How Anti-Gunners Manipulate the Data

Yesterday, researchers from Johns Hopkins said gun-friendly states have the highest rates of gun deaths. The problem with this statement is that ten of the fifteen states with the lowest homicide rates are constitutional carry states.

In a constitutional carry state, you do not need any training or a permit to carry a firearm. The researchers claimed to have used “advanced statistical modeling” to support their claim.

The study looked at 34 states that made it easier to carry a gun between 1980 and 2019 and compared them to “predicted” crime rates using data from “may issue” states.

Professor Cassandra Crifasi said, “If you graph all of the states in the U.S. by their rate of gun death from the highest to the lowest, a very clear pattern emerges.”

Several factors make this study inaccurate, but let’s look at the one that jumped out first. If you sort the data differently, you will get a different result.

The researchers used “advanced statistical modeling,” but @AHistory pointed out on X that ten of the fifteen states with the lowest homicide rates are constitutional carry. These states have some of the least restrictive gun laws since they are constitutional carry states.

Here are fifteen of the safest states based on factual homicide data, not “predicted” crime rates.

constitutional carry safest states

The researchers used the same old talking points that don’t hold up under scrutiny. “When states made it easier for potentially untrained gun owners to carry their weapons in public, assaults with guns increased.”

Part of that can’t be backed up with reliable data because what do they consider assaults?

“While the Supreme Court’s Bruen decision is forcing some states to weaken their concealed carry permitting systems, this study shows that states can reduce the expected increase in gun assault rates by including training requirements.”

This video from @wethepewple tries to explain the confusion since the gun control groups seem to be using fussy math.

 

Greatest Defensive Semi-Automatic Shotguns
While many solid options exist for a semi-auto scattergun to fill the home-defense role, here are three of the author’s favorites

Anytime you read “greatest,” “best” or “top” in a gun article, you can generally assume what follows will be filled with opinion. So, here’s my opinion of what I believe to be the best semi-automatic shotguns ever made for home defense.

Remington VersaMax Competition
Remington VersaMax Competition
In 2010, Remington engineered a gas action that is so simple it’s genius. Rather than using a mechanical gas regulator to cycle the action via two ports in the chamber—ports that easily get clogged—Remington added seven ports in the chamber so that the longer the shell, the more ports it covers up, thereby effectively regulating the gas pressure without adding any mechanical parts. I believe it is one of the most reliable and recoil-mitigating pure-gas actions ever invented.

Around this action Remington designed a gun that has every feature I want in a defensive gun, but none I do not. (To be clear, it made a similar version called the VersaMax Tactical, but I like the nearly identical Competition model slightly more.) The Competition model weighs nearly 8 pounds and has a 22-inch barrel. It comes with an eight-round magazine and a two-round extension, so it holds a total of 11, 12-gauge shells.

What I like most about it is its rubberized stock that features a super-soft buttpad and a gel-comb insert that does wonders for taming kick. Its receiver features oversize controls (bolt handle, action-release button and safety). Some of Benelli’s design influence is evident in its magazine-cutoff switch, trigger guard style and stock-adjusting shim kit, and I’m glad Remington chose this design to emulate.

I think it has the best sights of any shotgun on the market: A fiber-optic front bead combined with a shallow, express-style V-notch rear give it the best of both worlds. It is unobtrusive enough that I can hit running targets with it, but accurate enough for slugs at distance.

In sum, it’s my favorite do-it-all shotgun ever made. It points so well and has such mild recoil, I have actually taken it to the clays range by choice; other than the extended magazine, it fits right in. Its downside? Due to Remington’s recent demise (and reincarnation as Rem Arms), it was discontinued a few years ago. But, you can still find one online for around $1,350. If you don’t have one, I’d buy one now.

Benelli M3 Tactical
Benelli M3 Tactical
Benelli’s defensive dynamo is a top-end, semi-automatic that also comes with an emergency switch. In normal times, when shooting standard or heavy loads, the M3’s inertial, semi-automatic action functions flawlessly. But, when reduced-recoil loads or less-lethal options need to be manually chambered and extracted—or if you failed to clean the gun after a year at sea—the shooter can simply twist a collar mounted under the fore-end cap. This minimal movement unlocks the fore-end and engages the action rods of the pump system, instantly converting the M3 into a pump-action. Returning the control disengages the action bars, locks the fore-end in place and allows the inertia recoil system to function as a semi-automatic. Tell me this isn’t slick.

