It’s when the rule of law and the order of society breaks down that the mayhem starts. I guess one could surmise from this sort of attempted anti-gun statement that Nam was a pretty safe place to be those years, even if you were wearing a GI uniform, right? Yet America’s cities are admittedly much more dangerous than that.
So who’s to blame? Guns? The people who have guns? Or the corrupt and inept city mayors, police chiefs, judges, and corrections systems? Vietnam safer than New York, Chicago, Philly, LA, Atlanta? Maybe it’s because in Nam, there was no HCI and no ACLU?
Craig Palmer

I’m going to come right out and say this. I can’t mince words any longer.

The so-called “Million Moms March” represents a clear and present danger to every woman in this nation, especially every teenage girl in this nation. Every woman participating in this march is participating in an act that may very well lead to her own death, assault, or rape, as well as the death, assault or rape of any woman or young girl in her family. Every individual participating in this march or financing this march is effectively sponsoring a future criminal assault on me and people I love, and I hold them as responsible as the criminal himself.

I know what you’re going to say: “Liz, isn’t that a bit strong? Can’t intelligent people agree to disagree?”

No, not on this. I’m tired of trying to make peace with these people. I’m tired of having to defend my right to protect myself and my family. Tired of protecting my right not to be raped. Not to be murdered. Not to be a victim.

I usually approach the subject of the Second Amendment with the approach for which I believe it was designed: namely that the Second Amendment was designed to keep various arms in private hands to insure against the establishment of a tyrannical government. I’m gonna not talk about that: for now. The Jewish Holocaust and the Armenian Genocide notwithstanding.

I’m gonna frame the firearms issue strictly in terms of one factor. Natural law.

First of all, let’s establish one premise. A person under attack from an assailant has an inherent human right to defend themselves from that attack by any means necessary. I think most of us, in our hearts, believe that. If you do not believe that, you’re already a stupid idiot. YES! YOU! STUPID! I said it. I meant it. Deal with it.

Second. That right is natural and inherent. It is a right that any creature on this earth has by nature of their creation. Look at mammals, birds, insects, you name it. The vast majority of them are vested by a survival instinct to automatically repel any attempt to harm them, to prevent it, to hide from it. They are also given, in addition to their natural characteristics for self-defense, a brain, to devise ways of protecting themselves from attack, sheltering themselves from attack, and so forth.

Third, this right and instinct extends to THEIR FAMILY. Look at almost any animal species, and you will always see vigorous attempts by mothers, and often even fathers, to protect their young. But it’s not just blood relatives. That instinct toward self-protection also extends to the pack, the pride, the colony. Even if members of the colony really aren’t related.

Fourth, the right and instinct also extends TO THEIR PROPERTY. You see this in the wild. You even see it among pets. It’s why dogs make such good guards. They instinctively protect the turf. And not just real property, but THINGS also.

I had to lay all that out. Because I think everyone who deludes themselves into thinking they are civilized, or live in a civilized society, ties themselves to the bizarre concept, that all society’s problems can be solved if only they can pass some STUPID LITTLE LAW.

The criminal, though, like the predator in the jungle, is under no such delusion. The criminal determines exactly what he wants, what his soul craves, and he goes after it. Sometimes the law does dissuade him. But the more vicious and demented he is, or the greedier he is, the less likely any stupid little law will deter him.

So into this eternal battle between criminal and citizen, come these individuals. They say that “we all will be safer if we all submit ourselves to restraints upon when and how we are allowed to defend ourselves, and we must get government approval to defend ourselves, and only defend ourselves in the way the government states we can. And we don’t want any defense methods to be transferable from one person to another. And kids shouldn’t be allowed to defend themselves.”

Of course, they don’t say it THAT way. They say “we want government registration of handguns.” “We demand trigger locks be sold with every gun.” “We want every gun owner to be licensed by the government.” “We want to compel smart guns.” “We want a Juvenile Brady bill.”

Gun control isn’t just unconstitutional. Gun control isn’t just a bad idea.

Gun control is unnatural. It is against nature. People don’t act like that. No creature on earth acts like that. Regardless of your religious belief, regardless of whether you think we have a soul or spirit or not, you must concede that however we came to be here, and whatever else we are, we are in animal form, and we have animal instincts, and one of those animal instincts is the instinct, the duty, to protect ourselves, our family, our friends and neighbors, and our property from harm. And we would not have flourished as a species without that natural instinct.

Now some of these “Million Mugger-enabling Meddlers” will ask me “Liz, do you want your six year old girl to handle firearms? Your sixteen year old boy? Aren’t you afraid of having a gun in your house because of that?”

I’ll be frank with you. Given the penchant for child molesters and child rapists, I frankly would get my kids to a shooting range at early an age as possible so that they may familiarize themselves with that means of self-defense, as well as familiarizing them with other self-defense methods. I frankly would rather my child have a piece concealed and know how to use it in today’s world. I would probably give him one. I probably wouldn’t let him go to a public school where he couldn’t carry it.

Which brings me to the point. The “Million Mugger-enabling Meddlers” would have my full support if they were, like Mothers Against Drunk Drivers, demanding stiffer criminal penalties for physical assaults against children.

But the “Million Mom March” is doing the opposite. They aren’t trying to make it safe for my kid to walk the street. They’re actually setting up situations where my family might be rendered defenseless against these same thugs. Howso?

