Stop the National Hidden Handgun Bill

States currently have the authority to determine their own carry concealed weapons (CCW) policies. Most New England states show great care and caution when issuing concealed weapons permits. They also limit which out-of-state visitors can carry concealed handguns. But the gun lobby is trying to change this.

Legislation now pending in the U.S. Senate would force our communities to permit untrained individuals from other states to carry loaded, hidden handguns in public. It would allow out-of-state visitors to carry concealed firearms even if those visitors have not met the standards for carrying concealed weapons in the state they are visiting.

It would also permit residents who don't meet the ccw requirements in their own states to obtain a permit from a state with lower standards, thus circumventing and undermining their local requirements.

S. 845, the "Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2009," could dramatically increase the number of individuals carrying concealed loaded handguns in public in your state.

The practical effect of this legislation would be reduce concealed carry permit regulations to the lowest common denominator. This is particularly dangerous as many states have weak laws and issue individuals permits after only a simple computerized background check-through a database that is missing millions of disqualifying criminal and mental health records.

Just how dangerous is this proposal? In 2009, there have already been three MASS shootings by concealed carry permit holders - including the murder of three police officers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

The gun lobby is still gloating over their success with pushing concealed weapons into our National Parks. This legislation goes even further, undermines state authority and would allow armed individuals from virtually any other state to cross state lines with their deadly weapons and carry loaded guns in public.

The U.S. Senate is expected to vote on S. 845 as early as Monday, July 13. We need your help NOW to tell the Senate to stand up and say "NO" to the gun lobby and "NO" to more concealed handguns in our communities.

Please, call your U.S. Senators today and tell them to vote NO on S. 845 in any form, whether it is offered as a stand alone bill or an amendment to another bill.

To find your Senators visit:

http://www.senate.gov/

or call

202-224-3121

and ask to be connected to your Senators' offices.

THANK YOU for caring and for your time and energy.

Recap of the First Session in Augusta

As the Legislative session draws to a close in Augusta, let’s take moment to look back at some of the actions our legislators took to protect the public health and safety of the people of Maine.

Legislators voted to keep the ban on the sale of fireworks. Concerns were raised about the dangers of fireworks and the lack of oversight in the proposed legislation.

Because of concern of house fires and carbon monoxide poisoning, legislators passed a law requiring all homes sold in Maine have smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.

Legislators tightened up regulations dealing with retail tobacco and liquor licensing laws. It should be noted that during debate on this bill, no objections were raised over the requirement that anyone who sells tobacco and liquor must obtain a license to do so.

Because of ongoing concerns about the dangers of smoking and second hand smoke, legislators passed a law that prohibits smoking on state beaches. These are all laudable measures and will, no doubt, save lives.

Given all the concern shown for Maine’s public health and safety, one has to wonder what happened when legislators were given a chance to legislate gun sales in Maine.

Two bills were considered this session in Augusta that would require all gun sales, including private gun sales at guns shows and through publications such as Uncle Henry’s, be subject to an FBI instant criminal background check. Because a private individual cannot access the FBI background check system, sales would be processed by a licensed gun dealer who would run the check. Other states have processed private gun sales this exact way for years. Both of these bills failed to even make it out of committee.

Why is it that legislators who show such concern in general for our public health and safety routinely turn a blind eye when it comes to easy, unquestioned access to firearms?

Maine allows for the private sale of guns where there will be no criminal background check run, no records kept, no questions asked. There is no doubt that convicted felons and others who should not possess guns have taken advantage of Maine’s weak laws and obtained guns. Yet despite this evidence, legislators continue to kowtow to the gun lobby.

But look at what the gun lobby is telling their members. The National Rifle Association sent out an alert that stated, “These bills would effectively dismantle gun shows as well as ban the private sale of firearms in Maine.” The reality is these bills would do neither and for proof one need look no further than California which has had similar laws in place for twenty years. You will still find gun shows and private gun sales in California, sales that are facilitated by licensed dealers who run a criminal background check.

Yet person after person who spoke in opposition to these bills talked about how this was just a trick to ban guns, to close down gun shows, to prevent people from selling their guns, and would lead to the government at their door looking to confiscate their firearms.