It wears a 19.75-inch barrel and features a pistol-grip stock. Unlike most Benelli inertia-action guns, the M3’s recoil-return spring is located ahead of the receiver around the magazine tube, so a spring tube in the buttstock isn’t needed. This allows the stock to be swapped for a folding or collapsing style if the user so chooses.

This M3 is often forgotten because the M4 won a military contract and became so popular, but I think the M3 might be the greatest combat shotgun ever made. Its downside? Most models I’ve seen at retail don’t come with an extended magazine tube, so you’ll likely have to buy one and install it (not a difficult task). I also don’t love ghost-ring sights, but they can be easily replaced. As for speed and reliability, however, it simply can’t be beaten because it’s both a semi and a pump.

In my opinion, it doesn’t handle quite as softly or as intuitively as the VersaMax or Beretta’s 1301 (I wouldn’t take this gun to the clays range), mainly because its stock is more of a tactical style, but then again, the VersaMax can’t turn into a pump with a flick of a switch. MSRP for the M3 Tactical is $1,599.

Beretta 1301 Tactical
Beretta 1301 Tactical
Beretta’s excellent 1301 BLINK system is an ultra-fast cycling, self-regulating action that is reliable and very good at recoil mitigation. When combined with Beretta’s useful tactical features—such as the seven- round extended magazine, oversize controls and an 18.5-inch barrel, you get a shotgun that’s fit for just about any Special Forces team on the planet. What I like about it most is that Beretta’s tried-and-true stock dimensions, including the important drop-at-comb measurement, tend to fit most people well, thereby mitigating recoil and making the gun easy to shoot intuitively.

The 1301, like the VersaMax, is another example of a tactical shotgun I could take to the skeet range and shoot a 24 with. What does this have to do with defensive applications? If you can hit fast and tiny flying targets consistently with a shotgun almost subconsciously, then slow, man-size targets become easy. It’s available with a traditional buttstock or a one that has a pistol grip.

As for my perceived negatives, I am not a big fan of the ghost-ring sights, but again, I may be in the minority on this point. Additionally, I can easily replace them with a Big Dot from
XS Sights.

If you asked me what shotgun I like better, the Remington VersaMax or Beretta 1301, I’d probably go with the Remington for the feel of its rubbery stock, its sights and its larger magazine. Then again, the VersaMax is discontinued, so replacement parts and service for it might be difficult to find. The 1301 from the world’s oldest firearms manufacturer, on the other hand, isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Pricing on the 1301 starts around $1,700, with options, color variations  and configurations adding to the cost.

Gun rights group applauds after federal appeals court deals blow to NY concealed carry law
Gun Owners of America praised the Second Circuit decision but said the court should have thrown out all of the New York gun control law

Gun rights activists cheered Friday after a federal appeals court struck down parts of New York’s expansive concealed carry law.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit blocked three provisions of New York’s “Concealed Carry Improvement Act” (CCIA), a law Democrats passed last year in response to a Supreme Court ruling that declared the state’s previous concealed carry permitting requirements unconstitutional. In doing so, the appeals court allowed other parts of the law to go into effect.

In a 261-page ruling, the three-judge panel struck down a requirement that gun owners disclose their social media accounts for review when applying for a concealed carry permit. The court also blocked restrictions on carrying firearms on private property that is accessible to the public, as well as a restriction on concealed carry in houses of worship.

However, controversial parts of the law remain intact, including a requirement that applicants demonstrate good moral character and disclose household and family members on a permit application. New York will also be allowed to enforce bans on concealed carry in so-called “sensitive places,” including theaters, bars, public parks and other spaces.

Gun rights activists praised the court’s decision but said the judges failed to faithfully apply the Supreme Court’s precedent, arguing the entire law should be thrown out.

“Governor [Kathy] Hochul and her cabal in Albany never seem to get the message, and in turn, GOA is proud to have played a major role in rebuking her unconstitutional law,” Gun Owners of America (GOA) Senior Vice President Erich Pratt said in a statement.

“Nevertheless, this was not a total victory, and we will continue the fight until this entire law is sent to the bowels of history where it belongs,” Pratt added.

Friday’s decision is the first federal court ruling to consider potential limits on where licensed gun owners can carry concealed firearms since the Supreme Court expanded gun rights in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen (2022). Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in that opinion for the court that “the Second and Fourteenth Amendments protect an individual’s right to carry a handgun for self-defense outside the home.”

The consequences of the Supreme Court’s ruling have been far-reaching, upending gun regulations in several states.

The circuit court judges acknowledged their ruling won’t be the final word on New York’s gun control law as the case winds its way through lower courts.