Everything they propose…. EVERYTHING…. is aimed against me protecting myself and my family protecting itself, not for it. Forget the damned Constitution for a second. Forget the damned country for a second. A waiting period denies me for the length of the waiting period my access to self -defense and defense of my family. Permit and licensing requirements do the same thing: delay and prevent my natural instinct for self-defense. Age requirements: same thing. Saying a teenage girl is legally prohibited from carrying a firearm is like giving a child snatcher free license at her.

What about trigger locks, Liz? Surely you can’t be against mandating trigger locks? But it’s the same thing. A trigger lock places an assailee at a distinct disadvantage. Crimes don’t happen in days. They happen in seconds. Suddenly. Every second is precious in a self-defense and a trigger lock costs precious seconds and might disable the firearm entirely.

But enough of this falderal. Forget how many votes you have or think you need. Forget your interpretation of the Constitution. YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO TELL ME HOW I AM TO DEFEND MYSELF OR MY FAMILY. YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO TELL MY NEIGHBORHOOD HOW IT IS TO DEFEND ITSELF. None. Notta. Zippo. Zilch. No STUPID LITTLE LAW you pass against us will ever negate that natural God-given right and instinct. Deal with that.

The gun control people, in my opinion, have crossed a line in the sand. This ceased to be a civilized discussion long ago. This is a matter of self-protection. A matter of turf. If you are in favor of restricting the citizens’ right to self-defense and defense of her family, then you are on the side of the criminals. Either you believe an individual has a right to defend against an assailant unhampered by stupid little laws, or you are on the side of criminals. And if you believe in using the power of the state to come down on me for protecting myself or my family, then both you and the state that does that are criminals. YES! YOU!

And I’m here to tell you, on behalf of many many Americans with families, that we will have none of it any longer. Million Mom March supporters, what you advocate, if you succeed, will be a prelude to revolution. That is neither a threat nor a promise. That is natural law. We will not take these stupid little laws aimed at us any longer. We will, like a mother lioness defending her turf and her cubs, use any means necessary. Ultimately, whether you want it or not, natural law will assert itself.

Deal with it.

After the talks, the SAS/AIM rally marched to the Capital. We were escorted by the police because the Million Mom Marchers were lining the streets showering us with jeers from the side. To me, that was OK since they do have the Right to Freedom of Speech. But then a police officer took off at a run up ahead, because of one of the Million Moms threw a rock at us. Later a young adult jumped on a car and (jeered at us?) acting like he was on PCP. I guess there’s a Right to Act Stupid, too.

Marching near the back of the AIM/SAS group with my children, I heard a MMM lady shout, “I HOPE YOU ARE SHOT DEAD BY A GUN!” That made me turn around. I saw this lady had grabbed the arm of my 9 year old son and was yelling at him! The anger and temper in that lady’s stance warned me if I didn’t get there she was going to hit my son and hit him hard. Before I could react to this violence my 15 Year old son got between them and warned her off. For the rest of the march I felt like a Convoy Escort in hostile waters, Black folk at a Klan rally.

That was not the end of the Million Mom Power play. As I walked back to my car, the jeers turned into insults, MMM women calling me a slut, a whore, trash and “I hope you are shot dead then maybe you will see guns are evil things.” I replied: “You live in a free country, you are not a slave to a master and bearing his bastard, and all this because someone was smart enough to pick up a gun and fight for his future and yours; guns are not evil, some people are evil”.

Debra Brunner, mother of 8, gun owner, supporter of the Second Amendment and the Second Amendment Sisters.

Knowing that both MMM and Second Amendment Sisters would be present on the Mall in DC, I spoke with a few participants of both of their rallies, with the intent to educate myself before wholly passing judgment for either group. I asked both groups the same, somewhat open question : “Why are you, personally, here today?”

When I spoke to one member of the Million Moms, I was told “Because I have a great Mom, and it’s Mother’s Day!” When more specifically asked about guns, this person said they support fewer gun laws, and own several guns — they had no idea what Million Moms was asking for, and claimed they would be joining the SAS march after I spoke to them.

One younger gentleman very tellingly simply said “I get school credit for being here today. I don’t think I do if I support the SAS march.”

One family said they attended MMM because “The City of Richmond paid to bus my family up, and it’s a nice day for a picnic.”

One mother was wearing a stack of photos of her children around her neck — when I questioned her, she said three of her children were gang members, and had sadly been shot to death by Police. She said she “was [there] to ban guns because [she doesn't] know what else to do.” While my heart very sincerely goes out to her for her loss of her children, I couldn’t make a connection between banning civilian (non-Police) guns and the Police being forced to shoot gang members. There are just too many things wrong with that logic.

Another Mom said “I don’t want to own a gun because I am sometimes suicidal, and I tend to lose my temper frequently; I am afraid I might shoot my own children.” I must sincerely applaud her choice for not owning a gun, and her self awareness! When questioned “Do you think all mothers have the potential to kill their children?” she greatly surprised me by saying “Of course! Don’t you ever lose your temper?” I had to respectfully confess that while I HAVE been forced to defend my life several times, I have never ONCE lost my tempter enough to raise a fist, much less a gun. And to utterly lose control enough to raise a gun to an innocent child!?!? Quite honestly, anyone that would even distantly consider such a thing truly sickens me.

Ultimately, the emotion I got more than anything from the MMM group was simply an unfocused fear of their fellow armed citizens, ignorance of gun-related facts, and complete confusion as to what to do about violence in general. The one mother above said it best : “I just don’t know what else to do… so I’m here.”

When I spoke to people at the Second Amendment Sister’s gathering, I heard heartbreaking stories of being raped, family members being murdered in their own houses and in restaurants, churches and schools (where current laws forbid concealed carry), and over and over the same gist was independently restated : “If I had the gun I now carry, it would have been an easy shot to stop [that crime].” Even if I didn’t already generally agree with guns, I have to admit that this smaller group, to a one, had rational and strongly moving reasons for what they supported. Not one person I spoke with in the SAS group had any confusion over what they were there for.

Since I visited the SAS group second, they began their march while I was still talking to one indulgent young man. What happened next clinched my admittedly rapidly firming views : while I continued to talk to this gentleman, the opposing crowd we walked by began to throw things. At more than one intersection, we were actually spit on by the Million Mom supporters, many of whom were small children, apparently already being taught intolerance and disrespect of others. Several times, young shirtless men with red paint ‘bullet wounds’ shouted at us language I haven’t heard from seasoned sailors. When one of these boys yelled “I don’t trust you with a gun!” I have to admit agreeing with a woman next to me who answered “How can I trust YOU without one?”

At the end of the SAS march, the participants chanted “Thank You, Police” to our escorts, who unquestionably stopped several of the more violent attacks from the Million Moms.

As a result of the above fact finding and demonstrations, I personally believe in the right of responsible people to carry completely unrestricted; to choose how to secure their “life preservers” if they have children in their homes. I also support holding parents absolutely responsible for the actions of their children, whether those children abuse an otherwise legal firearm or abuse those who choose to legally own one.

Wolf N. Rose

“These people are right-wingers who don’t care about little children like you getting killed.”

It was said clearly and loudly. When he received a response from one of our people, he was extremely antagonistic, and said something like we (NRA members) don’t care that more of our children die than in disarmed societies. After the movie, he walked past us our group again and loudly said to his children

“Stay close to me because I don’t want you around all of these gun nuts.”

While I don’t think he represents the majority of MMM members, we must not allow these comments to provoke us. Always take the high road. However, that man’s actions and rude, ignorant comments need to be a wake up call for us on how to make your organization look bad. I certainly learned a lesson. Too bad the press that was there didn’t hear him.

During the meeting we watched their video, America Up in Arms, which left me cold and shocked. When the organizer spoke about how this grassroots group (MMM) was not going to go away I kept saying to myself, “Neither are we.” I’m sure we made her more than a little nervous – speaking to the “enemy” and all. But as Don Kilmer said when we met in the parking lot before the meeting began, “We are here to put a face on law abiding gun owners.” It’s easier to hate someone you’ve never met.

Surprisingly our group consisted of more women and children than the MMM group including Rae Ellen, a delightful women in a motorized wheelchair who brought her companion golden retriever. She was concerned that the MMM would think she supported their views because she wasn’t wearing any NRA clothing. These are the people who really cannot afford to have the MMM succeed in their mission.

Don’t fool yourself with thinking this is a loosely held group, they are highly organized, well funded and determined to disarm law abiding citizens. Unfortunately they have incorporated children into their spin – tugging at the heart strings by profiling people who have lost children in accidental shootings. Like HCI they are using the medical profession to push the need for more handgun regulations. According to their local organizer, nationally there are 270 chapters in 46 states. They claim to have support from the NEA, ABA and a Physicians association (didn’t catch the name).

At the meeting they also mentioned an educational program they are planning to introduce in select middle and high schools across the nation, I believe it’s called AskingSavesKids (ASK). It would be interesting to find out which schools will have the ASK program and then approach those school boards to petition them to include the Eddie Eagle program as well. Apparently ASK has a web site by the same name. At the meeting we watched two ASK PSAs. While I support parents discussing guns with children, these efforts don’t seem to about instilling responsible gun ownership but merely removing guns from the home. Both PSAs showed examples of kids finding handguns in the home and using them to shoot friends. One is found under the parents’ bed and the other in a top dresser drawer. BTW, two of our female MC members walked out of the meeting and left because they were so disgusted by the MMM propaganda.

In short, each of us needs to continue to speak up about our cause and continue to put a face on law abiding gun owners. As the mother of a 7 month old son, I am in regular contact with other mothers and when appropriate I use the opportunity to discuss the gun issue. I certainly don’t shove my pro-gun, Second Amendment beliefs down their throats; instead I find out where they stand on the issue and then try to figure out why they feel as they do. One mom said she disliked the NRA because her father did. But then there are the little victories that give me hope like when one of my liberal mommy friends told me,

“Last night I was thinking about what you said and if they can mess with the Second Amendment, they can mess with the First.”

She finally “got it.”

Keep up the good fight.

Rebecca Anderson
Treasurer-Elect NRAMCMB

She’s calling herself a Republican. Adjectives I’ve seen printed before the word “Republican” in reference to Mrs. Blek include but are not limited to: staunch, devout, longtime, etc. etc. ad infinitum.

Give me a break, Lady!

NO real, self-respecting Republican would support bans on handguns, but the so-called “Million Mom March” did, not long ago, in a town in Illinois.

NO real, self-respecting Republican would support licensing a fundamental civil right, but the so-called “Million Mom March” does; it’s a main plank on their pre-confiscation agenda.

NO real, self-respecting Republican would support the registration of guns and their owners, either. They know that registration has led to confiscation throughout the history of the gun, and they know guns = freedom. But Mrs. Blek, blaming guns for the criminal actions of the murderers who killed her son, doesn’t seem to care about little things like ADOLF HITLER! Nevermind Pol Pot, Mao Tse Tung and all the other police state (where only police have guns) heroes. Not Mrs. “Republican” Blek, no sir.

