The Heller (formerly Parker) Supreme Court decision will likely be released sometime in the next week.  Decisions are being released on Monday and Thursday of this week and Monday of next week!

For those of you who aren't familiar with Heller, it's a landmark second amendment case dealing with the legality of banning handguns in Washington DC.  It looks like the court may rule in our favor by a 5-4 or 6-3 margin.  If we're lucky, we might even pull a 7-2, but I wouldn't bet on that.

The real question, though, is how narrowly the opinion will be written.  The Supreme Court has always narrowly defined their judgments, but Chief Justice Roberts takes this to a whole new level of scrutiny.  Hopefully, he'll be a bit more broadminded about this and certify clearly that the second amendment is an individual right that is not open to restriction.

Anyway, we'll know by 10:00am whether or not the Supreme Court is releasing this opinion today.


-b0b
(...will keep dreaming.)

Seems kind of a waste when DC corridors off whole blocks on neighborhoods and stops people to check them out.

Of course, the funny thing that the news didn't seem to make a big deal about it, was that since so many officers were stopping average, law abiding citizen...violence actually went UP when they were doing their Nazi check points.

Is DC becoming the new CA?

X

Today is the last session of the Supreme Court for this sitting, so unless they do something tricky (which is highly unlikely), the Heller decision should be announced this morning!

The Supreme Court session starts at 10:00am, so hopefully we'll know how they ruled and how narrow the definition was by noon!


-b0b
(...pray for this one, guys!)

It's sad that we have to wait with bated breath to hear what people, who should not be deciding this, think that when the 2nd Amendment says "right of the people to bear arms" what it means is that everyone has the right to own a gun.  Hmm amazing...and let's hope they don't narrowly divide down to hunters and sports shooters...because you read anything by the Founding Fathers and they never talked about bearing arms for hunting or sport...they put that number 2...just in case the govt got too big again.

X
(Hoping for the best still)

Quote:

10:12 Tom Goldstein - Heller affirmed. 10:13 Ben Winograd - The Court has released the opinion in District of Columbia v. Heller (07-290), on whether the District’s firearms regulations – which bar the possession of handguns and require shotguns and rifles to be kept disassembled or under trigger lock – violate the Second Amendment. The ruling below, which struck down the provisions in question, is affirmed. Justice Scalia wrote the opinion. Justice Breyer dissented, joined by Justices Stevens, Souter and Ginsburg. We will provide a link to the decision as soon as it is available. 10:13 Tom Goldstein - Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess a firearm.

YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAH!  Let's PARTY!


-b0b
(...WOOOOHOOOO!)

http://img161.imageshack.us/img161/3710/wootcopyxg3.jpg




Quote:

10:14  Tom Goldstein -  It is striking that the decision is not clouded by ambiguity created by separate opinions.   One opinion on each side. 10:16      Tom Goldstein -  Apologies - there is a second dissenting opinion, but only one majority - no plurality and no concurrences.

Wolverines!

The opinion was 5-4.  We're still waiting on the full written opinion.


Quote:

Court: A constitutional right to a gun Thursday, June 26th, 2008 10:14 am | Lyle Denniston | Comments Off | Email this • Share on Facebook • Digg This! Answering a 127-year old constitutional question, the Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to have a gun, at least in one’s home. The Court, splitting 5-4, struck down a District of Columbia ban on handgun possession. Justice Antonin Scalia’s opinion for the majority stressed that the Court was not casting doubt on long-standing bans on gun possession by felons or the mentally retarded, or laws barring guns from schools or government buildings, or laws putting conditions on gun sales.

The traffic on AR15.com, SCOTUSBlog.com, and CoverItLive.com is so heavy that all three are timing out intermittently.  I want to read the bloody opinion, dang it!


-b0b
(...waits.)

I've attached Justice Scalia's majority opinion below.  Enjoy!


-b0b
(...will be reading for a bit.)

---

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k281/rowjims/automotivator-1.jpg

That is really surprising.  I figured the court would rule law abiding citizens remain unarmed.

At 5-4, it was closer than it should have been.  This is probably the one good thing about Bush winning the election in 2004.  If Flipper Kerry had won the election, Roberts wouldn't have been seated on the Court and we would have lost this one.

-b0b
(...was hoping for 6-3 or better.)

On Fox News, Wayne LaPierre, president of the NRA, announced the NRA has filed suit against the city of Chicago to overturn their handgun ban.  He also announced they were going after all of the 'burbs with draconian gun laws.


-b0b
(...let my people go, you commie bastards!)