READ THE SECOND CIRCUIT OPINION BELOW. APP USERS: CLICK HERE

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By the end of 1775, during the first year of the American Revolutionary War, the Second Continental Congress operated as a de facto war government, having authorized the creation of the Continental Army, the Continental Navy, and Continental Marines.

A new flag was needed to represent both the Congress and the United Colonies, with a banner distinct from the British Red Ensign flown from civilian and merchant vessels, the White Ensign of the British Royal Navy, and the Flag of Great Britain carried on land by the British army

The flag became obsolete following the passing of the Flag Act of 1777, passed in June of that year, where the ‘Betsy Ross’ flag we are most familiar with was authorized by the Continental Congress.

File:Betsy Ross flag.svg

December 9

536 – The Byzantine Roman Empire’s general Belisarius enters Rome unopposed as the Goths garrison that had occupied the city flees, restoring the city to Roman rule.

1775 – Underestimating Colonial Militia strength in southeast Virginia by more than half, the British troops and Loyalists under the command of Lord Dunsmore are defeated in battle near Great Bridge, suffering such heavy losses it ends British rule in Virginia.

1835 – The Texian Revolutionary Army captures San Antonio de Bexar, following a siege lasting nearly 2 months and begin to refortify the Alamo Mission.

1861 –  The Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War,  to investigate the progress of the war against the Confederacy, is established by Congress.

1872 – In Louisiana, P. B. S. Pinchback becomes the first Black governor of a U.S. State following the impeachment of Henry C. Warmoth.

1911 – An explosion at the Cross Mountain Mine near Briceville, Tennessee, kills 84 miners despite rescue efforts led by the United States Bureau of Mines.

1917 – During World War I,  the Army of Field Marshal Allenby captures Jerusalem from the Ottoman Empire.

1941 – China, Cuba, Guatemala, and the Philippine Commonwealth declare war on Germany and Japan.
The American 19th Bombardment Group attacks Japanese ships off the coast of Vigan, Luzon.

1946 – The second convening of a military tribunal at Nuremberg begins with prosecuting physicians and officers alleged to be involved in Nazi human experimentation and mass murder under the guise of euthanasia.

1950 – Swiss born American laboratory chemist Harry Henrich Golodnitsky Gold is sentenced to 30 years in jail for helping Klaus Fuchs pass information about the Manhattan Project to the Soviet Union. His testimony is later instrumental in the prosecution of Soviet spies Julius and Ethel Rosenberg.

1968 – Inventor Douglas Engelbart gives what became known as “The Mother of All Demos”, publicly debuting the computer mouse, hypertext, and the bit mapped graphical user interface using the oN-Line System, a predecessor to the ARPANET, which developed into the internet.

1979 – The eradication of the smallpox virus is certified, making smallpox the first of only two diseases that have been driven to extinction. 10 years later, however, the U.S. Army decided to inoculate all troops due to a single case of a soldier coming down with the disease from an unknown source.

1987 – The First Intifada begins in the Gaza Strip and West Bank by Palestinian terrorists.

1992 – President Bush deploys U.S. troops, in Operation Restore Hope, to Somalia to help create a secure environment for humanitarian efforts there.

2006 – Space Shuttle Discovery is launched on STS-116 carrying parts of the International Space Station.

2008 – Governor of Illinois Rod Blagojevich is arrested by federal officials for crimes including attempting to sell the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by President-elect Barack Obama.

 

American Forces Attacked by Iranian Proxies 84 Times in 52 Days and Biden Does Nothing

US military installations in Iraq and Syria have been attacked by Iranian proxies nine times since Friday. According to senior defense officials, this brings to 84 the number of attacks on US forces since October 17, resulting in injuries to 66 American servicemen. The highest profile of those attacks was an attack on the US embassy in Baghdad. It was hit by a volley of 60mm mortar rounds on Thursday, and there were no casualties

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin used the occasion of his phone call with Iraqi President Mohammed Shia al-Sudani to condemn the attacks as “acts of terrorism” that “endanger Iraq’s internal security.”  He also “made clear that attacks against US forces must stop.”

As Austin made clear, it is no secret that Iranian proxy groups are behind the attacks (New Drone Attacks on US Forces in Syria, Iranian Proxies Claim Responsibility).

The same provocations are taking place in the Red Sea by the Iranian-back Houthis in Yemen. A US Reaper drone was shot down over international waters (Yemeni Houthis Shoot Down US Reaper Over Red Sea, the White House Response Is Crickets). Houthi drones targeted a US destroyer.

