Jim Zumbo's anti-gun blog

[skeet]

Hate to tell you Fabs but there is already an Assault weapons ban bill in the Md General Assembly It's Senate Bill 43. They didn't waste anytime on that one did they. They had it prefiled before the legislature even opened. Usually a 100 or so bills pre filed every year. Better get in your sock and go buy one now. I got a Bushmaster varminter at Cabela's last January(06) at the Cabela's in Hamburg. Wouldn't let me have the 30 rounder that came with it though. I do have a Colt if you are interested. Unfired too....Bring two socks!!
Link

http://mlis.state.md.us/2007rs/billfile/sb0043.htm

Stupid stupid stupid

[fabsroman]

This crap really pisses me off. I just sent this to my state rep.

Mr. Garagiola,

I’ll start off by stating that I oppose Senate Bill 43 and any restriction on the sale of possession of firearms by law abiding citizens. If I am not mistaken, part of your campaign last year relied on common sense legislation, wherein you were very careful not to set forth that you are a democrat. I too believe in common sense legislation and believe that political party affiliation should not block it. However, I do not believe that this bill is common sense legislation. I also believe your campaign relied on the fact that you had been involved in the military. As such, I am sure you are aware that none of these “assault” weapons commit crimes. Further, how many crimes were committed in 2006 with the “assault” weapons listed in the proposed Md. Code Ann. Pub. Safety §5-101? I am willing to bet that more people died in the State of Maryland last year from aggressive driving than from the assault weapons listed in Senate Bill 43. Maybe, just maybe, if you can provide me with some facts on why you support this bill, I might not be so against it. If it is just the mere fear of these “weapons”, then I have no support for it. As an example, please do not provide me with the 2001 sniper shooting case because I think that was a terrible screw up on law enforcement’s part and the chief of police for Montgomery County who later wrote a book about the entire matter.

When I am not practicing law or accountancy, or preparing tax returns, I spend the rest of my time with my family and/or outdoors. I am an avid outdoorsman, and I spend a lot of time and money on cycling, hunting, shooting, fishing, and boating, in no particular order. I have been hunting and shooting with my father since I was five (5) years old, and have been using firearms since I was seven (7) years old. Firearms were a big part of our trips to the “country” and they continue to be a big part of my life. I still hunt and shoot with my father, brothers, and sisters whenever I get the chance. While I prefer shooting sporting clays at several ranges around the state, with the majority of my shooting being at Prince Georges County Trap & Skeet right by NASA in Greenbelt, I would not hesitate to take time out to go shooting with my brother and try out his Bushmaster AR-15.

Senate Bill 43 mentions Bushmaster semi-automatic rifles, but does not designate AR-15 or AR-10. Is this merely a cute way of getting uninformed people to think that AR-15’s and AR-10’s are not being banned, or is it that the only AR-15 and AR-10 being banned is the Bushmaster series, which is generally the cheapest of the series at around $1,000 for an entry level gun. I find it extremely hard to believe that the majority of violent crime occurring in this state is with the use of AR-15’s, AR-10’s, AR-100’s, AR180’s, Barrett light .50 cal semi autos, or the other expensive firearms that are listed in Md. Code Ann. Pub. Safety §5-101. Again, if you can provide me with some facts on this, I am willing to listen.

Last year, I was interested in buying an AR-15 and an AR-10 and was appalled to see a similar bill to Senate Bill 43 in the legislature. Luckily, it did not pass and I was not forced to spend four thousand dollars ($4,000.00) for the guns last year, and I am hoping that will be the case with Senate Bill 43 this year. I would prefer to buy them when money is not an issue (i.e., I have a baby daughter on the way). Please take note that I am adamantly against this bill and I do reside in your district. In fact, my father and brother have been clients of Paul Stein and I have referred other criminal cases to Mr. Stein on occasion. In fact, I have lived in this community my entire life. If I am not mistaken, you have moved here from Michigan. I attended elementary, intermediate, and high school in this county. I went to the University of Maryland for undergrad and the University of Baltimore School of Law, and have remained in this county after graduating law school. In fact, most of my clients are from this county. My parents, brothers, and sisters continue to reside in this county too. In your campaign literature, you seemed like a stand up guy, so get tough on criminals, not on gun owners. For the most part, gun owners are law abiding citizens, and to merely ban us from having these guns does not mean a criminal will not be able to get them some where else. At one time, the federal government had banned most of these weapons, and that ban was allowed to die when the sunset provision came into effect. I have not noticed an increase in crime from the allowed sale of these weapons. Spend more time building jails for criminals and instituting longer mandatory sentences, instead of spending time taking guns away from law abiding citizens. Be tough on criminals, don’t make law abiding citizens criminals merely because they do not register their “assault” weapons by December 1, 2007.

