[jsalcedo]

http://www.concealcarry.org/naacp.htm

GUN STORES: PLEASE COOPERATE WITH THE NAACP BY REFUSING TO SELL GUNS TO AFRICAN-AMERICANS
Concealed Carry, Inc. Announces Policy Of Refusing Gun Sales To Blacks
By John Birch, President, Concealed Carry, Inc., PO BOX 4597, Oak Brook, IL 60522-4597, Tel: 630 660-3935 Fax: 815 327-1152 Email: john@concealcarry.org Web: www.concealcarry.org

INTRODUCTION: Concealed Carry, Inc. is deeply concerned with advancing social policy in terms of the public safety. We demonstrated that by encouraging those attending the Taste of Chicago in 2001 to carry unloaded guns in fanny packs. As a result, arguably the safest place to be in Chicago on July 4th, 2001 was Grant Park. Just the perception that many were armed was enough to give the police little to nothing to do. In 2002 we had a program (now discontinued) to give one hand gun a month free to a Chicago resident. Several Chicagoans are now safe. In 2003 we feel it critical to continue our efforts to save lives and to do so in a way that creates community partnerships. I will explain further.

THE PROBLEM: One of the great scourges of gun violence is the "black on black" shootings taking place in our inner cities. To address this tragedy The Baltimore-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People has sued gun manufacturers. The NAACP is arguing that handgun violence disproportionately harms poor, urban blacks, and that gun companies have failed to take steps to lessen the harm.

Maybe the association has a point. After all, sending in the police to confiscate guns in minority neighborhoods is both dangerous and draconian. But is using the courts to force a solution the best way to effect positive social change? Why not seek a voluntary solution to the supply of guns that is killing African-American youth?

For instance, John Riggio who owns Chuck's Guns in Riverdale, will tell you that blacks want his store closed. So much so that the Pastor of Salem Baptist Church (http://www.sbcoc.org/index2.asp), the Reverend and Senator James T. Meeks (http://www.legis.state.il.us/Senate/Senator.asp?MemberID=861) conducts marches with his congregation on his store seeking that John voluntarily cease operations. Reverend Meeks also seeks the closure of all liquor stores in Roseland (http://www.sbcoc.org/project2003.asp). His message is clear and his message is consistent: Get liquor and guns out of our community and African-Americans will live in safety.

These marchers are sincere and their communities bear the brunt of the carnage. Frankly my own observations confirm that it's more dangerous to be in a black neighborhood than in a predominantly white area. I also know that when people are left to reason for themselves they mostly know what is best. Therefore if the NAACP and the Salem Baptist Church collectively see a problem it would not be wise to dispute them. I have no idea what's it like to live in a black neighborhood, but I bet they do, and it's time I listened more and took action based on the their needs rather than my perceptions.

I have always advocated the way to reduce "black on black" gun violence was to arm the law abiding blacks by overturning Mayor Daley's gun ban and creating public awareness for the safety of the community provided by good citizens with guns. I am willing to admit now that I may have been wrong.

THE SOLUTION: Therefore, as of March 18th, 2003, Concealed Carry, Inc. will no longer make gun sales to African-Americans. Not handguns, not rifles and not even shotguns. We had one close call already with the Takita Miles case (http://www.concealcarry.org/zorn15feb1003.htm) and there is no reason to take further chances. We will defer in this matter to Senator Meeks as he not only represents a socially progressive congregation, but is also elected to the high office of state senator. Until the Reverend Meeks requests we resume sales to African-Americans, I am going to use the broad authority granted me as a federally licensed gun dealer to prevent straw purchases by denying sales to African-Americans. To insure fairness, there will be no exceptions.

I am aware there may be similar problems in other neighborhoods. Therefore if an ethnically representative organization like Dr. Juan Andrade's "United States Hispanic Leadership Institute" (http://www.ushli.com/) requests we cease gun sales to Hispanics, we will take that under serious advisement. In fact we will listen to the leadership of any ethnic community and base our sales policy on problems they can demonstrate to us with fact.

But we are but one small gun dealer. The fact is it will take a concerted a effort by all Illinois gun dealers. If gun dealers don't want to be regulated out of existence by the state of Illinois, then we better show we are committed to keeping guns out of the hands of criminals. The first step is to cooperate with the black leadership. I ask that all Illinois gun dealers immediately cease gun sales to any African-American. Just this step alone will cut straw sales to a trickle. Police arrests and gun confiscations will then take care of the existing gun supply over just a few years time. The number of guns in our African-American communities will then be negligible and gun violence will be as common as it is now in Oak Brook, IL.

If Illinois gun dealers won't cease sales to African-Americans then they probably deserve the licensing and oppressive gun regulation they are going to get. As for Concealed Carry, Inc. our mission is to save lives. Until Senator Meeks or the NAACP says otherwise we will do our part to see that no illegal guns end up in African-American neighborhoods. Let me hear from my fellow gun dealers. Will you join me in saving lives with this voluntary program? email me at: john@concealcarry.org and I will publish your store's name here to thank you.

[George Hill]

You have got to be kidding me.

[Yohan]

:D :D :D

[pax]

I vote for brilliant and insane.

Oh, and I'm moving this to L&P. Hang on ...

pax

No sane person could live in this world and not be crazy. -- Ursula K. LeGuin

[ahadams]

oh that's John Birch and the concealed carry folks east of the big muddy - they live in a state where the mayor of chicago seems to own at least a third of the legislature and nobody cares about common people at all. you can't blame them for going off into sarcasm and fantasy land every once in a while...

[Redlg155]

I vote both.

I'd say it was a baited challenge to the NAACP.

