HB2625, sponsored by AZ House Majority Whip Debbie Lesko, allows employers to opt-out of certain mandated benefits, based on the business owner’s beliefs. It doesn’t authorize the firing of women, it doesn’t violate the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), it won’t deprive women of health care or contraceptive choices, kill kittens, or dictate the color of your panties.
HB2625 merely lets a business owner choose what they will and won’t pay for in the reproductive health insurance area. Contrary to the ACLU’s dishonest agitprop, the bill doesn’t, “give your boss the green light to fire you for using birth control.” It does prevent employees and politicians from forcing their beliefs onto a business owner. An employer’s rights shouldn’t be any different than yours.
Sadly, there are allegedly liberated women, freaking out that the government might not use laws to take care of their tender bits. Shocking isn’t it?
This outraged woman happily shared her personal details with Arizona State Representative Brenda Barton and everyone else on Facebook. Alvin (not her real name) can’t claim privacy rights when she’s posting the details of her period for the whole world to see.
I thought most women wanted the government to stay out of their nether regions. These outraged women are unfortunately getting false information and haven’t stepped back to look at the situation. If you invite the government, and your employer, into your “women’s healthcare” issues, don’t be surprised when the government, or your boss, wants to have a say in what you do with those body parts. This bill removes your boss and your government from your reproductive organs.
If you believe contraceptive issues are your private business, please support HB2625 and don’t use the government to force other people to pay for your beliefs.
As noted in Tyler Montague’s post on Sonoran Alliance, there is quite a bit of debate about Arizona Senate Bill 1474. SB1474 would allow Arizona concealed weapons permit holders to carry on state college campuses, rather than leaving their weapons in their cars, where the risk of weapons theft is high. The bill even allows campuses to prohibit firearms in buildings. If colleges wish to prohibit carry by law abiding citizens, they must provide a safe storage locker and appropriate signage.
ASU President Michael Crow, who opposes the bill, has threatened to waste millions of dollars on needless lockers, signs, and additional security if SB 1474 is passed. Wasting $13 million for a false sense of security might be a good reason to replace the president of a university, but Arizona should not allow itself to be blackmailed by threats of retaliatory wasteful spending.
A Warped Imagination
President Crow wants people to, “imagine a crowded college lecture hall in which one student pulls a handgun and fires a shot, then a dozen more students untrained in the use of firearms and how to handle potentially deadly situations all pull out their guns.”
Mr. Crow asks you to imagine, because such a tragic event has never happened. He also wants you to suspend reality and imagine that training is not required in order to qualify for a concealed carry permit. Despite Mr. Crow’s imagination, Arizona requires permit holders to have a minimum amount of training in weapons use and how to respond to, or avoid deadly encounters.
Mr. Crow also wants people to imagine that police SWAT teams will be shooting innocent students in order to “take out everyone with a gun.” This is an extremely absurd scenario! Arizona Department of Public Safety officers, Phoenix Police officers, Arizona Game and Fish officers, and virtually every law enforcement department in the state of Arizona regularly deals with armed, law abiding, Arizona citizens without killing “everyone with a gun.”
Campus Police Chiefs
Campus Police Chiefs were even willing to denigrate their own officers during testimony before an Arizona Senate committee. Some chiefs explained that studies show that 85% of shots fired during officer involved shootings miss their intended targets, while reinforcing the view that officers will recklessly kill innocents. I hope those Campus Police Chiefs were merely supporting their campus management’s hyperbolic opposition. Otherwise, those chiefs should be replaced and funds should immediately be allocated for training campus police so they have the same level of competency as the rest of Arizona’s Peace Officers.
Police cannot be everywhere, you are your own first responder.
Even ASU has noted a Department of Justice study that found: “About 3% of coeds are raped during each academic year. Over the course of 5 calendar years, including summers and vacations, 20-25% may be raped.” Even with this level of victimization, ASU President Michael Crow lobbies to keep students defenseless. Surely, rape disrupts the educational process more than a law-abiding gun owner ever could.
At the Virginia Tech massacre in 2007, the murderer’s spree went unchallenged for two and a half hours. As a result of “gun free zone” policies on the Virginia Tech campus, the murderer was able to kill students for 2.5 hours. He even had time to return to his room to reload, then go across campus to continue his spree completely unchallenged.
“I feel our campuses are still vulnerable. Anyone can wander onto our campus at any time. I’ve had people wander into my classes I have no idea who they are, even since 2007.”
Is a Concealed Weapons Permit Good Enough?
