From: Lawrence.V.Cipriani@att.com To: chan@shell.portal.com Date: Sat, 20 Jan 96 13:30:39 EST Subject: PROponent - January 1996 The PROponent Peoples Rights Organization 3953 Indianola Ave Columbus, OH 43214 (614) 268-0122 Volume 8 January, 1996 Number 1 [HEADLINE] Dues are DUE! ALL MEMBERS PAY DUES IN JANUARY... January is the month when dues come due for all current or former PRO members. Dues are $16 a year which works out to just $4 a quarter or just about three gun show admissions. Since all PRO members are admitted free to our gun shows, that is quite a bargain. Current PRO dues policy is that all dues for current and former members come due January 1. As an inducement for new members to join, there is a one-time special offer to persons joining PRO during the last quarter of the year (say, at our Gun shows). New members who pay in October, November, or December get a membership card for the coming year. Once you have been a member, however, paying $16 in the last quarter to get in the gun shows will only renew your membership until the end of the year. You will not get the additional year. Moreover, you will have missed staying informed on gun rights issues for most of the year. As a convenience to members, we do allow current members to pay for the following year's dues at our gun shows. A great many have already taken advantage of this and renewed for 1996. So if you have not already paid for 1996, now is the time to do it. PRO is not a rich organization and your dues are used to cover the printing and mailing of the PROponent and various special alerts and voter's guides. PRO's other expenses are covered by gun show profits and other fundraising projects. Thus, your dues are an essential part of keeping you informed about the assault on your rights. Unfortunately, our treasurer, Ron Herman has been complaining about increased printing and mailing expenses so several dues increase options were read into the minutes at November meeting and were to be voted upon in December. However, since that meeting was canceled due to the weather, the vote will now be delayed until the January meeting. Our point is this: Most likely dues will be going to twenty dollars for new members and late renewals. Thus, be sure to pay now to lock yourself into the sixteen dollar dues for at least the upcoming year. If you forget to renew, you will likely be paying the new amount to get reinstated. We are counting on every member to remember to pay. We can't send everyone a bill. Each quarter we might spend sending you a bill is one we could better use defending your rights. Don't think for a moment that our great victory at the polls means this battle is over. We still need you and you still need PRO until "Brady," the "Crime" Bill and each and every repressive piece of anti-gun legislation has been repealed. The promised Republican repeals have been expertly stalled by Shumer and Co. And even though new gun laws have been put on the back burner, these same gun-grabbers are now attaching the Clinton "bullet ban" which would outlaw virtually all hunting ammunition to every bill that comes down the pike. We still need you and you still need to know what's going on so we all can be ready to fight these continuing assaults on our rights. We thank you for being with us this far and ask you to stay with us until the battle is really won. If we lose "the big one" next November, you'll start seeing a gun control push that will make the first two years of Clinton seem like a school picnic. Renew now! And better yet, go out and get a buddy to join as well. We will need every person we can get for the November election. DATES... People keep asking about the dates for upcoming PRO gun shows. Following are the dates for our winter/spring gun shows. January 13-14: Circleville February 3-4: Hilliard February 10-11: Marion March 2-3: Hilliard March 9-10: Springfield March 30-31 Circleville. Remember, you can pick up a PRO Gun Show Schedule card at any of our gun shows if you lose this list. CRIMES AS URBAN LEGEND... You hear it over and over in the media. Violent crime is increasing everywhere. Here is a perfect example taken from the pen of Cowtown's own aging hippie, columnist Irv Oslin of the Columbus Guardian. As an aside, we should note that the Guardian seems to have given up it's recent foray into honest journalism as evidenced by their exclusive coverage of the local militia movement while other papers ignored it and returned to their liberal roots. Anyway, Irv recently wrote: "You've probably heard by now that crime is no longer just an urban problem. More and more, people who live in once peaceful agricultural communities are falling victim to theft, arson, assault, and even murder." We presume that the motor behind this urban legend of "increasing crime" is the implied argument that since guns are the "cause" of crime, gathering them up is the "solution." But is really true that violent crime is on the increase or is it just one more case of media "alligators living in the sewers"? Sorry, it's alligators! A recent Columbus Dispatch article noted that Columbus police figures show homicide to be the lowest in seven years. There were 78 murders investigated in 1995 compared to the all-time high of 139 in 1991. Looking at the chart showing the number of homicides by year you observe a steady rise after the passage of the Kennedy-Rinehart "assault weapon" ban to the all-time high then a slow decline back to the same level. Sure we are tempted to play the same media games by attributing the rise in murders to "gun control", but the truth is that the murder rate doubtless has much to do with drugs and little to do with honest gun owners. If one understands that the large rise occurred when rival gangs were competing for drug turf in this city and the decline came after the gang "summits" where they agreed among themselves to tone down the violence to take some of the heat off, then the chart makes perfect sense. This drug connection is confirmed by police. "It's tougher to solve homicides now that it was 10 or 15 years ago, said police homicide supervisor Lt. Ralph Casto. "we see more drug-related homicides as opposed to domestic-type homicides." "And when