Obama's Deceptive Ad: Barack Obama's out with a new radio ad designed to deceive hunters, sportsmen and gun owners. The ad claims that gun owners have nothing to worry about, that as president Obama would not affect their Second Amendment rights. Of course, the ad doesn't mention that Obama supports things like a ban on handguns, an extension of the Clinton Gun Ban, a 500 percent increase in taxes on firearms and ammunition, a ban on the most common hunting ammunition, a ban on gun stores located within five miles of a school or a park, and prosecuting people who use a gun for self-defense in their home... http://www.nranews.com/blogarticle.aspx?blogPostId=449 --- AFL-CIO Continues to Shill for Obama: At a union roundtable discussion in Johnstown, Pa., yesterday, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka met with a panel of 15 union sportsmen from 12 different western Pennsylvania unions to discuss Sen. Barack Obama's positions on issues ranging from trade to guns...Trumka, an avid hunter and fisher, says corporate interests will again seek to exploit the issue of gun ownership this year, hoping to distract gun-owning voters from real issues like jobs, health care and retirement security. This election is too important to let distortions and falsehood affect it, Trumka says... http://blog.aflcio.org/2008/09/19/trumka-obama-strong-on-guns-conservation-issues --- AHSA Blows More Gunsmoke: The recent national Slash and Burn: Why Does the National Rifle Association Leadership Support Congress's Biggest Opponents of Conservation?", a report prepared by the American Hunters and Shooters Association (AHSA) to shed light on NRA's dismal conservation record, has once again fired up the old McCarthy-style, NRA-attack machine...Quite simply, the NRA has lost touch with American hunters and shooters. What was once a mainstream organization that represented the views of a majority of gun owners has lost its way. Had NRA been fulfilling its stated responsibility there would be no need for an alternative organization like AHSA... (So it would appear that the split is over whether it's more important to defend the rights of an increasing proportion of ordinary citizens to keep and bear arms or to enhance hunting opportunities for a declining proportion of the population.) http://www.newwest.net/topic/article/american_hunters_and_shooters_association_responds_to_its_critics/C41/L41/ --- Speaking of Which...: Another American dream is turning into an American myth. Between the high cost of gasoline, skyrocketing ammunition fees, and big game tag fees that have far outpaced inflation, many blue-collar hunters can no longer afford to hunt big game. Late last year I was asked to do a piece for Petersen's Hunting magazine on nonresident tags fees in the West. While I don't know if was my whining about how uch a trip to Montana last year had cost me just in tag fees and gasoline, it was a story that would resonate with longtime sportsmen. Doing the research for the piece was an eye-opener. When I bought my first deer tag as an 18-year-old here in California in 1972, it cost $3, and really included two tags as part of the package and an application for a third tag. That made the tags $1.50 each. Today, a single resident deer tag costs about $26. If pegged to the cost of inflation that $1.50 tag would cost $7.65 in today's dollars. The $26 tag is a 1,733 percent increase over what it should cost... http://www.sbsun.com/sports/ci_10504196 --- Birds of a Feather...: While most people are familiar with the legal right to a presumption of innocence - being innocent until proven guilty - that exists in the modern nations, an Ohio gun ban lobbyist with ties to Barack Obama seems to be quite ignorant about the matter. Having suffered yet another stinging loss in the Ohio legislature with passage of Castle Doctrine, Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence (OCAGV) Executive Director Toby Hoover told Ohio University's The Post that "a gun owner who shoots an intruder in their home should not be assumed innocent." Investigations by Buckeye Firearms Association have revealed that OCAGV's primary source of funding comes from the anti-gun Joyce Foundation, for which Barack Obama served on the board of directors from 1994 through 2002... http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/node/6002 --- A Familiar Refrain: ..."We make it too easy for dangerous people to get dangerous weapons," Helmke said. "There are only a few national gun control laws on the books, and even those have loopholes. This leads to senseless gun violence devastating the lives of tens of thousands. We know we will have a partner in Dan Maffei on fighting for sensible gun laws to protect you, your family and your community." http://www.newsli.com/2008/09/18/to-help-keep-dangerous-guns-away-from-dangerous-people-brady-campaign-endorses-dan-maffei-for-congress/ --- Lead-Ammunition Ban Proposed in Washington: The lead ammunition you use for hunting as well as target and competitive shooting will be banned from purchase, use and ownership in the state of Washington if the state's Department of Ecology has its way. Lead ammunition is a target of a series of recommendations in the "Lead Chemical Action Plan" prepared by the Department of Ecology. The plan is open for public comment until Monday, October 6. The plan and information about submitting comments are available at: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/swfa/pbt/leadcap/. http://www.nraila.org/Legislation/Read.aspx?ID=4175 --- The AR-15's Image Problem: ...Truly, all firearms are based on a military model at some point. Most bolt action rifles that today are considered hunting firearms are based of the 1903 Springfield or 1898 Mauser design. Muzzleloaders have roots in the Revolutionary and Civil War arsenals. Most firearm companies have made their mark creating military weapons and then adapting them to civilian use. Today, the "black sheep" image that has hung over the AR-15 is evaporating. "This is by far the most popular, hottest selling firearm made in the United States," explained Gresham. "There's a reason for that. They're a ton of fun to shoot..." (There are a few inaccuracies in this article. The AR-15 cannot be chambered in .308 - that would be a sister Stoner rifle, the AR-10. Not all AR-15 iterations come with adjustable stocks and only the flat-top versions can truly be said to be scope-friendly.) http://www.wvmetronews.com/outdoors.cfm?func=displayfullstory&storyid=26413 --- Oops, Wrong House: Robert Hunter, 50, was shot Wednesday after he broke in on his romantic rival and estranged wife at the other man's home in West Valley City, police said. Served with divorce papers earlier that day, Hunter broke a sliding glass door and entered the home of Joe McIntosh, 48, with two loaded handguns at about 9 p.m., West Valley City police Lt. Tom McLachlan said. McIntosh "feared for his life" and he shot Hunter at least once with a 12-gauge shotgun, McLachlan said... http://www.sltrib.com/ci_10499013 --- Unintended Consequences: Attempts to turn Solomon Islands into a gun-free society has had an unintended deadly side effect. It's lead in part, to an increase in the number of fatal crocodile attacks. Guns were banned on Solomon Islands following racial tensions and the arrival in 2003 of the Australian lead Regional Assistance Mission, RAMSI. Solomon Islands Acting Police Commissioner, Peter Marshall, has told Radio Australia at least six people have been killed by crocodiles in the past 18 months... http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/news/stories/200809/s2368753.htm?tab=latest --- NRA-ILA Alerts: Alerts for the week are posted on the NRA-ILA website. http://www.nraila.org/GrassrootsAlerts/read.aspx -- Stephen P. Wenger, KE7QBY Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .