by Jim Irvine For those that have not already made plans to attend our sold out Dave Grossman event this weekend, I highly recommend a trip to Chicago for the Second Amendment…
Call for support: “Voice of Ohio sportsmen now needs help from them”
Wooster’s The Daily-Record is reporting that one of our own needs our help.
For the past three decades, Don Smith has been fighting for sportsman’s rights as a field representative for the United States Sportsman’s Alliance. There’s not a sport show, rendezvous or traderee that he hasn’t set up a booth at in the state of Ohio.
He’s logged more miles than a long-distance truck driver, carrying the word to all corners of the state, representing sportsmen in the halls of Congress, in the hunting fields and on the fishing waters.
He’s preached conservation, preservation and the importance of our outdoor heritage to everyone and anyone within earshot. He was and is a soldier for the sportsmen.
He’s raised money for youth events, fish stockings, fishing rods and reels and other outdoor gear. He’s raffled off more 4-wheelers than Polaris itself.
Today, though, Don Smith is fighting for his life. The Wooster resident is currently in Cleveland Clinic awaiting evaluation for a heart transplant, and possibly a new kidney as well.
“I’ve got diabetes, congestive heart failure, everything,” said Smith from his hospital room. “And, I didn’t do myself any favors by pushing it at work.”
As The Daily-Record writes so well, “Now it’s our turn to give back to someone who has been out there on the front line fighting the good fight. It’s time to pony up for the guy who was there for us when they tried to take away our rights, tried to change the laws, tried to eliminate our sport.”
In an effort to help defray some of the Smith family’s piling debt, a benefit pasta dinner will be held on Sunday, Sept. 25 from noon-4 p.m. at the Church of the Saviour, 480 Fry Road, Wooster.
Representative Joe Uecker introduces HB328 to modify Ohio CHL Media Access Loophole
by Chad D. Baus State Representative Joe Uecker (R-Miami Twp.) has introduced HB328, legislation which seeks to modify a provision in Ohio law which allows journalists access to the private confidential information…
USSA Director Sets Record Straight on Federal Public Lands Bill
Newly introduced H.R. 2834 (the Recreational Fishing and Hunting Heritage and Opportunities Act) is being supported by a “who’s who” of hunting groups for good reason: it is a necessary piece of legislation with a great upside for conservation. Unfortunately, the Obama administration is opposing the bill and is joined by several groups with a history of opposing sound wildlife management and other conservation principles.
House Resolution 2834, a U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance backed bill, was introduced recently in Congress. Those testifying in favor of the Act included Bill Horn, U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance Director of Federal Affairs.
His testimony revealed numerous benefits for anglers, trappers and hunters. And while there was no mention of roads, jeep, or anything else to do with travel by sportsmen on federal public lands included in H.R. 2834, there was the mention of wilderness. That word quickly triggered opposition from the government in concert with the Wilderness Society.
“The government and the Wilderness Society have publicly claimed this Act will open Wilderness areas to motorized vehicle use,” stated Horn. “A Society spokesman states if hunters are retrieving game on Wilderness lands, you could ride your off-road jeep anywhere you choose. Nothing could be further from the truth. The bill is not about road construction, jeep trails or motor vehicle access. The absurd comments could be to grab attention, or to simply oppose hunting.”
During the hearing, U.S. Forest Service Deputy Chief Joel Holtrop admitted to being opposed to the bill without fully reading or understanding it.
“H.R. 2834 was only formally introduced three days before this hearing and the Department has not had sufficient time to conduct an in-depth analysis of the legislation as introduced,” he stated.
Buckeye Firearms’ Sean Maloney Receives NRA’s Jay M. Littlefield Volunteer of the Year Award
Buckeye Firearms Association would like to congratulate Sean Maloney, on being chosen as the recipient of the very prestigous NRA-ILA “Jay M. Littlefield Volunteer of the Year Award.” This is the highest award given by NRA-ILA to individuals who have dedicated themselves to the preservation of the Second Amendment, for advocacy and volunteerism. Sean is the NRA-ILA EVC (election volunteer coordinator) for Ohio’s 8th Congressional District, has worked on several campaigns over the course of many years, is a Second Amendment rights attorney and is on the leadership team of Buckeye Firearms Association.
Maloney was presented the “Jay M. Littlefield” award on Saturday at the NRA’s Board of Directors meeting, held in Arlington, VA. NRA President David Keene, NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris Cox, and Buckeye Firearms Central OH Chair and NRA Board of Directors member Linda Walker presented Sean with his award before the Board of Directors, members, guests and NRA staff.
The following is a press release from the National Rifle Association:
House Crime Subcommittee holds hearing on National Right-To-Carry bill
On Tuesday, Sept. 13, the U.S. House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security held a hearing on H.R. 822, the National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2011.
The bill, introduced earlier this year by Congressmen Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.) and Heath Shuler (D-N.C.) and cosponsored by more than 240 of their colleagues, would enable millions of permit holders to exercise their right to self-defense while traveling outside their home states.
