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Second Amendment activist, GUNS Magazine columnist and National Examiner writer David Codrea will be on the Armed America radio network tonight. The show runs from 8 to 11 p.m. EST. Click here to find your local station or streaming link. It promises to be hot, discussing the Obama administrations cover-up of Operation Fast And Furious, AKA "Murdergate," and other RKBA cases in the news. Here is the Armed America Radio link.

A joint release by David Codrea and Mike Vanderboegh Dear Rep. Issa and Sen. Grassley, Congratulations on the exceptional leadership you both have shown in advancing congressional investigations on the Fast and Furious “gunwalking” criminal enterprise. The two of you have taken things a long way since we first felt compelled to write an open letter requesting attention and action nearly a year ago. We once more feel a need to correspond openly because we realize our voices are small compared to the many larger ones demanding your attention, and because it is in the public’s interest to be aware...

“Montana blogger is not journalist,” Jeff Barnard of the Associated Press reported Wednesday. U.S. District Judge Marco A. Hernández ruled that “investigative blogger” Crystal L. Cox “was not a journalist and cannot claim the protections afforded to mainstream reporters and news outlets.” Per Alex Dobuzinskis of Reuters: Hernandez found Cox failed to present evidence that she had any media credentials or affiliation with a “recognized news entity,” or that she had checked her facts or tried to contact the other side to “get both sides of the story.” “Montana blogger is not journalist,” Jeff Barnard of the Associated Press reported...

David Codrea, is the author of The War on Guns, National Gun Rights Examiner, Host of NBC 1260 Drive time radio show The War on guns and writes the “Right Watch” column on Guns Magazine. He is also a long time gun advocate, kindly agreed to answer some question about the state of gun rights, Bringing to light the truth about the Gunwalker scandal, in which he was instrumental, and various other issues that should interest all gun owners. Here goes: GVB: Being a site of avid gun collectors, I am sure we would all like to know what your...

Last Tuesday I was on David Codrea's "War On Guns" radio program, which airs first from NBC1260 in Arizona. This link takes you to a standard "Realplayer" mp3 audio file. I'm on for ten minutes, starting at minute 28:30. Just drag the play button across. We talk about my books and the fight to preserve freedom in America from creeping state tyranny. http://www.nbc1260.com/WARTUE.mp3 If you don't know, David Codrea has been one of the writers and bloggers who broke the Gunrunner/Gunwalker/Fast & Furious story to the national audience.

Scottsdale, AZ, June 12, 2011—A relentless campaign is being waged against the right to keep and bear arms, with gun control edicts falsely painted by ambitious politicians as needed crime-fighting tools. These attacks against a basic right are cheered on by well-funded lobbyists and an almost universally-sympathizing mainstream media. Scottsdale-based radio station KBSZ 1260’s new program, “The War on Guns: Notes from the Resistance,” debuts on June 13 in the 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. time slot to provide a much-needed voice to counter and refute those who demand citizen disarmament, and to argue instead for freedom. Hosted by long-time...

The Senate evaded taking a stand on the controversial nomination of Andrew Traver to head up ATF. From Main Justice: The Senate did not vote on whether to confirm Andrew Traver as the next leader of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives this Congress, sending his nomination back to the White House on Wednesday. The main reason cited was “strong opposition from the National Rifle Association.” NRA did take a lead in the opposition, and as the largest of the “gun lobby” groups was no doubt the most influential in prompting telephone calls, letters and emails opposing Traver’s...

Brian Aitken, the New Jersey gun owner whose seven-year sentence for gun and ammunition possession was commuted yesterday by Gov. Chris Christie, will appeal, his lawyer has stated. The commutation does not expunge his conviction, and as such, Aitken is currently prohibited from owning firearms. I asked Aitken’s attorney Evan Nappen if there were any plans to try for pardon with full restoration of rights or some other strategy to effect the same, and if he had any statement for public consumption he'd care to make. His reply: Our next step is to win the appeal to vindicate Brian. I...

A Second Amendment advocacy leader has released video of his encounter with Sandy Springs, GA police during a traffic stop. Daniel Almond, founder of Restore the Constitution (which includes what the Brady Campaign’s Paul Helmke described as a polite armed Second Amendment rally among its achievements) was pulled over for speeding and a broken light over his rear license plate. That’s when he was ordered out of his car to submit to being frisked. In Almond’s words: This is me getting stopped by Sandy Springs PD for speeding. The second thing the officer asked me, after asking for my license,...