Good Shooting
Red

[bastiat]

It's about as insane as the affirmative action bake sale.

He's doing exactly what the NAACP has asked, and hoping for outrage at his action, which can then be pointed back to the NAACP, who requested that blacks not be sold firearms. The underlying premise to all this is that black leaders don't feel black people can be trusted with firearms. Ah, the irony.

What would be even better, if all this goes as it should, that when announces he is no longer following the NAACP's wishes, is that he would have Roy or Niger Innis from CORE at his side to announce the change. Maybe even someone like Walter Williams, too.

There's a fine line between genius and insanity - I hope he can pull this off.

[mercedesrules]

Brilliant.

MR

[HABU]

Until the Reverend Meeks requests we resume sales to African-Americans, I am going to use the broad authority granted me as a federally licensed gun dealer to prevent straw purchases by denying sales to African-Americans. To insure fairness, there will be no exceptions. Hey, Meeks axed for it.

[Devonai]

This is political satire of the highest magnitude... and absolutely astoundingly brilliant. Kudos to them!

[Soap]

Brilliant and with some grande cajones!

[USGuns]

Brilliant and NOT insane. For those of you that don't get it, read it a few more times and you'll see what he is trying to achieve.

[KMKeller]

Brilliant. John knows what he's doing and he most definitely has an uphill climb. Take a peek at his website to see what he's all about.

[IRONFIST]

This guy has a good brain on him. No matter which alley NAACP runs down, he wins. They will be flumoxed!

Michael in Sandy, OR

[KarlG]

I get it. He is trying to gain allies in the gun world while simultanously pushing a racist agenda.

If he is pro-gun he already has allies in the gun world. The problem is that he will only foster racism among gun owners by giving gun owners a reason to hate a person they don't know because of skin color. Sarcasm or not, this "joke" is at the expense of individuals. These individuals may be pro-gun or anti-gun, but they are individuals that have been lumped together based on a physical atribute.

The author is also giving anti's more ammunition to use against us. Now all gun owners are racisist and anti's can use his sarcastic logic to prove it. This sort of stuff can be used to support Michael Moore's theory that the KKK just changed it's name to the NRA.

Count me out. This racist rhetoric stinks. It is not noble to climb uphill if the hill is made up of the bodies of the people you have pushed down.

This thread scares me.

[Geech]

"The author is also giving anti's more ammunition to use against us. Now all gun owners are racisist and anti's can use his sarcastic logic to prove it. This sort of stuff can be used to support Michael Moore's theory that the KKK just changed it's name to the NRA."

That's already the case. This won't do any more damage.

You're taking it way too literally. This guy didn't bring race into the debate, he's just making fun of the argument.

[Sergeant Bob]

I get it. He is trying to gain allies in the gun world while simultanously pushing a racist agenda.

You got any relatives in Alaska?

[CZ-75]

This thread scares me.


:rolleyes:



You got any relatives in Alaska?


:D

[KarlG]

Geech,

I submit that not only did this guy bring race into the debate, but his debate is based ONLY on race. No other demographic is mentioned; not income, not sex, not height, not age, not occupation, not education, not family situation, not ... JUST RACE.

In response to your comment that this will not do any more damage, I must respectfully disagree. I believe (addmitedly no facts or data to back it up) that anti-gun sentiments and racism are grown or are diffused in small incriments. I was not born a "gun nut" and did not wake up one morning and become one. I suspect that racism is the same way. This guy is making fun of people because of their skin color and people on this board are okay with it, even supporting it because they can back the author's other "cause". That is a smal incriment down racism boulevard.

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." Loa Tsi

[CZ-75]

I submit that not only did this guy bring race into the debate, but his debate is based ONLY on race. No other demographic is mentioned; not income, not sex, not height, not age, not occupation, not education, not family situation, not ... JUST RACE.

Kinda like the grounds for the NAACP's cause of action?

[KarlG]

CZ-75,

Exactly like the grounds for the NAACP's cause of action. This makes my point. Look how somebody else (the NAACP) using race as the sole basis for an argument seems so silly.

Seargent Bob,

I used to have an uncle that lived in Alaska. :uhoh:

[QKRTHNU]

Hey, Meeks axed for it.

Even thought that comment was just WRONG and in poor taste, I have to admit I just spit the water I was drinking all over my self.
:D

[Geech]

While you may have a point that using race in this situation brings him closer to racism, he did not bring race into the matter. Look at the plaintiff: it's the NAACP. They're suing on the grounds that guns are especially harmful to black communities. Mfume even went so far as to say that members of the black community weren't "responsible" enough for firearms ownership.

It seems to me that race had an element in this case from the very beginning.

[CZ-75]

Exactly like the grounds for the NAACP's cause of action. This makes my point. Look how somebody else (the NAACP) using race as the sole basis for an argument seems so silly.

So it isn't apparent to you that flipping the point and taking the opposite tack is reductio ad absurdem?

[KarlG]

Geech,
There is not a plantiff in the article. The author chose to be in-your-face and play off race to make a sarcastic point. He uses the court NAACP case to exemplify the point, but HE wrote the article and brought race into it. He did not have to do so. He is not a victim of the article.

CZ-75,
I do understand that the author is trying prove the truth of his premis by proving the alternative false. He is very clever in doing so.

I am wondering if you understand my points. Can you see how this can reflect poorly on the pro-gun cause? Can you see how this has no regard for individuals as it groups people based on race? Can you see how this is racism?

[samualt]

I think he is using satire to show how stupid the NAACP is for bringing such a silly lawsuit against him. Most people will not understand it. And, it gives us pro-gun people a black eye. Everyone will think we are racist. That isn't a good thing at all!

The guy is an idiot.