you deal with narcotics-related homicides, it's always more difficult to get cooperation." Furthermore, the latest FBI figures showed a 1% drop in overall crime and a 5% drop in violent crime. And the large cities the drop was phenomenal. Murders were down 17% in cities of over a million. And in New York city which is the number two city (Miami is first) for violent crime, murders were down a whopping 31% and Chicago dropped almost 19% So we are led to the conclusion that the "increasing crime" story is little more than media fabrication with a purpose of furthering a "gun control" agenda as well as make a "good story". But PRO is here to dig a little deeper. What exactly is the true crime picture? How would one find out? Some answers can be found in the August 1995 issue of American Demographics. And if you read the article there on "True Crime" you find out something very interesting about all the media crime figures you've been hearing for years. The media always report police figures. But police figures are only one estimation of "true crime". The article notes, "...the United States keeps two sets of books on crime. One, the FBI's Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) is an annual collection of 16,000 communities across the country... The second data set on crime is the Justice Department's national survey of households, called the National Crime Victimization Survey. In this survey, interviewers ask respondents whether anyone in the household has been a crime victim in the past year." So while police and media are screaming about crime increasing "out of control" there is something missing from that picture. The missing link is that nobody is asking what percentage of crime actually gets reported to police and has that percentage changed over the years. If you take police figures comparing reported crime from 1974 to 1992 you get the standard media story. Rape up 63.4%, Robbery up 25.9%, aggravated assault up 104.7%. Only burglary shows a decrease of 18.7%. Everywhere violence is skyrocketing and nobody is safe anymore. But if you go by the Bureau of Justice Statistics numbers and compare the good old happy crime-free days of 1974 with 1992 you discover that crime is actually LOWER in 1992 in all categories except motor vehicle theft. For example: Rape 30% lower; robbery 17.3% lower; aggravated assault 13.8% lower and burglary a whopping 47.5% lower! And if you assume that the recent decline in police figures are also reflected in what victims say, we can expect a phenomenal true decrease in violent crime. But there is no doubt the media fear-mongers will still be using the fear-of-violence tactic in spite of there not being a shred of evidence to support it. It's all politics as usual. But let's try to get a little better handle on what is going on. Why is it that police reports show a great increase while asking households if they have been victimized shows crime going down? Once again the whole crime issue centers upon minorities and the role they have in our society. It is no secret that much crime is black on black crime. Gun grabbers like to point to Europe as an idyllic gun-free environment, but the truth is that the crime rate for whites in this country is little different from the rates for the lily-white European countries. It's no secret that much of the murder rate is related to black and Hispanic gangs and the drug business in those neighborhoods. It's also no secret that much of the despair in those communities that leads people to turn to drugs and drug selling as an escape can be traced to government policies that even today do not give minorities the even break that the constitution demands for ALL Americans. I understand the discrepancy in the crime figures, because I remember how it was. When I was growing up in Cleveland Ohio, every night the police would haul a couple of bodies off the streets. But you'd never read about it in the papers. Ask a cop about the previous night, and he'd more than likely say, "It was just a couple of dead niggers." In those days, you had this double standard. There was "official" crime figures which meant crime with white victims and then there was the "off the books" crime which was black on black crime. But the civil rights movement changed that. Blacks and other minorities began to demand that America live up to it's creed. And as segregation ended in washrooms it also ended in crime statistics. The obvious result was that as time went on the number of crimes reported to police began to grow closer and closer to "true crime" which are the figures you get if you just ask people at random if they have been victims in the past year. But as the baby boomers turn 50, they have become very susceptible to the media lies. Ask any Americans if crime is increasing and a majority will say it is, but at the same time 61% will say that they feel "very safe" in their own neighborhoods. In other words, they are convinced that there is a crime wave, but not where they live. American Demographics summed it up this way: "There is some evidence that the public's fear of crime is driven by a burgeoning population of parents and the crime-crazy media, but not by the facts." Amen! But there is little chance that media fear mongering will change soon. One problem is that the vast majority of violent crime victims are under 24 years of age, while their baby-boomer parents aged 35-54 will comprise fully 40% of the population by the year 2000. It is this older group that worries most about crime, buys dogs, locks, alarms or guns for protection. Obviously they are the group most easily stampeded by fear of increasing crime. And despite our best efforts to date, which are already showing that locking up criminals really works, crime will probably increase over the next decade for demographic reasons alone. Since most criminals and crime victims are aged 15-24, the fact that this particular group will increase by 14% by the year 2005 will tend to fuel an increase in both crimes and the fear experienced by the parents of the young victims. This coupled with a much less than honest press fanning the flames, will certainly result in much more pressure to enact gun-control laws. What with