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Foundation, in Bellevue, Washington.
http://www.saf.org
Please visit Dave Kopel's website, containing articles on the Second
Amendment and other freedom topics.
http://www.davekopel.org
David Kopel with Alan Korwin
Bloomsfield Press
Late September, 2008
http://www.gunlaws.com/hc.htm
David B. Kopel
Syracuse Law Review
Vol. 59, 2008
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1172255
From a forthcoming symposium issue on Heller. Abstract: "The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in District of Columbia v. Heller constitutionalized the right of self-defense, and described self-defense as a natural, inherent right. Analysis of natural law in Heller shows why Justice Stevens' dissent is clearly incorrect, and illuminates a crucial weakness in Justice Breyer's dissent. The constitutional recognition of the natural law right of self-defense has important implications for American law, and for foreign and international law."
David B. Kopel
3 Charleston Law Review
No. 1, 2008 (forthcoming)
http://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=1028682
Some of the philosophical roots of the Brady Campaign's hatred of self-defense and "gundamentalism."
David B. Kopel
Working Paper
June 12th, 2008
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1144924
This paper presents evidence of diversity on early orthodox Christian belief and practice on the issue of pacifism. The claims of some modern writers that pre-Constantinian orthodox Christians were almost all pacifist are not correct. In fact, some but not all of the early Patristic writers were pacifists. A significant number of Christians, including saints, served in the Roman army. The paper discusses Justin Martyr, Marcion, Irenaeus, Athenagoras, Clement of Alexandria, Tertullian, Hippolytus, Julius Africanus, Origen, Cyprian, Arnobius, and Lactantius, and also examines other sources of information about the early church.
David B. Kopel with Robert A. Levy
The Wall Street Journal
August 8, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/6ds4pl
Congress should intervene to protect the Second Amendment.
David B. Kopel
Rocky Mountain News/Denver Post (CO)
September 6, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/6myroh
The culture wars are now a factor in the 2008 campaign.
David B. Kopel, Robert A. Levy, Dennis Henigan, and Erwin Chemerinsky
Cato Unbound
July 2008
http://www.cato-unbound.org/archives/july-2008-after-heller-the-new-american-debate-about-guns/
http://tinyurl.com/69ag8g
http://tinyurl.com/69ag8g
http://tinyurl.com/6558nz
http://tinyurl.com/5z39cz
http://tinyurl.com/6dgktd
http://tinyurl.com/6n4s9r
http://tinyurl.com/6xg5gm
This is a Weblog debate about the Heller case and its implications. Participants are Bob Levy of the Cato Institute, Kopel, Dennis Henigan of the Brady Campaign, and Erwin Chemerinsky. Kopel's entries are: "The Right to Bear Arms and 'Sensible' Gun Laws" http://tinyurl.com/69ag8g; "Slope Still Slippery" http://tinyurl.com/69ag8g; "More on the 'The' and Pre-existing Rights" http://tinyurl.com/6558nz; "One Man's 'Sensible' is Another Man's 'Extreme'" http://tinyurl.com/5z39cz; "What Did They Mean in Massachusetts? "http://tinyurl.com/6dgktd; "The NRA and the Supreme Court" http://tinyurl.com/6n4s9r; and "In Scalia's Defense." http://tinyurl.com/6xg5gm
David B. Kopel
America's 1st Freedom
August, 2008
https://davekopel.org/2A/Mags/Freedom-Unbound.pdf
PDF files require Adobe Acrobat Reader or similar software.
In striking down the D.C. gun ban, the U.S. Supreme Court rules that the Second Amendment protects an individual right of all Americans.
David B. Kopel
The Rocky Mountain News (CO)
August 28, 2008
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/aug/27/20080827_kopel/
"Barack Obama's Democratic nomination triumph reprises one of the oldest stories in American politics: that victory so often goes to the candidates who best understand and exploit novel mediums of communication."
