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Not yet a VCDL member? Join VCDL at: http://www.vcdl.org/join.html
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VCDL's meeting schedule: http://www.vcdl.org/meetings.html
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Abbreviations used in VA-ALERT: http://www.vcdl.org/help/abbr.html
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1. VCDL Picnic in Newport News announced!
2. Judge removes stay. Maryland CHPs are "shall-issue" for now!
3. Roanoke picnic recap
4. New gun store in Hanover County
5. Man with shotgun surprises intruder in Fredericksburg, police say
6. Letter: Carrying of firearms [LTE]
7. Deputies shoot, kill man after knocking on wrong door
8. 71 year old conceal carry holder firing on would-be robbers [VIDEO]
9. Pol pushes for gun buy backs amid question of effectiveness
10. Who needs a gun in gun-control haven New York City?
11. WV road check
12. Just for fun [PRODUCT]
13. Gun free zone cartoon [PHOTO]
14. Who needs a handgun in Canada?
15. Colorado gun sales and permit applications explode!
16. Draft of U.N. ATT treaty now available. Resistance expected
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1. VCDL Picnic in Newport News announced!
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The VCDL cordially invites the general public to a picnic at the Riverview Park in Newport News, VA on September the 15th from 11 AM until 2 PM. This is a family affair so bring the little ones along and enjoy the beautiful park. Food and drinks will be provided by the VCDL but attendees are encouraged to bring a dish to share if they so desire.
VCDL president Philip Van Cleave and Delegate Brenda Pogge will be speaking at the picnic. Delegate Pogge carried an important bill for VCDL this year, which allows local government employees to keep their firearms in their private vehicles while at work.
The Riverview Park is located at:'
125 City Farm Road, Newport News, Virginia 23602
http://mapq.st/NZ8OC5
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2. Judge removes stay. Maryland CHPs are "shall-issue" for now!
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From our Maryland counterpart. First it was the Berlin Wall in the 80s, now THIS?
Count me in!
http://marylandshallissue.org/2012/07/temporary-stay-lifted/
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3. Roanoke picnic recap
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A report from Board member Al Steed Jr. who headed up the picnic in Roanoke County:
VCDL had our ROANOKE COUNTY PICNIC at GREEN HILL PARK on 14 JULY 2012. Over 110 members and guests attended.
Special note: Charlie G. says THANKS to those who came to his aid--using the Heimlich maneuver to help clear his airway during the picnic. Charlie says he learned he can not talk and eat at the same time (his words)!! Charlie is doing fine, and looking forward to our next picnic!
The honey bees and yellow jackets were in attendance---three folks got stung. We thank Chris Rakes for removing the trash cans that were the "root" of the problem. Chris is a "Bee handler" also.
The cooking started and very shortly after the thunderstorm "broke" over us----Thanks to Dave Knight for the super cooking in the rain and mud! Many others helped out trying to keep our food out of the rain. We lost the battle on some of our paper goods, and a bit of our food, but managed to save most items. Thank you to all who helped:
Food serving went well considering the rain, thanks to many fine members (and family members). I do not have a complete list of all who did such a fine job, but Linda Steed; Shellie Meikle, son Stephen; Ken Modica, headed up the effort. Plenty of food was left over--and several members took some of the extras home for later treats. Our "door" prize did not get given away due to the rain---so we have a prize to give away (for a lady anyway) next event.
Clean up was done by a crew of Ken Modica; Bill Brown; Chris Rakes; Stephen and others. We left the shelter area cleaner than we found it--our usual way. Thanks to all!
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4. New gun store in Hanover County
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EM Pat Webb emailed me this announcement of the opening of her, and her husband Steve's, new gun store:
--
We are officially open! It has been a long road, and we are still building inventory, but we are open for business.
Gadsden Guns is located in Beaverdam, VA, a small community in far northwest Hanover County. We are located inside a convenience store/gas station called Beaverdam Quik Stop and offer pistols, rifles, shotguns, firearms transfer services, ammo and also have our Class III license, although we don't have any NFA items in stock yet. The inventory is small at the moment, but growing almost daily and soon we will have a full line of firearms. We buy, sell and trade, so if there is a piece that has been sitting in someone's safe feeling lonely because it has not been shot in a while, bring it up and trade it on a new gun!
