The Last Peaceful Demonstration

Submitted by Bill St. Clair on Wed, 25 Sep 2002 12:00:00 GMT

I saw this small sign on the back of a dump truck next to a large "Construction Vehicle, Do Not Follow" sign:

DON'T TAILGATE ME

OR I'LL FLICK A BOOGER
ON YOUR WINDSHIELD

snopes.com - Change Is in the Air! - story and photos of the discovery of an unusual gang of thieves who stole quarters from a Maryland coin-operated car wash. Hehe. [brad]

Mark Twain at LewRockwell.com - The Loud Little Handful - Mr. Clemens told us in 1910 in The Mysterious Stranger how the war-mongers do their thing. [trt-ny]

The loud little handful -- as usual -- will shout for the war. The pulpit will -- warily and cautiously -- object... at first. The great, big, dull bulk of the nation will rub its sleepy eyes and try to make out why there should be a war, and will say, earnestly and indignantly, "It is unjust and dishonorable, and there is no necessity for it."

Then the handful will shout louder. A few fair men on the other side will argue and reason against the war with speech and pen, and at first will have a hearing and be applauded, but it will not last long; those others will outshout them, and presently the antiwar audiences will thin out and lose popularity.

Before long, you will see this curious thing: the speakers stoned from the platform, and free speech strangled by hordes of furious men...

Next the statesmen will invent cheap lies, putting the blame upon the nation that is attacked, and every man will be glad of those conscience-soothing falsities, and will diligently study them, and refuse to examine any refutations of them; and thus he will by and by convince himself that the war is just, and will thank God for the better sleep he enjoys after this process of grotesque self- deception.

Carma Lewis at Armed Females of America - No More 'Pro-Gun' Politicians! - Ms. Lewis will henceforth vote for only pro-constitution candidates, people who take their oath of office seriously and will oppose 99% of the drivel that passes through congress nowadays as unconstitutional on its face. [kaba]

I have had my fill of the so-called pro RKBA politicians, like John McCain, Arlen Specter and George Pataki to name a few. Even our so-called pro-gun President, George W. Bush has been a major disappointment to the RKBA community with his reluctance to arm pilots. If these politicians are truly pro RKBA, let their actions rule the justification for their re-elections.

Whenever a self-proclaimed pro-gun politician votes for any legislation that restricts the use, ownership, caliber, capacity or origin of manufacture of any type of firearm they become an anti-gun hypocrite thereby nullifying their suitability for public office.

We have over 20,000 gun laws on the books now that were put there by "pro-gun" legislators. The only difference between these politicians and the anti-gun bigots is that pro RKBA legislators believe that there is an individual right to own firearms, but they want to control who owns a gun, what kind of gun, how many bullets the gun can hold and a myriad of other illegal restrictions.

There is nothing in "shall not be infringed" that gives Congress the power to legislate anything regarding firearms.

Larry Pratt at Gunowers of America - The Gun Show "Loophole" Fraud -- Part I - there is no loophole. And most of what the Brady Bunch is saying about gun shows is pure lies. But you knew that. First of a four part series. Here are parts two, three, and four. [kaba]

A recent issue of U.S. News & World Report (8/26/02) featured a cover story headlined "The Art Of The Hoax" which exposes a variety of what are called "elaborate swindles, outrageous gags and insidious disinformation campaigns." But, missing from this long list of hoaxes is one of the biggest frauds ever: The attempt by many gun-grabbers and their organizations to convince us that there is a gun show "loophole" problem which must be solved by -- you guessed it -- passing more gun-control laws.

...

In an interview, Jim Crandall, a Program Manager in Public Information for the BATF in Washington DC, says the BATF tracing study cited by Bennett tells us nothing about how many guns sold by unlicensed sellers at gun shows are used in crimes. "Right," he says. "We just have no way of knowing that.... Because we don't have gun registration, per se, and, believe me, a lot of people in the country still love it that way."

Well, amen, Jim! Count me as one American among those who love this status quo!

David Carr at Samizdata - Being there - Mr. Carr was at Sunday's Liberty and Livelihood march in London. [samizdata]

Not being a photography-minded chap, I have no photos to post [Editor: sorted!] but I can recall some of the slogans that stood out from the sea of banners and flags carried along with the march (the Stars and Stripes being very prominent, incidentally).

This one stiffened my back:
"Born to Hunt, ready to Fight"
This one made me smile:
"We'll keep our cowshit in the country,
you keep your bullshit in the town"
And this one raised the hairs on my neck:
"The Last Peaceful Demonstration"
Having moved among these people today, I am left with the distinct impression that they mean it.