David B. Kopel
The Rocky Mountain News (CO)
August 27, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/56w7pn
What the media hasn't told you about the socialist, racialist, Barack Obama Sr. Plus, there is a bogus claim from Time that older Jewish voters who don't back Obama must be racist.
David B. Kopel
The Rocky Mountain News (CO)
August 26, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/5wk74t
"One of the speakers was Sister Helen Prejean, a Catholic who is one of America's leading crusaders against the death penalty... Also speaking at the prayer session was Ingrid Mattson, President of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA)."
David B. Kopel
The Rocky Mountain News (CO)
August 25, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/6kdwz8
Dave clarifies the truth that contradicts what Al-Jazeera told its viewers about Biden, and the 'Rum, Romanism, and Rebellion' remark that cost the Republicans the presidential election of 1884.
David B. Kopel
The Volokh Conspiracy
July 23, 2008
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2008_07_20-2008_07_26.shtml#1216828838
D.C. City Councilman Harry Thomas has introduced a resolution titled "Sense of the Council of Future Handgun Resolution of 2008." He uses incorrect assumptions and false data to justify it.
David B. Kopel
The Volokh Conspiracy
July 21, 2008
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2008_07_20-2008_07_26.shtml#1216681864
Despite protestations to the contrary, the U.N. remains quite interested in constricting lawful gun ownership.
David B. Kopel
Liberty Magazine, pp. 27-31
October, 2008
https://davekopel.org/Religion/Calvinism.htm
First year law students may be interested in observing the importance of contract law in the right of revolution against tyranny.
Sandy Froman
The Mercury (Pottstown, PA)
September 5, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/6gzzfo
NRA Immediate Past President Sandy Froman here notes that the new Republican Vice-Presidential nominee may expect a storm of sexism, such as she encountered, from its ostensible opponents on the Left.
Sandy Froman with Gretchen Carlson
Fox & Friends
September 5, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/68glfv
Carlson interviews NRA Immediate Past President Sandy Froman here for her take on the selection of Alaskan governor Sarah Palin as McCain's running mate.
Sandry Froman with Ramsy Wharton
KGMB 9 TV (Honolulu,HI)
September 4, 2008
http://kgmb9.com/main/content/view/9509/253/
Here is yet another video interview with former NRA President Sandy Froman about Sarah Palin's selection.
Nick Cohen
The Observer (UK)
September 7, 2008
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/sep/07/uselections2008.republicans2008
"When a hate campaign goes wrong, however, disaster follows. And everything that could go wrong with the campaign against Palin did."
Simon Tisdall
The Observer (UK)
September 8, 2008
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/sep/08/uselections2008.sarahpalin
"The Republican's vice-presidential candidate has come in for some stick since her nomination, but much of it has been unfair and divisive."
Michelle Malkin
MichelleMalkin.Com
September 6, 2008
http://michellemalkin.com/2008/09/06/the-bogus-sarah-palin-banned-books-list/
"Take a look at the list below and you'll find books Gov. Palin supposedly tried to ban. . . that hadn't even been published yet. Example: The Harry Potter books, the first of which wasn't published until 1998."
Charles R. Martin
Explorations
September 6, 2008
http://explorations.chasrmartin.com/2008/09/06/palin-rumors/
An ongoing list, with reader discussion, of rumors hatched in the hope of damaging Sarah Palin. As of this writing, 71.
CBS2chicago.com
September 5, 2008
http://cbs2chicago.com/local/chicago.summer.shootings.2.810166.html
"An estimated 125 people were shot and killed over the summer. That's nearly double the number of U.S.A. soldiers killed in Iraq over the same time period." As a state senator, Obama fought hard to prevent the weakening of Chicago's dysfunctionial gun laws.
David Freddoso
The National Review
August 27, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/69qh3h
"In 2007, Senator Barack Obama stood up for a gun owner. He endorsed Chicago Alderman Dorothy Tillman in her Democratic primary. Not only was she a gun owner, but she had even pulled a gun on her colleagues during a contentious 1991 ward redistricting hearing. . ."
