From: owner-roc-digest@lists.xmission.com (roc-digest) To: roc-digest@lists.xmission.com Subject: roc-digest V2 #395 Reply-To: roc-digest Sender: owner-roc-digest@lists.xmission.com Errors-To: owner-roc-digest@lists.xmission.com Precedence: bulk roc-digest Wednesday, October 25 2000 Volume 02 : Number 395 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 24 Oct 00 11:14:13 PST From: roc@xpresso.seaslug.org (Bill Vance) Subject: 2 of 2 Executive Order 12919 - Bonfire to the Constitution (fwd) On Oct 23, BOBWORN@aol.com wrote: [-------------------- text of forwarded message follows --------------------] PART IV - IMPACT OF OFFSETS Sec. 401. Offsets. (a) The responsibilities and authority conferred upon the President by section 309 of the Act with respect to offsets are delegated to the Secretary of Commerce, who shall function as the President's Executive Agent for carrying out this authority. (b) The Secretary of Commerce shall prepare the annual report required by section 309(a) of the Act in consultation with the Secretaries of Defense, Treasury, Labor, State, the United States Trade Representative, the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, the Director of Central Intelligence, and the heads of other departments and agencies as required. The heads of Federal departments and agencies shall provide the Secretary of Commerce with such information as may be necessary for the effective performance of this function. (c) The offset report shall be subject to the normal interagency clearance process conducted by the Director, OMB, prior to the report's submission by the President to Congress. PART V - VOLUNTARY AGREEMENTS AND ADVISORY COMMITTEES Sec. 501. Appointments. The authority of the President under sections 708(c) and (d) of the Act is delegated to the heads of each Federal department or agency, except that, insofar as that authority relates to section 101 of the Act, it is delegated only to the heads of each Federal department or agency assigned functions under section 201(a) of this order. The authority delegated under this section shall be exercised pursuant to the provisions of section 708 of the Act, and copies and the status of the use of such delegations shall be furnished to the Director, FEMA. Sec. 502. Advisory Committees. The authority of the President under section 708(d) of the Act and delegated in section 501 of this order (relating to establishment of advisory committees) shall be exercised only after consultation with, and in accordance with, guidelines and procedures established by the Administrator of General Services. PART VI - EMPLOYMENT OF PERSONNEL Sec. 601. National Defense Executive Reserve. (a) In accordance with section 710(e) of the Act, there is established in the Executive Branch a National Defense Executive Reserve ("NDER") composed of persons of recognized expertise from various segments of the private sector and from government (except full-time federal employees) for training for employment in executive positions in the Federal Government in the event of an emergency that requires such employment. (b) The head of any department or agency may establish a unit of the NDER in the department or agency and train members of that unit. (c) The head of each department or agency with an NDER unit is authorized to exercise the President's authority to employ civilian personnel in accordance with section 703(a) of the Act when activating all or a part of its NDER unit. The exercise of this authority shall be subject to the provisions of subsections 601(d) and (e) of this order and shall not be redelegated. (d) The head of a department or agency may activate an NDER unit, in whole or in part, upon the written determination that an emergency affecting the national security or defense preparedness of the United States exists and that the activation of the unit is necessary to carry out the emergency program functions of the department or agency. (e) At least 72 hours prior to activating the NDER unit, the head of the department or agency shall notify, in writing, the Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs of the impending activation and provide a copy of the determination required under subsection 601(d) of this order. (f) The Director, FEMA, shall coordinate the NDER program activities of departments and agencies in establishing units of the Reserve; provide for appropriate guidance for recruitment, training, and activation; and issue necessary rules and guidance in connection with the program. (g) This order suspends any delegated authority, regulation, or other requirement or condition with respect to the activation of any NDER unit, in whole or in part, or appointment of any NDER member that is inconsistent with the authorities delegated herein, provided that the aforesaid suspension applies only as long as sections 703(a) and 710(e) of the Act are in effect. Sec. 602. Consultants. The head of each department or agency assigned functions under this order is delegated authority under sections 710(b) and (c) of the Act to employ persons of outstanding experience and ability without compensation and to