“A painted plywood cut-out of Santa with a cowboy hat and a gun on his belt is causing quite a stir in Turlock,” 3KCRA.com reports. “I tried to get the image out of my head all day long and I could not, because Santa is made for love, bringing families together, not carrying weapons,” Monica Sliva said. Sliva thinks it sends the wrong message to kids. She complained to staff at the Christmas tree lot where the Santa was on display, and they first took the cut-own down, but then put it back up with the gun covered. It’s ridiculous,...

Despite the practice being “lawful” in many states (not to mention being a fundamental right), gun owners who openly carry firearms often place themselves in legal and physical jeopardy from police reactions. Because official ignorance endangers open carriers, as one in Willowick, Ohio, found out when, per Ohioans for Concealed Carry, he "was ordered to his knees at gunpoint by several police officers." And the chilling account they relate includes no small amount of disrespect by the enforcers, including blasphemies directed at the detainee. And then there was this bit of telling attitude for a right articulated in the Constitution...

“Mayor Richard Daley expressed frustration today that the Chicago Police Department has not set up a database to let police officers and firefighters know how many firearms are registered in each home in the city,” the Chicago Tribune reports. “A key piece” in the mayor’s response to a loss in the McDonald case, where the Supreme Court ruled the Second Amendment is applicable against state and local infringements, “[t]he mayor said it would help protect first responders by letting them know what kind of situation they might encounter when they went to calls in Chicago residences.” That, of course, is...

“Paul Henick arrested for BRANDISHING FIREARM in Chesterfield,” the Richmond Times-Dispatch reports. Aside from a photo and a link to past news accounts, where it is learned Mr. Henick is a gun rights/open carry advocate, no further details of the arrest are presented. For those, an account is presented on the OpenCarry.org forum that, if substantiated, presents serious concerns about security, police and prosecutorial misconduct. The incident reportedly began as Henick attempted to take the Surrey (Jamestown-Scotland) Ferry when “a private contractor working for VDOT to ‘ensure security’ ordered [him] to get out of his car.” When the contractor refused...

By assigning knife regulations to its legislature, the state of Arizona has eliminated a patchwork of conflicting local laws and become what a report in The New York Times calls “a knife carrier’s dream, a place where everything from a samurai sword to a switchblade can be carried without a quibble.” Arizona’s transformation, and the recent lifting of a ban on switchblades, stilettos, dirks and daggers in New Hampshire, has given new life to the knife rights lobby, the little-known cousin of the more politically potent gun rights movement. A main driver behind this “transformation” is Knife Rights, “a membership...

“Dangerous combination,” The Akron Beacon Journal editorial headline reads. “A lame-duck maneuver to allow guns in bars,” the subhead clarifies. Ohio Rep. Danny Bubp is trying to get enough signatures on discharge petitions to force two gun bills passed earlier in the Senate to the House floor for a vote. Oxymoronically, the "Authorized Journalists," who ordinarily present themselves as champions of democracy, along with House Democrats, don’t want a vote to happen: In the House, Armond Budish, the Democratic speaker, wisely has taken a firm stand against the bills. The Ohio Association of Chiefs of Police, the Fraternal Order of...

In the absence of physical evidence, the case against Paul Henick, a Virginia man accused of brandishing a firearm and obstruction of justice (reported earlier today in Gun Rights Examiner) boils down to the word of a citizen against that of Surry County Sheriff’s Department personnel. As such, the credibility of the department in past actions becomes relevant, particularly where questions alleging outright corruption via framing/planting evidence are being considered in a $10 million lawsuit. Bob Addison, a former business owner and unsuccessful candidate for sheriff, filed the suit against former Sheriff Harold Brown and a former deputy. A Daily...

The NFA Owners Association has posted a letter to incoming representatives from former Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Jim Lightfoot advising they investigate allegations of corruption and mismanagement in the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) (click here, then on “Letters by Members of Congress Regarding ATF Mismanagement”). His unique qualifications to do so? As a former Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Treasury, Postal Service and General Government, Committee on Appropriations, Rep. Lightfoot had responsibility for approving ATF's budget and gained insights into ATF operations. Here’s the relevant excerpt from Rep. Lightfoot’s letter: The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms...

