Already Happening: Case Shows How HR 2640 Threatens All Gun Owners

Got this in an email alert from GOA (Gun Owners of America) and wanted to pass it on.

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"For the first time [in history, HR 2640], if enacted, would statutorily impose a lifetime gun ban on battle-scarred veterans." -- Military Order of the Purple Heart, June 18, 2007

 

ACTION:

 

1. Even if you have already sent an e-mail to your Senators on the McCarthy bill, please send another such as the one at the end of this alert. Yes, you might have already taken action on HR 2640. But if you (and many other gun owners like yourself) haven't taken any action recently, then NO ONE is taking action. After all, the NRA is supporting this bill, so they're not rustlin' up the troops in opposition to this massive gun control bill. Remember the immigration fight -- it took weeks of continued activism to kill that bill. This fight may very well be the same.

 

2. Please try to get as many of your friends as you can to join with you in this effort to kill the McCarthy bill (HR 2640). Now that Senators are returning from their July 4th holiday, we need to get as many gun owners as possible to remind them that HR 2640 is unacceptable!

 

 

McCARTHY BILL COULD COME UP AT ANY TIME IN THE U.S. SENATE

 

Now that Congress returns to work this week, your liberties are in jeopardy once again!

 

You will remember that before the Independence Day break, the House of Representatives passed a McCarthy gun control bill (HR 2640) without any hearings, without any committee action... they put it on the Suspension Calendar and simply got a non-recorded voice vote.

 

An important part of the legislative process is to introduce a bill in committee, to get both public and private observers to ask questions, make recommendations and offer comments on the bill.

 

But for some reason, HR 2640 was not given this benefit. The bill was rammed through the legislature with very few Representatives present on the House floor... there was no recorded vote at all!

 

So it's not surprising that, having skipped much of the legislative process, there are still a lot of unanswered questions regarding HR 2640. In fact, these questions have only been magnified after an offhanded, tongue-in-cheek remark made at the Harrisburg Community College in Pennsylvania cost a man his gun rights for life in that state.

 

Newspapers last month reported that Horatio Miller allegedly said that it could be "worse than Virginia Tech" if someone broke into his car, because there were guns there. It is not clear whether he was making a threat against a person who might burglarize his car, or if he was simply saying that the bad guy could do a lot of damage because of the guns he would find there. Nevertheless, Miller was arrested, but not charged with anything.

 

The comment Miller made was certainly not the smartest thing to say.

But realize, we don't incarcerate people for making stupid statements in this country -- at least not yet. Miller was a concealed carry permit holder who, as such, had passed vigorous background checks into his past history. Miller does not have a criminal record.

 

Regardless, the county district attorney did not like what he had said, so, according to the Harrisburg Patriot News on June 20, "I contacted the sheriff and had his license to carry a firearm revoked. And I asked police to commit him under Section 302 of the mental health procedures act and that was done. He is now ineligible to possess firearms [for life] because he was committed involuntarily."

 

Get that?

 

Pennsylvania is operating exactly the way Rep. McCarthy's bill (HR 2640) could treat all Americans. You might be thinking, I've never had a mental illness... I'm not a military veteran... I've never been on Ritalin... hey, I have nothing to worry about under the McCarthy bill. Right?

 

Well, think again.

 

 

DO YOUR VIEWS ON THE SECOND AMENDMENT MAKE YOU A POTENTIAL DANGER?

 

The Pennsylvania case shows how all gun owners could be threatened by HR 2640. After all, did you ever tell anyone that the Second Amendment was included in the Bill of Rights because the Founders (such as James Madison) wanted the people to be able to overturn a tyrannical American government?

 

Or, while you were watching the nightly news -- and getting a detailed account of all the crime in your area -- did you ever make a statement such as, "If someone were to break through my door, I'd blow him away!"