Subcommittee Chairman Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) opened the hearing by saying the legislation is needed because state laws on right to carry reciprocity are “confusing, vary widely and can subject otherwise law-abiding citizens to frivolous prosecution.” He also argued that permit holders’ fundamental Second Amendment rights were at stake, noting that “this legislation recognizes that the right to bear arms does not stop at the state line.”
Testifying in support of the bill were Prof. Joyce Lee Malcolm of the George Mason University School of Law and Prof. David Kopel of the University of Denver Sturm College of Law.
Demand Republican presidential contenders take a stand on ‘Gunwalker’
by David Codrea
Debates among Republican presidential contenders have completely ignored what should be a litmus test issue for all who wish to be considered for the office—not just by gun owners, but by all Americans: What will they do to determine the truth about “Project Gunwalker?”
We know that the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform has been holding hearings with at least two more slated for sometime later this year. And we know that Attorney General Eric Holder has directed the Office of Inspector General to conduct an investigation under authority of the Department of Justice. These efforts should proceed, albeit with the understanding that they have inherent limitations: The House hearings have been plagued with unresolved (and as yet unpunished) stonewalling and apparent lies, dissension among its partisan members, and attacks by citizen disarmament advocates and administration apologists in the media—the lines between them blurred. And the OIG has an automatic organizational conflict of interest, not to mention an established history of deliberate indifference to whistleblower concerns.
The single best vehicle available to determine and expose the extent of misdeeds, including how widely spread and high up in the administration cognizance and decision-making have extended, would be a truly Independent Counsel. Unfortunately, that law expired in 1999, and its effective replacement, 28 CFR Part 600, presents a fox/henhouse conflict.
“Gunwalker” allegations, i.e., evidence of criminal misconduct by federal law enforcement resulting in public endangerment and deaths, are of the utmost importance to investigate, and any candidate aspiring to the executive must demonstrate they are informed and committed to uncovering the truth, prosecuting when the evidence warrants it, and punishing the guilty.
Lakewood woman’s lawsuit forces police to return confiscated firearms
by Chad D. Baus
On August 30, the Cleveland Scene reported that after having attempted to get police to return her collection of firearms for an entire year, a Lakewood, OH veteran was finally forced to file a lawsuit against the police department, which had confiscated the collection from her home when she was away.
From the article:
Francesca Rice no longer serves in her country’s armed forces, but she brought a piece of the action back home with her.
It seems the Lakewood vet had stockpiled her Edgewater Towers condo with a home arsenal including handguns, shotguns, a sniper rifle — plus a Thompson sub-machine gun, just in case the pizza guy got fresh.
Her cache somehow caught the attention of Lakewood Police, who paid a visit last September. When they found Rice wasn’t home, they asked an obliging employee of the complex to open up the apartment without her consent. Once inside, they raided the gun rack, making off with 13 firearms worth around $15,000. The only problem: They had no apparent reason to.
When Rice kindly asked to have her toys returned, the cops acknowledged that the weapons were legally owned. But they refused to return them without a court order. And so Rice has filed suit in Lakewood Municipal Court.
In truth, according to a list published by the Lakewood Municipal Court, the firearm incorrectly described by The Scene as a “sub-machine gun” was just a modern, semi-automatic version of the iconic rifle, and the “sniper” rifle was a vintage Chinese SKS M21 semi-automatic carbine.
With the obligatory, incorrect and scary-sounding descriptions we’ve come to expect from the news media having been included, The Scene continued:
USSA Director Testifies Before Congress on Federal Lands Bill
Protection of fishing, hunting, and shooting on our National Forests and public lands is assured by H.R. 2834 (the Recreational Fishing and Hunting Heritage and Opportunities Act), the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance Director of Federal Affairs Bill Horn told Congress on September 9.
Horn, who testified before the House Natural Resources Committee, spoke in support of the bill while explaining the details. He revealed how H.R. 2834 would solve several public land access problems for anglers, hunters, trappers, and shooters.
“Continued silence in the law regarding the legitimacy and contributory role of fishing and hunting on Forest and Bureau of Land Management lands will ultimately cause the loss of these activities on over 400 million acres of our public lands,” stated Horn. “This silence must be corrected, and H.R. 2834 does precisely that. It plainly recognizes fishing, hunting and shooting as legitimate and important activities on Forest and BLM lands. It directs the agencies to exercise their discretion, consistent with the other applicable law, to facilitate fishing, hunting and shooting.”
Horn, who is a former assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Interior, also noted that frivolous lawsuits, various court rulings, and even agency actions have resulted in hunting and fishing being restricted or closed on public lands. H.R. 2834 would make those activities essential uses of those public lands and guide managers to exercise an “open until closed” philosophy. This would save millions of dollars of administrative expense and insulate fishing and hunting from unwarranted indirect attacks.