Total Recall: Colorado Lawmakers Ousted in Historic Vote

When legislators disregard the voice and will of the people who vote them into office, the people should rightly vote those legislators out of office. On Tuesday, a historic grassroots effort by voters in Colorado resulted in just that--the recall of Colorado Senate President John Morse (D) and Senator Angela Giron (D). This week's action represents the first recall of legislators in Colorado history. Tuesday's vote sent a clear and unmistakable message to elected officials that their primary job is to listen to the people and defend their rights and freedoms, and that they are accountable to their constituents--not the dollars or social engineering agendas of out-of-state anti-gun billionaires. Simply put, legislators work for the voters, not the other way around!

Recall proceedings began earlier this year, after Sens. Morse and Giron voted for anti-gun legislation that restricted the ability of law-abiding residents to exercise their Second Amendment rights, including their inherent right to self-defense. This effort was driven by concerned Coloradoans, who collected petition signatures, made phone calls, knocked on doors, and worked diligently to turn voters out in this historic effort. And despite massive spending by Michael Bloomberg and the anti-gun elitists, Sens. Morse and Giron are now looking for work.

Illinois Supreme Court Declares State's Ban on Carrying Firearms Unconstitutional

In an unusually forceful and straightforward opinion in the case of People v. Aguilar, the Supreme Court of Illinois unanimously held that the state's "comprehensive ban" on the "use of an operable firearm for self-defense outside the home" is invalid on its face under the Second Amendment. The NRA had participated in the case with an amicus brief.

The court surveyed the Supreme Court's recent Second Amendment decisions, as well as state and federal precedents from courts in Illinois. Regarding the significance of the Supreme Court's opinions, it declared: "neither Heller nor McDonald expressly limits the second amendment's protections to the home. On the contrary, both decisions contain language strongly suggesting if not outright confirming that the second amendment right to keep and bear arms extends beyond the home." It also characterized the Illinois law as "a wholesale statutory ban on the exercise of a personal right that is specifically named in and guaranteed by the United States Constitution…." According to the court, "In no other context would we permit this, and we will not permit it here either."

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His Group Honored the Boston Bomber

More Guns, Less Murder?

"Stampede" would only slightly exaggerate the speed with which anti-gun public health researchers responded to President Obama's call for $10 million to fund "gun violence" research earlier this year. Within a short time, gun control-supporting number-crunchers who had been given tax dollars to produce "studies" promoting gun control in the 1990s, before Congress turned off the spigot, assembled in Washington, D.C., to compile a wish list of topics they want to be paid to "study" today.

This week, Boston University researchers chimed in too, releasing a study to be published soon in the American Journal of Public Health, claiming to have found "a robust correlation between higher levels of gun ownership and higher firearm homicide rates."

Gun control advocates may want to hold off on popping champagne corks to celebrate, however. The study did not conclude that there is any cause-and-effect relationship between gun ownership and gun homicides.

In Mexico, Citizen Militias Take Up Arms to Protect Their Communities

According to an article published in the Washington Post this week, entitled, In volatile Mexican state, it's citizens vs. cartels, residents across the Mexican state of Michoacan are increasingly organizing into citizen militias in order to combat the threat posed by one of the country's most powerful and ruthless drug cartels. And despite strict federal laws barring most civilian firearm ownership, average citizens are arming themselves for the fight with everything from machetes to old hunting rifles, to firearms seized from their cartel enemies.

The article describes the formation of the militias as a "desperate reaction" to a reign of terror carried out by Mexico's third largest cartel, the Knights Templar. Cartel actions in the region include drug smuggling, general violence and intimidation, and an extortion racket that taxes every avenue of commerce, from the revenues of a taco stand to the wages of a farm laborer. Those who refuse to pay can be subject to having their loved ones kidnapped, or death.

Enter the SOG Knives NRA Giveaway!

Enter the SOG Knives NRA Giveaway on Facebook! One winner will receive a Gunny Fixed Blade Knife. Five winners will receive a SEAL Pup Knife.

The Gunny Fixed Blade Knife is a limited edition, heirloom-quality knife designed by R. Lee Ermey--aka "The Gunny"-- and SOG Specialty Knives & Tools. Each knife is meticulously crafted using exotic Cocobolo hardwood handles which feature a stingray hide inlay along with nickel-plated replicas of the commemorative Gunny coin.

2013 Firearms Law & The Second Amendment Symposium

The 2013 NRA "Firearms Law & The Second Amendment Symposium" will be held on Saturday, October 12th, at The University of Denver.

Focusing on recent developments in our nation's courts and legislatures regarding the Second Amendment, speakers will discuss and debate current Second Amendment developments and related issues.