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Should You be Afraid of Gun Registration?
Commentary by Greg Jeffery
If you are a gun owner and are NOT aware of the fact that there is a serious movement afoot to REQUIRE you to REGISTER ALL your firearms, then you should read this. If you ARE aware, then you DEFINITELY should read this.
What's wrong with requiring gun owners to register their guns? Forget the alleged "reasonable" and "sensible" arguments, which the anti-gun-owners give you, because no matter what they say, once you register your firearms those registration lists will be used to confiscate your guns.
Don't ask me. Ask the people of New York City, who several years ago, registered their semiautomatic firearms in compliance with a city ordinance. They were told by the city administration at the time the ordinance was passed that the list would NEVER be used to confiscate their firearms.
Several years later, a new administration under Mayor Dinkins held public hearings to ban the possession of semiautomatic firearms within city limits. Before a standing room only crowd of gun owners, the chief of police admitted before the council that, to his knowledge, NOT ONE REGISTERED SEMI-AUTO FIREARM HAD BEEN USED IN THE COMMISSION OF ANY CRIME. NOT ONE.
You would think that reason would have prevailed and those thousands of law-abiding citizens would have been allowed to keep their guns. If that's what you think, you're wrong! The city government passed an ordinance banning the possession of semiautomatic firearms and then used the registration list to determine compliance. So much for promises.
Still don't believe me? Then, ask the people of California.
In California, almost ten years ago, they passed a semiautomatic firearm ban. Under the terms of the “ban” your currently owned semiautomatic firearms could be “grandfathered” in as long as you registered them with the state.
Californian authorities are currently using the registration lists from that law to inform the legally registered owners of some SKS's that the current state attorney General has determined (all by himself), that those firearms cannot be legally possessed. In addition, a recent California court ruling gave this same anti-gun-owner attorney general the power to EXPAND the list of guns that can be registered.
RIGHT NOW in California, registered owners of some of these firearms are receiving notice that the firearms they registered in compliance with the law, may NOW be illegal contraband and must be turned in to the authorities. But out of the goodness of their hearts, the state will reimburse the registration fee. However, they will NOT compensate the owners for the cost of the firearm.
Oh, by the way, if the owner does not comply with the surrender order, they become criminals -- FELONS -- subject to heavy fines and long prison terms. And, the government knows who each and every one of the owners is because, as "law abiding citizens," they registered their guns and the state has the registration lists!
"Oh, but they would never do that here in America," you say? They couldn't? Too many guns and too many people? Just look at England and Australia, and then tell me that one again! The gun owners of these two nations allowed their guns to be registered because they knew they weren't criminals and that the government would never take away all "their" guns. And, aside from that, total confiscation of all firearms just would not make any sense or be remotely reasonable. WRONG!
After a tragic shooting in Scotland, the anti-gun-owner movement in England wasted no time and demanded that England’s heavily regulated gun owners surrender almost all their firearms. Since the English authorities had the registration lists a minority was able to enforce the disarmament of honest gunowners.
In Australia, another tragic shooting was used as the excuse by the anti-gun-owner movement in that country to force through a bill requiring that country’s firearm owners to surrender hundreds of thousands of privately held firearms that had never been used in any sort of crime. Family heirlooms as well as expensive collector grade firearms all met the same fate – the smelter. What crime did the owners of these firearms commit? None what so ever, other than believing the bald faced lies of politicians who say they would never use registration lists to confiscate guns… it’s a “crime fighting measure” don’t you know.
How about a little closer to home? Ask the gun owners of Canada about gun registration. EVERY Canadian gun owner has until the end of this year -- 2000 -- to register themselves with the Canadian government and be issued a license allowing them to continue to possess all the firearms they currently own.
Canadians are also required to provide the government with a detailed list of EVERY FIREARM THEY OWN -- INCLUDING HUNTING GUNS -- by the end of the year 2001. If they don't, they will become FELONS and subject to heavy fines and/or long terms of imprisonment!
I know, I know... it might be happening in those countries, but it will "never" happen here in America.
Lists of AMERICAN gun owners have ALREADY begun to be generated by our own federal government -- IN VIOLATION OF FEDERAL LAW!
Beginning in 1989, reports began to filter in from Federal Firearm License (FFL) holders (licensed gun dealers) concerning agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (BATF) photocopying 4473s during their FFL compliance inspections.
When one storeowner was asked why he didn't stop this ILLEGAL ACTIVITY he replied: "I didn't want them to shut down my business."
For those who don't know what a 4473 is, it's a form which, by law, must be filled out by anyone purchasing any type of firearm from a licensed gun dealer. The form requires the identity of the purchaser, their address, what type of firearm is being purchased, its serial number and other information. The form is then supposed to be kept on permanent file with the dealer and made available upon request for VISUAL INSPECTION ONLY by the BATF.
The Firearm Owner Protection Act of 1986 made it ILLEGAL for federal agencies to collect and maintain a list of gun owners -- regardless of what type of paperwork it's on, i.e. the 4473 -- unless it involves a valid criminal investigation.
The copying of 4473s was then followed by a campaign by the Clinton/Gore administration to close down as many gun dealers as possible. Why? Because when a gun dealer goes out of business, he is required to turn over all his books and 4473s (list of people who bought guns from him including the serial numbers of those guns) to the federal government.
Under the Clinton administration, the number of gun dealers has been drastically reduced, and with it hundreds of thousands - if not millions - of gun owners names, addresses and firearm information have been turned over to the "safe keeping" of people like Janet Reno. These records have been computerized and compiled into a registry maintained and coordinated through the National Tracing Center. (But Janet claims it's NOT a registry of gun owners... Right!)
On top of that, some states and local municipalities even share their pistol permit data with the federal government or have set up computerized records systems that are accessible to the federal government 24 hours a day.
Creating and maintaining registration lists of firearm owners is a complete violation of federal law. But, here's the rub. Who do you get to prosecute the prosecutor?
Have I gotten your attention yet?
THIS IS SERIOUS BUSINESS! YOUR FREEDOM IS AT STAKE! YOUR GOVERNMENT IS WORKING TO MAKE YOU INTO A CRIMINAL!
Now just suppose that Rosie O'Donnell gets her fantasy dream and federal mandatory gun owner licensing and registration passes and becomes the law of the land. If you fail to comply, what do you think the penalty will be? A felony of course. But that doesn't matter because you are a true believer in the Constitution and Bill of Rights and therefore, you will never register your guns. You are willing to risk your freedom in an open and fair trial in a court of law because you know you are right.
Hold on there buckaroo! Not only are you putting yourself in jeopardy of a felony arrest and conviction, but under the ASSET FORFEITURE LAWS of the United States Government, you are putting your family and your property at risk as well.
You see, according to the fed's current interpretation of our laws, if you were to fail to register your guns, then your wife and kids could be guilty of "conspiracy." According to the twisted logic of our current "Justice" Department, your wife should know that you have the guns and should have reason to know if you did or did not register them. And since your wife did not turn you in, she "conspired" with you to violate federal law. And, not only are you putting your wife and children in jeopardy of arrest, you are putting their lives in danger as well.
We are all aware that "conspiracy" is a "serious" crime. Therefore you know that the federal agencies in charge of enforcing the registration scheme will come to arrest you with overwhelming force, dressing in ninja black, with Kevlar helmets and bullet-proof vests and armed with submachine guns and concussion grenades. You can also bet that the agents that have been given the order to violently invade the sanctity of your home will be told that you are a "bad" person that could violently resist. As they break in your door at four in the morning, try not to make a move or it may be interpreted as initiating some form of resistance that justifies shooting you. And try to tell your wife and children not to scream or shout or make any quick movements in the dark or they too might be shot.
Remember, you didn't fill out their forms... therefore, you are "dangerous."
Now, after successfully surviving the raid on your home (you and your family were not shot and killed), your wife now finds herself an indicted co-conspirator and your kids are whisked off for an all expense paid trip into the "protective" custody of Janet Reno. And, if that isn't enough, your house, car and your bank accounts -- ALL YOUR ASSETS -- are confiscated because this property was "used in the direct furtherance" of your "crime(s)".
Oh yeah. Let's not forget the "three strikes and you are out" law. Let's see...you had five guns that you did not register. Each failure to register is a single felony count. Therefore, you have five strikes against you. Do not pass GO! Do not collect $200! Go directly to federal jail - FOR LIFE!
