Another List Member Comments: There are two problems with the NRA-touted fix to the current gun ban in National Parks. The first problem is that this simple change in regulation could easily be undone by a subsequent administration. The second problem is shared by the lead bill to correct this in the U.S. House, H.R. 5434: Both fixes would merely limit firearm regulation in National Parks to that applied in state parks in the state in which the National Park is located. This will result in pressure by National Park managers on state park managers to dial up regulation in state parks, which will likely result in exploitation of gray areas in and bending of state laws as state park managers scurry to please their "big brothers" managing the National Parks. It would be best for Congress to pass a law simply preventing National Parks from adopting or enforcing any firearms restriction more restrictive than the laws of the state in which the National Park is located - forget the connection to state parks and forget reliance on adjusting NPS regulations to fix the problem. --- West Virginia Debates CCW Issues: ...One such proposal would conceal more than sidearms - it would keep a prying public from knowing just who has secured such permits. But that bill caused such a stir the House of Delegates pulled it off the calendar...Sen. Shirley Love, D-Fayette, is attempting to get the National Park Service to either recognize visitors who have concealed weapons permits - including non-residents - or post signs warning them their firearms aren't allowed on federal land. In his own measure, Sen. Clark Barnes, R-Randolph, wants to clear up language the attorney general's office feels is a bit murky on the reciprocal agreements West Virginia holds with other states. http://www.register-herald.com/local/local_story_055222814.html --- Hawaii Considers .50-Caliber Ban: A battle is brewing between the Honolulu Police Department and the Hawaii Rifle Association over a proposed ban of a high-powered sniper rifle. KITV's Catherine Cruz reported that the 50-caliber rifle is dubbed the most powerful rifle on the market today, and the HPD said it is their worst nightmare. That is why they said they want it out of civilian hands. It's a weapon that's long been used by the military and law enforcement, but in most states, a person can buy it over the Internet or from a gun store, which is making law enforcement uneasy... http://www.kitv.com/news/15384638/detail.html --- Minnesota Considers Deadly-Force Bill: A group of Minnesota lawmakers has introduced a bill that would allow citizens to use deadly force as their first option when feeling threatened. The proposed bill has caused major concern for at least one group of Minnesotans as LeAnn Wallace reports. "We think it's just another way for people to shoot people and have an excuse to shoot them." Joan Peterson is a member of "Protect Minnesota" a group formed to prevent gun injuries and death. The group calls the bill the "Shoot First, Ask Questions Later" bill. Peterson says there's no need for this law and she fears it could result in unnecessary shootings and deaths. http://www.northlandsnewscenter.com/news/local/15901517.html --- Change In Strategy Or Change In Tactics?: ...Gun control used to be one of those bread and butter issues for Democrats, but recent years have seen the party's rapid evolution towards staunch protectors of the 2nd Amendement...Of course, easing up on gun control has been critical to the Dems courting voters in Western and Southwestern swing states; the more Democratic candidates have traded gun bans for wishy-washy pro-regulation positions, the more the NRA has rewarded them, upping their political contributions to the Dems... (While the active Democratic candidates may be posing as defenders of the RKBA, it did not take long for Congressional Democrats to introduce a federal microstamping bill, which, among other things, would help further drive up the cost of firearms.) http://alternet.org/blogs/peek/77533/ --- Montana Consolidating RKBA Position: Montana officials are warning that if the Supreme Court rules in the D.C. gun ban case that the right to keep and bear arms protects only state-run militias like the National Guard, then the federal government will have breached Montana's statehood contract. Nobody is raising flags for the Republic of Montana, but nobody is kidding, either. So far, 39 elected Montana officials have signed a resolution declaring that a court ruling of the Second Amendment is a right of states and not of individuals would violate Montana's compact...The resolution also was signed by Rep. Denny Rehberg, Montana's lone Republican congressman, and state Sen. Roy Brown, who is running to unseat Gov. Brian Schweitzer, a Democrat. http://www.washingtontimes.com/article/20080225/NATION/757685551/1002 --- Oops, Wrong House, Florida Version: A 17-year-old suspect was shot and killed in Altamonte Springs early Saturday morning after deputies said he ran from them and into a nearby home. According to the Seminole County Sheriff's Department, the incident began when Ryan Realford approached a uniformed deputy in an unmarked car. Police said he appeared to be selling drugs. When he saw the officer's uniform, he ran down the street...The homeowner said Realford removed a locked screen door and was trying to enter his house through a sliding glass door. The homeowner said he asked Realford to leave. When he would not, the homeowner told deputies he shot him. http://www.cfnews13.com/News/Local/2008/2/23/homeowner_shoots_kills_intruder.html --- Oops, Wrong House, Indiana Version: Metro Police say a homeowner shot a man in self-defense outside his eastside home Saturday morning. But it's not the man's first time using a gun..."Apparently he heard a noise outside, went outside to see what was going on, and related to the detectives that this individual came at him with a knife, and which time he fired a shot," IMPD Sgt. Paul Thompson said. Burns told detectives the man he shot was coming out of his car, perhaps trying to steal it...Police will determine if this shooting was indeed self-defense. What they'll also look at is the fact that Mr. Burns has been involved in two other shootings, this year alone. http://www.wishtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=7916065&nav=0Ra7 --- Get Real!: ...I fell into the nightmare after reading that 12 states are considering bills that would allow people with concealed-weapons permits to carry handguns on the campuses of public universities. The revelation came after the deadly shooting at Northern Illinois University. The prospect has stirred online support and is causing gun merchants to drool over the prospects of increased sales...This time I am taking my grandson to his kindergarten class at the behest of his mother, who has a doctor's appointment. As I am watching him run off happily into the play yard on School Street, I notice that another little boy has dropped his Roy Rogers lunch box...The gun in the lunch box? That doesn't surprise me because it is within the guidelines of a new state law that mandates the right of students from grades K-12 to carry firearms to school to protect themselves against kids with guns. (This is a nightmare, after all.) It is basically the same right that had been granted earlier to college students... http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-martinez25feb25,1,2727307.column -- Stephen P. Wenger, KE7QBY Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .