New Injunctions Issued Against ATF’s Frames and Receivers Rule

On Friday [14th], Federal District Court Judge Reed O’Connor reissued preliminary injunctions against the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosive (ATF) from enforcing the Final Rule (FINAL RULE 2021R-05F) on frames and receivers against two companies.

The two companies protected against the ATF’s rule are Defense Distributed, makers of the Ghost Gunner, and Blackhawk Manufacturing Group, Inc., d/b/a 80 Percent Arms. The Texas-based case is Vanderstok v. Garland and has been at the center of the fight over incomplete frames and receivers for a little over a year.


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The Biden Admin Just Declared ‘War on Consumers’

In the Biden administration’s whole-of-government attempt to force a transition to supposedly “green” and ethical energy that’s anything but — just ask the whales off the coast of New England or forced/child laborers in EV battery supply chains in Africa — another department is jumping into the crusade.

On Tuesday morning, the U.S. Department of the Treasury released its “Principles for Net-Zero Financing & Investment” to press ahead with “best practices for private sector financial institutions that have made net-zero commitments and promote consistency and credibility in approaches to implementing them.”

These principles, the Treasury Department and Secretary Janet Yellen say, are key to “supporting the mobilization of more private sector capital to address the physical and economic impacts of climate change and to seize on the historic economic opportunity presented by the green transition.”

To that end, Yellen and her department heralded “a number of announcements from civil society including a $340 million commitment” from the likes of the Bezos Earth Fund, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Climate Arc, ClimateWorks, Hewlett Foundation, and Sequoia Climate Foundation over the next three years “to support the continued development of research, data availability, and technical resources intended to help financial institutions develop and execute robust, voluntary net-zero commitments” and “facilitate the transition planning efforts of non-financial sectors of the economy.”

According to the Treasury Department, the “climate crisis is propelling a massive economic shift and is hitting the most vulnerable countries and communities first and hardest” and there’s an “increasing demand for technologies, products, and services that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, support a clean energy future, and help adapt to a changing climate across all sectors.” Notably, however, that demand is not high enough to see the market move truly voluntarily to meet it. As such, “[i]n the United States, government support is playing a role in accelerating this transition,” the Treasury Department admitted as it pushes for more net-zero agreements and investment, as seen in the principles released on Tuesday.

“This announcement from the Department of the Treasury forcing financial institutions to adopt net-zero principles should come as no surprise to American consumers as the Biden Administration openly declares war on consumers,” reacted Will Hild, the executive director of Consumers’ Research.

“Treasury Secretary Yellen, with her announcement of these new net-zero principals at the Bloom Transition Finance Action Forum, has made it abundantly clear that the Treasury Department is working with and for ESG activists like Michael Bloomberg to make the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) goals for financial institutions into U.S. government policy, leaving consumers with nothing,” Hild added. “The Biden Administration is littered with former BlackRock employees such as Brian Deese and Eric Van Nostrand who are pushing these liberal, progressive, net-zero, and ESG policies on Americans, rather than focusing on reducing costs at the grocery store and gas pump and tamping down inflation.”

“Make no mistake, the Biden administration is running cover for the financial industry’s net zero cartel, protecting megalomaniac CEOs like Larry Fink and leaving consumers with nothing,” said Hild.

As summarized by the Treasury Department, the principles established to reinforce the woke, economically damaging priorities of the left are:

PRINCIPLE 1: A financial institution’s net-zero commitment (commitment) is a declaration of intent to work toward the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Treasury recommends that commitments be in line with limiting the increase in the global average temperature to 1.5°C. To be credible, this declaration should be accompanied or followed by the development and execution of a net-zero transition plan.

PRINCIPLE 2: Financial institutions should consider transition finance, managed phaseout, and climate solutions practices when deciding how to realize their commitments.

PRINCIPLE 3: Financial institutions should establish credible metrics and targets and endeavor, over time, for all relevant financing, investment, and advisory services to have associated metrics and targets.

