Author: Buckeye Firearms Association

SAF asks for all Bloomberg-MAIG records from NYC after revelations

Posted on by Buckeye Firearms Association

Editor’s Note: As the battle between New York Second Amendment advocates and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has escalated, it has appeared that Mr. Bloomberg, with his wealth and position pretty much had carte blanche to do what he pleased as he campaigned against guns in the hands of private citizens. But has Mr. Bloomberg used public funds or resources to augment his private efforts? That’s a question the Second Amendment Foundation and our friend Tom Gresham have decided to use the Freedom of Information Law to answer. With the Mayor’s bus tour coming under increased criticism, this FOIA request may mean additional scrutiny of Mr. Bloomberg and his organizations.

BELLEVUE, WA – The Second Amendment Foundation has filed a Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request with the City of New York for all records relating to Michael Bloomberg’s Mayors Against Illegal Guns, after newspaper allegations that city resources have been used for MAIG’s gun control efforts.

SAF is being joined in the request by the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, and Tom Gresham, host of the nationally-syndicated “Gun Talk.”

“It was bad enough to learn via CBS News that the MAIG website was being hosted on a city-owned server, and administered by city employees,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb, “but it also appears that a special counselor in the mayor’s office was sent to lobby in Nevada on behalf of MAIG’s gun control agenda.”

The New York Post and Politico both published reports that Mayor Bloomberg sent Christopher Kocher to Nevada, and that in an apparent attempt to conceal who he worked for, Kocher “scrubbed his City Hall e-mail address from the state of Nevada lobbying-registration Web site early this month.”

“The public has a right to know what’s been going on between Bloomberg, the city and MAIG,” Gottlieb explained. “Gun control is Bloomberg’s pet peeve, and he’s been pushing an anti-gun agenda since sending so-called private investigators on a sting operation to gun shops all over the country, which got him in trouble with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.”

“There certainly appears to be a serious problem in Bloomberg’s administration,” Gresham added. “Evidently, the mayor and his staff have a gross misunderstanding of how the taxpayers’ money should be spent, and that should not include sending New York employees around the country to lobby for Bloomberg’s pet projects.”

The request was filed by SAF Special Projects Director Philip Watson, for the following information:

Outrage of the Week: Bloomberg Gun Control Group Claims Terrorist was “Victim of Gun Violence”

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This week’s outrage comes to us from New Hampshire, where New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg’s anti-gun group–Mayors Against Illegal Guns–labeled a terrorist as a “victim of gun violence.”

As part of a gun control rally this week in Concord, a MAIG-sponsored “No More Names” tour bus arrived and anti-gun organizers read the names of those “killed with guns” since the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary school last year. Chief among the questionable list of gun violence victims was Boston Marathon terror bombing mastermind, Tamerlan Tsarnaev.

When Tsarnaev’s name was read, the crowd booed, and one of the attending pro-gun counter-protesters–who significantly outnumbered the antis–shouted, “he’s a terrorist”–a point obviously lost, at the time, by the MAIG “No More Names” group.

Tsarnaev was killed by police during a shootout following the April 15 “Patriot Day” bombing. During the car chase and apprehension, Tsarnaev threw grenades and other explosives at police and reportedly had explosive devices on his person when he died. But he’s a victim.

Under fire for their obvious gaffe, MAIG scrambled to apologize, claiming that Tsarnaev was mistakenly included on the list of victims and blaming liberal online magazine Slate.com for Tsarnaev’s inclusion on the list. Of course it wasn’t MAIG’s fault. It never is with these folks. When something goes wrong, when they get caught, they blame someone else.

Press Club of Toledo to host forum on firearms

Posted on by Buckeye Firearms Association

TOLEDO, OH. — Gun control and mass shootings are much in the news these days and the Press Club of Toledo has put together a session to educate the news media on the topics.

Pressing Issues, a regular program of the Press Club, will feature a panel comprised of a weapons expert, lawman, school administrator, concealed-carry instructor, and a seasoned news manager to discuss the topic from various angles.

The session will be from 8:30 to 10 a.m. Friday, June 28 in the Huntington Room of the Toledo-Lucas County Public Library at 325 Michigan St.

“We felt this is a topic that needs deep examination from a number of angles because of the complexity of the issue and some unfamiliarity, on the part of the media in general, of weapons and nuances of laws relating to them,” said Shaun Hegarty, Press Club president.

“Hopefully, this will clear the air on a number of issues and lead to even more accurate reporting on the topic,” added Mr. Hegarty, who is an Investigative Reporter at 13ABC.

On the panel are Jim Barnes, store manager of Gander Mountain in Holland, who will describe various firearms systems and terminology; Mark Abramson, an attorney with Robison, Curphey & O’Connell and a certified concealed carry instructor, will discuss legal requirements for carrying a firearm; Toledo Police Sgt. Joe Heffernan, who will talk about how law enforcement works with the media in reporting about weapons and crime; Romules Durant, Toledo Public Schools assistant superintendent, who will offer an educator’s perspective on safe schools, and C.J. Hoyt, news director of WTOL, who will discuss common newsgathering mistakes and ethical decision-making.

