By Gerard Valentino

(This commentary has also been published at CNSNews.com)

Ohio's concealed carry law allows private property owners to post signs banning the carrying of weapons on their property. As a pro-gun advocate, I am saddened whenever I see such a sign, but never more so than when walking by a local chapter of a large Christian charitable organization.

Having been raised a Christian, I am familiar with the teachings of the Bible and bristle whenever people tell me that self-defense and being Christian don't mix. In fact, Christianity is based on the premise that innocent people should be helped and protected, which is the basis for Christianity's strong pro-life stance.

As someone with medical problems that limit my upper body strength, I probably couldn't fight off a determined attacker long enough for my wife and children to run to safety. That means I might have to take the life of a criminal intent on doing us harm and to that end I never go out in public unarmed. Luckily, for people like me, Ohio's concealed carry law gave citizens back the right to self-defense bestowed by the Creator and affirmed in the United States Constitution.

It also allows me to walk the streets without undue fear for the well being of myself and my family. If the day comes when I have to take the life of an attacker, I will do so knowing my choice was just, right, and well within the teachings of Christ and the Church. I will also go to my Maker knowing my actions will not be judged as wrong.

That is not the message being peddled by any church that posts signs banning legal concealed carry on church property. The signs are actually an outward way of stating that the life of everyone that walks through the door is secondary to a misguided fear of guns, and that the life of a criminal predator is more valuable than law-abiding patrons.

Click 'Read More" for the complete op-ed.

Minneapolos-St. Paul's KARE 11 is reporting on comments by the Justice Department inspector general on a highly-touted BATFE program that targets violent gun crimes in nearly two dozen cities. The inspector general says that the BATFE has yet to demonstrate that the program works...

The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has made faulty comparisons and drawn on insufficient data to conclude that the program is succeeding in driving down violent crime in cities that have Violent Crime Impact Teams, inspector general Glenn A. Fine said in a report...

...Attorney General Alberto Gonzales also has been enthusiastic in his praise of the anti-crime teams, which were created in 15 cities in 2004. There are now 23 at a cost of $20 million this year. The Justice Department is proposing to spend $35.7 million to have teams in 40 cities in 2007.

Announcing the newest team in Atlanta in March, Gonzales said gun crimes dropped almost immediately in the other 22 cities. "We know this program works ... Almost across the board, gun crimes have been reduced in those areas where VCIT has built upon the successes of the President's Project Safe Neighborhoods program," he said.

Yet Fine said his auditors have seen erratic use of statistics and he questioned why the agency looked only at homicides instead of all violent crimes committed with guns. For eight of the original 15 cities, ATF reported city-wide data on homicides, rather than just the parts of the city where the anti-crime teams were working.

A startling 50 percent decrease in homicides in Albuquerque, N.M., actually reflected a drop from four to two, a small change that makes "it difficult to draw conclusions about the effectiveness of the VCIT initiative," Fine said.

Inspector General Fine is calling on the BATFE to come up with a better way to assess the program, develop more standards for it and work with more federal law enforcement agencies in the affected areas.

The anti-crime teams operate in these cities: Albuquerque, N.M.; Atlanta, Baltimore; Baton Rouge, La.; Camden, N.J., Chattanooga, Tenn.; Columbus, Ohio; Fresno, Calif.; Greensboro, N.C.; Hartford, Conn.; Houston; Laredo, Texas; Las Vegas; Los Angeles; Miami; New Orleans; Pittsburgh; Philadelphia; Richmond, Va.; Tampa, Fla.; Tucson, Ariz.; Tulsa, Okla.; and the Washington, D.C.-Northern Virginia region.

By Howard Nemerov

The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence recently published a paper claiming that the federal government is not enforcing federal gun laws because of a conspiracy of collusion between the Bush administration and the “gun lobby.”

Brady also claims that the NRA used its lobbying muscle to force the ATF to stop performing traces on guns involved in crime that are recovered by law enforcement. The purpose of tracing is to enable law enforcement to “quickly determine the origin of crime guns.” Brady also complains that Congress prohibits “ATF from obtaining sales records from gun dealers and centralizing them” and that the Brady Law has been compromised, requiring the government to destroy all “information on the approved purchaser” after the sale is approved.

Brady disapproves of the fact that after a buyer has been determined to be a law-abiding citizen, the government does not keep track of their personal information. To do what Brady wants requires creating a gun registry.