Quote:

A “SUPREME” COURT? I CAN DO BETTER by Ted Nugent It is glaringly obvious that a critical lesson in history 101 is due in America, for it appears that not only does a lunatic fringe of anti-freedom Americans dismiss our founding fathers’ clear declaration of independence and succinct enumeration of our God-given individual rights, but some Americans have the arrogance and audacity to question whether the right to self-defense is indeed one of these individual rights. Dear God in heaven, who could be this soulless? How about 4 out of the 9 so called “Supreme” justices of the land. God help us all. Who could be so asinine as to believe that a free man has no such right to keep and bear arms for self-defense? What kind of low-life scoundrel would know that courageous heroes of the U.S. Military would volunteer over and over again to sacrifice and die for such self-evident truths, then turn around and spit on their graves by discounting the very freedoms that these brave men and women have died to protect? Will these supreme legal scholars also affirm an individual right to choose the religion of our individual choice? Do they authorize our individual freedom of speech? Can you imagine? Them is fighting words my friends, and the line drawn in the sand has never been more outrageous. Recent USA Today and Gallup polls showed a whopping 73% of good Americans know damn well that we are all created equal, and that we each have an individual right to protect our life, liberty and pursuit of happiness. What kind of jackass doesn’t know this? Allow the guitar player to translate for the soul-dead among us. Keep-this means the gun is mine and you can’t have it. This does not mean I will register it with a government agency. The government works for “we the people,” not the other way around, regardless of what Hillary Clinton, Ted Kennedy, Hitler, Mao Tse Tung, Pol Pot, Saddam Hussein or Barack Hussein Obama or 4 supreme justices may try to tell you. Bear-this means I’ve got it right here, on me, either in my grasp or damn near. This does not mean locked away in a safe, trigger-locked or stored at the local sporting club. Shall not be infringed-this of course is another way of saying Don’t tread on me, for we will not be your willing crime victims, subjects, servants or slaves, so don’t even think about it. When the evil King’s gangsters came to collect unfair taxes from Americans, we tossed their tea into the drink. When they came to disarm us into helplessness against their old world tyrannical ways, we met them at Concord Bridge and shot them dead till they quit treading on us. Any questions children? I didn’t think so. Corrupt men cannot be trusted, hence the right of “the people” to choose the individual church of our choice, to speak our individual ideas and beliefs, to have individual freedom from unwarranted searches and seizures, and ultimately, to exercise our individual right to keep and bear arms so that evildoers cannot do unto us that which we would not do unto them. Get it? I would love to meet the human being who would argue these points with us. We would be looking at a fascist, and of course fascists, by all historical and empirical evidence, must be eliminated. If you value the American Way, if you believe in the words and spirit of the US Constitution and our sacred Bill of Rights, if you know in your heart that you have the right, the duty, the spiritual obligation to protect yourself and your loved ones from evil in all of its forms, then you had best contact each and every one of your elected officials right away and let them know that you know exactly what the Second Amendment says and stands for. Remind them about the “shall not be infringed” clause. It will not be the fault of the rotten anti-Americans out there who don’t believe in individual rights that rape and pillage our Constitution, it will be the fault of those who know better but failed to speak up. Now is the time to fortify America, and we better inform the Supreme Court just who truly is the “Supreme” Court of America-We the people. Individual people with individual, God given rights. The real America. Live free or die.

Can I get a HELL YEAH?!


-b0b
(...HELL YEAH!)

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c96/MattHoffman/Heller-Summary.gif

http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c104/David_g17/gunrights.jpg

Does anyone find it funny that these politicians like Obama and Clinton want to take away our gun rights...yet they're surrounded with 8 guys packing weapons?

X

well everyone but the govnt cant have guns

It is a proven fact that everyone who isn't a politician is a nazi commie terrorist!

That's nothing.  Do you guys remember the brouhaha a couple years back when one of Ted Kennedy's bodyguards got caught carrying a fully-automatic sub-machine gun into the Capitol building?

Kennedy, of course, cried like a stuck pig.  Mind you, you'll never find a bigger (HA!) gun grabber in all the land...

-b0b
(...should post Diane Feinstein's retarded whining rant from the Heller decision.)

How about when Rosie O'Donald was "shocked" to "just learn" that her bodyguard carried a gun when she was on her big (ha) gun grab campaign.

X

Quote:

http://www.wusa9.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=74036&catid=187 WASHINGTON (WUSA) -- District residents can start registering their guns today. But at least one very high profile application was already rejected. Dick Heller is the man who brought the lawsuit against the District's 32-year-old ban on handguns. He was among the first in line Thursday morning to apply for a handgun permit. But when he tried to register his semi-automatic weapon, he says he was rejected. He says his gun has seven bullet clip. Heller says the City Council legislation allows weapons with fewer than eleven bullets in the clip. A spokesman for the DC Police says the gun was a bottom-loading weapon, and according to their interpretation, all bottom-loading guns are outlawed because they are grouped with machine guns. Besides obtaining paperwork to buy new handguns, residents also can register firearms they've had illegally under a 180-day amnesty period. Though residents will be allowed to begin applying for handgun permits, city officials have said the entire process could take weeks or months.

