Schumer Seeks To Speed NICS Improvement Act Through Senate: The Gun Owners of America is launching an urgent campaign encouraging people to call their U.S. senators and ask them to oppose a bill that could be described as "disarmament by diagnosis." It would allow a person's right to own a gun in the United States to be permanently removed, under a wide range of circumstances...Pratt told WND that Schumer right now is pushing hard for a consent "agreement" in the Senate so that the plan could be approved without further discussion and sent to President Bush. http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=57847 Related Article: A bill inspired by the Virginia Tech shootings is bogged down by objections over funding and who should be barred from buying a firearm. The bill would tighten requirements for states to share gun purchasers' mental health information with the federal government. Majority Democrats in the Senate were poised as early as this past Monday to bring the bill to a vote until Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., objected. http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iEnfByXPlGVnNttnAG0MO3fdsnFQ --- Gun Owners And The 2008 Election: ...In each of the last four even year general elections, gun owners have had a massive impact. And the National Rifle Association (NRA) has proven to everyone that if you want to win the presidency, earning the support of gun owners and Second Amendment defenders might be the deciding factor. So it's not surprising Republican presidential candidates rushed to appear at the first-ever NRA voters' convention to talk to some 500 NRA members and the organization's leadership. Though always important for a Republican seeking the nomination, securing the gun vote in 2008 will be essential... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/KenBlackwell/2007/09/27/locked_and_loaded?page=full&comments=true And On The Other Side Of The Coin...: Back in the bad old days of the Clinton administration, when the gun-control crowd was riding high, Handgun Control Inc. pushed a piece of legislation called "Brady II." My friend David Kopel has published a reminder of that piece of legislation. Among the things the gun-control crowd was calling for: -A special license for people who own more than 20 firearms or more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition. This "license" would have allowed the government to come into your home unannounced for an inspection up to three times per year -Licensing for all gun owners nationwide. This licensing would be discretionary in nature, meaning the state could deny you a license for almost any reason [And] -A 30% increase in taxes on handguns, and a 50% increase in taxes on ammunition ...This is what's at stake in 2008. This is why gun owners have to get involved. The stakes are too high to sit on the sidelines. http://www.nranews.com/blogarticle.aspx?blogPostId=311 Related http://redstradingpost.blogspot.com/2007/09/are-we-going-back-to-post-ban-days-or.html "Insure Your Gun Rights": ...But the industry also kicked off their program to bolster the NRA. On Friday, attendees learned of the first part of the effort, "Insure Your Gun Rights." That phase, as was outlined by Smith & Wesson CEO Michael Golden, is designed to remind the nation's 80 million gun owners that the NRA works to ensure their rights to own firearms. A second phase will roll out closer to the elections, reminding gun owners to "Vote Your Sport" in the presidential elections. Yesterday, The Shooting Wire learned that palettes of dealer kits to support the membership push were being sent to distributors. The goal is to have posters, counter cards, counter mats and other materials in dealers' hands within the next two weeks. At that point, the consumer messages will really start to reach out to encourage everyone who owns a firearm to become an NRA member. http://www.budangst.com/?p=2962 --- BATFE Director Nominee Grilled In Senate: U.S. Attorney Michael Sullivan fielded some tough questions about gun laws while winning praise Wednesday at a Senate confirmation hearing to become director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives...Sullivan also faced some grilling from Kennedy and Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., about whether the ATF would be willing to release more gun tracing data, a move the senators said could help state and local law agencies fight gun crime. Sullivan said there has been confusion about what data ATF could share, but he said he hopes ATF will provide more data. "I'm optimistic that there will be even more information available than provided in the past," he said. http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jNl6jyIzPcvmXCr9yM2WHsCixdFQ --- Giuliani Now Credits Parker Decision For Conversion: Giuliani said his conversion was triggered in part by a court ruling striking down local firearm restrictions in Washington, D.C. "It is a very, very strong description of how important personal liberties are in this country and how we have to respect them," he said. Giuliani said "all that seemed much more powerful to me . . . sort of maybe even did more to crystalize my thinking on the whole gun issue in light of Sept. 11." http://www.nypost.com/seven/09262007/news/nationalnews/rudy__why_i_like_guns.htm --- Second Amendment Students Active On Utah Campus: The Second Amendment Students of Utah want to change what they call myths about firearms. "The biggest (misconception) is people who think that anyone who would like to have a gun is kind of nuts - an unintelligent hillbilly," said Brent Tenney, president of the club..."The students are passionate, intelligent and well versed on the subject," Aposhian said. "They're a group primarily concerned with the self-defense aspects of a student's life." http://media.www.dailyutahchronicle.com/media/storage/paper244/news/2007/09/26/News/Gun-Advocates.Claim.They.Are.Not.nuts-2992238.shtml --- More Details On Canadian Border Guards Failing Handgun Training: ...Coupal said part of the reason 20 per cent of trainees have been flunking out is the relatively short firearm training period of three weeks, compared with 16 weeks for RCMP officers. Most of the failures were in the 25-metre shooting qualification requirement - a long distance that doesn't reflect normal border conditions, she said. As well, some officers needed fitness training so their arms remained steady during the shortened shooting training which caused fatigue. http://www.canada.com/windsorstar/story.html?id=fc21bd3f-a8e9-4c89-94d1-6df130e24918&k=67478 --- Kids And Guns In Tasmania: Questions of whether Tasmanian laws should reflect other (Australian) states' legislation have been obscured by a campaign of misinformation, as has the fact that nobody is proposing to alter the stipulation that under 18s are not permitted to own a firearm or use a firearm without strictest supervision. There is no evidence-based justification for opposing the controlled introduction of juniors to legal shooting activities. The only excuse given is a vague muttering about tough gun laws being a moral imperative for avoiding "US gun culture". http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/09/21/2039307.htm -- Stephen P. Wenger Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .