Free Republic

Gun Rights: A decade after Congress forbade the CDC from studying the health consequences of gun ownership, the National Institutes of Health has started funding such research. Will reform pry the guns from our cold, sick hands? More than a decade ago Congress, seeing it as a backdoor assault on the 2nd Amendment and the right to keep and bear arms, voted to cut funding for firearms research by the Centers for Disease Control. Such research was viewed as one-sided and based on flawed assumptions that all gun use was bad, even that which saved lives and deterred crime. --...

Gun Rights: A decade after Congress forbade the CDC from studying the health consequences of gun ownership, the National Institutes of Health has started funding such research. Will reform pry the guns from our cold, sick hands? More than a decade ago Congress, seeing it as a backdoor assault on the 2nd Amendment and the right to keep and bear arms, voted to cut funding for firearms research by the Centers for Disease Control. Such research was viewed as one-sided and based on flawed assumptions that all gun use was bad, even that which saved lives and deterred crime. The...

In the 1920s and 1930s, Jehovah's Witnesses were viewed by many with the same horror and loathing gun owners receive today. So the 1920s and 1930s saw widespread state and local legislation against Jehovah's Witnesses, and though the Bill of Rights guarantees freedom of speech and religion, it took 30 to 40 years of careful litigation--patiently piling up precedents to achieve the overthrow of those laws by the Supreme Court. The relevance of the Witnesses' experience to gun owners is that it will take at least that many years of patient, careful litigation to remove the morass of senseless anti-gun...

Gun Control: The Supreme Court agrees to decide if the Second Amendment applies to all of us, or just Washington, D.C. Why would the Founders put in the Bill of Rights something applying only to a federal enclave? In a 5-4 decision last year written by Justice Antonin Scalia, the Supreme Court overturned a draconian District of Columbia gun ban enacted 32 years ago that barred private ownership of handguns at all. Scalia wrote that an individual's right to bear arms is supported by "the historical narrative" both before and after the Second Amendment was adopted. The court ruled that...

(Corrected) Gun Control: In a case headed for the Supreme Court, a three-judge panel rules Chicago's gun ban constitutional since the 2nd Amendment doesn't apply to states and cities. High court nominee Sonia Sotomayor concurs.Those Pennsylvania townsfolk bitterly clinging to their guns may have been premature in celebrating the decision in D.C. v. Heller that the 2nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution does indeed guarantee an individual right to keep and bear arms.

The book "Gun Saint" by John Michael Snyder takes a close look at St. Gabriel Francis Possenti. The cover features an illustration of a shooting incident connected to the 19th-century Passionist priest. Using a revolver, the priest is shown shooting and killing a lizard with one shot in his attempt to reign in a group of armed criminals. WASHINGTON (CNS) -- From lost causes to the unattractive, patron saints are associated with virtually every occupation, ailment and activity. St. Gabriel Francis Possenti, a 19th-century Passionist monk and patron saint of Italy's Abruzzi region, clerics and youths, is gaining a line...

Conservation Efforts Benefit from 31 Percent Jump in Excise Taxes Firearms and ammunition excise tax collections for fourth quarter of calendar year 2008. SALES REMAIN STRONG FOR MANUFACTURERS . . . Firearm and ammunition manufacturers paid more than $98 million in excise taxes in the fourth quarter of 2008, up 31.2 percent over the same period in 2007, according to figures released earlier today by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. From Oct. 1 to Dec. 31, $27.6 million was collected for pistols and revolvers, $35 million for long guns and $35.5 million for ammunition. Compared to the same period...

"The handgun used to shoot a Milwaukee police officer was purchased in a gas station parking lot by the suspect's live-in girlfriend, according to a criminal complaint." [snip] "Crespo-Marchena is the girlfriend of Louis M. Domenech, 45, a nine-time felon on federal probation. He is charged with trying to kill Officer Vidal Colón in a close-range shootout April 11. Crespo-Marchena told detectives she bought the Hi-Point 9mm handgun out of a man's trunk a month ago and she let Domenech take it, even though she knew he is a felon, according to the complaint."

I'm finally buying a handgun this week, after a long time wanting one, my wife finally relented. I know I want a 9mm. (No, I don't want anything bigger than that.) It's mostly for target shooting, and to have around the house, not for concealed carry. The two I'm interested in are the Glock and the Springfield Armory XD-M. I'm torn between the two. Those that know handguns far better than I do...which would you choose, and why?

