Licenses to Carry Concealed Weapons or Firearms; Reducing the number of years that such licenses are valid; requiring that certain persons successfully demonstrate firearms proficiency through a specified course to obtain a license; providing course requirements, etc

The House companion bill 753 had already been withdrawn.

I don’t want to start celebrating unless I see the bill’s body decapitated and a wooden stake through its heart.  If that is not possible, a good source confirming it is dead for good.

Cross fingers, we may have survived an attack to our CWP. And it also saved me a long post I was going to write.

(Reuters) – American Airlines Group Inc pilots should not fly to Venezuela, an influential pilots union said on Friday, following a travel advisory issued by the U.S. State Department this week.
The department cited civil unrest, poor health and arbitrary arrest and detention of U.S. citizens in Venezuela for issuing the advisory here on March 12.
“Do not accept any trips to Venezuela,” the Allied Pilots Association said in a statement.
A number of airlines have stopped their flights to the country because of security concerns and disputes over money they say the government owes them.

American Airlines pilots told by union not to fly to Venezuela

AA is one of the few international airlines that still services Venezuela for those flying to the US.  And this is not a big surprise afer a crew from AirEuropa  was robbed at gunpoint last weekend and shots were fired on their way to the hotel .  The company is deciding if it suspends all flights to the country after that event. Some of the foreign airlines will not allow crews to remain overnight in country and send them to an airport in another country.

Another chapter in the sinking of Venezuela.

From Fox News:

Suspected burglar crushed to death by 900-pound safe: police

A suspected burglar was found crushed to death by a 900-pound safe in an Indiana home this week, local authorities said.

Serves him right.

The Marion Police Department said they received a call on Tuesday from a man named George Hollingsworth who believed his garage was broken into. Hollingsworth told police that the door frame was damaged and the garage was so cluttered that he couldn’t tell what was stolen, according to a press release.

While cleaning out the garage on Wednesday to see what might have been stolen, Hollingsworth found a body underneath a 900-pound antique floor safe that had evidently fallen over, Deputy Chief Stephen D. Dorsey said.

Ewww…

“My mind couldn’t comprehend it,” Hollingsworth told Indianapolis’ FOX 59. “I would have rather seen him steal stuff and get out than die like that. What a horrible way to die.”

Eh… I have two gun safes in my garage.  If some asshole breaks into my garage, tries to break into one of my safes and it ends up being squished into paste underneath it, I will not feel bad about that at all.

The Marion Fire Department helped Hollingsworth lift the safe and remove the body, according to police. Police identified the failed burglar as 28-year-old Jeremiah A. Disney, of Marion after an autopsy on Thursday. An investigation is ongoing.

How exactly do you do an autopsy on that?  Just search through the goo and look for a drivers license?

There was a story I remember reading years ago – I can’t find it right now – of two burglars who tried to break into a guy’s gun safe.  It fell over and pinned one of the burglars by the legs.  His buddy ran off and left him.

The pinned burglar was found when the homeowner returned home and after being pinned for several hours ended up ending above the knees.

He was so upset about his new wheelchair bound condition that he ratted out his buddy who ran off and left him.

Both went to prison.

I have no idea if there were guns in that guy’s antique safe in Indiana, but knowing Marion, there may have been.

What I do know, is that my biggest concern isn’t for the burglar but my guns getting scratched and my optics being broken when the safe tipped over.

After the massacre in New Zealand yesterday, I was curious as to how restrictive gun laws were down there.

I read this article published by the Australian Financial Review:

Christchurch shooting to spark debate over New Zealand gun laws

The suspected 28-year-old white, male Australian terrorist who perpetrated a mass shooting in Christchurch apparently gained access to a range of semi-automatic, high-powered weapons that are banned in Australia.

Australia has some of the strictest gun control policies and most comprehensive regulations in the region and world. New Zealand, by contrast, has some of the most permissive gun policies in the Pacific.

Some of the most permissive gun laws?  Really?

What is permissive about their gun laws?

I did some searching and found this amazing article from the Seattle Globalist.

Getting strapped in New Zealand, Americans learn ropes of gun control

Some American expats move to New Zealand because of GW Bush and then go through the process of trying to buy a gun in the land of the Kiwi.

It is worth a read.

The last paragraph of the article is enlightening.

Between the application fees, membership dues, club activities and special safes required, the financial obligations alone could be a barrier to anyone looking to obtain a firearm for frivolous or reactionary reasons. To get a gun in New Zealand you have to plan ahead, have a clean record, and have the money to spend on it.

In other words, it’s a tremendous pain in the ass. But it’s a pain in the ass that appears to be saving lives.

In a nutshell, you have to have a license to buy a Category A gun.  That requires background checks, taking a class, a written test, an interview with the police, two character references (one of which cannot be a relative), proof of safe storage, proof of no mental heath issues, and expensive fees.  Then the license is only good for 10 years, at which point you have to go through this again.