I could probably write a lot more about this subject since I am so passionate about it, but my clients’ tax returns are calling. I apologize if this e-mail is not up to legal standards, but I’m not getting paid for it and do not have time to proof read it. Maybe one day, we can sit down and talk about this matter in depth.

Very truly yours,

Fabrizio Roman

[fabsroman]

I read the rest of the replies from page 2, and agree completely. I vote with my pocket book too.

Sad thing is I figure out two years ago that I prefer Buck knives to Gerber anyway, so I wouldn't be buying any of their stuff anyway.

I have the Cabelas catalog right next to me and had two pages ear marked so I could order some t-shirts and a waterfowl decoy. Lucky for them they gave the reply they did.

I don't read the magazine and I don't care for the show anyway, so I cannot hurt them their either, but I will be sure to pick up a book and read it before I sti in front fo the tube and watch his show.


Billy,

If you can show me how ebay is bad for the shooting sports, I will be more than happy to stop buying and selling things on there.

[Skyline]

One thing I found interesting Fabs is that eBay will let you sell firearms accessories, reloading equipment, etc, but no firearms.

From the hunting stand point you can sell bear hunts.....heck any kind of hunt, but under taxidermy you can't sell a bear rug......deer and moose heads, caribou heads, coyotes, beavers......but no bear parts of any kind.

In some misguided way they seem to think that banning the sale of all bear parts will prevent illegal trade..............yet there is no proof anything sold on eBay was legally hunted, or for that matter any item could be stolen property.

Sorry, this kind of jacks the thread, but you asked Bill.........and I am sure he has more info than my few comments above.

[Rocky Raab]

Skyline, see the comments in the eBay/PayPal thread.

[Riposte1]

Rocky;
All I can say is thank you sir. Good Job.

I understand that Reminton has severed ties with Mr. Zumbo and that OL has pulled down his BLOG at least temporarily. Also his other sponsers seem to be very uncomfortable with his publiziced opinion.

OTOH today, his fans seem to consist of the "Brady Bunch"...maybe he will be able to guide some of them on an Elk hunt.

Riposte

[PigPig]

Thank you Mr Zumbo for his banning evil terrorist rifle but keeping his sporting rifle blog.

After quoting his supportive article on their website, the Brady posted 2 followups:

Sunday, February 18, 2007

The tragic proliferation of Sniper Rifles

I would like to take a moment to comment on the proliferation of Sniper Rifles.
Sniper Rifles are typically equipped with a high-powered scope, and every single one of them can blow through the body armor cops wear. They can even penetrate multiple police cars. Does the Second Amendment protect cop-killer Sniper Rifles? The NRA certainly thinks so, along with the powerful gun lobby that wants your children and your law enforcement officers to be at risk from these weapons of mass destruction. Some of these Sniper Rifles can even penetrate ballistic or armored glass, lightly armored vehicles, and armored limousines. Senator Ted Kennedy attempted to solve this with an important bill that would have banned armor piercing ammunition and protected lawful firearm commerce:

"Another rifle caliber, the 30.30 caliber, was responsible for penetrating three officers' armor and killing them in 1993, 1996, and 2002. This ammunition is also capable of puncturing light-armored vehicles, ballistic or armored glass, armored limousines, even a 600-pound safe with 600 pounds of safe armor plating.....

..It is outrageous and unconscionable that such ammunition continues to be sold in the United States of America.."

Should our elected officials live under the threat of reprisal on their lives from disgruntled constituents? The Gun Lobby seems to think so. We disagree.

Sniper Rifles can be equipped with precision optics above even what the Military uses, allowing a sniper to deliver rounds within millimeters of accuracy - enabling them to engage targets at distances of well over one hundred meters. Is there a pressing need to be able to kill with accuracy at that distance? It is too far to justify as self defense. It is too far for hunting. It is only useful for those who wish to murder from afar.