When is the last time you VOTED Republican, Mary Leigh BS Artist? And at that time, was the so-called “Republican” an American standing up for the Constitutional Republic, or the watered down “Democratic” political system you and your kind worship? Did you vote for Al “The Constitution is a living document” Gore? Your organization sure put a lot of energy into sticking it to America with him in the Clinton-tarnished white house. Republican? Sheesh.

If Mary Leigh “40,000 Mom Picnic” Blek is a Republican, I’m a Democrat-Socialist.

viagra

Featured speakers were to be San Jose Police Chief Willam Lansdowne, Los Gatos Police Chief Larry Todd, and Santa Clara County District Attorney Stan Voyles.

Silicon Valley NRA Members’ Council president Daryl Davis spoke with Ms. Conn, who just days before the meeting had said that gun-rights supporters would be admitted on a space-available basis in the 200-seat ballroom, and would be allowed to sit and listen if they were not disruptive. Based on the conduct of self-defense supporters at the Santa Cruz meeting of the MMM, she had absolutely no reason to expect otherwise.

But when nearly 100 supporters of the right to armed self-defense arrived at 6:00pm, and the MMM faced the prospect of being outnumbered two to one by self-defense advocates, the rules of the game changed.

The meeting was no longer “open to the public,” but instead, what Duane Darr described as an ideological “brown paper bag” test was administered at the door. Just as in the Jim Crow south, where you were denied entry if you were darker than a brown paper bag pinned to the door, here you were denied entry if you were less than an enthusiastic supporter or member of the MMM.

One woman, who lost her cousin to the infamous “Night Stalker” serial killer in Los Angeles, and who as a result believes that every woman deserves the choice to use firearms in self-defense, was told, “you’re not the kind of victim we’re looking for.” She was rebuffed even after she offered to pay $20 and join the MMM just to get in the meeting.

Another woman was asked by Janet Conn to turn off a tape recorder she was using to record the meeting.

What are they afraid of the public finding out, I wonder? Based on these comments from an anonymous attendee of the meeting, it would appear that it’s the utter hypocrisy of our public officials:

“The second speaker, Chief Lansdowne, was easy to understand — he seems to change his firearms stance based on the audience he is speaking to. At this MMM meeting, he used many superlatives describing the MMM efforts to pass strong anti-gun ownership legislation. He also spoke of his efforts to shut down gun dealers and gun shows in the San Francisco East Bay while chief of police in Richmond. When he spoke at the Silicon Valley NRA Members’ Council this past year, he strongly supported the firearms group.”

Chief Lansdowne is the former Chief of the Richmond, California police department, which is being sued along with the Contra Costa county Sheriff by Jim March over discriminatory practices, cronyism, and racial redlining in the issuance of concealed carry permits. http://www.dd-b.net/~equalccw/

“Chief Todd was the third speaker. He talked about strategy in passing gun control legislation. He said the MMMers should not vote for all gun control proposals, but rather vote for selected bills. He says the goal is to eliminate the gun culture in the this country, and that it needs to be done slowly, to avoid angering the people who disagree with gun control. Chief Todd is a member of several police organizations, and active on their respective gun control policy committees. He said it is good to have a mixture of doctors, police and victims as part of the MMM contingent. I found it odd that he also thought it was nice that people were rising up against gun control like people did in the ’70′s against the Vietnam War. Again, for those who care, he wore his shield on his left breast pocket while making the presentation in a gray jacket and tie. If he appears in public on duty in this outfit, he was in uniform while making this presentation.”

[ For a flyer to pass around about Police Chief Larry "Oath Breaker" Todd, choose one of the following formats, and send it far and wide:  .html - .pdf ]

Chief Todd is one of the more outspoken gun-haters in our region of the country. However, he has the distinction of running a department that recorded the actual commission of a grisly murder on a 911 tape, while the unarmed victim was waiting for the good guys with guns, Chief Todd’s employees, to arrive.

Chief Todd says that the goal is to “eliminate the gun culture,” hmm, where have we heard that before? Ah yes, Hitler’s goal was to eliminate the Jewish culture in Europe. And indeed, he proceeded towards that goal slowly and behind closed doors, to avoid angering the people who disagreed with it.

Who says that the gun-banners haven’t learned anything from history?

With respect to the “in uniform” question – California Government Code section 3206 reads:

3206. No officer or employee of a local agency shall participate in political activities of any kind while in uniform.

“Assistant Santa Clara District Attorney Stan Voyles was perhaps the most inflammatory of the speakers. He presented the facts and statistics that the MMM uses to justify its cause. He cited numbers showing gun homicides in the US versus other industrialized countries. He reiterated that over 3,000 children are killed with firearms each year in the US. He then went on to contrast those values with numbers killed in wars. Voyles then illustrated that the weapon of choice in California for a majority of crimes was the handgun. Then he went on the offensive against the NRA and stated that what the NRA has to say about the Second Amendment amounts to fraud. Could the MMM’s be planning a new law suit strategy against the NRA? He went on to claim that there are no court cases supporting the individual ownership interpretation and that NRA has abandoned any Second Amendment arguments to oppose gun control.”

The firearms rights contingent is being accused of “fraud” while he’s calling 17, 18, and 19 year-old gang members “children.”

He’s accusing us of “fraud” when the MMM claims in their flyer - http://www.scmillionmommarch.org/flyer2.pdf - that 77% of all incidents of school violence involve guns, when the study they cite -http://www.nssc1.org/savd/savd.htm - only touches on DEATHS, not “all incidents,” and the 77% is out of 281 incidents over 8 years, or 75 millionths of one percent of the 47 million public school students.

“MMM Founder Mary Leigh Blek was the next speaker. We could not stay for much of her presentation. However, we found it strange that she is a professed Republican yet a huge supporter of Hillary Rodham Clinton and efforts to pass stronger gun control legislation in the US Senate.”

Who’s REALLY being fraudulent, I wonder? Who was really lying to the 50 attendees of that meeting, District Attorney Stan Voyles, Mary Leigh Blek, or the 100 people standing 100 yards away from the hotel entrance on the public sidewalk, carrying signs that read “Armed Women Prevent Rape?”

I can’t adequately express my pride at being associated with the crowd of stalwart self-defense supporters who braved the chilly night air for three hours to stand out on the sidewalk in front of the Marriott holding signs and waving at honking passerby.

These people, individuals of all races, from all walks of life, are the true patriots. And though they were not allowed in to the meeting to hear what their elected public officials had to say, and indeed were not even allowed on the property of the hotel, working together we scored a victory for freedom and against those who would conspire behind closed doors to take away our right to choose.

Predictably, press coverage was minimal – Channel 11, even after being called and told of the hundred assembled freedom advocates in front of the hotel, did not show up. Channel 4 took some tape, but aired a cursory report the following morning. Reportedly, the Mercury News was there, but I have yet to see a report on the exclusion of the public from this meeting.

What’s important to note is that California has had some of the most stringent gun control laws in the nation, nearly every point of legislation that the MMM calls for, yet the leading tool of choice for criminals here is still the handgun.

The failure to recognize this fact leads me to conclude that the efforts of the MMM in California are not primarily about crime and violence prevention, but rather nothing short of a cultural war against law-abiding gun owners. Where will this lead? Certainly not to less crime and violence.

The insights gained at this meeting are valuable, as they help us know what we are up against — a deliberately slow, systematic, destruction of the law-abiding gun-owner’s way of life through stealthy and innocuous legislation crafted behind a rope barrier, an idealogical litmus test, and closed doors, in a meeting that was fraudulently advertised as “open to the public.”

When you are standing in line for the showers, it’s too late to object.

We need to get active, loud, and involved. Join your local NRA Members’ Council in California - http://www.ca-rkba.org/. If there’s not one in your area, start one! Don’t wait for someone else to take action before you “have time” to defend your freedoms.

Stand up against the systematic destruction of the “gun culture,” *your* culture! Get in the game, because Chief Todd sure is.

Michael Pelletier
Self Defense is Common Sense
http://www.a-human-right.com/  

http://www.firearmsfreedom.net/guncontrol/

This page will prove it.

They’ve also violated numerous Federal tax statutes; investigations in this area are ongoing. They won’t be able to alter Federal tax statements so it should be safe to publish what we have so far.

Wherever this page links to a website maintained by one of these orgs, we also “mirror it locally”, in case they start hiding evidence. All of the websites are as the other side is publishing them as of 3/3/2001. If the other side cuts their sites completely, some of the “local mirror” graphics may be missing but in each case, the core of what’s going on will be obvious even in that situation.

The advantage to a 501(c)(3) is that donations are tax deductible. Effectively, the government refunds about 2/5ths or so of a person’s donation in the form of tax breaks, depending of course on their tax bracket.

When 501(c)(3)s fill out a special IRS form requesting minimal lobbying ability, they probably cannot receive government subsidies. That’s currently something a tax attorney needs to look into.

It’s also illegal for a 501(c)(3) to support a 501(c)(4) political group. And there are technicalities that complicate situations where a 501(c)(3) engages in wrongful politics, and then tries to break off a portion of their activities into a 501(c)(4)…as you’ll see, it’s very likely a violation in that area occurred.

One thing we know for sure: a government entity cannot support a 501(c)(4) political organization, and we can prove that’s happening. There appears to be a determined attempt in progress to hide it, or at least make it less obvious to the hospital and city.

http://www.tf.org

TF currently produces “searchable libraries” of trauma-related information. According to this page, four out of the five current online libraries are gun-control related:

http://www.tf.org/tf/lib&data/contentl.shtml
(or view local archive tflibraries.html of this, if TF takes it down)

This “Libraries” page does mention their support for the “Million Mom March Foundation”, which we’ll get to later. But the TF “accomplishments” and “history” pages:

• http://www.tf.org/tf/accomp2.html (tfaccomp.html)
• http://www.tf.org/tf/history2.html (tfhistory.html)

…stop at 1996, and barely mention gun control. Considering the high profile of the MMM, why not talk about it right here, considering that TF and the MMM share most of the same officers, the same organizational contact person for serve of process (Eric Gorovitz) and the same address?

Easy: because the MMM is wildly political, and they never bothered to tell the GOVERNMENT-run Hospital that they’d turned into a political organization.

We’ll get to that later. For now, let’s talk about fraud by the TF itself.

In 1995, Congressman Bob Barr made a pair of complaints about improper political activity on the part of Trauma Foundation, paid for by the Centers for Disease Control, part of the Clinton administration Department of Health and Human Services. Barr complained directly to CDC’s Director, David Satcher, in a two-page letter you can read for yourself here: Page 1, Page 2. The juice of the letter is excerpted below to save your time and cut to the chase:

“I would hope you would be interested in what appears to be very inappropriate, if not illegal, activity on the part of one organization who receives taxpayer funds from a CDC grant…The organization is the Trauma Foundation out of San Francisco…In its Spring 1995 newsletter (vol. II, no. 1) this organization specifically advocates legislative action opposing or endorsing certain federal legislation and laws…urges its readers to engage in picketing activities…very likely illegal…concerned with the integrity of the system that places very important restrictions on how taxpayer dollars can be spent (eg. not for lobbying…)…request that these matters be inquired into and appropriate action taken….please respond…[with] a substantive reply… Bob Barr.”