Gadsden Guns is proud to partner with VCDL and is giving away a free Guns SAVE Lives gun mat (aka mouse pad) with each gun purchase. We also display a signup sheet for the VA-Alert. We also give a $10 discount on transfers to VCDL members (membership card required).
Our official hours are Monday-Friday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., but we are usually there until 5:00 on weekday evenings and try to be there some hours on the weekends. We will be expanding the hours soon, but for now if you are coming outside the official hours please call ahead so we don't miss you! We will do our best to accommodate those who wish to come outside of the official business hours.
Pat Webb
President
Gadsden Guns, Inc.
804.449.0091 w
804.449.0091 f
804.347.4265 m
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5. Man with shotgun surprises intruder in Fredericksburg, police say
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Kevin Dameron emailed me this:
--
Thought you might like this! Once again; guns save lives!
From fredericksburg.com: http://tinyurl.com/ceo74lf
Man with shotgun surprises intruder in Fredericksburg, police say
By Newsroom Staff
July 16, 2012
A surprise early morning visitor got a surprising welcome from a 50-year-old Fredericksburg resident early Sunday, police said.
City police spokeswoman Natatia Bledsoe said the man and his wife, who live in the 400 block of Hanover Street, had been in bed for a couple of hours when a noise awakened both of them about 2:30 a.m. The husband grabbed his shotgun and was investigating the noise when he encountered a man he didn't know walking up the stairs inside his home.
The armed resident ordered the intruder back down the stairs and the suspect complied. The resident forced the intruder to get on the floor in the entrance hallway, and the suspect was still there when police arrived a short time later.
Bledsoe said the intruder was extremely intoxicated and was unable to provide his own address. He had gotten into the home through a front door that the residents had accidentally left open. Police later determined that the suspect lives a couple of blocks away in the Cobblestone area.
Daniel Veit, 27, was charged with unlawful entry and public intoxication. He was placed in the Rappahannock Regional Jail under a $1,500 bond.
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6. Letter: Carrying of firearms [LTE]
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Contrary to the following Chicken Little letter to the editor, it is NOT illegal to carry openly or concealed at a polling place in Virginia, UNLESS it is in an area where guns are prohibited generally, such as a K-12 school. This guy is in desperate need of a vacation or something to sooth his rattled nerves and overly active imagination.
--
From connectionnewspapers.com: http://tinyurl.com/89p4586
Letter: Carrying of Firearms
Letter to the Editor
July 18, 2012
The editorial "New Laws, Assault on Freedom?" in the July 4-10 edition of the Reston Connection raises a serious concern for public safety in this election year. I have served as an election officer at my precinct for a decade without incident. Like many thousands of volunteers, I have been to numerous training sessions in which the Election Board officers advise us of new requirements and give practical instruction in the use of voting machines. I have worked with an excellent team of volunteers for many years and we enjoy helping registered voters exercise their right at the ballot box. Generally, voting takes place without problems. Occasionally someone comes to the wrong polling station or has forgotten a valid form of identification. Very rarely have we had a problem with an obstinate person who refuses to cooperate when there is a question of his/her right to vote. We generally put in 15-hour days, starting with setting up the polling station at 5 a.m. and opening at 6 a.m. After the station closes at 7 p.m. we usually have another two hours to tally records from the voting machines and fill out many different forms to be taken to the county Board of Elections. So, we have our hands full throughout the day, especially in presidential elections with high voter turnout. We don't want to worry about our personal safety or that of other voters.
With the Virginia legislature's passage of several new provisions regarding the unlimited purchase, ownership, and concealed carrying of fire arms, the question of voter and election officer safety cannot be ignored. While it is currently illegal to carry firearms into a polling station, there is no provision to check whether a person might inadvertently or intentionally bring a concealed firearm to a polling station. There are generally no police officers in or near polling stations and, therefore, no way to screen for any potential gun-carrying individuals.