:banghead:

[Pendragon]

He should sell to black women - I am sure most of the crime is done by males. That would be a little more tricky.

I get his point, but our country is just way way to sensitive about race for this to go well.

[Ed Brunner]

Exactly.
And what do you suppose causes the sensitivity?

[igor]

I'd say he's brilliant and somewhat nutty. As to the race focus, I think he's not the culprit that put the magnifying glass on it. He's just doing a good job showing the emperor is a nudist.

[griz]

This thing is ironic in so many ways.

Admittedly it is satire, but here is somebody AGREEING with the NAACP and some people think he is racist.

[Soap]

Admittedly it is satire, but here is somebody AGREEING with the NAACP and some people think he is racist.

Exactly. But apparently that slipped under some people's radar.

[Greg L]

You got any relatives in Alaska?

Thanks Bob,

My preferred method of using coffee to wake up is the gradual absorption of the caffeine as I drink it. Not the pain of the hot liquid coming out my nose. :D

I think that it is a brilliant piece of satire. Unfortunately the people that it is directed at will only accept it at face value and not realize that it only mirrors their racist policies.

Greg

[Monte Harrison]

Brilliant, and also quite courageous. The PC thought police should be all over him.

[Waitone]

Lemme see if I got it right.

A small gunshot owner advocates not selling guns to black customers and he's called a racist by thread participants.

NAACP files a lawsuit which is dripping racism at each and every point and for some reason they ain't racist.

<Slaps forehead and shrugs shoulders a la a Frenchman>

Silly me! I was naively looking for consistency.

I'm over it now.

Hey thread members. Racism is racism. Don't call one action racist if you aren't willing to call the other action racist.

Racists scare me, regardless of the color.

[Sean Smith]

Some people here are apparently immune to satire and irony. :rolleyes:

[Don Gwinn]

KarlG, I'm not sure you understand the situation. John did NOT bring race into the debate. The "Reverend" Meeks is the one who did that, by holding protests outside Chicago-area gunstores and demanding that they stop selling guns to young black men. John is only agreeing (and only for the purposes of satire) with their twisted attitude. The idea is to make it clear to the rest of the world what we already know--Meeks and the NAACP are against guns and gun owners for purely political reasons having to do with their place in the Democrat coalition, and they'll scream, protest and hate us no matter what we do. Sell guns to black people? Why, you're a racist profiteering off the tragic violence of black neighborhoods. Refuse to sell guns to black people? Why, you're an evil racist who doesn't trust a black man to have a gun! What's wrong with you?

He did this a couple of months ago. . . . I'm surprised it's only getting out now. John has grasped the basic problem of Illinois, which is that, for all our blustering, downstate is irrelevant on the gun issue. Chicago is capable of dominating us for all time politically and determined to do it. The fight is in Chicago and the collar counties, because those places must be turned if we're to have any chance of a political resolution. So yes, he makes an effort to be outrageous. He and a group of supporters had themselves photographed flashing concealed weapons in Chicago. He urged people to wear fanny packs to the Taste of Chicago event to publicize that method of legal (though cumbersome and slow) carry. He gives away guns to Chicago residents, with preference given to stalking victims, homosexuals who've been bashed, and other minorities who fear racist attacks.

This is a lesson we still need to learn. You cannot get along with gun bigots. They just plain don't like you. You can't be reasonable and expect them to be reasonable in return, because they still won't like you. If you're fighting as hard as you can, they'll scream bloody murder. If you meekly agree to work with them to create a "compromise," they'll still scream bloody murder. Meeks and his buddies are in the business of calling people racists. It's their job. I'm not kidding about this, and if you haven't lived in Chicago's shadow you can't truly understand it. Anyway, they're going to do their job--paint you as a racist and shake you down to get what they want--regardless of what you do.

[grampster]

What Sean said!

grampster

[Don Gwinn]

By the way, I worked around "Reverend" Meeks for a while at the Capitol (he's an Illinois Representative.) Guy's a gangster in an expensive suit, nothing more.

[cordex]

I have long considered what would happen if those who voted for anti-gun candidates were completely unable to purchase weapons.

This just takes it one step further.

[DonP]

John is about as far from being a racist as he can get. He has been running fund raisers for a couple of African-Americans that Daley had arrested for carrying in Cook County.

His point is, as previously noted, to paint the NAACP into a corner, and he did it brilliantly, thank you.

They can't sue him for discrimination on one hand and sue the gun makers for a disproportionate number of African-American commuinity deaths at the same time with out looking stupid and money hungry to the public at large.

His proposal ranks right up there with Johnathan Swift's "A Modest Proposal" for dealing with the "Irish Problem" way back when.

All he's doing is giving the Reverend Meeks, (now trying to push Daley's latest gun grab through the state legislature) exactly what he asked for. Fewer guns being sold to his community. The truth of the matter is John is not a big gun dealer with asome kind of mega store. He has an FFL and does occasional transfers.

It's the principle of the thing that has to make the NAACP lawyers and leadership look foolish while giving them exactly what they wanted. The racist aspect was all their idea. Did you read anything about white kids being killed by guns in their lawsuits?

I'll watch the Chicago papers and see if it gets any kind of pick up.

As a matter of fact, I think I'll forward this to some of my contacts at WLS and a couple ofother Chicago radio stations and see if we can get this aired tonight.

Priceless and particularly pointed satire.

Don P.

[NapAttack]

Absolute genius. I really wish every gun shop and manufacturer would follow suit. Hoist on their own petard.

I grew up in the military in the 60's. I never encountered racism until I was in the service and at 18 I was shift chief and was called a racist because I told a young black man he had to come to work on time.