Large caliber Sniper Rifles such as the .50 Browning Machine Gun can derail freight cars, shoot down aircraft and helicopters, damage vital ground equipment such as power substations, fuel tanks, and air traffic control, and cause complete chaos. For more information on why large caliber machine-gun rounds must be banned, visit http://www.50caliberterror.com. A shipment of large caliber machine-gun round sniper rifles made by Steyr turned up in Iran, and are being used on our own soldiers, as the .50 bullets easily defeat their body armor, their up-armored humvees, and even APCs.

Many forward thinking, progressive politicians such as Ted Kennedy, Chuck Schumer, Barbara Boxer, Nancy Pelosi, Hillary Clinton, and Barack Obama have voted against Center-Fire Rifle Ammunition of types for Sniper Rifles, but due to the pressure and massive financial resources of the gun industry, the necessary steps to protect our homes and lives have not been attained.

Sniper Rifles have been used by murderers and spree killers for years, with notable incidents such as the Beltway Snipers, the Clocktower Sniper, and more.

ANY rifle configured and equipped as a sniper rifle has no sporting purpose especially as a hunting rifle. They are too big and heavy to take to the field. Designed for distance shooting, they are useless for the ranges at which game animals are normally shot, and when used on sporting sized game at range they often just wound the animal, inhumanely forcing it to die slowly while the would-be hunter tracks it to finish it off. Most Sniper Rifles fire atypically large cartridges and ultra high velocity ammunition that can travel much greater distances that standard ammunition. The danger imposed from missed shots and ricochetes from these specialty rounds is unreasonable.

Most of these rifles carry multiple rounds, with either an automatic mechanism, or a quick toggle action to rapidly move another bullet into the breech, ready to fire into another victim. In most states, they are nearly unrestricted. Anyone over the age of 18 can buy one. If they can't pass a background check, they skirt the NCIS system by going to a gunshow, or finding a private sale in the newspaper. A murderer camped at a distance from a public gathering could quickly turn it into a massacre dwarfing anything we have seen before in the United States, if they had a Sniper Rifle. If they adopted hit and run tactics, entire portions of our country could be shut down.

Sniper Rifles shoot a high powered bullet that is almost always fatal. They are designed for one thing- delivering powerful overkill with deadly precision. You don't need the kind of power and accuracy that can kill a man at five hundred yards for hunting rabbits or defending your house.

We should also give commendations to France because many years ago they designated any firearm capable of shooting military ammunition as a military arm, illegal to posess without a special permit and unlawful to use for hunting. The 223, 308, 7mm mauser, 30-06, and 6.5x55 have no place in the hunting fields of France. Firearms shooting these calibers are military weapons only designed for killing PEOPLE and should be kept out of the hands of the general population. Because they have no hunting purpose, there is no reason for civilians to own them.

Every state in the USA has hunting equipment rules that limit the caliber of firearm used to take game. They also limit the types of rifles, length, magazine capacity, etc. States should amend these hunting regulations to restrict the use of "sniper" rifles, specialty "sniper" cartridges, and "sniper" ammunition. Limits on weight, barrel length, bipods and tripods, thumbhole stocks and pistol grips, night vision type scopes, scopes of excessive magnification, super magnum and high velocity ammunition, and military slings should be imposed. They have no place in the hunting fields of America and hunting usage should not be used as an argument for civilians to own such firearms and weapons. There are more than ample hunting rifles, cartridges, and rounds of ammunition to choose from without them.

Let us hope that in a safer, saner America, we will succeed in our efforts to restrict the deadly spread of long distance murder rifles.


http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?f...0F5285554845729

[PigPig]

and then:

Tuesday, February 20, 2007

The most common killers may surprise you

Once again today, we are all struggling with reports about terrible losses of lives to gun violence. What a disturbed teenager in Utah and a tormented businessman in Pennsylvania have in common is that they had access to guns. Horrific mass killings cannot be committed with knives or baseball bats or bare fists. Weak gun laws have led to a glut of weapons on the streets. And as a result, bitter human frustrations lead to gun violence. Anger leads to killings. When will our Nation wake up and confront the tragic reality that we make it far too easy for dangerous people to have access to guns?

In Utah, two 28-year-old women, a 15-year-old girl, a 52-year-old man and 24-year-old man were killed by a shotgun-toting gunman.