employ experts, consultants, or organizations. The authority delegated by this section shall not be redelegated. PART VII - LABOR SUPPLY Sec. 701. Secretary of Labor. The Secretary of Labor, identified in this section as the Secretary, shall: (a) Collect, analyze, and maintain data needed to make a continuing appraisal of the nation's labor requirements and the supply of workers for purposes of national defense. All agencies of the government shall cooperate with the Secretary in furnishing information necessary for this purpose, to the extent permitted by law; (b) In response to requests from the head of a Federal department or agency engaged in the procurement for national defense, consult with and advise that department or agency with respect to (1) the effect of contemplated actions on labor supply and utilization, (2) the relation of labor supply to materials and facilities requirements, and (3) suchother matters as will assist in making the exercise of priority and allocations functions consistent with effective utilization and distribution of labor; (c) Formulate plans, programs, and policies for meeting defense and essential civilian labor requirements; (d) Project skill shortages to facilitate meeting defense and essential civilian needs and establish training programs; (e) Determine the occupations and skills critical to meeting the labor requirements of defense and essential civilian activities and, with the assistance of the Secretary of Defense, the Director of Selective Service, and such other persons as the Director, FEMA, may designate, develop policies regulating the induction and deferment of personnel for the armed services, except for civilian personnel in the reserves; and (f) Administer an effective labor-management relations policy to support the activities and programs under this order with the cooperation of other Federal agencies, including the National Labor Relations Board and the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service. PART VIII - DEFENSE INDUSTRIAL BASE INFORMATION AND REPORTS Sec. 801. Foreign Acquisition of Companies. The Secretary of the Treasury, in cooperation with the Department of State, the Department of Defense, the Department of Commerce, the Department of Energy, the Department of Agriculture, the Attorney General, and the Director of Central Intelligence, shall complete and furnish a report to the President and then to Congress in accordance with the requirements of section 721(k) of the Act concerning foreign efforts to acquire United States companies involved in research, development, or production of critical technologies and industrial espionage activities directed by foreign governments against private U.S. companies. Sec. 802. Defense Industrial Base Information System. (a) The Secretary of Defense and the heads of other appropriate Federal departments and agencies, as determined by the Secretary of Defense, shall establish an information system on the domestic defense industrial base in accordance with the requirements of section 722 of the Act. (b) In establishing the information system required by subsection (a) of this order, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Commerce, and the heads of other appropriate Federal departments and agencies, as determined by the Secretary of Defense in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce, shall consult with each other for the purposes of performing the duties listed in section 722(d)(1) of the Act. (c) The Secretary of Defense shall convene a task force consisting of the Secretary of Commerce and the Secretary of each military department and the heads of other appropriate Federal departments and agencies, as determined by the Secretary of Defense in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce, to carry out the duties under section 722(d)(2) of the Act. (d) The Secretary of Defense shall report to Congress on a strategic plan for developing a cost- effective, comprehensive information system capable of identifying on a timely, ongoing basis vulnerability in critical components and critical technology items. The plans shall include an assessment of the performance and cost-effectiveness of procedures specified in section 722(b) of the Act. (e) The Secretary of Commerce, acting through the Bureau of the Census, shall consult with the Secretary of Defense and the Director, FEMA, to improve the usefulness of information derived from the Census of Manufacturers in carrying out section 722 of the Act. (f) The Secretary of Defense shall perform an analysis of the production base for not more than two major weapons systems of each military department in establishing the information system under section 722 of the Act. Each analysis shall identify the critical components of each system. (g) The Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce, and the heads of other Federal departments and agencies as appropriate, shall issue a biennial report on critical components and technology in accordance with section 722(e) of the Act. PART IX - GENERAL PROVISIONS Sec. 901. Definitions. In addition to the definitions in