Obama floats ban on weapons

[philw]

http://www.theage.com.au/world/obama-floats-ban-on-weapons-20090417-aa8v.html

SALES of military-style assault weapons should be banned in the US, President Barack Obama said as he met Mexican President Felipe Calderon to discuss measures to curb violence among Mexican drug cartels.

But Mr Obama set no timetable for legislative change. He said he would seek to enforce existing US export laws that prohibit trading in weapons to countries where they were illegal.

"We have a responsibility to act too," Mr Obama said on Thursday. "Some 90 per cent of the guns recovered in Mexico come from the United States." But he also said no one was under the illusion that the ban would be easy.

During his presidential campaign, Mr Obama promised to reinstate the 10-year ban on assault weapons introduced in 1994. It ended in 2004 as a result of a sunset clause and would require fresh legislation through Congress.

Mr Obama has been silent on the issue since becoming President, but that hasn't stopped a run on US gun shops, with gun enthusiasts stocking up on weapons and ammunition since his election.

The National Rifle Association pledged to vigorously oppose the inter-American treaty. In February, when Attorney-General Eric Holder floated reinstating the ban, NRA executive director Wayne La Pierre said: "A semi-automatic is a quintessential self-defence firearm owned by American citizens in this country. I think it is clearly … protected by the constitution."

Mr Obama has also promised to speed up the Merida initiative between Mexico and the US, under which the US promised to provide $US1.6 billion ($A2.2 billion) to Latin American countries to combat the drug trade. The lion's share will go to the Mexican military to buy eight used helicopters and two surveillance planes.

Mr Obama also said he would push Congress to ratify an inter-American treaty on trafficking in arms and promised more co-operation and action on the American side of the border. The US has already increased the number of border guards by 500 and is bringing in extra X-ray machines and sniffer dogs in a bid to intercept more drug cargoes and guns going south.

Lax gun laws and the lack of central record keeping in states such as Texas mean that the gangs can use a single US citizen to purchase dozens of guns, including semi-automatic weapons and handguns, just by going to different stores.

On Wednesday the Obama Administration named three drug cartels as organised crime gangs, which means their US-based assets can be seized or frozen by the US Treasury. But there is no sign that the violence in Mexico is slowing. Sixteen people died in a shoot-out in the country's south-west hours before Mr Obama arrived for the talks.

The death toll attributed to the drug wars has now exceeded 10,000 since President Calderon called in the army to deal with the problem in 2006.

[ericire12]

"A semi-automatic is a quintessential self-defence firearm owned by American citizens in this country. I think it is clearly … protected by the constitution."

And there is the argument that we must clearly and precisely present if we are going to win this debate.

[MikeBjerum]

And there is the argument that we must clearly and precisely present if we are going to win this debate.

While hunting and Sunday afternoon plinking is a National tradition made possible by the Second Amendment, what we need to remember and promote is what the Second Amendment is all about.  The AR 15, AR 10, M1, FAL, 1911, M&P, XD, etc., optics, magazine capacity, grips, stocks, slings, handguards, etc.  are the guns and accessories  at the core of the Second Amendment.  The Second Amendment was written to provide for men and weapons to be available and ready to go to protect the Republic!

War ain't for sissies, and this battle ain't for the strong silent type, and it ain't for sissies either!

We need to stand strong and bold ... just like Mr. Heston, and when necessary we need to be as brash as Mr. Nugent!  I may seem like a rude and crude redneck when I same come and get it, but isn't it that American attitude that kept the Japanese from coming to our mainland after they attacked Pearl Harbor?  The only people with anything to fear when it comes to my guns and training are those that would mean to do harm to me and mine ... mostly MINE!!!