 

Well, those kinds of statements will certainly make anti-gun nuts think you're a potential danger to yourself or others. So if you make the local district attorney or police officer nervous, how difficult would it be for him to get a psychiatrist (most of whom are very left-wing) to say that you are a danger to yourself and to others?

 

Or, would the district attorney even need to get a psychiatrist? One of the outrageous aspects of the McCarthy bill is that Section 3(2) codifies existing federal regulations. And existing federal code says it only takes a "lawful authority" to "adjudicate" someone as a mental defective.(1) And another section of the bill makes it clear this "adjudication" does not need to be made by a formal court, but can simply be a "determination" -- such as a medical diagnosis.(2)

 

Consider how significant this is. The BATFE has been quietly attempting to amend the federal code by regulatory fiat for years, but they've been somewhat restrained in their ability to interpret these regulations because they are, after all, regulations (and not statutory law).

 

But with HR 2640, much of the pablum that BATFE bureaucrats have quietly added to the code over the years will now become the LAW OF THE LAND -- even though those regs were never submitted to a legislative committee or scrutinized in legislative hearings or debated on the floor of the House of Representatives.

 

When one looks at the federal regs cited above, there are a lot of questions that still remain unanswered. What kinds of people can fall into this category of "other lawful authority" that can deem someone to be a mental defective? Certainly, it would seem to apply to Veterans Administration shrinks. After all, the federal government already added more than 80,000 veterans with Post Traumatic Stress into the NICS system in 2000.

 

But who else could be classified as a "lawful authority"? A school counselor? A district attorney? What about a legislator, a city councilman or a cop? They are certainly "authorities" in their own right. Could the words "lawful authority" also apply to them?

 

Do we really want to risk the Second Amendment on the question of what the words "lawful authority" in 27 CFR 478.11 mean -- once they have been "statutized" by HR 2640 and BATF is no longer under ANY constraint and can read it as broadly as they want?

 

If the "lawful authority" thinks you pose a danger to yourself or others (or can't manage your own affairs) then your gun rights could be gone.

 

In its open letter of May 9, 2007, BATFE makes it clear that this "danger" doesn't have to be "imminent" or "substantial," but can include "any danger" at all. How many shrinks -- using the Pennsylvania standard -- are going to say that a pro-gun American like you, who believes the Second Amendment is the last defense against tyranny, DOESN'T POSE AT LEAST AN INFINITESIMAL RISK of hurting someone else?

 

As easy as that, your gun rights would be gone forever.

 

HR 2640 is Janet Reno's dream. Does somebody make a politician nervous? Get a prescription pad, get your friendly left-wing psychiatrist to make the "dangerous" diagnosis, and it's all over.

Expungement will be virtually impossible. Just turn in your guns.

 

FOOTNOTES:

 

(1) See 27 CFR 478.11.

(2) See Section 101(c)(1)(C).

 

 

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Supporters of the McCarthy bill are hanging their hat on language which purports to help disqualified people to get their rights restored. So GOA has built a special section on its website that gets to the truth on this issue and informs gun owners of the dangers in HR 2640. Please go to http://www.gunowners.org/netb.htm to learn what the specifics of the bill are, who its main supporters are, answers to claims made by proponents of the bill, who faces the greatest risk of being disqualified for buying a gun, and more.

 

CONTACT INFORMATION: You can use the pre-written letter below to help direct your comments to your two U.S. Senators. Please visit the Gun Owners Legislative Action Center at http://www.gunowners.org/activism.htm to send your Senators the pre-written e-mail message below.

 

----- Pre-written letter -----

 

Dear Senator:

 

The Military Order of the Purple Heart got it right when it stated that for the first time in history, HR 2640 "would statutorily impose a lifetime gun ban on battle-scarred veterans."

 

The Military Order of the Purple Heart, which is chartered by Congress, is urging the DEFEAT of HR 2640, the Brady-expansion legislation introduced by anti-gun Rep. Carolyn McCarthy.