section 702 of the Act, the following definitions apply throughout this order: (a) "Civil transportation" includes movement of persons and property by all modes of transportation in interstate, intrastate, or foreign commerce within the United States, its territories and possessions, and the District of Columbia, and, without limitation, related public storage and warehousing, ports, services, equipment and facilities, such as transportation carrier shop and repair facilities. However, "civil transportation" shall not include transportation owned or controlled by the Department of Defense, use of petroleum and gas pipelines, and coal slurry pipelines used only to supply energy production facilities directly. As applied herein, "civil transportation" shall include direction, control, and coordination of civil transportation capacity regardless of ownership. (b) "Energy" means all forms of energy including petroleum, gas (both natural and manufactured), electricity, solid fuels (including all forms of coal, coke, coal chemicals, coal liquification, and coal gasification), and atomic energy, and the production, conservation, use, control, and distribution (including pipelines) of all of these forms of energy. (c) "Farm equipment" means equipment, machinery, and repair parts manufactured for use on farms in connection with the production or preparation for market use of food resources. (d) "Fertilizer" means any product or combination of products that contain one or more of the elements -- nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium - - for use as a plant nutrient. (e) "Food resources" means all commodities and products, simple, mixed, or compound, or complements to such commodities or products, that are capable of being ingested by either human beings or animals, irrespective of other uses to which such commodities or products may be put, at all stages of processing from the raw commodity to the products thereof in vendible form for human or animal consumption. "Food resources" also means all starches, sugars, vegetable and animal or marine fats and oils, cotton, tobacco, wool, mohair, hemp, flax fiber, and naval stores, but does not mean any such material after it loses its identity as an agricultural commodity or agricultural product. (f) "Food resource facilities" means plants, machinery, vehicles (including on-farm), and other facilities required for the production, processing, distribution, and storage (including cold storage) of food resources, livestock and poultry feed and seed, and for the domestic distribution of farm equipment and fertilizer (excluding transportation thereof). (g) "Functions" include powers, duties, authority, responsibilities, and discretion. (h) "Head of each Federal department or agency engaged in procurement for the national defense" means the heads of the Departments of Defense, Energy, and Commerce, as well as those departments and agencies listed in Executive Order No. 10789. (i) "Heads of other appropriate Federal departments and agencies" as used in part VIII of this order means the heads of such other Federal agencies and departments that acquire information or need information with respect to making any determination to exercise any authority under the Act. (j) "Health resources" means materials, facilities, health supplies, and equipment (including pharmaceutical, blood collecting and dispensing supplies, biological, surgical textiles, and emergency surgical instruments and supplies) required to prevent the impairment of, improve, or restore the physical and mental health conditions of the population. (k) "Metals and minerals" means all raw materials of mineral origin (excluding energy) including their refining, smelting, or processing, but excluding their fabrication. (l) "Strategic and Critical Materials" means materials (including energy) that (1) would be needed to supply the military, industrial, and essential civilian needs of the United States during a national security emergency, and (2) are not found or produced in the United States in sufficient quantities to meet such need and are vulnerable to the termination or reduction of the availability of the material. (m) "Water resources" means all usable water, from all sources, within the jurisdiction of the United States, which can be managed, controlled, and allocated to meet emergency requirements. Sec. 902. General. (a) Except as otherwise provided in subsection 902(c) of this order, the authorities vested in the President by title VII of the Act may be exercised and performed by the head of each department and agency in carrying out the delegated authorities under the Act and this order. (b) The authorities which may be exercised and performed pursuant to subsection 902(a) of this order shall include (1) the power to redelegate authorities, and to authorize the successive redelegation of authorities, to departments and agencies, officers, and employees of the government, and (2) the power of subpoena with respect to authorities delegated in parts II, III, and IV of this order, provided that the subpoena power shall be utilized only after the scope