VCDL Update 5/6

[Bob A]

From the email:

(Sadly, interspersed comments by the OP which are in red in section 6 in the original document remain black in this copy. The reader can get the gist from context.)

Virginia Citizens Defense League Defending Your Right to Defend Yourself

1. A reminder why carrying at all times is important. Death might have four legs 2. Share this new VCDL video with your fellow gun owners! 3. Biden signs bill to increase Russian ammunition tax by 30%! 4. FBI uniform crime report implies gun owners use guns in justifiable homicide more often than police do 5. “Pup Patrol” in Tysons Corner 2 looking for guns? 6. Tearing apart Tim Kaine’s email to gun owners 7. Study shows fewer burglaries in areas with high number of CHP holders 8. Donald Trump Jr.’s 2A Task Force needs closer scrutiny by gun owners 9. In new regulation, BATFE gives gun owners an unexpected gift 10. A sad view into gun ownership in England 11. VCDL Membership Processing Center address change 12. Help Needed: VCDL table at Virginia Pickers Antiques and Collectables Show, May 13-14 1. A reminder why carrying at all times is important. Death might have four legs Four-legged creatures can attack unexpectedly and be extremely violent. From a rabid racoon to a bear protecting her cubs. Or from a mountain lion to, as in this case, a pack of “man’s best friends.” You’re either ready to fight back or you’re not. Once the attack is on, the gun you left in the house is worthless. https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2022/05/02/alabama-dog-attack-jacqueline-beard/ While investigating a dog attack, a state worker was killed by the pack By Jaclyn Peiser May 2, 2022 at 3:05 a.m. EDT Alabama Department of Public Health worker Jacqueline Summer Beard was following up on a report of a dog attack on Crumpton Road in Franklin County, Ala., when she was mauled by the same pack and killed. (WTVA) The car had been sitting idly on Crumpton Road just outside of Red Bay, a northwestern Alabama town on the border with Mississippi, long enough for neighbors to grow suspicious. But when sheriff’s deputies arrived Friday evening, they found the car’s owner. She was dead — Jacqueline Summer Beard had been mauled by a pack of dogs. “In 27 years I’ve never saw anything like this,” Franklin County Sheriff Shannon Oliver told WTVA. Those same dogs were the reason Beard had been visiting the area that morning, the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office said. A 58-year-old employee for the Alabama Department of Public Health, Beard was following up on a report of a woman being attacked by a pack of dogs on Thursday. By Friday night, investigators had arrested Brandy Lee Dowdy, the 39-year-old owner of the dogs. She was charged with manslaughter, the sheriff’s office said. Jail records do not list an attorney for Dowdy, and bond has not yet been set. Law enforcement officials also invoked Emily’s Law, legislation passed in 2018 that allows prosecutors to charge dog owners with felonies if their animal gravely injures or kills someone and the owner has been aware of the dog’s dangerous behavior. The law also creates guidelines for euthanizing the animal. The legislation is in memory of Emily Colvin, who at 24 years old died after being attacked by five dogs outside her home in northeast Alabama in December 2017, AL.com reported. The dogs were put down. A week before Colvin’s death, another woman, 46-year-old Tracey Patterson Cornelius, also was killed by a pack of dogs. A second woman was seriously injured in the same incident, according to AL.com. Similar fatal instances in the state happened in 2020 to a 36-year-old mother of four and in 2021 to a 70-year old man. Beard went to the Red Bay area Friday to investigate a dog attack that occurred Thursday afternoon when a woman on a walk was mauled by the animals. “She was in pretty serious condition,” Oliver, the sheriff, told AL.com. Investigators said Beard was attempting to contact the owner of the dogs when she was killed. The dogs attacked people again about 6 p.m., when sheriff’s deputies arrived to investigate the suspicious car that had been parked alongside the road all day, law enforcement said. “When deputies arrived, they were met by residents on Crumpton Road,” the sheriff’s office said. “Several dogs started attacking the residents when deputies were there, and one person received minor injuries.” There were seven dogs in total, Oliver said. Some were “euthanized immediately,” according to the sheriff’s office. Ryan Easterling, acting director of communications for the Alabama Department of Public Health, said in a statement to news outlets that the department is grieving Beard’s death. “Summer was known to her coworkers as an exceptional person. She was a tremendous team worker and was loved by those who knew her,” he said. “It is a very sad day for ADPH.” 2. Share this new VCDL video with your fellow gun owners! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tDE4FcYg6k 3. Biden signs bill to increase Russian ammunition tax by 30%! Ammunition from Russia could double in price and drag up other ammunition prices with it. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3dFITDhqSSM 4. FBI uniform crime report implies gun owners use guns in justifiable homicide more often than police do Member Sandy E. sent me this: “In particular, the data on Justifiable Homicides shows that civilians commit Justifiable Homicide even more frequently than police. This strongly implies that law-abiding citizens use guns more often than police to stop crimes (this seems a reasonable assumption since their homicides are legally adjudged justifiable) by 343 to 298 (see table below).” The link below displays the table. https://www.statista.comstatistics/251894/number-of-justifiable-homicides-in-the-us/ 5. “Pup Patrol” in Tysons Corner 2 looking for guns? A sharp-eye member spotted a poster in the Tysons Corner 2 mall. It shows a photo of a German shepherd canine with this caption: “Meet our Pup Patrol. These furry friends are trained to detect firearms and here to keep you safe! While they’re cute to look at, stopping or petting them may distract them from their patrol duties.” The person who sent me a photo of the sign reported that he didn’t see any such dog while visiting the mall. Are any of you familiar with this? Is it real or just another scarecrow? 6. Tearing apart Tim Kaine’s email to gun owners Many of you have gotten the same form letter from Tim Kaine. My comments are in red: Dear Mr. W.: Thank you for contacting me about gun policy. I appreciate hearing from you. It is painfully clear that existing federal policies do not provide a comprehensive approach to address the national epidemic of gun violence. [There isn’t an “epidemic” of violence caused by the misuse of firearms. The odds of being shot in most of the country are miniscule. The vast majority of murders using a firearm are limited to poor, urban areas and usually involve criminal on criminal violence.] The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) continues to report gun violence as a leading cause of premature death in the United States, resulting in the loss of 39,707 American lives in 2019 alone. [2/3 of that number are suicides, which does not qualify as “violence.” Justifiable homicides by citizens and police are also in that number.] For years, we have seen the scourge of gun violence in the tragedies of Virginia Tech, Sandy Hook, and far too many other places. No single legislative action can eradicate the complex and deeply rooted issues of gun violence. The correct approach focuses on many issues, including improvements to our mental health system, better security protocols, and commonsense rules about gun use, such as keeping firearms out of the hands of dangerous individuals. [The catch is that for the gun-control crowd, ALL gun owners are considered “dangerous individuals.”] On April 15, 2021, Senator Warner and I introduced the Virginia Plan to Reduce Gun Violence Act of 2021, which would implement measures adopted by the Virginia state government in early 2020 at the federal level. [“April Fools Day” would have been a more appropriate day to introduce that bill. The gun control passed in Virginia in 2020 that you are bragging about had no bipartisan support in the state. In fact, the largest gun-rally in the U.S. happened that year in rejection of those gun-control laws! And since those laws were passed, violent crime is up 20% to 40% in Virginia! You’re bragging about that?]. Our bill would enact an Extreme Risk Protective Order process, require background checks on all gun sales, mandate reporting of lost and stolen firearms, prevent children from accessing firearms, and limit bulk handgun purchases to one per month. By enacting comprehensive, commonsense policies that remain on this course, we can create opportunities to achieve meaningful policy reform across all levels of government. [None of that is “commonsense,” it’s just gun-control politics at its worst.] I also support commonsense measures like universal background records checks to keep weapons out of the hands of people who federal law has determined are too dangerous to possess them. I have cosponsored various pieces of legislation to place limits on high-capacity magazines; ban