Shotguns fire an extremely lethal large caliber round that delivers either a cloud of bullets (shot) or a single large slug. Sawed off and assault shotguns are popular with gangs and terrorists engaged in urban warfare- they have enormous knockdown power, and they don't even need to be aimed as the hail of shot will takes precision out of the equation. All it takes is ten minutes with a hacksaw and a shotgun can be turned into highly compact, concealable mayhem.

Shotguns used in World War One were so lethal, that governments such as Germany lobbied to ban them from organized warfare, because they were inhumane and extraordinarily dangerous.

The gun industry continues to try to market weapons such as the Jackhammer automatic shotgun, Streetsweepers, and other deadly weaponry that was deemed so dangerous, it isn't even labeled a firearm. They are destructive devices and regulated by the National Firearms Act. Does a "Destructive Device" sound like something you go duck hunting with? Unfortunately, with a few cosmetic tweaks, the same lethal weapons are manufactured for "sporting purposes."

Shotguns aren't the only deadly killer that the gun lobby has tried to wrap up in the American flag, history, and apple pie. What caliber kills more people every year in the U.S. than any other?

The .22.

22s are commonly found in three flavors. 22 short, 22 long and 22 Long Rifle. All of them are lethal. Most Saturday Night Specials come in .22 caliber. These handguns are not useful for sport or self-defense because their short barrels make them inaccurate and their low quality of construction make them dangerous and unreliable. They are, however, favored by criminals because of their low cost and easy concealability.

Let us repeat: more people are killed by the .22 every year, than any other caliber.

.22 are indeed deadly in shots to the body, because they don't go through entirely and they bounce off bones, creating more havoc. They have the ability to penetrate through gaps in law enforcement officer's kevlar, such as at the sides. If a .22 bullet enters the head, it will fatally ricochet around in the skull.

.22s are also the most easy of all the rounds to use with a silencer. They are a favorite of assassins performing mob kills, using a semi-automatic .22 or a revolver chambered in that caliber along with a silencer.

Creative criminals create penguns, cell-phone guns, knife guns, and more, all using the .22. It is truly the most dangerous of all calibers in terms of human cost per year, if not in mass and size. The tiny .22 can travel over a mile, and this fact is bragged about in promotional literature.

Many people are killed and injured by stray rounds traveling through the air and striking innocent victims, even children. Often people in the country will shoot off the back of their porch - exercising their rights, no doubt - and end up causing deadly harm to someone else's family.

Do cut-down shotguns and silenced .22s belong on our streets, or in our schools? Should criminals have a ready access to the more 'innocent' versions, ripe for conversion to more lethal configurations?

The Brady Campaign is making our stand to fight against the gun lobby, once and for all. We may not be able to eradicate murder in the human heart, but if we keep those who would terrorize our children and our malls from having easy access to deadly weapons, it will be worth it if but one child's life is saved.

[Skinny Shooter]

Boy was there a lot of garbage in those two posts.
Wish I had the time to pick them apart but it wouldn't change their minds anyways.
thanks PigPig

[Andy L]

Mr Zumbo really did it this time, eh? And it couldnt have happened at a worse time.

The Brady Bunch, no matter if its true of false, are taking him into the fold as a hunter on their side. No matter what Z says, that cant be changed.

For whatever reason, the 08 presidential election is in full swing already. Obama, Clinton, Rudy, McCaine, Edwards and Romney, all anti gun anyhow, are gonna run with it too.

Were in trouble folks. We dont have the numbers. Even many gun owners dont have the stomach for a fight, for whatever reason. I hate to say it, but this is the beginning of the end. I was chastised not long ago, just before the dark election of 06 for making too big of a deal of it. Saying I was off the mark for the remarks I made.

Its coming folks, right now. Get ready to get your gun license. Get ready for many of your guns to be banned. Then get ready to lose your license.

Thanks Jim. We appreciate it.

[Montana Cowboy]

Howdy Folks
Dumbo...I mean Zumbo pretty much put his foot in his mouth.
Just because a rifle looks a certain way dosen't make it any less deadly / dangerous. Like I tell people would you know the difference if you were shot with a AR-15 in .223 caliber in the left shoulder and then shot in the right shoulder with a Remington 700 in the same caliber? Obviously they wouldn't, all they would know is that they are not having a good day.
I know folks who hunt deer with their AR'S IN .308 CAL and I don't have a problem with it. They are serious hunters, make the first shot count and don't go spraying and praying that they hit the deer.
Thanks for the web sites Rocky they will be hearing from me too.
MC

[Aim to maim]

Just in case you all had not seen it, Mr. Zumbo's "apology/explanation/mea culpa is posted below for your edification.