With each election I have worried about the possibility of someone walking into a polling station and shooting people randomly as happened at Virginia Tech in April 2007. So far this has not happened. Still, given the new laws lifting the limit on gun purchases and the legitimacy of using a concealed weapons permit as voter identification, we volunteer election officials should be more concerned about the possibility of a voter carrying a concealed firearm. The question is this: might a person with a legal concealed weapons permit think that he/she is now legally allowed to carry a concealed firearm wherever he/she goes, so long as he/she can show the permit? It would behoove the Virginia Board of Elections to conduct a statewide public awareness and information campaign in community newspapers, on TV, and in radio prior to the upcoming November election that would inform all voters of the prohibition of carrying any firearms into a polling station. While many may think this is obvious, there may be some voters who might not be so informed, and election officers would have no idea whether a voter might be armed or not.
A question for the Election Board: Are election officers permitted to ask a voter who produces a concealed weapons permit as voter identification whether the person is carrying a concealed firearm? If so, what action could an election officer take to assure that public safety and voter integrity is not violated? Since the November election is a Federal election as well as a state election, a person carrying a concealed weapon would be in violation of Federal law. Would that person be in violation of any Virginia law? And if the person were carrying a firearm and had a valid permit, could the election officer request that the person leave the polling station and remove the firearm before being allowed to vote? Should the election officer call the police?
These are questions that deserve serious consideration and responses by county and state election and public safety officials. We want our voters to be safe and at ease when they cast their ballots.
Bruce K. Byers
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7. Deputies shoot, kill man after knocking on wrong door
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Florida police knock on the wrong door at 1:30 AM, don't identify themselves, and when the resident opens the door with gun in hand, they kill him. (I'm being generous here. I'm fighting using the "m" word. What did the police think someone might do when they hear an unidentified knock at 1:30 AM?) The police don't identify themselves for "safety reasons." Oh, yeah - well exactly whose safety might that be? And the reason they knocked on that door in the first place should get someone fired. They based it on where a motorcycle was physically parked IN AN APARTMENT COMPLEX!
Lessons to be learned:
* Don't open your door if someone knocks on it at 1:30 AM unless you know exactly who it is. If you can't ascertain for sure and are concerned for your safety, keep the door locked and call 911
* If you do open the door with a handgun in hand, keep it out of sight in case it is not a bad guy. Do NOT point the gun at anybody. Police often hold the gun behind their leg when stopping a vehicle. If it is out of sight, nobody knows and it is not brandishing.
Vadim K. emailed me this:
--
From wesh.com: http://tinyurl.com/6mwjtsp
Deputies shoot, kill man after knocking on wrong door
FDLE looking into deputy-involved shooting
July 16, 2012
LAKE COUNTY, Fla. - Lake County Sheriff's Office deputies shot and killed a man they assumed was an attempted murder suspect on Sunday, but they now know they shot the wrong man.
In the early-morning hours, deputies knocked on 26-year-old Andrew Lee Scott's door without identifying themselves as law enforcement officers. Scott answered the door with a gun in his hand.
"When we knocked on the door, the door opened and the occupant of that apartment was pointing a gun at deputies, and that's when we opened fire and killed him," Lt. John Herrell said. "Even though this subject is not the one we were looking for when he opened the door. He was pointing the gun at the deputy and if you put yourselves in the deputy's shoes. They were there to pick up someone who was wanted for an attempted homicide."
Officials said the deputies did not identify themselves because of safety reasons.
Deputies thought they were confronting Jonathan Brown, a man accused of attempted murder. Brown was spotted at the Blueberry Hills Apartment complex and his motorcycle was parked across from Andrew Scott's front door.
"It's just a bizarre set of circumstances. The bottom line is, you point a gun at a deputy sheriff or police office, you're going to get shot," Herrell said.
Residents said the unannounced knock at the door at 1:30 a.m. may be the reason why the tragedy happened.
"He was the wrong guy and he got shot and killed anyway. There's fault on both sides. I think more so on the county," Ryan Perry said. "I can understand why he [the deputy] did it, but it should have never gone down like that," Perry said.
Scott's friend, LeMac Blount said he thinks law enforcement acted too quickly.
"I think because his motorcycle was parked in front of Andrew's door, it wasn't safe to assume that that was where he was at. I think they should of took other precautions," said Blout.