“Hollywood star Mark Ruffalo has been placed on a terror watch list by U.S. officials after organizing screenings for a new documentary about natural gas drilling,” Paul Thompson of Mail Onlinereports. [H]is efforts to raise awareness and demand a stop to natural gas drilling attracted the attention of officials from Pennsylvania's Office of Homeland Security. Ah, Pennsylvania, well no wonder. That’s the same first line of defense Keystone Staters have to protect them against the giant inflatable pink pig owner menace. No wonder Gov. Ed Rendell felt so confident vetoing the right to self defense, with these all-seeing guardians of...

“Dr. Bill Holda, president of Kilgore College in Kilgore, TX, will have to do some fast backpedaling if he’s to have any hope of outrunning his recent comments about the 1991 massacre at a Luby’s Cafeteria in Killeen, TX—the second deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history, surpassed only by the 2007 Virginia Tech massacre,” the email from Students for Concealed Carry on Campus began. Dr. Holda recently angered both survivors of the shooting and concealed carry advocates by claiming that some of the victims of the massacre (which became a rallying cry for supporters of lawful self-defense) actually shot each...

“46 Prince George's County officers suspended or on administrative duty,” The Washington Post headline informs us. The three Prince George's County police officers arrested as part of the sweeping federal investigation into corruption in the county represent only a fraction of those accused of wrongdoing, according to police officials and internal department records. Bear in mind: [T]hree of these cases are known to have a direct relationship to the federal probe that led to the arrest this month of County Executive Jack B. Johnson (D). Charges against “at least 10 of the suspended officers… include driving while intoxicated, assault and...

“Profiteers of Hate,” the cover of the Spring 2010 issue of The Social Contract accuses. “The smear-mongering agenda of the Southern Poverty Law Center…” In this special issue The Social Contract presents an unsparing indictment, and a timely debunking, of the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). Acclaimed expert on America’s political fringes Laird Wilcox skewers the bogus scholarship and smear tactics by which SPLC has successfully sold itself to government and media as an impartial arbiter of “hate,” in an exclusive, keynote interview with Peter Gemma. TSC’s team of accomplished contributors from the left, right, and center exposes SPLC’s unsavory...

“Ex-Con: Where Do I Fit In Anti-Gun Campaign?” the New Haven Independent headline reads. The “ex-con” is James Hanton, “released from jail this spring, [who] complained that he can’t vote to retain or replace elected officials who have a direct impact on how thoroughly or not gun violence is going to be rooted out of his community.” “A lot of us coming out of prison want to go in a different direction,” Hanton said, “but because we have these roadblocks in the way ... You’re saying in order to make these changes we need to vote, or we need to...

“Recently, the NFATCA took the lead on an issue that could have far-reaching consequences in the NFA and Sporting communities,” the National Firearms Act Trade & Collectors Association reports. What issue? It was learned that ATF was seeking to create a definition of small arms ammunition under the aegis of the Safe Explosives Act. The definition was being created as an opinion letter and had no input from the firearms community. Why is a revised definition needed? What is the impetus behind this effort to increase the Bureau’s regulatory control reach? And why exclude the people who it would compel...

“Now you’re either going to conceal it, or I’m going to take you off here or I’m going to lock you up. I’m not going to play games.” The threatening speaker is a Philadelphia police lieutenant, coercing activist Mark Roote, who attended a weekend “End the Fed” rally open carrying—as is his right and in accordance with Pennsylvania law. Indeed, in the accompanying video (see sidebar), we see the initial “officer” who approached Roote actually REFUSES TO IDENTIFY HIMSELF upon a legitimate citizen request that he do so. Apparently, in the city of Independence Hall, secret police wearing full length...

“This target shoots back,” the click-through ad at the top of the MyFoxMaine.com news page tells us, inviting viewers to watch the season premiere of “Human Target” with its action hero protagonist, guns in each hand blazing. How exciting! And the “Top News Story,” directly under the banner? Virginia Tech Shooting Survivor Speaks in Portland It’s Colin Goddard, on his mission to spread the gospel of citizen disarmament (see sidebar video). Except that’s not what he calls it: "If you say the word gun control, it's the big horrible word," Goddard said. "But if you break it down to the...