the way pollsters have always played footsie with the anti-gunners, we would have been surprised if this article had not included an anti-gun message. We weren't surprised. The article in looking (no doubt wishfully) to the future predicted: "The gun lobby will lose power as an older, educated public demands reasonable compromise in the gun control debate." Hmmm, "reasonable compromise", where have we heard that before? But our view is quite the opposite. The demographics of increased numbers of youth are unarguable, but what has happened so far is that the "get tough" programs promoted by the NRA and others are already bearing fruit. Sure the number of people in jails is appalling and shameful, but not nearly as appalling as that many professional criminals loose on the streets and not nearly as shameful as the economic and educational policies of our government that have left so many with so little hope and so few morals that they turn to crime. It's true many baby-boomer parents are worried about crime, but what we see is not a turning to the lies of Sarah Brady, but rather enrollment in PRO's gun classes! What's so ironic here is that while the media lied about crime to scare the public into demanding "gun control", the demographics of the situation have caused the opposite effect, inducing the older baby-boomer parents to buy alarms and take our firearm classes. The media lies have driven these law-abiding people right into our camp! PRYCE PLANS TOWN MEETINGS... I'm sure you know that the NRA has been trying to discover the time and place of town meetings planned by a number of turn-coat politicians. The Columbus area U.S. Representative, Deborah Pryce (R-12) is one of those who have been keeping town meeting plans secret from pro-gunners. And with good reason. After using pro-gun help to get elected as well as returning again and again to the coffers of our PAC for donations, she sold out. She and John Kasich (R-15) provided the last two votes to put the "assault weapon" and magazine ban over the top. They both seem to think that insider promises are more important than all our votes. But they both know they are guilty as sin. That's why they are afraid to have any public town meeting announcements. They both know the NRA will be there with bells on asking the tough questions. So while the NRA has been unable to obtain any information from these politicians about planned town meetings, PRO, as usual, has picked up the trail. We are informed that Deborah Pryce plans to have three town meetings at various locations on January 22. Final locations and times have not yet been announced, but you can obtain further information by calling (614) 469-5614 as the time draws near. We would also suggest that you periodically call John Kasich's number (614) 523-2505 and ask if he is planning any town meetings in the near future. PLAN NOW TO ATTEND THE CENTRAL OHIO FRIENDS OF THE NRA DINNER... Dear Friend of the NRA: Last year you helped to make the Central Ohio Friends of the NRA a successful event. Through your participation, we raised revenue over 100% and attendance by 40% over 1994's event. Thank you. Our next event will be on March 26, 1996 at the Villa Milano Restaurant in Columbus, Ohio. The price for the prime rib dinner is still $25.00 for an evening of camaraderie and fun with fellow gun owners. This year, along with our advance ticket sales, we are seeking underwriters for the Central Ohio Friends of NRA event. With a $10.00 donation, you will have your name printed in the back of the event program. Business cards can also be put into the program for a $25.00 donation. In order to make the event less crowded, we are limiting tables to eight persons-per-table. This will give you more room to enjoy your dinner and the various auctions occurring during the evening festivities. If you had a table last year, please confirm with Pam Sheets at 447-1229 that you wish your table for this years event by March 1, 1996. As in any charity event, we are always looking for contributions of goods and services. They do not have to be firearm or hunting related. Free tax preparation, transmission tune-up, free meals at any type of restaurant and oil changes are valuable donations. Best of all, all donations are tax deductible. Those of you responding with your paid ticket reservations before March 1, 1996 will be entered into a special drawing for a firearm. Remember, this is for early bird reservations only. Christmas and the holiday season is right around the corner, and we all need that extra little gift for that some-one special in our lives. Why not put a ticket to the Central Ohio Friends of the NRA banquet in their stocking this year? Last year, the NRA Foundation funds went towards the purchase of firearms for the Four-H shooting programs, the purchase of Eddie Eagle materials, range development and for conservation projects in Ohio. I would like to thank you for your support last year and am looking forward to seeing you again this year at the March 26, 1996, Central Ohio Friends of the NRA dinner. Sincerely, Dennis Walker Chairman Registration Form for the March 26, 1996, Central Ohio Friends of the NRA Name_______________________________________________ Address____________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ City__________________________State______Zip_________ Phone___-___-____ Number of Tickets at $25.00___________________ I would like to reserve a table. Yes_____ No_____ I would like to have my name listed in the program for $10.00. Yes_____ No_____ I would like to have my business card listed in the program for $25.00. Yes_____ No_____ All names and cards must be in by March 1, 1996. Thank you. Credit Card: MC___AE___DIS___VISA___ Exp. Date______________ Card number:________________________________________ Signature: ____________________________________________ Total Amount:$_______________________________ I cannot attend this year's event, but I would like to make a tax-deductible donation. $25.00 $50.000 $100.00 Checks should be made out to: Central Ohio Friends of the NRA. Please send all replies to: Central Ohio Friends of the NRA C/O PRO 3953 Indianola Ave. Columbus, Ohio 43214 614-268-0122 Thank you. [Advertisement