Wednesday, September 16, 2009

WHAT ARE THESE "STEALTH" GUN CONTROL BILLS?

By now you probably have seen one or a hundred emails warning you about SB-2099 and HR-45, supposedly "stealth" bills which will require you to list your guns on your tax return, register your guns, neuter your goldfish, and join PETA.

Okay, I made up the last two, but depending on which email you have gotten, there's a real "Chicken Little" feel to these. So, what's the skinny.

Forget 'em. That's it.

SB-2099 is easy to check out on the Snopes web site (always a good idea to use Snopes when you get an email about a story that is hard to believe.)

The short version: It's a bill introduced in 2000, not 2009, and it didn't go anywhere.

Fuggitaboutit.

How about HR-45? Yes, it was introduced by Bobby Rush. Yes, it is a real bill. No, it is not going anywhere. Don't waste your time and effort and good electrons sending that email to your list of friends. Sure, there are gun rights groups using HR-45 to frighten you into giving them money. That's their problem, and in my view it hurts their credibility.

Fuggitaboutit, Part 2.

Quick story about a friend of mine and the utility of a 9mm. My friend John was a New York City police officer when the attacks were made on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. He's been on the force there for more than 20 years. He was near the buildings when they came down. The rush of air from the buildings picked him up and threw him against the plate glass windows of a nearby building, and the rubble covered him and a uniformed officer. They were both being crushed. John couldn't move, being shoved into the glass front of the building. The uniformed officer was able to get his 9mm service pistol out and shoot into the glass, breaking it out. They tumbled into the building as the windows shattered.

See? The 9mm really is useful!

I'm typing this while watching the news that the police have found the body of the Yale graduate student who disappeared last week. Her body was found stuffed in the wall of the medical center.

Note that the medical center has security, card-entry systems, escort services, security cameras, etc.

Of course, you can not provide your own security there by way of carrying a firearm.

Just a reminder. No one can provide security for you. It's up to you -- period.

The news stories about people carrying guns openly outside of presidential appearances have many people looking into open carry as an option. While I applaud open carry, I also urge caution for those contemplating it. Do your homework. In some areas, even though it is legal, people have been harassed and even arrested by the police.

Read the first-person stories posted at www.opencarry.org to get a sense of where the OC movement is right now. If you do decide to open carry, you may want to carry a copy of the state law, the opinion from the attorney general of that state, etc., with you to show law enforcement. Many times, the police don't know the law. You may also want to carry the business card of a good lawyer.

Know the law. That's the main thing. Be prepared.

The public needs to see that good people carry guns for protection.

Those of you who were watching our new show "Guns & Gear" on DirecTV know that this satellite provider has removed our network -- Versus -- in a contract dispute. I feel certain they'll work this out, but when the big guys fight it out, I stand in the corner!

In the meantime, you can still see the great segments we are putting on the air. Just aim your web browser to our site, where we have videos from Guns & Gear. Go to www.gunsandgeartv.com to see what we are up to now.

For one thing, we are the only shooting show on Versus, and the only shooting show anywhere which talks about the right guns for shooting Zombies!! Yes, we have zombie targets. As my wife says, "Of course you do!"

By the way, Guns & Gear is the largest shooting show on television!