The following was submitted to this website as News Commentary. If you are a writer and have material you would like to be considered for publication, please use the SUBMIT News feature. The link can always be found in the top-left info block on the homepage.

By Michael A. Kotch

Re: the Dec. 27 commentary, "Too many weapons: Control guns to stop the tide of death", by John D. Kelly IV:

Dr. Kelly obviously is committed to the medical profession. However, his negative position on firearms ownership is an emotional response that avoids the true factors in violent acts.

He blames availability of guns and concealed-carry permits as the cause of 380 homicides in Philadelphia in 2005, noting that 208 of these deaths were over disputes.

Dr. Kelly seems to purport that holding individuals accountable for their actions is unrealistic, and, therefore, that eliminating the rights in the Second Amendment is the only plausible solution to violent crime.

Economist Lawrence Southwick Jr., in his 1999 paper, "Guns and Justifiable Homicide: Deterrence and Defense," said 800,000 to two million violent crimes were prevented each year as a result of gun ownership and use by civilians.

Click on 'Read More' for the entire commentary.

Buckeye Firearm Association's web site is seeing an amazing growth in visitors and new articles are being posted several times a week.

This week's "Friday Flashback" is....

Exposed: The Buckeye State's Anti-Gun Puppetmaster

How Ohio's Gun Ban Extremists Try to Create the Illusion of Public Support for Gun Control

By Chad D. Baus

In just a few short weeks, it'll be that time again. Time for a new self-defense bill to begin hearings before the Ohio General Assembly. Time for the anti-gun media to begin crying foul about any attempt to limit their access to CHL-holders' private information. Time for Ohio's resident gun ban extremist, Mrs. Toby (Edward L.) Hoover, to entertain legislators with wild predictions about what will happen if House Bill 347 becomes law.

Hoover has been at this game for years, and sadly, too many legislators have responded to her rhetoric (repeated ever so willingly by the establishment media) by weakening Ohio's concealed carry law with amendments, and refusing to commit override threatened gubernatorial vetos.

Buckeye Firearms Association wants to make sure that this time around, Ohio's legislators know the truth about Hoover's Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence (OCAGV), which as University of Toledo Professor Brian Patrick has put it, "appears to have no tangible, mass membership at all--even though it claims to speak for millions."

Last August, I pulled back the curtain on the gun grabbers' Wizard of Toledo, exposing how Hoover pays herself a generous salary (plus expenses) and receives exorbitant grants from the ultra-liberal Joyce Foundation, and revealing Hoover's strategy to prop up an image of an abstract anti-gun "public" in the minds of the press and legislators where in fact no such public exists.

On the subject of the latter, I would now like to turn attention on the tactics Hoover has used to manipulated legislators and the media without ever having to speak to or even have them know she was involved.

Click on the "Read More..." link below for more.

On January 11-12, Buckeye Firearms Association Central Ohio volunteer Clint Lake attended the 2007 SHOT Show in Orlando, FL. Following is Part 2 of a blog on his experience.

By Clint Lake

Today I'll start out with the top highlight of the day - Talking 1911's and Glock's with Gunny R. Lee Ermy during a Glock promotional picture signing!

Gunny was the nicest celebrity I ever met, next to Cam Edwards. By the way, he shoots a Glock .45 GAP and has put close to 20,000 rounds through it.

Now onto some cool stuff!

Click on 'Read More' for the entire commentary.

On January 11-12, Buckeye Firearms Association Central Ohio volunteer Clint Lake attended the 2007 SHOT Show in Orlando, FL. Following is Part 1 of a blog on his experience.

By Clint Lake

Where to start? The number of vendors here are of truly epic proportions. The building is easily 4 - 5 football fields long and a football field wide. Sections are broken into "Law Enforcement/Tactical", "General Shooting/Firearms", "Hunting", and "Outdoor Wear". Rows and rows of guns, gun stuff, and gun nuts!!! (and oddly enough a couple of Vegas showgirls)

Click on 'Read More' for the entire commentary.

By John Longenecker

Week after week, I see articles from around the world about incoming illegal guns. Today, I read an article which wonders where they come from.

This is not even germane to the predicament, for it reflects a misunderstanding of the very nature of the problem, and therefore its straightforward solutions.

Many nations oppose weapons for oppressive reasons, not for reasons of justice or for keeping the peace. For many nations, keeping the peace is code for oppression, silencing opposition and delivering widespread, un-opposed murder. For them, guns in the hands of the people would mean justice, and not the kind they would appreciate.

In free nations, it’s getting closer to that, because it confuses the concept of illegal guns with lawful guns and lawful, righteous intention, and therefore confuses their respective purposes.

To frame the issues as if they are identical is a lie.