I don't remember encountering organized racism until I moved back to Montgomery AL in 1977. To be honest I am sick and tired of being called a racist simply because I'm white.

If you can prove that I have ever in any way subjugated anyone solely because of their race (not the color of their skin) then fine, call me a racist, otherwise shut up. The only people who shout racism at every opportunity are racists themselves. Sort of like the pot calling the kettle black.

[pax]

. Sort of like the pot calling the kettle black.
What a racist metaphor! ;)

pax

No greater injury can be done to any youth than to let him feel that because he belongs to this or that race he will be advanced in life regardless of his own merit or efforts. -- Booker T. Washington

[one-shot-one]

:eek: a very nice african american woman the sets near me at work refered to jessie jackonson as a race pimp during a conversation that we were having, sounds like rev. meeks and maybe some of the above posters fit that title too?!?!:what:

[OF]

These individuals may be pro-gun or anti-gun, but they are individuals that have been lumped together based on a physical atribute.For the purposes of showing how ridiculous it is for the NAACP to do exactly that.

As for being concerned about all the people who 'miss the joke' thinking we're all a bunch of toothless racist hicks, too bad. If people miss the point, that's their problem. We can't constantly cater to the lowest common denominator...aka. 'the dumbing down of society'.

I think this tack is brilliant and should be fully explored.

Here's a professor taking the same concept and applying it to affirmative action:

==

My New Affirmative Action Grading Policy

By Mike S. Adams
University Professor
April 8, 2003

Dear UNC-Wilmington Students:

For years, my well-known opposition to affirmative action has been a source of great controversy across our campus, particularly among UNCW faculty. Many have assumed that my position on this topic has been a function of personal prejudice or ''insensitivity'' to the needs of various ''disenfranchised'' groups on campus and in society in general. In reality, my opposition to affirmative action has been based on personal experience.

When I first applied for a job as a university professor, a well-meaning department chair at Memphis State University (now the University of Memphis) told me that I had no chance of getting a job in his department because the only other finalist for the position was a black male. When I took a job at UNCW a month later, I hoped that I had found an environment devoid of such blatant racial discrimination. Unfortunately, my experiences here have proved otherwise. It is my constitutionally protected opinion that I have experienced direct pressure from the administration to engage in both racial and gender discrimination as a member of various university search committees.

Furthermore, I have seen examples of salary discrimination based on affirmative action. For example, one department at UNCW hired a black female as an assistant professor in 1999 before she had finalized her dissertation. Despite her inexperience, she was paid more than two tenured white male associate professors in her department who had, of course, finished their dissertations. One had been teaching at UNCW for five years, the other for seven years.

Despite all of this, I have decided to abandon my long-standing opposition to affirmative action after listening to the oral arguments in the recent U.S. Supreme Court case challenging admissions policies at the University of Michigan. While listening to these recorded arguments, I learned that public universities have a ''compelling interest in diversity'' which supersedes simplistic notions of reverse discrimination. Now, because my views have changed, I am forced to alter my classroom grading policies.

Students in my classes will continue to have their final grades based principally on test performance. Students will also continue to have a portion of their grade determined by class participation and/or a final paper depending on the class in which they are enrolled (please consult your course syllabus if you are one of my students).

After I compute final averages, I will then implement the new aspect of the grading process which is modeled after existing affirmative action policies at the university. Specifically, I will be computing a class average which I will then compare to the individual performance of all white males enrolled in my classes. All white males who exceed the class average will have points deducted and added to the final averages of women and minorities. A student need not have ever engaged in discrimination in order to have points deducted. Nor must a student have ever been a victim of discrimination in order to receive additional points.

I expect that my new policy will be well received by some, and poorly received by others. For those in the latter category, please contact Human Resources for further elaboration on the concept of affirmative action. You may also contact the Office of Campus Diversity for additional guidance.

I understand that many of you may consider my new position to be unprincipled. Please understand, however, that the university has long abandoned antiquated principles of ''fairness'' in favor of identity politics. Also understand that my job as a university professor is to prepare you for the real world.

After all, no one promised that life would always be fair.

[Navy joe]

This racist rhetoric stinks.

:confused:

From the article:

I have always advocated the way to reduce "black on black" gun violence was to arm the law abiding blacks by overturning Mayor Daley's gun ban and creating public awareness for the safety of the community provided by good citizens with guns. I am willing to admit now that I may have been wrong.

M'kay, where exactly is the burning cross in this guy's closet? I vote brillant. "Leadership" of the NAACP ilk need to keep their followers dependent in order to have a base of money. If their following gets guns and keeps their neighborhood safe the whole black activist thing is toast.

Let's be clear. To whatever degree that african-americans are "oppressed" in this country, the black activist movement wants to keep them there. A few good movie stars, legislators, and academics are desirable to give the "black community" something to strive after; you know kinda like the mega-lottery you'll never win. Achieving a society where black peoples were just viewed as normal Americans with normal problems and suburban day jobs would end movements like the NAACP. They must be exposed as the racists they are. They actively worsen the lot of their target, urban blacks, to ensure they can keep on keepin on with the "oppressed gig.

Absolutely brillant. I bet some bunch of liberal bed-wetters, young white Berkely types with some NAACP'ers thrown in, will jump on this guy with both feet before they realize 'xactly what kinda tar baby they is stompin' on.


Friend in Alaska? Too funny.

-NavyreadingcomprehensionisfundamentalJoe-

Edit: GRD, that is even funnier than the first article, another wonderful jab at state sponsored racism.

[CZ-75]

I am wondering if you understand my points. Can you see how this can reflect poorly on the pro-gun cause? Can you see how this has no regard for individuals as it groups people based on race? Can you see how this is racism?