 

Despite what you may have heard elsewhere, this bill THREATENS gun owners' rights and represents one of the biggest gun bans in history.

 

 

A recent case in Pennsylvania shows how easily a gun owner can be slapped with a LIFETIME gun ban, without any due process, based solely on a mere accusation by a shrink or other "lawful authority."

For more information on this -- and for a point-by-point analysis of HR 2640 -- please go to http://www.gunowners.org on the website of Gun Owners of America.

 

All the background checks in the world will NOT stop bad guys from getting firearms. Severe restrictions in Washington, DC, England, Canada, Germany and other places have not stopped evil people from using guns to commit murder.

 

Again, I hope you will OPPOSE the McCarthy bill (HR 2640). Thank you.

 

Sincerely,

 

Finally got some rain

We have finally managed to get some rain this way. The last couple of days, I have had some good rainfall. Got maybe a half inch yesterday and then today it rained twice. I guesstimated that with both the showers today we might have got an inch and half or maybe even two inches of rain. It sure helps the garden and I'm hoping some of the water in my pond is being replenished, but that might take a lot of rain as the pond is almost 5 foot low right now. I think that some of that Texas rain has finally creeped over this way and it's a relief for us and Texas.

We've been eating a lot of vegetables as the garden has really been supplying us with a lot of fresh produce. Got fresh vine ripe tomatoes, Blue Lake pole beans, Big Boy peas, okra, peppers, corn, squash, zucchini and a few new potatoes. That stuff sure is good, especially those fresh mater sammiches.

OSHA safety regulation comments extended 60 days

SUMMARY: OSHA is extending the comment period for its proposed standard on Explosives for an additional sixty (60) days until September 10, 2007.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted (postmarked or sent) by September 10, 2007.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by Docket No. OSHA-2007-
0032, by any of the following methods: Electronically: You may submit comments and attachments electronically at http://www.regulations.gov, which is the Federal

Rulemaking Portal. Follow the instructions on-line for making electronic submissions.
Fax: If your comments, including attachments, do not exceed 10 pages, you may fax them to the OSHA Docket Office at (202) 693-1648. Mail, hand delivery, express mail, messenger or courier service: You must submit three copies of your comments and attachments to the OSHA Docket Office, Docket No. OSHA-2007-0032, U.S. Department of Labor, Room N-2625, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20210; telephone (202) 693-2350 (OSHA's TTY number is (877) 889-5627). Deliveries (hand, express mail, messenger and courier service) are accepted during the Department of Labor's and Docket Office's normal business hours, 8:15 a.m.-4:45 p.m., E.T.

Instructions: All submissions must include the Agency name and the docket number for this rulemaking (Docket No. OSHA-2007-0032). All comments, including any personal information you provide, are placed in the public docket without change and may be made available online at http://www.regulations.gov. Therefore, OSHA cautions you about submitting personal information such as social security numbers and birthdates. For further information on submitting comments, plus additional information on the rulemaking process, see the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.

Docket: To read or download comments and materials submitted in response to this Federal Register notice, go to Docket No. OSHA-2007-0032 at http://www.regulations.gov or at the OSHA Docket Office at the address above. All comments and submissions are listed in the http://www.regulations.gov

OSHA Proposed "Safety" Regulations

I have went to the government regulations site and left my comment with them. When you click on the link below, you will have to do a search for the document. Just copy and paste this to search for.

OSHA-2007-0032 (Explosives—Proposed Rule)

I have also contacted both of my Senators and my Representative about this new safety regulation. I would suggest that you do the same very soon.
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The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has proposed new rules that would have a dramatic effect on the storage and transportation of ammunition and handloading components such as primers or black and smokeless powder. The proposed rule indiscriminately treats ammunition, powder and primers as "explosives." Among many other provisions, the proposed rule would:

• Prohibit possession of firearms in commercial "facilities containing explosives"—an obvious problem for your local gun store.
• Prohibit delivery drivers from leaving explosives unattended—which would make it impossible for delivery services such as UPS to deliver ammunition or gun powder.
• Require evacuation of all "facilities containing explosives"—even your local Wal-Mart—during any electrical storm.
• Prohibit smoking within 50 feet of "facilities containing explosives."