I especially like the part about "I was hunting coyotes, and after the hunt was over and being beat up by 60 mph winds all day..."

A bit of cheese to go with his whine would be good at this point. He would have been far more credible had he just claimed he was drunk at the time.

Ted Nugent, mentioned in the last paragraph was the first to jump to Mr. Zumbo's defense on one or more websites. I never cared much for Mr. Nugent anyway. Now I have another reason.

Flame suit on, fire away.



"Someone once said that to err is human. I just erred, and made without question, the biggest blunder in my 42 years of writing hunting articles.

My blog inflamed legions of people I love most..... hunters and shooters. Obviously, when I wrote that blog, I activated my mouth before engaging my brain.

Let me explain the circumstances surrounding that blog. I was hunting coyotes, and after the hunt was over and being beat up by 60 mph winds all day, I was discussing hunting with one of the young guides. I was tired and exhausted, and I should have gone to bed early. When the guide told me that there was a "huge" following of hunters who use AR 15's and similar weapons to hunt prairies dogs, I was amazed. At that point I wrote the blog, and never thought it through.

Now then, you might not believe what I have to say, but I hope you do. How is it that Zumbo, who has been hunting for more than 50 years, is totally ignorant about these types of guns. I don't know. I shot one once at a target last year, and thought it was cool, but I never considered using one for hunting. I had absolutely no idea how vast the numbers of folks are who use them.

I never intended to be divisive, and I certainly believe in United we Stand, Divided we Fall. I've been an NRA member for 40 years, have attended 8 national NRA conventions in the last 10 years, and I'm an advisory board member for the United States Sportsmen's Alliance which actively fights anti-hunters and animal rights groups for hunter's rights.

What really bothers me are some of the unpatriotic comments leveled at me. I fly the flag 365 days a year in my front yard. Last year, through an essay contest, I hosted a soldier wounded in Iraq to a free hunt in Botswana. This year, through another essay contest, I'm taking two more soldiers on a free moose and elk hunt.

When I started blogging, I was told to write my thoughts, expressing my own opinion. The offensive blog I wrote was MY opinion, and no one else's. None of the companies that I deal with share that opinion, nor were they aware of what I had written until this firestorm started.

Believe it or not, I'm your best friend if you're a hunter or shooter, though it might not seem that way. I simply screwed up. And, to show that I'm sincere about this, I just talked to Ted Nugent, who everyone knows, and is a Board member of the NRA. Ted is extremely active with charities concerning our wounded military, and though he's known as a bowhunter, Ted has no problem with AR 15's and similar firearms. My sincerity stems from the fact that Ted and I are planning a hunt using AR 15's. I intend to learn all I can about them, and again, I'm sorry for inserting my foot in my mouth."

[Dom]

Well I'd say that this is a good WAKE UP call to a bunch of guys and gals out there who are not NRA members because of this or that the NRA does or does not do.

We're in this together and gotta stick together. I mean, to say, well, I don't need or use this or that type pistol or weapon so who cares if it's outlawed -- is not the right answer. If our rights are not represented, it won't be long before your M9 or 870 or 1400 or 7400 are also on the 'hit' list.

The NRA represents us on the legal front, support them not because of what they do or don't do, but because of what they are defending, the right of legal law abiding citizens to own a variety of weapons, Waidmannsheil, Dom. (NRA Endowment Life Member)

[hubel458]

Zumbo can always do a cooking show on a ladies channel-
He and others around, even other writers
at times, are a symptom of the sporting goods store/no gunshop syndrome. Like 5 acres of tents, treestands, fishing stuff,
boats ,atvs, safes, shoes, clothing,
feed, decoys,ad nauseum..........and
a puny 200 sq ft of politically correct guns.
He opened his mouth and ended up a
blithering idiot, helping the Brady bunch.

Famous gun types should say enlightened stuff like
"If she had gun collection...
I'm the father".......................Ed

[skeet]

From Outdoor Life and they have dumped dum..er..Zumbo also. At least they did the right thing