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| Dr. David Marlett, Editor | 5 April 2001 | Vol. II #47 | ||
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| Dr. David Marlett, Editor | 5 April 2001 | Vol. II #47 | ||
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HB 320 in Committee Thursday!
Last month when North Carolina's HB320 was introduced, Grass Roots North Carolina warned their members that it was a threat to their safety and the safety of their families. The bill -- officially titled "Safe Storage of Firearms" -- has now been assigned a Committee Hearing, and it requires some immediate attention. GRNC accurately nicknamed this bill the "Home Invaders Protection Act" -- because it seeks to force law-abiding adults to render their home defense weapons entirely useless by mandating that they be inaccessible through locking devices and/or gun safes.
You can go and read the text of the bill yourself. It's not very long, and you owe it to yourself if you live in North Carolina to know what your local socialist public servants are attempting to do to your family -- to get them killed. Paul Kelly of the Denver Post said something that North Carolina public servants are urged to understand:
"Anyone conscientious enough to use a trigger lock doesn't need it, and anyone who isn't wouldn't use it."
Sammy "The Bull" Gravano, whose testimony convicted John Gotti, also had some instructive words of wisdom that fit this situation quite well: "Gun control? It's the best thing you can do for crooks and gangsters. I want you to have nothing. If I'm a bad guy, I'm always gonna have a gun. Safety locks? You will pull the trigger with a lock on, and I'll pull the trigger. We'll see who wins."
Unless you like the idea of having the government requiring you and your family to be defenseless against home invaders, it would be wise to pick up your phone today. Contact information and the suggested action steps from Grass Roots North Carolina are contained below, along with a letter you would do well to copy and FAX to your public servants in opposition to this dangerous legislation.
*** IMMEDIATE ACTIONS REQUIRED:
1. Phone, email and FAX the legislators below.
2. Attend the Judiciary I Committee meeting Thursday, April 5th at 10:00 AM. Location is Room 1228, Legislative Building, Raleigh. (on Jones Street between Salisbury and Wilmington - park across the street underneath the NC Museum of History).
2. Bring your friends to the Committee meeting with you, we want to pack the room.
*** DELIVER THE FOLLOWING MESSAGE:
Dear Representative:
I urge you to oppose HB 320 ("Safe" Storage of Firearms) by all means procedural and substantive. Objective research demonstrated that not only are mandatory gun storage laws ineffective, but that they actually increase murder, rape and robbery.
A 1991 report by the United States General Accounting Office notes that mechanical safety locks are unreliable in preventing children older than six years from using guns. During 1998 in North Carolina, only 2 fatalities in this age group were attributed to firearms.
If you consider all North Carolina children who were under the age of 18 in 1998, for every one that died from a gun accident, thirty-eight died from tragic accidents that had nothing to do with firearms. If groups like North Carolinians "Against Gun Violence" are truly concerned only about the welfare of children, couldn't their efforts be better spent elsewhere?
HB 320 is a flawed and deceptive bill which will subject even the most responsible gun owners to criminal prosecution. I will be closely monitoring your actions on this bill. I strongly urge you to oppose HB 320 by all possible means.
Respectfully,
.................
Representative Jim Black, Speaker of the NC House
E-mail: Jimb@ncleg.net
Phone: (919) 733-3451
Fax: (919) 715-0772
Address:
2304 Legislative Building
Raleigh, NC 27601-1096
Speaker Pro Tempore Joe Hackney (D-NC 24th)
E-mail: Joeh@ncleg.net
Phone: (919) 733-5752
Fax: (919) 929-3960
Address:
2207 Legislative Building
Raleigh, NC 27601-1096
Rep. Martin Nesbitt (D-NC 51st)
E-mail: Martinn@ncleg.net
Phone: (919) 733-5872
Fax: (828) 252-0511
Address:
420 Legislative Office Building
Raleigh, NC 27601-1096
Rep. Flossie Boyd-McIntyre (D-NC 28th)
E-mail: Flossieb@ncleg.net
Phone: (919) 733-5905
Fax: (919) 733-3113
Address:
506 Legislative Office Building
Raleigh, NC 27601-1096
Rep. Edward Redwine (D-NC 14th)
E-mail: Davidr@ncleg.net
Phone: (919) 733-5829
Fax: (910) 754-9185
Address:
635 Legislative Office Building
Raleigh, NC 27601-1096
Rep. Ronnie Sutton (D-NC 85th)
E-mail: Rons@ncleg.net
Phone: (919) 715-0875
Fax: (910) 521-4733
Address:
1321 Legislative Building
Raleigh, NC 27601-1096
Rep. R. Walker (R-NC 41st)
E-mail: Tracyw@ncleg.net
Phone: (919) 733-5935
Fax: (919) 733-2599
Address:
1111 Legislative Building
Raleigh, NC 27601-1096
[KeepAndBearArms.com ]
Conservative columnist Joseph Farah says there is another aspect of Jesse Jackson's background that most Americans still do not know.