Wow, they just don't give up!  WTF is a "bottom loading" pistol, anyway?

They must be referring the standard semi-auto design where the magazine is loaded into the bottom of the pistol.  Does that mean virtually every semi-automatic pistol is a machine gun, but a Sten isn't?

http://www.militaryfactory.com/smallarms/imgs/sten.jpg

What a bunch of morons.

-b0b
(...rolls his eyes.)

Why is this guy registering his weapons anyways?  Clearly he has an unregistered weapon and he probably took it back home and didn't destroy it?

I just don't see a need to register firearms...in MI does the gun sellers register for you or do you have to do that yourself and they just do a background check?

X

Heller has no choice but to register his firearm.  That's the "new" law in DC following the Supreme Court decision.

In Michigan, there is no official registration for firearms.  However, there is a mandatory "safety inspection" for pistols that must be completed whenever any pistol is purchased, regardless of how it is bought.  It is a de facto registration scheme, even if the state won't call it that.

The pistol inspection is performed by the city policy department or sheriff's office for your place of residence.  You take the pistol in after you purchase it, and you only have a couple of days to do it in.  The only "inspection" performed by the dealer is the federally-mandated NICS check, which ensures the buyer is not a felon or judged mentally incompetent.


-b0b
(...can elaborate if so desired.)

So what do the cops do?  Take down serial numbers or just make sure it's not fully auto?

That just sounds odd.

X

They "function check" it, although I'm pretty sure most of them have no clue what the heck they're doing.  Generally, I just unlock the case, they pull the gun out and reef on the slide a few times, then they put it back and finish the paperwork.  It only takes a couple minutes.

-b0b
(...was bit upset when they reefed on his P.38.)

Quote:

(...was bit upset when they reefed on his P.38.)

Did they at least buy it dinner first?

Quote:

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,392705,00.html Gun Ban Plaintiff Dick Heller Files New Lawsuit Against Washington, D.C. Monday, July 28, 2008 WASHINGTON — The plaintiff in the Supreme Court case that overturned Washington's 32-year-old handgun ban has filed a new federal lawsuit against the city. In a complaint filed Monday in U.S. District Court, Dick Heller and two other plaintiffs allege that the city's new gun regulations still violate rights guaranteed under the Constitution. The lawsuit cites the District of Columbia's unusual ban on firearms that carry more than 12 rounds of ammunition, which includes most semiautomatic handguns. The suit also claims that the city's regulations make it all but impossible for residents to keep a gun ready for immediate self defense in the home. The Supreme Court struck down Washington's handgun ban June 26. The D.C. Council passed emergency legislation July 15 in an effort to comply with the court's ruling.

School is back in session!

-b0b
(...hell yeah!)

If you're in the military and your CO tells you to carry out an illegal order it's your responsibility to not follow it.

I don't see it being any different with a normal citizen and an unjust law.  I hope this guy files the lawsuit and I also hope he's packing what he wants to and how he wants to.

X

well thats just too relative sir. I don't like the speed limit, it is unjust. I think we should go 120 mph, so I am going to do it.

Just because it's an unjust law doesn't mean you can disobey it. Bible says to obey the authority thats placed above you, even if it is unjust.

So the bible is a communist?    Just saying.......

My flame war detector is going off the charts!


-b0b
(...grabs his asbestos underwear.)

You cannot make a valid argument that the speed limit is unjust.  That being said, I think obeying unjust authority, mostly using Romans 13, has been a big plan of the globalist and it's a matter of public record that the govt tells preachers to preach heavily on that or loose their 401(c)3 status (even though they don't really need it).

Even still, did Paul and the other apostles stop preaching the Gospel when the towns rulers told them to stop?  No, because Peter said that he answers to God and not to man.

If the govt told you owning a Bible and praying were against the law would you follow that unjust rule?

There are times we must "render unto Caesar what is Caesar's" and their are other times when we must disobey earthly authority for a Higher Authority.

X

X wrote on Jul 29^th, 2008 at 3:10pm:

That being said, I think obeying unjust authority, mostly using Romans 13, has been a big plan of the globalist and it's a matter of public record that the govt tells preachers to preach heavily on that or loose their 401(c)3 status (even though they don't really need it).

O rly?

Do you have a source for that (other than Prison Planet)?  I'm sure that would make for some interesting reading.


-b0b
(...hmmmmm!)

Quote:

I don't like the speed limit, it is unjust.

Funny you should mention this.  Good ol' Federal gov is looking at making all highways 55mph soon.

...but it is safer!!

Again?