LAKE COUNTY, Fla. - Brown was arrested near the same building where Scott was shot. Brown and another suspect in the same case, Anthony Rodriguez, were booked into the Lake County Jail over the weekend. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is handling the investigation of the shooting and the deputy who fired, as well as the two who were on the scene with him, are on administrative leave.
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8. 71 year old conceal carry holder firing on would-be robbers [VIDEO]
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In the video you'll see the criminals scrambling like cockroaches to get away from that 71-year-old and his .380 pistol. The tables were turned quite nicely and quite quickly.
From theblaze.com: http://tinyurl.com/7hxx85s
SURVEILLANCE VID SHOWS 71-YEAR-OLD CONCEALED CARRY HOLDER OPENING FIRE ON WOULD-BE ROBBERS
By Jonathon M. Seidl
July 17, 2012
Samuel Williams could soon become a poster child for concealed carry. Or rather a poster senior citizen.
Williams is being hailed as a hero this week after he sprung into action on Friday to thwart an armed robbery at an internet cafe. Williams was present when two masked thugs walked into the Palms Internet Cafe in Marion County, Florida. One of the men was brandishing a gun while the other had a bat. They started ordering patrons around and one smashes a computer screen. That's when Williams took action.
Ocala.com explains what happened:
Williams was seated toward the back of the cafe dressed in a white shirt, shorts and baseball cap.
One of the masked men, identified as Duwayne Henderson, 19, comes in pointing a handgun at customers. The second man, Davis Dawkins, 19, is seen swinging a bat at something off screen, which was later identified as a $1,200 computer screen.
As Henderson turns his back, Williams pulls out a .380-caliber semi-automatic handgun, stands from his chair, takes two steps, nearly drops to one knee, and fires two shots at Henderson, who bolts for the front door.
Williams takes several more steps toward the door and continues firing as Henderson and Dawkins fall over one another trying to exit the building. The two eventually run off screen.
Surveillance video captured it all:
Both of the crooks suffered non-life threatening gunshot wounds and were later captured. And according to police, Williams — a licensed concealed carry gun owner — won't face any repercussions.
"Based on what I have seen and what I know at this time, I don't anticipate filing any charges," Bill Gladson of the State Attorney's Office, told Ocala.com.
But he's not the only one talking. Some of the customers are. And they're grateful for what Williams did.
"I think he is wonderful. If he wouldn't have been there, there could have been some innocent people shot," said Mary Beach.
UPDATE:
Ocala.com also has an interview with one of the robbers, Duwayne Henderson. In it, Henderson describes the robbery from his perspective:
"I feel horrible. It doesn't feel good. It makes you think about life's decisions, and how you should live your life," Henderson said in an interview with the Star-Banner at the jail on Saturday afternoon.
Hours after his release from the hospital, Henderson, who talked about the pain he feels in his buttock and hip, said the plan was to "barge in, get the money and leave." He said "he never expected anyone to be armed."
"The gun was broken and rusty and wasn't loaded. Nobody was going to get hurt," he said, standing with crutches.
Retrieving the customers' phones was what he said was their "main priority." That way, he said, the customers could not call law enforcement officials.
Henderson theorizes the reason why he was caught off guard is because, when Dawkins entered the business, he busted a computer monitor with the baseball bat and "glass got into his face."
"He couldn't warn me," Henderson said.
With the glass temporarily blinding his friend, Henderson noticed two women were behind the counter and he thought that was "fishy." Turning around to see what the women were doing, Henderson said he was shot.
"I turned around to run and my leg gave out. That was when I got shot. I hit the ground, and he was still shooting. I thought I was going to die," Henderson said.
Henderson said that, "by the grace of God," his "leg came back."
"I ran," he said.
He and his counterpart, Davis Dawkins, fled to a friend's house and were eventually apprehended. Henderson says Dawkins used to be an employee at the cafe and knew there would be money on hand.
And even though Henderson seems to be carrying some remorse, he still has a bone to pick with Williams, the elderly man who shot him, for firing while he (Henderson) was on the ground.
"I was down, and I'm not going to continue to shoot you," he said. [PVC: Oh, yeah - we believe you. Why wouldn't we?]
A piece of information Williams didn't have the luxury of knowing.