By confiscating your assets, you and your co-conspirator wife cannot mortgage the home to get adequate legal defense against these unconstitutional actions. You will be asked to plea bargain for one of your lesser fictitious crimes in exchange for "leniency." But you refuse the deal. After all, you are a man of principle and you still have the courts, right? Surely they will uphold the Constitution of the United States, correct the grievous wrong committed against you and your family, free you and reunite you with your wife and loving children...right?
Hello? What planet have you been living on? It is a rare moment indeed anymore when a Justice of the federal court system even remembers what the Constitution is let alone what it says. If you are betting that the courts will be your saviors, you had better wake up and wake up NOW!
The above scenario may sound too far-fetched to you but consider this: each aspect of the scenario outlined above has already occurred -- repeatedly.
A woman lost her car when her husband was caught with a prostitute in it. Even though she had no knowledge of the illegal act, the SUPREME COURT ruled her "innocent party" standing did NOT protect her car from SEIZURE!
Right after the three strikes laws were enacted, several prosecutors took first time offenders and charged them in court with separate felony charges, put them on trial for all the charges, and went for life without parole based on the three strikes laws.
The push for gun owner licensing and registration is just the next to the last step before the gun grabbers generate some excuse to demand the forfeiture of your guns. If you do not believe that this is what they have in mind, you have not been paying attention.
I know, I know. You say that they will never be able to force compliance because too many gun owners will not comply and they just don't have enough manpower or space to house all the new "criminals." WRONG AGAIN!
You see, not too long ago Congress provided funding for 22 new federal prisons. And the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) has said that 22 are not enough! The BOP asked for additional "advanced appropriations" to build an additional 9 more prisons totaling 31 new federal prisons. Why do they need so many more additional prisons? Crime is down. Who are they planning to fill these new jail cells with?
One possibility is that they could fill these jails with gun owners who refuse to register themselves and their firearms! They wouldn't build the prisons if they didn't plan to fill 'em. Aside from that, they need new "workers" for the federal prison industries program. Don't believe me? Go read the BOP web page. Read the statement of the Director, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Kathleen Hawk Sawyer, before the Senate Subcommittee on Criminal Justice of the Judiciary Committee, April 6, 2000 (http://www.bop.gov/ipapg/ipatest1.html). Can you say "emulate Chinese slave labor"?
And, as if all this weren't enough to get you to vote in the up-coming election for pro-gun candidates, consider this. There is a case currently being reviewed in the federal appellate court system known as US v. Emerson. During testimony before the Court, the United States Government (land of the free, home of the brave) has taken as its OFFICIAL position the following: The Second Amendment to the Constitution confers NO RIGHT TO KEEP AND BEAR ARMS TO ANY INDIVIDUAL. AND, that the government of the United States CAN CONFISCATE ANY RIFLE, SHOTGUN OR PISTOL FROM ANYONE, ANYTIME THEY CHOOSE.
Please understand the significance of this. This is the FIRST TIME our government's OFFICIAL position is that the Second Amendment does NOT EXIST! This is the position pushed for, and fully supported by, the current Clinton/Gore administration. There is NO expectation that this will change if Gore becomes President.
If you believe that the Second Amendment does recognize your individual and inalienable right to own firearms, you must stand up and be heard in this election. None other than the basic right to protect yourself and your family is at stake.
A return of current administration policy under a President Al Gore could prove to be the fatal blow to the Second Amendment.
IF you cannot recognize HOW SERIOUS THIS ELECTION WILL BE TO PRESERVING FREEDOM IN AMERICA, go back to sleep, we will bother you no more.
But, if you are awake and paying attention, you need to do the following:
1) Get mad!
2) Get REAL MAD because your government is trying to turn you or someone you know INTO A FEDERAL FELON simply because you or they own a gun!
3) Get REALLY, REALLY MAD because the federal government is trying to take away your right to defend yourself and your family by claiming the Second Amendment does NOT exist!
4) Get educated about local races and federal races and who supports your individual right to own and use firearms!
5) Get all your friends, their wives/husbands, adult children, brothers and sisters, neighbors --anyone you know to the polls on November 7th to VOTE for PRO-GUN candidates!
Greg Jeffery is the President of the Second Amendment Coalition. For information about the Second Amendment Coalition call 636-230-2399.