-b0b
(...points out that 55 is too slow.)

A Pastor has come forward to blow the whistle FEMA
Wed May 31, 2006 00:37


Official document here PDF

http://www.infowars.com/images2/ps/pastor_fema_docs.pdf

(this was the only link I could find to the pastor's document.)


A Pastor has come forward to blow the whistle on a nationwide FEMA
program which is training Pastors and other religious
representatives to become secret police enforcers who teach their
congregations to "obey the government" in preparation for a
declaration of martial law, property and firearm seizures, and
forced relocation.


This program is a nationwide initiative and a literal Soviet model
whereby the churches are being systematically infiltrated by
government volunteers and used as conduits for martial law training
and conditioning. The Pastor was told that over 13,000 counties were
already on board.

FEMA related to the Pastors that quarantines, martial law and forced
relocation were a problem for state authorities when enforcing
federal mandates due to the "cowboy mentality" of citizens standing
up for their property and second amendment rights as well as farmers
defending their crops and livestock from seizure.

It was stressed that the Pastors needed to preach subservience to
the authorities ahead of time in preparation for the round-ups and
to make it clear to the congregation that "this is for their own
good."

Pastors were asked to make a pledge or an affirmation during the
meeting to fulfil the roles ascribed to them by FEMA. They were
given assurances that they would be covered by full compensation in
the event of resisters injuring them during property seizures and
round-ups.

ALSO


Quote:

Homeland Security Enlists Clergy to Quell Public Unrest if Martial Law Ever Declared     Could martial law ever become a reality in America?  Some fear any nuclear, biological or chemical attack on U.S. soil might trigger just that.  KSLA News 12 has discovered that the clergy would help the government with potentially their biggest problem: Us.     Charleton Heston's now-famous speech before the National Rifle Association at a convention back in 2000 will forever be remembered as a stirring moment for all 2nd Amendment advocates.  At the end of his remarks, Heston held up his antique rifle and told the crowd in his Moses-like voice, "over my cold, dead hands."     While Heston, then serving as the NRA President, made those remarks in response to calls for more gun control laws at the time, those words live on.  Heston's declaration captured a truly American value:  An over-arching desire to protect our freedoms.     But gun confiscation is exactly what happened during the state of emergency following Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, along with forced relocation.  U.S. Troops also arrived, something far easier to do now, thanks to last year's elimination of the 1878 Posse Comitatus act, which had forbid regular U.S. Army troops from policing on American soil.     If martial law were enacted here at home, like depicted in the movie "The Siege", easing public fears and quelling dissent would be critical.  And that's exactly what the 'Clergy Response Team' helped accomplish in the wake of Katrina.     Dr. Durell Tuberville serves as chaplain for the Shreveport Fire Department and the Caddo Sheriff's Office.  Tuberville said of the clergy team's mission, "the primary thing that we say to anybody is, 'let's cooperate and get this thing over with and then we'll settle the differences once the crisis is over.'"     Such clergy response teams would walk a tight-rope during martial law between the demands of the government on the one side, versus the wishes of the public on the other.  "In a lot of cases, these clergy would already be known in the neighborhoods in which they're helping to diffuse that situation," assured Sandy Davis.  He serves as the director of the Caddo-Bossier Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness.     For the clergy team, one of the biggest tools that they will have in helping calm the public down or to obey the law is the bible itself, specifically Romans 13.  Dr. Tuberville elaborated, "because the government's established by the Lord, you know.  And, that's what we believe in the Christian faith.  That's what's stated in the scripture."     Civil rights advocates believe the amount of public cooperation during such a time of unrest may ultimately depend on how long they expect a suspension of rights might last. Story by Jeff Ferrell

No offense, but Alex Jones/InfoWars/Prison Planet aren't really valid sources.  The guy is a crackpot who can find a conspiracy everywhere he looks.

-b0b
(...one pastor?)

Yeah, like the conspiracy that wes' mom is really a hookerbot sent from the future.

...A programming bug makes it so she doesn't require money to "work."

Quote:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/08/18/national/a091346D40.DTL 08-18 09:13 PDT WASHINGTON (AP) -- The man whose lawsuit overturned Washington's handgun ban has successfully registered his revolver, ending a more than 30-year wait to keep the weapon in his home. Dick Heller walked out of D.C. police headquarters Monday, clutching a yellow firearms registration certificate stamped "approved." He gave the thumbs-up sign, grinned and said, "Victory!" Heller was among the first people to seek a gun permit under new rules adopted after the Supreme Court struck down the city's 32-year-old handgun ban in June. Heller was the plaintiff in that case. He won approval to keep a .22-caliber revolver at home after coming to police headquarters in July to be fingerprinted and take a firearms proficiency test. Police approved the weapon after completing a background check.