I’m sure that the usual isolationist fringe will say, “Why do we have troops in those countries? Why are our ships sailing in international waters? Shouldn’t they be on our southern border?” Those may be fair questions, but it is also immaterial and a shameless dodge. The National Command Authority has ordered our military to those locations to carry out American foreign policy. But in an environment where our troops have been attacked on 84 separate occasions in 52 days, we have launched a grand total of six airstrikes in the same time frame.

We allow Iranian proxies to lob rockets and mortar rounds at our troops. We’ve accepted, on average, one American casualty per day since October 17, and It is only a matter of time until Americans get killed. And the reason they do it is that there is zero risk attached to attacking Americans or American ships or aircraft because Joe Biden is so afraid of offending the Iranians that he’d rather see the coffins arrive at Dover AFB than have panties soiled under the man-dresses in Tehran.

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A Rocket Attack Targets the US Embassy in Baghdad, Causing Minor Damage but No Casualties

BAGHDAD — A rocket attack on the sprawling U.S. Embassy in Baghdad caused minor damage but no casualties Friday morning, U.S. and Iraqi officials said.

The attack is the first on the embassy located in the heavily fortified Green Zone of Iraq’s capital to be confirmed since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war. The Green Zone houses Iraqi government buildings and embassies on the west bank of the Tigris River.

Iran-backed militias in Iraq have claimed responsibility for dozens of attacks that targeted bases housing U.S. troops in Iraq and Syria since Israel declared war on Hamas two months ago. The U.S. military says 78 attacks have been carried out against U.S. facilities over the past weeks, of which 37 were in Iraq and 41 in Syria.

An Iraqi security official said 14 Katyusha rockets were fired Friday, of which some struck near one of the U.S. Embassy’s gates while others fell in the river. The official said the rocket attack caused material damage but no casualties.

A U.S. military official said a multi-rocket attack was launched at American and coalition forces in the vicinity of the embassy complex and the Union III base, which houses offices of the U.S.-led coalition. The official added that no casualties and no damage to infrastructure were reported.

An embassy spokesperson said the U.S. Embassy was attacked by two salvos of rockets at approximately 4:15 a.m. (0215 GMT).

“Assessments are ongoing, but there are no reported casualties on the embassy compound,” the official said, adding that no specific group had claimed responsibility for firing the rockets as of Friday morning but early indications pointed to Iran-aligned militias.

“We again call on the government of Iraq, as we have done on many occasions, to do all in its power to protect diplomatic and Coalition partner personnel and facilities,” the official said. “We reiterate that we reserve the right to self-defense and to protect our personnel anywhere in the world.”

The three officials spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said in a statement that “targeting diplomatic missions is something that cannot be justified.” He called the attack an “insult to Iraq, its stability and security,” and promised to “pursue the perpetratrors of the attack …and bring them to justice.”

Sudani came to power with the support of a coalition of Iran-backed parties. But he also wants continued good relations with the U.S. and has backed the ongoing presence of American troops in his country.

While no group claimed responsibility for the embassy attack, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of Iran-backed militias, issued statements claiming separate attacks Friday on the al-Asad airbase in western Iraq, which is used by U.S. forces, and on a base located at the Conoco gas field in eastern Syria.

There are roughly 2,500 U.S. troops in Iraq and around 900 others in eastern Syria, on missions against the Islamic State group. In both countries, Iran has militias loyal to Tehran.

In response to attacks against American troops, the U.S. has retaliated with airstrikes three times in Syria since Oct. 17, targeting weapons depots and other facilities linked directly to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps and the militias. The U.S. also struck multiple sites in Iraq late last month after a militia group for the first time fired short-range ballistic missiles at U.S. forces at al Asad air base.

UN climate summit serving gourmet burgers, BBQ as it calls for Americans to stop eating meat

The ongoing United Nations COP28 climate summit in Dubai is offering a wide variety of gourmet food options from vendors who serve beef, even as it prepares a report that is expected to call for the West to reduce consumption of beef.

According to the summit’s online portal, its food offerings include “juicy beef,” “slabs of succulent meat,” smoked wagyu burgers, Philly cheesesteaks and “melt-in-your-mouth BBQ” in addition to African street BBQ, fast casual Mexican fare and an Asian option that has a “touch of French flair.” The revelation comes as the U.N. faces criticism for preparing a first-of-its-kind report that is expected to be published at the summit and call for lower meat consumption.