And they talked about the Second Amendment. Without, it seems, having taken the time to fully read last year’s Supreme Court decision. In the Heller decision the Supreme Court ruled that while there is an individual right to own a gun “like most rights, the Second Amendment right is not unlimited. It is not a right to keep and carry any weapon whatsoever in any manner whatsoever and for whatever purpose.” The court make it absolutely clear that the right to own a gun exists side by side with the right to regulate the purchase, possession and carrying of guns.

It is the job of our legislators to look past the rhetoric, the misinterpretations, and even the lies of those who try to influence their opinions. It is their job to look at the facts, to read the full Heller decision, to examine the court documentation of private gun sales that lead to gun crimes, and to look beyond the line of people who are simply parroting back the lies that have been feed to them.

No one said the job of a legislator was an easy one, but the public health and safety of the people of Maine are depending on them.

Congress Caves to the NRA

Our national parks are our national treasures.  Our system of national parks was the first of its kind in the world and was set up to preserve, protect, and share our natural wonders and cultural heritage.  Every year millions of people seek out the tranquility and beauty of national parks to retreat from the bustle of the world.   There they find places of spectacular scenery and abundant recreational opportunities.  They also find safe places with few serious crimes.  Given the safety and tranquility of our national park system one has to ask why Congress would vote to allow deadly loaded hidden guns into our national parks.  

In a chest thumbing, “gotcha amendment” pushed by the National Rifle Association to prove their power, Senator Coburn of Oklahoma took advantage of the credit card reform bill that was designed to protect Americans from spurious credit card fees and cynically attached an amendment that allows for loaded guns in national parks.  It overturns a policy put in place under President Regan that banned concealed weapons in the parks in order to “ensure public safety and maximum protection of natural resources.”   Current regulation allows park visitors to have guns as long as they are unloaded and stowed away.  

The amendment that Congress blessed will allow loaded guns to be carried both concealed and openly.  This means it will be perfectly legal for visitors to Acadia to ride the park buses, attend ranger-led hikes and sit around campfires with a semi-automatic AK-47 strapped to their backs.  And because Maine law does not require a concealed weapons permit for guns carried openly, it also means that anyone can pick up an Uncle Henry’s, pick out the handgun or assault rifle of their choosing, buy the gun through a private sale where there will be no background check run and no questions asked, strap the gun on and head for a stroll up Cadillac mountain.  

Allowing loaded guns in our parks will raise the risk of opportunistic poaching and expose park visitors to the risk of accidental, negligent and illegal firearm discharges.  A concealed weapons permit does not guarantee safety.  Consider these two incidents in just the past two weeks.  In Michigan, a concealed weapons teacher accidentally shot a student in the face during a demonstration.   And in Texas, a concealed handgun instructor shot and killed his wife and then exchanged gunfire with police during a two hour standoff.  

The gun lobby claimed that the prohibition on concealed weapons in national parks violated their rights.  But last year’s Supreme Court ruling on the Second Amendment made it absolutely clear that the right to own a gun exists side by side with the right to regulate the purchase, possession, and carrying of guns.  

Senator Coburn stated that “Visitors to national parks should have the right to defend themselves.” But our national parks are some of the safest places in the country. In 2007, over 270 million people visited our national parks and there were only nine criminal deaths across the park system.  Compare this to what happens outside of our parks.   In 2007, in our country of 300 million people there were over 18,000 homicides, of which almost 13,000 were committed with guns.  

The NRA is in the business of selling guns and one of their best marketing tools is fear.  They tell their members to be afraid of the government coming to take their guns, they tell them to be afraid of everything and to arm themselves against this fear, and they tell legislators to be afraid of being targeted if they don’t vote the right way. 

Is Congress afraid to say no to the NRA?   Do they believe that their reelection depends on continuing to kowtow to their extreme agenda?    

The Association of National Park Rangers, the Coalition of National Park Service Retirees, the Humane Society, the Fraternal Order of Police, the National Parks Conservation Association, and the U.S. Park Rangers Lodge are just some of the organizations opposing this change in regulations.  Voters, especially those heading off to a national park this summer with their families, should be outraged that Congress didn’t listen to them instead.  

........................

See how your representative voted.  A "yea" vote is a vote to appease the NRA and allow hidden, loaded guns in our national parks.