Click here to read Nemerov's complete analysis at ChronWatch.com.

5 May 2006
Jamestown, OH

The Honorable Bob Taft
Governor, State of Ohio

Dear Governor Taft:

I am writing to request your help with the election of Republican leadership in the November 2006 election.

I am a member of the Greene County Republican Central Committee. I am active in various sportsmen, Second Amendment, and self-defense issues. As a member of the Greene County Central Committee, I work to bring these issues to the attention of our Republican leaders and to represent Republican leaders to the sportsmen organizations.

I worked to bring the Buckeye Firearms Association and NRA, into the fight against the State Issues 2 through 5 last November. My support can be verified through the office of State Representative Kevin DeWine. I also worked with Buckeye Firearms Association and the US Sportsmen Alliance on the Apprentice Hunting License legislation.

The November 2006 elections present some special challenges for our Republican candidates. The Democrats are putting forth some unusually strong pro-gun candidates in their statewide slate. They have served notice that the pro-self defense and pro-Second Amendment vote is no longer guaranteed to the Republican Party.

Click on 'Read More' for the entire letter.

(Originally posted by the Cincinnati Enquirer and on this website July 25, 2003)

Ohio Moments
Soldiers fined 50 cents for lack of weaponry

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On July 25, 1788, the first Ohio law to establish and regulate a militia was published in Marietta. It mandated all men between 16 and 50 perform military duty. They were required to arm themselves with a musket and bayonet, a cartridge box, powder horn, one pound of powder and four pounds of lead. They also were ordered to drill every Sunday.

By November, fines were implemented for those who failed to meet the requirements. For example, a soldier with no musket and bayonet had to pay 50 cents. Those who failed to show up for drill were fined 25 cents. Refusing guard duty cost them $1. And failure to serve in case of invasion meant a court-martial.

In 1791, the law changed the day of the weekly drills to Saturday. Those who drilled didn't have to go to church on Sunday. But those who attended church services - with their guns - were exempt from drill.

Buckeye Firearms Assoc. Commentary:
How far we have sunk in Ohio, from a day when all men were not only allowed, but required by law to own firearms. Back then, Ohio law recognized that an armed society was a safer society.

Notice that churches were not legislated as victim zones, but rather that the law gave citizens incentive not only to attend church, but to do so while armed.

In the years that followed, historical record proves many of Ohio's gun control laws were passed with incredibly racist overtones.

The same type of bigotry exists today among those who continue the fight to disarm law-abiding citizens who want to protect themselves, their children, their spouses, their property, and their homeland.

As we remember our fallen heroes today, let us not forget what they died for. Life, liberty, and protecting the rights enumerated in our Constitution, to name a few. In that same spirit of patriotism, we call upon Ohio's legislators to follow through on their Constitutional duty by taking the next step in restoring our God-given rights. We call upon the General Assembly this Memorial Day to pass HB347 and HB541.

The Second Amendment Foundation has issued the following press release, addressing an issue raised on this website by Buckeye Firearms Volunteer Tim Inwood.

BELLEVUE, WA - It looks like ABC News has no problem at all with the appearance of bias, now that they've assigned a reporter who used to work for Handgun Control, Inc. to cover firearms-related stories, the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) said today.

Washington correspondent Jake Tapper once worked for Handgun Control, according to a piece he wrote when he worked for Salon News. His obvious bias greatly alarms SAF founder Alan M. Gottlieb.

"This is the same ABC News that rushed to the air this week to report that Republican House Speaker Denny Hastert is under investigation by the Justice Department, when the Justice Department said he wasn't," Gottlieb noted. "This is the same news network that added George Stephanopoulos, a former top to anti-gun President Bill Clinton. Now they've got a former staffer for an extremist gun control group reporting on firearms issues."

"It is no wonder why so many American citizens believe there is an institutional bias in the national press," Gottlieb continued. "MSNBC's Chris Matthews once worked for anti-gun Congressman Tip O'Neill and wrote speeches for Jimmy Carter. NBC's Tim Russert was chief of staff for anti-gun Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan and was a counselor for Mario Cuomo, an avowed gun prohibitionist. Does anyone see a pattern here?"

SAF urges gun owners to express their disappointment to ABC News by e-mail at: support@abcnews.go.com, or via mail to ABC News, 7 West 66th Street, New York, NY 10023.