The U.N.’s Food & Agriculture Organization (FAO) will publish its first-ever global food systems’ road map during an upcoming COP28 session, which is expected to recommend nations that “over-consume meat” to limit their consumption as part of a broader effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The U.N. has, for years, called for individuals to ditch animal-based diets, which it says “have a high impact on our planet.”

“FAO emphasizes the critical need for an innovative plan and a concrete package of solutions to overhaul agrifood systems,” the organization said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “The Global Roadmap is positioned as a strategic tool to demonstrate that accelerated climate actions can transform agrifood systems, simultaneously addressing food security and nutrition challenges today and in the future without breaching the 1.5 degrees threshold. In this roadmap, FAO is urging for good food for today and tomorrow.”

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Biden/Buttigieg DEI Policies Endanger the Country. They Don’t Care.
The FAA is seeking people suffering from “severe intellectual and psychiatric disabilities” to be air traffic controllers.

The country currently is in the throes of an epidemic of mass insanity and irrationality. The manifestations of the disorder are too numerous to cite, but the explosion of the DEI plague being pushed by the government, many businesses, and the intellectual pigmies in most of the media, must be included in any list of the most egregious. As currently advocated and practiced by our leftist “elites,”1 it is incompatible with rationality, common sense, and morality, among other things, and, as the Wall Street Journal, not to mention the Supreme Court, have pointed out, the U.S. Constitution.

There is a brand of this particular wokeness that is relatively unknown to the general public, but that is particularly irrational and dangerous.  It is the Federal Aviation Administration’s relatively young DEI mandates. These Biden/Buttigieg DEI commands now apply to the employment of FAA air traffic controllers in an insidious way, a way that threatens the safety of our skies and of anyone who flies.

WHAT DO AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS DO?

To understand how insidious and dangerous the FAA’s DEI policies are, it is necessary to examine briefly just what air traffic controllers do and the nature of the job. The description that follows includes some detail about their tasks. Bear with me because it shows that being an ATC is not a job for dummies, or even for intellectual giants who cannot make crucial decisions in a short amount of time while under great stress.

First, just to be considered for possible employment, an ATC candidate must first pass a battery of seven tests covering numerical calculations, progressively difficult memory tests, problems involving rapidly changing image relationships, visual computer problems simulating collision avoidance, reading comprehension, logical reasoning, and a personality test. A description of the tests and sample problems are here. Take a stab at some of the sample problems to see how difficult they are and the built-in time limitations and pressures.

By the time they finish their training, ATCs must be experts in a number of areas that affect safety. These include weather, types of aircraft and their characteristics, navigation and the use of multiple types of navigational aids, effective communications with pilots, and radio and radar operations. To ensure pilot and passenger safety, ATCs must be skilled in, among other things, math, including the ability to make quick calculations in a dynamic environment, problem-solving, effective communication, and split-second decision making.

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This CNN Reporter Just Had a Come to Jesus Moment About Hamas.

A veteran CNN Middle East reporter with two decades of experience now admits that “too many of us treated the group more like an opposition party with occasional violent outbursts than a terrorist organization.”

“Journalists working in conflict zones,” Ilene Prusher wrote in a CNN op-ed this week, “too often pull punches in the interest of appearing neutral, or perhaps to ensure that they stay in the good graces of the gunmen in charge.”

Prusher concludes that “if journalists continue to interview members of Hamas, we should report their words more critically and not take their comments at face value. We should provide context that notes how unverifiable their information is and how poor their track record for accuracy has been.”

There’s a word for that: journalism. Let’s give Prusher two cheers for encouraging her colleagues to actually commit some for a change.

I might fairly ask Prusher, “What took you so long?” It isn’t as though she were ignorant of the Middle East and its major players. But since it’s my policy never to interrupt someone when they’re busy talking their way over to my side of an issue, I’ll leave her be.

“By and large, we reporters ate it up,” she explained without prompting, in no small part because “Our editors wanted us to have access to this shadowy group.”

What is access, anyway?

Last month when I was in Miami for the previous GOP presidential debate, Yours Truly (and the rest of the Townhall crew in town that night) were granted access to the post-debate spin room. That meant we would have the chance to speak one-on-one with the candidates or maybe their managers and surrogates.

Please note: It’s called the spin room because that’s where the candidates, their managers, and their surrogates go to put their spin on what just happened. Spin can be anything from putting a friendlier face on a fierce debate performance to literally (not really) polishing a turd and hoping some know-nothing reporter will pick it up and run with it.

But getting and keeping access can be a whole lot more complicit than anything that happens in a spin room between candidate and reporter.