for PRO Outdoor Sports Political Conference] BULLETS NEVER COME DOWN... PRO has noticed that people in the Middle East seem to have this theory that once the bullets go up, they never come down. Time and again we have seen news footage of Saddam Hussein or others firing wildly into the air to "celebrate". The NRA "Golden Rule" is "Always keep your muzzle pointed in a safe direction!" Sorry, but "up" is not automatically a safe direction. We have a modest example to report. The December 27, 1995 London Daily Mail reports on an incident in a Copenhagen restaurant, where a wedding guest killed two people and wounded nine others when he fired into the "air" and the bullets bounced off a concrete ceiling! "A wedding guest who fired into the air in celebration killed two people and wounded nine others when the shots ricocheted off a concrete ceiling." "Twelve bullets were let off in the Copenhagen restaurant in a traditional finale to a Turkish wedding. But two women, aged 42 and 20, were hit in the head and died. A man was in critical condition yesterday while the other victims were wounded in the arms, shoulders or upper torso." "The drama was filmed by an amateur video photographer, who captured 36-year old Mecit Bas producing a 9mm pistol. Applause by guests who thought the shots were fireworks turned to screams as people fell wounded. The restaurant owner said of Bas: 'He wanted to show off.' On the video, a man is seen running up to Bas and taking the pistol from him." "Next day, he went to police with his lawyer and was charged with malicious mischief which placed human life in danger and negligent manslaughter." Unlike the gun prohibitionists who are always defending the stupid things people on their side do, PRO never defends the stupid things ignorant people do with firearms. When a gun owner not only doesn't follow the rules of firearm safety, but doesn't even use common sense, PRO says, "throw the book at them!" Even when local prosecutors asked PRO's advice in a local case of firearm stupidity, it turned out that our advice was far less lenient than the way the case was finally prosecuted. As we see it, every stupid accident provides just that much more fodder for the gun grabbers. Unsafe acts with guns not only endangers the people around you, but also helps give the other side ammunition that endangers ALL our guns. So, ALWAYS KEEP YOUR MUZZLE POINTED IN A SAFE DIRECTION and remember to THINK FIRST about which direction is really safe! TANDY LOVES BIG BROTHER... A fax from Gun Owners of America came too late to stop PRO from spending $210.10 at a Radio Shack store to service our two-way radios. We won't make the mistake of going back their again. Apple Computers new ad for the Macintosh computers is also anti-gun. During the Monday Night Football game of Dec. 18, 1996, Apple ran an ad depicting children from all over the world saying what they would do to make the world a better place. One said that they would throw away all guns. Gun Owners of America received a fax of a pamphlet entitled "How Can I Help Stop the Violence?" The sponsors of this pamphlet were: National Crime Prevention Council, the National Sheriff's Association and Radio Shack. Suggestions include: * Launch a public education campaign to raise awareness of the dangers of firearms and of the risks of keeping a gun in the home; * Report stolen weapons and CARRY AND USE VIOLATIONS to the police or sheriffs department; * Ask local officials to advocate a variety of ways to prevent handgun violence such as increasing local regulation of those with Federal Firearm Licenses, consumer-protection regulations governing manufacture, taxes on ammunition, bans on assault weapons, gun turn-in day, and liability legislation. (The entire Handgun Control, Inc. agenda.) GOA suggests the following steps: 1) Don't buy anything from Radio Shack. If you pass one while shopping, stop in and tell the owner why you won't be spending money there. 2) If you have brought a product from Radio Shack, or have brought an Apple Computer, take it back to the store ASAP. Get your money back and keep a copy of your receipt. Send it to the headquarters and explain that you are not going to support a business that is working to undermine your Second Amendment rights.Here are the addresses of Tandy and Apple Computers: PRO has long noticed the slow drift of Tandy toward the New World Order view of things. If you doubt this, just try to buy something with cash at a Radio Shack store without giving them your name. The last time I did this I not only got a big argument but eventually when I adamantly refused the clerk yelled at this editor that I "had no Christmas Spirit"! Another example is the Tandy Corporation's new Incredible Universe stores. These opened with a policy whereby they wouldn't even let you in the store if you didn't cough up your name and address! PRO says its a wonder they didn't also demand your "citizen ID number." At Tandy they not only support Big Brother, they LOVE Big Brother. Tandy Corporation Apple Computer, Inc. Chairman John V. Roach Chairman Mark Markkula One Tandy Center 20525 Mariani Drive Ft. Worth, Texas 76102 Cupertino, CA 95014 ph: 817-390-3700 ph: 408-996-1010 fax: 817-390-2774. LETTERS...DEAR PRO... [The following letter was sent in by a PRO member who asked that his name and address be withheld. The editors of the PROponent are honoring his request.] Dear PRO: I wish to make your readership aware of the friend we have in the office of the Franklin County Prosecutor, Attorney Michael Miller. I have recently spoken with him and members of his staff concerning my interest in having three rifle suppressors(a.k.a. silencers) legally transferred to my possession. Since suppressors (as well as machine guns, short barreled guns, and destructive devices) are regulated by the BATF under the National Firearms Act of 1934, the transferee must submit to being photographed, finger-printed, and receive the certification of a chief law enforcement officer in their area of jurisdiction. This certification can be performed by either the Chief of Police, the Head of the State Police, the Sheriff, or your State or Local District or Prosecuting Attorney. As I set about