Bobby Rush, a former member of an organization known for killing police officers, doesn't want honest people to own gunsWe have written here frequently about the importance of the Second Amendment in the defense of the United States against militant "Muslims" and other terrorists. Although militant "Muslims" feel free to perpetrate rampant violence and gang rape in Europe, these practices are far less frequent here because of the widespread private ownership of firearms. Representative Bobby Rush (D-IL), a former Black Panther and a convicted felon whose illegal possession of firearms lost him his own right to own firearms, has proposed...

Is it too easy to get certain types of guns in Minnesota? Some state lawmakers think so and will be introducing a new bill this week. The proposed law would require all buyers of pistols or assault weapons to have a permit-to-purchase or pass a locally-conducted background check. Currently, if you want to buy a pistol or assault weapon in Minnesota from a licensed dealer, you need a permit and background check. However, that's not the case if you buy from a private seller at places like gun shows, garage sales or on the Internet. "It's a fairly gaping loophole...

Legislation (H.R. 45 "Blair Holt's Firearm Licensing and Record of Sale Act") sponsored by U.S. Representative Bobby Rush (D-Ill.), would mandate numerous gun control measures if passed. The bill specifically calls for all handgun owners to submit to the federal government a formal application including: photo identification, fingerprints, medical and mental health records and a completed written firearm safety examine. Applicants would also be forced to pay a fee to the federal government. The legislation also mandates that a database be established and kept by the attorney general of the United State so as to record every sale and transfer...

Donna Mack knew something was wrong when she heard a car roaring toward the Newark street corner where she had just left her younger sister. But there was no time to react. She saw a hand come out of the passenger's side window. A flash of gunfire, two pops. Then she watched from across the street as her sister, Cynthia Mack, fell to the sidewalk, a stray bullet in her head. The 39-year-old single mother of two died immediately, blood pooling around her body at dusk on a March 2005 night as the gunman sped away. "She never opened her...

WASHINGTON - A Lebanese-American businessman who acted as a conduit for a last-ditch peace offer from Iraq to the United States faces federal charges of attempting to bring weapons on a commercial aircraft. The charges were filed Nov. 6 against Imad Hage, months after he was stopped at Dulles International Airport outside Washington when a .45-caliber handgun, five ammunition magazines and four stun guns were detected in his checked luggage. Hage said by telephone Thursday from Beirut that he intends to return to the United States in a few weeks to fight the charges, which he suggested were only brought...

Arthritis? Carpal-tunnel syndrome? A hand injury? If so, a New Jersey company claims it has invented a firearm just for you and that it has received federal approval to market the 9-mm handgun as a "medical device," perhaps even with its cost reimbursable to seniors by Medicare. Matthew Carmel, president of Constitution Arms in Maplewood, N.J., says the Palm Pistol is designed to be fired by people who have disabling conditions that prevent them from holding a normal handgun and pulling the trigger. "It's something that they need to assist them in daily living," Carmel, who hopes to manufacture the...

Maplewood, NJ (AHN) - Constitution Arms, of New Jersey, has introduced the Palm Pistol, a double action 9mm handgun that is designed for sufferers of arthritis. According to their Web site, the Palm Pistol is designed for seniors, the disabled or those with limited hand strength. As Medgadget.com reported, firing normal handguns puts significant stress on the wrist and hand joints, while even pulling the trigger can be impossible for some.According to Constitution Arms, the FDA has formally designated the gun as a "medical gadget," and the makers are seeking a prescription status for the weapon, meaning patients may be...

I have been wanting to pursue a CCW permit for a while. I just wonder if it's a good idea in an Obama administration. Will I be an easier target for gun confiscation if I'm a registered CCW holder?

I own a S&W 357 (Long, freakin' barreled handgun) that can not be carried around at all, it's too long. I got it from my grandfather, when he passed! I own a Walther PPK, I sold my P99 recently. But I decided to go in to a dealer today, just to see something new with some more stopping power than the PPK. They tried to sell me on a Glock 19 (which I liked alot actually). I went and shot it, in the shooting range, and I would like to get your honest opinion on that gun! I want something...

The Politico hosts a questionnaire that Obama filled out when he was running for Congress in 1996. Here is a screenshot of the relevant parts.

RICHMOND | Disabled and down on his luck, former gun dealer Alfred "Speedy" Mercer sold some of his firearms collection a couple years ago to help pay the bills. He sold some at gun shows, and as a private seller he no longer had to conduct the background checks on buyers that federally licensed dealers are required to perform. That "gun-show loophole" has been debated by gun advocates and opponents in Virginia for more than a decade. But on Tuesday, Republican legislators on the Virginia State Crime Commission took the debate in a new direction. Instead of focusing on whether...