Senate vote: http://www.govtrack.us/congress/vote.xpd?vote=s2009-188

House vote: http://www.govtrack.us/congress/vote.xpd?vote=h2009-277

State Legislators Are Playing With Fire

            There’s a new and extremely dangerous crop of gun bill springing up around the country.  This bill is specifically designed to go after the federal authority to regulate guns.  The goal is to get the new law into the courts, and ultimately before the Supreme Court, to challenge the federal authority to regulate guns through interstate commerce laws. These legislators, egged on by gun extremists and anti-federal government devotees, are playing with fire. 

            Here’s how it works:  Montana has just passed legislation that says guns manufactured in Montana, and sold to people who intend to keep these guns in Montana, are exempt from federal gun laws and regulations.  This means licensed gun dealers do not need to run background checks on people buying these specially stamped “Made in Montana” guns.  And because Montana has very few state laws pertaining to gun possession, many of those exempt from owning a gun under federal law will be free and clear to own guns under this new state law.  This includes people who have been convicted of domestic violence offenses, those currently subject to a restraining order, and children as young as the age of 14.  And of course, because state borders are open and unguarded there is little to stop people from taking these “Made in Montana” guns to other states.  Wow, talk about creating a system ripe for abuse. 

            But Montana is not the only state looking to make it legal for dangerous people and children to buy guns.  Similar legislation has been introduced in Alaska, Texas, Colorado, and Tennessee.  This week, a Texas House committee held hearings on a bill that would not only exempt Texas-made firearms, gun accessories and ammunition sold within the state from federal gun regulations but would also add the provision that the Texas Attorney General’s office defend any Texans who are prosecuted by the federal government because of this law. 

            Putting aside the fact that exempting guns from federal regulations is an incredibly bad and recklessly dangerous idea, these bills fly in the face of everything this country stands for.   They are meant to undermine our federal system of government.  If states can exempt themselves from federal gun laws what else can they opt out of?  

          Let's hope the courts act quickly and decisively to shut down this clearly unconstitutional law.  Shame on legislators for supporting these bills that are not only dangerous, but blatantly anti-American. 

 

Laws and regulations designed to protect the public health and safety work

Laws and regulations designed to protect the public health and safety work.   

A driver’s license teaches road safety, vehicle inspections keep dangerous cars off the roads, speed limits safely control the movement of cars.  Consumer product safety standards work to ensure that our food is free from poisons, cribs are safe for babies, radiation doesn’t leak from our microwave ovens.  Building codes protect the integrity of the homes we live in, the roads we drive on, the elevators we ride in.  

Every day, in ways too numerous to mention, policy makers have worked to protect the safety of our communities through laws and regulations.  But there is one area where the public is left vulnerable, one industry that our legislators fail to regulate:  firearms. 

Holes in our gun laws allow for the private sale of guns with no background checks run and no records kept.  Weaknesses in our regulations allow anyone to obtain military-style assault rifles, guns designed specifically to kill as many people as possible in a short amount of time.  Lack of oversight allows for these guns to be equipped with high capacity magazines that hold 20, 30, 50 rounds and more.  Amendments slipped in yearly to appropriations bills keep the ATF under funded, hide crime gun trace information from our police officers, and prohibit the Center for Disease Control from talking about gun control.  

Legislators at both the federal and the state level have been bullied and beaten into submission by a powerful special interest lobby.  It is understandable why the gun lobby acts the way they do.  Their goal, after all, is to sell guns.  What is not understandable is why our policy makers are content to sit back in silence while every year in the United States 30,000 people die from firearms; 70,000 people are shot and injured, leaving physical and emotional scars that last for years; over 300,000 people are victims of armed robbery or aggravated assault with a firearm; and countless others are threatened and intimidated with guns, sometimes by so-called loved ones.  

Our legislators need to be held accountable for their failure to protect the public health and safety.  They have abdicated their responsibility and have helped create a system that allows for easy, unquestioned access to firearms by felons, domestic abusers and others prohibited from owning guns.  

Every time a Dylan Klebold or a Seung-Hui Cho walks into a classroom and kills our innocent children we must hold our legislators to blame for their failure to pass the laws and regulations that would prevent these dangerous individuals from getting guns.  