PRINCIPLE 4: Financial institutions should assess client and portfolio company alignment to their (i.e., financial institutions’) targets and to limiting the increase in the global average temperature to 1.5°C.

PRINCIPLE 5: Financial institutions should align engagement practices — with clients, portfolio companies, and other stakeholders — to their commitments.

PRINCIPLE 6: Financial institutions should develop and execute an implementation strategy that integrates the goals of their commitments into relevant aspects of their businesses and operating procedures.

PRINCIPLE 7: Financial institutions should establish robust governance processes to provide oversight of the implementation of their commitments.

PRINCIPLE 8: Financial institutions should, in the context of activities associated with their net-zero transition plans, account for environmental justice and environmental impacts, where applicable.

PRINCIPLE 9: Financial institutions should be transparent about their commitments and progress towards them.

The voluntary net-zero commitments the Biden administration is seeking to foist on the private sector, however, may put companies which join them in legal jeopardy.

As Townhall has reported previously, state attorneys general from across the U.S. have put insurance and financial service companies on notice that their net-zero commitments may constitute a violation of antitrust and consumer protection laws.

One recent letter to signatories of a net-zero commitment led by Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti noted how such net-zero alliances see companies “colluding to limit consumer choices and manipulate market outcomes in support of international climate activists,” moves that “could violate [his state’s] antitrust and consumer protection laws.” As AG Skrmetti rightfully noted, “[d]ecisions about energy policy should be made by our elected representatives, not by transnational corporate alliances.”

Already, an earlier warning to insurance signatories to a net-zero pact saw several companies back out of the agreement rather than face additional scrutiny from state attorneys general for their activities that may have constituted antitrust violations.

Despite such warnings about net-zero priorities being potentially in violation of state law, the Biden administration and its climate alarmist allies in the private and nonprofit sector are plunging ahead with more agreements — an unsurprising development from the administration that has not allowed federal law or the U.S. Constitution curb its ambitions, leading to a series of high-profile losses before the Supreme Court for its attempts to force an energy transition.

⇑When Russian commies realized socialism was bankrupt ⇑


⇓When American commies are too stupid to know socialism is bankrupt⇓

Just What Chicago Needs, Government-Owned Grocery Stores.

Luther, fear not, the era of government-run grocery stores may not be as dead and buried as it seems. The city of Chicago — already doing such a terrific job on handling crime, poverty, homelessness, and unemployment — is exploring the possibility of establishing municipally owned grocery stores.

City officials contend that a city-run grocery store would be better because they wouldn’t have to worry about making money. And Mayor Brandon Johnson is enthusiastically embracing the idea:

The City of Chicago is in the early stages of planning a city-owned grocery store in a neighborhood with limited access to fresh food, Mayor Brandon Johnson announced Wednesday.

The city is working with Economic Security Project, a national non-profit organization, on a feasibility study to create a roadmap toward opening the store. At least six grocery stores, including four Walmart locations,  have closed on Chicago’s South and West sides over the past two years, the city said.

“All Chicagoans deserve to live near convenient, accordable, healthy grocery options,” Johnson said in a statement. “We know access to grocery stores is already a challenge for many residents, especially on the South and West sides . . . I am proud to work alongside partners to take this step in envisioning what a municipally owned grocery store in Chicago could look like.”

Now, no doubt Chicago’s city-run grocery stores would have the same service, efficiency, and quality that Chicago residents have come to expect from the local government of a city ranked 149th in its financial stability, 67th in its education system, 71st in its health-care system, 80th in its public safety, 129th in the quality of its economy, or, credit where it’s due, 37th in its infrastructure and pollution. (That’s out of 149 U.S. cities.)

Call me crazy, but I think if you had safe streets and no shoplifting and petty theft, grocery stores could thrive in any neighborhood, because people have to eat. The good news is that so far this year, murder is down in Chicago, with “only”435 people killed from the beginning of the year to September 10, compared to 485 people in the same time period last year. The bad news is that overall, major crimes are up 30 percent from the same period last year. Motor-vehicle theft has nearly doubled from last year.

