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The Essential "End the AW Ban" Contact List & Sample Letter Thread!

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There is good news and bad news....

First the bad news....we do not have the votes in the Senate to over-ride. It's somewhat unclear as to what GWB will do, but he has indicated in the past he would renew it.

Now the good news....the battle can be won before votes are ever taken....the key is Tom Delay, chairman of the House committee that is handling this. If the renewal does not make it out of committee...AWB fails to be an election issue and sunsets as planned...currently the best strategy to employ.
 
Aren't there implications to sending snail mail? Since the first anthrax letters 2 years ago, and the recent ricin incident, my understanding is that all snail mail sent to congress, POTUS etc. is sent a facility in NJ, where it is irradiated. I believe that the process takes several weeks, and the paper can be damaged (ie. turning yellow and becoming brittle). I wonder if the phone/email/fax route may be the better way to go. Just a thought.
 
How about the following, It's quick and might get attention.
Hey, Hey, Ho, Ho That Assault Weapons Ban Has Got To Go. If desired,one can certainly say more, but sometimes fewer words are better than many.

Additionally, if anyone is interested in using the phone, the TOLL FREE number for Capitol Switchboard, tell them which congressional or senate office you wish to speak with is: 1-800-648-3516
 
I sent this to Senator Fritz Hollings (D-SC):

Since the 1994 "Assault weapons ban" is going to be a subject of debate soon I would like to point out a few facts. No rifles were actually banned in '94. You can go into a gun store or a gun show and buy a newly manufactured semiautomatic copy of any modern military rifle you desire. Current market prices for M-16 style rifles are $750. The AK-47 style rifle will cost about $400. The FAL will cost about $600. the G3 will cost $600. The M-14 is about $1100. Those are the five most popular rifles of the cold war and they are all available today in South Carolina. They are the same rifles which could be purchased 10 years ago before the "Ban" went into effect. The "high capacity magazines which were "banned" are also readily available today. AK-47 Magazines cost $6. M-16 Magazines cost $15. FAL Magazines cost $4. G3 magazines cost $2. M-14 magazines cost $35. They all still hold 20-30 rounds of ammo just like they did 10 years ago. Nothing was banned, so if you look for an impact on crime you won't find one. What was banned??? well thanks to the ban the M-14 and AK-47 style rifles cannot accept a bayonet like they should be able to. Will this impact violence in America? The M-16, FAL, and G3 style rifles cannot have a certain piece of metal on the end of the barrel which reduces flash. Will this impact crime? No. They all still hold 20-30 rounds of ammo and fire as fast as you can pull the trigger.
Please do not continue the "ban." I will not vote for anyone who votes for any new gun control law. I have never voted for any Democrat due to the fact that they seem to support such laws as the "Assault Weapons Ban."
Thanks for listening and if you are ever in Greenville and want to go shooting at the SC-DNR rifle range in Pickens County let me know.

-Michael
864-xxx-xxxx
 
No4Mk1*:

The points you made are entirely valid, well written and unmistakeably clear, or should be to anyone who is awake. I have some question as to some of the prices you quoted, but that's a minor point. I'm not in South Carolina these days anyhow. Used to shoot IPSC at Charlotte R & P Club, Mid-South, near Columbia and several others thereabouts, but that was some years back.

I do believe that this Assault Weapons Ban renewal can be whipped, provided that "our side" gets energized, and stays energized. Those elected things need to hear from their constituents, and they need to keep hearing from them. They certainly do hear from the other side. It's our war, to win or to loose.

By the way, if memory serves, hasn't Hollings announced his retirement? Wasn't he also anti-gun?
 
He is retiring. Awbansunset.com gives him a fairly good rating but when asked if he would support renewal he said he needed to study the issue to see if there has been an impact on crime. I wanted to point out that crime has not been impacted because the 1994 ban because it did not effectively ban any weapons. As far as the prices, ask away. I wasn't concerned with finding the lowest price on everything, just pointing out that everything is out there for those with money. Email if you don't want to clutter up this thread.
 