Breaking News: Between the time I began composing today’s Gun Rights Examiner column and finishing it, Mike Vanderboegh reported ATF has rescinded their ruling declaring selected Airsoft-type guns as firearms. What in the world is going on, and how is the bureau so out of control they can issue top level directives under the signature of their acting head guy, and then pull it back with no detailed explanation? Per Vanderboegh: The ATF Pressroom admitted to me by phone this morning that ATF Ruling 2010-4…has been rescinded! I’ve decided to go ahead and present what I wrote before this news...

On Monday, we asked, in the context of the Southern Poverty Law Center conflating Constitutionalists with haters, if a video warning law enforcement to cue their behavior in citizen encounters off of bumper stickers could either chill free speech or endanger Americans expressing political sentiments. We followed up yesterday asking if video co-narrator/former ATF Special Agent in Charge James Cavanaugh was a credible SPLC spokesperson. Here’s someone—a leading “respected” academic and activist who agrees with “Waco Jim” and the SPLC about the armed political right: "It's racist, it's armed, it's hostile, it's unspeakable," she said. "White people armed, demanding an...

"Licensed gun-holder loses guns & permits after he and cops lock horns -- twice," Stephanie Farr of the Philadelphia Daily News reports. What in the world is going on here? On two afternoons in a row last week, [John] Solomon, 24, was arrested after hanging out at a North Philadelphia bus stop, and each time, the cops confiscated from him a legally owned gun and a separate license to carry a gun, the licensed security guard said yesterday. Solomon maintains he was waiting for a bus and let some pass him by "because it was about 3 p.m. and he...

The Southern Poverty Law Center has produced a video, “’Sovereign Citizens’ and Law Enforcement: Understanding the Threat,” warning police that traffic stops involving “right wing” citizens could end up as deadly encounters. I’ve embedded it in the sidebar video player. Go ahead and watch it before reading on. There’s no question the officers were murdered. The question is, do we blame an ideology or the individuals who committed the act? And if the former is a factor, what responsible actions have the finger-pointers taken to limit the blame to a narrow spectrum of violence initiation advocates—as opposed to conflating their...

"As the Tea Party gears up for big wins on Tuesday, Adam Winkler sounds the alarm on an overlooked part of their radical agenda to overturn gun control laws in America—and their ties to revolutionary militia," The Daily Beast tells us.A "constitutional law professor at UCLA" is evidently hostile to the Founders' Second Amendment. This is my shocked face. If we listen to him, we just can't win. Those agreeing with the "militia" part are "extremists." As for "shall not be infringed: Rand Paul showed his true colors with a campaign promise that, if elected, he “will fight all attempts...

“Mayor Bloomberg's plan to slash fees for pistol permits is facing a blaze of opposition in the City Council,” Sally Goldenberg of The New York Post reports. What’s that? “Furious Mike,” the notorious anti-gunner plotting to impose Big Apple controls on Heartland America wants to “put more guns on the street”? Not exactly. It seems this is a preemptive ploy, anticipating if they don't do something, they’ll be vulnerable to lawsuits in the post-Heller /McDonald era. But a comment from Councilman Erik Dilan (D-Brooklyn) is instructive: Since I've been in the council, we've voted on numerous bills where fees and...

“Gunmaker's 'Adaptive Combat Rifle' Too Combat-y: Fires Full Auto!” The Violence Policy Center’s Josh Sugarmann breathlessly warns Huffington Post readers. When is a "combat rifle" for the U.S. civilian gun market too combat-y? When it fires like a full-auto machine gun. Batty invented terminology aside, he’s referring to a product recall notice issued by Bushmaster on Oct. 15 for its ACR rifle: Bushmaster Firearms International, LLC has become aware of a possible firearms performance issue that may develop with a small number of ACR rifles and we are requesting you discontinue the sale of these firearms that remain in your...

“As Reid Falters, Schumer Subtly Stands in the Wings,” The New York Times headline warns gun owners. A perennial leading political enemy of the right to keep and bear arms, Schumer’s potential ascendancy to a vacated leadership slot would seem to validate NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris Cox’s “four words” parroted by so many Fairfax apologists: Majority Leader Chuck Schumer Before the chorus of “We told you so” begins, let me just say this:So what?Unless all major political pundits are wrong, the House of Representatives, which the Senate needs consensus with in order to pass any bill up to the President...