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9. Pol pushes for gun buy backs amid question of effectiveness
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Jay Minsky emailed me this:
--
Philip:
Queens District Attorney Richard Brown's office is resisting calls for a gun buy-up. Maybe common sense can creep into New York City politics. I can hope.
From wnyc.org: http://tinyurl.com/cs5rjw6
Pol Pushes for Gun Buy Backs Amid Question of Effectiveness
By Tracie Hunte
July 15, 2012
A Queens lawmaker last week called for more gun buy-back programs in the wake of a triple fatal shooting. But experts cast doubt on the effectiveness of the program to thwart crime.
Councilman James Sanders urged Queens District Attorney Richard Brown at press conference last Tuesday to hold another gun amnesty event. The most recent borough-wide buy-back program netted 922 guns.
Buybacks allow gun owners to turn over their weapons in exchange for money, no questions asked. The guns are typically exchanged for a $200 bankcard.
But Jon Vernick, professor at the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research, said that although the programs are popular there's no evidence linking them to a reduction in street crime.
"It's often the case that buy backs have to promise a fairly substantial monetary or other incentive, and when you total up the cost that these gun buy backs incur, that's money that could be better spent elsewhere," Vernick said.
Vernick said guns turned in tend to be older, lower-caliber revolvers. He says the guns used in crimes are usually high-caliber and semi-automatic pistols.
He also says gun buybacks don't reach the population most at risk to engage in street crime: young men.
So far, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown's office is resisting calls for a buyback.
"We have used gun buy backs in the past and we will use them again when we deem them appropriate. We are in constant dialogue with the NYPD about where and when to have one," Brown said in a statement.
Brown also says individuals they can always turn guns in at their local precincts for $100.
Queens Borough President Helen Marshall held a smaller gun buyback program last month: 35 revolvers, 19 semi-automatics and one rifle were turned in.
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10. Who needs a gun in gun-control haven New York City?
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I'm waiting for Bloomberg to complain about "knife violence" and "assault knives" (knives with bayonets attached ;-) ).
Actually, stopping this maniac sounds like a job for a 71-year-old with a .380!
John Treaster emailed me this:
--
From dailymail.co.uk: http://tinyurl.com/cfwnbhj
Woman, 24, stabbed by crazed knife-wielding attacker while walking down busy Upper East Side street
By MEGHAN KENEALLY
July 17, 2012
A young salon worker was stabbed in the stomach by a crazed robber as she was walking in New York's Upper East Side on Tuesday morning.
Sabatha Tirado, 24, was walking with a friend after making a stop to a cash machine when a man ran towards her and tried to grab her black leather purse.
She held on to the purse but he proceeded to stab her with a 8-inch kitchen knife.
'He tries to take her bag and she resists,' police commissioner Ray Kelly said at a press conference.
'He stabs her. He may also have sprayed her with some sort of substance.'
He sprinted away as her friend ran into a nearby deli and screamed for help.
The friend and the deli owner, whose name DNAinfo reports as Mo Desia, ran out with water, cloth, and paper towels to try to stop the bleeding from Ms Tirado's abdomen.
'Call my father,' she said while slumped on the sidewalk of 86th Street near Second Avenue.
Mr Desia said that the victim was bleeding and breathing heavily but still conscious when ambulances arrived to take her to New York-Presbyterian Hospital.
She remains in the hospital but her injuries are not thought to be life-threatening.
The search continues for the attacker, who was said to be in his 40s and between 5'9'' and 5'11''.
At the 10.30am attack, he was unshaven and seen wearing a brown shirt with blue plants.
There were many witnesses to the attack- which makes sense given the busy nature of the area at that time of day- and a few even tried to stop the man but none succeeded.
One man who was walking down the street at the time heard a worker from a nearby diner shout 'Stop him!' so he tried to do just that.
'I grabbed him from behind, by the collar,' Jay Jaiteh told CBS New York.
'He twisted and hit the fence. Then he got away.'
At the time, Mr Jaiteh thought the man wasn't a violent offender and simply thought that he skipped out on a bill at the diner.
'If I knew, I would have followed. I would have got him,' Mr Jaiteh told DNAinfo.