completing these tasks for my suppressors, I learned that Attorney Miller was the only authority acceptable by the BATF who willingly performs NFA transfers for residents of the City of Columbus. After calling his office and introducing myself to him with a faxed letter, he obliged my request in a very polite and efficient manner. Considering that Attorney Miller has announced his intention to retire from office at the end of 1996 after 16 years of service, we should express our appreciation to him for his willingness to handle these certifications. With equal enthusiasm, we should also admonish those authorities who decline this work or even share the burden of these requests with Attorney Miller's office. I very much enjoy reading the PROponent. Thank you for your efforts to educate and inspire The People. Sincerely, PRO Member [Editor's Note: Thank you for such an informative letter. Hopefully, other readers will avail themselves of District Attorney Miller's willingness to sign the NFA papers. Best guess at the moment is that City Attorney Ron O'Brien will try for Miller's position in the 1996 election.] OPEN LETTER TO LISA GRIFFIN, WHY YOU LOST... Dear Ms. Griffin: 1) The NRA was established by a group of OHIO Union Army Officers in 1871, reacting to the pitiful ignorance in the use of firearms displayed by recruits in the Civil War. The United States Department of Civilian marksmanship, the United States Army, and the National Rifle Association sponsor the internationally famous Camp Perry Rifle and Pistol Matches in Port Clinton every year. A legacy to the foresight of NRA member Teddy Roosevelt. 2) Jeanne Bray, a deceased Columbus Police Officer and renowned pistol shooter, was on the National NRA Board of Directors. A scholarship is awarded each year for a child of a Columbus Police Officer in her name. 3) Sergeant Jimmy Smith and his staff at the Columbus Police range on McKinley Avenue are Lifetime NRA Members. Columbus Police Academy candidates are all trained by NRA certified instructors, on NRA approved facilities, on official NRA targets and course instruction. 4) Joe Foss, former President of the NRA, was the most decorated Ace in World War II and a Silver Star winner. NRA members and staff have an unblemished record of serving the U.S.A. for over 120 years. 5) Therefore, your TV commercials depicting a headless individual firing a Glock pistol at the audience blatantly displayed your Abysmal ignorance of the history and tradition of the Republic of the United States and the proud record of the NRA and all its members, living and dead. You've been deceived by the mendacious mantra or those anti-gun hystericals who are misreading the mood of the American people. 41 States now have a concealed carry permit and citizens of this Nation are returning to that spirit of independence and self-reliance that's made this country great. People such as yourself, that are so easily manipulated by misinformation, reflects your ignorance of the history of our Republic and you should be precluded from holding public office. 6) F.O.P.? Only the leadership supported you, not the rank and file members. Besides, the F.O.P. doesn't represent a significant block of voters anyway...at least not for you. So, you'll melt into political obscurity where those of your ilk belong. Welcome to the Lee Fisher Club! Regards, P.R. Lucas (PRO Historian) [Editor's Comment: Former mayor Rinehart spoke to Then appointed Council member John Kennedy about enacting city legislation banning semi-automatic firearms. During hearings on the bill, Griffin was the only one who could intelligently answer questions concerning the pending legislation. Other rumors have also surfaced that she was the writer of the semi-auto ban. Griffin also said that she would diligently work to have the CC issue put on the ballot through a referendum drive. Petty bureaucrats and fired politicians can be extremely damaging to our cause. If you hear about Griffin becoming in such activities, please call the PRO Hotline.] DEAR PRO... [The editors were scrounging around in our files looking for things to put in this issue and discovered an old letter that slipped through the cracks in the last couple of issues.] Dear PRO: As a staunch defender of the right to bear arms, I was delighted to find PRO's September 1995 newsletter online. I haven't been this excited about journalism, since I discovered Rush Limbaugh's radio show. Keep up the good work. Sincerely, Joseph Benning [Editors: We love fan mail like this, and though we don't regard Rush Limbaugh as a "staunch supporter" of the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, we will take what support he gives us. In spite of what we consider to be his rather "moderate" approach, we MOST DEFINITELY would not want him on the gun-grabbing side of this issue. I guess what we are saying is that we are not quite as exited about Rush as Mr. Benning, but thanks for putting us in the same class! And speaking of Rush Limbaugh, we were over at the bookstore and happened to peruse an issue of "Flush Rush" put out by the ultra-liberal crew. It was laughable. They went on and on about Rush's alleged "staunch" opposition to "gun control" and then "proved" he was "wrong" by going right to the source of "truth" on firearm statistics...Handgun Control Inc. And there it all was. The "35%" of crime committed with "assault weapons", the way the "Brady" bill stopped "thousands of people" (wrongly) from buying guns and all the rest of the gun control "success" story. I'd go on but my quotes key is overheating from all the HCI propaganda. It sure convinced us that "Rush is wrong"... NOT!] ____________________________________________________________ "To compel a man to furnish funds for the propagation of ideas he disbelieves and abhors is sinful and tyrannical." Thomas Jefferson ____________________________________________________________ THE FOP ON CONCEALED CARRY... Recently, WTVN-610 AM radio had a gentleman from the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS), PRO's Ron Herman, a representative from Handgun Control in Washington, D.C. and Mike Tanner, local Fraternal Order of Police union leader on the air. The gentleman from Austin