The pending gun-control legislation that is set to be debated in the Senate this week has as its key provision an expanded background check system. This system would require background checks on people purchasing guns in a wide variety of circumstances.

(More on  News at LAWS.com, contact Adam for interviews “adama@laws.com”)

It was crafted by Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., Charles Schumer (D-NY), and Patrick Toomey, R-Pa. It has gained some Republican support over the past weekend, notably that of Sen. Susan Collins of Maine. However, this may not be enough to pass this measure, as some Democrats from gun-friendly states are expected to oppose it. Supporters of this measure say that it will help keep guns out of the hands of those who should not have them, such as criminals and the mentally ill. However, opponents of this measure say it does nothing but curtail the Second Amendment and will do nothing from preventing the aforementioned targeted populations from acquiring guns.

Gun Owners of America (GOA) is a gun rights organization which was founded in 1975. It has over 300,000 members, and its main goal is to defend the Second Amendment. It has been called “The only no-compromise gun lobby in Washington,” by Congressman Ron Paul. GOA believes that Americans have lost some of their gun rights, and it seeks to reclaim these rights.

The following is an interview with Michael Hammond of GOA on his views on the pending gun-control legislation set to be debated in the Senate.

How do you feel about the pending gun control legislation?

We think it is a horrible idea! Lanza stole his gun! This bill is not responsive to Newton, Aurora or Tucson; there were background checks in all these places. All it does is exploit a tragedy. Like the Brady Law of 1994, these laws do nothing to stop copycat shootings. They simply serve as a platform for more gun-control laws.

Currently, Republican alternative gun control legislation is in the works, which is supposed to include tougher laws on illegal gun trafficking, straw purchases, and to increase efforts to keep guns out of the hands of the mentally ill and keep schools safe. How do you feel about this alternative?

This is a bill which is being drafted by Senator Chuck Grassley. We have been asked to comment on the Grassley Bill. We had real problems with its negligence clause. We studied it very hard and agreed that the negligence language be taken out.

Do you think that maybe what is truly needed is to simply keep guns out of the hands of those who should not have access to them (e.g. the mentally ill) rather than make it tougher for law-abiding citizens to purchase firearms?

The problem is that beginning with the Clinton administration, the ATF listed a person as mentally defective based on a determination by a psychiatrist with the federal program. Because of that, 150,000 veterans were not able to purchase firearms.

What are some of the accomplishments of the Gun Owners of America in the realm of gun-rights advocacy?

We were the only ones post Columbine who took the position that there should be no gun control of any kind. The National Rifle Association was supporting 90 percent of Clinton’s gun-control legislation. We opposed them and killed a lot of those provisions with the help of House Republican Tom Delay. I drafted the Smith Amendment when Clinton tried to impose a tax on Brady Checks and tried to keep Brady Check records indefinitely… I drafted the Smith Amendment which said you cannot impose tax on Brady checks. That has been carried into law since under the auspices of Senator Smith and congressman Tiarcht. We were also the group that championed the Armed Pilot Legislation, which trains pilots to keep guns in cockpit.

If this legislation does pass, what will be the next step for Gun Owners of America?

We will see what happens. If it passes in the Senate we would kill it in House! If anything the passage of this legislation would be a huge defeat for us and the NRA and others in the gun rights movement. 

On April 17th, the Senate rejected a plan to expand background checks for gun buyers. The plan to extend background checks to gun-show purchases and online purchases failed to get the 60 votes needed to pass in the Senate, receiving only 54 votes in favor and 46 against it. The proposed ban on military style assault weapons also failed to pass.

(More on  News at LAWS.com, contact Adam for interviews “adama@laws.com”)

The background check amendment drafted by Republican Senator Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania and Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia was President Obama's best hope to pass gun-control legislation after the massacre of 20 children and six educators at an elementary school in Connecticut. He had hoped that this amendment would offer enough of a compromise so as to pass in the Senate. Most Republicans and four Democrats voted against the amendment.

Gun rights and gun control are certainly contentious issues in the United States that continue to divide public opinion. Opponents of the Manchin-Toomey amendment have emphasised that it only served to infringe upon the right to bear arms guaranteed by the Second Amendment and would do nothing to keep guns out of the hands of criminals or mentally ill.

Jews for the Preservation of Firearm Ownership (JFPO) is a non-profit educational civil rights organization that was founded in 1989. Its initial aim was to educate the Jewish community about how Jews had suffered in history when they were disarmed. It welcome and expanded its aims to educate people of all faiths on what it views as potentially dangerous victim disarmament policies.

The following is an interview with Charles Heller, Executive Director of JPFO, on his thoughts and feelings about the failure of the gun-control legislation to pass in the Senate and the work of his organization in the realm of gun rights.