District residents will be able to keep a handgun in the home for self-defense but that right would be limited to the home and not outside it, city leaders said today, announcing new gun regulations in response to the Supreme Court's recent ruling striking down the city's handgun ban. Gun owners will have to pass vision and written tests, provide a photo with their application to register a gun, and submit their weapon for ballistics testing. Guns will also still require trigger locks. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty (D) and interim Attorney General Peter J. Nickles announced the regulations alongside D.C....

Newark Mayor Cory Booker will hold a press conference Monday afternoon, calling on the state Senate to pass a bill that imposes a barrier on intrastate handgun trafficking. The bill has already passed the Assembly. The legislation would limit the number of guns an individual can buy to one a month. Gun-control advocates argue the bill would prevent straw buyers from making bulk purchases and selling them on the streets to people who cannot pass background checks.The press conference will take place at 2 p.m., at Elwood Park, located at Elwood and Summer avenues in Newark's North Ward. The...

Events in the U.S. and Toronto highlight differences between our two countries on firearms. As Toronto city council bans shooting clubs within city limits, the U.S. Supreme Court issues a ruling validating private gun ownership as constitutionally protected , overruling a restrictive D.C. law banning handguns. Canadians have an interesting relationship with guns. Canada is home to millions of firearms and our level of gun ownership of 22% is close to France and Sweden, yet we speak about them with terror and pretend guns are something only Americans own. Our association of America with guns runs deep. Torontonians speak scornfully...

DICKSON CITY — A Friday evening police incident spilled over into a Borough Council meeting Tuesday, with gun-rights advocates alleging harassment by two police officers. The regular monthly meeting erupted into a full-blown debate on the Second Amendment, with more than 20 Pennsylvania Firearm Owners Association members — many of whom were openly armed — arguing their right to carry a weapon in public. Police have yet to release a report of the incident in which a group of customers at Old Country Buffet were questioned about openly carrying handguns in public. At least one of those customers, Rich Banks,...

LOS ANGELES, May 11 (Reuters) - Dennis Farina, a former policeman who built a Hollywood career playing detectives, was arrested on Sunday at Los Angeles International Airport for carrying a loaded gun on his way to board a plane, police said. Farina, 64, told police he brought the .22 caliber, semi-automatic pistol with him on a drive from Arizona to Los Angeles and forgot it was in his briefcase when he tried to pass through airport security, police said in a statement. He was scheduled to take a United Airlines flight to his home in Chicago. "Farina was very apologetic...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Concerns that realistic-looking toy weapons are confusing police and threatening safety have led 15 states to try going beyond gun control and cracking down on fake firearms.

A pizza delivery driver who shot an alleged armed robber in Des Moines last week said he's receiving support from the community. James Spiers III fired multiple shots at a man who allegedly put a gun to his head after Spiers delivered a pizza to an apartment complex. The suspect, Kenneth Jimmerson, was arrested after he called for help. Jimmerson, who suffered at least three gunshot wounds, is charged with first-degree robbery. His finance, Melanie Stout, who police believe called in the pizza order, is charged with conspiracy. Spiers, who works for Pizza Hut, has a valid handgun permit. He...

"The D.C. handgun ban, like all handgun bans is necessarily ineffectual. It takes the guns that would be used for self protection out of the hands of law-abiding citizens, while doing practically nothing to prevent criminals from obtaining guns to use to commit crimes. Even the federal judges in the D.C. case knew about the flourishing black market for guns in our nation’s capital that leaves the criminals armed and the law-abiding defenseless. This is unacceptable. The Second Amendment does more than guarantee to all Americans an unalienable right to defend one’s self. William Blackstone, the 18th century English legal...

The National Rifle Association and other gun advocates Friday urged state lawmakers to force Nebraska towns and cities to allow concealed handguns. The 2006 state law permitting licensed Nebraskans to carry concealed handguns allows cities and towns to adopt their own ordinances regulating those weapons. At least 16 Nebraska cities and towns ban concealed weapons. Christensen would like to establish a uniform requirement for where guns can be legally stored out of sight in a vehicle, such as in the glove compartment, trunk or other locked area. Otherwise, he said, travelers with concealed weapons permits could be required to constantly...