"Tapper has an established anti-gun bias, and for a network that claims objectivity, having him report on gun-related stories is insulting," Gottlieb said. "What if he is assigned to cover this summer's conference on global gun control being held at the United Nations? I'm going to be there. Can I expect him to approach this subject with an open mind? His history with Handgun Control, and his writings in Salon tell me his mind is made up."

"Why is it that ABC does not include Tapper's affiliation with a gun control organization in his biographical information," Gottlieb wondered. "Is this to shield the network's bias against guns?"

"The American public wants news, not advocacy," Gottlieb concluded. "We expect factual and fair reporting, not subtle spin or propaganda."

Number of CHLs issued increases over past two quarters

By Jim Irvine

The Ohio Attorney General released the concealed handgun license statistics for the first quarter of 2006 today. Ohio’s sheriff’s issued 5,546 regular licenses and 21 temporary emergency licenses to law-abiding Ohio citizens.

This brings the new total number of licenses issued to 73,692. As expected, the more populous counties continue to rack up the largest numbers, proving that concealed carry is not something only “country folk” are interested in. Not only do urban areas have more people, they have more crime. Each year the data continues to mount, proving that concealed carry is an effective way for average citizens to defend themselves against crime. If you are smaller and weaker than an attacker, it may be the only way to defend your life from a calloused criminal.

The total number of licenses issued is greater than either of the previous two quarters, and larger than the average of the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th quarters in 2005, but less licenses were issued compared to year over year data. The increase in licenses from the previous quarters may be due to the increased interest in concealed carry while the legislature appeared poised to fix major flaws in the law that are common excuses for not obtaining a license. Second quarter numbers last year increased over the first quarter, so it will be interesting to see if the warmer weather brings an increase again this year. Lack of progress of HB347 may dampen interest and offset the expected quarterly increase.
Click on 'Read More' for further details.

As part of a deal to get Ken Blackwell's TEL amendment (see: The Devil is in the Details - Sportsmen Beware of TEL) off of the ballot this November, the legislature worked late into the afternoon on Tuesday to pass a statutory version of the TEL that was purported to have eliminated some of the concerns with the proposed constitutional amendment, which politicos had increasingly come to view as an albatross around the neck of Blackwell's gubernatorial chances.

In doing so, the General Assembly's GOP caucus proved that, when it so desires, it can move legislation at lightning speed. The Columbus Dispatch notes that the House and Senate approved the TEL bill in less than 26 hours. Yet unfortunately for Ohio gun owners, it is apparent after the events of this week (the Senate will adjourn today for the summer) that caucus leaders do not put saving lives in the same category as saving political fortunes.

Click on "Read More' for the full report.

The Cleveland Plain Dealer is reporting that the new home of Ohio trapshooting is nearing completion.

From the story:

[Jack] Fishburn, 72, born and raised in Grafton in Lorain County, agreed last year to invest his time and $1.6 million to create a home for the Ohio State Trapshooting Association (OSTA) at his Cardinal Center Campground. It was needed after the Amateur Trapshooting Association closed its longtime grounds in Vandalia, near Dayton, and moved the prestigious Grand American Trapshooting Tournament to a sparkling new $36 million complex in southern Illinois.

The OSTA has tradition of its own. It is holding the 120th edition of its clay target championships June 20-25. With the Vandalia complex shuttered, the group has scrambled to find a suitable range.

The answer was Fishburn's Cardinal Center Campground bordering I-71 in Marengo, about a half-hour north of downtown Columbus.

The story reports that a long line of 40 trap fields, about a mile of roads, a shooting center, parking and a developed strip for dozens of shooting industry exhibitors are now rising from a Morrow County cornfield, and that Fishburn also refurbished the down-on-its-luck campground he purchased after it had been idle for a decade.

Click on 'Read More' for more.

By Tim Inwood

As many gun owners are aware, the United Nations is starting their Small Arms and Light Weapons conference in New York City this June. This is yet another assault on our gun rights but, for a change, it is not being launched from Washington D.C. or a state capitol. This conference is part of a global effort to take your guns, and it is gaining momentum.

So while the UN sits down in June to do this, Second Amendment defenders will be watching....but who will Americans be watching to report the facts to us? An unbiased reporter who will give it to us straight? Unless you are watching Fox News, probably not. Most especially not if you are watching ABC. That's because the American Broadcasting Corporation added former Salon.com reporter Jake Tapper to their line-up in July 2003, and has been using him to cover firearms-related stories.