No4Mk1*:

In my book or booklet, that comment from Hollings would mark him as a double-talker, if not worse, but then I don't vote in South Carolina. As for "my" senators, Santorum, who gets very hard to take re some things, seems to be pro-gun, pro Second Amendment, at least he claims to be so. Arlen Spector, the other senator, has always struck me as a double-talker, he used to brag about his support for the Assault Weapons Ban, so-called, but these days, what with what might be a tough primary fight, is talking out the otherside of his mouth, when he says anything about firearms, which it seems you have to corner him on to get any sort of response. When he held elective office in Philadelphia, his reputation was strongly anti gun, but when he ran for statewide office, he changed his tune. Whether or not the man changed, or just the tune, is open to question.

As to prices of firearms, and accessories, inflation not withstanding, about the only thing that this so-called ban on "assault weapons", no actual assault rifles, they being selective fire weapons were effected anyhow, was to RAISE PRICES.

Like I said, I believe that our side can win this fight, others too, but only if "gun people" take a hard look at realities, and act on the basis thereof. The realities are that the antis, from their own mouths, have one constant goal, that is the basis for their every move. Their goal is THE TOTAL PROSCRIPTION OF FIREARMS, and they work away at it too. Strikes me as sad that to many people our side doesn't really seem willing to put in the time and the effort needed to really win this. That's life, I guess.

If you doubt this, then try the following expirement. When together with a bunch of gun owners, at your local gun club or elsewhere, or with any bunch of people, who might be complaining about one or another piece of legislation, ask the following, and then pay close attention to the responses you will likely get. Ladies and gentlemen, re whatever it is that has your "knickeres in a knot", when did you last contact any elected officals regarding what it is that concerns you. All to often, you will be greeted with thunderous silence. As I mentioned above. I guess that that's life.
 
NY Patriot wrote:

Proof positive that our letters, faxes, & phone calls DO make a difference in the minds and opinions of politicians...

Gun lobby shows clout in Ohio: Letters speak louder than donations...

So... what is your excuse now???

The story from the Dayton paper yu linked to was quite interesting. As to the question at the end of your post, " So... what is your excuse now???", I'm sure that the lazy numbnuts's will manage to find some sort of excuses.

Interestingly, if they spent half the energy doing something, that they spend avoiding doing anything, who knows but what we might have beaten Gun Control Act of 1968, and perhaps even obtained repeal of National Firearms Act of 1934.
 
To whom it may concern,

Can we at least get a temporary "tack" or "sticky" for this thread???

The Senate debate on the AWB amendment is going to take place Tuesday (3/2/04), so we have less than a week to exert all the political pressure that we can muster!!!

The time is NOW folks... this is THE RKBA battle of the last decade!

If not us, who? If not now, when???
 
NY Patriot:

Small piece in my local paper Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, one of America's Great Newspapers, as their masthead claims, laughter can be heard in the background, noted that 75 senators voted "to continue" Gun Liability Bill, fillibuster was voted down, final vote scheduled for Tuesday, same day you mentioned. Sevewral amendments to be voted on today, supposedly.

I've been on to my senators almost daily, re S. 659/1805, the so-called gun show loophole, and assault weapons ban sun set, as well as general comments on the essentially phoney nature of "gun control". Re the three specific items mentioned above, as I see things, they are must win things for our side, there is absolutely no room for "compromise" by anyone who claims to be other than anti-gun.

As to those ill advised souls who have managed to talk themselves into believing that one can be "reasonable"with the anti gunners, or who have permitted others to con them into such belief, I'm at a loss to determine how the thing could be clarified so that they would see and understand what is really afoot here. I think that such people are, sad to note it, a lost cause. Nothing more to be done with them, for while one can place food and water before a horse, one cannot make the creature eat and drink.

Quite soon perhaps, we will see a resolution to matters above mentioned, at least for a while, for should the anti's loose, they will likely be back for another try. In the meantime, our side must keep the pressure up. Those people in The Congress House and Senate, must be made to realize that our side is a force to be reckoned with.

End of rant.
 
Here is my letter...


