Editorial

Following a strong grassroots campaign led by the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has denied a petition calling for a ban on the production and distribution of traditional ammunition. Steve Owens, EPA assistant administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention, issued the following statement recently: 'EPA today denied a petition submitted by several outside groups for the agency to implement a ban on the production and distribution of lead hunting ammunition.

Following a strong grassroots campaign led by the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has denied a petition calling for a ban on the production and distribution of traditional ammunition. Steve Owens, EPA assistant administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention, issued the following statement recently: 'EPA today denied a petition submitted by several outside groups for the agency to implement a ban on the production and distribution of lead hunting ammunition.

At The Heritage Foundation website, Ted R. Bromund, Ph.D., and gun-rights lawyer David B. Kopel recently covered the U.N.’s chilling progress on the Small Arms 'Programme of Action,' or PoA. The fourth biennial meeting on the PoA took place June 14–18, 2010. In 2001, the United Nations created the 'Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat, and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects.' The PoA is not a treaty. Rather, it is a mechanism for encouraging voluntary cooperation.

At The Heritage Foundation website, Ted R. Bromund, Ph.D., and gun-rights lawyer David B. Kopel recently covered the U.N.’s chilling progress on the Small Arms 'Programme of Action,' or PoA. The fourth biennial meeting on the PoA took place June 14–18, 2010. In 2001, the United Nations created the 'Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat, and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects.' The PoA is not a treaty. Rather, it is a mechanism for encouraging voluntary cooperation.

Formally styled McDonald et al. v. City of Chicago, Illlinois, et al., No. 08–1521, the case follows the Supreme Court’s 2008 Heller decision that struck down a handgun ban within the District of Columbia. That decision found, for the first time, that the 'right of the people to keep and bear arms' guaranteed by the Second Amendment applies to individuals outside the 'well regulated militia' familiar to 18th-century Americans. Because the capital city is a federal enclave, the 2008 decision left open, as a formal matter at least, whether the same principle applied in the 50 states.

Formally styled McDonald et al. v. City of Chicago, Illlinois, et al., No. 08–1521, the case follows the Supreme Court’s 2008 Heller decision that struck down a handgun ban within the District of Columbia. That decision found, for the first time, that the 'right of the people to keep and bear arms' guaranteed by the Second Amendment applies to individuals outside the 'well regulated militia' familiar to 18th-century Americans. Because the capital city is a federal enclave, the 2008 decision left open, as a formal matter at least, whether the same principle applied in the 50 states.

My colleagues over at GunReports.com passed along some interesting results on a survey they’re running on that website. Content Wizard Scott Freigh asked the 100K users of the site, 'Is the 9mm Sufficient for Self-Defense?' And the GunReports users have resoundingly said Yes! But! 'It looks like the responses are running 9:1 or higher for the 9mm as a suitable, if not preferred, handgun defense round,' said Freigh.

My colleagues over at GunReports.com passed along some interesting results on a survey they’re running on that website. Content Wizard Scott Freigh asked the 100K users of the site, 'Is the 9mm Sufficient for Self-Defense?' And the GunReports users have resoundingly said Yes! But! 'It looks like the responses are running 9:1 or higher for the 9mm as a suitable, if not preferred, handgun defense round,' said Freigh.

GunReports.com, a website affiliated with Gun Tests, recently asked its members, 'Which is the better platform: The AR or the AK?' The 467 respondents showed a strong preference for the designed-in-America ArmaLite Rifle model. The tally was 282 votes for the AR platform and 185 votes for the AK.

The National Shooting Sports Foundation has learned that the United Nations has filed its first firearms trace request. The move by the United Nations, which has long advocated for civilian disarmament, raised concerns from the NSSF. 'Firearms trace data is a law enforcement tool to help aid in specific criminal investigations,' said NSSF Senior Vice President and General Counsel Lawrence G. Keane. 'Our concerns with this trace request stem from UN-efforts to impose arms trade control treaties that would lead to a ban on the civilian possession and ownership of firearms, possibly even in the United States despite Second Amendment protections and the recent Supreme Court decision (Heller v. District of Columbia) reaffirming that Americans have an individual right to keep and bear arms.'

The National Shooting Sports Foundation has learned that the United Nations has filed its first firearms trace request. The move by the United Nations, which has long advocated for civilian disarmament, raised concerns from the NSSF. 'Firearms trace data is a law enforcement tool to help aid in specific criminal investigations,' said NSSF Senior Vice President and General Counsel Lawrence G. Keane. 'Our concerns with this trace request stem from UN-efforts to impose arms trade control treaties that would lead to a ban on the civilian possession and ownership of firearms, possibly even in the United States despite Second Amendment protections and the recent Supreme Court decision (Heller v. District of Columbia) reaffirming that Americans have an individual right to keep and bear arms.'

Over at our sister site GunReports.com, there’s an extensive eyewitness review of the recent Supreme Court March 2 oral arguments in McDonald, et al., v. Chicago, et al. (08-1521). Lawyer Lyle Denniston of Akin Gump gave what I thought was an even-handed account of the scene, moreso than what I got from people who lean our way on the 2nd Amendment.