Who knows, maybe in a few years, we’ll see some Chicagoans marveling at the variety of products available in grocery stories the way Boris Yeltsin did.

ATF FORM 4473 UPDATE – AUGUST 2023 VERSION

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has issued the following notice regarding recent changes to the ATF Form 4473. All federal firearms licensees (FFLs) are encouraged to begin using the Revised Form immediately.

 

ATF Notice Regarding Recent Changes to the ATF Form 4473:

Industry Representatives,

As you well know, due to statutory requirements set forth in both the NICS Denial Notification Act and the Bipartisan Safer Community Act (BSCA), the ATF Form 4473 was revised in December of 2022. Incorporating industry member suggestions made during the recent 60 and 30-day Notice and Comment periods, ATF has further revised the form and now that newest version (August 2023) has been approved by the Office of Management and Budget for implementation.

ATF encourages all federal firearms licensees (FFLs) to begin using the Revised Form immediately. The Revised Form is available on ATF’s website, and can be downloaded and printed for immediate use. Please note that the entire Form, including instructions, must be printed, and stored together. Hard copies of the Revised Form will be available through the ATF Distribution Center beginning November 1, 2023. The ATF eForm 4473 application is also being revised and notification will be sent when it is ready for use.

A detailed breakdown of all form changes is provided on ATF’s website: ATF Form 4473 – Firearms Transaction Record RevisionsThe Revised Form will become mandatory for use on February 1, 2024. Please contact your local ATF Industry Operations office should you have any questions regarding the changes to the form.

I hate modern appliances. They’re built like it’s planned for them to last about 5 years then break to the point it’s not really cost effective to repair them when the electronics start doing strange things and major parts break.

However I like the way modern business apples itself. Washing Machine ignominiously finally decides to strip out the motor’s main gears on a Saturday afternoon? No problem. Local hardware, tool, appliance emporium delivers on weekends and a new, and slightly less electronically complex  version is being delivered this afternoon.

The dryer, bought at the same time, still works just fine. Of course, now I expect it to also die, in mutual support of it’s previous co-worker

‘Busiest day I’ve had in months’: Guns flying off shelves in Albuquerque after gov’s anti-2A move

It would appear that New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham’s emergency order banning the carrying of firearms in Alburquerque has had an unintended consequence: Sales in the city’s gun stores are booming.

ABQ Guns owner Arnie Gallegos told The Epoch Times, “Today was the busiest day I’ve had in months.”

“I’ve been getting a lot of people who have never come into a gun shop before who are rightfully concerned about their freedoms,” Gallegos added. “A lot of people are saying, ‘I can’t rely on the police anymore, and I need to be able to protect myself.’”

As BizPac Review reported, last week, Lujan Grisham declared that firearms could not be carried in Albuquerque and the surrounding Bernalillo County for a minimum of at least 30 days in response to several recent shootings that left children as young as five and eleven dead.

“The recent shooting deaths of a thirteen-year-old girl on July 28, a five-year-old girl on August 14, and an eleven-year-old boy on September 6, as well as two mass shootings this year spurred the governor to declare gun violence a public health emergency on Thursday,” her office said in a press release.

According to the order, “no person, other than a law enforcement officer or licensed security officer, shall possess a firearm … either openly or concealed, within cities or counties averaging 1,000 or more violent crimes per 100,000 residents per year since 2021.”

The move sparked immediate backlash, even from those within her own party.

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ATF Backs Down on Retaliatory License Revocation of North Dakota Gun Store

Washington, D.C. — Gun Owners of America (GOA) and the Gun Owners Foundation (GOF) are excited to announce that the ATF has backed down from attempting to revoke the FFL license of Morehouse Enterprises in Valley City, North Dakota.