Specifically, lawful guns keep the peace, because governments cannot. Simply put, any government that keeps the peace will probably be an oppressive one — using force, of course, and, as is the case with New Orleans’ confiscation of lawful weapons in 2005 and the incoming National ID cards around the corner, it would be almost entirely because they cannot tell the good guys from the bad guys. (Supposedly.)

The people do a much better job of it than officials, and officials want the job of it, whether we approve or not. See the storm forming?

Usurping that authority of citizens to act in their own self-defense (in keeping the peace) puts the people on the path of dependency and oppression, a decisive and decisively anti-liberty, anti-American move.

Stopping the flow of incoming illegal weapons by trying to discover whence they come is approaching it from the wrong end. It is a distraction. A ruse.

Click 'Read More' to read the entire article.

By Chris Chumita

There are more stories pertaining to our gun rights in Ohio then we can possibly draw attention to with individual daily commentary. But they are all worthy of mention.

What follows is our review of headlines from around the state though a pro-gun rights lens.

From another attack on the NRA to eighteen million safer kids, these articles should be a part of your required reading!

Click on the "Read More..." link below for several days of headlines accompanied by short, concise pro-gun analysis.

Originally published in Ohio Outdoor News on January 5, 2007. Republished with permission.

By Robert Loewendick

Preparing to enter his hunting blind for an afternoon deer hunt, 26 year-old Steve Smith was eager to see deer. Smith’s enthusiasm was to be temporally harnessed by his guide, Brian Bodi, and Smith’s father, Ron, for a few minutes as they helped him into his insulated clothing. Once secured with his gear, the elder Smith steadied his son as they slowly walked the short distance to their hunting hideout. Bodi was busy gathering the remainder of Smith’s gear from their vehicle and soon joined them.

Steve Smith’s outdoor pursuits were drastically affected a few years prior. Sitting on an oil tank with friends, doing an ill-advised act of smoking, an explosion occurred. Smith’s life was changed forever, losing his motor skills and enduring other life-threatening injuries. He overcame the odds and survived, but the demands of everyday life created situations for Smith that he couldn’t do alone. It seemed his passion for hunting would go unused. But with the help of his father and volunteers from the National Wild Turkey Federation’s Wolf Creek Chapter of McConnelsville, Smith was once again in his hunting environment.

Click on 'Read More' for the entire story.

By Tim Inwood

On the weekend of January 6th 2007, the Ohio Gun Collectors Association had their first show of the year at the Roberts Centre in Wilmington Ohio. As I walked the aisles admiring the displays of Colt’s from the American Civil War and Winchesters of the “Old West”, the PA system came to life, and the voice over my head began talking about how the OGCA was celebrating seventy years in 2007. It made me stop and think to myself.

“Will there be another seventy years?”

The following was submitted to this website as News Commentary. If you are a writer and have material you would like to be considered for publication, please use the SUBMIT News feature. The link can always be found in the top-left info block on the homepage.

By Michael A. Kotch

Why are you a member of the NRA? This is a question that has been asked of me on more than one occasion. My answer can not be summed up in a single sentence, but must be examined through a thorough analysis of our Bill of Rights.

The first Ten Amendments of the United States Constitution bestow upon the private citizen certain unalienable rights, which have been given to us by our creator. Initially they were drafted to protect the private citizen against a powerful national government. They were in essence a compromise between the need for a central governing body, and a recognition that to much power in a central government will ultimately lead to tyranny of an overly powerful government over the people.

By Chad D. Baus

Traditionally, whomever is leading in polling one year ahead of the Presidential primaries becomes the eventual party nominee. If tradition holds true...there is a storm on the horizon...

Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, Republican

All gun owners should pass written test
"I do not think the government should cut off the right to bear arms. My position for many years has been that just as a motorist must have a license, a gun owner should be required to have one as well. Anyone wanting to own a gun should have to pass a written exam that shows that they know how to use a gun, that they’re intelligent enough and responsible enough to handle a gun. Should both handgun and rifle owners be licensed...we’re talking about all dangerous weapons."
Source: Boston Globe, p. A4 Mar 21, 2000

Arizona Senator John McCain, Republican

Ban cheap guns; require safety locks; supports gun show checks & "smart" gun technology
McCain favors outlawing cheaply made handguns called Saturday night specials, and favors mandating safety locks on certain guns. He said he is intrigued by new technology that electronically identifies a person handling a gun, allowing only the owner to fire it. McCain rallied Senate Republicans behind a Democratic measure requiring background checks at gun shows.
Source: Scott Lindlaw, Associated Press Aug 17, 1999

Supports ban on certain assault weapons
McCain said he was open to voting for an assault weapon ban, depending on the details.
Source: Los Angeles Times, “McCain Calls for Hearings” Aug 17, 1999

And those are just the top-polling Republicans!