and purpose of the investigation, inspection, or inquiry to which the subpoena relates have been defined either by the appropriate officer identified in subsection 902(a) of this order or by such other person or persons as the officer shall designate. (c) Excluded from the authorities delegated by subsection 902(a) of this order are authorities delegated by parts V, VI, and VIII of this order and the authority with respect to fixing compensation under section 703(a) of the Act. Sec. 903. Authority. All previously issued orders, regulations, rulings, certificates, directives, and other actions relating to any function affected by this order shall remain in effect except as they are inconsistent with this order or are subsequently amended or revoked under proper authority. Nothing in this order shall affect the validity or force of anything done under previous delegations or other assignment of authority under the Act. Sec. 904. Effect on other Orders. (a) The following are superseded or revoked: (1) Section 3, Executive Order No. 8248 of September 8, 1939, (4 FR 3864). (2) Executive Order No. 10222 of March 8, 1951 (16 FR 2247). (3) Executive Order No. 10480 of August 14, 1953 (18 FR 4939). (4) Executive Order No. 10647 of November 28, 1955 (20 FR 8769). (5) Executive Order No. 11179 of September 22, 1964 (29 FR 13239). (6) Executive Order No. 11355 of May 26, 1967 (32 FR 7803). (7) Sections 7 and 8, Executive Order No. 11912 of April 13, 1976 (41 FR 15825, 15826-27). (8) Section 3, Executive Order No. 12148 of July 20, 1979 (44 FR 43239, 43241). (9) Executive Order No. 12521 of June 24, 1985 (50 FR 26335). (10) Executive Order No. 12649 of August 11, 1988 (53 FR 30639). (11) Executive Order No. 12773 of September 26, 1991 (56 FR 49387), except that part of the order that amends section 604 of Executive Order 10480. (b) Executive Order No. 10789 of November 14, 1958, is amended by deleting "and in view of the existing national emergency declared by Proclamation No. 2914 of December 16, 1950," as it appears in the first sentence. (c) Executive Order No. 11790, as amended, relating to the Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974, is amended by deleting "Executive Order No. 10480" where it appears in section 4 and substituting this order's number. (d) Subject to subsection 904(c) of this order, to the extent that any provision of any prior Executive order is inconsistent with the provisions of this order, this order shall control and such prior provision is amended accordingly. Sec. 905. Judicial Review. This order is not intended to create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law by a party against the United States, its agencies, its officers, or any person. WILLIAM J. CLINTON THE WHITE HOUSE, June 3, 1994. [------------------------- end of forwarded message ------------------------] - -- - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- RKBA! ***** Blessings On Thee, Oh Israel! ***** RKBA! - ----------------+----------+--------------------------+--------------------- An _EFFECTIVE_ | Insured | All matter is vibration. | Let he who hath no weapon in every | by COLT; | -- Max Plank | weapon sell his hand = Freedom | DIAL | In the beginning was the | garment and buy a on every side! | 1911-A1. | word. -- The Bible | sword.--Jesus Christ - ----------------+----------+--------------------------+--------------------- Constitutional Government is dead, LONG LIVE THE CONSTITUTION!!!!! - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Oct 00 11:28:27 PST From: roc@xpresso.seaslug.org (Bill Vance) Subject: Part 1 of 2 - The Great American Gun Grab ... by Robert Lee (fwd) On Oct 25, BOBWORN@aol.com wrote: [-------------------- text of forwarded message follows --------------------] Part 1 of 2 The Great American Gun Grab by Robert W. Lee During the national debate over an early version of the Brady=20 waiting-period gun control bill in 1992, the liberal Establishment=E2=80=99s= =20 most revered "conservative" mouthpiece, syndicated columnist and public=20 television emcee William F. Buckley Jr., sarcastically scolded critics=20 of the bill for using arguments "of the slippery-slope type: Give the=20 gun control people an inch and pretty soon you will find a brawny FBI=20 type coming in and confiscating your BB gun." Fear of the slippery=20 slope, Buckley claimed, was being "taken to fanatical lengths," since it=20 was "hard to know how an imposition of that nature seriously deprives us=20 of the right guaranteed under the Second Amendment." He advised that "it=20 is time that conservatives gave up fanatical interpretations of the=20 Second Amendment." Gradual Process Actually, "slippery slope" intrigue, predicated on patient gradualism=20 rather than all-out assault, has been the crux of gun control strategy=20 for decades. In 1976, Nelson T. "Pete" Shields, then executive director=20 of the National Council to Control Handguns (NCCH), told The New Yorker,=20 "I=E2=80=99m convinced that we have to have federal legislation to build on.= =20 We=E2=80=99re going to have to take one step at a time, and the first step i= s=20 necessarily =E2=80=94 given the political realities =E2=80=94 going to be ve= ry modest."