I do, but don't agree with them, for the most part.

I do see how this can reflect poorly on RKBA. Truth is, most folks will take it literally and not get that it is satirical. Those in the opposition who do get it will make every effort to make people believe that it should be taken literally.

I do not see how this has no regard for individuals and is race-based. Perhaps, I should say that I do, but that it can't work unless it is because the argument it is based upon, promulgated by the NAACP, is based upon race. You can't point out the absurdity of their position without taking an equally absurd position yourself, 180 degrees from the one they expected.

Hell, this guy is doing what the NAACP has stated they want - no sales of guns to blacks. If anyone is responsible for disregarding the individual and making race the salient and determining factor, it is the NAACP.

As to this being racism, to whom are you refering? The writer or the NAACP? If the former, I say Bravo Sierra. If the later, I say "straight up."

[Partisan Ranger]

Birch is no racist. I wrote this story below a couple months ago; it was published at the IL Leader. Birch and his Web site came to the defense of the protagonist in this story, Roderick Pritchett, a black man from Jamaica originally.


Legal Shootout Brewing in ‘Gun Free’ Zone

The evening of Roderick Pritchett’s descent into hell in Cook County, Illinois started with an ordinary shopping trip to Safeway for his mom last November 21st. The 25 year-old African/Jamaican-American frequently ran errands for her; he was the sole car owner in his family. On the way out of his south side Chicago apartment, he went back inside and grabbed his Taurus 9 mm pistol, unloaded and in its case as Chicago law requires, and tossed it in the passenger seat. Roderick liked to stop by the shooting range to practice his marksmanship once a week to stay sharp and keep his groupings tight.

In his wallet behind his driver’s license was his FOID (Firearms Owner Identification Card) which he obtained before purchasing the gun in 2000. In accordance with the strict gun control laws enacted by Mayor Daley and the city legislature, Roderick kept the gun in his apartment and never carried it on his person. This seemed strange to him; the law essentially said that defending his property was more important than defending his life from the numerous predatory south side hoods. Pritchett however always followed the law, even the ones that defy common sense.

As he drove down South Ada St. toward the range, he noticed a police car tailing him. It was early evening and Roderick was a young black man with dreadlocks driving alone. In Chicago, that’s lights-and-siren time. Sure enough, Police Officer Edward Kos and Officer Rodolfo Camarillo pulled him over at 87th and Ada for a burned out taillight.

The officers approached and asked if he would mind if they searched his car. Pritchett didn’t object. He knew beyond a doubt that his 9 mm was 100 percent legal. He even had a copy of the Illinois gun laws in his case. When he handed over his driver’s license, he also gave them his FOID and volunteered that he had a legal firearm in the vehicle. He knew he had nothing to fear.

Unfortunately, his confidence was short-lived. The police ordered him to take a seat in the back of their black-and-white. “The officers began questioning me from the front seat of their squad car before they even let me know I was under arrest,” says Pritchett. “They giggled a couple of times before sarcastically asking me why I didn’t run. I was shocked speechless at their rude treatment of me.”

Pritchett couldn’t understand why they were holding him. With all the crime in the city, why should they bother someone with a legal gun? He pleaded that he was only going to the range and that his gun was legal, but to no avail. Pritchett was arrested for violating 720 ILCS 5/24-1.6 Aggravated Unlawful Use of Weapons. One of the officers left the squad car and got behind the wheel of Pritchett’s station wagon to drive it to the station. Apparently, Officers Kos and Camarillo were either ignorant of the laws regarding the legal transportation of firearms, or chose to ignore them. In any case, Roderick Pritchett was on his way to 72 hours of misery that he would never forget.

Pritchett had his legal gun confiscated and was transported to the Cook County lockup and charged with a Class 4 Felony. Next, he endured the standard treatment of any run-of-the-mill accused felon within Chicago city limits – a quite thorough strip search that left no body orifice sacred, incarceration, long days and sleepless nights in a cramped, urine-stinking cell chockablock with accused rapists and thieves, and meals of stale bread and cold soup in the company of accused child molesters and slightly more palatable muggers. When his mother finally s****ed together the $500 bond to secure his release three days later, Pritchett had one more treat awaiting him, courtesy of the Chicago PD – a $700 fee to spring his station wagon from the impound lot. He begged the police before they impounded his car to let his girlfriend pick it up. The cops refused.

In the eyes of the police and those who make our laws, Pritchett deserved every minute of the humiliating ordeal he endured over the three miserable days of his imprisonment. He was a most grievous sinner and lawbreaker in their minds. He was a gun owner.

Mayor Daley, Cook County State Attorney Dick Devine, and other prominent city politicians have had it in for legal gun owners for years. Daley has stated on the record that if it were up to him, no one would have a gun. Both have been ardent backers of limiting gun purchases to one per month and closing the non-existent ‘gun show loophole.’ In a 1997 news conference at Chicago Police Headquarters, Daley, Devine and other gun control bureaucrats bragged of defeating proposed legislation that would have allowed the law-abiding to carry concealed firearms to protect themselves from criminals.

The police department follows their lead and makes the hassling of good sons like Pritchett a priority. Meanwhile, for all the beauty of our downtown’s incredible architecture, the breathtaking museums, the thriving nightlife, and the rich history of our city, Chicago continues to be overrun by violent crime and guns. Despite some of the tightest gun control laws in the country, murders are a twice-daily occurrence in Chicago, on average.

Other jurisdictions around the nation in the last decade have come to realize the fallacy of gun control. Thirty-two states now issue concealed-carry gun permits and on average violent crime has dropped 24 percent in those states*1, but Chicago, following the dubious example of Washington, D.C., continues with the old tried-and-failed method of legislating criminal behavior out of existence by restricting access to firearms. Even open-carry of a gun is banned here.