Should You be Afraid of Gun Registration?
Commentary by Greg Jeffery
If you are a gun owner and are NOT aware of the fact that there is a serious movement afoot to REQUIRE you to REGISTER ALL your firearms, then you should read this. If you ARE aware, then you DEFINITELY should read this.
What's wrong with requiring gun owners to register their guns? Forget the alleged "reasonable" and "sensible" arguments, which the anti-gun-owners give you, because no matter what they say, once you register your firearms those registration lists will be used to confiscate your guns.
Don't ask me. Ask the people of New York City, who several years ago, registered their semiautomatic firearms in compliance with a city ordinance. They were told by the city administration at the time the ordinance was passed that the list would NEVER be used to confiscate their firearms.
Several years later, a new administration under Mayor Dinkins held public hearings to ban the possession of semiautomatic firearms within city limits. Before a standing room only crowd of gun owners, the chief of police admitted before the council that, to his knowledge, NOT ONE REGISTERED SEMI-AUTO FIREARM HAD BEEN USED IN THE COMMISSION OF ANY CRIME. NOT ONE.
You would think that reason would have prevailed and those thousands of law-abiding citizens would have been allowed to keep their guns. If that's what you think, you're wrong! The city government passed an ordinance banning the possession of semiautomatic firearms and then used the registration list to determine compliance. So much for promises.
Still don't believe me? Then, ask the people of California.
In California, almost ten years ago, they passed a semiautomatic firearm ban. Under the terms of the “ban” your currently owned semiautomatic firearms could be “grandfathered” in as long as you registered them with the state.
Californian authorities are currently using the registration lists from that law to inform the legally registered owners of some SKS's that the current state attorney General has determined (all by himself), that those firearms cannot be legally possessed. In addition, a recent California court ruling gave this same anti-gun-owner attorney general the power to EXPAND the list of guns that can be registered.
RIGHT NOW in California, registered owners of some of these firearms are receiving notice that the firearms they registered in compliance with the law, may NOW be illegal contraband and must be turned in to the authorities. But out of the goodness of their hearts, the state will reimburse the registration fee. However, they will NOT compensate the owners for the cost of the firearm.
Oh, by the way, if the owner does not comply with the surrender order, they become criminals -- FELONS -- subject to heavy fines and long prison terms. And, the government knows who each and every one of the owners is because, as "law abiding citizens," they registered their guns and the state has the registration lists!
"Oh, but they would never do that here in America," you say? They couldn't? Too many guns and too many people? Just look at England and Australia, and then tell me that one again! The gun owners of these two nations allowed their guns to be registered because they knew they weren't criminals and that the government would never take away all "their" guns. And, aside from that, total confiscation of all firearms just would not make any sense or be remotely reasonable. WRONG!
After a tragic shooting in Scotland, the anti-gun-owner movement in England wasted no time and demanded that England’s heavily regulated gun owners surrender almost all their firearms. Since the English authorities had the registration lists a minority was able to enforce the disarmament of honest gunowners.
In Australia, another tragic shooting was used as the excuse by the anti-gun-owner movement in that country to force through a bill requiring that country’s firearm owners to surrender hundreds of thousands of privately held firearms that had never been used in any sort of crime. Family heirlooms as well as expensive collector grade firearms all met the same fate – the smelter. What crime did the owners of these firearms commit? None what so ever, other than believing the bald faced lies of politicians who say they would never use registration lists to confiscate guns… it’s a “crime fighting measure” don’t you know.
How about a little closer to home? Ask the gun owners of Canada about gun registration. EVERY Canadian gun owner has until the end of this year -- 2000 -- to register themselves with the Canadian government and be issued a license allowing them to continue to possess all the firearms they currently own.
Canadians are also required to provide the government with a detailed list of EVERY FIREARM THEY OWN -- INCLUDING HUNTING GUNS -- by the end of the year 2001. If they don't, they will become FELONS and subject to heavy fines and/or long terms of imprisonment!
I know, I know... it might be happening in those countries, but it will "never" happen here in America.
Lists of AMERICAN gun owners have ALREADY begun to be generated by our own federal government -- IN VIOLATION OF FEDERAL LAW!
Beginning in 1989, reports began to filter in from Federal Firearm License (FFL) holders (licensed gun dealers) concerning agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (BATF) photocopying 4473s during their FFL compliance inspections.