DPS data shows that there are currently 163,425 concealed weapons permit holders in Arizona. From September 8, 1994 to February 26, 2012 only 1,115 permits have been revoked for any reason. Even if those revocations were just for the last year, the revocations would only amount to 0.68 percent of current permits. These revocations do not represent actual mishaps, and in some cases, a revoked permit may be reinstated.
When traveling outside of Arizona, an Arizona concealed weapons permit is recognized and accepted by 35 other states. This level of concealed weapons permit reciprocity suggests that our current permit training requirements are more than adequate to address public safety concerns, while allowing the individual the choice to pursue additional firearms training that fits their time, financial constraints, and training needs.
Clarity
President Crow’s imagination is unsupported by facts, which is why he cannot provide any incidents that substantiate his fears. Despite the claims to the contrary, Senate Bill 1474 allows people to protect themselves while addressing legitimate safety concerns.
People have a right to self-defense and a right to bear arms. Imaginary events are a completely inadequate reason to deprive law abiding adults of their constitutional rights. In this bill, Senator Ron Gould has addressed the concerns that were expressed about similar legislation last year. Senate Bill 1474 merely allows adult citizens, over 21, who have had firearms training, submitted to fingerprinting, and passed a criminal background check to qualify for, and obtain, a valid concealed weapons permit to lawfully carry when they set foot on the soil of a college campus. The same right they already have elsewhere in the state.
Both Robert and I are second-generation natives, and to say we love Arizona would be a huge understatement. Despite what the pants-peeing media would like you to believe, this state is populated with some of the kindest and most generous people I have ever met. The rugged individualism and independent spirit that Arizonans have held on to for a century have allowed us to remain a (relatively) free state. We are passionate about our freedoms and liberties and we’re willing to go to the mat to protect them.
If you don’t like the sound of that and you’re looking for a place to hang your hat, please continue traveling West until you hit California. Unlike Arizona, they’ll be more than happy to tell you how to eat, sleep and live.
It’s time for the special election primary race for those seeking to win Representative Gabby Giffords’ recently vacated seat. The Republican special election primary is set for April 17, 2012, and the special election is scheduled for June 12. The Republican race for the seat is heating up now that several candidates have announced their campaigns.
The choices so far in the Republican Primary are:
Arizona State Senator Frank Antenori was the first to declare his candidacy for the seat. Senator Antenori is an Army Special Forces Veteran who co-authored the book, Roughneck Nine-One: The extraordinary Story of a Special Forces A-Team at War, about his experiences at the Battle at Debecka Pass in Iraq. His record on gun rights is great. Antenori’s experience as a legislator, his A+ AzCDL rating in 2010, and proven voting record give him a distinct advantage in the race.
Jesse Kelly will run again for the AZ Congressional District 8 seat. In 2010, Kelly was narrowly defeated in the race with Ms. Giffords. He served in the Marines for four years. After the tragic Tucson shooting at the Gifford’s event, Kelly was vilified by Democrats for his prior campaign events where supporters could shoot M16s with him. I’ll take that as a sign of his pro-gun credentials.
Martha McSally announced her intention to run for the vacant seat yesterday. Ms. McSally is the first woman to fly an Air Force fighter in combat. She is a Distinguished Graduate of the United States Air Force Academy, has a Masters Degree in Public Policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard, and retired from the Air Force as a colonel in 2010. She has also served as a national security adviser to Senator Jon Kyl. At this time, her website does not list her positions on current issues.
So far, the only candidate to come forward for the Democrat primary is Giffords’ aide Ron Barber.
The current race would allow the winner to serve in the seat through the rest of this year. The winner will need to simultaneously run in the Fall general election, but in the newly redrawn Congressional District 2 to keep the seat. The Republican contenders should make this race very interesting to watch.
Representative Gabrielle Giffords has announced her plan to resign from Congress in order to focus on recovering from her injuries. Hopefully, this move will enable her to focus strictly on recovery and rehabilitation, without the distraction of those attempting to exploit Gabby for political gain.
Her video announcement is moving and honorable.
Thank you for serving Arizona, Representative Giffords. May your recovery be speedy and complete.
Hunting Works for Arizona held a presentation and sporting clays shoot in December at Ben Avery Shooting Range Facility. Hunting Works for Arizona (HWFA) was created to promote the economic partnership that exists within the hunting and shooting communities and the greater Arizona economy.