The event is open to the public. Admission is $10 for Press Club members and students and $20 for non-members. Reservations may be made via email to info@toledopressclub.com.

House committee holds first hearing on HB210 (Prohibit Law Enforcement Destruction of Firearms)

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by Chad D. Baus

State Rep. John Becker delivered sponsor testimony on House Bill 210 Tuesday before the House Transportation, Public Safety and Homeland Security committee.

HB 210 would prohibit law enforcement agencies from destroying an unclaimed or forfeited firearm, requiring them to instead sell the property to a federally licensed firearms dealer all which are legal for persons to possess, that are not used by an agency for police work, and that are not otherwise sold for sporting use or as a museum piece or collectors’ item.

Following is Becker’s testimony in its entirety:

What can gun owners do in the face of attempts to destroy the Second Amendment?

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by Frank Miniter

[The Outdoor Wire’s] Jim Shepherd challenged me by saying, “As the author of The Ultimate Man’s Survival Guide – my favorite book on how to be a man – I’d like you to write an essay on what America’s gun owners should be doing now to defend freedom.” Then he told me about www.MyTime2Stand.com and his road trip for freedom.

I thought on all this a while and wondered when a person has a moral obligation to stand up. Even harder, in a civil society, what can a person do besides voting, joining gun-rights organizations and calling and writing their legislators?

For answers I reread Henry David Thoreau’s essay “Civil Disobedience.” Though many on the political left like to cherry pick quotes from Thoreau’s Walden to buttress their statist philosophy, Thoreau was hardly a proponent of top-down government control; after all, Civil Disobedience’s first line is: “I HEARTILY ACCEPT the motto, ‘That government is best which governs least.'”

I thought on all this as I interviewed executives at Connecticut’s major gun makers – Colt, Mossberg and Stag Arms – for Forbes and wondered if they should leave, as many think they should, or stay and fight a law that uses the word “felony” 43 times, mostly as a threat to gun owners.

I recalled Ronald Reagan’s quote, “The beauty of the American system is that you can vote with your feet.” There is a lot of soundness in that reasoning; after all, staying will give tax money to a state that has made some of these company’s products off limits to non-government entities.

However, isn’t staying, at least long enough to fight it out in court, also a manly and America-loving option for gun makers?

I’m not saying it wasn’t right for Magpul Industries and HiViz Shooting Systems to leave Colorado, just that there are two sides to the point.

Retreating, after all, is both a tactic that can dissuade other states from attacking their businesses and it’s giving up ground. Meanwhile, these gun makers are also loyal to employees who have worked in their facilities for decades and to those in their states who support them.

So I kept thinking and only decided to write this after I found the answer that follows. The answer didn’t come as an epiphany shining through all the hard questions about when and how a free people can stand up for their constitutional rights, but like many deep decisions, it came in many small steps that led to a simple but profound answer.

How to Survive a Mass Shooting

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by Greg Ellifritz

In the wake of the Santa Monica College shooting, multiple news outlets are running stories purporting to provide tips about “surviving a mass shooting.” Depending on the author and the source, some of these are pretty decent. Some, on the other hand are horrible.

Take this one written by John Matthews for FOX News. It starts out with some decent information but rapidly devolves into opinionated and cliche advice that is likely to cause more deaths.

I have never met John Matthews and have never heard his name before I read the article. I don’t know if his background is legit or if he’s just looking to create a retirement career by leveraging his past law enforcement experience. His background claims that he is highly decorated and has 30 years law enforcement experience. One the surface, that sounds impressive. It may or may not be as impressive in real life.

If this guy spent 30 years in SWAT, narcotics, homicide, or even tactical training, he’s probably someone you should pay attention to. He has some relevant experience in the subjects about which he is giving advice. If he rode a desk or wrote traffic tickets for 30 years, he may not be the one you want to go to for active killer advice. Let’s look at what he says:

“The best survival tactic once you are aware of the incident is to exit the area. Get away as fast as you can and go as far away as you can.”

Very good advice and probably the single most important learning point for anyone to understand. When you hear shooting, get out as quickly as possible!

“If you can’t leave the area without presenting a target or drawing the attention of the shooter, seek cover, any object that will protect you from bullets including concrete barriers, steel building support beams, brick walls or even thick trees.

No cover available? Find concealment as quickly as possible by finding something to hide behind which will shield you from the shooter’s line of sight such as bushes, interior walls or even hiding in cabinets.”

More good advice. If you can’t get out, get to cover…absolutely nothing to argue with there.

“Whether you run from the area, find cover to protect yourself or seek out concealment to hide always present as small of a target as possible.

If you are leaving the area crouch down or use a zigzag pattern while running.”

Here’s where things start going bad.

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