Assault Weapons Ban shot down in Senate.

On Tuesday, Harry Reid, leader of the Democrat-controlled Senate, dropped Diane Feinstein's Assault Weapons Ban from the gun control package proposed by the group.

The move by Reid is largely due to a lack of support for the ban, and a fear that including it in the full package could prevent ANY gun control laws from being passed. However, Feinstein intends to offer the ban as an amendment. Personally, I don't see this getting any traction.

Now we just have to worry about universal background checks (AKA de facto registration). The other laws proposed are measures which won't limit gun rights, and include strengthening the penalties for straw purchases and school safety aid.

This is, indeed, a triumph for freedom loving Americans, but we may not be out of the woods yet. A high-capacity magazine ban may still be on the table. At least we can expect AR prices to go down a little.

Defense Distributed granted manufacturing license.

A picture of the document taken from the Defense Distributed blog.

Defense Distributed, the organization which you probably know pretty well by now, has just been granted a license to manufacture firearms by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. I assume this means that they can now sell 3D printed firearms, since it is legal to "create" them without a license, but not legal to sell them. The license is a Type 7, which allows manufacturing of non-automatic firearms.

Apparently some of the politicians are catching wind of all this 3D printing news. Representative Steve Israel (D-Huntington, NY) has already introduced a ban on the 3D printing of gun magazines. The bill is in the drafting phase, and I don't expect it to go far, since 3D printing is not very well-known.

Anti-gun insanity hits schools nationwide.

You may have heard some of these recent news stories, but just in case you haven't here is a roundup:

• In Washington today, a six-year old boy was suspended for school because he was overheard for simply talking about toy guns (keep in mind, not real ones) with his classmates.
• Actor Joseph C. Phillips' 15-year old son's mental state was called into question by his school when he showed a picture of an airsoft BB gun to a classmate. The school also threatened police action.
• An entire county went into lock-down after a school doctor's office receptionist heard the words "school" and "shooting" on a student's voicemail while confirming an appointment. In reality, the voicemail message was actually a quote from the theme song to The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, which read, "And all shooting some b-ball outside of the school."
• A 7-year old boy at Park Elementary School in Brooklyn Park was suspended for allegedly chewing a breakfast pastry into the shape of a gun. The student claims that he was actually trying to chew it into the shape of a mountain, and a teacher ordered him to go to the principal's office. Recent reports also state that the school is offering counseling to any students who may have witnessed the traumatizing act. 

There are a few more stories like this, but I cannot recall them at the moment. This is just and example of the mass hysteria surrounding guns promoted by the mass media and government.

Gun manufacturers refuse to sell in anti-gun states.

The count is increasing rapidly. Magpul, Wilson Combat, Larue Tactical, Olympic Arms, Doublestar Corp., American Spirit Arms, Liberty Suppressors, Barrett Firearms, and numerous other firearms manufacturers are refusing to sell their products to the government in anti-gun cities and states. I would suppose this would primarily include law enforcement. This is a business risk, and it is great that these companies are putting their profits on the line to help the pro-gun cause. Now if only we could get some of the ammunition manufacturers to get on board with this, we would really have some leverage.

Surface-to-air missile control?

The FIM-92 Stinger missile launcher

Rep. Gerald Connoly, a Democratic congressman for Virginia, has apparently expressed concerns that FIM-92 Stinger missiles need to be banned from civilian ownership.

What? That is probably what you're thinking.

Connoly stated:

“I have been accused of trying to dismantle the Second Amendment for simply asking whether high-powered, military-style semi-automatic firearms with large-capacity magazines — which were used in the D.C. sniper murders, the attempted assassination of Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, and the mass shootings in Aurora and Newtown — should be readily available to the general public. Or for wondering whether the Second Amendment applies to weapons such as the FIM-92 Stinger missile launcher, a personal portable infrared homing surface-to-air missile platform capable of downing commercial aircraft.”

I'm as confused as you are. Stinger missiles are considered destructive devices, and therefore are already illegal for civilians to own.

As stated in the article on Guns Save Lives, this situation is a flashback to Jesse Jackson's comments about how semi-automatic rifles can shoot down planes and blow up railroads.