Our booming population of murderous thugs love the ‘gun-free’ atmosphere that such policies create. It leaves them with all the guns, and they use them. In 2001, their exhaustive, murderous efforts put 665 bodies on slabs in the morgue, which made Chicago the murder capital of the nation yet again. Moral cretins like these pay scant attention to the laws that prohibit blowing holes in other people, so naturally gun control laws are of no consequence to them whatsoever. To the thugs, Chicago is a new Wild West, where bullets can and do fly anyplace, anytime. Even better for the hoods, the law-abiding guy on the other side of the corral has no way to defend himself from hails of illicit gunfire. With only the lawbreakers armed and the law-abiding obeying gun laws, the piles of cold bodies stack up like bloody cordwood year after grim year. The more ‘sensible gun laws’ Mayor Daley and company pass, the larger the body counts.

Pritchett’s case, however, was not the typical, daily west side murder our good mayor is trying to prevent, and Pritchett was not the everyday violent thug. This was a straight arrow with a 100 percent legal gun obeying the law. Nonetheless, after having his rights violated, losing three days of work, and going $1,200 in the hole, his nightmare still wasn't over.

Soon after posting bond, Pritchett was arraigned on Nov. 27 at the Cook County Criminal Court. Cook County State Attorney Devine offered him a conditional discharge, if he would plead no contest and surrender his gun. Pritchett refused and pled not guilty. He wants his gun back and he wants justice. Now with a lawyer to represent him, Pritchett is ready to go the distance for what is right.

Says Pritchett, “I take this matter very personally and will not rest until this case is concluded in my favor. No matter how much I tried to kill the police with kindness and with the respect my mother instilled in me, they still managed to show no compassion at all for a law-abiding American. Now they have pissed me off and I’m ready to fight this to the end.”

The fight is approaching its climax. Interestingly, the city has not charged Roderick with violating Chicago’s hand gun registration ordinance. They are going for the felony conviction in a trial set for March 20. Chicago is well on its way to topping the 600+ murder mark for the 36th consecutive year in 2003 *2, but Devine believes that spending the city’s time and taxpayer dollars proving that a law-abiding citizen does not have the right to own a gun is worth the fight.

For gun-grabbing pols, the Pritchett case presents a prime opportunity. If Devine can convict Roderick Pritchett for legally transporting a cased and unloaded firearm, that renders the laws to purchase and own firearms in Chicago essentially meaningless. If they can do that, Mayor Daley and State Attorney Devine can demonstrate once and for all that The Bill of Rights does not apply to the good law-abiding citizens of Chicago. To some that may seem an outrageous violation of Chicagoans’ God-given rights, but to others, making an example of Roderick Pritchett would be a fine way to top off their long, distinguished, and lucrative anti-gun/pro-criminal careers in city governance.

*Sources:

1. FBI Uniform Crime Reports

2. Chicago Tribune:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-0302030137feb03,0,7129258.column?coll=chi-news-hed

[Don Gwinn]

'Prezackly. John comes off as a racist to some people because of this, and because he spoke out about the way noted Illinois racist weenie Matt Hale was railroaded and accused of conspiracy to murder a Federal judge (and, distasteful as it may be to defend Hale, he WAS railroaded purely because his racist beliefs are unpopular--even locals who make a habit of condemning everything Hale does are squirming about that case, and I include myself in that number.)

But what he's doing is not racist. I sent him a note suggesting he send out Oleg's KKK/NAACP image with his press releases from now on and put it on the website:

http://www.a-human-right.com/RKBA/s_agreement.jpg

[GrandmasterB]

I heard a brief interview with Birch on a local radio station this morning on my drive to work. I think this is Brilliant.

And if he is going to be lumped into the "murderer" category by the NAACP for being part of a body that supplies guns to the black public, who then kill each other, OR be labeled a "racist" for refusing to sell to blacks, then if I were in his shoes, I'd rather be called a racist than a murderer.

[Kharn]

Brilliant, positively brilliant.
Liberals wont be able to decide how to respond.

Kharn

[CZ-75]

Mr. Birch appears to be here and a registered member.

I expect he will explain himself.

[Drjones]

ABSO-FRICKIN-LUTELY BRILLIANT!!!

Just emailed it to my bleeding-heart liberal friend and everyone else on his list (who are likely quite liberal)!!!

Their heads will explode when they read this!!!

(I hope!!!) :D :D :neener: :evil:

[johnbirch]

No wonder my ears have been burning! Just got turned on to this thread and thought I'd join in.

One thing you should know is that there is no way I'm going to trapped into having to say "I am not a racist." If someone calls me a racist I will simply give them an opportunity to apologize.

I did a lot of hard thinking before I took on the NAACP. I well know the risks and this may blow up in my face andindeed hurt the cause. But I don't believe it will and certainly if I were to take counsel of my fears I would be inneffective at gun rights advocacy.

Illinois gun owners are in a de facto state of war with our state government. We are relentlessly felony arrested for trivial violations of gun laws that would be a warning any place else. You do not know even 1/10th of the cases I am called to advise on. So am I willing to fight? You betcha and the rest of Illinois gun owners seem to have had enough too.

In the 18 APR 2003 Concealed Carry News I updated what is going on with the NAACP. My readers already got the update, those interested can check out:

http://www.concealcarry.org/naacp.htm

So far the press has shown no interest in this story. Either they have deemed it not newsworthy, which is their right, or this is one story they just don't want reported for editorial reasons. I have no inside knowledge either way.

Thank you for the comments you have shared and read them all.