=20 Then, "we=E2=80=99ll have to start working again to strengthen that law, and= =20 then again to strengthen the next law, and maybe again and again." The=20 first problem, Shields asserted, "is to slow down the increasing number=20 of handguns being produced and sold in this country." The second "is to=20 get handguns registered." And "the final problem is to make the=20 possession of all handguns and all handgun ammunition =E2=80=94 except for t= he=20 military, policemen, licensed security guards, licensed sporting clubs,=20 and licensed gun collectors =E2=80=94 totally illegal." In 1980, NCCH was renamed Handgun Control Inc. (HCI). Since 1989 its=20 chairperson has been Sarah Brady, for whom the original Brady bill was=20 named. Its agenda has predictably evolved to target rifles and shotguns=20 as well. The Brady bill was passed by Congress and signed into law by President=20 Clinton in late 1993. Since then, further descent down the slope has=20 included such measures as the 1994 "assault" weapons ban and the 1996 ex=20 post facto gun ban for persons convicted of domestic-abuse misdemeanors.=20 Mr. Clinton has announced that his anti-gun agenda for the 106th=20 Congress will include such additional slippery measures as a permanent waiting period for handgun purchases; background checks for teens=20 convicted of violent crimes, after they become adults, so they can be=20 banned for life from purchasing firearms; and extending background=20 checks to the few types of presently legal non-dealer transactions at=20 gun shows. His arguments for the latter would, in principle, apply to=20 all private firearms transactions, not simply those at guns shows. That=20 the Administration has such a goal in mind was implied in a recent open=20 letter from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms (ATF), which=20 asserted that "the President expressed his concern about the numbers of=20 firearms sold at gun shows and elsewhere without Brady background checks=20 being conducted...." (Emphasis added.) In early December, Mr. Clinton=20 gave Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin and Attorney General Janet Reno=20 until the first week of January to conjure up ways to close the alleged=20 gun show "loophole." All sales of firearms at gun shows are currently subject to the same=20 federal and state laws that apply in other situations. The supposed "loophole" cited by the President allows individuals to=20 sell guns on an "occasional" basis for the enhancement of a personal=20 collection or for a hobby, or to sell their collections, without=20 background checks. Beyond that, the law requires that anyone "who=20 devotes time, attention, and labor to dealing in firearms as a regular=20 course of trade or business with the principal objective of livelihood=20 and profit through the repetitive purchase and resale of firearms" must=20 have a federal firearms license and abide by the Brady law. The slippery slope strategy, then, is both real and obvious. Those who=20 deny it are implying that there is some point at which gun control=20 fanatics can be satiated short of outright confiscation of civilian=20 firearms. Evidence to the contrary is abundant and convincing,=20 especially when the goal of domestic disarmament is considered in the=20 context of U.S. disarmament policy at the international level. The=20 objective is not to abolish firearms or nuclear weapons, but to give=20 national governments a monopoly over the former and the United Nations=20 control of the latter. National governments would have the wherewithal=20 to control their domestic populations, while the UN would have the means=20 to coerce separate nations to do its bidding. That arrangement is the=20 essence of the collectivist nightmare euphemistically termed the new=20 world order. Toward Total Control On September 25, 1961, President John F. Kennedy presented a disarmament=20 plan to the UN, subsequently codified in State Department Publication=20 7277, that called for the "disbanding of all national armed forces =E2=80= =A6=20 other than those required to preserve internal order and for=20 contributions to a United Nations Peace Force." It also called for the=20 "elimination from national arsenals of all armaments =E2=80=A6 other than th= ose=20 required for a United Nations Peace Force and for managing internal=20 order." Ultimately, "no state would have the military power to challenge=20 the progressively strengthened UN Peace Force." On April 18, 1962, the Kennedy Administration submitted an outline for a=20 formal treaty reiterating that parties to the treaty "would=20 progressively strengthen the United Nations Peace Force =E2=80=A6 until it h= ad=20 sufficient armed forces and armaments so that no state could challenge=20 it." That ominous policy has never been repudiated by our government, and=20 subsequent U.S. policy concerning UN "peacekeeping" authority, and its=20 moves toward domestic disarmament via gun control, indicate that it=20 remains a top priority. Since 1995, the UN has itself become increasingly involved in the drive=20 to disarm civilian populations. In that year its Commission on Crime=20 Prevention launched an "International Study of Firearms Regulation."