An analysis of the effects of Feinstein's AWB

The largest gun control bill on the table at the moment is obviously Senator Feinstein's propsed assault weapons ban, which is being endorsed in a campaign-style manner by President Obama. I thought I would take some time to explain some of the supposed "flaws" in this bill, and some of the little-known consequences it will have.

First off, the assault weapon ban ABSOLUTELY DOES violate the 2nd Amendment, and is unconstitutional. This is a result of the fact that the ban DOES involve confiscation, unlike what everyone is telling you. In this case however, it is not a direct confiscation, but a de jure confiscation. The bill prohibits the future sale or transfer of any so-called "assault weapons". Now, there is a grandfather clause, so you can keep an "assault weapon" if you already own one. However, because the bill prohibits future transfers, you can never sell that weapon or even give it to a relative. In the event that the owner of such a weapon dies, the firearm cannot be passed on to anyone else. Therefore, I would assume that the only option would be to destroy the weapon, or send it to the government.

Secondly, the assault weapons ban does not JUST ban the "blacklisted" weapons in the bill. If interpreted properly, the AWB will ban ALL semiautomatic rifles. The bill states that for a weapon to be banned, it must be a semiautomatic rifle equipped with one or more "military features," including a pistol grip. Later in the bill, a pistol grip is defined as essentially any form of grip that allows the user to hold onto the gun. This would include regular stocks, which would ban almost all semiautomatic rifles.

Lastly, the AWB contradicts itself, and proves just how stupid it is to ban certain types of weapons based on "scary features". As many of you know, the bill includes a "blacklist", which lists 157 specific models of guns that are to be banned. However, the bill also includes a list of 2200 weapons exempted from the ban, that would otherwise be banned. Many of these "exempted" guns are very similar or even nearly identical to blacklisted guns, and many even include several "military features". One example: The Ruger Mini-14. The Mini-14 is a semiautomatic rifle that can accept high-capacity magazines. In the AWB, the tactical variant of the Mini-14 is blacklisted, but the standard model is not. The only difference: One has a black, polymer stock, and one has a standard wooden stock.

Spread the word, and maybe even the anti-gunners will realize the futility and stupidity of this bill.

Obama endorses gun control in the city it failed in.

This Friday, Obama took his "campaign" for more gun control to his hometown, Chicago, also known as the most violent city in America. Also known as the city with the strongest gun control laws in the nation. Coincidence?

Nevertheless, the Preisdent stated:

"There was something profound and uniquely heart-breaking and tragic about a group of 6-year-olds being killed But last year there were 443 murders with a firearm on the streets of this city and 65 of those victims were 18 and under; so that's the equivalent of a Newtown every four months."

While this is true, none of the new gun laws Obama is pushing for, most notably Feinstein's assault weapons ban, would do anything to stop gun violence in Chicago. Out of the 12000 or so gun deaths every year in the US, only about 300 are from rifles, and an even smaller number than that are caused by so-called "assault weapons". It is clear that Chicago's main problem is not AR-15s, it's gangs. Until the windy city gets control of its street gangs, the gun violence will not stop, no matter what laws are enacted. Gangsters don't buy guns legally from their local sporting goods store.

Obama is currently pushing for a large gun control legislative package, which would include universal background checks, a ban on high capacity magazines, and or course, the AWB.

Celebrities endorse and speak out against AWB

Paul J. Richards / AFP - Getty Images

Yesterday, Chris Rock, Tony Bennett, Adam Scott and Amanda Peet endorsed Obama's gun control plan at a press conference during an event led by Mayors Against Illegal Guns.

Tony Bennett, as well as Adam Scott (from Parks and Recreation) specifically referenced the Newtown massacre.

Perhaps the most disconcerting was the blind loyalty expressed by Chris Rock, who stated:

"The President of the United States is ... our boss. ... The president and the first lady are kind of like the mom and the dad of the country, and when your dad says something, you listen! And when you don't, it usually bites you in the ass later on."

This mindset is the reason that we Bill of Rights supporters need to prevent this ban from making it through. On the positive side, Bruce Willis and Ice-T are on our side. Willis stated:

"I think that you can't start to pick apart anything out of the Bill of Rights without thinking that it's all going to become undone."

Ice-T expressed similar concerns in an interview after the Aurora shooting.