Our membership consists of businesses representing a cross-section of the Arizona economy. These include sporting retailers big and small, restaurant owners, hotel, motel and resort operators, gas stations and convenience stores, hunting and shooting organizations, chambers of commerce and of course all the taxpayers of Arizona (hunters and non-hunters alike) who benefit economically and aesthetically from the license fees, taxes, and jobs the hunting and shooting industry provides both directly and indirectly.
How much direct economic impact does hunting have in Arizona?
$323 million in direct annual spending on lodging, food, gas, and gear.
Creating 4,700 jobs with $107.5 million in salaries and wages.
Paying $15.3 million in Arizona sales, fuel and income taxes.
A more than $429.3 million total impact on the state economy.
Ben Avery Clay Target Center
HWFA Co-Chair and Arizona State Representative Jerry Weiers noted just how expensive it can be to hunt, due to planned and unplanned expenses, as he shared a few of his hunting stories.
Mark Thomas, Director of Communications for the National Shooting Sports Foundation addressed how intertwined hunters, sport shooters, hoteliers and even law enforcement officers are effected by anti-gun and anti-hunting efforts.
Mr. Thomas noted how the intent of lead ammunition bans was not for the safety of animals. The lead ammo bans are a stealth attempt to stop all hunting, under the guise of helping the environment, despite the lack of any supporting evidence. He also noted how a ban on lead ammunition would harm not only sport shooters, but law enforcement officers as well. If lead is banned as an ammunition, our Police officers won’t be able to buy effective ammunition. Unfortunately, almost any lead substitute for bullets would be unacceptable, as the substitute metal would violate the Federal law about mythical “cop-killer-bullets“.
Mr. Thomas also explained how Modern Sporting Rifles (AR-15s) are the hunting rifle choice of today’s returning war Veteran’s and how that is no different than how WWI Veterans chose the .30-06 1903 bolt action rifle for hunting, or how WWII Veterans chose hunting rifles chambered in .30-06 like the M1 Garands they carried during their service to our country. He cautioned hunters that replacing the wood stocks of prior hunting rifles with plastic stocks didn’t change the function of the rifles. AR-15 black rifles, referred to as “assault weapons” by major media outlets, are just similar to the weapons today’s Veterans used while serving, and would be the most logical choice of hunting rifles for today’s military Veterans.
After the presentations, it was time to hit the Rattlesnake Course at Ben Avery Clay Target Center. The best way to describe Sporting Clays is, it’s like golf, only louder and more fun.
Arizona Representative David Gowan Shooting Sporting Clays
Federal Ammunition provided the shotgun shells for the match. Thank you Federal, Hunting Works for Arizona, and the awesome staff at Arizona Game & Fish for a great day at the range.
Robb Allen over at Sharp As a Marble has a plan for his USPSA match on Sunday. ExurbanKevin at Misfires and Light Strikes has a plan for his IDPA match on Sunday. Mz. VRWC and I are participating in an IDPA Regional Match this weekend, called the South Mountain Showdown, at Phoenix Rod & Gun Club. Surely, I have a plan for shooting this event, I think. The plan has to be somewhere around here, now where did I leave it?
The plan, meticulously based on the only three IDPA club matches I’ve shot so far…is:
Muzzle safety – Don’t point the gun at anything I don’t intend to destroy, including my own body parts, or my match is over early (instant disqualification).
Maintain the 180 degree rule at all times – Don’t point the gun in a direction greater than 90 degrees to the left or right of the downrange berm (instant disqualification).
Only shoot has fast as I can accurately shoot – Any faster than that will waste ammo, time, and incur penalties. (You can’t miss fast enough to win.)
Have fun and enjoy the experience.
Maintain a relaxed approach to fend off the Red Mist, facilitating quick and safe draws from concealment.
That’s it! That is my plan for this match.
I know how to pull the trigger smoothly, line up the sights correctly, and how to be safe while handling firearms. Any other “things” I could plan on doing would probably exceed the mental bandwidth available after the timer buzzes.
Watching other shooters fire at lightning speed can create tremendous performance anxiety. At some point, you realize that you can only perform at the best of your abilities. You need this realization to keep your competitors’ performance from inducing the Red Mist.
Many people focus on the hoped for outcome of the event, at the expense of those tasks that have to be performed to achieve that goal. When those tasks are performed correctly, the sum of those tasks will equal the desired outcome, which is a winning performance. My focus will be on managing the tasks I have control over. If I do everything correctly, the result will be safe competition, zero-down scores, and a good place in the results.
Now I just have to remember my plan…where did I put that plan?
Happy 100th Birthday, Arizona!
