Month: March 2017

The war against fun

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Attorney General Eric Schniederman fires another shot in the war against children having fun:

“Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced that he has obtained seven settlements with online third-party sellers from across the country who used Amazon to sell prohibited toy guns to New Yorkers … “We have seen all too often the tragic consequences that can arise when toy guns are mistaken for real ones,” said Attorney General Schneiderman. “The toy gun law exists to protect New York’s children and our brave law enforcement officers, and we will continue our commitment to enforcing this law and holding accountable any retailers who violate it.” …”

The only good thing about Schneiderman wasting his time on stupidity like this is that he could be spending his time doing a whole lot worse.

What Chuck has been up to

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Chuck Schumer has been relatively quiet in public, but sure enough, him and his mini-me have not been idle:

“Senate Democrats on Monday introduced a bill that would mandate all 3D printed guns have at least one primary component made from metal. The bill, S. 533, would update the 25-year-old Undetectable Firearms Act, which requires all firearms to be detectable by a metal detector, by requiring at least one main component such as the frame or barrel be made of metal …”

This is unenforceable.

At some point, home metal printing will become affordable and that is when the antis heads will start exploding.

Tenney co-sponsors H.R. 367

On: By: admin

Claudia Tenney has signed on as co-sponsor to The Hearing Protection Act of 2017, H.R. 367.  She is the third local Representative to do so.

Meanwhile, Connecticut Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro brings on the crazy with an op-ed in the New Haven Register, “Gun lobby’s latest trick is to use ‘hearing loss’ to bring more silencers into the market“:

“… this bill is the latest attempt by the gun lobby to sneak in massive and potentially dangerous rollbacks to gun violence prevention through misleading legislation … The gun lobby wants you to believe that this proposal is about protecting hearing — but the dangers of more easily accessible silencers far outweigh any purported benefits … To push this “Hearing Protection Act” is a bold-faced attempt to mislead the American people. According to the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, there is no evidence of a public health issue associated with hearing loss from gun fire …”

The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association does not agree with that statement:

“… People who use firearms are more likely to develop hearing loss than those who do not …”

Neither does the American Hearing Research Foundation:

“… Every gunshot produces a noise that could damage the ears of anyone in close hearing range. Large bore guns and artillery are the worst because they are the loudest. But even cap guns and firecrackers can damage your hearing if the explosion is close to your ear. Anyone who uses firearms without some form of ear protection risks hearing loss …”

Candidates for Mayor of Rochester

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Incumbent Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren announced her re-election bid yesterday.

She is the most vocal advocate for gun control outside the NYC metro area. Some examples:

There will likely be a Democrat primary for the nomination. Other declared candidates include:

  • Monroe County Legislator and former police chief James Sheppard. Sheppard is antigun and has associated with New Yorkers Against Gun Violence in the past. See this endorsement letter for (former) Senator Ted O’Brien. Sheppard is quoted by the Times Union in an article on the SAFE Act:

    “… Rochester Police Chief James Sheppard says guns like the AR-15 are just deadlier, period, and should be banned for the same reason that a kitchen knife is legal but a switchblade is not. “These rifles are basically replicas of military armament, and they are designed to efficiently kill people,” Sheppard said. “In civilian life, that’s not something you need or want.” …”

  • TV journalist Rachel Barnhart. She has this position statement on her campaign website:

    “… Stolen guns are often used in crimes in the city. The administration will secure funds for a public service campaign focused on educating the public about the need to secure their weapons. A possible slogan is, “Don’t be a victim that leads to another victim.” Proactively retrieve guns when people with pistol permits die and there is not a surviving family member with a permit …”

  • Green Party activist Alex White. Not much on him other than this article in the D&C which addresses violence without more gun control.

White has run and lost several times for public office before and probably won’t accomplish much this time around either. That leaves Barnhart as the best of the bunch.

Zeldin continues to set a good example

On: By: admin

Lee Zeldin continues to set an example of how downstate Republicans (and Democrats) should handle gun issues when they come up.

From his latest telephone townhall meeting:

“… A caller asked about the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2017; Mr. Zeldin is one of its many co-sponsors. That proposed bill would compel states to recognize out-of-state permits allowing the concealed carry of handguns, overriding their own laws. It would also allow concealed handguns in school zones and on federally owned public lands. “I’m just curious how this is possibly something you could support,” the caller said. Mr. Zeldin referred to his opposition to the New York Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement Act of 2013, known as the NY SAFE Act, which he said improperly labeled certain firearms as assault weapons because a feature, such as a flash suppressor or a thumb grip, had been added to it and consequently “it looked scary.” Existing laws are not enforced, he said, “so it’s not just about creating a new law that might feel good, or might sound good.” …”

Good.  No mealy-mouthed crap, no talk about hunting, no preemptive surrendering.

Lalor and Butler discuss A-6140

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Assemblymen Kieran Lalor and Marc Butler discuss the bill A-6140 to partially repeal the SAFE Act outside New York City.

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Candidates for 2017 City Elections

On: By: admin

Gotham Gazette is keeping track of this year’s candidates for NYC elections.

There is some material here of interest to gun voters.

Mayor

Among the Democrat candidates, the order of preference is:

  1. Anyone not Bill de Blasio.
  2. Anyone not Tony Avella. He voted for the SAFE Act.

Public Advocate

Anyone not Letitia James, who has a history of gun control advocacy.

Comptroller

Anyone not Scott Stringer. Assemblyman Dan Quart would be a tiny improvement in so far as he sponsored a knife-rights bill.

Bronx Borough President

Anyone not Ruben Diaz, Jr..

Brooklyn District Attorney

Challenger Vincent Gentile has a history of gun control activism.

City Council District 9

Incumbent Bill Perkins won the seat in a special election earlier this year. He voted for the SAFE Act.

City Council District 13 – open seat

Assemblyman Mark Gjonaj voted for the SAFE Act, but against a mandatory storage bill.

City Council District 18 – open seat

Senator Ruben Diaz, Sr. voted for the SAFE Act even though he admitted on the floor that it would have no impact on crime.

City Council District 43

Assemblyman Peter Abatte voted for the SAFE Act.

City Council District 51

Incumbent Joe Borelli voted against the SAFE Act and has made 2A supportive statements in the past. Legitimately pro-gun. Unclear at the moment if he will face a challenger.

Political theatre

On: By: admin

Legislation has been introduced to limit the SAFE Act to New York City:

The bill A-6140/S-879C is going nowhere.

First and foremost, it would require Governor Cuomo to sign it thereby admitting he was wrong. That is never going to happen especially considering he still has delusions of running for President in 2020.

Second, the Republicans are treating guns as a partisan, ideological issue, not a civil right. With Republicans and Conservatives making up ~25% of registered voters, and Democrats making up roughly 53%, they cannot pass legislation without buy-in from the Democrats. They do not have that.

Gun control exploitation FAIL

On: By: admin

The Donald gave an hour long address to Congress last night.  Here is the text.

It would have been nice if Trump used the time to promote the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act, but gun control was not mentioned.

Nancy Pelosi thought that she could use this as an opportunity to promote gun control by bringing two antigun activists as guests.

This, along with other Democrat stunts, blew up in their faces. See:

Insurance liability bill

On: By: admin

Félix Ortiz has been introducing this bill for years and it always dies. No company would write such a policy to cover illegal actions by a policy holder. It’s more of a public relations stunt as Ortiz is the sole sponsor.

Current bill is A-2260. A similar (not companion) bill is S-2857.