did an excellent job talking about their registration process for concealed carry (CC). Texas expects 1% of their population to get the CC permits. This would equal 180,000 people. Ron Herman spoke about the Ohio concealed carry and did an excellent job also. We won't speak of the baloney that the HCI person spewed out. Tanner followed, and gave out a number, 614-221-0180, to request FOP union information concerning CC in Ohio. Being an enterprising person, I called the union offices and requested the information. Following is a copy of the letter sent out by the Fraternal Order of Police union. Capitol City Lodge #9 Position Statement SB68 "The position of our organization is not in opposition to citizens second amendment rights to bear arms. It is a position that comes from an "on -the - street police officer" point of view. First and foremost our position is officer safety. "While we realize that the idea of permits is a probability, the current language in SB68 is what we a re opposed to. "Our position is that if a citizen undergoes the same training, qualifications and restrictions as law enforcement officers, we would have no problems with them being permitted to carry the weapon they are qualified to carry. The language in SB68 does not require this as the provisions are too loose and vague. For instance, if a person qualifies with a 38 caliber revolver, then their permit should indicate this. If found carrying another make of weapon and not having qualified then they would be in violation. "Furthermore, our society has yet to sensitize and educate its population about violence and how to resolve conflict through nonviolent means, or how to resolve conflict within oneself. Why do we want to provide the vehicle for resolving the conflict with a deadly weapon? "Texas received 171,000 applications from citizens who want to carry concealed weapons. "The passage of a concealed carry law produces the following: a) increase in the manufacture and sale of firearms, b) increase the risk that more firearms may be stolen from autos, c) increases the risk that firearms would be improperly handled or accident discharged, d)increases the risk that people would be robbed (purse snatched) and their firearm be taken. "This organization remains committed to the community policing concept which dictates community involvement on issues which affect them. "Representing over 3,400 law enforcement officers in Franklin County." Let's attack this "position statement" from the police union point by point. First of all, officer safety would be enhanced due to the effects of people carrying concealed firearms. Criminals would be afraid to ply their trade in Ohio and move elsewhere. This would mean that the police would not have to face as many dangerous criminals, and their jobs would be safer. Though we disagree for different reasons, we agree with the FOP union that the language in SB 68 is bad. The union wants it stricter, and we want it looser. We are not cops, nor are we military. We do not need the intensive training that these organizations do. We are not going to do battle with foreign troops, nor are we going to clear drug houses with black-clad swat teams. We want to use firearms to protect ourselves when shopping, going to the ATM machine, or any place else that there is not a police officer when you need one. Furthermore, for purposes of self-defense, the vast majority of those carrying any type of firearm will be proficient in its use, whether they "qualified" with that firearm or not. And what about the person that has a firearm malfunction and needs to have it repaired? Are they to go defenseless until it is fixed, or should they carry another firearm in its stead? Those that want to carry a concealed firearm do so to protect themselves from predatory criminals, not arguments with strangers. An interesting aside is needed here. How does the FOP union propose to teach conflict resolution to us when they can't control their own ranks. How many times in the past six months have Columbus officers been involved in assaults, batteries and thefts? Too many times. What does the number of people applying for CC permits have to do with anything? Tanner failed to note the number of Florida permits requested and granted. There is no statistical data to uphold the FOP union claim that more guns will be manufactured and sold. The only reason that more firearms may be stolen from autos is the asinine provisions denying people the right to carry their concealed firearms into hospitals, ball-games, government buildings and restaurants. If you force people to leave guns in their cars, then yes, they may be stolen. In order to obtain a CC permit, a person will have to undergo at least a Hunter Education course or a NRA certified firearm course. Training is not the answer. Attitude is. How many police officers have discharged a firearm while cleaning it? We are already being robbed, beaten and killed for our purses and wallets. If a criminal knows that a person has the means to effectively resist, then the risk of people being robbed will decline. SB 68 will affect police officers, but in a positive way. It will make the streets safer from predatory criminals. It will decrease rapes, as it did in Florida. Police just won't be historians. They will be able to become more active in productive anti-criminal efforts. It is the people and legislatures of our country that enact legislation that they feel is needed or necessary. It is the duty of the judicial system (police and judges) to enforce those laws. If we let the judicial system dictate our laws, then our country is indeed in perilous times. There are over 9,000 NRA members in Franklin County. Who has more clout? Unfortunately, the FOP seems to, because we cannot unite to vote against those who wish to deny us our constitutionally protected freedoms! THINK 1996... Speaking of volunteers, let's look back at the recent defeat of Lisa Griffin. In all honesty, PRO did very little to help her get defeated. We only covered two precincts with lit drops and put up 200 yard signs. Citizens Against Crime endorsed the winning candidate, Peggy Fisher, over Griffin. Griffin attacked Fisher due to support by Citizens