Infamously, CNN used to downplay Saddam Hussein’s atrocities against the people of Iraq to maintain the network’s access to the Hussein regime. That was a case where the appearance of reporting the news — “Hey, we’re talking to all these Iraqi officials, so it must be real news!” — was more important to CNN than actually reporting the news. They were happy to be lied to and to repeat those lies because it filled airtime and sold commercials.

The mainstream media’s dirty little secret is that so much reporting involves little more than getting and maintaining access to important people by giving them the airtime they desire.

And yet, “How often did that stop us from reporting what they told us?” as Prusher asked in her come-to-Jesus column. “That dynamic was on display last month when many mainstream media outlets immediately repeated Hamas’ claim that an Israeli air strike had devastated a hospital and killed a big round figure of 500 Palestinians.”

Prusher and so many others are — or in her case, was — happy to trade integrity for the allure of access to a “shadowy group” who expertly preyed on their vanities.

Except, of course, for the mainstream media’s reporters and stringers who are all-in with Hamas to begin with and never had any integrity to begin with.

It’s Not Just the Second Amendment Anti-Gunners Oppose

I’ve long argued that our gun rights were included in the Bill of Rights as an insurance policy, one meant to make absolutely certain we could fight back against tyranny if our free speech or freedom to worship as we choose were to be stripped from us.

And, to be fair, we do see more restrictions of freedom of speech and things of that sort in countries that have already eliminated people’s ability to arm themselves effectively.

Here in the US, our anti-gun crowd says they respect our right to keep and bear arms, they just want some “common sense” gun control.

That’s hard to believe when it’s clear they don’t even respect freedom of speech.

Two gun control groups on Wednesday came out in favor of moderating “hate speech” on social media in a brief filed with the Supreme Court in a pending First Amendment case, alleging that it poses “a real-world threat to our democracy.”

Giffords Law Center and Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence filed an amicus brief in a challenge brought by NetChoice against Texas and Florida laws intended to prevent viewpoint censorship online. The groups didn’t speak to the constitutionality of the laws but wrote to warn the justices that social media companies “have a role to play” in protecting individuals from “hate-motivated gun violence.”

“Across social media platforms, hate speech has been tolerated, fostered, and even promoted,” they wrote. “In a time of increasing political strife, online hate speech presents a real-world threat to our democracy and to the lives of every human being in America.”

The brief notes Americans report “disturbingly high levels of online harassment and hate speech targeting their race, ethnicity, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, or disability.”

The brief later argues that hate speech can “chill” free speech.

“Social media companies have resisted regulation or content moderation on the theory that such efforts would stifle the marketplace of ideas and infringe the free-speech rights of their users,” they wrote. “And yet, by fostering and promoting hate speech across their platforms, social media companies have in fact often chilled free speech and other protected First Amendment activities, both online and in the real world.”

The problem with this, of course, is that these groups routinely pretend that opposition to their gun control schemes is racist, thus making it entirely possible to argue that opposition to gun control is, in fact, a type of hate speech.

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Pro-Gun Activists Ready To Fight If Schumer Pushes Semi-Auto Ban Measure

The failure by Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY) to move legislation banning so-called “assault weapons” via unanimous consent does not mean he has given up, and the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms is vowing to fight such an attempt.

The bill, S. 25, was introduced by the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA). An attempt to move it via unanimous consent failed when Republicans objected. But CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb said this is no guarantee the legislation won’t come back as an attachment to another bill, or moved some other way in the Senate, which Democrats control by a thin margin.

“Chuck Schumer has been trying to revive the ten-year ban on semiautomatic rifles since it expired back in 2004,” Gottlieb recalled. “Merely because Sen. Feinstein passed away earlier this year does not mean the Democrat crusade to ban modern rifles and standard-capacity magazines is finished. If anything, it means Schumer and his colleagues will try a different strategy. They might even pitch the proposal as a lasting tribute to Feinstein. After all, Capitol Hill anti-gunners are a determined lot, and they know Joe Biden wants a gun ban feather in his cap heading into the 2024 presidential campaign.

“The Citizens Committee will definitely be on the lookout for any backdoor effort by Schumer and the Democrats,” he continued. “They have tried to get some momentum because of the recent tragedy in Maine, but thankfully there are Republicans in the Senate who still adhere to the Constitution and the Second Amendment, and we’re grateful they blocked Wednesday’s attempt.

“One way grassroots activists can lower the odds of legislative shenanigans is to call the Senate switchboard and leave a message encouraging their state’s two senators to just say ‘no,’ if S. 25 or any other gun control bill or amendment should come up,” Gottlieb suggested.