[Waitone]

Johnbirch,

Communicate with NewMax.com They tend to like bristles first grassroots actions.

[jsalcedo]

Thanks for responding Johnbirch.

The NAACP has crossed the line with their own racist agenda.

It seems they want African Americans to be disarmed victims
and don't think they are responsible enough to care for themselves.

I think what you are doing is courageous and exposes the true hipocrisy of the anti-gun movement and their true motives.


I wonder if the NAACP leaders have armed bodyguards?

[MikeK]

Another vote for brilliant. The only racism I see is from the NAACP, along with the implication that their constituents are too stupid or violent to act responsibly with a firearm. I don't know any black gun-owners that fall into those categories. I'm sure there are people of every race that do.

As far as reflecting poorly on gunowners - come on, we're stereotyped as redneck white militia by most of the media. Is this going to make it any worse?

I don't see a downside, unless the overall intelligence of the US has fallen so low that the majority of the people of any race can't see the satire.

What will the NAACP do? Sue him for discrimination because he followed their wishes or admit they were wrong?

Should be an interesting outcome.

[pax]

I don't see a downside, unless the overall intelligence of the US has fallen so low that the majority of the people of any race can't see the satire.

Uh, Mike? Don't look now, but ...

pax

There is no such thing as an underestimate of average intelligence. -- Henry Adams

You know how stupid the average guy is? Well, by definition, half of 'em are even stupider than that. -- JR 'Bob' Dobbs

[CZ-75]

No one in this world, so far as I know- and I have researched the records for years, and employed agents to help me- has ever lost money by underestimating the intelligence of the great masses of the plain people. Nor has anyone ever lost public office thereby.

-H.L. Mencken

[cordex]

Pax,
Oh yeah? C'mere a minute.

[MikeK]

OK pax and cz-75 - you got me on that one. I occasionally like to delude myself into thinking there is a majority of intelligent people.

I still think it was a brilliant move. Time will tell.

[Monkeyleg]

John Birch is doing what I've,for some time, quietly hoped someone would do: call the liberals/activists on their hypocritical bluffs.

This isn't confined to the Chicago area. A large dealer here in Milwaukee constantly makes news stories because guns the shop sold wind up in the hands of criminals. "Community leaders" and the press come down hard on the shop, but fail to acknowledge that the area nearby has declined and become gang-infested. So, if they sell to gang-banger-looking types, they're vilified. If John Birch's idea catches on, the owners of the shop might have a real fun time with the idea.

[pax]

Btw, I think he's brilliant.

I just think there are too many clueless people in the world for the whole thing to work as smoothly as it ought to.

pax

Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and consciencious stupidity. -- Martin Luther King, Jr.

[OF]

You're the man, John! Illinois is damn lucky to have you.

Welcome to THR.

- Gabe

[MeekandMild]

Sorry to disagree but this is ONLY brilliant IF there is sufficient press coverage. I suspect the Chicago newspapers and radio stations have already gotten the word to keep a tight lid on this, a total blackout.

You'll never hear another peep about this unless Walter Willaims or some other high profile national Black columnist takes it to heart.

You'll never have the American Poverty Law Center or ACLU suing you, never have the NAACP shaking your hand. They will ignore it like they have ignored Jesse Jackson's married churchman father and teenage unwed mother for the past fifty years.

Sorry, its the truth. :(

There might be a hope however if we all, with the author's permission started emailing this out to our friends, both the ones who understand the irony and the ones likely to be offended, with the idea of giving it a wider audience. What do you say? :evil:

[antsi]

< Can you see how this is racism? >

No.

I believe Birch is engaged in a form of satire (or reductio ad absurdum as another respondent suggested).

If you are arguing that some people won't "get it" -- that, essentially, John Birch's turnabout will go over their heads -- that they will take his statement too literally and miss the point of the exercise -- then you may be right.

If you are arguing that an article like this one could be misunderstood by liberal idiots and thus ultimately work against gun owner rights, then you may be right (but I doubt it.)

But if you're saying you honestly believe that Birch is a racist, or that this statement of his belies a racist agenda, then I don't agree.

In the same article, Birch says his preferred strategy if for all citizens -- including blacks -- to have the right to defend themselves and their communities with firearms. That's hardly racist.

Then again, maybe his turnabout went over your head too ;)

[Darrin]

Deary me, that is brilliant! Once I caught on to Mr. Birch's plot, I couldn't stop laughing.

This will get emailed to a few people. :cool:

[Monkeyleg]

One thing that should be pointed out about John Birch's strategy is something that has been pointed out about "real" conservative strategies in the past: the liberals will hate them, no matter what. Reach out, try to engage the ultra-liberal left by compromise, and you get your head handed to you.

The folks who blindly follow the NAACP, Nancy Pelosi, Ted Kennedy, Chuck Schumer, Hillary et al are never going to like us. They're never going to give an inch of the ground they hold.

Thus, it makes no difference if "they" perceive John Birch as a racist, to the extent that he can afford to suffer financially.

They hate us. Always have, always will.

So be it.

[NapAttack]

pax, thank you. :D

Perhaps I should have said "Dogs that bite bark loudest when bit." or "People who live in glass houses shouldn't cast stones." or ...

I'd also like to say to Mr. Birch, thank you. I wish that I had been smart enough to have thought of something like this myself. Except for the fact that I don't have an FFL or a gunshop.

I honestly do not believe that there really is a "racism problem" with the average people in the US. Only the "problem" that the "civil rights" leaders have created in order to keep themselves in power and the people who have a vested interest in keeping them there or the fools that have bought into their rhetoric.

It is brilliant people like yourself with ploys like this that will eliminate our "racism problem".