Against Crime and the NRA. We need to do more in 1996 to retain the advantages that were gained in 1994. This election year is crucial to gun owners in Ohio and throughout the USA. We must create a liberal-proof Congress in Washington, Ohio and all the other states. This means that you will have to help in the upcoming campaigns. Several of our friends are facing multiple opponents or facing new challenges in efforts to gain new positions. Amy Salerno and Bill Schuck are just two. Please plan on volunteering several hours a month in 1996 to protect your Second Amendment rights. Start now thinking about how you will contribute to the 1996 efforts. UPCOMING PRO EVENTS... People have been asking about various planed PRO events so here is a partial list for next year. Following are the dates for PRO Meetings for 1996. January 22, Nominations. February 20, Elections. March 19 April 23 May 21 June 18 July 23 August 20 September 24 October 22 November 19 December 17 All PRO General meetings are held at Veteran's Memorial in rooms 206-207. General meetings are held on the third Tuesday of the month, and begin at 8:00pm. PRO board meetings are held the same days and begin at 6:30pm. PRO members are welcome to attend all PRO board meetings. The January and February PRO meetings are extremely important to our membership. These are the months that our candidates for officers are nominated and then elected. If you want to have a voice in your organization, you must attend both meetings. NRA Classes: The only firmly scheduled Personal Protection with Pistol(PPP) class is January. Those dates are the 17-18, and 24-25. The first two nights start at 7:00 pm and end at 10:00 pm, or when students are done asking questions. The second two nights begin at 6:00 pm and end at 10:00 pm. Classes are held at the PRO offices at 3953 Indianola Ave., just south of Cook Road in Columbus. Range night is held in Grove City. Maps will be given out in class. Other PPP will be held on Feb. 14-15, 21-22, March 20-21, 27-28, April 17-18, 24-25, May 15-16, 22-23 and June 19-20, 26-27. Call Ron Herman at 846-0597 to confirm dates and times. All PPP classes cost $50.00 and ammunition is extra. NRA courses on becoming instructors will be held in March and July. The class will be held on March 8-9-10. Plan on being gone the whole weekend. These classes will cost $150 or less. Down payment is required, plus a demonstration of your shooting ability. Call 846-0597 to register and confirm dates. Remember, the fourth Thursday of every month is open range night for students and PRO members at the range in Grove City. Cost is $10 for the evening. Range is open from 6 pm until 10 pm. COFNRA: Central Ohio Friends of the NRA meetings are as follows: January 22, February 19, March 4 & 18. Meetings are at the PRO office at 7:00 pm. We still need more volunteers to help put on the event. Call 268-0122 to volunteer. The third banquet will be held on March 26, 1996 and starts at 6:00 pm. See article concerning banquet elsewhere in this issue. Ohio Deer and Turkey Expo: March 15, 16 & 17. The Expo is held at the Ohio State Fairgrounds. PRO passes out NRA literature, Eddie Eagle material, PROponents and raffles off a firearm. Call the PRO HOTLINE, 268-0122 to volunteer. Ohio Outdoor Sports Political Seminar: March 23-24. See letter elsewhere in this issue. To be added to the above dates are lit drops, envelope stuffing, speaking engagements and various and sundry other projects PRO is developing for next year. We are all volunteers. It takes everyone's help. It take YOUR help! HOW MUCH IS YOUR LIFE WORTH? How much is your life worth? Or that of your wife? Or your Children? How about ten thousand dollars? This is what Congressman Carlos J. Moorhead (R-CA) thinks. He has sponsored HR 1446, entitled "Law Enforcement Officers Civil Liability Act of 1995" which like most modern legislation is named exactly the opposite of what it really does. "LEO liability ducking act" would be a more appropriate title. HR 1446, which has already gone through hearings in a House subcommittee, would: * Establish such a high level of proof for awarding punitive damages in the case of police misconduct that it would be virtually impossible for juries to impose them. * Limit punitive damages against police (and that means all federal, state, and local law enforcement officials) to $10,000 maximum. * Limit lawyer compensation for winning clients to one third of the maximum award, without setting any limits on the amount of money police departments can spend defending these cases. Think about it. This is just one more step toward an American Gestapo. Just look at the direction law enforcement is going in this country. Clinton and his pals are pushing hard to federalize all crimes and all police. Right now many police dress as masked black-clad ninja toting machine guns filled with "cop-killer" vest piercing bullets. They apparently are wearing ski masks for same reason bank robbers do; So they can commit crimes of violence without fear of identification. You know, there is a law in this land that say it is a crime for any government employee to deny any citizen their constitutional rights. But even though congressional hearings concluded that the FBI had unconstitutionally violated the rights of Randy and Vicki Weaver when they declared open hunting season on them at Ruby Ridge, there has been no movement toward prosecution of these crimes, let alone bringing charges of murder against sniper, Lon Horiuchi. But this is to be expected. Bureaucrats always cover for each other. A good bureaucrat can drag his/her feet until everyone is finally glad to see the matter dropped. Therefore, there is little doubt that the 3.5 million dollars the government paid Mr. Weaver and his children in the suit over FBI behavior during the siege is probably the most justice they can ever expect. Seeing the government use OUR tax dollars to pay off the victims of out-of-control law enforcement agents is probably the most justice ANY of us will ever witness in this case. But now HR 1446 proposes to limit punitive damages to $10,000. So if the ATF ninja bust in your door and spray your family with submachine gun fire, the survivors can