M.L. Elrick, Jim Schaefer, Joe Swickard and Ben Schmitt
The Detroit Free Press (MI)
September 4, 2008
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080904/NEWS01/309050001
"In a courtroom this morning, Kilpatrick pleaded guilty to two felony counts of obstructing justice by committing perjury." Kilpatrick has been a prominent supporter of Barack Obama's candidacy, and a member of New York City mayor Bloomberg's Mayors Against Illegal Guns coalition.
Christine Pizzuti
Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin (NY)
August 27, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/6jqzbh
"Rep. Maurice Hinchey, D-Hurley, is due in town court Sept. 9 to face a second-degree harassment charge after he allegedly swatted an NRA representative on the head at the Rosendale Street Fair in July." Rep. Hinchey has a 'C' rating from the NRA's 'Vote Smart' program evaluating members of Congress on 2nd Amendment issues. He was one of the superdelegates pledged to nominate Barack Obama at the recent DNC convention.
Associated Press
USA Today.Com
2004
http://tinyurl.com/5suw3v
Here are details of Rep. Hinchey's career, which included a 'No Contest' plea to illegally carrying a loaded handgun in his baggage at a Washington D.C. airport in 1995.
Informational Web Page
The National Rifle Association
2008
http://www.gunbanobama.com/
NRA's Political Victory Fund has established this web page, which contains data to illustrate the gulf between Barack Obama's claims of support for civilian ownership of firearms and his recent statements and actions.
"Alegre"
Alegre's Corner
September 4, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/5peqcf
"Regarding the [Democratic Party convention] roll call vote. I've spoken to many delegates in many states. It appears that the delegates who were pressured the most were in the Swing States. Anyone who had any sort of job in politics or the DNC were pressured the most to switch. Many Governors demanded that their delegates switch because they would not get any money for their state races if they did not. It boils down to the fact that the Obama campaign had power over the State Party Chairs. These State Party Chairs get the money for all of their candidates. If they did not switch they were threatened."
Press Release
The Brady Campaign
August 25, 2008
http://www.bradycampaign.org/media/release.php?release=1001
"The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence praised Senator Barack Obama's choice for his vice presidential running mate, Senator Joe Biden. 'Joe Biden is a straight talker about the need for common sense laws to keep dangerous people from getting dangerous weapons,' said Paul Helmke, President of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence."
David Whalen
The Telegram (Canada)
August 24, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/5jultp
"If the federal government's numbers are right, Newfoundlanders and Labradorians are Canada's most heavily armed citizens, but also its least trigger-happy."
Canadian Press
CNEWS: Politics
September 1, 2008
"The law bans the possession of firearms in schools and daycare centres and on public and school transportation."
Barry Schweid
Associated Press
August 5, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/6kuhss
"China has been the 'most egregious violator' of a worldwide arms embargo, providing Sudan with the vast majority of its small arms and weapons used for mass murder in Darfur province, a private study group is charging."
Arming Civilians
Editorial
The Daily Inquirer (Philippines)
August 26, 2008
http://opinion.inquirer.net/inquireropinion/editorial/view/20080826-156798/Arming-civilians
"But why should citizens arm themselves and constitute themselves into a defense force when there are entities required by law to protect them from lawless elements?"
Sapa
The Daily Dispatch (South Africa)
August 14, 2008
http://www.dispatch.co.za/article.aspx?id=236410
"The government's refusal to pay compensation for firearms handed in under the year 2000 Firearms Control Act is being challenged in court as unconstitutional."
Frederick Womakuyu
New Vision (Kampala, Uganda)
August 31, 2008
http://allafrica.com/stories/200809010591.html
"Despite the Government's efforts to disarm the Karimojong, recent reports indicate that the region has more firearms than anticipated. The Government has so far recovered 25,000 guns but a recent report by Small Arms Survey, a regional body that researches on armed pastoral areas, indicates that Karamoja has more than 150,000 guns."