When one storeowner was asked why he didn't stop this ILLEGAL ACTIVITY he replied: "I didn't want them to shut down my business."
For those who don't know what a 4473 is, it's a form which, by law, must be filled out by anyone purchasing any type of firearm from a licensed gun dealer. The form requires the identity of the purchaser, their address, what type of firearm is being purchased, its serial number and other information. The form is then supposed to be kept on permanent file with the dealer and made available upon request for VISUAL INSPECTION ONLY by the BATF.
The Firearm Owner Protection Act of 1986 made it ILLEGAL for federal agencies to collect and maintain a list of gun owners -- regardless of what type of paperwork it's on, i.e. the 4473 -- unless it involves a valid criminal investigation.
The copying of 4473s was then followed by a campaign by the Clinton/Gore administration to close down as many gun dealers as possible. Why? Because when a gun dealer goes out of business, he is required to turn over all his books and 4473s (list of people who bought guns from him including the serial numbers of those guns) to the federal government.
Under the Clinton administration, the number of gun dealers has been drastically reduced, and with it hundreds of thousands - if not millions - of gun owners names, addresses and firearm information have been turned over to the "safe keeping" of people like Janet Reno. These records have been computerized and compiled into a registry maintained and coordinated through the National Tracing Center. (But Janet claims it's NOT a registry of gun owners... Right!)
On top of that, some states and local municipalities even share their pistol permit data with the federal government or have set up computerized records systems that are accessible to the federal government 24 hours a day.
Creating and maintaining registration lists of firearm owners is a complete violation of federal law. But, here's the rub. Who do you get to prosecute the prosecutor?
Have I gotten your attention yet?
THIS IS SERIOUS BUSINESS! YOUR FREEDOM IS AT STAKE! YOUR GOVERNMENT IS WORKING TO MAKE YOU INTO A CRIMINAL!
Now just suppose that Rosie O'Donnell gets her fantasy dream and federal mandatory gun owner licensing and registration passes and becomes the law of the land. If you fail to comply, what do you think the penalty will be? A felony of course. But that doesn't matter because you are a true believer in the Constitution and Bill of Rights and therefore, you will never register your guns. You are willing to risk your freedom in an open and fair trial in a court of law because you know you are right.
Hold on there buckaroo! Not only are you putting yourself in jeopardy of a felony arrest and conviction, but under the ASSET FORFEITURE LAWS of the United States Government, you are putting your family and your property at risk as well.
You see, according to the fed's current interpretation of our laws, if you were to fail to register your guns, then your wife and kids could be guilty of "conspiracy." According to the twisted logic of our current "Justice" Department, your wife should know that you have the guns and should have reason to know if you did or did not register them. And since your wife did not turn you in, she "conspired" with you to violate federal law. And, not only are you putting your wife and children in jeopardy of arrest, you are putting their lives in danger as well.
We are all aware that "conspiracy" is a "serious" crime. Therefore you know that the federal agencies in charge of enforcing the registration scheme will come to arrest you with overwhelming force, dressing in ninja black, with Kevlar helmets and bullet-proof vests and armed with submachine guns and concussion grenades. You can also bet that the agents that have been given the order to violently invade the sanctity of your home will be told that you are a "bad" person that could violently resist. As they break in your door at four in the morning, try not to make a move or it may be interpreted as initiating some form of resistance that justifies shooting you. And try to tell your wife and children not to scream or shout or make any quick movements in the dark or they too might be shot.
Remember, you didn't fill out their forms... therefore, you are "dangerous."
Now, after successfully surviving the raid on your home (you and your family were not shot and killed), your wife now finds herself an indicted co-conspirator and your kids are whisked off for an all expense paid trip into the "protective" custody of Janet Reno. And, if that isn't enough, your house, car and your bank accounts -- ALL YOUR ASSETS -- are confiscated because this property was "used in the direct furtherance" of your "crime(s)".
Oh yeah. Let's not forget the "three strikes and you are out" law. Let's see...you had five guns that you did not register. Each failure to register is a single felony count. Therefore, you have five strikes against you. Do not pass GO! Do not collect $200! Go directly to federal jail - FOR LIFE!