expect no more than ten grand a dead family member. And your lawyer can collect no more than $3,300 per each! Considering the government's refusal to prosecute police who commit murder, we'd say 3.5 million isn't much of a proper deterrent to government agents out of control, but these new limits would simply be a tiny added "cost of doing business". Add to this limiting lawyer fees to what in many cases would be below the minimum wage, and you have just written a blank check to rogue law enforcement officers to shoot anyone, to kill anyone, to beat anyone senseless, they please. They will know that even if caught, they will never be tried and if tried the damages can come out of the coffee fund. PRO has noted for some time that we all have to keep an eye on our friends as well as the other side. Representative Moorhead is a conservative republican who voted against "Brady", and while "Brady" was a pain in the butt to gun buyers, it was at least not a free ride for the government to commit crimes against citizens. PRO is as appalled with nonsense civil suits granting outrageous awards for silly acts as anyone, but this bill is clearly not aimed at that problem. With the Clinton administration increasingly trying to bring local police under federal control, using the army to provide training and equipment to law enforcement and the Crime Bill directly funding payrolls, this bill is exactly the wrong message to be sending police. Voice your opposition to HR 1446! ____________________________________________________________ "No man escapes when freedom fails; the best men rot in filthy jails. And those that cried Appease! Appease! are hanged by those they tried to please!" Author Unknown. The above quote was gratefully stolen from the Mahoning Valley Patriots newsletter, Volume 2, Issue 5, Jan/Feb 1996. ____________________________________________________________ ASSAULT ON THE INTERNET... The people behind the New World Order plans have done something they rarely do, they grossly underestimated the common citizen. They actually began to believe their own press releases saying that pro-gunners are stupid, oafish, inbred, retards that really need the elitists to act as a "big bother" to keep us from hurting ourselves. But the truth is that rather than having sex with close relatives, we got on the INTERNET, figured out how it worked and began exploiting the one last area of true free speech to our own advantage. It blind-sided them. Whoa! Rednecks into high tech! They never expected it. And it's even more critical than you think. You see, their dreams of a totalitarian socialist state are not just for the United States but encompass a WORLD government. Imagine their panic when they suddenly discovered there was a FREE SPEECH channel open not only in the U.S. but throughout the world! PRO does support world government and a "New World Order". But ours is not their idea of world government. Imagine if you will, if we took the ideas of our Founding Fathers, the Bill of Rights, a constitutional republic, the retaining of all inalienable rights by the people unless granted to the world government and expanded those concepts throughout the earth. The Right to Keep and Bear Arms for EVERYONE in the world! Imagine border between countries being like our present borders between states. Freedom! Real Freedom for all the people in the world. What a renaissance for the planet THAT would be. The Third World peoples wouldn't have to immigrate here to find the promised land, they would already be part of it. But elitists are panicked at the idea of a free speech channel for their subjects. So the assault upon cyberspace is on. The excuse is child pornography. And despite the fact that there is virtually none on the INTERNET, the owned media has reached down and turned the volume to max. Amazingly, the amendment in the pending telecom bill to exclude the INTERNET from FCC control has mysteriously disappeared from a "compromise" version. Compuserve has recently censored 200 newsgroups because German prosecutors wanted them to and are exploring ways to set censorship rules country by country. Which is, curiously, exactly the same idea billionaire Bill Gates is pushing. The worst thing about this plan is that they hope to snooker the conservatives and Christian right who would naturally be supportive of laws against perversion and thus get them supporting this blatant attempt to take over cyberspace and quickly put an end to the free speech leak. Don't YOU be fooled. Laws against child pornography... real child pornography... are good. But laws that seek to steal your rights in the name of fighting crime are just a trick and you are the intended victim of the scam. DUES ARE DUE! ____________________________________________________________ The PROponent is published by: Peoples Rights Organization; 3953 Indianola Ave.; Columbus, OH 43214; Tel (614) 268-0122 Fax (614) 261-9100 (note new fax number!) EMAIL: Compuserve ID: 73427,1615 INTERNET: 73427.1615@compuserve.com or dcarney@freenet.columbus.oh.us Back issues of the PROponent are available via the World Wide Web at: http://www.portal.com/~chan/orgs/pro/ Michael T. Regan, Chairman; Dennis Walker, Vice Chairman Todd Koehler, Secretary; Ron Herman, Treasurer Editors: Dennis Walker and Frank Jacoby Contributions, either written or financial are gladly accepted. Anyone wishing to reprint all or part of an article from the PROponent may do so. Please mention the PROponent and the issue that the article was in, and send a copy of your publication to our PRO office. (We like to know what your organization is doing too.) Also, PRO will exchange newsletters with any pro-gun, pro-rights, pro-hunting, etc. group to further grass-roots communication. Put us on your newsletter mailing list and we will put your club on ours. Unlimited electronic distribution of all or part of this text file is permitted so long PRO is credited. PRO general meetings are held the third Tuesday of every month 8:00pm at Veterans Memorial Auditorium, W. Broad St. Columbus, Ohio. "That government of the people, by the people, and for the people, shall not perish from the earth" _________________________________________________________________