It's important to remember this is only a proposed rule right now, so there's still time for concerned citizens to speak out before OSHA issues its final rule. The National Rifle Association, National Shooting Sports Foundation, and Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers' Association will all be commenting on these proposed regulations, based on the severe effect these regulations (if finalized) would have on the availability of ammunition and reloading supplies to safe and responsible shooters.

The public comment period ends July 12. To file your own comment, or to learn more about the OSHA proposal, go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket Number OSHA-2007-0032"; you can read OSHA's proposal and learn how to submit comments electronically, or by fax or mail.

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OSHA Docket Office Docket No. OSHA-2007-0032 U.S. Department of Labor, Room N-2625 200 Constitution Ave., N.W. Washington, DC 20210 Re.: Docket No. OSHA-2007-0032 (Explosives—Proposed Rule)

Sample Comment

Dear Sir or Madam:

I am writing in strong opposition to OSHA's proposed rules on "explosives," which go far beyond regulating true explosives. These proposed rules would impose severe restrictions on the transportation and storage of small arms ammunition—both complete cartridges and handloading components such as black and smokeless powder, primers, and percussion caps. These restrictions go far beyond existing transportation and fire protection regulations.

As a person who uses ammunition and components, I am very concerned that these regulations will have a serious effect on my ability to obtain these products. OSHA's proposed rules would impose restrictions that very few gun stores, sporting goods stores, or ammunition dealers could comply with. (Prohibiting firearms in stores that sell ammunition, for example, is absurd—but would be required under the proposed rule.)

The proposed transportation regulations would also affect shooters' ability to buy these components by mail or online, because shipping companies would also have great difficulty complying with the proposed rules. For instance, the rules against leaving any vehicle containing "explosives" unattended would make it impossible for companies such as United Parcel Service to deliver ammunition to businesses or consumers without massive changes in their operations (such as putting a second driver on any truck that might happen to deliver a case of shotgun shells).

There is absolutely no evidence of any new safety hazard from storage or transportation of small arms ammunition or components that would justify these new rules. I also understand that organizations with expertise in this field, such as the National Rifle Association, National Shooting Sports Foundation, and Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers' Association, will be submitting detailed comments on this issue. I hope OSHA will listen to these organizations' comments as the agency develops a final rule on this issue.

Concealed Carry in Hot Weather

Here's an interesting article about how to carry your handgun concealed in hot weather which is a problem a lot especially here in the south. Here's my hot weather concealed carry rig.

Concealed Carry In Hot Weather
By Joe Alves

A major problem in the Southern States and the long hot summers is how to carry concealed while going about their daily business. Portly and heavy persons have even a bigger problem.

Here in Central Florida, it appears that the concealed carry weapon is the 1911 pattern in .45ACP. A big pistol such as that is even harder to conceal yet I have seen dozens of these weapons poorly concealed by people who do not take the time to properly fit the weapon on their person. I have seen many weapons carried on the strong side and concealed with an open-front short sleeve shirt. Unfortunately the weapon grip tends to print when the person happens to lean over a counter or over a restaurant table even when carrying the weapon in an IWB holster such as Milt Spark’s Summer Special.

Carrying in a belt-slide holster may preclude the grip print on some people but the slide and barrel tends to peek out from the bottom of the shirt. Photographer’s vests and fanny packs are too obvious as most people know they hide weapons. Are there solutions? Lets review some possible ones :

Starting with the weapon, it should be as compact as possible and as powerful as possible. Such weapons would include the Colt Light Weight Commander (my personal weapon of choice), the various compact .45ACPs from Kimber and Springfield as well as the compact Glocks and Sigs. Revolvers would include snub nose S&W and Taurus in .357 Magnum as well as their lines of Airweight and Titanium models.