As Election Day 2010 approaches, there is much to be found in the media about the National Rifle Association and its political grades and endorsements. There's another, albeit smaller organization out there working hard to bring us candidate evaluations that gun activists are well aware of, Gun Owners of America, designated "The only no-compromise gun lobby in Washington" by Rep. Ron Paul. Because GOA takes a somewhat different approach that can yield different performance assessments, tensions sometimes arise between its supporters and NRA's, along with often acrimonious, even bitter debate. And because this election has such potential to impact gun...

"Hey David," the Facebook message began, "Thought you might be interested in Brian Aitken, in jail in NJ for 7 years for owning legal guns." .... At trial Brian Aitken’s defense team showed the jury Brian’s three FBI background checks to lawfully purchase firearms, a number of witnesses—including a Mount Laurel police officer—testified that Brian was moving between residences and all witnesses—including the Mount Laurel police officer—testified that Brian’s firearms were unloaded & locked in the trunk of his car exactly as New Jersey State Law requires…Brian knew how to do this because he had called the New Jersey State...

Almost two weeks ago we discussed an "Intelligence Brief" by the Kansas City Regional TEW Inter-Agency Analysis Center focused on Mike Vanderboegh and his in-development novel "Absolved." Relying heavily on Southern Poverty Law Center talking points that conflate patriots with haters (indeed, we've seen the relationship between SPLC and "homeland security" enforcement solifidify into one of quasi-official symbiosis), the report claimed: Vanderboegh’s novella is very similar in nature to a 1978 novella, The Turner Diaries. In The Turner Diaries, an overthrow of the U.S. government and race war was depicted. The novella became, and is still considered, a staple of...

Beneficary may "buy...bigger gun""More than 250 guns traded for gas," staff writer Steven Ward of The Advocate tells us. The program, Gas for Guns, is a no-questions-asked, voluntary gun buyback program sponsored by Circle K and local law enforcement agencies. "No-questions-asked" means those of you with stolen guns--or even ones used in "guncrimes!"--can not only count on the police to dispose of evidence for you, they'll also act as your fence and reward you for your enterprising ways. And they'll do this knowing it won't make a damn bit of difference in "combating gun violence." Something that's pretty well been...

Beneficiary may "buy...bigger gun" "More than 250 guns traded for gas," staff writer Steven Ward of The Advocate tells us. The program, Gas for Guns, is a no-questions-asked, voluntary gun buyback program sponsored by Circle K and local law enforcement agencies. "No-questions-asked" means those of you with stolen guns--or even ones used in "guncrimes!"--can not only count on the police to dispose of evidence for you, they'll also act as your fence and reward you for your enterprising ways. And they'll do this knowing it won't make a damn bit of difference in "combating gun violence." Something that's pretty well...

NRA-ILA head Chris Cox attempted a curious evasion when Tom Gresham asked him if the Political Victory Fund had given Harry Reid almost $5,000 for his reelection. Replied Cox: We gave zero to his general election…we did support him for some primary events… The fact remains—they gave Reid $4,950 for the 2010 election cycle. It’s not like the incumbent senator had a strong Democrat primary challenger who stood a chance of unseating him. And it’s not like unspent money isn’t rolled forward. Curious that Cox is backing away from the guy his boss called "a true champion of the Second...

"Hey David," the Facebook message began, "Thought you might be interested in Brian Aitken, in jail in NJ for 7 years for owning legal guns." I get people approaching me all the time wanting me to write about their legal cases. Most of the time, I get very subjectively-recounted narratives with very little to substantiate, and even less on what the defendants may have actually done. Experience has made me naturally wary of jumping on such bandwagons without investigation.Here's what I've found.His supporters have established the "Free Brian Aitken" Facebook page. Mission: To help free Brian Aitken, an innocent gunowner...

"Prospective gun owners would have to pass a mental health test before being granted a firearms licence under recommendations submitted by a NSW coroner," the AAP story on World News Australia tells us. Why? After inquiring into the self-inflicted shooting death of a man during a confrontation with police in Sydney, Deputy State Coroner Paul MacMahon found the licensed gun owner had posed a "very great danger" to many unsuspecting people...An inquest, in November 2009 and March 2010, heard police evidence that the man intended to kill numerous people at random on the day he visited Eastwood Mall. That's pretty...