Dear Senator Levin,

I am writing you regarding title XI of the Federal Violent Crime Control Act of 1994, also known as the “Assault Weapons Ban.†This useless piece of legislation is due to expire in September 2004. I urge you to vote against any legislation that seeks to renew, extend, or expand on the ban no matter what bill it might be attached to.

The “assault weapons†ban was bad legislation when it was enacted and it is bad legislation today. There is no compelling evidence that it does anything to stop or reduce crime. A study conducted by the non-partisan Urban Institute for the U.S. Department of Justice found that, “…because the banned guns and magazines were never used in more than a fraction of all gun murders, even the maximum theoretically achievable preventive effect of the ban on gun murders is almost certainly too small to detect statistically...†and, “At best, the assault weapons ban can have only a limited effect on total gun murders, because the banned weapons and magazines were never involved in more than a modest fraction of all gun murders.†(1) Furthermore, in an October 2003 study the Center for Disease Control found no evidence that “bans on specified firearms or ammunition†have any effect on violent crime. (2)

As you can see there has been no substantive evidence presented that the “Assault Weapons†ban has had any significant effect on reducing crime and has no worthwhile public safety benefit. I respectfully urge you to oppose any effort to renew this ban.

I would appreciate a reply from you to learn your position on this very important issue.

Sincerely,

Ktulu





(1) Jeffrey A. Roth, Christopher S. Koper, William Adams, et al. “Impact Evaluation of the Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act of 1994†Urban Institute - March 13, 1997 http://www.urban.org/url.cfm?ID=406797

(2) Robert A Hahn, Oleg O. Bilukha, et al. “First Reports Evaluating the Effectiveness of Strategies for Preventing Violence: Firearms Laws†Center for Disease Control (CDC) – October 3rd, 2003 http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr//PDF/rr/rr5214.pdf
 
Political Action

Write letters - Call - Email

Just get off you A$$3S and do SOMEHTHING
 
Has anyone contacted the Vice President specifically? I havn't really thought about him, but he does have the ability to break a tie in the senate (like Gore did in 1994 to give us the ban in the first place).
 
Thought this was imporatant enough to post here too...
Oh My...
I think I may be an Idiot. Yes, with a capital "I".
All this time - I had a modem capable of sending faxes... all I had to do was upgrade grab a driver and put in a patch and v'iola...
A fax machine right under my snout!
Anyway... What kind of fool am I... dada da da....
Any one who wants to should be able to do this also...
I went HERE for THIS
I am in buisness now...
 
I took one of the previously letters and added a couple paragraphs for effect, here it is.

I am writing you in regards to the "Assault Weapons Ban of 1994". And as I am sure you know, is set to expire via a sunset clause in September of 2004. I wish and urge you to vote against any renewal of this legislation.

The banned weapons and magazines in question are rarely used to commit murders in this country. A criminal is not going to spend $1,000 on a weapon when he can get his hands on one that is often home made, cheaply manufactured, or stolen and just as lethal for less than 200 dollars. The "Assault Weapons" ban simply doesn’t work like its authors said or expected it to, regardless of what they claim. The facts can be distorted but the truth cannot…."Assault Weapons" neither cause, nor significantly contribute to violent crime in America. For this I urge you not to support the renewal of this legislation.

The ban has had no palpable effect on crime, but it has had a tremendous and terrible impact on the law-abiding citizens of the United States. Many people engage in competitive shooting programs such as the Civilian Marksmanship Program that uses mainly semi-automatic firearms. They are no longer allowed to configure their rifles in the constitutionally protected manner of their choosing. This should not be allowed to continue.

Last but not least, the ban targets features just because they look scary. The authors of this legislation honestly have no comprehension of physics or the mechanics of modern firearms. They feel that just because a firearm looks scary it should be banned, when the truth of the matter is that so-called "Assault Weapons" are mechanically identical to semi-automatic "sporting rifles." For this I beg that you to oppose the renewal of this "feel-good" legislation.

The fact this ban has had no effect on violent crime, it hinders the performance of men and women involved in competitive shooting, and attacks weapons based solely on their appearance is more than enough justification for its expiration, and I implore you to vote against any reauthorization or renewal of the "Assault Weapons" ban.