The Senate switchboard number is (202-224-3121).

Attorney General Knudsen Leads Opposition To Biden’s Latest Attack On Gun Rights

HELENA – Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen led a coalition of 26 attorneys general in opposition to the Biden administration’s shocking and unconstitutional attack on American’s right to keep and bear arms that could criminalize law-abiding citizens for selling a single firearm for profit unless the seller obtains a federal license. 

The attorneys general submitted a formal comment letter Thursday to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) regarding its proposed rulemaking, “Definition of ‘Engaged in the Business’ as a Dealer in Firearms.” The proposed rule is unconstitutional, violating the Second Amendment by making any individual who sells a firearm without a federal license liable to civil, administrative, or even criminal penalties.  

“This proposed rule is a flagrant violation of every American’s rights guaranteed by the Second Amendment, ignoring the very concerns our founders had when they ratified it,” Attorney General Knudsen said. “Rather than meaningfully addressing the rise in violent crime occurring around the country, the Biden administration is once again criminalizing law-abiding citizens. I will always fight federal overreach and attempts to erode Montanans’ gun rights.” 

The rule defines “dealer” as anyone who “sells or offers for sale firearms, and also represents to potential buyers or otherwise demonstrates a willingness and ability to purchase and sell additional firearms.” It also expands the definition of earning a profit to be determined by something other than money to include personal property, a service, another medium of exchange, or valuable consideration and would not even require a firearm to be sold, just an offer would engage in a transaction. 

The Biden administration made no attempt to comply with the Second Amendment in the rule. While longstanding regulations of large commercial enterprises that sell firearms might be consistent with the Second Amendment, that is not what this rule does as it seeks to require a license of every individual who sells a firearm for anything the ATF sees as a profit.  

The Supreme Court of the United States made it clear in their recent ruling on New York State Rifle & Pistole Ass’n Inc. v. Bruen that if the Second Amendment “covers an individual’s conduct,” any burden on that conduct is presumptively unconstitutional and only showing historical tradition, which the Biden administration cannot show in this case, can overcome that presumption. 

Additionally, many courts have held the ability to buy a firearm is encompassed in the right to keep a firearm, which is guaranteed to Americans in the Second Amendment. Therefore, the ability to sell a firearm, which also necessarily implicates the right to buy one, to someone else is also a protected by the Second Amendment. 

Not only is the rule unconstitutional, but it is also arbitrary and capricious and is unlawful under the Administrative Procedures Act (APA). While the ATF claims the rule builds on the Gun Control Act of 1968, it violates the GCA’s “letter and spirit” as it “renders anyone that the Department identifies to be selling a firearm for profit a firearms dealer.” And while there are a few exceptions (like sales of firearms to family members), they can still lead to absurd implications. 

“In America, it should be legal for a family member to sell a firearm to another family member without risk of prosecution. But the exception is flawed,” the letter states. “Reading the exception, one can conclude that if a family member sells another family member a firearm for as little as one dollar more than the original purchase price, that seller could be open to civil, administrative, or criminal liability. That absurdity risks hurting innocent people and chilling law-abiding behavior.” 

Rather than focusing on its job to arrest, investigate, and aid in prosecuting violent criminals using firearms to terrorize communities across the nation, the ATF is using the proposed rule to criminalize law-abiding Americans.  

“If the Bureau was serious about combatting violent crime, it would focus on enforcing the laws that are already on the books to hold violent criminals accountable for their actions. That would be the type of work that could save lives.,” the attorneys general wrote. 

Attorneys general from Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming joined the letter led by Attorney General Knudsen, Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach, and Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird. Additionally, the Arizona legislature joined the letter. 

Click here to read the letter. 

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Houston Homeowner Guns Down Intruder

Chaos erupted at a Houston apartment complex when a homeowner shot and killed a man who forcefully entered his residence.

The incident occurred on the evening of December 6th at the Retreat at Cypress Station apartments, situated at 18200 Westfield Place, according to the Harris County Sheriff’s Office. Deputy sheriffs were called to the scene around 5:00 p.m. after reports of a shooting.

They discovered a man, later identified as Teraice Henderson, with a gunshot wound inside the apartment. Despite being rushed to the hospital, Henderson was pronounced dead shortly after his arrival.

The preliminary investigation by the authorities concluded that the homeowner had acted in self-defense after Henderson, who was believed to be under the influence and armed with a handgun, made unauthorized entry into his home. Feeling his safety was in jeopardy, the homeowner resorted to using his firearm.