It seems likely that Congressman Barr didn’t understand that SF General Hospital was a government facility, otherwise he’d have investigated their theft of local taxpayer resources. Barr also sent a one-page memo to the Chairman of the congressional committee that tries to oversee morons of this type. You can read the actual letter byclicking here, or simply read the relevant excerpts below:

“I write to bring your attention to a matter that goes beyond impropriety, and in my judgment crosses the line into potential illegality. I have written…Director at CDC asking him to investigate…I consider these activities…very likely illegal…highly offensive…enclosed [is] a copy of my letter to Director Satcher…I would officially request that you committee investigate these matters….Bob Barr.”

The CDC’s Director, David Satcher, responded by takings funds back off of TF after finding Barr’s complaint valid. It wasn’t a total apology but at least it was a significant correction. Click here to read the full letter, or here are the salient excerpts:

“…have reviewed and determined…was inappropriate use of funds under the anti-lobbying provisions of Federal grant guidelines. Consequently, the CDC is disallowing the costs charged to the CDC grant for the publication of the newsletter. … CDC is committed to the appropriate use of federal funds….it is not CDC’s intention to promote an anti-gun agenda.”

This incident led to CDC getting stripped of all ability to fund similar propaganda.

http://www.thebellcampaign.com/about/jobs/financialdirector.htm
(local mirror: tfbell.html)

It reads in part:

About The Bell Campaign

Employment Opportunities at The Bell Campaign National Office
FINANCIAL DIRECTOR
$60,000 – $70,000

The Trauma Foundation, located at San Francisco General Hospital, is a non-profit policy center dedicated to reducing injuries and deaths due to injuries. Since 1981, the Trauma Foundation has provided policy leadership at the local, state, and national levels to prevent injuries related to alcohol, burns, domestic violence, guns, transportation, the workplace, and youth. In 1999, the Trauma Foundation assisted in the launching of The Bell Campaign, a national grassroots organization to prevent gun injury and death, and to support victims of gun trauma. The Financial Director reports to the Executive Director and is responsible for all aspects of accounting for the Trauma Foundation and The Bell Campaign, with total annual operating budgets of $5.5 million.

We are seeking an individual who enjoys working for a non-profit and will support the mission of the Trauma Foundation and The Bell Campaign. Qualifications for this position include: a minimum of ten years experience in all aspects of accounting; a proven ability to handle budgeting, financial monitoring, and reporting for multi-company and diverse funding sources; and a thorough knowledge of generally accepted accounting principles. Knowledge of, and experience with, the laws and regulations governing non-profits is highly desirable. Eligible candidates must also have excellent communication skills, strong leadership abilities, and a desire to work with a diverse staff in a fast-paced, cooperative working environment. Persons who are bilingual/bicultural, and persons of color or with disabilities are strongly encouraged to apply.

That effectively dates the page to sometime after the MMM march on Washington, DC in early 2000. According to this, the same highly paid staffer is supposed to support Trauma Foundation, Bell and the MMM “Foundation” – they’re all the same basic org.

We know that Bob Barr effectively complained about illegal politics on the part of this mob back in ’95. In 1999, the very first year Bell was chartered, Bell filed a Federal tax form in which they officially engaged in some limited lobbying. Click here to see the actual form they filed.

First problem, once Bell went even slightly political it probably became illegal for San Francisco to support ‘em. Which explains why TF never explained Bell’s (or the MMM’s) existence to the hospital.

Second, Bell was one of the major forces behind the actual “million mom” march on DC early in 2000. They handled the logistics, printed up flyers and posters, arranged transportation, the works. I don’t yet know the exact limits on political spending by a 501(c)(3) but odds are, Bell blew through the donation limits allowed by the above form in early 2000 like a deer rifle slug through a rabbit.

That led to the formation of two successor orgs to the Bell Campaign: the MMM Foundation tried to maintain their 501(c)(3) status as an “educational” foundation, and the MMM itself went to 501(c)(4). From the MMM website at:

http://millionmommarch.com/chapters/national/about/overviewmmm/ (overviewmmm.html)
An OverviewWho: We are a national grassroots, chapter-based organization dedicated to preventing gun death and injury and supporting victims and survivors of gun trauma. We are concerned community members. We have lost a loved one, survived an injury, or recognized that no one is immune to our national epidemic of gun death and injury. Like the majority of Americans, we favor stronger gun laws to protect our communities from gun-related trauma. We have come together to save lives by working for the adoption of stronger gun laws and to offer compassionate support to the victims and survivors of gun trauma.

What: In May 1999, The Bell Campaign, a 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization, was created to accomplish the mission stated above. The Bell Campaign became the fiscal sponsor of the Million Mom March and worked with its founder, Donna Dees-Thomases, to implement this enormously successful event, held on May 14, 2000, which launched a powerful movement for sensible gun laws in America. On May 18, 2000, Donna and the other members of Board of Directors voted to re-name the organization the “Million Mom March Foundation.”

The Million Mom March Foundation focuses on education and advocacy through grassroots activity across the country. Our primary national policy goal is to establish a system of licensing and registration for all handguns. We are working for safer communities by calling for strict oversight of the gun industry and responsible limits on gun access and use. A new 501 (c)4 lobbying organization, called the “Million Mom March,” also was established so supporters can be directly involved in the political process and channel their passion into sustained activism. In addition, over the next three years we are developing a comprehensive youth-led gun trauma prevention program that will serve as a model for the nation.