Keep in mind, there are many Republicans like myself that are upset with our party's latest movement away from it's base, for a long time we have held on, remaining Republicans just because they were the lesser of two evils, or because, while we may find the Libertarian party interesting, their stance on "Open borders" kept us from voting for their candidates. Our presidents latest movement to give amnesty to millions of illegals with no plan to stop more for coming in doesn't give us a clear distinction between the effects of the libertarians "Open Border" policy and the Republicans "Do Nothing" policy. Let me be clear on this, ANY move by the Republican party to further limit our 2nd amendment rights will push myself and many others out of the Republican Party, even a small migration of Republican voters to another party could very well be be the end to President Bush's administration, this next election will be so close that we could very well be the straw that breaks the camels back.

Please do not alienate America’s lawful gun owners, do not take it for granted that we will always just vote for the "Lesser of two evils", many of us have already made a move to vote for the person we think most represents our interests, regardless of their chances in a national election. Take note, Perot was a big factor in Bush Sr. losing his second run for President, Ralph Nader was instrumental in Al Gore losing in the last election. For many of us this is the last straw, and the outcome of the votes on S.1805 and whether or not it is voted in as a clean bill, or muddied with anti-gun laws will be our deciding factor.

Thank you for serving, thank you all the work you do for our country, but beware, there is a very large group of us that have become one issue voters, and that one issue is the 2nd Amendment.
 
RatFink:

Re your lketter, a couple of points.

1. It strikes me as a clear, reasoned exposition of your thinking. The ideas you brought to the forefront make sense, though I nbelieve that you are unwarrantedly kind to those who proposed, pushed and supported the so-called assault weapons ban.

2. In my opinion, you need to shorten the letter.

As for S. 1805, we should have been able to get a "clean bill" out of The Senate, The House produced one. Unfortunately, with the situation being what it appears to be, that being a lack of balls on the part of Republican Leadership, there are a number of baloney amendments that have been proposed, some of them have been accepted too already, there others pending too.

In any case, it strikes me that the above mentioned Republican Leadership might be all to ready to sell gun owners down the proverbial river on S. 1805. One almost shudders to think on what sort of stunt they might try re the reauthorization or extention of this Assault Weapons Ban, if they thought that they could get away with it.

After all, not much happened re firearms legislation during the past three or so years, other than extending of a ban on firearms that do not exist, thre extend for another 10 years of the 1988 ban on Firearms that Can Pass Undetected Through Airport Metal Detectors and or "X-Ray Machines". Now there are ROLL CALL VOTES, and the roaches are running around like mad.
 
alan,

Only the last 3 paragraphs are mine, I felt that a previously posted letter eplained pretty well why the AWB should be allowed to sunset, I just added the last 3 paragraphs to point out that any capitulation on this matter by the Rebulicans would cost them.

My senators are Kyle (No worry's from him) and McCain
(Stupid gunshow ammendment) My comments were mostly to point out to McCain that his Gunshow ammendment might cost him votes, and to let them both know that if the president signs any extension of the AWB it could very easily cost him his job.

And it is probably too long.
 
RatFink:

From what I heard on the radio this aftewrenoon, The Senate did a job of the law abiding gun owners of this country, respecting their having voted a 10 year retntion of the Assault Weapons Ban. seems as if they screweds us twice, I didn't get the deytails of the other act.

The next phase of this nbasttle lies in The House, who by failing to do anything with this Assault Weapons Ban, effectively kill it, via the setting of the sun. The Senate Majority Leadership stabbed us in the back. Lets seen what the Republican Leadership in The House does.

As I said, the next battle lies in The House, and the one after that comes in November. It's called elections. The Republicans and Democrats who did us must learn that there are serious costs to such action. How will gun owners vote? Will they vote at all? What will happen between then and now? We shall see. It might well turn out thqat a number of Republicans, like Democrate after 1994, will find themselves on the outside, looking in, a fate that they likely deserve for their traiterous actions.
 
Worst case...manufacturers will have a chance to restock our supply of "pre-ban" magazines and assault weapons before any new AWB can be voted in after September. Front door, side door, or back door we still get inside and thats whats counts.
 
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