CitizenSugar -- Breaking News, Together.

Gun Question to Potential Appointees Might Explode Debate

CitizenSugar — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 09:30:00 -0800

Barack Obama is firing away seven pages of detailed questions to wannabe presidential appointees, but one inquiry has gun rights activists upset. The question states:

“Do you or any members of your immediate family own a gun? If so, provide complete ownership and registration information. Has the registration ever lapsed? Please also describe how and by whom it is used and whether it has been the cause of any personal injuries or property damage.”

Politico reports that the Obama team says it just wants to verify legal ownership of firearms, but others accuse Obama of potentially denying employment based on an applicant's gun ownership.

Do you think Obama is putting Second Amendment rights in the line of fire or just trying to avoid embarrassing situations (think Dick Cheney shooting a man in the face)?

Source

The Democrats Are Coming! Boom in Gun Sales After Election

LibertySugar — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 10:00:01 -0800

Making sure to exercise their Second Amendment rights before it's too late, firearm fans have gone on a shopping spree. Gun shop owners report record sales since Tuesday, suspecting that customers fear a Democratic federal government could curtail the right to bear arms with new gun control laws. In fact in October, there were 15 percent more background checks issued for new purchases.

Barack Obama's stance on gun control shouldn't cause too much panic in the gun-carrying community. The president-elect has said that he "will protect the rights of hunters and other law-abiding Americans to purchase, own, transport, and use guns." He also believes the Second Amendment creates an individual right, just as the Supreme Court decided earlier this year. Even so, Obama does support national legislation against carrying concealed firearms, and he may reinstate the ban on semiautomatic assault weapons.

If you're a gun enthusiast, do you feel like your rights will come under fire from the new Democratic leadership, or are you comforted by the fact that a lot of other problems might push gun control to the bottom of the agenda?

Source

Do Teachers With Guns Make a Secluded School Safe?

LibertySugar — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 15:45:25 -0700

Teachers in a 110-student Texas school district can soon carry guns at school. Those advocating the new policy argue that teachers and students feel unprotected because the school is 30 minutes from the closest sheriff. Staff that want to carry a gun must have a Texas concealed gun license, be approved by the district, receive crisis-management training, and use ammunition designed to minimize the risk of ricochet in school halls.The district's superintendent thinks the guns are a great idea: When the federal government started making schools gun-free zones, that's when all of these shootings started. Why would you put it out there that a group of people can't defend themselves? That's like saying 'sic 'em' to a dog.

While it's important for school staff to take the possibility of violence seriously, having multiple guns on campus sounds like it could present a danger in itself.Source

Do Teachers With Guns Make a Secluded School Safe?

Yes. You can't wait 30 minutes for the sheriff to arrive in an emergency.

No. School security can have a weapon, but not teachers!

No way! There should be no guns on campuses. Schools are not war zones.

Other. I'll tell you in the comments.

Shot Through the Heart! Spy Gives Gun Control a Bad Name

LibertySugar — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 09:00:02 -0700

Get this: a gun-control activist, who sat on the board of two anti-violence groups, might have been a spy for the NRA all along! Mary Lou McFate (or Mary Lou Sapone) has worked for gun control for over a decade, but her organizations have just kicked her out so they can start checking her offices for bugs. Using her maiden name "McFare," Mary allegedly posed as a gun-control activist at the behest of the National Rifle Association. As an alleged mole for the NRA, McFate met with members of Congress, attended rallies, and participated in strategy sessions on behalf of gun control.

This isn't the first time McFate has acted as a freelance spy. During the 1980s she infiltrated an animal-rights group for US Surgical, a company accused of using dogs for research and training. She has also worked as a flight attendant and a sex therapist.

Even though McFate had access to every major legislative strategy of the gun-control lobby, some say they have nothing to hide from the NRA. In fact, a few gun-control activists feel flattered that the gun lobby sees them as a threat.

Source

Pulling Trigger, Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Right to Arms

CitizenSugar — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 07:48:48 -0700

The Supreme Court has just ruled that Americans do have a right to own guns for self-defense and hunting. It's the justices' first huge ruling on gun rights in US history, with the justices charged with deciding whether the Second Amendment provides an individual right, or whether it only extends to militias as a collective right.

In the 5-4 ruling, the court struck down Washington DC's 32-year-old ban (one of the strictest in the nation) on handguns as being at odds with gun rights spelled out in the Second Amendment. The court has not meaningfully interpreted the Second Amendment since its ratification in 1791. The amendment reads: "A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed." To see details on the decision,

Seattle's Schizophrenic Shooter Had Valid Gun Permit

LibertySugar — Thu, 29 May 2008 06:00:19 -0700

A mentally ill man who shot three people at a music festival in the Pacific Northwest last week had obtained his weapon with a valid concealed weapon permit. A bullet from his Glock 19 handgun hit three victims last Saturday while Grainger was fighting another man. The bullet passed through a man's nose, another's wrist, finally ending up in a woman's leg.

22-year-old Clinton C. Grainger suffers from anxiety and schizophrenia and has been receiving treatment for a meth addiction since he was 18. Grainger's issues did show up as disqualifying conditions when he applied for a gun permit in January 2007. A mental illness diagnosis alone is not enough to restrict a citizen's right to bear arms under Washington state and US federal law.

To find out what federal law is regarding mental illness and gun permits,