognition of out-of-state
Right-to-Carry permits.
. H.R. 5005-This measure will codify congressional policies, roll back
restrictions, and correct errors in federal firearm laws.
Again, please contact your U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators and
urge them to cosponsor and support these measures. For additional
information on these bills, please visit www.NRAILA.org.
