Keep and Bear Arms - Gun Owners Home Page

MA: Petitions of the week
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
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This week we highlight petitions pending before the Supreme Court that address, among other things, whether compulsory display-and-describe ultrasound laws, such as the Kentucky Ultrasound Informed Consent Act, abridge physicians� freedom of speech in violation of the First Amendment; whether a floral designer�s First Amendment rights to free exercise and free speech protect her from having to create custom floral art celebrating same-sex weddings; and whether a Massachusetts ban on the possession of firearms and ammunition magazines for lawful purposes infringes an individual�s Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms.

FL: Standing Up for the Second Submitted by: Mark A. Taff Website: http://www.marktaff.com	There are no comments on this story Post Comments \| Read Comments
Recently I discovered that the development I live in has its very own gun club! The founder of the club, Janet Warnsdorfer, moved to Florida from Pennsylvania, where gun clubs abounded (in spite of being a blue state). She was surprised that there were no gun clubs right in our area here in Florida, and decided to remedy that situation.

PA: USCCA Celebrates Defeat of Illegal Pittsburgh Gun Laws
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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The USSCA is hailing a long overdue decision by a Pennsylvania judge this week for striking down all three of Pittsburgh�s restrictive and unlawful gun ordinances that were passed by the City Council earlier this year. Calling it �a huge victory for self-defense and gun rights advocates,� the USCCA has been a vocal opponent of the Pittsburgh ordinances since they were first announced last December.

IN: It is necessary to understand the true meaning of the Second Amendment Submitted by: Mark A. Taff Website: http://www.marktaff.com	There are no comments on this story Post Comments \| Read Comments
The interpretation of the Second Amendment commonly accepted by many Americans is that the right to bear arms is necessary to maintain freedom against a tyrannical government. However, when looking back at the historical context of why the amendment was passed, it is painfully obvious this was far from the intent of the founders.

MD: Constituents grill Carozza on gun control loophole Submitted by: Mark A. Taff Website: http://www.marktaff.com	There are no comments on this story Post Comments \| Read Comments
�What is the value you place on life?� Ocean Pines resident Kady Everson demanded of State Sen. Mary Beth Carozza, (R-38C), during her �Listening Hour� forum Monday night at the Ocean Pines Community Center. Everson, alongside other residents wearing bright red �Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America� T-shirts, pressed Carozza on her gun control position.

NH: Firearm Seizure Bill Headed to House Floor
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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On October 30th, the New Hampshire state Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee sent House Bill 687 to the House floor for further consideration after a motion to kill the bill failed by a vote of 9-11.

House Bill 687, sponsored by Representative Debra Altschiller (D-Rockingham 19), would suspend Second Amendment rights following baseless accusations without adequate due process protections in place. Such orders would be issued after an ex parte hearing where the respondent is not present to challenge allegations made against them or face their accuser.

WY: Legislation to limit gun access for mentally ill people fails
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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Wyoming lawmakers on Thursday defeated legislation that would have prevented some people with mental illnesses from buying guns.

The legislation would have required the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation to submit certain mental health records to a federal database used for background checks while purchasing firearms. The bill, which failed by a 9-5 vote, essentially mirrored federal legislation signed into law by President Donald Trump in the 2018 budget.

IL: Illinois Passed a Red Flag Law. A Coalition of Advocates Is Working to Ensure It�s Used.
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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Earlier this month, in Freeport, a sleepy Illinois town just south of the Wisconsin border, a small group gathered at the public library for an information session on the state�s new red flag law. It was part of statewide advocacy to increase awareness of the policy, which allows concerned family members or the police to petition a court to temporarily confiscate a person�s guns if they are deemed a threat to themselves or others. The Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence (ICHV) is leading the effort, and hopes it will ensure that the law does what it was designed to do: save lives.

MS: Semi-automatics causing deadliest mass shootings
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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Dealing with one-on-one shootings and suicides, in which hand guns are commonly used will require a very extensive, expensive set of policy initiatives, such as gun-owner licensing, greatly expanded mental health screening and treatment and thorough background checks. Nevertheless, outlawing civilian ownership of military style, high capacity rifles is low-hanging fruit. So far, we have shown the political will to do essentially nothing about gun violence, much less picking the low-hanging fruit. It�s way past time we started picking.