Richard Edwards and Christopher Hope
The Daily Telegraph (UK)
July 16, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/6aygvy
"Home owners and others acting in self-defence were yesterday given the legal right for the first time to fight back against burglars and muggers free from fear of prosecution."
The Birmingham Mail (UK)
August 26, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/5f4jyl
"Campaigners today called for legislation to make airgun owners liable for their misuse after an 18-month-old boy was shot in the head with one of the weapons."
Alisha Ryu
VOA News
September 3, 2008
http://www.voanews.com/english/2008-09-03-voa55.cfm
"Ministers and civil society leaders from 18 African countries, U.N. disarmament officials, and arms-control advocates are meeting in the Kenyan capital Nairobi to try to form a united position on a proposed treaty to regulate the global arms trade."
Press Release
UN News Centre
August 18, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/5uq3zf
"Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today welcomed the launch of a new United Nations facility promoting disarmament and non-proliferation in the Asia-Pacific region. The UN Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Asia and the Pacific, based in Kathmandu, Nepal, will focus on nuclear proliferation, illicit trafficking of small arms and light weapons, landmines and explosive remnants of war, terrorism and organized crime, and armed conflicts."
The Associated Press
USA Today
August 26, 2008
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-08-26-Colleges-survival_N.htm
"Hundreds of colleges across the nation have purchased a training program that teaches professors and students not to take campus threats lying down but to fight back with any 'improvised weapon,' from a backpack to a laptop computer."
James C. McKinley Jr.
The New York Times
August 29, 2008
http://mensnewsdaily.com/2008/05/21/anti-gun-promo-blackfires/
The New York Times offers its own perspective on a Texas School District's decision to allow selected teachers to carry a concealed weapon for the protection of themselves and their students.
Mark Agee
Ft. Worth Star-Telegram
August 15, 2008
http://www.tulsabs.com/blog/2nd-amendment/texas-school-district-authorizes-firearms
"Superintendent David Thweatt said a main concern was that the small community is a 30-minute drive from the sheriff's office, leaving students and teachers without protection." Here is a different perspective from that of the Times.
Laura Snider
The Boulder Daily Camera (CO)
August 20, 2008
http://www.dailycamera.com/news/2008/aug/20/regents-shoot-down-gun-proposal/
"Regent Stephen Ludwig, a Democrat from Aurora, was the first to respond to Mote's presentation: 'If you seek to change the policy of this board, I would strongly suggest you find some rhetoric that is based on sound logic rather than inflammatory statements. I'd be hard-pressed to ever support conceal and carry.' "
"irishr"
Political Lore
July 8, 2008
http://www.politicallore.com/election-2008/national-rifle-association-has-big-boost-in-popularity/343
A poll by the Rasmussen Report found that the NRA's overall popularity rating increased after the Heller ruling, but that the organization's endorsement was slightly more likely to hurt John McCain's candidacy among respondents than to influence them to vote for McCain.
Informational Web Page
The National Rifle Association
September 3, 2008
http://www.nrainsights.org/
"The National Rifle Association announces the official launch of NRAInSights.org, a comprehensive interactive website designed for NRA Junior members and their peers, created and maintained by NRA Publications, contains classic website essentials-games, videos and forums-as well as information making the site useful for educational purposes."
Brian Lyman
The Mobile Press-Register (AL)
July 20, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/5gf66h
"Sixty-six percent of respondents said they own a gun and 46 percent have a permit to carry a concealed weapon. The telephone survey of 424 Alabama residents was conducted Monday through Thursday, with a 5-percentage-point margin of error."