=20 Numerous UN confabs have dealt with the issue since. In May of 1997, for=20 instance, the Commission approved a resolution entitled, "Firearms=20 Regulation for the Purpose of Crime Prevention and Public Health and=20 Safety." In August of that year it adopted a Japanese proposal calling=20 for a "Universal Declaration of Principles on Firearms Regulation" that=20 would have all nations establish gun turn-in programs, license all gun=20 owners, and require registration of all firearms. Such "universal=20 declarations" are non-binding, but nevertheless serve as significant=20 propaganda tools which are often followed by legally binding conventions=20 or treaties. The step-by-step erosion of the Second Amendment, as exemplified by such=20 measures as the Brady law, has been abetted by powerful Republican=20 leaders and gun-rights groups who have opted to compromise rather than=20 stand firm on principle. In 1993, after a filibuster by pro-gun senators=20 turned back two attempts to bring the Brady bill to a vote, the bill=20 appeared to be dead for the year. Even its strongest backers were=20 admitting defeat. But then-Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole (R-KS),=20 supposedly anxious to preclude the possibility of having the issue arise=20 during the 1994 elections, offered a ludicrous compromise that served as=20 the pretext for terminating the filibuster and enabling the bill to=20 pass. When the final version came to a vote under a unanimous consent=20 agreement with only three senators (including Dole) present, Dole could=20 have blocked it single-handedly, but chose not to do so. He subsequently=20 told reporters that he was "happy to have this issue behind us." Brady Specifics The Brady law authorized a temporary five-day waiting period, applicable=20 only to handgun purchases, for five years, to be superseded after=20 November 30, 1998 by an "instant check" system that would cover rifles=20 and shotguns as well. The chief proponent of the "instant check"=20 compromise was the National Rifle Association (NRA), which has=20 vigorously defended it since. During the heat of battle over the Brady=20 bill, NRA lobbyists, rather than standing firm in opposition to the=20 measure, became more concerned about modifications that would "improve"=20 it, just as they are today attempting to make a silk purse out of the=20 "instant check" sow=E2=80=99s ear, rather than seeking its outright repeal. USA Today for October 26, 1993, quoted James Jay Baker, then executive=20 director of the NRA=E2=80=99s Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA), as= =20 saying, "We already support 65 percent of the Brady bill, because it=20 moves to an instant check, which is what we want." As Neal Knox, head of=20 the Virginia-based Firearms Coalition and a former NRA vice president,=20 recently recalled, "Baker, almost as much as [NRA Executive Director=20 Wayne] LaPierre, is perceived as the father of the =E2=80=98Instant Check,= =E2=80=99=20 which the ATF and FBI are attempting to implement as the heart of a=20 national registration system on all firearms =E2=80=94 as both NRA leaders w= ere=20 warned when they first proposed it as an alternative to the Brady=20 waiting period on handguns." [------------------------- end of forwarded message ------------------------] - -- - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- RKBA! ***** Blessings On Thee, Oh Israel! ***** RKBA! - ----------------+----------+--------------------------+--------------------- An _EFFECTIVE_ | Insured | All matter is vibration. | Let he who hath no weapon in every | by COLT; | -- Max Plank | weapon sell his hand = Freedom | DIAL | In the beginning was the | garment and buy a on every side! | 1911-A1. | word. -- The Bible | sword.--Jesus Christ - ----------------+----------+--------------------------+--------------------- Constitutional Government is dead, LONG LIVE THE CONSTITUTION!!!!! - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Oct 00 11:24:54 PST From: roc@xpresso.seaslug.org (Bill Vance) Subject: Part 2 of 2 - The Great American Gun Grab ... by Robert Lee (fwd) On Oct 25, BOBWORN@aol.com wrote: [-------------------- text of forwarded message follows --------------------] Part 2 of 2 The Great American Gun Grab by Robert W. Lee The Brady law specifically precludes the retention or transfer of=20 records about applicants who pass a background check, but with "instant=20 check" looming, Attorney General Janet Reno issued proposed regulations=20 in May 1998 providing that "transactions relating to firearm transfer=20 approvals in the Audit Log will be maintained for eighteen months."