Funny thing is, they never told the hospital or local government any of this. If they’re going to do a new “youth-led gun trauma prevention program”, they ought to be brought up on charges of corrupting the morals of minors if they teach ‘em the same sort of fraud the “adults” are here pulling.

They also can’t seem to keep their stories straight!

We know that Bell transitioned into some form of MMM in May of 2000. And we know that of the two current divisions of the MMM, it’s the 501(c)(4) wing that runs the grassroots organization with local sub-chapters – the 501(c)(3) “MMM Foundation” could NOT run the local chapters.

Well in May of 2000, before the “www.millionmommarch.org” website even existed, Bell put up text describing the changeover – and it does NOT agree with the later text above:

From: http://www.thebellcampaign.com/mmm/bellbecomesmmm.htm (local mirror: bellbecomesmmm.html)

The Bell Campaign Becomes
the Million Mom March

The Bell Campaign has one hundred plus chapters around the country that as of yesterday are now Million Mom March Chapters. The board of directors of The Bell Campaign voted unanimously to merge the two organizations for the benefit of the movement. The Bell Campaign’s legacy will live on through the bell as a symbol of freedom from gun trauma. The Bell Campaign’s model is providing for instant structure and organization.

With that said, the Million Mom March is moving forward as the largest national grassroots organization in this country working for sensible gun laws.

May 2000

 

But the “Foundation” doesn’t run the grassroots locals chapters. It can’t. According to this, Bell was running the chapters as a 501(c)(3) with limited political abilities via the IRS 5768 form above…and rolled over into the 501(c)(4) MMM main political org in May of 2000. This is a radical violation of IRS regulations…and by the time they put up the MMM page, they realized it and changed stories.

On Wednesday, February the 21st of 2001, local RKBA activist Nadja Adolf and myself hand-delivered a Public Records Act Request (California state version of the Federal FOIA) to a member of the hospital administration by the name of Angela Carmen.

PUBLIC RECORDS ACT REQUEST

Dear Angela Carmen,

This is a request for information made pursuant to the California Public Records Act, James March hereby requests copies on paper or in electronic form of any sort of the following information:

1) Details on how much office space is currently being devoted to the organizations known as “The Bell Campaign” and/or “The Million Mom March” on property owned by or managed by SF General Hospital. The number of rooms and approximate sizes of each will be sufficient, we don’t need square inches.

2) A list of all employees, volunteers or other individuals who have hospital access because of their involvement with either of the two orgs listed in query #1.

3) A list of all hospital staff who also work on the staffs of either of the two orgs listed in query #1.

4) Details of any lease agreement with either of the two orgs listed in query #1.

5) Copies of any documents from either of the two orgs listed in query #1 that establishes their charitable and/or tax-exempt status pursuant to 501(c)3 or similar tax codes.

Dated: 2/21/01

James March _____(signed)__

(contact info, email, phone, snail mail address)

First PRAR Response

Angela promptly faxed me her response, dated February 22, 2001. Click here to read the letter. Here are the salient points as responses to the above numbered requests:

1) Trauma Foundation occupies approximately 7,450 square feet of space. Do not know how much is occupied by MMM or Bell Campaign.

2) I don’t have this information. You will need to inquire directly with the Foundation.

3) I don’t have this information. You will need to inquire directly with the Foundation.

4) No lease with either organization.

5) I don’t have this information. Please inquire directly with the Foundation.

Translation

Well isn’t that special?

At the time I wrote the PRAR, I didn’t know who TF was. That’s OK – the hospital had no clue who Bell or MMM was.

A couple of phone calls to Angela proved entertaining. She found the MMM website on her own and was quite surprised to find a ton of politics plus the hospital’s mailing address on the bottom of every page, including the obvious politics such as putting Bush AG nominee Ashcroft in the “time out corner”. (Her inquiries led to Ashcroft being replaced in said corner by Eddie Eagle, the NRA’s youth gun safety measure described by the mommies as “Joe Camel with feathers”.)

Second PRAR Request

I felt that a follow-up PRAR was in order. So my second attempt was as follows:

PUBLIC RECORDS ACT REQUEST

Dear Angela Carmen,

This is a request for information made pursuant to the California Public Records Act, James March, hereby request copies on paper or in electronic form of any sort of the following information:

1) Details of any lease or rental agreement with the organization known as the “Trauma Foundation” or any other group or charitable organization located on the 3rd floor of building #1 of your facility. If there are hospital departments on that floor, please list their names. If space is being given free to the Trauma Foundation or other non-hospital orgs on that floor, please note that as an alternative to providing lease/rental details.

2) Copies of any documents from the Trauma Foundation or any other orgs for which you provide information in query #1 that establishes their charitable and/or tax-exempt status pursuant to 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4) or similar tax codes.

3) Any documents in the hospital’s possession that indicates the purposes that the organization(s) on that third floor are supposed to be engaged in.

4) The name of the office manager or other person within the Trauma Foundation who is the hospital’s business contact, and their phone number.

5) The name, title and phone number of the person within hospital administration whose decision it is to continue leasing/renting/giving space to the organization(s) on the 3rd floor of building #1 on your grounds.