Mr Jaiteh did not see the knife but other witnesses did and police confirmed reports that the man had wrapped the knife in a plastic bag.
Ms Tirado's status is unclear, but when she was checked into the hospital she was deemed in stable condition.
'She was here then went to do an errand,' said her boss Ann Falzone, who is the manager of the European Wax Center salon where Ms Tirado worked on 82nd Street and First Avenue.
'She is a great worker. I am concerned about her safety and well-being,' she told CBS.
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11. WV road check
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A tale of two officers and a single traffic stop. ROFL!
From Scott Mitchell:
--
In May I was going through rural WV in my tractor truck to buy a trailer. I went through a license check, and was asked if I had a weapon. I told the officer that I had a permit and a pistol. He asked to see the gun to check the serial number for theft. I asked if he wanted to see my permit, but he said it wasn't necessary. While he was gone to his car another officer approached and asked if I liked guns. Duh! He proceeded to hand me his loaded Taurus 38 with the cylinder flipped out that was a new purchase he was proud of. The other officer brought my gun back and turned me loose. He still wouldn't look at my permit. I just found it humorous that the officer would hand me his loaded gun [PVC: While the other officer thought he might be in possession of a stolen gun ;-) ]. Scott Mitchell
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12. Just for fun [PRODUCT]
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Dale Hawley emailed me this:
--
Handgun Shaped ice cube tray. What's the proper caliber for a party?
From amazon.com: http://tinyurl.com/cq7owhb
Fred & Friends Freeze Handgun-Shaped Ice-Cube Tray
By Fred
Product Description
Amazon.com Product Description
Chill drinks while heating up the party with help from this creative ice-cube tray. Fitted with six handgun-shaped molds that result in intricately detailed--and entirely unexpected--gun-shaped ice cubes, the innovative tray brings hilarity and an element of surprise to guests' otherwise innocuous beverages. Furthermore, its briefcase-shaped exterior and cutout carrying handle add a bit of mobster-style drama and authenticity, with a gun-metal grey exterior lending a fitting finishing touch. Durably constructed of flexible silicone, the sturdy unit bends to quickly release the ice, while its slim design slips easily into the freezer for batch after batch of novelty ice. Perfect for bachelor parties, game-day festivities, backyard barbecues, and more, the dishwasher-safe ice-cube tray measures approximately 5-4/5 by 7-1/5 by 1 inches and arrives packaged in a clear, recyclable gift box.
Product Description
Fred & Friends Freeze ice cube tray is made from silicone. It's cleverly shaped like a briefcase and has six molds per tray shaped like automatic hand guns. The tray is a businesslike gray suiting its briefcase shape. The handguns look really funny and out of place in a glass. Very funny.
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13. Gun free zone cartoon [PHOTO]
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A cartoonist who gets it.
EM Ed Levine emailed me this cartoon: http://tinyurl.com/d7z5b38
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14. Who needs a handgun in Canada?
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No one is allowed to carry a gun for self-defense in Canada, except the police. So this must be someone pulling our leg.
From worldnews.nbcnews.com: http://tinyurl.com/c2lbr3l
Two killed, 19 wounded in Toronto party shooting
By Alastair Jamieson
July 17, 2012
Two people have died and at least 19 others were wounded in a shooting at a block party in the eastern Toronto suburb of Scarborough Monday night, according to Canadian media reports.
Toronto police Chief Bill Blair told CBC that a teenage girl and a man aged about 20 had been killed in the violence shortly before 11 p.m. ET Monday.
An infant was also wounded in the shooting, he told CBC, although the child's injuries were not life threatening.
"I've been a cop for 35 years, this is the worst incidence of gun violence in my memory anywhere in North America," Blair said.
A report in the Globe and Mail said police had a person in custody, and that the shooting appeared to be a dispute.
Leighton Robinson, a man who said he knew someone injured at the scene, told the newspaper the event was a typical block party.
"It's got to stop, there's no need for it," he said.
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15. Colorado gun sales and permit applications explode!
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Music to my ears.
