Longwatch here, I had been considering writing on these 2 items today because they sure made my blood pressure go up. As usual the VCDL and Philip Van Cleave hit the nail on the head with the following VA-Alert. Personally I long for the day when this country begins to realize that we need to focus on the criminal offenders and not the tools they use. Unfortunately the government in my home county, Fairfax, can't seem to recognize that the legislation they want, would not have prevented last weeks tragedy. There is no evidence it would have denied Michael Kennedy a weapon, or detered him from his infamous deeds in the slightest degree. As the title of this post suggests, these actions by politicians seem to me to be nothing more than to serve the personal gain and agendas of these politicians, by appearing to be tough on crime without actually doing anything about it. The full text of the latest VA-Alert follows. I had the following breaking news items that I did not want to hold
until the weekend. Things continue to explode in Virginia.
1. Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and Congressman Jim Moran owe
Detective Vicky Armel's family an apology!
2. Bloomberg declares war on Virginia gun dealers
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1. Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and Congressman Jim Moran owe
Detective Vicky Armel's family an apology!
*********************************************************
In one of the most disgusting acts of disrespect for a fallen officer
and her family I have seen in a great while, both the Fairfax County
Board of Supervisors (BoS) and Congressman Jim Moran have rushed
forward to start dancing in Detective Armel's blood so that they can
push their gun-control agendas!
In the case of the Fairfax County BoS, they are trying to get
Congress to reenact the defunct and so called 'Assault Weapon Ban.'
Never mind that the ban wouldn't have made a lick of difference - it
was only a ban on cosmetics, as anyone who has looked at the law
knows. No, it's not about Fairfax saving lives. It's about Fairfax
callously pushing this issue strictly to get publicity at the expense
of that brave officer and her grieving family.
I am INCENSED at such behavior.
And it gets WORSE, believe it or not.
Not to be outdone in the disrespect department, Congressman Jim Moran
ran forward hoping this tragedy would pump life into his attempt to
ban .50 caliber rifles! No, I'm NOT kidding. Not a single .50
caliber rifle was used in the Fairfax shooting, nor have .50 caliber
rifles been used in any other crime that I have ever heard of. But
what do the truth and facts matter to Moran?
Moran has now sunk to a completely new low, even for him.
I say that Congressman Moran and the Fairfax County Board of
Supervisors owe Detective Armel's family an apology for stepping on
her body before it was even cold.
Here are some of the stories - take a deep breath before reading on.
First, here is Moran selfishly pushing his gun hatred at all costs.
Notice who else is stepping up to the plate with him:
http://tinyurl.com/rupd7Congressman Calls for Tighter Gun Control Laws
May 15th - 11:03am
WASHINGTON -- The deadly shooting outside of a Fairfax County police
station a week ago has prompted many to call for tighter gun control
laws.
Virginia Congressman Jim Moran and Virginians Against Handgun Violence
are stepping up efforts to ban 50-caliber sniper rifles.
Congressman Moran has introduced legislation, H.R. 654, that would
prohibit the sale or transfer of 50-caliber sniper rifles, and require
those types of rifles already in private collections to be registered
under the National Firearms Act.
The bill would exempt members of the military and law enforcement.
The Congressman and Virginians Against Handgun Violence are also
trying to reinstate the assault weapons ban that lapsed in September,
2004.
The assault weapons ban, signed by President Clinton in 1994, outlawed
19 types of assault weapons. A clause directed that the ban expire
unless Congress specifically reauthorized it, which it did not.
Moran says laws would help keep certain types of weapons out of the
hands of criminals and terrorists.
In a statement made on their website in March, 2005, the National
Rifle Association spoke out against Representative Moran's push to ban
50-caliber rifles.
"Anti-gunners are just trying to manufacture an issue to rejuvenate
their gun-banning agenda, which collapsed last year when Congress
allowed the Clinton Gun Ban to expire, after independent studies for
Congress showed that the ban had been a mistake," the NRA website
says.
WTOP Radio is waiting to hear back from the NRA about the comments
Representative Moran made most recently on Monday.
--
And here comes another disgrace - the Fairfax County Board of
Supervisors. Did they bother to check their facts? There is nothing
to show that the rifle used in the attack was fully automatic. But
even if it was, the assault weapons ban the County is endorsing did
NOT apply to fully automatic firearms -- it only applied to
SEMI-automatic firearms that had certain COSMETIC features. In
addition, there is no evidence that had the assault weapons ban
continued in force after 2004, that it would have prevented this evil
crime. But there I go again talking about facts and truth in the
same sentence as the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors. When will
I learn?
http://tinyurl.com/kn3f9Supervisors Ask Congress to Limit Assault Weapons
From today's Metro section:
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, citing the May 8 shooting
death of Detective Vicky O. Armel, called yesterday on Congress to
reinstate the ban on assault weapons it allowed to expire in 2004.
Supervisor Catherine M. Hudgins (D-Hunter Mill), who sponsored the
resolution, said, "We all understand that automatic weapons are
weapons that shouldn't be in our community."
Hudgins initially asked that the board endorse passage of new
legislation sponsored by Rep. James P. Moran Jr. (D-Va.) that would
prohibit the sale or transfer of 50-caliber sniper rifles and require
that such weapons currently in private collections be registered with
the federal government.
But other board members said they were reluctant to endorse the Moran
bill without a better understanding of what weapons should be banned.
As a compromise, Hudgins agreed to a resolution calling for the
return of the federal assault weapons ban, first passed in 1994.
--
If you are a resident of Fairfax County, you SHOULD contact your
supervisor. Anyone else who would like to contact the Fairfax County
Board of Supervisors to share your thoughts in a polite but firm
manner, here is their web page:
http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/government/board/And here is Jim Moran's page:
http://clerk.house.gov/members/inter_mem_list.html?statdis=VA08*********************************************************
2. Bloomberg declares war on Virginia gun dealers
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Like Rosie O'Donnell blaming spoon manufacturers for making her fat,
here comes Billionaire Mayor Michael Bloomberg from New York blaming
Virginia for his inability to control his own violent criminals.
Bloomberg, according to his press release, used a New York
investigative firm to go to Virginia and several other states and
pretend to be doing a 'straw' purchase. The investigators did
actually purchase handguns in some cases apparently. However,
determining if a straw purchase is being performed is NOT a science.
It is often a simple judgement call. And therein lies the rub that
can get a law-abiding gun dealer in inadvertent trouble during a
badly run 'string' operation.
Four dealers are being sued in Virginia. One, Patriot Services here
in Richmond, has sold me several guns over the years. The people
from Patriot Services have always seemed to be very conscientious in
following the law.
I'll be curious to see the evidence that Bloomberg claims to have on
the Virginia gun dealers in question. Particularly I want to know if
there are cases of dealers willfully selling guns illegally or if
those dealers were set up and entrapped.
I'm leaning towards entrapment. I do know that the woman that was
doing the purchases at Patriot Services showed a Virginia concealed
handgun permit suggesting that the holder is someone who has had a
thorough background check and is a trusted person that simply doesn't
commit crimes, such as straw purchases. Any person who has been
convicted of a straw purchase cannot have a concealed handgun permit.
If the woman did indeed complete the straw purchase, upon conviction
her permit should be revoked.
If Bloomberg thought laws were being broken in Virginia, why didn't
he work with the Virginia State Police or the BATFE? Under what
authority did he send private investigators to Virginia to set up
straw purchases? Were laws violated in doing so?
Senator Schumer's slip is showing.
ROFLMAO: In the first video below Senator Chucky Schumer says,
"Whether it is a member of NYPD or an innocent child who is slain at
the hands of a gun..." That about sums it up. Criminals don't kill
people, guns have hands and they kill people all on their own.
Senator Schumer, that tinfoil hat becomes you!
Schumer also sees law-abiding gun owners clumped together with gun
runners, criminals, and terrorists when he says, "We have gun owners,
gun runners, gun criminals who terrorize urban and rural communities."
What terrorizes ME is the thought that this guy is in a position of
power.
Here are some of the stories:
http://www.washtimes.com/national/20060516-123723-3183r.htmGun suit targets shops in 5 states
Published May 16, 2006
NEW YORK (AP) -- The city is suing 15 out-of-state gun shops it says
supply a significant portion of the guns that flow into New York,
including some that end up in the hands of criminals.
The lawsuit being filed yesterday asks the federal court to order
supervision and extra training for the dealers in Georgia, Ohio,
Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Virginia. It also seeks some damages
and compensation.
"By and large, most gun dealers respect and follow the law, but
the small group of dealers that do not should be held accountable,"
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg said in a statement.
The city's law department singled out the 15 gun shops after
hiring private investigators who fanned out to dealers in the five
states over the past several weeks.
Wearing hidden cameras, the investigators entered stores in teams
of two and attempted "straw purchases," in which the buyer completes
the paperwork and passes the background check, but later hands over
the weapon to someone else who is not allowed to own a firearm.
The scam, prohibited by federal law, is typically used by people
who are under 21 or felons. The 15 dealers named in the suit sold
guns to the undercover investigators. The city said the sales were
refused at about 30 other shops.
The owners of two Georgia gun stores named in the lawsuit denied
Monday that they did anything wrong.
Earl Driggers, the owner of A-1 Jewelry and Pawn, said he was
aware that his store had been the target of a police sting in the
past, but he thinks he has always complied with the law.