Press Release
National Rifle Association Institute for Legislative Action
August 29, 2008
http://www.nraila.org/Legislation/Read.aspx?id=4155
"This week, the Village of Morton Grove, Illinois agreed to a stipulated dismissal of a NRA lawsuit challenging the village's gun ban. A new town ordinance recognizes the right to private handgun ownership, bringing an end to NRA's lawsuit against the village. Morton Grove completely dismissed its ordinance banning handguns and agreed not to replace it with any direct regulation other than to adopt existing state laws." The removal of Morton Grove's ban on the ownership of handguns has been much less heralded than was its imposition.
Press Release
National Rifle Association Institute for Legislative Action
August 29, 2008
http://www.nraila.org/Legislation/Read.aspx?id=4103
"Wilmette officials have reportedly said the ban would probably not withstand legal challenges. A story on today's Chicagotribune.com noted that, unlike the other suburbs, Wilmette officials say they believe NRA didn't file suit against them because the village stopped enforcing the ban right after the Supreme Court ruling. The article also reported that Wilmette trustee Lali Watt says she doesn't believe her town has the necessary resources to fight NRA and keep the ban.
Associated Press
CW 21 KXPJ (Birmingham, AL)
July 4, 2008
http://www.kpxj21.com/news/Jindal-signs-bill-governing-guns-at-workplace-13781/
"Over the objections of five powerful trade associations, Governor Bobby Jindal has signed into law a bill that gives employees more freedom to take guns to work."
John Fritze
The Baltimore Sun (MD)
August 12, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/6fs6mp
"Gun owners in Baltimore whose firearms are stolen would be required to report the theft to police under legislation approved by the City Council yesterday -- despite questions about whether the proposal is legal."
J.D. Tuccille
Examiner.com
September 2, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/65vall
Massachusetts Police searching author Peter Manso's home in response to a burglar alarm discovered firearms in violation of the Bay State's numerous gun laws. Manso did not realize that his lifetime gun permit was no longer valid, because the legislature had retroactively changed the law. Manso, who was not at home, faces up to a ten year prison sentence.
Associated Press
The Charlotte Observer (NC)
August 10, 2008
http://www.charlotteobserver.com/141/story/117366.html
"It denies weapons to people who have been involuntarily committed to mental health treatment. Court clerks will be required to put the names in a national database used in gun background checks."
Ken Serrano
MyCentralJersey.Com
July 6, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/5p3swl
New Jersey's recently-stiffened Graves Act mandates prison time for anyone possessing a projectile weapon while committing a crime--such as speeding.
Blade Columbus Bureau
The Cincinnati (OH) Enquirer
September 7, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/6mgspx
"Concealed weapons permit holders can now keep a gun hidden in a car as long as they're carrying it in a secure holster, one of several changes to Ohio's conceal carry law taking effect Monday."
Eugene Volokh
The Volokh Conspiracy
July 7, 2008
http://volokh.com/posts/chain_1215395769.shtml
Prof. Volokh here collects and analyzes court rulings issued in the aftermath of Heller.
Ben Neary
The Associated Press
August 27, 2008
Wyoming's efforts to restore the right to concealed carry to citizens convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence failed in a Denver court, which ruled that the state's effort to expunge such convictions from the NICS database was invalid.
Thomas S. Zilly, United States District Judge
United States District Court, Western District Of Washington at Seattle
August 15, 2007
http://www.nfaoa.org/documents/JudgeZillyNewTrialOrderKwanCase.pdf
PDF files require Adobe Acrobat Reader or similar software.
"Defendant, a reservist, has two handguns (one a semiauto, one a registered full auto) and two shoulder stocks that would fit either. The shoulder stocks double as holsters, and he has one handgun in each when ATF raids him (on other grounds, which turn out to be a legal mistake). Government argument is that the semiauto plus the stock in which it was holstered equal an unregistered short-barreled rifle. The District Court says no -- using the Thompson Arms test, the two stocks had a purpose other than an illicit one, namely being fitted legally to the full auto."
The Smoking Gun
August 6, 2007
http://tinyurl.com/5mz659
"A federal judge has rejected presidential assailant John Hinckley's request for additional time away from the Washington, D.C. psychiatric hospital where he has been confined for the past 25 years." The web article also contains the text of the ruling.