By confiscating your assets, you and your co-conspirator wife cannot mortgage the home to get adequate legal defense against these unconstitutional actions. You will be asked to plea bargain for one of your lesser fictitious crimes in exchange for "leniency." But you refuse the deal. After all, you are a man of principle and you still have the courts, right? Surely they will uphold the Constitution of the United States, correct the grievous wrong committed against you and your family, free you and reunite you with your wife and loving children...right?
Hello? What planet have you been living on? It is a rare moment indeed anymore when a Justice of the federal court system even remembers what the Constitution is let alone what it says. If you are betting that the courts will be your saviors, you had better wake up and wake up NOW!
The above scenario may sound too far-fetched to you but consider this: each aspect of the scenario outlined above has already occurred -- repeatedly.
A woman lost her car when her husband was caught with a prostitute in it. Even though she had no knowledge of the illegal act, the SUPREME COURT ruled her "innocent party" standing did NOT protect her car from SEIZURE!
Right after the three strikes laws were enacted, several prosecutors took first time offenders and charged them in court with separate felony charges, put them on trial for all the charges, and went for life without parole based on the three strikes laws.
The push for gun owner licensing and registration is just the next to the last step before the gun grabbers generate some excuse to demand the forfeiture of your guns. If you do not believe that this is what they have in mind, you have not been paying attention.
I know, I know. You say that they will never be able to force compliance because too many gun owners will not comply and they just don't have enough manpower or space to house all the new "criminals." WRONG AGAIN!
You see, not too long ago Congress provided funding for 22 new federal prisons. And the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) has said that 22 are not enough! The BOP asked for additional "advanced appropriations" to build an additional 9 more prisons totaling 31 new federal prisons. Why do they need so many more additional prisons? Crime is down. Who are they planning to fill these new jail cells with?
One possibility is that they could fill these jails with gun owners who refuse to register themselves and their firearms! They wouldn't build the prisons if they didn't plan to fill 'em. Aside from that, they need new "workers" for the federal prison industries program. Don't believe me? Go read the BOP web page. Read the statement of the Director, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Kathleen Hawk Sawyer, before the Senate Subcommittee on Criminal Justice of the Judiciary Committee, April 6, 2000 (http://www.bop.gov/ipapg/ipatest1.html). Can you say "emulate Chinese slave labor"?
And, as if all this weren't enough to get you to vote in the up-coming election for pro-gun candidates, consider this. There is a case currently being reviewed in the federal appellate court system known as US v. Emerson. During testimony before the Court, the United States Government (land of the free, home of the brave) has taken as its OFFICIAL position the following: The Second Amendment to the Constitution confers NO RIGHT TO KEEP AND BEAR ARMS TO ANY INDIVIDUAL. AND, that the government of the United States CAN CONFISCATE ANY RIFLE, SHOTGUN OR PISTOL FROM ANYONE, ANYTIME THEY CHOOSE.
Please understand the significance of this. This is the FIRST TIME our government's OFFICIAL position is that the Second Amendment does NOT EXIST! This is the position pushed for, and fully supported by, the current Clinton/Gore administration. There is NO expectation that this will change if Gore becomes President.
If you believe that the Second Amendment does recognize your individual and inalienable right to own firearms, you must stand up and be heard in this election. None other than the basic right to protect yourself and your family is at stake.
A return of current administration policy under a President Al Gore could prove to be the fatal blow to the Second Amendment.
IF you cannot recognize HOW SERIOUS THIS ELECTION WILL BE TO PRESERVING FREEDOM IN AMERICA, go back to sleep, we will bother you no more.
But, if you are awake and paying attention, you need to do the following:
1) Get mad!
2) Get REAL MAD because your government is trying to turn you or someone you know INTO A FEDERAL FELON simply because you or they own a gun!
3) Get REALLY, REALLY MAD because the federal government is trying to take away your right to defend yourself and your family by claiming the Second Amendment does NOT exist!
4) Get educated about local races and federal races and who supports your individual right to own and use firearms!
5) Get all your friends, their wives/husbands, adult children, brothers and sisters, neighbors --anyone you know to the polls on November 7th to VOTE for PRO-GUN candidates!
Greg Jeffery is the President of the Second Amendment Coalition. For information about the Second Amendment Coalition call 636-230-2399.
