NEA: Tell Congress to Pass Sensible Gun Safety Legislation.

[gun-fucious]

http://capwiz.com/nea/issues/alert/?alertid=204

Action Alert
Gun/School Safety
It's Time to Get Real About Protecting Our Kids. Tell Congress to Pass Sensible Gun Safety Legislation.

Go!
Gun violence is a problem in our communities. Firearms are too easily accessible to criminals and unsupervised kids. That is why NEA members call on Congress to act now without further delay to pass responsible, common sense gun safety legislation that prevents guns from falling into the wrong hands.

Ask your Senators to vote for S. 1034 to renew the 1994 Assault Weapons Ban, which will expire in September 2004 if Congress does not take action. The Ban has been successful in decreasing the supply and availability of specified military-style, semi-automatic guns with multiple assault weapons features such as high ammunition capacity and rapid-fire capability (e.g., the Uzi and AK-47). These guns are not well suited for hunting or self-defense, but they are the weapons of choice for criminals.

Urge Congress to also support the bipartisan National
Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) Improvement Act of 2003, formerly the Our Lady of Peace Act of 2002. By making 35 million missing records available to the system that identifies illegal gun purchasers, this bill would strengthen the NICS system to approve legal firearms transfers in a timely manner and to stop criminals and other prohibited buyers quickly. This bill has won the support of groups on all sides of the gun issue: Americans for Gun Safety; National Rifle Association; and the Brady Campaign.

Tell Congress that our schools and communities need sensible gun safety legislation, not proposals like S. 659, which would protect gun dealers from lawsuits without any responsibility or accountability from the gun industry.

Just enter your ZIP Code in the space above and click GO! From there you can send e-mail to your Senators and Representative using your personal e-mail account and home street address.

Find out more about School Safety

 

[Jack T.]

sure is nice of them to let me send emails to my reps pushing for the AWB sunset right from their website. . .

i don't image that is what they wanted, but might as well use their bandwidth. . .

 

[Mark Tyson]

People, get off your butts and compose a snail mail letter to your representative and senators. The fate of the AWB could be a pivotal point in our fight. The enemy is rallying around this issue and can be expected to raise their shrill voices even louder in the future.

In fact, write a couple letters to mail in the future. I have.

 

[jon]

There is a neat little feedback form for the NEA here: http://www.nea.org/contact.html

This is the letter I wrote them:

As a student, I find your action alert at [http://capwiz.com/nea/issues/alert/?alertid=204] to be a ridiculous and illogical emotional appeal. You say that "[t]he Ban has been successful in decreasing the supply and availability of specified military-style, semi-automatic guns..." Where is your research citation that indicates this? To whom has the ban been effective? Has it been effective against criminals or just law-abiding citizens?

Furthermore, you stated that "[t]hese guns are not well suited for hunting or self-defense, but they are the weapons of choice for criminals." How often are these weapons used to commit crime? What percentage of crimes is committed with these weapons? Has the rate of use changed since the passage and enforcement of this law? The criminal's "weapons of choice" (as you call them) are also the choice of marksmen, hobbyists, sport shooters, and hunters (yes, hunters can and do use "assault weapons" to legally harvest game!). They are also perfect for self-defense for those who feel they need effective weapons to protect themselves and their family. However, if you read several days' worth of news from any newspaper, you will see that crime is hardly ever committed with these banned weapons.

The 1994 Assault Weapons Ban has had no positive effect on the misuse of “assault weapons†by criminals. It has not prevented schools from random shootings. Indeed, the tragic attack on Columbine High School by Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris was not mitigated at all by the ban. The Columbine incident can be contrasted with the Pearl High School incident, where Joel Myrick, an assistant principal armed with a handgun, stopped Luke Woodham from killing more students.

In conclusion, I state that the 1994 Assault Weapons Ban has not been beneficial to either the education community or the population in general. It has only restricted law abiding citizens from obtaining and using legal tools so that they can hunt, target shoot, take part in competitions, and defend their families in a more effective manner. It has not prevented criminals from obtaining the very weapons prohibited by the ban, nor has it contributed to the well being of the nation.