1. How do you feel about the rejection of the Senate of the gun-control legislation?

We think it's a good thing. Criminals have a tendency not to go to legitimate sources for guns. As such, restricting private sales via a prior restraint, strikes us as just a reversion to Jim Crow. If you liked segregation, you will love gun control.

2. What message would you send those in the Senate who supported this legislation?

Go home, and let freedom ring. Help elect someone to replace you who grasps the concept of individual liberty.

3. Do you think that maybe what is truly needed is to simply keep guns out of the hands of those who should not have access to them (e.g. the mentally ill)  rather than make it tougher for law-abiding citizens to purchase firearms?

Yes. Devote all the resources that would be used on prior restraints, and focus them on criminal and insane misuse of arms. Also, be open to the lawful arming of people in sensitive places, such as schools.

4. What are some of the accomplishments of Jews for The Preservation of Firearms Ownership?

We discovered and published the fact that our 1968 "Gun Control Act," was based largely on the 1938 Nazi Weapons Law, and that the work was done to translate that law by our State Department at the behest of Thomas Dodd, a prosecutor at Nuremberg.
We created a movie, "Innocents Betrayed," which shows the history of genocide by government outside of war in the 20th Century. It illustrates that the predicate act in every case was disarmament of the victims.

Our Rabbi, Dovid Bendory, has done a video with us called "The 10 Commandments of Self-Defense," stating the biblical principles as to why gun control is evil.

We have published "The Kosher Gun Laws," showing exactly which gun laws are moral.

We have engaged medical professionals to openly discuss the progression of irrational hatred of guns, and investigate possible cures.

We have produced a DVD called, "The Gang," documenting some of the dishonest acts of the BATFE.

We have published "Dial 911 and Die," written by Arizona Attorney Richard Stevens, documenting the Supreme Court cases which relieve the police of the duty of protecting the individual citizen of the U.S.

We have produced the DVD "No Guns For Negroes," with The Congress of Racial Equality, about the history of violence and suppression of the rights of Blacks.

We have produced the DVD "No Guns For Jews," showing the history of oppression against Jews, via arms control. We have produced several music albums about the Bill of Rights.

We have translated the Bill of Rights into 10 other languages for all the world to adopt.

5. What are some of the future plans for the JPFO?

We plan to continue to publish the facts about gun control, its evils, and lawful methods that can be used to end it.

For more information on Jews for the Preservation of Firearm Ownership, please visit their site. For more information on gun laws and news, please visit our Gun Laws Page.

Guns come in a myriad of types, including rifles, shotguns and pistols. In addiction to type, guns come in various calibers which is measured as the diameter of the barrel of the gun, as well as the diameter of the ammunition used in that weapon.

Antique guns

Antique guns are often subject to differing laws and regulations, depending on whether of not the guns function. Functioning antique guns hold a higher value than those that do not. However, antique guns that have never been fired hold the highest value of any antique guns.

Caliber

The caliber of a weapon is used to determine the caliber of ammunition which will be fired from a gun. The caliber of ammunition is a measure of the diameter of that ammunition. Different caliber weapons may have a different purpose, as lower calibers may penetrate more effectively, but larger caliber ammunition may cause larger wounds and more extensive damage when fired.

Handgun laws

Handgun laws apply on the federal and state level. However, something allowed by federal law, may be prohibited according to state law. Yet, nothing prohibited by Federal law, may be allowed by state law.

Shotgun

Shotguns are fired while they rest on the shoulder of the operator.  Sawed off shotguns are those which have a barrel of less than eighteen inches. Sawed off shotguns require a special permit from the ATF and are prohibited in some states.

Machine gun

Machine guns may be automatic or semiautomatic. Automatic weapons require the operator to pull the trigger one time and maintain continuous firing. Semi automatic requires that the operator continuously pull the trigger. In both cases the guns have self loading ammunition.

Rifle

Rifles may be automatic or semi automatic. Rifles are fired while the gun rests on the shoulder of the operator. Rifles are generally very accurate weapons which can inflict great injury at long distances. Sniper rifles employ the additional technology of a telescopic sight so that the operator can see their target from much greater distances, while firing accurately.

Silencer

Silencers are used to make the sound of a weapon firing completely undetectable. Silencers reduce the gas that is released from the weapon, as well as the velocity at which the ammunition travels through the weapon, both of which reduce the sound of that weapon being fired.

Illegal guns

illegal guns are contributing to the frequency of crimes, especially violent crimes. There have been many attempts to curb the number of illegal guns that enter the country and so far, few have been effective.

Brady Bill

The Brady bill required that individuals undergo a waiting period before they were able to purchase a gun. In addition, no individual could buy a gun without being subject to an intense background check.