David E. Young
Golden Oak Books
2008
http://www.secondamendmentinfo.com/Founders'%20View/index.html
"Mr. Young's new book provides the documented information that conclusively settles every disputed point regarding the Second Amendment's history and intent."
Lawrence Rosenthal
Working Paper
August 21, 2008
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1245402
Rosenthal, a professor at the Chapman University Law school, here argues against the Heller decision's applicability under the concept of the 2nd Amendment's incorporation into state and local laws under the 14th Amendment.
Nelson Lund
Working Paper
August 20, 2008
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1235537
"This brief essay analyzes Heller's treatment of Miller. The interpretations of the Second Amendment in the two cases are irreconcilable. There was no legal need for the Heller Court to treat Miller as a binding precedent, and no legal excuse for pretending that Miller's holding was consistent with the interpretation of the Constitution that Heller rightly adopted. The treatment of Miller appears to be part of a larger political strategy in which the Court displayed a calculated faint-heartedness toward the original meaning of the Second Amendment." Lund is a professor at the Law School of George Mason University.
Nelson Lund
Working Paper
September 1, 2008
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1239422
"Nelson Lund, Anticipating the Second Amendment Incorporation: The Role of the Inferior Courts, argues that the 2nd Amendment should be incorporated into the 14th, and applied to the States, and that lower courts should not rely upon anti-incorporation case law and upon 'it's up to the Supremes to change things.' "
Glenn H. Reynolds & Brannon P. Denning
Northwestern University Law Review
July, 2008
http://www.law.northwestern.edu/lawreview/colloquy/2008/23/index.html
http://tinyurl.com/5use2z
"The repudiation of this extensive body of case law suggests that the real test of Heller will occur once the lower courts, traditionally hostile to an individual rights interpretation of the Second Amendment, face the inevitable follow-up cases challenging other restrictive gun laws." The PDF version of the article is here: http://tinyurl.com/5use2z
Jeffrey M. Shaman
Working Paper
July 17, 2008
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1162338
"This essay analyzes and critiques District of Columbia v. Heller, in which the Supreme Court ruled by a 5-4 vote that the Second Amendment of the Constitution protects an individual right to possess a firearm unconnected with service in a militia and to use that firearm for self-defense within the home. Justice Scalia's majority opinion in Heller strictly adheres to his belief that the Constitution should be interpreted by ascertaining its original meaning at the time it was adopted. Scalia believes that the Constitution has a static meaning and that changes in the world around us are of no relevance to constitutional interpretation. His exposition of the Second Amendment in Heller is bad history -- simplistic analysis that ignores the complexities of historical research. And his refusal to examine any policy considerations regarding the Second Amendment renders its application a desultory matter, haphazard in function and cabined by outmoded notions."
Mark Tushnet
Working Paper
July 30, 2008
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1189494
Tushnet, a Harvard Law professor, has two essays soon to appear:(1) Heller and the New Originalism forthcoming in the Ohio State Law Journal and (2) Heller and the Perils of Compromise forthcoming in the Lewis & Clark Law Review.
Vic Ryckaert
The Indianapolis (IN) Star
August 27, 2008
"Indianapolis metropolitan police will be testing a new tool that will allow officers to gather DNA from handguns at a crime scene. During the next six months, officers will be using the Trigger ID device to swab guns before they are moved, enhancing the chances for recovering DNA evidence, according to a statement released by IMPD Lt. Jeff Duhamell."
This newsletter is compiled with help from Dr. Rob S. Rice. For more on this cabined, yet omphalosceptic individual, see here: http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/rrice/rrice_hd.html. Dr. Rice's second published novel shall soon appear on Amazon.com, as a means of plumbing the lowest reaches of Amazon's sales ranking. You can learn much of that by probing here: http://tinyurl.com/5u75c5
Al Qaeda delenda est!