So what is so lax about that?  The Guardian has the answer.

Unlike the UK and Australia, New Zealand does not ban the ownership of semi-automatic military-style “assault weapons”. Most guns can be legally sold on the internet or through newspaper ads. Any person aged 16 or over with an entry-level firearm licence can keep any number of common rifles and shotguns without having to register them.

“New Zealand’s decision not to register 96% of civilian firearms makes it a standout exception, alone with the United States and Canada,” Alpers wrote.

Over the past year, New Zealand has seen a renewed debate over what police have called loopholes in the way military-style semi-automatic rifles are defined by law. Possession of these “MSSA” rifles is supposed to be subject to a higher level of scrutiny from the police, and there are only about 15,000 registered military-style rifles in civilian hands, as of last year.

But because of the way military-style rifles are defined by law, guns with slightly different features but virtually the same function can fall outside of the stricter regulations. Both police and firearms enthusiasts noted that a rifle could be transformed into a MSSA simply by adding a larger-capacity ammunition magazine.

Remember what I said about Category A guns?

New Zealand has what amounts to the Brady Bill, but with a magazine capacity limit of 7 rounds.

Which means a Kiwi can legally own a semi-auto shotgun or rifle with just a regular firearms license.  Those guns also do not need to be registered.

Military-style semi-automatic rifles (MSSA) are highly restricted, require an endorsement to the gun license, must be registered, store deactivated, and are pretty much only available to very sect people (usually business interests), such as museums or movie studios for props.

Pistols are also highly restricted and require a special endorsement to the gun license as well.

New Zealand makes it very clear that self defense is highly discouraged and not a legitimate reason to want to use a gun.

You can read all about New Zealand’s gun laws from their National Police website.

Since the main shooter is from Australia, every Australian newspaper wants to make it clear that Australia is better than New Zealand because of its gun laws.

From the Sidney Morning Herald.

‘One for every three people’: What are New Zealand’s gun laws?

The massacre prompted a tightening of New Zealand’s gun laws, which were first passed in 1983. However they are still considered more relaxed than many other countries outside the United States.

That’s a hell of a perspective.

The reason for this is that, unlike Australia, there is no system of registration for the majority of guns in New Zealand.

But a ball buster of a licencing schedule.

There are believed to be 1.5 million guns in New Zealand, one for every three people. In Australia, there are 3.15 million guns – one for every eight people.

See, Aussies are castrated morally superior.

Owning or using a firearm in New Zealand does require a licence. Applicants must be over 16 and pass a background check by New Zealand Police to check whether they are a “fit and proper person”.

A history of violence, relationships with criminals, a repeated involvement with drugs, or irresponsible consumption of alcohol are some of the reasons why someone might be denied a licence.

Carrying a gun is only permitted for those with a “lawful, proper, and sufficient purpose”, such as hunting, pest control or sports shooting. Self-defence is not considered a reason to have a gun.

Two referees, including one spouse or parent, must be able to attest to an applicant’s suitability to carry a gun in an interview with police. An arms officer from New Zealand Police will also pay a visit to their home to inspect security of the guns.

Applicants must also attend a gun safety lecture and pass a test, where they have to get 28 out of 30 answers right.

Sounds a lot more Aussie than American to me.

Once approved, the licence allows a person to have or use a rifle or shotgun. Special permits are required for pistols, military-style semi-automatic weapons and other restricted categories such as machine guns and rocket launchers.

Why do anti-gun people always jump to “machine guns and rocket launchers?”

Unlike rifles and shotguns, those guns must be registered with police. However there is some concern that unregistered guns can be easily modified to perform like military-style semi-automatic weapons.

See, that a Kiwi can buy a 10/22 and not register it makes a little trickle of pee run down an Australian’s leg.

For an American, the idea of two character references and a police inspection of your house sounds likes Stalinist hell.

Don’t worry.  It doesn’t matter how many gun laws we’ll find out this guy broke, law abiding Kiwis will lose that last tiny breath of ease in their gun laws soon, and then the Australians will have to crack down even harder.

If you are an American, just wait until the Anti’s blame Trump for this and suggest law abiding American’s lose their gun rights for the same reason.

WASHINGTON – Federal authorities have launched a search for a “substantial” number of firearms and gun parts that they say were stolen from a government disposal facility, officials said Wednesday.
A security contractor assigned to the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives’ repository in Martinsburg, West Virginia has been charged in connection with the missing weapons and parts. A search of his vehicle earlier this month allegedly yielded a pistol that had been registered in the government’s archives of retired weapons in 2017.
Christopher Yates, a contract security guard for the ATF in West Virginia, has been charged with possession of a stolen firearm and theft of government property.
In an interview with ATF agents late last month, Yates also allegedly acknowledged transferring at least some of the stolen property to an unidentified person Maryland.