Earlier this month, a legislation offering expanded background checks on gun purchases was blocked in the Senate. The legislation, which set to expand background checks to cover gun purchases made online and gun-show purchases, did not receive the 60 votes needed to make it through the Senate. Instead, it was only able to get the support of 54 senators, with 46 voting against it. A measure to ban military style assault rifles was also blocked.

(More on  News at LAWS.com, contact Adam for interviews “adama@laws.com”)

The expanded background check amendment was the result of an effort by Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Republican Senator Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania. President Obama's had hoped that it offered the compromise needed to pass gun-control legislation after the Newton massacre, which saw 20 children and six educators killed by Adam Lanza at Sandy Hook Elementary school in Connecticut. Four Senate Democrats from traditionally gun-friendly states and most Senate Republicans voted against the measure.

The debate over gun control and gun rights is certainly contentious and elicits an emotional response from either side of the aisle. Opponents of the Manchin-Toomey amendment have emphasised that it infringed upon the right to bear arms and would do little to keep guns away from criminals or the mentally ill.

Guns Save Life is a civil rights organization that operates regionally and one that aims to educate the public about firearm ownership and its benefits. It started out in 1995 as a grassroots committee of the Illinois State Rifle Association, and has since grown to become an independent non-profit organization that represents the interests of gun owners in Indiana, Illinois and beyond. Guns Save Life engages in grassroots activism to defend and promote the civil right of self defense and firearm rights.

The following is an interview with John Naese of Guns Save Life, on his views on the failure of the gun-control to pass and the work of his organization to safeguard gun ownership rights.

1. How do you feel about the failure of the gun-control legislation to pass?

Legislation proposed "in response" to a particular horrific crime generally does more harm than good.  There are plenty of laws already out there, and none of the proposals would have stopped any of the recent tragedies.  We at Guns Save Life opposed Manchin-Toomey, for good reason.

2. Did you feel that the Grassley-Cruz gun bill, which included tougher laws on illegal gun trafficking, straw purchases, and aimed to increase efforts to keep guns out of the hands of the mentally ill and keep schools safe was a better alternative?

I don't know enough about Grassley-Cruz to comment on that one, but my above generalization stands.  The proposed new "solutions" generally result in lots of "unintended" consequences, most of which affect law abiding gun owners and citizens negatively, and none of which solve anything; they just result in more demands to close more "loopholes".

3. Do you think that maybe what is truly needed is to simply keep guns out of the hands of those who should not have access to them (e.g. the mentally ill)  rather than make it tougher for law-abiding citizens to purchase firearms?

What is truly needed is to allow law-abiding citizens to own, possess, and carry with them the means of self defense.  In the case of Newtown, murder was already against the law.  The murderer had already been denied a gun purchase, so he murdered his mother, stole her legally purchased and possessed firearms, and used them to commit murder.  What would have made a difference that day was an armed, trained adult at that school, willing to engage the murderer before he got to the classrooms.  We protect our politicians, celebrities, bank deposits, and jewelry with guns.  Why don't we protect our most precious possessions – our children – with the same fervor?

4. What are some of the accomplishments of Guns Save Life?

Guns Save Life has educated thousands of people in Illinois and around the nation about the very real good guns do.  Yes, criminals use guns to take thousands of lives a year.  But regular folks use guns each year to SAVE hundreds of thousands of lives (see the research of Gary Kleck and John Lott, for example).

We print and distribute 15,000 copies or more of GunNews each month, host a popular informational website, hold well attended public meetings monthly, sponsor shooting events and youth camps that have trained thousands of children and adults over the years in the safe handling and enjoyment of firearms.  We have put up dozens of Burma-Shave style slogans along major highways, getting the pro-civil rights message out there to millions of Americans that might otherwise never come to our meetings or visit our website.  We have sponsored, with other pro-gun rights groups, lobby days in the Illinois State Capital that have drawn 8,000 or more to Springfield, on their own dime and on their own time on a weekday, to lobby their legislators for the right to carry and against onerous restrictions.

And we have fun doing it.

5. What are some of the future plans of Guns Save Life?

We will keep spreading the word that guns do indeed save life.  We are expanding our monthly meetings to more cities, and our membership is growing.  We will keep advocating for a good right to carry law here in the last unarmed state.  And when we get that law, it will, like all laws, be full of compromises and unpalatable elements.  And we will keep coming back to the statehouse to fix that law; to make it easier for regular citizens to take advantage of their human right of self defense.  We will expand our efforts to provide training, education, and fun shooting activities so that people can enjoy their rights.

For more information on Guns Save Life, please visit their page. For more information on gun laws and news, please visit our Gun Laws Page.

Interviewed with John Naese of Guns Save Life, Philo, Illinois