The Sheriff’s Office posted that the homeowner is currently cooperating with the investigation and has provided a full statement regarding his actions during the incident. While no charges have been filed against the homeowner as yet, the case remains open. Henderson, on the other hand, had a standing warrant for being a felon in Possession of a Weapon in Harris County.

House Votes To Overturn Biden’s EV Mandate that Cars Produced in the US be Fully Electric by 2032.

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Former Career US Diplomat Charged With Secretly Spying for Cuban Intelligence for Decades

Manuel Rocha wept as he sat handcuffed in Miami federal court on charges that he engaged in “clandestine activity” on Cuba’s behalf since at least 1981 — the year he joined the U.S. foreign service — including by meeting with Cuban intelligence operatives and providing false information to U.S. government officials about his contacts.

The complaint unsealed Monday is short on specifics of how Rocha may have assisted Cuba. But it provides a vivid case study of what American officials say are long-standing efforts by Cuba and its notoriously sophisticated intelligence services to target U.S. government officials who can be flipped.

“This action exposes one of the highest-reaching and longest-lasting infiltrations of the United States government by a foreign agent,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement. “To betray that trust by falsely pledging loyalty to the United States while serving a foreign power is a crime that will be met with the full force of the Justice Department.”

The 73-year-old Rocha, whose two-decade career as a U.S. diplomat included top posts in Bolivia, Argentina and the U.S. Interests Section in Havana, was arrested by the FBI at his Miami home Friday. He was ordered held following Monday’s brief court appearance pending a bond hearing Wednesday. His attorney declined to comment.

The Justice Department did not reveal how Rocha attracted the attention of Cuba’s intelligence operatives nor did it describe what, if any, sensitive information he may have provided while working for the State Department and in a lucrative post-government career that included a stint as a special adviser to the commander of U.S. Southern Command.

This image provided by the Justice Department and contained in the affidavit in support of a criminal complaint, shows Manuel Rocha. The Justice Department says Rocha, a former American diplomat who served as U.S. ambassador to Bolivia, has been charged with serving as a covert agent for Cuba's intelligence services since at least 1981. Newly unsealed court papers allege that Manuel Rocha engaged in "clandestine activity" on Cuba's behalf for decades, including by meeting with Cuban intelligence operatives. (Justice Department via AP)

This image provided by the Justice Department and contained in the affidavit in support of a criminal complaint, shows Manuel Rocha. The Justice Department says Rocha, a former American diplomat who served as U.S. ambassador to Bolivia, has been charged with serving as a covert agent for Cuba’s intelligence services since at least 1981. Newly unsealed court papers allege that Manuel Rocha engaged in “clandestine activity” on Cuba’s behalf for decades, including by meeting with Cuban intelligence operatives. (Justice Department via AP)

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Hamas fighters surrender in droves, and their photos tell an interesting story

Since the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas ended, Israel has been pushing forward relentlessly to destroy every Hamas stronghold, whether above or below ground. In Khan Younis, one of Hamas’s last redoubts, the Hamas fighters finally decided against martyrdom and surrendered en masse. There are a few notable things about the surrendering Hamas troops, and they destroy some of the propaganda we’ve heard so much about.

First, here are the stills and video of the surrendered Hamas men:

What you should immediately notice is that they’re not being slaughtered or tortured. In this regard, the Israeli approach is very different from what happens when Arabs get their hands on enemy soldiers that they don’t intend to keep alive as hostages for bartering. In 2000, when West Bankians got hold of two Israeli soldiers, they ripped them apart and showed their blood-stained hands to the cheering crowd. In warfare, the Arabs are indistinguishable from stone-aged tribes.

The Hamas prisoners have been stripped down to their undies, which is the most obvious way to protect against any of them having concealed weapons or explosives. Their semi-nudity allows one to see the other notable thing, which Bonchie pointed out at Red State:

The war against Hamas is now two months old, with the initial attack from the terrorists coming on October 7th. During that time, we’ve been assured that everyone is starving in Gaza due to the evil siege being carried out by Israel. In that picture, though, I see a whole lot of man boobs and beer guts. What does that tell you? It tells you that Hamas has been stealing aid and keeping its fighters well-fed as they cower underground.

Yes, they’re fat. That being the case, you can recognize the lie behind the claim coming from Hamas and its fellow travelers that the men detained are civilians:

If these fat men are civilians, the claimed food shortages have been greatly exaggerated. Alternatively, if they are, indeed, Hamas fighters, then Gaza operates on the North Korean principle, which is that you feed the soldiers and starve the citizens. Either way, it’s not a good look for Hamas.

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