TALLAHASSEE
If it seems unusual for Florida’s Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to handle concealed weapons permits, that’s because it is unusual — nearly every other state gives the job to police or courts.

But Florida’s agriculture commissioner has the job because the National Rifle Association wants him to have the job.
In yet another testament to its power in Tallahassee, the NRA had lawmakers quietly move the Division of Licensing, which handles the concealed weapons permit program, from the Florida Department of State to the state’s Department of Agriculture in 2002, so that the program was answerable to an elected official.

Why does Florida’s agriculture department handle gun permits? The NRA wants it to.

And the BS attack on Florida’s concealed weapons permit goes another round. We already covered the very insincere hatchet job by the Tampa Bay Timed when they alleged that over a quarter of a million CWP were issued without any Background Checks performed only to be found out later that it was only 365 denied application that went through background checks that were not uploaded to the division’s database.

Now, this is where the article gets interesting. In trying to explain how fouled is our system now, the Miami Herald gives us all the great reasons why Shall Carry is the best way to issue carry permits:

Before 1987, cities and counties were able to set their own gun ordinances, and they varied wildly.
To get a permit to carry a concealed weapon in Broward County, for example, you had to pay a $500 fee, be interviewed by people ranging from a psychologist to county officials, and show that you had a dangerous job or had threats to your life and needed to carry a gun. Fewer than 40 people had permits.

You get that? $500 to apply for a Broward County carry permit and less than 40 wealthy individuals could afford to have one.  I went back to my trusty Inflation Calculator to give you an idea of how much it would cost you today.

$1,147.76 to apply for a Concealed Weapons Permit? Are they nuts? This is the kind of games that breed government corruption like we have seen before in New York City in which police officers  in charge were given dinners, tickets to Broadway shows, clothes, watches and baseball memorabilia and cash payments to process gun permit to influential prohibited people. And let’s add to the thinking equation that poor people, which include the minorities that Liberals love so much, cannot afford to part with such sum and get their CWP. Then again they probably think poor people with guns is icky and dangerous.  It was a Normal Joe with normal income and a concealed weapons permit that saved the life of Lee County Sheriff’s Deputy Dean Bardes, but since Liberals also hates cop, it is actually a loss in their column.

But how horrible is that the Department of Agriculture is processing the CWPs? According to a mouthpiece for the Giffords:

That the Department of Agriculture, and not police, would be responsible for issuing the permits has been difficult for people to comprehend.
“When I first learned about this, it’s one of my most mind-boggling things that I keep coming back to,” said Robin Lloyd, director of government affairs for Giffords, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that advocates for tougher gun laws. “It makes no sense whatsoever.”

Background checks are performed by Florida Department of Law Enforcement. I don’t know, but that is kind of the important part or at least is what all the faux debacle was just a few days ago.  It is the same people who perform the background check when you buy a gun at a store.
But wait! There is more! It is not only the Carry Permits they process at the Department of Licensing under the Agriculture Department,  but the Licenses for Detectives, Recovery agents and Security Officers. Allow me to remind you guys that Broward County school Board will be using Armed Security Officers to cover the security hole the left by rejecting taking participation in the School Marshall program.

Bravo Miami Herald and Lawrence Mower, you just made a compelling case of why Shall Issue Permits the way are being done now is the best way to go.

Lucky armed robber steals money from a WalMart and then tries to carjack two vehicles. Both car owners were armed….not really.

A man was arrested Friday after he took a cash register drawer from the Walmart at River City Marketplace and then tried to carjack two people at knifepoint.
Christopher Raymond Hill, 36, was arrested on charges of strong arm robbery, carjacking with firearm or deadly weapon, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and trespassing, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office online inmate information search.

Jacksonville police: Man takes cash register from Walmart, tries to carjack 2 people at knifepoint

Interaction with the first Gun Owner:

“I turned the ignition off, grabbed my keys, opened the door and boom, there he was,” Scott Reardean said.
According to the report, Hill put the cash register in the Reardean’s truck bed and pulled a knife, cutting Reardean on the hands and leg, the arrest report said.
“I was bascially just doing this, trying to get the knife off me, and he’s like, trying to pull me and he yanked my shirt and ripped it all up,” Reardean said.
Reardean said to Action News Jax that he was able to grab his pistol from his truck and pointed it at Hill, who then ran away toward Starbucks. 

Interaction with the second Gun Owner:

The woman said Hill told her to drive because someone was chasing him. She told police she tried to push him out of the vehicle and he would not get out. According to the report, she was in fear for her life, so she got out of her car to to get her Ruger pistol out of her trunk.
Hill got out of the car and came toward her. She said she pointed her pistol at him and he ran away.