Feds launch search for ‘substantial’ number of parts, guns stolen from ATF disposal site

Well, ain’t that an embarrassment. At least we know nobody in ATF will be punished as SOP.

Langwell said the parts were likely sold to people who did not know they were stolen. She said the ATF first learned of the theft when a local law enforcement agency asked the ATF to trace a gun part it had recovered.

A gun part that could be traced? I’ll take “What is a confiscated silencer? for $200, Alex.”

Christchurch shooting: multiple fatalities after mass shooting at two mosques – live updates

The shooter uploaded the video and I got a chance to see it. Weapons: Semi auto shotgun (9 rounds and dumped it) and 2 AR-15 pattern rifles; first one went crap on him, he returned to his car parked to the side of the mosque, grabbed the other and returned back inside.  Multiple reloads. It looked like  there were a couple of incendiary devices in the vehicle, but he did not use them.

I do hope I am wrong, but the casualties are well over thirty. Shooter took the time to try to give everybody a coup de grace.

From first shot to last shot: 5 minutes and 30 seconds. No contact with police, he just drove away.

Holy shit, that was one cold mother fucker and he needs to be taken out.

Please, don’t forget to carry at you place of worship, specially the next couple of weeks. There is always one asshole copycat trying to catch the limelight.

PS: The recommended tactic of “rushing the shooter” was used. It did not bode well for the rusher.

PS 2: New Zealand is pretty much one big Gun Free Zone if I am not mistaken.

Update: I just heard that two mosques were attacked and four people arrested. There is a story behind this which does not fit the norm.

Update: My fear about the number of dead has been confirmed: Toll now is 49.

Also, found an alleged copy of the manifesto. If anything, it seems to confirm Nazis and Socialists do belong in the same fascist shopping cart.

This is a dumb and dangerous bill. IANAL Warning!

SB 1718: Sale and Delivery of Firearms Sale and Delivery of Firearms; Prohibiting persons convicted of misdemeanor hate crime offenses from purchasing firearms, etc

29         4. Has been convicted of a misdemeanor crime that is
30  required to be reported as a hate crime under s. 877.19 and,
31  therefore, is prohibited from purchasing a firearm; or

I looked up s.877.19 and found the following:

877.19 Hate Crimes Reporting Act.—(1) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the “Hate Crimes Reporting Act.”
(2) ACQUISITION AND PUBLICATION OF DATA.—The Governor, through the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, shall collect and disseminate data on incidents of criminal acts that evidence prejudice based on race, religion, ethnicity, color, ancestry, sexual orientation, or national origin. All law enforcement agencies shall report monthly to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement concerning such offenses in such form and in such manner as prescribed by rules adopted by the department. Such information shall be compiled by the department and disseminated upon request to any local law enforcement agency, unit of local government, or state agency.

OK, but FGDLE does not do law, it enforces it. I searched the FDLE site for Hate Crimes and finally got somewhere.  Florida Statute: 775.085.e

775.085 Evidencing prejudice while committing offense; reclassification.—(1)(a) The penalty for any felony or misdemeanor shall be reclassified as provided in this subsection if the commission of such felony or misdemeanor evidences prejudice based on the race, color, ancestry, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, homeless status, or advanced age of the victim:
1. A misdemeanor of the second degree is reclassified to a misdemeanor of the first degree.
2. A misdemeanor of the first degree is reclassified to a felony of the third degree.
3. A felony of the third degree is reclassified to a felony of the second degree.
4. A felony of the second degree is reclassified to a felony of the first degree.
5. A felony of the first degree is reclassified to a life felony.

First, why the obfuscation? Why not just say crimes reclassified in 775.085 and not give people the runaround. Second, It is ludicrous that you may get charged for something as dull as Disorderly Conduct, Simple Trespass, fail to remit sale tax, you kept your woobie (not kidding :THEFT MILITARY PROP UNDER 100 DOLS) or any of the perhaps hundreds of misdemeanors of the second degree codified in Florida Law and the prosecutor finds a way to make it a hate crime (There were a group of old lesbian nuns sitting nearby), you are suddenly out of pleading a snap on the wrist, a fine and let go with your Gun Rights intact, but you have become a Florida Prohibited Person for purchase. And here is the third twist: The law says nothing about OWNING, just PURCHASING. This is the camel inserting its nose in the tent: If successful, Gun Control will demand that anybody convicted of a Second Degree Misdemeanor  with a Hate Crime increment would be a fully Prohibited Person. And then of course, other states should follow the example of Florida and not allow “Nazis and rednecks” to own guns, etc, etc, etc.

Am I paranoid? I might be, but sure there is a lot of people doing pursuit in Tallahassee.