[tommytrauma]

Count me out. This racist rhetoric stinks. It is not noble to climb uphill if the hill is made up of the bodies of the people you have pushed down.

This thread scares me.
Does it hurt when your knee jerks that hard?

You're seeing what you have been conditioned to see. I would feel safe wagering that Mr. Birch has done more to support the rights of blacks, at least in the second amendment arena, then you can ever hope to do. As far as this being "racist rhetoric" goes, he simply did an excellent job of exposing the racism inherent in the NAACPs stance.

You owe the man an apology, and he's here to accept it. Are you man enough to offer it?

[johnbirch]

An update effective 19 APR 2003 has been posted at

www.concealcarry.org/naacp.htm (http://)

I am pleased to say a second gun dealer is now part of our ban on sales to blacks. We hope others join in soon.

As to someone's suggest that they need my permission to pass my program around, it's not necessary to have my permission. Anything on my web site is fair game for anyone as long as there is proper attribution.

[Lord Grey Boots]

Hmm, interesting. It does sound like a reasonable action to take in direct response to the threat of the lawsuit.

"We are suing you because you are doing X"

"Okay, we will stop doing X".

What else can anyone expect the gunshops to do in this case?

Keep doing the action they are being sued for?


I do think gun shops that participate will have to post some sign that says something like.


"DUE TO THE LAWSUIT INITIATED BY (whomever), WE CAN NO LONGER SELL FIREARMS TO AFRICAN-AMERICANS. WE ARE SORRY FOR THIS, AS AFRICAN-AMERICANS HAVE RIGHTS AND NEEDS FOR SELF-DEFENSE AS STRONG AS ANYONE ELSE. THIS WAS NOT OUR CHOICE, BUT WAS FORCED UPON US. PLEASE FEEL FREE TO DISCUSS THIS WITH THE GUN SHOP STAFF, AND THEY WILL BE ABLE TO PROVIDE INFORMATION ON HOW TO HELP THE FIGHT AGAINST THE LAWSUIT".

[Jeff Thomas]

I agree ... brilliant political satire. Let the retrogrades chew on this one. ;)

Regards from TX

[johnbirch]

Thank you all for some good advice. In particular Don Gwinn and Lord Grey Boots who will find their work on our newly redesigned web page. This new web page I believe will make it much easier to comprehend the mission we have embarked on to save what little of our gun rights we have left.

www.concealcarry.org/naacp.htm

[Don Gwinn]

If you're truly outraged about John's decision, I suggest you call the NAACP and ask them when they intend to do about it!

1 (877) NAACP-98 toll free.

[Jim March]

Mr. Birch,

There's some interesting commentary by a black civil rights activist in New Jersey name of Leonard Whitley here:

http://www.federalobserver.com/archive.php?aid=3312

It's in the form of a forward and afterward to Clayton's "Racist Roots of Gun Control". HIGHLY recommended for anybody interested in this subject, and for that matter whoever is defending against the NAACP legal attack should put Leonard on the stand!

[one-shot-one]

posting mostly to move this back to the top of the list.
it is about time some one called these people out publicly.
good job keep it up.
it seems the nay sayers have disapeared!?!? did ya'll finally get it or are you just to embarrassed to continue to support the racists on the other side (naacp). if we (that is all of use who truly want to live in a free society) continue to play their P.C. games we will lose, it is their game and their rules.
way to go for mr. birch for changing the rules and showing all thinking people how :confused: they realy are.

[neoncowboy]

Could someone update me on this?

I just read this thread and think this guy is BRILLIANT!

What's the status of the NAACP lawsuit?

[RevDisk]

Hmm. Mr Birch sounds like he's responding to a request by the NAACP. I fail to see the problem. If you dislike it, I recommend contacting the NAACP and asking them to reverse their request. I doubt it will happen, but hey. I've been surprised before.



I'm sure it took a fair amount of courage to do this. I wish Mr Birch the best of luck.

[Penforhire]

Seems brilliant and dangerous to me. We need to change tactics once in a while. This is the sort of thing that could swing votes, once reasonable people see the absurdity of the NAACP complaint.

Since I have no desire to see the public disarmed I only hope the NAACP would capitulate before the "stunt" does impact sales to black people in that region.

[carpettbaggerr]

I get it. No you don't.

Sheer Brilliance, Mr. Birch. Hopefully this will wake some people up.

[Don Gwinn]

You know he posted that over a year ago, right?

The policy is still in place, and anyone who complains is still being referred to the NAACP. I haven't decided whether it's a good idea or not, but I'm ready to find out where the line is.

It is also important to note when you tell people about this that Concealed Carry, Inc. WILL sell a firearm to an African-American if the NAACP approves. All you have to do is call the NAACP, get their approval and have them speak to John or put it in writing.

If you want this to be prominent again, you could always write to the NAACP and ask them whether they've decided to allow to John Birch and Concealed Carry Inc. to sell to black folks yet. Frankly, CCI is so small I doubt he's on the NAACP's radar.

[Atticus]

I think he's making a valid point. The NAACP need to decide whether they want to portray African Americans as helpless dupes who cannot control their primitive impulses and who require special protection not afforded to other groups ...or they can return to their original mission of fighting for legal and social equality, while providing equal opportunity for success.
They are rapidly becoming an ineffective fringe group....even to blacks.

[Ky Larry]

The NAACP needs to be reminded of the old saying:" Be careful what you ask for. You just might get it." :D

[GeneC]

Wha, wha,wha,wha,wha,what, Y'all ain't never heard of the John Birch Society?, it's been around forever.

[Muzzleflash]

So why isn't everyone doing this? :confused:

[spartacus2002]

Brilliant!

[Grey54956]

You know, I think this is insanely brilliant.