Previously, GOA and GOF had filed a lawsuit in defense of the gun retailer, which does business as Bridge City Ordnance. The company was facing the loss of its license due to minor paperwork errors, which, under the new Biden “Zero Tolerance” policy, was grounds for revocation.

Previous ATF policy dictated that warnings and required corrective action were appropriate measures for first-time errors, and only after that could license revocation proceedings be initiated if improvement was not demonstrated.

It has become quite obvious to the average individual that the ATF conducted the “random” inspection of Bridge City Ordnance right after the company joined GOA and GOF in a separate lawsuit challenging the ATF’s Ghost Gun Frame and Receiver Rule last summer.

Litigation is ongoing in both cases.

“The ATF kicked a hornet’s nest when they thought they could send a message to gun dealers who dared to challenge their illegal actions in court. In response, GOA and GOF stepped in, and we made clear they were about to engage in a losing battle. We are thrilled for Bridge City Ordnance and hope this encourages ATF to revisit their ‘zero tolerance’ policy.”

Read Related: Retaliation: ATF Shuts Down FFL After Gun Store Sues the Same ATF

Windham opened up from the ‘ashes’ of the old original Bushmaster Arms after the brand name, but not much else, was sold to Freedom Group, which is the now bankrupt holding company that owned Marlin, Remington etc.

Liberty Safes apparently builds in a ‘backdoor’ passcode – like a master key – on its safes with electronic digital dials. Maybe all electronic dials are made with such.

Is liberty safe with Liberty Safe?

Last week, an Arkansas man was arrested in connection with the U.S. Capitol riot on January 6, 2021. Nathan Earl Hughes has four charges pending against him, including a felony count of interfering with police during a civil disorder. Arkansas Online has an article (archived links) detailing the investigation and the charges against him.

With ubiquitous cellphone cameras, the video of Hughes’ arrest quickly made it online (archived):

 

There is an important sentence in the above tweet/post from the Hodge Twins, and that is this:

“The feds called the manufacturer of his Liberty Gun Safe and got the passcode to get into it too.”

It comes as a surprise to many of us (although it shouldn’t) that an electronic keypad has a secret factory default passcode that allows entry into the safe besides the customer-configured passcode. We don’t know if this default passcode is unique to each safe, or if it’s a model default passcode (like a silly default “admin/admin” username/password combination you find in most wireless routers) that will get you entry into any Liberty Safe of the same model. (Looking at the customer FAQ’s on the Liberty Safe website, it looks like the default passcode may be unique to each safe.)

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Bottomless Demand: Americans Added Another 1.1 Million Firearms to Their Safes in August.

Another month — 49 consecutive, to be exact — with 1 million or more gun sold in August. Because of Despite the Biden administration’s ongoing War on Guns, Americans have show exactly zero inclination to curb their desire to purchase firearms for every lawful purpose from hunting, plinking and competition to personal and home defense. May it ever be thus.

The NSSF’s Mark Oliva said . . .

August’s NSSF-Adjusted NICS figure of over 1.1 million shows us, once again, that the desire for lawful firearm ownership is far from over. Americans, literally by the millions, are investing in exercising their Second Amendment rights. This has happened every month for more than four years continuously.

While the Biden administration proposes rules to infringe on fundamental American rights and certain governors, attorneys general and district attorneys general and district attorneys refuse to lock up criminals that prey on communities without consequence, Americans are sending a clear and unequivocal message that their personal safety, and the free exercise of their rights, is non-negotiable.

Here’s the NSSF’s press release . . .

The August 2023 NSSF-adjusted National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) figure of 1,117,824 is a decrease of 13.1 percent compared to the August 2022 NSSF-adjusted NICS figure of 1,286,816. 

For comparison, the unadjusted August 2023 FBI NICS figure 2,047,515 reflects a -16.4% percent decrease from the unadjusted FBI NICS figure of 2,450,616 in August 2022.

August 2023 marks the 49th month in a row that has exceeded 1 million adjusted background checks in a single month.

