Battle Over 2nd Amendment Rights is Being Fought on the State Level

The Truth Behind The News

Susanne Posel
Occupy Corporatism
March 8, 2013

Florida State Senator Audrey Gibson has proposed that residents who want to purchase ammunition have to enroll in anger management classes and wait for 3 days while background checks are conducted just as with purchasing a firearm.

Gibson said: “This is not about guns,” Gibson said. “This is about ammunition and not only for the safety of the general community, but also for the safety of law enforcement.”

She claims that citizens are stockpiling ammunition and that this is contributing to potentially dangerous situations that would thwart law enforcement’s ability to conduct proper policing services in local communities. Gibson asserts that “it’s about getting people to think, really, about how much ammunition they need. It’s a step, I think, in a safer direction. It’s about getting people to think before they buy.”

Gibson’s bill states that it is unlawful to:

• Sell ammunition to another person who does not present certification that he or she has successfully completed an anger-management program consisting of at least 2 hours of online or face-to-face instruction in anger-management techniques. The certification must be renewed every 10 years.
• Purchase or otherwise obtain ammunition by fraud, false pretense, or false representation.

Violations of this bill would result in a second-degree misdemeanor charge.

The Oregon State House is considering HB 3200 that will outlaw transfer of gun ownership. The penalties will be imprisonment and fines up to $250,000 or both.

The legislation defines “assault weapon” as dependent on the cosmetic modifications made, yet not retroactive in as far as possession by residents of Oregon.

The bill reads: “Any person who, prior to the effective date of this law, was legally in possession of an assault weapon or large capacity magazine shall, within 120 days after the effective date of this 2013 Act, without being subject to prosecution:

(a) Remove the assault weapon or large capacity magazine from the state;
(b) Sell the assault weapon or large capacity magazine to a firearms dealer licensed under 18 U.S.C. 923 for lawful sale or transfer under subsection (2) of this section;
(c) Surrender the assault weapon or large capacity magazine to a law enforcement agency for destruction;
(d) Render the assault weapon permanently inoperable; or
(e) If eligible, register the assault weapon or large capacity magazine as provided in section (4) of this 2013 Act.”
According to section (4) future gun registration will require:
(4) A person may not register more than one assault weapon and three large capacity magazines under this section. Additional assault weapons and large capacity magazines must be disposed of in the manner specified in section (3) of this 2013 Act.
(b) Submit to a criminal background check conducted by the department to confirm that the person is not a prohibited possessor under ORS 166.250.
(5) A registered owner of an assault weapon or large capacity magazine is required to:
(a) Securely store the assault weapon or large capacity magazine pursuant to rules and regulations adopted by the department;
(b) Allow an inspector from the department to inspect the storage of assault weapons and large capacity magazines to ensure compliance with this subsection;

Essentially residents of Oregon will have to choose between their 2nd Amendment and 4th Amendment. This law will reduce their rights against unlawful search and seizures to nothing for the sake of retaining their Constitutional right to bear arms.

The Missouri Department of Revenue (MDR) has been covertly sending resident information to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) regarding concealed weapons permits.

Peter Kinder, lieutenant governor for the MDR, said that private data on citizens in Missouri was being shared with DHS and other private corporations under an unknown suspicion that may have implications with regard to federal gun confiscation.

The Louisiana State Legislature is putting in place reformation that will protect gun owners’ rights. State Senate Representative Jeff Thompson, founder of the Defend Louisiana campaign, said: “This has been a rallying cry for people to draw a line in the sand and say, ‘We are not going to allow this to happen to our guns.’”

Defend Louisiana “is a statewide campaign dedicated to giving Louisianans a voice in the defense of their right to protect their families.”

The battle over gun control is being fought on the state level. Federal gun “standards” are being proposed through restrictive legislation to reform gun laws so that the Obama administration and Congress do not have to take the brunt of this assault on the 2nd Amendment.

The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) is expected to decide on 4 gun control proposals that would outlaw certain assault weapons and develop and encompassing universal background check system for gun purchasers – regardless of private or commercial sales.

Senator Tom Coburn is hopeful that gun control legislation will be approved on Capitol Hill. Coburn said: “I think we’ll ultimately get there even though the outside groups aren’t comfortable with it yet.”

Coburn was instrumental in amendment #3109 states that in order “to protect the Second Amendment rights of veterans” they must be deemed mentally competent so they may retain their right to bear arms. This amendment was added to the 2013 Fiscal Year National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that President Obama signed earlier this year.

Coburn said: “But I need to say something important. Violence is a big problem. It will be hard. But the time is now. You must act. Be bold. Be Courageous. Americans are counting on you.”

Mark Kelly, Giffords’ husband, who started a PAC to push for a national background check system, said to the SJC: “The holes and our laws make a mockery of the background check system. Congress should close the private sales loophole, and the dangers people entered into that system.”

While maintaining that Giffords and Kelly support the 2nd Amendment “right to own a firearm for protection, collection and recreation” Kelly explained: “Gabby and I are pro-gun ownership. But we are also anti-gun violence. When dangerous people get dangerous guns, we are all the more vulnerable.”