I am so very glad that both individual are OK save for the cuts to Mr. Reardan that appear to be non-life threatening. But Jesus Almighty people, carry the effing gun with you!

What are the excuses for not carrying? Let’s try to figure that one out. Obviously the orientation will be Florida, but some will apply to many places.

Not having a concealed weapons permit.  Really? In Florida? If you have a sidearm and you are not a prohibited person, it makes no sense for you not to have a CWP.  Some have complained about the fee of $97 being steep but you need to figure out that it is valid for 10 years which brings the cost to $9.7 a year.  Plus, having a CWP will save you from the myriad of stupid little grey areas in our Firearms statutes and even may help your interactions with the local constables.

Insecure on how to use the sidearm.  Get effing training.  You need training to get your CWP so go ahead and don’t just go for the basic pistol safe handling and operation  class, but for something more advanced. You don’t need a Super Ninja training week, just some basic self-defense training. You can also join an Action Shooting club after your basic training. 

Not wanting to carry in a non-binding Gun Free Zone (Posted but no legal force). “We should respect other people’s wishes. If they don’t want guns in their place of business, maybe we should not carry.” Bullshit. You are being too polite for no good darned reason. Do you think they will have special security just for you because you chose to leave your gun at the car? Screw that. Carry where is not bound by law otherwise. You only need to leave if you are asked to leave and do so expeditiously.

Not comfortable. (Too hot, uncomfortable, ignorant about carry options).  I am gonna revert to Clint Smith for this one.

The mating of a gun with your body is never ending. You will start with several holsters and carry methods then you will get other pistols till you realize it is like golf: not one thing fits all the time. There are no easy answers here, just time and patience trying out gear and behavior.

I think those four cover 95% of the complains and excuses I heard for not having a gun on your person. Feel free to add your opinion in the comment section.  Think about it this way: If you are seriously wounded and you need to stop a major bleeding, the super-duper Trauma Kit you bought online for several hundred dollars and which is safely tucked away home or in the trunk of your car, is not gonna help you save your life.  The tourniquet or gun you carry with you, will do so.

This tweet from a  Satire Fake News Org has been making the rounds.

The average response has been ranges from ” good trade!” to “Two Thumbs Up!” and even “The Norkos are getting the short end of the stick on this one.”

You’d think Americans feel California has overstayed its welcome in the Union.

This line from J.Kb’s post about the Rush & Duckworth bill caught my attention:

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 315 people are shot with a gun every day in the United States. Of those injured, 93 people die.

Again, I will not pretend I am an English language scholar, but the general feeling the sentence above is that people are shooting other people with firearms and that is causing 93 deaths a day. if that number is familiar, you are right:

93 x 365 = 33,945

Our old friend, the “Death by Firearm” statistic which includes suicides. Now, that is somewhat dishonest for Rush and Duckworth to do, wouldn’t you say ?

But why I would expect the truth coming from two Anti-Gun legislators from Illinois trying to pass a gun registration bill that has failed miserably in places like Chicago and not one single political entity in the world can truthfully produce statistics showing it lowers violent crime. If you have any doubts, go ask England or Venezuela.

This is the rack similar as where the rifle was “secured.”

But you know? If you leave the frigging key of the rack inside the car, there is a string probability that some asshole is gonna come around and steal your gorramed rifle.

Hat Tip Doug T.

Let me see if I get this right: you are hosting a fund-raiser for a gun control group that is financed by a billionaire by selling $40 tattoos and the image is of a dagger stabbing a heart to represent no more violence?

I am pretty sure that is illegal in England by now. Of course, if the artist rounds up the tip of the dagger, then it might be OK.

When I moved back to Venezuela after schooling in the US, there were three bookstores in Caracas that I usually visited on a monthly basis to get me periodicals and books in English. From the latest book from Stephen King to Cashbox magazine and even a Village Voice, I would eventually find me some reading material that I would use to keep me sharp in Shakespeare’s language.

Yesterday checking the Online Venezuelan newspapers, I come across a picture of one of those stores today. The accompanying article explains that the 60-year-old bookstore has become a Five and Dime in order to survive. Since they have to import books and the government is not very interested in sharing the hard to come US Dollars, their access to books is almost gone.  For the past four years, the Book industry in Venezuela has not had any access to foreign currency, so they cannot print or import books unless they manage to get greenback in the black market which makes the product expensive as hell.

I find amusing that for many years, the Left Wingers in Venezuela crapped all over the “American Culture” and how it was poison for the mind. Now and thank you to Socialism, bookstores are filled with SpongeBob SquarePants and Mickey Mouse trinkets.

Via la fucking Revolucion Bolivariana.