Dated: 2/22/01

James March

Second PRAR Response

Angela answered promptly, in a letter dated March 2, 2001. Click here to read the actual letter. Here are the basic responses to the above numbered requests for information:

1) There are no other hospital buildings on the 3rd floor of Building 1. There is no lease agreement with the Trauma Foundation. At this time, The Trauma Foundation is not paying rent.

2) We have no such documents.

3) We have no such documents.

4) Eric Gorovitz, Director of Policy, Trauma Foundation/MMM 415-821-8209

5) Gene O’Connell, Executive Administrator, San Francisco General Hospital, is the final word in all hospital business. 415-206-3455.

Translation:

“We thought TF was the sole occupant until you alerted us to trouble, we have no clue what TF is doing in there, we don’t charge ‘em rent, and we just found out TF and the MMM are really just the same group…OOOPS”.

Ya, big oops. This hospital is chronically under funded, one of the busiest in the nation, and they’ve been ripped off since at least 1995 and never did the slightest oversight on a group that turns out to have a budget of $5.5million back in ’99 and is able to pay an accountant $70,000/yr.

Somebody needs to get severely slapped upside the wallet.

Our primary, initial concern is the rip-off of a public hospital well-known for charitable works, and equally known for being chronically under funded. The SF General AIDS program is world-famous as a model in the field, they’ve been at “ground zero” of the epidemic from day one.

This TF/Bell/MMM gang needs to pay back rent to the hospital, at a minimum. Just how far back may become a matter for the courts. My initial thoughts are that there’s four possible known dates where the TF/Bell/MMM crew could reasonably be seen as “starting the fraud”:

1) The oldest date would be whenever TF published the materials that Bob Barr complained to the CDC about in ’95. My source says it was approximately ’93. TF published an obvious grassroots activism pamphlet using a CDC grant. We know which CDC grant number it was (see also the Barr letters), so we could find out via FOIA when CDC handed out that money.

2) In 1995, in response to a complaint by Barr, CDC rescinded grant money already given to TF. They agreed that TF had spend CDC money on politics. I assume a decent case can be made that TF should have got the hell out of the hospital at this point?

3) In May of ’99, the new Bell Campaign filed a Federal tax statement 5768, which basically allows a 501(c)(3) to do limited grassroots and lobbying politics. I believe an even stronger case can be made that this should have cut them off from free local gov’t support?

4) Finally, in May of 2000 the main “MMM” went 501(c)(4). An ironclad case can be made that this should have cut them off from free gov’t handouts, but we know from the previous hospital PRAR responses that the TF/Bell/MMM crowd never told SF General about this.

At a minimum, back-rent to May of 2000 is in order. I think May of ’99 (#3 above) is more reasonable, and if I was suing over this crap as a taxpayer demanding redress, I’d go all the way back to #1 (1993, or whenever the CDC grant was misused). If the exact date of that is unclear, well, we know from the CDC letter of ’95 exactly when CDC told TF they’d done illegal politics.

And above all, KICK ‘EM OUT. These con artists are using the “government hospital address” to enhance their credibility – and their proven history of fraud, cover-up and conflicting stories means they cannot be trusted to remove “only the politics” from the hospital grounds. Only a total eviction will suffice.

http://millionmommarch.com/chapters/national/whats_new/statehouse/ (MMMDay.html)

ONE YEAR LATER, THE MILLION MOM MARCH IS COMING TO A STATE HOUSE NEAR YOUGrassroots Muscle of Million Moms to Focus on the States

Click here to see a list of events.

CONTACT: Paul Bendix, 415-821-8200, Jill Greenberg , Tommy McDonald 415-255-1946

San Francisco — February 14, 2001 – Building on the success of last year’s Mother’s Day event, the Million Moms will converge on state capitols across the nation, demanding state and local legislators work towards sensible gun laws. The mothers and others will be rallying in state capitols and major cities across America on May 13, 2001 calling for common sense gun legislation. On May 14, 2001 they will be paying a visit to local lawmakers.

“Last Mother’s Day, the Million Mom March was born, but our work has just begun. In the past year, America has seen more school shootings, more guns in schools, more workplace carnage and more gun violence on our streets,” said Mary Leigh Blek, National President of the Million Mom March. “We believe the way to change attitudes and laws is to do it at the grassroots level. A march on Washington calls attention to an issue, but real change begins at home, in our cities and states.”

Last year’s Mother’s Day events brought together over 750,000 people on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. and in 73 other cities across the country to call for sensible gun laws to protect our children. Those efforts marked the turning point in America’s infatuation with guns. Since that time, the Moms have actively supported legislation and candidates throughout the country and helped make sensible gun laws a mainstream issue at the state and local level.

Plans for May 13 include state capitol rallies from Honolulu to Boston, and events in many towns and cities. Along with Mother’s Day rallies on the steps of state capitols, Moms will host bell ringing in memory of those lost to gun trauma, speakers, kids’ art, entertainers, picnics and legislative letter-writing. On Monday, May 14, Moms will meet with local lawmakers to discuss sensible gun legislation.

Meeting with elected officials, Moms will discuss proposals to fight the scourge of interstate gun trafficking, repeal concealed carry laws, mandate trigger locks on handguns and require gun show background checks.

“The Million Mom March has grown into a grassroots movement, with over 240 chapters across the country,” said Andrew McGuire, Executive Director of the Million Mom March. “It provides a voice for the once silent majority of Americans who no longer want our nation’s children to grow up in fear of having their lives cut short by gun violence. “

“This will be a celebration, a remembrance and a call to action. If you marched last year, do it again,” said Blek. “If you didn’t, join us this year. We need to cry out in one loud voice that we love our children more than the gun lobby loves its guns.”