Respectfully,

 

[Brian Dale]

ME: Tell Congress to Pass Sensible Gun Safety Legislation.

Require that students take Eddie the Eagle early on, then pass hunter safety and gun handling/marksmanship courses for H.S. graduation!

I can dream...

 

[benewton]

I think Jack T has it right.

Sure is convenient.

But do make sure you uncheck their mail request.

Too, send the NEA a copy of your pro sunset missive.


Bet this thing goes away fast, so don't waste time!

 

[Standing Wolf]

If I'd had children, they would not have gone to union schools!

 

[benewton]

SW:
I couldn't have afforded to have children, because they would have had to have gone to the government schools...

Doesn't that constitute child abuse?

 

[44Brent]

Suggested text of message:

_____________________________________
It's time to get real about protecting our kids from criminals who do not obey the law.

The safety of school children is threatened because teachers and principles are prohibited from using pistols and revolvers in self defense from criminals.

The way to solve this problem is to require teachers and principals to:

1) Take classes in correct usage of firearms in self defense of children

2) Require teachers and principals to be armed at all times.
_____________________________________

 

[C.R.Sam]

Snail mail and phone calls...
Cost a little effort.
Cost a few cents.
Very important.

Sam

 

[MeekandMild]

I have a business associate who went to high school in eastern Europe. He speaks four languages and studied integral calculus in the eleventh grade. He has a working knowledge of classical music, literature, art and philosophy, though his college work was in the sciences.

He considers US schools to be a joke.

I have another associate who went to high school in a poor Equatorial African country. He only speaks 3 languages well plus a little French.

Needless to say there is no NEA in either country.

We need sensible school control.

 

[FPrice]

Here is the text of my NEA-sponsored message:

The Honorable Richard E. Neal
U.S. House of Representatives
2133 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515-2102 Representative Neal:

It is time to get real about common sense gun legislation. Specifically the fact that gun laws which are designed to prevent law-abiding citizens from owning guns DO NOTHING to combat crime and target the real problem - the criminals who prey upon the honest citizens of this country.

The (mis-named) Assault Weapons Ban has been a dismal failure because the types of firearms it addresses are NOT used in any great frequency by criminals. It is nothing more than an effort to erode the freedoms which our Founding Fathers saw fit to include in the Consitution.

Honest citizens who own firearms, any type of firearms, are not the problem. Criminals are the problem. The laws this country needs are already on the books, what we as a people need is the intestinal fortitude to hold people responsible for their actions, not try to excuse them by blaming inanimate objects for the crime.

I urge you to take two actions.

1. Support S. 659 to protect gun companies from harassment-type lawsuits meant only to cost these companies large amounts of money fighting frivolous charges. Virtually every suit which has been brought to court in different jurisdictions has come to the same conclusion - the gun companies are not responsible for the actions of crimnals who misuse their products. When so many different courts come to the same conclusion, you must acknowledge that these lawsuits are WRONG in their intent and must be stopped!

2. Allow the AWB to sunset. This law has done nothing but harass law-abiding citizens and spread lies about the use of these firearms (which are NOT assault weapons) in the commission of crimes.

I strongly urge you to take a closer look at the facts surrounding this issue, and not succumb to the falsehoods spread by anti-gun groups. Instead, I ask you to take a stand in favor of the honest, law-abiding gun owners of this great country.

Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,

 

[Desertdog]

Here is my letter to the legislators and to the NEA. Yes, I clicked so NEA would get a copy.

The issue is SAFETY, not gun control. Voting for S. 1034, will not increase safety but will be a step to gun control.
To increase safety of children they need to be educated in the safe handling and safe use of firearms. Not by making them more fearful of firearms.
Uphold your oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States, by voting against the Renewing of the Assault Weapons Ban, S. 1034.
The Second Amendment was and still is a part of our Constitution and it reads
"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."
Congress should focus on bills that fight gun crime, not hamper lawful gun owners.