On this, the tenth anniversary of the killings at Columbine High School and the second anniversary of the massacre at Virginia Tech, let us honor these, and all victims of gun violence by working to enact laws that will prevent guns from falling into the wrong hands and prevent future tragedies.

After North Carolina Nursing Home Massacre That Killed 8, Arming Nurses Is NOT the Answer

When Robert Stewart barged into a North Carolina nursing home and started shooting elderly Alzheimer patients, local police officer Justin Garner went to work.  Garner confronted the well-armed intruder and told him to put his weapons down.  Stewart responded by shooting at Garner, hitting him with buckshot pellets in the leg and foot.  Despite his injury, Officer Garner managed to fire one round, hitting Stewart in the chest and ending the shooting spree that left eight people dead. 

Now that’s police work and we should all be grateful for the long hours Officer Garner put in training to do his job.  

But good police work is apparently not good enough for Grass Roots North Carolina (GRNC), a local gun extremist group.  GRNC wants to arm nurses.

Armed nurses in an Alzheimer unit?  Really?

GRNC, and gun fanatics across the country, are seriously out of touch with reality.  The reality is shootings happen quickly.  They can start and end before anyone even realizes what is going on.  

The reality is that even highly trained police officers hit their intended targets less than 20% of the time.

The reality is that these highly stressful situations set off an array of involuntary physiological responses, including trembling hands, tunnel vision, loss of hearing and even loss of bowel control.  

The reality is that adding more guns to a shooting incident will lead to more chaos, more chance for innocent people to be hit and greater confusion for law enforcement in sorting out who the criminal is.

But GRNC doesn’t just want to arm nurses, they want to override the ability of private companies in North Carolina to regulate firearms as they see fit on their private property.  GRNC is currently supporting legislation that would force privately owned bars and restaurants to allow hidden, loaded guns.  

All across the country gun extremists are pushing this extreme agenda.  The goal of the gun lobby is to eliminate any restrictions on the carrying of concealed weapons.  Current legislation includes: 

•          a Montana bill to do away with the need to obtain a concealed weapons permit
  
•      a New Mexico bill to allow concealed weapons in bars;
  
•      an Arizona bill to force privately owned business to let workers keep guns in their cars; 
  
•      a Texas bill that would give permission for college students to keep guns in their dorm and carry guns into the classroom. 

This is just a partial listing of bills being considered in state legislatures.  Unfortunately, there is no lack of legislators willing to sponsor and vote for these dangerous bills, despite the fact that the majority of Americans want tougher, not weaker, gun laws.  But as long as legislators continue to be bullied by gun extremists while the majority of Americans remain quiet, these laws will continue to be introduced and even passed. 

Do we really want to be so dependent upon the judgment of ordinary citizens as to when and where is the right time to use a concealed gun?

 

For His 18th Birthday He Bought Himself Two Assault Rifles, Several High Capacity Ammunition Clips, and More

Last week, in the middle of the night, Massachusetts police pulled over a driver on 495.   The truck was allegedly swerving in and out of lanes.  Luke Huizinga, the 18-year-old behind the wheel,  said he was headed from his home in Danbury, Connecticut to a wedding in Maine.  After spotting a gun case the police searched the vehicle.  They found:

-         a 16-inch Bushmaster assault rifle with a night scope

-         a 12-guage shotgun with a pistol grip

-         7 30-round high capacity ammunition clips

-         several boxes of additional ammunition

-         six knives

-         brass knuckles

-         a bullet-proof vest with an armor plate

According to police, both guns had been modified.  

Huizinga told police he bought the guns to celebrate his 18^th birthday.  His mother describes him as a “sportsman and gun enthusiast” and said that he just wanted to show off his new guns to his friends in Maine. 

She told the Danbury News-Times that Luke “did something stupid.  I hope he does not get two years in jail.  I’m sure it will be all right, because I’m not in control, God is in control.”

God help a mother who gives her blessing for her son to buy himself a mini-arsenal, complete with bullet-proof vest, for his 18^th birthday.  He may never “have been in trouble of any kind before” but he’s certainly heading down a dangerous road.  And the sad part is, he purchased all these guns legally.