From the DenverPost.com: http://tinyurl.com/d4f9ac2
Aurora theater shooting: Gun sales up since tragedy
Firearm interest spikes as some seek protection
Posted: 07/23/2012 10:52:34 PM MDT
By Sara Burnett
The Denver Post
Background checks for people wanting to buy guns in Colorado jumped
more than 41 percent after Friday morning's shooting at an Aurora
movie theater, and firearms instructors say they're also seeing
increased interest in the training required for a concealed-carry
permit.
"It's been insane," Jake Meyers, an employee at Rocky Mountain Guns
and Ammo in Parker, said Monday.
When he arrived at work Friday morning — just hours after a gunman
killed 12 and injured 58 others at the Century Aurora 16 theater —
there already were 15 to 20 people waiting outside the store, Meyers
said.
He called Monday "probably the busiest Monday all year" and said the
basic firearms classes that he and the store's owner teach are booked
solid for the next three weeks, something that hadn't happened all
year.
"A lot of it is people saying, 'I didn't think I needed a gun, but now
I do,' " Meyers said. "When it happens in your backyard, people start
reassessing — 'Hey, I go to the movies.' "
Between Friday and Sunday, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation
approved background checks for 2,887 people who wanted to purchase a
firearm — a 43 percent increase over the previous Friday through
Sunday and a 39 percent jump over those same days on the first weekend
of July.
The biggest spike was on Friday, when there were 1,216 checks, a 43
percent increase over the average number for the previous two Fridays.
The checks are required before anyone may legally purchase a gun in
Colorado. Because some purchasers may have bought more than one gun or
decided against their purchase, the actual number bought may have been
different from 2,887.
Such increases aren't unusual in the wake of mass shootings.
After a gunman in Tucson killed six people and injured others,
including Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, in 2010, background checks
in Arizona jumped 60 percent over the same date one year earlier,
according to the FBI.
A similar increase occurred in Virginia after the shootings at
Virginia Tech University in 2007.
Dion Studinski, who teaches a course required for people to apply for
a concealed-carry permit, said his class for Saturday at Firing-Line
gun store and indoor shooting range in Aurora is overbooked.
"We've definitely had an increase," he said.
Tom Mauser, a gun-control advocate whose son Daniel was killed at
Columbine High School in 1999, said he wasn't surprised by the
numbers.
"To me that's just symbolic of the fear that drives (people)," he said.
State Rep. Rhonda Fields, D-Aurora, said she understands what people
are thinking when they walk into a gun shop. But she hopes buying a
gun isn't the only response people have.
She would also like to see Congress reinstate an assault-weapons ban,
and she said Colorado should look into other measures that could
prevent tragedies like Friday's shooting.
"I think that's what the conversation needs to be," she said. "I don't
think that to be preventative, we need to provide or have more guns."
--
From USA Today: http://usat.ly/NTT1AK
Buyers flock to gun stores in Colorado after rampage
By Douglas Stanglin, USA TODAY
Background checks -- the first step toward the purchase of a gun in Colorado -- jumped 43% in the aftermath of a shooting rampage in Aurora that killed 12 people last Friday, The Denver Post reports.
Firearms instructors also note increased interest in the training required for obtaining a concealed-carry permit.
"It's been insane," Jake Meyers, an employee at Rocky Mountain Guns and Ammo in Parker, tells The Post.
The newspaper, quoting the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, says the 2,887 background checks sought by people interested in buying a firearm between Friday and Monday represent a 43% jump over the same period the previous week.
Arizona experienced a similar jump in gun sales following a mass shooting in Tucson in January 2011 that left six people dead and 12 injured, including then-Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.
Bloomberg news reports that, according to FBI data, handgun sales in Arizona on the Monday after the weekend shooting spiked 60% over the same day the previous year.
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16. Draft of U.N. ATT treaty now available. Resistance expected
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The proposed United Nations international Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) is out, and it is already running into trouble as many of the tenets are contrary to existing United States law.
From the examiner.com: http://tinyurl.com/cwa433y
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VA-ALERT is a project of the Virginia Citizens Defense League, Inc.
(VCDL). VCDL is an all-volunteer, non-partisan grassroots organization
dedicated to defending the human rights of all Virginians. The Right to
Keep and Bear Arms is a fundamental human right.
VCDL web page: http://www.vcdl.org [http://www.vcdl.org/]
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