Jesse Jackson has been in the news a lot lately. First it was the revelation about his adulterous affair with an employee of his Rainbow Coalition. And more recently, new questions have been raised about his group's finances. But Farah's comments this week deal with neither of these. Instead, he reports that Jackson is also in bed with the American Stalinists of the Communist Party USA.
As part of his evidence, Farah points to the 1984 edition of the Communist Party USA's journal, where a Harlem organizer, Kevin Mercadel, boasted that the party was involved in the formation of the Rainbow Coalition in support of Jackson's presidential bid, and that members were expected to work for his election. Jack O'Dell, a Communist Party USA veteran, is one of Jackson's top organizers and served as director of international affairs of the National Rainbow Coalition.
Farah quotes other sources which say Jackson was also the guest speaker at a number of Communist events in the 1980s, including a Berkeley Symposium in 1984 sponsored by the Marxist Black Scholar magazine. In fact, Jackson was the keynote speaker at a 1985 commemoration of the 10th anniversary of "the liberation of Vietnam" sponsored by the Communist Party USA.
Farah says all of this should not come as a surprise to people. He says anyone taking the time to study the issues will find that Jackson's policies and those of the Communist Party agree 99% of the time. As the conservative editor puts it, "no 'mainstream' political leader has ever cozied up quite so close to the Communists as Jackson."
[ AgapePress ]
The Senate Ethics Committee is examining whether gift rules that apply to senators should also apply to senators-elect, a move prompted by public response to the $8 million book deal Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton signed weeks before taking office.
Ethics Committee Chairman Pat Roberts, Kansas Republican, and ranking Democrat Harry Reid of Nevada notified Senate leaders of their review in a letter distributed yesterday.
The committee has received "requests from the public" seeking changes in the rule, said the letter to Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott of Mississippi and Minority Leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota.
Republican leadership aides confirmed the review is the result of Mrs. Clinton's book deal.
"Recent news reports have included discussion about the possibility of amending Senate rules of federal law to subject senators-elect to the limits of the Senate gift rules," the letter said.
"There has also been speculation about the possibility of having the Senate modify its rules to be consistent with the rules of the House of Representatives respecting the advance payment of copyright royalties," the letter said.
Mrs. Clinton said she would favor extending the rule if the Ethics Committee determines it is warranted.
"I have said repeatedly I would support that," the New York Democrat said.
Senate rules set a cap for income earned outside of Senate work, but Mrs. Clinton had not been sworn in. Advance payments are not considered outside income but must be made "in accordance with usual and customary contractual terms."
As a senator, Mrs. Clinton and her husband are also barred from accepting individual gifts worth $50 or more, or a total value of $100 from a single source. Ethics rules ban such gifts to protect public officials from conflict of interest and influence-peddling by wealthy business interests.
Mrs. Clinton signed the book deal with publisher Simon & Schuster on Dec. 15. Her tell-all biography won't be published until 2003.
The deal was signed five weeks after she was elected to the Senate, but three weeks before being sworn into office on Jan. 3.
President and Mrs. Clinton also accepted nearly $190,000 in gifts before vacating the White House, according to Judicial Watch. The Clintons have since agreed to pay for half of the gifts.
Similar legislation dubbed the "Hillary ban" is already moving through the House Judiciary Committee.
"The purpose of that is to stop a future Hillary Clinton from escaping the restrictions on giving gifts to members of Congress between the election and the time when members of Congress are sworn in," said Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner Jr., Wisconsin Republican and chairman of the Judiciary Committee.
Judicial Watch filed a complaint with the Senate Ethics Committee regarding the book deal and gifts Mrs. Clinton accepted before leaving the White House.
"As a candidate, she cannot accept gifts; as a senator, she cannot accept gifts, and she did so as both," said Tom Fitton, Judicial Watch president.
[ Washington Times ]
Fox News Channel emphasizes fair reporting and hard-hitting talk programs, much to the delight of conservatives weary of trying to separate truth from liberal media spin.
Fox is doing such a good job of refusing to toe the Democratic Party's line that their studio will be marched upon by fuming liberals on April 6.
Riled protesters will gather at the Fox News Cable Studio in New York to take a stand against media fairness. It seems that Fox News declared a Bush victory on Election Night. Since all good liberals know Al Gore won the election, Fox must be punished.
Protesters will rally and rant about Fox's evil agenda, which is the worst of "all the media's defacto conservative tilt," according to mediabias.freeyellow.com.
One wonders if the protesters will actually make it to the Fox studio. If they can't get right and left straight, how will they navigate through Manhattan?
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Email Fox News Chairman and CEO Roger Ailes and thank him for fair and balanced reporting on Fox.
Fox News Channel
Roger Ailes, Chairman and CEO
1211 Avenue of the Americas, 2nd Floor
New York, NY 10036
Phone: 212-556-2500
Fax: 212-819-0816
Email: comments@foxnews.com
or: roger.ailes@foxnews.com
[http://join.SixtySecondActivist.com/ ]
Every American taxpayer should be required to write the federal government a check to cover his or her tax liabilities, rather than have an employer withhold the tax amount from paychecks, asserts a Texas congressman.
Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, is prepared to introduce legislation to that effect this week. Modeled after the "Cost of Government Awareness Act" he drafted last year, the bill is designed to make taxpayers aware of how much they are paying the government and to eliminate the burden of tax collection from employers -– especially churches.
"Withholding taxes are presumptively taken, often resulting in an interest-free loan by the taxpayer to the Treasury which is not refunded until sometime the next year," Paul said. "Furthermore, employers face a tremendous burden complying with the withholding requirements. Private employers should not be required to determine and collect federal tax liabilities. The federal government ought to have the honesty to present the American people with a monthly tax bill."
Paul's spokesman, Jeff Deist, asked: "How is it your employer's job" to ensure that you make good on your tax liability?
The February seizure of Indianapolis Baptist Temple has fueled Paul's resurrection of the legislation, which he believes could have prevented the church's catastrophe. As reported by WorldNetDaily, IBT was seized by U.S. Marshals for refusing to withhold taxes from employee paychecks. Ministers and members of IBT hold to a deep religious belief that churches should not act as government agents, and specifically, should not be the government's tax collector.
Recognizing that the law requires individuals to pay taxes, church employees instead paid their taxes as though they were self-employed. The IRS, however, rejected the practice, reportedly returned the employees' tax payments, and instead assessed the church for the "back taxes," penalties and interest upwards of $6 million and seized the church's property.
"Had Congress passed my bill [last year], the Baptist Temple might have been spared," Paul stated. "The Temple, like an increasing number of private employers, simply objects to being forced to act as an agent for the IRS by collecting withholding taxes. It's a crime that the congregation may lose its home because of a principled refusal, based on religious faith, to do the job of the IRS."
"Let's make sure that this never happens again. Let's get churches out of the business of being IRS agents," added Deist.
Current law requires all employers, including churches and non-profit organizations, to withhold income taxes from employee paychecks. It is worth noting that a relatively small but growing number of employers reject the assertion that they are required to withhold taxes. Pointing to IRS-issued refunds based on employers' amended returns which reflect no withholdings, vocal members of the movement say these refunds confirm the legality of their practice of not withholding. IRS officials, however, say the refunds are merely clerical mistakes on the part of overworked agents, and that strict enforcement actions will be forthcoming.
Though IBT's fate has been sealed, Paul hopes his bill will pass for the benefit of other churches and employers who are essentially acting as unpaid government agents by taking money from employee paychecks and funneling it to the IRS.
The practice of withholding taxes results "in a presumptive interest-free loan by employees to the Treasury. Employers spend huge sums and countless hours complying with the withholding scheme. Worst of all, taxpayers are deceived by the direct removal of taxes from their paychecks," said Paul. "The government knows that the easiest way to tax Americans is by taking payments directly from their paychecks. The premise is that the taxpayer won't miss the portion of his paycheck that he never gets."
The current tax system evolved during World War II. Withholding tax money from each paycheck that would otherwise be due once a year gave government the instant cash flow necessary to fund a massive war effort. But though the war ended, withholdings didn't.
Advocates of withholding believe the practice is necessary to ensure tax payments are made. Others, including some congressmen, assert that Americans are indeed aware of how much they pay, and so elimination of the practice is unnecessary to increase public information.
Paul disagrees. "Withholding taxes are fundamentally deceptive," Paul says. "I want taxpayers to keep all of their paychecks, and pay for government each month with their mortgage and other bills. Then Americans will see just how much of their income goes to taxes, and hopefully they will demand true tax reform."