My handguns are pretty big. For example, my Ruger Super Redhawk is gentle to shoot but sure throws my cadence off when I wear it in an ankle holster. :) For colder weather, whenever outer clothing is appropriate, I carry a Glock 17 in a CompTac holster. Sometimes I'll carry a Sig 220ST in a similar rig. The Glock is comfortable to carry. The Sig is pretty heavy. More and more I'm carrying a S&W Model 66-1 with 2 1/2 barrel. It's not too bad but it's still a pretty big gun. The overall width (of the cylinder) is 1...

Missing the target on gun crime By Lorrie Goldstein Toronto Sun, Wednesday, July 25, 2007 Last week, Statistics Canada reported the national crime rate last year dipped to its lowest level in more than a quarter century. Apparently, no one told the gun-toting thugs who murdered an 11-year-old boy in Toronto last weekend along with three other people, fatally shot a 37-year-old man in broad daylight on a Halifax residential street and wounded four others inside a Winnipeg nightclub. By the way, that drop in the crime rate? Actually, as StatsCan noted, that was "driven by a decline in...

HAGERSTOWN, Md. (AP) -- The Washington County Sheriff's Office says a woman fought off a would-be robber and killed him. It happened at an apartment on Youngstoun Court in Hagerstown around 3:30 a-m Sunday. When Carri Humphrey opened the door, 32-year-old James Conely rushed in, hit her and pointed a rifle at her. The second woman, Michelle Reeder, rushed into the living room with her handgun. According to court documents, she shot Conely as he moved toward her saying he would kill her. During a struggle, Reeder stabbed Conely in the back and the two women fled. Sheriff's deputies found...

In the movie Heist, Gene Hackman sneaks a handgun through a security checkpoint by hiding it in his cup of coffee. The gun is extremely small and thin. He places it in a plastic bag, then pops it into a large coffee cup filled with joe. It is cocked by sliding back the top of the gun. Wish I had a picture, but no Google search has come up empty. The gun is very cool, and I'm hoping someone out there can identify it, by make and model. If someone could please ping the gun people, too, I would be...

Shelly Parker did everything she could to keep her home safe. She owned a dog. She called police when she suspected illegal activity on her block. She installed a security camera on her front window. Her crime-fighting efforts made an impression. One night, Parker found her car window smashed and saw rocks scattered around the vehicle. She felt it was retaliation.... A police officer gave her some advice. Get a gun, he told her. Parker later joined five other residents who took the government to court in an effort to overturn the city's 31-year-old handgun ban. In March, a panel...

Have you ever teased your child (or someone else’s child) about the “Boogie Man”? Growing up – I was subjected to my fair share of harmless teasing....

Most people are familiar with the biblical story of Cain and Abel – where a man (Cain) takes a stone and strikes his brother (Abel) – killing him – this was his intention...

SANTA FE (AP) - Tired of having to ditch your gun for that quick dash into the grocery store? Lawmakers have a solution for you. The state Senate has voted to make it legal for New Mexicans who are licensed to carry concealed weapons to take them into stores that sell alcohol for off-premises consumption. That could include, for example, convenience stores or gas stations or big-box retailers. It would remain illegal to take concealed handguns into bars or other places that served liquor. The Senate voted 26-5 for the bill, sending it to the House. Under current law, it's...

VIENNA, Austria. Austrian authorities have approved the export of 30,000 handguns to Iran, local media reported Friday, days after a report that sophisticated Austrian rifles were finding their way into the hands of Iraqi insurgents. Austrian media reported the pistols had been sold to Iran's interior ministry, which is in charge of the police force. Austrian economic ministry officials told state radio that their ministry had approved the sale of the "Glock" pistols last month, saying Iranian authorities had provided documentary evidence that they would not be passed on to others. Another request for the weapons from the Iranian army...

County attorney says people with licenses allowed to carry the armsHarris County Commissioners Court today ordered the removal of signs banning legally concealed handguns in county parks, after hearing legal advice that the county could not enforce such a ban. County Attorney Mike Stafford's office told the court that the county has been violating state law by banning people with concealed handgun licenses from carrying their guns into parks. A complaint from a resident who saw one of the signs while using a county park prompted the county attorney's office to look into whether it is legal to ban the...

MARIETTE This specimen with 18 barrels is one of the most impressive and also one of the rarest. The screw-barrels are made from Damascus steel and are kept in the white as fashionable at the time. The ebony grips are deeply engraved. Extremely rare and in fine condition.