2nd Amendment – I have fond memories of my first job at the age of 12 loading skeet at the gun club my father and grandfather were members of. They taught me at an early age about the 2nd Amendment, which guarantees the right to keep and bear arms. I personally own firearms and hold a Georgia Firearms License. I will never vote to restrict your right to carry and I fully support HB 615.--Diana Williams There is a candidate for the state senate in Georgia who has answered on the National Rifle Association Political Victory Fund's questionnaire (see slide...

"The city of Phoenix, in an apparently arbitrary move and without formal legal process, has forced CBS Outdoors to tear down 50 illuminated bus-shelter billboards under contract to promote gun safety training for children and their parents," gun law author Alan Korwin's email alert begins. The posters were placed by TrainMeAZ.com, a commercial joint-educational effort of the firearms industry in Arizona, and had been up all over the Phoenix metro area for a little over one week before the city acted. Who (besides rabid anti-gunners who preach denial and avoidance to "feel safe," of course) could be against gun safety...

I have a happy outcome to yesterday's column about a pro-gun candidate for the Georgia State Senate who was given a failing grade by the National Rifle Association Political Victory Fund. They have changed her grade to "AQ" (based on her questionnaire response, as she has not held office to be rated on), and gone one step further and endorsed her! From Diana Williams: Hi David, First off, I want to thank you for your wonderful article. I have gotten great feedback from people. Unfortunately, my district is severely gerrymandered and in order to win, I need votes in the...

Those who follow gun blogs know there's a recurring debate between gun owners who prefer National Rifle Association political strategies and those who challenge them. I'd like to address a few of the more contentious points I see being raised on blogs and discussion boards:Gun Owners of America grades candidates on issues that have nothing to do with the Second Amendment, for instance, they counted a vote against Candidate X because he/she voted for what they call "anti-gun Obamacare." That has nothing to do with guns.Harry Reid didn't think so when he offered an amendment to the health care bill--one,...

One of the expressed concerns raised by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobaccco, Firearms and Explosives over the Korean surplus rifle dispute discussed in yesterday's column is to not add another source for "crime guns." Unsurprisingly, this is also one of the main arguments used to introduce restrictive new U.S. laws as a purported means of disarming Mexican narco-terrorists, as well as a centerpiece for New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg's anti-your guns crusade. It's used because it's a powerful term. "Crime gun" evokes a hardboiled detective recovering one from a crime scene, no doubt picking it up with a...

In August, I asked "Why is Obama Administration blocking import of surplus rifles?," citing "problems" that were described as "ambiguous" being the reason a sale previously approved by the State Department had been halted. The ambiguity has now been cleared up. A Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives advisory titled "Effect of Granting Retransfer Authority" shows us the rationale behind the move. As the Examiner.com "upgrade" no longer allows content providers to embed objects, I must refer you offsite for the complete document. But in the interests of discussing the report, I have also broken it up into numbered...

Pennsylvania's "Castle Doctrine" bill, H.B. 40, has cleared an important hurdle. From The Bulletin: The state House of Representatives voted last Tuesday for a bill to expand the legal use of deadly force in self-defense of individuals and their property... What, someone presumes to tell them they're not allowed to do that now? And here's another outrage: Current law also requires an individual to retreat from the threat before using deadly force if the individual is in a public place. Really? These people realize such encounters can be over in mere seconds? Or is it they just don't care?The anti-defense...

Several developments have occurred in recent days that indicate something as innocuous as visiting pro-gun rights websites that are critical of government Constitutional compliance, and especially participating in comments and forums, can results in heightened law enforcement scrutiny and even as a supporting criteria for "legal" intervention.On Friday, I told WarOnGuns readers I was aware of a child welfare case in New Hampshire where one of the criterion for removing a child from its parents was an ostensible membership of the father in what protective services was characterizing as "a militia known as the Oath Keepers." Long-time readers know we've...

“Now we are not here to debate their second amendment rights,” Thin Ice lead singer Russ Lesser announced to his Manhattan Beach Hometown Fair audience. “However, we are here to exercise our first amendment rights of free speech to ridicule this group for incredible bad taste and stupidity.” Ridicule who?Members of South Bay Open Carry, a group that promotes the right to carry handguns openly, in compliance with California law. Some, not used to seeing people exercising even a bit of freedom in this regard, reacted as bigots typically do when confronted with ideas that intrude on their provincial biases:...