Please note: Twenty-four states currently have at least one qualified alternative permit, which under the Brady Act allows the permit-holder, who has undergone a background check to obtain the permit, to purchase a firearm from a licensed dealer without a separate additional background check for that transfer. The number of NICS checks in these states does not include these legal transfers based on qualifying permits and NSSF does not adjust for these transfers.

The adjusted NICS data were derived by subtracting out NICS purpose code permit checks and permit rechecks used by states for CCW permit application checks as well as checks on active CCW permit databases. NSSF started subtracting permit rechecks in February 2016.

Though not a direct correlation to firearms sales, the NSSF-adjusted NICS data provide an additional picture of current market conditions. In addition to other purposes, NICS is used to check transactions for sales or transfers of new or used firearms. 

It should be noted that these statistics represent the number of firearm background checks initiated through the NICS. They do not represent the number of firearms sold or sales dollars. Based on varying state laws, local market conditions and purchase scenarios, a one-to-one correlation cannot be made between a firearm background check and a firearm sale.

ANALYSIS: Academics think a 4-year degree is everything, employers disagree
Employers want employees with well-honed soft skills such as problem-solving, critical thinking, communication, and teamwork, but graduates reportedly lack proficiency in these areas.

Nine out of 10 higher education professionals are convinced that their institutions are churning out job-ready warriors. But employers, current students, and recent grads beg to differ.

Higher education’s career-preparation efforts are not exactly hitting the bullseye, according to a recent Grammarly for Education and Higher Ed Dive report.

Citing surveys conducted by the Cengage Group and College Pulse, the collaborative report states that a mere 41% of recent graduates believe that their college degree effectively signals to employers that they possess the much-needed skills. Current students are also adding their voices to the chorus of concern, with a paltry 14% expressing satisfaction with the assistance provided by their campus career centers.

Employers are not pleased either.

The cries from the job market echo a desire for employees with well-honed soft skills such as problem-solving, critical thinking, communication, and teamwork, but graduates reportedly lacked proficiency in these areas.

Pointing to Gallup, the report cites that “Only 11% of business leaders said they believed college graduates were well prepared for the workforce.”

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Now in Effect: Texas Second Amendment Financial Privacy Act

AUSTIN, Texas (Sept. 1, 2023) – Today a Texas law goes into effect that prohibits financial institutions operating in the state from requiring a credit card merchant code to track the purchases of firearms and ammunition.

Rep. Matt Schaefer and Rep. Candy Noble introduced House Bill 2837 (HB2837) on Feb. 24. Titled the Second Amendment Financial Privacy Act, the law prohibits a financial institution operating in Texas from requiring or assigning a firearms code, which is defined as “any merchant category code approved by the International Organization for Standardization for a firearms retailer, including Merchant Category Code 5723.”

The law now limits the merchant codes that can be assigned to the sale of firearms, firearm accessories, and ammunition.

“For the purposes of the sale of firearms, ammunition for use in firearms, and firearms accessories, a firearms retailer may provide a firearms code to a payment card issuer or payment card network and may only use or be assigned a merchant category code for general merchandise retailers or sporting goods retailers. Any agreement or contractual provision to the contrary is void.

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Biden Administration Proposes Plan to Expand Who Needs a License to Sell Used Guns

President Joe Biden has announced a new proposal to expand the scope of federal gun dealing regulations to cover more people who sell used guns.

On Thursday, the Department of Justice submitted a new plan for determining who must obtain a federal firearms license to legally sell guns on the secondary market. The proposed rule would set limits on how frequently an unlicensed seller could offer up guns to customers, how often they can sell the same kind of gun, and what kind of condition the firearm has to be in before the seller would be required to get a Federal Firearms License (FFL). Anybody who violates the proposed regulations and sells a gun without a license could face up to $250,000 in fines and five years in federal prison or both.

