RKBA is a DKos group of second amendment supporters who also have progressive and liberal values. We don't think that being a liberal means one has to be anti-gun. Some of us are extreme in our second amendment views (no licensing, no restrictions on small arms) and some of us are more moderate (licensing, restrictions on small arms.) Moderate or extreme, we hold one common belief: more gun control equals lost elections. We don't want a repeat of 1994. We are an inclusive group: if you see the Second Amendment as safeguarding our right to keep and bear arms individually, then come join us in our conversation. If you are against the right to keep and bear arms, come join our conversation. We look forward to seeing you, as long as you engage in a civil discussion. RKBA stands for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms.
Fog guy:
Dudley Do-Right rides again
DOJ Inspector General focuses on ATF's implementation of "Project Gunrunner," which became a national initiative in 2006 to combat illegal gun trafficking along the U.S.-Mexico border. Fine found "significant weaknesses in ATF's implementation of Project Gunrunner undermine its effectiveness."
(ATF) is not sharing information with other federal agencies, is not properly communicating with Mexican officials and is focusing too much of their effort on low-level gun traffickers while ignoring the bigger cases
ATF focuses largely on inspections of gun dealers and investigations of straw purchasers instead of on "higher-level traffickers, smugglers, and the ultimate recipients of the trafficked guns," the report found. In fact, 68% of Project Gunrunner cases are single-defendant cases, according to the report, which also found that "some ATF managers discourage field personnel from conducting the types of complex conspiracy investigations that target higher-level members of trafficking rings."
Shadan:
A surprisingly well-balanced article on the debate in Connecticut over "open carry" and the State's Department of Public Safety evidently imposing their own opinions rather than statutory criteria for deciding who will be issued a permit. Money quote:
Pistol permits are valid for five years, and in 2007, when Kuck applied for a renewal, DPS told him to submit a birth certificate or passport, neither of which are required under the law. (DPS spokesman Lt. Vance says DPS still asks for those IDs and, "No one has any difficulty providing that information when asked for it.") Kuck refused on principle and was denied.
The previous year the DPS tried to pass legislation to require a birth certificate or passport to get a pistol permit. Kuck sees this as proof that DPS enforces gun laws that it wishes existed. (Similarly, DPS will propose legislation this year to make it illegal to openly carry a gun. In paperwork submitted when a state agency proposes legislation, DPS writes: "Recently citizens have taken it upon themselves to test our statutes by carrying openly. In doing so, several arrests have been made under the Breach of Peace statutes ..." Those charges were dismissed, "proving that these laws are inadequate in their detail.")
Kuck’s pistol permit expired and he appealed to the BFPE. After his October 2008 hearing he got his permit back. At the time, the BFPE’s backlog was so large, there was an average wait time of 18 months to get a hearing.