Bottom line is choosing a weapon you shoot well and trust to perform under all condition and after developing muscle memory to present the weapon rapidly in the event of a confrontation. I know all this seems to be common sense to most of us but many people don’t pay attention to these details.

Regarding holsters, there is a plethora of very fine holsters that have given rise to that industry in the past decades and their offering are wide and varied. I believe these fine holster makers can produce a fine conceal carry holster for any pistol or revolver in the market today. For warm weather carry, for example, IWB holsters are a fine choice for full size weapons like the 1911 pattern autos. I carry mine in a classic Sparks Summer Special that I have had for years and many other holsters of that type are also offered by the top holster makers. For carrying a compact auto, one of the best on the market is Mitch Rosen’s belt-slide that is finely moulded to the weapon, tight yet easy to present the weapon. Mitch also offers a treatment for the holster called Leather Lightning. It coats the inside of the holster yet does not leave a residue. Having an open bottom, it will accommodate both the Commander and full size 1911. As an accessory that complements this holster, Mitch offers a carrier that accommodates a spare magazine and a combat light such as the 6Z .

A holster aberration I have seen carrying heavy weapons are those soft nylon "bags" and soft leather ones that fold when the weapon is (finally) withdrawn. It would appear that many people use these weapons to carry concealed as well as to store their weapon at home (?) and I can’t figure that one out. Also they tell me they the retaining strap will keep their weapon safe on their person. Huh?

The last consideration is of course, the belt on which to hang your weapon. I have seen dozens of people wearing attractive slim belts that were designed only to hold up your trousers. They twist and drag the weapon down to an unreachable position on the hip.

In addition to choosing the carry weapon an investment in a good holster and a sturdy double thickness is essential to a proper concealed carry. It is as important as your weapon of choice.

The Big Buggaboo: Here in Florida, about 300,000 people have CCWs but only a small fraction of that number carry on a daily basis. No wonder they haven’t learned how to carry concealed. As to practice with their carry weapon, most people may shoot only during qualification then only once a year, maybe, neglecting the need for proficiency and hoping they will never have to use their weapons when in "harm’s way". That is really unfortunate.

With the level of crimes committed with firearms, it is a wonder more CCW permit holders are not injured in confrontation. It’s a good thing the bad guys are not adept at handling firearms as well.

I hope all CCW permit holders will take these words to heart and carry daily in a strong rig and practice often to preclude risking their lives when the chips are down.

Visit Joe's Site, Click Here

Happy 4th of July

Just wanted to wish everyone a happy 4th of July. This is the birthday for our country and we all owe our freedoms to all our military both past and present for the freedoms we have here. Without them we would have no freedoms at all.

Got my computer back after an extensive rebuild. I lost a lot of files that I can't seem to recover, but managed to save a few. I went to Wall-World yesterday and bought a 32 gigabyte external harddrive and all my personal files, photos, ancestry files, email address books and documents will be stored there so I won't lose that stuff again if the 'puter crashes for no apparent reason.

I hope all of you are having a good celebration at your house. I plan on hanging around the house and relaxing some. I might have some good ol home grown mater sammiches for lunch today. Doesn't get much better than that.

We're still very short on rainfall over this way at my house. It looks like this drought is going to last until winter. I think we've had no more than an inch of rain here in the last 3 months or so. I heard somebody say that it was so dry here that the catfish in the river had fleas. Send some of that rain this way.

Computer Crash

Just a short note to say, my main computer crashed due to the Windows operating system that seemed to having a corrupt file. I have it in the shop now to get it back up and running and will have to reload the Windows system which takes time. Right now, I'm depending on the laptop and really don't like these tiny keyboards and mouse pad as it's hard to type on something like this. Maybe in a week or so I can have the big computer back going.