=20 Needless to say, the retention of such information is fraught with the=20 potential for abuse, and amounts to a type of federal firearms=20 registration that federal law also precludes. In August, Reno issued further regulations calling for a tax (user fee)=20 to be imposed on dealers holding federal firearms licenses, ostensibly=20 to cover costs associated with federal processing of instant-check=20 applications for states that did not have their own instant check=20 systems. Understandably, in most instances the fee would have been=20 passed along to customers. By raising the price of guns it would have=20 served to deter a number of gun purchases, to the delight of the=20 President, the Bradys, and other anti-gun zealots. One apparent purpose of the scheme was to pressure states that have not=20 yet adopted an instant-check system to do so. As Neal Knox noted at the=20 time, "Strangely, if a state legislature has set up its own =E2=80=98instant= =20 check=E2=80=99 system =E2=80=A6 we=E2=80=99re told the FBI doesn=E2=80=99t p= lan to charge the state for=20 conducting the check. Why? Obviously to get gun owners in 31 states to=20 back a new state gun law. Why? Because there are federal laws against=20 the Feds using sales information to create a national gun registration=20 system, but the states can create the federally accessible gun=20 registration systems that the Clinton Administration wants." The tax and record-keeping proposals espoused by the Attorney General=20 and FBI led Senator Robert Smith (R-NH) to propose an amendment (to the=20 fiscal 1999 appropriations bill for the Departments of Commerce,=20 Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and related agencies) that sought to=20 accomplish three commendable objectives: =E2=80=A2 Require the immediate destruction of records for applicants=20 "determined not to be prohibited from owning a firearm." =E2=80=A2 Scuttle the proposed user fee. =E2=80=A2 Authorize aggrieved persons to sue in federal district court over=20 violations of the amendment=E2=80=99s provisions by government officials and= , if=20 successful, to "receive damages, punitive damages, and such other=20 remedies as the court may determine to be appropriate, including a=20 reasonable attorney=E2=80=99s fee." The Smith amendment was overwhelmingly approved by the Senate on July=20 21st by a veto-proof super-majority of 69 to 31. It remained intact=20 during early negotiations over the massive $500 billion omnibus spending=20 bill in October. But it eventually fell victim to GOP betrayal when=20 Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (R-MS) and House Speaker Newt Gingrich=20 (R-GA) threw in the towel during last-minute negotiations with the White=20 House. The crucial qualifier "immediate" was stripped from the=20 record-keeping provision, thereby giving the FBI substantial wiggle room=20 to the time frame for record destruction. Its final decision, expected=20 by February, will likely entail a record retention period of up to six=20 months. The potential for using the data to construct a national gun=20 registration system is obvious. On December 1st, charging that the FBI=E2=80=99s stance on the record-keepin= g=20 issue amounts to "an illegal national registration" that violates the=20 privacy of gun owners, the NRA announced that it was filing suit over=20 the matter. The NRA=E2=80=99s Wayne LaPierre told reporters that "Janet Reno= has=20 turned Congress=E2=80=99 intent to keep records of convicted felons into an=20 Orwellian nightmare of keeping tabs on perfectly law-abiding Americans.=20 The federal government has no business keeping lists of law-abiding=20 Americans in their federal computers." Which is unquestionably true. We wish the NRA well, but such expensive=20 and time-consuming legal action would likely not be necessary now had=20 the organization stood firm on principle against the Brady bill from the=20 start. Buyer Beware Another recent development on the slippery slope front is the spate of=20 lawsuits filed (or contemplated) by cities against firearm=20 manufacturers. The gun control lobby, having failed to win key cases=20 involving private parties, is now striving to fuel its legal attack with=20 local tax dollars. Since the plethora of existing gun control laws has=20 predictably failed to keep guns out of criminal hands, flustered=20 anti-gun politicians are venting their frustrations on law-abiding=20 scapegoats. Most case law favors the manufacturers, but some could be=20 seriously hamstrung or forced into bankruptcy by the mere expense of=20 litigation. In late October of last year the city of New Orleans filed the first=20 such suit by a city against 15 gun manufacturers and sundry firearms=20 trade groups. The suit claims that firearms are unreasonably dangerous=20 because they lack certain mechanical safety devices, and that the=20 firearms industry should therefore be held financially responsible for=20 the medical bills, police expenditures, and other costs associated with=20 handgun violence. Mayor Marc Morial readily acknowledged that the=20 litigation is intended to entangle gun manufacturers in the same type of=20 litigation that has cost the tobacco industry billions of dollars.