Paul plans to introduce the legislation to the House of Representatives this week.
On Monday, the anti-Constitution, anti-free speech, anti-American McCain/Feingold campaign finance reform bill passed in the U.S. Senate by a vote of 59-41 ... including "yeas" from twelve apparently misguided Republicans who obviously need a remedial course in American History & Civics. Bravo to the 38 brave GOP souls who stood up against the left-wing media chorus and voted against this absurd measure. And raspberries (or worse) to the "dirty dozen" who buckled and caved on this important issue:
Lincoln Chafee (Rhode Island)
Thad Cochran (Mississippi)
Susan Collins (Maine)
Pete Domenici (New Mexico)
Peter Fitzgerald (Illinois)
James Jeffords (Vermont)
Richard Lugar (Indiana)
John McCain (Pluto)
Olympia Snowe (Maine)
Arlen Specter (Pennsylvania)
Fred Thompson (Tennessee)
Ted Stevens(Alaska)
TCN Comment: These are names to remember in your future Republican primaries. Replace them if you have any hope of protecting the US Constitution and the future of the US.
** Judicial Watch Is Prepared to Take Legal Action
Judicial Watch, the public interest law firm that investigates and prosecutes government corruption and abuse, has learned from an Associated Press report that House Republican majority whip Tom Delay may be selling meetings with Bush Administration officials for $20,000 contributions by donors. If this is the case, Mr. Delay's actions would be little different than President Clinton's and Hillary Clinton's selling seats on Commerce Department trade missions, and would constitute illegal bribery.
While Judicial Watch hopes that Mr. Delay is not undertaking these illegal activities, today it is sending him a letter seeking confirmation of the Associated Press report that meetings with Bush Administration officials are being sold for $20,000 contributions. In the letter, Judicial Watch also demands that he immediately cease and desist from this activity. If, at this point, Mr. Delay should refuse, Judicial Watch is prepared to take strong and swift legal action.
"Our system of government cannot be bought and sold to the highest bidders. If indeed Mr. Delay is selling meetings with Bush Administration officials for $20,000, the conservative Judicial Watch will not hesitate to do whatever it takes to stop this perversion of our democracy. In this country, all people are equal, and there is no First Amendment right to bribe politicians," stated Judicial Watch Chairman and General Counsel Larry Klayman.
[ Judicial Watch ]
"Trent Lott, the Republican Senate leader, and Tom Daschle, the Democratic leader, both want to kill the McCain-Feingold campaign-reform legislation. The difference is Lott has the courage to oppose it openly, while Daschle is playing a double game that would make British master spy Kim Philby blush. Even as he postures about his support for campaign finance reform and votes for it at every turn, Daschle is working diligently behind the scenes to kill the McCain-Feingold bill."
[ Columnist Dick Morris, New York Post ]
Ex-prez Bill Clinton is off to India to persuade the locals that he's the new Gandhi. But he was still very much himself last weekend in Los Angeles, where he was honored for his work on behalf of families in America. On Sunday, he attended the Lakers-Knicks game at Staples Center, sitting in a luxury box with Warren Beatty. Cameras caught Clinton yelling at Beatty, visibly upset and wagging his finger at the actor. "They were talking politics, Gore, the election and President Bush," says a Clinton aide in New York. "He was unaware that cameras were on him."
In fact, NBC, which broadcast the game, had a camera trained on Clinton throughout the game. "We were hoping to see him eating away, hot dogs, nachos, popcorn, just vacuuming up the food placed in front of him," says a NBC news staffer in Washington. "Instead we get this angry, red-faced ex-president. It was great."
Later that evening, Clinton collected his award and spoke movingly of his devotion to the American family, without ever having to mention his commitment to his own. At the close of the event, the band leader told the crowd that the band would play a song, and wished Clinton had his sax so he could jam with them. "But I do," Clinton said.
"He's bringing his sax everywhere with him now," says the aide. "He likes to perform and the audiences seem to get a kick out of it." No word on whether or not a sax solo adds an extra hundred thou to his appearance fee.
[ Washington Prowler ]
Rev. Jesse Jackson walked into the appliance section of a Sears Roebuck store. He looked around then shouted, " I want to see the manager right now!"
The manager of the department came out and said, "how can I help you Reverend?"
Jesse replied, "I want to know why all of your washing machines are WHITE?"
The manager immediately flipped open all the lids of the washing machines and said: "Reverend Jackson, yes, all of our washing are white but if you look inside, you'll find that all of the "AGITATORS" are BLACK!!"
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