News and Headlines
Guns & Lattes
While Starbucks permits patrons to openly carry guns in the 43 states that allow such laws, we are happy to report that BJ’s Restaurants joins California Pizza kitchen in banning open carrying of long guns in their establishments. The open carrying of handguns was banned in California as of January 1, 2012, with the passage [...]
The Purchasing Power of the Pistol
Gun Purchasing Surges in 2011 The FBI performed a record number of instant background checks on potential firearm buyers in 2011 according to new government data. Nearly 16.5 million queries were made by firearm sellers. That was up 15% from 2010, and the highest number of annual screenings performed since 1998, when the National Instant [...]
CAGV Honored with Year-End Gifts
The Coalition Against Gun Violence was honored to receive two substantial charitable gifts at year’s end in 2011. Goleta Presbyterian Church Peacemaking Offering made a generous contribution to CAGV of $500, which is distributed to nonprofit organizations that work effectively to promote peacemaking and nonviolence.
California Tops Arizona, Alaska, Utah: “Do-Nothing” States
California is a model of sensible gun laws. Its universal background check system, strong gun dealer regulations, and assault clip ban are just some of the laws that provide a roadmap to preventing gun violence. Meanwhile, Arizona, Alaska, and Utah do not have a single common sense gun law on their books, according to the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence.
Laura’s Law
Laura Wilcox, the 1999 valedictorian at Nevada Union High School in Nevada County, California, was home for winter break from Haverford College, where she was a sophomore running for co-presidentv of the student body. Laura planned to work at the Behavioral HealthvDepartment for one week in January 2001 before returning to college.vShe was filling in for the receptionist when a patient, Scott Thorpe,vwalked in and fired four times killing Laura and another employee, Perlie Mae Feldman, 68. Thorpe found Dr. Heitzman’s (his therapist) door locked. Then Thorpe drove three miles and shot Michael Markle, 24, an employee of a diner he frequented.
Too Many Victims Vigil
Gathered on the steps of Santa Barbara’s magnificent Spanish-style courthouse at 10:00 am, Sunday, January 8, 2012, community members marked the anniversary of the Tucson shooting massacre with a memorial vigil. Organized locally by the Coalition Against Gun Violence, this vigil joined with the national Brady Campaign’s 69 other united vigils in 22 states and [...]
The Second Amendment: NRA’s Challenges Shot Down!
Not satisfied! That is the theme of the National Rifle Association – not satisfied until every U.S. citizen is packing heat everywhere and anytime. The gun control advocates are not surprised. The Supreme Court’s rulings on Heller and McDonald, an activist’s decision which made new law, redefined the Second Amendment as an individual’s “right to [...]
Teen Tragedy
Tragic firearm stories are far too numerous in which both victim and perpetrator share misery at multiple levels – death, grief, loss and a knowing that justice, whatever that means, will never resolve the pain. There are many questions left unanswered perhaps forever in this tragic story – a story that has been investigated, analyzed, [...]
Fast & Furious – The Bottom Line
What was the goal and purpose of the now failed ATF’s program dubbed Fast and Furious? ATF agents in Phoenix allowed licensed firearm dealers to sell weapons to legal “straw” buyers in the hope that the agents could track the weapons and arrest Mexican drug cartel leaders. The tracking system was seriously flawed. This resulted [...]
President Obama’s Small Quiet Steps
Despite strong opposition from the National Rifle Association, President Obama has quietly made several efforts to toughen current gun regulations, which will bypass a fight in Congress, including: Strengthening the national electronic system by collecting new information to make background checks for handgun buyers simpler and easier, leaving an electronic paper trail under the Brady [...]