=20 Indeed, the suit was prepared by some of the same lawyers who have=20 benefited handsomely from tobacco litigation. Another attorney in the=20 case, Dennis Henigan of the Washington-based Center to Prevent Handgun=20 Violence, bluntly asserted, "Guns must now become the next tobacco." On November 5th, Cook County and the city of Chicago followed suit with=20 a $433 million action against 22 gun manufacturers, a dozen stores, and=20 four distributors. The suit claims that the defendants are flooding the=20 city with handguns that they know will be used in crime because Chicago=20 has a virtual ban on handgun ownership. In a recent Los Angeles Times op-ed piece, Dr. John Lott, a law and=20 economics fellow at the University of Chicago School of Law and author=20 of More Guns, Less Crime (1998), cited statistics showing that "30=20 children under 5 and 200 under 15 died from accidental gun deaths in=20 1996," while "950 children under the age of 15 drowned in pools and=20 while boating; 500 children died in bicycle accidents, and more than=20 1,000 children died from residential fires." Nonetheless, he observed,=20 "No one is yet proposing that state or city governments should recoup=20 medical costs or police salaries by suing automobile or bicycle=20 companies, pool builders or makers of home heaters." Indeed, he=20 contended, such suits would "make as little sense as pool builders suing=20 the government to recoup the health benefits from exercise." Lott readily admitted the obvious, that "bad things happen with guns,"=20 but he noted that suits against manufacturers "ignore that guns also=20 prevent bad things by making it easier for victims to defend themselves.=20 With fewer than one percent of all guns ever used in crimes or causing=20 death or injury, many other products have much higher probabilities of=20 causing harm." Unlike the tobacco suits, "gun makers have powerful=20 arguments about the benefits of gun ownership." For instance, "More than=20 450,000 crimes, including 10,744 murders, are committed with guns each=20 year," but Americans "also use guns defensively about 2.5 million times=20 a year." Indeed, as research presented in Lott=E2=80=99s recent book confirm= s,=20 "When criminals confront people, resistance with a gun is by far the=20 safest course of action." Lott also found that "increased gun ownership rates are associated with=20 lower crime rates," and, "Poor people in the highest crime areas benefit=20 the most from owning guns. Lawsuits against gun makers will raise the=20 price of firearms, which will most severely reduce gun ownership among=20 the law-abiding, much-victimized poor." Lott suggested that if "mayors=20 really believe that guns produce no benefits, there is one simple way=20 they can demonstrate this: Disarm their bodyguards." It is, he=20 contended, hypocritical for mayors "to demand that poor people live in=20 high crime areas without being able to own guns, while the mayors would=20 never enter these areas without armed guards." Global Strategy The slippery slope strategy for achieving domestic disarmament dovetails=20 with globalist plans to construct a new world order based on the=20 ultimate goal of UN =C3=BCber alles. Sadly, it has often been enhanced by th= e=20 politics of compromise. The original Brady law, and the "instant check"=20 travesty with which gun owners are now plagued, resulted from compromise=20 of constitutional principle. It (and other supposedly "modest"=20 infringements of the Second Amendment) should not be tweaked to make=20 them more acceptable. They should, instead, be abolished. As Larry=20 Pratt, executive director of Gun Owners of America, recently asserted,=20 "The answer in some sectors of the pro-gun movement has been to work=20 towards making the =E2=80=98trains run on time.=E2=80=99 Make the Instant=20= =E2=80=98Registration=E2=80=99=20 Check work more efficiently, they say, so there won=E2=80=99t be any delays=20= and=20 interruptions." In contrast, Pratt recalled, "Gun Owners of America was=20 the only national gun lobby to oppose the Instant Registration Check in=20 1993, when the law first passed. And to this day, we continue to fight=20 against this unconstitutional monstrosity with every ounce of our=20 organizational being." Representative Ron Paul (R-TX) introduced legislation in the 105th=20 Congress to repeal the entire Brady law, including its "instant check"=20 provisions. He plans to do so again in the 106th.=20 . [------------------------- end of forwarded message ------------------------] - -- - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- RKBA! ***** Blessings On Thee, Oh Israel! ***** RKBA! - ----------------+----------+--------------------------+--------------------- An _EFFECTIVE_ | Insured | All matter is vibration. | Let he who hath no weapon in every | by COLT; | -- Max Plank | weapon sell his hand = Freedom | DIAL | In the beginning was the | garment and buy a on every side! | 1911-A1. | word. -- The Bible | sword.--Jesus Christ - ----------------+----------+--------------------------+--------------------- Constitutional Government is dead, LONG LIVE THE CONSTITUTION!!!!! - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - ------------------------------ End of roc-digest V2 #395 *************************