“[U]nder the proposed rule, a person would be presumed to be required to become a licensed dealer and run background checks if they meet one or more of the following criteria,” the White House said in a release. “Offer for sale any number of firearms and also represents to potential buyers that they are willing and able to purchase and sell them additional firearms; Repetitively offer for sale firearms within 30 days after they were purchased; Repetitively offer for sale firearms that are like new in their original packaging; Repetitively offer for sale multiple firearms of the same make and model; or as a formerly federally-licensed firearms dealer, sell firearms that were in the business inventory and not transferred to a personal collection at least a year before the sale, addressing the so-called’ fire sale loophole.’”

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EVs Are Supposed to Be Cheap to Maintain—Our Kia EV6 Isn’t So Far
The EV6’s first service visit left us scratching our heads and $200 poorer.

Our 2022 Kia EV6 recently went in for its first scheduled service, something we initially assumed would be an easy, mundane task. Electric vehicles, after all, have simple powertrains with fewer moving parts than their gas-powered counterparts—and no oil changes! This is supposed to make EVs cheaper to maintain. So you can imagine my surprise when it came time to pick up our EV6 and I was slapped with a $230 invoice. Thank goodness for company credit cards.

The shocking bill capped off what began as a crummy Sunday morning. While I was loading the EV6 for a day at the beach with my pup, I noticed a completely flat driver’s side rear tire thanks to a screw. It was in a spot on the tread that looked patchable, but since the EV6 doesn’t have a spare tire (only a liquid seal kit that would’ve ruined the tire), I decided to take advantage of Kia’s free roadside assistance and have it towed to my local dealership with a service department that was open on Sundays. Big kudos to them for that.

Requesting roadside service was easy and quick, with the tow truck arriving at my house within 30 minutes. Once we arrived at the dealership, it was quickly determined the tire was not patchable and needed to be replaced. Thankfully, they had one in stock. Our EV6 was just a few hundred miles away from needing its first service, so I requested to have that done while I was there.

According to the owner’s manual, the 8,000-mile service includes a tire rotation and inspection. The list of items to inspect includes brakes, suspension, drive shafts, the 12-volt battery, in-cabin air filter, and more. Nothing out of the ordinary. Which is why we left scratching our heads at the $230 bill, including an “EV service port cleaner” procedure that I didn’t request but was performed nonetheless for $51. If we subtract that interesting port cleaning service, the total for this routine service visit was $179. Still a pretty penny for what amounted to a peek under the frunk and shuffling around a few tires (one of which was getting worked on anyway).

We appreciate this dealership taking us in on a Sunday and Kia’s quick and free roadside tow, but the excessive service cost soured the experience. Thankfully, our encounter appears to be an anomaly. For starters, the same service performed on our otherwise identical long-term Hyundai Ioniq 5 only set us back about $50. And numerous EV6 forums show other owners paying anywhere between $20 and $50 for the first service. We found none over $100, and some were complimentary. Which is what it should be. What better way to build rapport and loyalty than providing free inspections? If such a dealership exists in the L.A. area, we’ll be sure to go there for our next service visit.

UAW votes to authorize a strike if no deal reached with Big 3 US automakers

The union representing approximately 150,000 workers at the Big Three U.S. automakers — General Motors, Ford and Stellantis — has voted to authorize a strike if no deal is reached amid ongoing contract negotiations.

Across the three companies, United Auto Workers union members voted a combined average of 97% in favor of a strike authorization, with votes still being tallied, the union said Friday. The vote does not mean a strike will be called, but that the union has the right to call one if they see fit.

“Our union’s membership is clearly fed up with living paycheck-to-paycheck while the corporate elite and billionaire class continue to make out like bandits,” UAW President Shawn Fain said in a statement. “The Big Three have been breaking the bank while we have been breaking our backs.”

The union’s demands include double-digit pay raises, eliminating tiered wages and benefits, restoring cost-of-living allowances, the right to strike over plant closures, more paid time off and increased retiree benefits.