PA: Pittsburgh�s New Gun Control Laws Crash And Burn
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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Something has gone terribly wrong in Pittsburgh, and for the first time in a while, we�re not talking about the Steelers. Gun control advocates managed to push through a raft of new gun laws earlier this year. These included bans on �assault rifles� and extended capacity magazines. They also passed their own version of a red flag law. The bills were immediately challenged by gun rights groups and affected individuals and the case was heard by a judge in Allegheny County. This week he rendered his decision, shooting down every one of them.

Former Congressman Breaks Down What Red Flag Laws Really Mean For Law Abiding Citizens Submitted by: Mark A. Taff Website: http://www.marktaff.com	There are no comments on this story Post Comments \| Read Comments
Former Republican Georgia Congressman Bob Barr is an ex-attorney and a Second Amendment enthusiast. With several states already putting red flag laws on the books, he decided to sit down and explain what exactly these �emergency risk prevention laws� means for law abiding Americans. See what Barr has to say in the video below.

Government View of Bear Spray vs Firearms for Defense Against Bears Submitted by: Mark A. Taff Website: http://www.marktaff.com	There are no comments on this story Post Comments \| Read Comments
The implication seems, if you are armed with a firearm, put it down and use bear spray instead! This is problematic advice at best. The advice ignores the possibility that bear spray will intensify an attack. It ignores the possibility a person attacked will only have 2-3 seconds to react.

OK: Constitutional Carry OK in Oklahoma
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
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The National Rifle Association's Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA) welcomes Oklahoma as the newest constitutional carry state. Constitutional carry, now the law in 16 states across the country, allows law-abiding citizens to carry concealed firearms without first getting government permission to do.

The NRA-backed law, which takes effect Friday, Nov. 1, fully recognizes the constitutional right of law-abiding gun owners to carry a firearm openly or concealed without a permit.

MD: FPC Urges Supreme Court to Restore the Human Right to Carry Arms in Public
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
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�As the brief explains, we believe this case is worthy of the Supreme Court�s review for several reasons,� said FPC Director of Research and brief author, Joseph Greenlee. �By now, nearly every federal circuit court has addressed the right to bear arms in public. The courts have taken a variety of different approaches and have reached an even greater variety of outcomes. The result has been a different right from state to state, with the right essentially banned in many�leaving millions of Americans unable to exercise a fundamental right. Several courts have gone so far as to expressly request additional guidance from the Supreme Court in their opinions, and we hope that the Court will take this opportunity to provide that guidance.�

MD: Second Amendment Foundation Joins Amicus Brief Supporting Challenge To MD Gun Law
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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The Second Amendment Foundation has joined four other organizations in an amicus curiae brief to the U.S. Supreme Court supporting a challenge to Maryland�s restrictive gun control law requiring applicants for concealed carry permits to provide a �good and substantial reason� to exercise their right to bear arms.

SAF is joined by the Firearms Policy Coalition, Inc. (�FPC�), Firearms Policy Foundation, California Gun Rights Foundation and the Madison Society Foundation. Their brief is submitted to the high court by Sacramento attorney Joseph G.S. Greenlee.

Second Amendment guarantees the First Submitted by: Mark A. Taff Website: http://www.marktaff.com	There are no comments on this story Post Comments \| Read Comments
Imagine the country if the First no longer worked. Is it beyond belief that the arms to enforce the First would already be confiscated per "mandatory buy back?" Which begs the questions: How does buy back occur when it was never OWNED by the government. How does $200 (or less) for an $1,800 firearm qualify as a buy back? Would not the phrase "mandatory confiscation" be more accurate?

NY: NRA spars with New York AG over subpoena of its former ad agency
Submitted by: Mark A. Taff
Website: http://www.marktaff.com

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The National Rifle Association and the New York attorney general's office squared off in a Manhattan court over whether the gun-rights organization has the power to prevent state investigators from seeing documents subpoenaed from its former advertising agency.

New York Attorney General Letitia James is investigating the NRA's nonprofit status after a leadership clash at the organization led to internal allegations of self-dealing, a claim the NRA has denied.