By Joe DeBergalis
Originally published by Ar15.com
Honeoye Falls, NY –(Ammoland.com)- We need to be “ALL IN” this election cycle!
On Super Bowl Sunday, as many Americans were sitting back to enjoy the culmination of another football season, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, co-founders of gun control group Mayors Against Illegal Guns (MAIG), unleashed their latest anti-gun propaganda via a high-priced television commercial.
Clad in football jerseys and surrounded by the types of foods Bloomberg tries to prevent others from eating, the pair feigned support for the Second Amendment while encouraging the viewer to support “common sense” gun laws.
In reality, common sense would preclude the types of restrictions MAIG has long sought to foist on gun owners in the regulatory and legislative arenas. This may be news to the Mayor, but common sense indicates that criminals, by definition, don’t care about laws.
You don’t take my word for it; you can go to the source.
An interview with a violent criminal published in a 2006 FBI study on assaults on law enforcement officers illustrates MAIG’s flawed logic. The offender explained to the interviewer, “All these politicians are screaming about more gun laws, more gun laws. XXXX the gun law!. I never gave a XXXX about the gun laws that are on the books! And the 8,000 new gun laws would have made absolutely [no difference], whatsoever, about me getting a gun.”
It’s bad enough when MAIG lectures voters and mayors across the country with stunts like their Super Bowl ad to push anti-gun legislation. But it’s even worse when they seek to dodge the legislative process entirely.
Back in 2009, MAIG sent the Obama Administration a “Blueprint for Federal Action on Illegal Guns,” a wish list of 40 gun restrictions MAIG contends can be unilaterally enacted by the president. The plans range from requirements that all firearm transfers are conducted using REAL ID-compliant identification and more scrutiny for private sellers at gun shows and FFL’s, by requiring a second “hidden” serial number on newly manufactured firearms.
Such disrespect for the electorate is what gun owners should fear most from MAIG. All that would be required for MAIG to succeed in these goals is a second term for Barack Obama, this time free from the need to win (or suppress) gun owners’ votes.
In fact, the Obama administration hasn’t even waited until a second term before pursuing two of MAIG’s “Blueprint” recommendations.
In January 2011, and as reported here earlier, the BATFE published its “Study on the Importability of Certain Shotguns.” The study makes the case that several popular shotguns should be barred from importation for failing to meet the constitutionally dubious and often-abused “sporting purposes” test. “Recommendation 38” of the Bloomberg “Blueprint” calls on BATFE to expand the list of firearms they use the “sporting purposes” test to ban from import. (Fortunately, an actual ban has been blocked – at least for the year – by a NRA-supported amendment enacted by Congress this winter.)
And if this wasn’t bad enough, last summer the President started requiring that all licensed dealers in the Southwest Border States report multiple sales of semiautomatic rifles capable of accepting a detachable magazine and above .22-caliber. The new requirement, which has long pertained to handguns as required by statute, directly corresponds to “Recommendation 39” in the “Blueprint.”
Given this track record, gun owners can be sure that the present Administration, if reelected, will look to the “Blueprint” for more ideas on how to attack gun owners’ rights.
Despite these dire possibilities, there is still reason to keep a positive outlook.
The mere existence of the “Blueprint” is tantamount to MAIG admitting that it can’t win legislatively in the face of a pro-gun electorate and elected pro-gun representatives.
We need to mobilize gun voters and “Vote Freedom First!” this coming election season. Call, write, email and tell your friends, family members and gun buddies to register to vote, sign up with the NRA-ILA’s “Frontline Volunteer” program, volunteer a few hours each week helping a Pro-Gun, Pro-Freedom candidate….These small steps are crucial to a victory this November. The choice is clear…
I’m “All In” this election season….Are you?
Attention All NRA Voting Members….Please kindly consider casting your vote and support when completing your ballot for ARFCOM-endorsed and current NRA Board Member Joseph P. DeBergalis, Jr., of West Seneca, New York. Thank you for the consideration of your vote!
About AR15.com
AR15.Com originated in 1996 as a mailing list for firearm enthusiasts. As the years passed and interest grew, a website came into existence to present those same enthusiasts with a means to collect, share, and explore information. Shortly afterwards, a bulletin board was added to create a more interactive experience for the growing list of users. The site was still in it’s infancy, but was growing in popularity. Visit: www.ar15.com