The Sydney Morning Herald - Words of war, phrases that frighten - "regime change" is government code for the murder of 100,000 Iraqis. [lew]

The American Republican Right really hate plain words. This is why they say "liberating Iraq" when they mean seizing its oil and making a lot of money. This is why they now say "George Bush is a man of peace" when they mean he'll go to war at the drop of a hat for no good reason and he's "routinely" bombing Iraqi "installations" every day. And when they say "regime change" they mean, or could mean, "Armageddon".

The Nevada Livestock Association at Sierra Times - NV Cattle Rustling: An Eyewitness Report - seems that a hundred armed b.l.m. nazis stole two hundred head of cattle. That's a hangin' offense where I come from. I hope the locals start shooting, real soon. [sierra]

Louis Turner at The Federal Observer Time To Get Even - how to convince your local socialists to punish each other. Hehe. [kaba]

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Autumnal Equinox, 2002
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Quotes

Government doesn't work. Never did. Never will. Can't. But there are lots of good people. Love them.

-- Bill St. Clair

The Atlanta Declaration

Every man, woman, and responsible child has an unalienable individual, civil, Constitutional, and human right to obtain, own, and carry, openly or concealed, any weapon -- rifle, shotgun, handgun, machinegun, anything -- any time, any place, without asking anyone's permission.

-- L. Neil Smith

Reread that pesky first clause of the Second Amendment. It doesn't say what any of us thought it said. What it says is that infringing the right of the people to keep and bear arms is treason. What else do you call an act that endangers "the security of a free state"? And if it's treason, then it's punishable by death. I suggest due process, speedy trials, and public hangings.

-- L. Neil Smith

A Penalty Clause for the Bill of Rights

Any official, appointed or elected, at any level of government, who attempts, through legislative act or other means, to nullify, evade, or avoid the provisions of the first ten amendments to this Constitution, or of the Thirteenth Amendment, shall be summarily removed from office, and, upon conviction, deprived of all pay and benefits including pension, and sentenced to imprisonment for life.

-- L. Neil Smith

Based on 253 journal articles, 99 books, 43 government publications, and some of its own empirical work, the panel couldn't identify a single gun control regulation that reduced violent crime, suicide or accidents.

-- John Lott, commenting on the National Academy of Sciences report on gun control laws.

Who is a libertarian?

Zero Aggression Principle ("Zap")

"A libertarian is a person who believes that no one has the right, under any circumstances, to initiate force against another human being, or to advocate or delegate its initiation. Those who act consistently with this principle are libertarians, whether they realize it or not. Those who fail to act consistently with it are not libertarians, regardless of what they may claim."

-- L. Neil Smith

(Formerly called the "Non-Aggression Principle", or "NAP")

Why Did It Have to be... Guns?

Make no mistake: all politicians -- even those ostensibly on the side of guns and gun ownership -- hate the issue and anyone, like me, who insists on bringing it up. They hate it because it's an X-ray machine. It's a Vulcan mind-meld. It's the ultimate test to which any politician -- or political philosophy -- can be put.

If a politician isn't perfectly comfortable with the idea of his average constituent, any man, woman, or responsible child, walking into a hardware store and paying cash -- for any rifle, shotgun, handgun, machinegun, anything -- without producing ID or signing one scrap of paper, he isn't your friend no matter what he tells you.

If he isn't genuinely enthusiastic about his average constituent stuffing that weapon into a purse or pocket or tucking it under a coat and walking home without asking anybody's permission, he's a four-flusher, no matter what he claims.

What his attitude -- toward your ownership and use of weapons -- conveys is his real attitude about you. And if he doesn't trust you, then why in the name of John Moses Browning should you trust him?

-- L. Neil Smith

Concise

"Tell me," I was once asked, "What do you think about gun control? Give me the short answer." To which I replied, "If you try to take our firearms we will kill you."

-- Mike Vanderboegh

Also from The Atlanta Declaration:

... like going to the bathroom, breathing, eating, sleeping, or making love, it turns out that self-defense is a bodily function one cannot safely or effectively delegate to a second party.

-- L. Neil Smith

This does not mean that "Marijuana should be available by prescription." It means that morphine sulfate should be available in five pound bags at the supermarket for a couple of bucks, like sugar... but probably in a different aisle, to avoid confusion.

-- Vin Suprynowicz

If you refuse to pay unjust taxes, your property will be confiscated. If you attempt to defend your property, you will be arrested. If you resist arrest, you will be clubbed. If you defend yourself against clubbing, you will be shot dead. These procedures are known as the Rule of Law.

-- Edward Abbey

The state can only survive as long as a majority is programmed to believe that theft isn't wrong if it's called taxation or asset forfeiture or eminent domain, that assault and kidnapping isn't wrong if it's called arrest, that mass murder isn't wrong if it's called war.

-- Bill St. Clair