-- An initiative that San Francisco voters approved last November banning residents from owning handguns violated state law, a Superior Court judge ruled today. Proposition H, which won a 58 percent majority, would have outlawed possession of handguns by all city residents except law enforcement officers and others who needed the guns for professional purposes. It also would have forbidden the manufacture, sale and distribution of all guns and ammunition in San Francisco. The National Rifle Association sued on behalf of gun owners, advocates and dealers the day after the measure passed. The NRA argued that Prop. H overstepped local...

Here are some pictures of the wholesale destruction of some Tokarevs and Makarovs in Estonia. If you are a collector, you may get upset.

St. Stephen man dies after struggle with wife over gun ST. STEPHEN — A 52-year-old St. Stephen man has died after being shot during a struggle with his wife, authorities said. Prosecutor Blair Jennings said no criminal charges are expected to be filed in the death of Robert Lawrence Horne. Shortly before 10 p.m. Tuesday, sheriff's deputies were dispatched to Horne's home, where they found his wife, Valerie Humbert Horne, sitting on the floor, an incident report said. Her husband's body was lying nearby, and a silver-colored revolver was on the kitchen table. The man had been arguing with his...

The .45 ACP is the best man stopper in the world! The Delta Boys use the awesome 9 MM because it has proven its worth in numerous fights. And it goes on and on like a broken record, beating a dead horse until it’s Elmer’s (not Elmer Keith). Does it matter? My opinion for what it is worth. There is no such thing as a magic bullet or caliber unless it is flying under the wings of an F -16. Our handguns are a "weak and inefficient piece of sh**" to quote Mr. Randy Cain. The purpose of a handgun...

I want to buy a Glock. Currently my semiautos are Sig 200St and two 1911s (both Colt). I don't have a 9mm yet have owned several: two Browning HPs and Sig 226. I've never owned Glock and am leaning toward a model 17. The concerns with Glock seem to be centered on the fact that there is no external safety for a semi-auto that remains cocked and locked. There are also concerns about firing out of battery/kabooms. However, the latter concerns are mostly for calibers other than 9mm and models other than the 17. One poster from another forum: This...

I don't like big government but this I might want to supportThere are some good laws NATIONAL RIGHT-TO-CARRY BILL INTRODUCED U.S. Representative Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.) recently introduced H.R. 4547-a national Right-to-Carry (RTC) reciprocity bill that would provide national reciprocity for state carry licensees. The bill would allow any person with a valid carry permit or license issued by a state to carry a concealed firearm in any other state if they meet certain criteria. The bill would not create a federal licensing system; it would simply require the states to recognize each other's carry permits, just as they recognize drivers'...

Ontario should have the right to ban handguns and will, if necessary, go looking for the power to outlaw "these weapons of human misery," Attorney General Michael Bryant says. And if Ottawa doesn't give provinces the power to ban such weapons, Bryant said, Ontario "will have to look at the narrow constitutional opportunities that are available to us." The attorney general's comments came a day after an Oshawa gun collector reported the theft of 40 registered handguns, stolen from his home as he lay in hospital recuperating from a stroke. The weapons are the latest stolen in a rash of...

Antique Handguns Horst Held interested in collectible small arms: derringer, pistol, revolver, engraved, cased, odd system, early self-loading = semi-automatic, self-employed since 1965 541 Lynnie Pennie Lane Midlothian, Texas 76065 email: held@ectisp.net phone 972-775-8704 fax 972-775-3553

KABUL, Afghanistan, Jan. 26, 2006 — The capabilities of the Afghan National Security Forces were enhanced Jan. 24 by a donation of 10,000 9mm German Walther P-1 pistols from the German Armed Forces. The weapons were divided evenly between the Afghan National Army and the Afghan National Police in a ceremony at the Afghan Security Forces Depot. The donation is the result of a weapons request made by the U.S. Embassy in Berlin one year ago, according to Dr. Rainald Steck, German Ambassador to Afghanistan. “This donation will enable (the Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police) to contribute...

VIEWPOINT: THE CONCEALED HANDGUN LAW: TEN YEARS LATER By Hon. Jerry Patterson When the Texas Concealed Handgun Law took effect in 1996, pundits and naysayers predicted anarchy. Any minute, there would surely be mass violence as armed Texas citizens began roving the streets settling arguments with gunfire. Certainly, several proclaimed, within a year there would be blood in the streets as Texas returned to the days of the Wild West. Ten years later the facts paint a different picture. Texas under the Concealed Handgun Law isn’t the Wild West, but the Mild West. No recurrent shootouts at four-way stops, no...