bump stocks, which were used in the Las Vegas shooting to enable semi-automatic firearms to mimic the rapid firing action of machine guns; repeal a law shielding gun manufacturers from civil liability; and close loopholes that allow domestic abusers to legally obtain weapons and strengthen protections for victims of domestic violence. I also support ending the manufacture of semiautomatic assault weapons for public consumption and expanding federal research on gun violence. [So, you have supported every hare-brained gun-control bill that Michael Bloomberg has pushed, with no regard to the constitutional rights of Virginians? What have you done FOR gun owners in all the years you’ve been in the Senate? I, for one, can’t think of a single thing.] The public supports commonsense rules, and so do the vast majority of gun owners. I will continue to work to bring about a comprehensive approach that will strengthen the safety of our communities while protecting our Second Amendment rights. As a gun owner myself, I know that you can be a strong supporter of the Second Amendment without tolerating the gun tragedies that are too often a part of our daily lives. [As a “gun owner,” you are an embarrassment. You’re not “protecting our Second Amendment,” you are urinating on it. You are punishing all gun owners for the actions of a small number of violent criminals and gun owners have had a belly full of such policies.] Thank you again for contacting me. Sincerely, Tim Kaine 7. Study shows fewer burglaries in areas with high number of CHP holders https://www.westernjournal.com/study-confirms-knew-along-look-happening-areas-high-gun-ownership/ https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/study-burglaries-drop-in-areas-with-high-gun-permits/ar-AAWHsEH?li=BBnbfcL 8. Donald Trump Jr.’s 2A Task Force needs closer scrutiny by gun owners As I read some original coverage of a 2A Task Force created by Donald Trump Jr. last week, it left out way too many details to decide exactly what the task force is and how it will work. David Codrea has concerns, too, and suggests some scrutiny is called for: https://www.ammoland.com/2022/04/donald-trump-jrs-2a-task-force-needs-closer-scrutiny-by-gun-owners 9. In new regulation, BATFE gives gun owners an unexpected gift In the BATFE’s new regulation on firearm serialization, which was published in the Federal Register back on April 24, the Bureau admitted that “the AR-15 is one of the most popular firearms in the United States.” That is important because it clearly puts the AR-15 platform squarely under the protection of Supreme Court’s DC v Heller ruling! https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_4xJAeEh-3U 10. A sad view into gun ownership in England When the government makes gun ownership a government-granted privilege, they can strip that privilege away from you in a minute on a whim. https://youtu.be/BTpQrSfjNn4 11. VCDL Membership Processing Center address change The VCDL Membership Processing Center (MPC) address has changed! Please put the new address in your records before you get caught in the USPS forwarding blackhole! The NEW MPC address is: VCDL Membership Processing Center P.O. Box 77 Willis, VA 24380 Mail sent to the old Fredericksburg P.O. Box will be picked up weekly and forwarded to the MPC monthly. The old Fredericksburg box will be closed at the end of June. 12. Help Needed: VCDL table at Virginia Pickers Antiques and Collectables Show, May 13-14 VCDL has been invited to attend the Virginia Pickers Antiques & Collectables Show and we need volunteers to help spread the word about the mission of our organization. The event will be held Friday, May 13th and Saturday, May 14th from 7am to 5pm at: Gilmanor Farm 12187 Chewning Rd Glen Allen, VA 23059 Parking is free and food vendors are on site. The Facebook site is: https://www.facebook.com/gilmanorfarm/ It doesn't matter if you've never volunteered before or if you are an experienced volunteer. Help is needed in educating Virginians about the threats to their 2nd Amendment rights. We're looking for a couple of volunteers to assist with set-up Thursday afternoon. We're also looking for volunteers for both Friday and Saturday. The shifts are: Thursday setup - 5pm - 6:30pm Friday: 6:45am - 10am 10am - 1:30pm 1:30pm - 5pm Saturday: 6:45am - 10am 10am - 1:30pm 1:30pm - 5pm Every year the Virginia Pickers Antiques & Collectables Show has been held it has grown in size and has always been a lot of fun. This year promises to be a well-attended event so mark your calendars to both support VCDL and the 2nd Amendment AND see what the vendors have to offer! Please reply to gunshows.richmond@vcdl.org