"We certainly do everything we can to make sure guns don't leave
our store illegally," Mr. Driggers said. "I don't know what you're
supposed to do. If a guy comes in and meets all the criteria, and you
comply with the law, I don't know what you do."
--
http://tinyurl.com/qlz6vVIDEO OF ILLEGAL SALE
PACKS LOTS OF AMMO
By DAVID SEIFMAN
May 16, 2006 -- Reality TV may be all the rage, but you can be sure
that a certain Virginia gun dealer isn't thrilled to be starring in a
video that landed him on New York TV last night.
"Here's an example of someone breaking the law," Mayor Bloomberg said
in introducing the secretly shot video during a City Hall news
conference.
What followed as the lights dimmed was a transaction as routine as
lemonade in summer in the South, a quick and painless purchase at
Cole's Gun Shop in South Boston, Va.
"I wonder if you could show me a 9mm," said the customer, who turned
out to be an undercover operative for the James Mintz detective
agency, hired by the city to scout out illegal gun sales.
"What kind of 9mm do you have in mind?" asked the obliging dealer.
Within the time it takes to order a burger at McDonald's, the purchase
was completed.
"Gonna need some bullets with that," added the customer.
When the required paperwork to purchase the weapon was presented,
however, the customer turned that task over to his female companion.
Although city officials say that's clearly illegal, the dealer didn't
blink.
"You are a Virginia resident, correct?" asked the dealer, explaining
that lots of prospective customers from North Carolina visit his shop
without realizing they can't buy anything because of the residency
requirements.
"I am," responded the male customer. To make it apparent that they
barely knew each other, the male customer turned to the female and
asked: "You live in the state, right?" The mayor labeled that exchange
as criminal.
"What you saw was a textbook straw purchase," he said. "The man picked
out the gun, handled it, asked questions about it and then when it
came time to do the paperwork he brought in a woman who had not been
involved at all."
The transaction was all the more striking because it was preceded by
another video where another Southern dealer refused to complete a sale
under similar circumstances.
When the undercover female agent approached to fill out the paperwork
in that case, the dealer stopped in his tracks.
"He's looking at guns for you and I didn't see you give any
indication, any inkling, about buying a gun," said the reluctant
dealer. "I'd gotta assume that you'd be buying it for him since he
can't buy one . . . . If I'm wrong, I'm sorry, but that's just the way
it has to work," he explained.
Michael Cole, the lawyer for Cole's Gun Shop and the owner's brother,
insisted it abides by the law.
"We deny that we have ever made a straw sale [to a front man]. It's
something that's just not done. We haven't seen the video so we can't
comment on that," he said.
Cole also said the shop has never gotten into trouble with the federal
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms and routinely turns away
customers.
"Sometimes there's this suspicious situation where a woman walks in
and she'll be reading off a piece of paper and you look outside and
there are a bunch of kids in the car. You know what's going on and,
yes, we turn them away."
Robert Marcus, president of the Virginia Gun Dealers' Association,
said dealers are keenly aware that they can't sell to customers who
are fronting for others.
"We have an ongoing program, 'Don't lie for the other guy.' "
--
Here is a video of the Schumer/Bloomberg press conference today,
featuring Chucky and his proposed legislation to further restrict our
rights and Bloomy doing some serious fear-mongering. If gun owners
stand together Schumer's bill and Moran's bill never see the light of
day.
Caution: there is a lot of whining, baloney and hypocrisy in these
videos, please do not throw hard objects at your computer screen - I
need you online, not offline with a broken computer:
http://www.nyc.gov/html/om/html/2006a/media/pc051606-dc300k.asxHere is a video of Bloomberg's press conference yesterday, which
shows some video of a 'straw' purchase in Cole's Gun Shop in South
Boston. The dealer appears to be asleep at the switch, but I was not
left with the impression that he was going along with an illegal
straw purchase perpetrated by the private investigators."
Based on this video, it appears that the dealer was busy getting
ready to handle the sale and didn't hear an important clue when the
man asked the woman if she was a Virginia resident. The man should
have known such a basic thing as that about his female companion.
But if the dealer didn't hear the clue, then it may as well have not
happened at all. Was the dealer careless? Probably. Malicious? I
doubt it. He made it clear he would not sell to anyone who was not a
VA resident and did not in any way hint that he would be willing to
circumvent the law to make such a sale or any other sale.
If he had said, "Psst - let's go in the back room and we can do this
off the books" or something like that, then he would have been
malicious. All they appear to have done here is tripped up an
otherwise law abiding gun dealer.
http://www.nyc.gov/html/om/html/2006a/media/pc051506-ATF_presser300k.asx