MORE: UPS and Teamsters union reach agreement, avert strike
“Our members’ expectations are high because Big Three profits are so high,” Fain said. “The Big Three made a combined $21 billion in profits in just the first six months of this year. That’s on top of the quarter-trillion dollars in North American profits they made over the last decade. While Big Three executives and shareholders got rich, UAW members got left behind.”

UAW represents 46,000 workers at GM, 57,000 workers at Ford and 44,000 workers at Stellantis, according to the union. Its contract with the three automakers expires on Sept. 14.

In a statement earlier this month, GM said it’s been “working hard with the UAW every day to ensure we get this agreement right for all our stakeholders. ”

“We know that our U.S. economic impact supports more than six jobs for every job created by GM,” the statement said. “We take that responsibility very seriously, and we continue to bargain in good faith each day to support our team members, our customers, the community and the business.”

Stellantis said discussions with the union’s bargaining team “continue to be constructive and collaborative with a focus on reaching a new agreement that balances the concerns of our 43,000 employees with our vision for the future — one that better positions the business to meet the challenges of the U.S. marketplace and secures the future for all of our employees, their families and our company.”

Ford said it looks “forward to working with the UAW on creative solutions during this time when our dramatically changing industry needs a skilled and competitive workforce more than ever.”

In 2019, nearly 50,000 UAW workers walked off their jobs in a nationwide strike at GM that lasted over a month before the union voted to ratify a new contract that in part established bonuses for employees.

FIREARM MARKETING BANS REALLY ABOUT ERASING NEXT GENERATION’S GUN RIGHTS
By Larry Keane

California and Illinois laws that have banned advertising lawmakers in those two states consider to be targeted at minors doesn’t have anything to do with increasing public safety. It doesn’t have anything to do with fighting the criminal misuse of firearms. The laws are intended to do one thing – convince the next generation of Americans that the Second Amendment doesn’t exist.

Lawmakers in those two states passed, and Govs. Gavin Newsom and J.B. Pritzker signed, laws that ban firearm-related advertising that could be attractive or be considered to target children. NSSF has filed legal challenges to both laws in California and Illinois. Those laws violate not only the First Amendment-protected right of commercial speech but also work to eliminate the Second Amendment from the conversation with the next generation of gun owners and outdoorsmen and women. These lawmakers believe that if they can erase imagery and advertising that shows youth learning safe and responsible firearm ownership and ethical hunting traditions, the next generation will never understand that the Second Amendment is their right to exercise when they become of legal age to purchase firearms on their own.

If the next generation of Americans don’t learn about Second Amendment freedoms, they won’t know. If they don’t know, gun control politicians would have an easier avenue by which to eliminate the right altogether. It’s a devious plan and one the firearm industry is fighting against.

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Evergrande.

The news was all over the media. The default wasn’t yesterday; they got in trouble in 2021 and had sought a “moratorium” in the first week of 2022!

So how is it that nobody gave a crap for the last two years? You’d be carried out on your shield by now and long-ago eaten by worms if you shorted the US market into the original default 2 years ago.

Witness Lahaina. HE, the power company, spent basically all of their money on “green” initiatives rather than basic maintenance and hardening to reduce wildfire risk. They were trading close to $40 before the fires and yesterday touched close to $10; a wild-eyed 75% collapse. That’s a utility and of course now there is a serious financial risk from lawsuits — richly-deserved, if the article in the WSJ is all factual.

But that’s a microcosm of all the distortions that have been embedded in the so-called “green economy”; the virus was also part of it, and the government had their foot on the scale in the “rah-rah” side of it because everyone loves a higher stock market.

The problem is that how you got it matters.

If you got it because the company expanded its business organically, it beat others in the market because they were at least two of “better, faster, cheaper” then you’ve got a sustainable and reasonable price.

If you got it because the government subsidized bad behavior — uneconomic things that cannot work over time because they violate the laws of thermodynamics and are predicated on feelings and political promises then you get a crash because there is nothing under any of the so-called “improvement” beyond hot air.

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