ORA Leader Responds To Brady Rating

By Charles H. Smith, Executive Director, Oklahoma Rifle Association ~ The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence recently released its “Report Card” which was widely publicized by the media.

Oklahoma did not fare well again this year with the “Brady Bunch” who ranked our state, along with Kentucky, at the bottom of the class.

It should be noted that the states who Brady ranks highest also have another high ranking: crime.

Why does Oklahoma fare so “poorly” with Brady? To name just a few factors faulted by Brady, we permit law-abiding citizens to carry concealed weapons and deny arbitrary issuance of Self-Defense Act licenses. The average Oklahoman is permitted to protect his/her home and “stand his/her ground.” And most important, we reserve to the state the right to regulate firearms, thus preventing a multitude of municipal ordinances to discriminate against lawful firearms possession.

Brady is also unhappy because we don’t require “pie-in-the- sky” technology such as “smart guns’ and “microstamping, both falsely touted as deterrent to gun crime. We must be doing things right.

If the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence were to be truly honest, they would note their true purpose is to eliminate all firearms in our nation.

They would lead us down the path of firearms registration and confiscation. In their mind, once guns were gone, there would be no more violence. Their grasp of reality is totally absent.

In addressing this latest blast upon the Second Amendment, Oklahomans should be proud we fared so poorly. Thanks to our citizens and lawmakers who still value the “right to keep and bear arms.”

In conclusion the Oklahoma Rifle Association borrows a few words from our state song, “You’re doing fine Oklahoma. Oklahoma, okay.”

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Rice's Left To Right Zig-Zag On Gun Control

Democrat Andrew Rice claims in a new television commercial for his U. S. Senate campaign that he's been given an "A" rating by the National Rifle Association, an evident attempt to cozy up to Oklahoma gun owners and 2nd Amendment advocates.

Problem is, Rice was not given an "A" by the NRA; he was given an "A-" (there's a huge difference in the two grades) and the NRA gave Republican incumbent Senator Jim Inhofe an "A+" and endorsed Inhofe, as did the Oklahoma Rifle Association.

In 2006, Rice drew an "F" rating from the Oklahoma Rifle Association in his State Senate campaign.

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NRA Chief To Speak In Oklahoma City

Wayne LaPierre, executive vice president of the National Rifle Association, will be the featured speaker at this year's Oklahoma Rifle Association awards banquet on August 16th, ORA officials announced.

LaPierre is among the nation's recognized experts on the 2nd Amendment and is known for his robust defense of the right to keep and bear arms.

Tickets purchased before 9 August are $35 per person and are eligible for the "Early Bird Drawing." After August 9, tickets are $40 each. Tickets may be purchased by mail from the ORA, PO Box 850927, Yukon, OK 74085-0927 or on the ORA website.

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House Approves Hunting, Fishing Proposal

The House voted today to give Oklahomans the opportunity to protect their right to hunt and fish by amending the state Constitution in November.

Senate Joint Resolution 38, by state Rep. Randy Terrill(R-Moore) and Senator Glenn Coffee (R-Oklahoma City), would place a state question on the November ballot allowing citizens to determine whether the right to hunt and angle and take game and fish should be protected by the Constitution.

"Oklahoma has a long tradition of hunting and fishing that precedes statehood by centuries," Terrill said. "Our right to hunt and fish is inherent and deserves constitutional protection, especially given the increasingly radical actions of liberal activist groups targeting outdoor gaming around the nation. This bill gives our citizens the chance to protect their rights from being taken away by people who have no respect for our traditions and values."

The resolution will add a new section to the Constitution that gives all Oklahomans the right to hunt, trap, fish, and take game and fish. The legislation would prevent new state laws from prohibiting anyone from engaging in such activities.

The bill has received the support of both the Oklahoma Rifle Association and the National Rifle Association.

In a joint memorandum of support, Joel Partridge, Oklahoma State Liaison for the National Rifle Association's Institute for Legislative Action, and Darren LaSorte, Manager of Hunting Policy for the NRA-ILA, urged lawmakers to support Senate Joint Resolution 38.

"Enshrining the right to hunt, fish and trap in the Oklahoma Constitution will protect the state's rich hunting heritage for generations to come against attacks from the well-funded anti-hunting interest groups like the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS)," Partridge and LaSorte wrote. "The group spends $120 million annually lobbying to incrementally stop hunting and animal agriculture across the country."

The letter states that Senate Joint Resolution 38 will "provide truly meaningful protections against the animal 'rights' radicals."

Partridge and LaSorte note that sportsmen generated $573.2 million in state economic activity in 2007 and created 6,755 jobs, according to the International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies and the National Shooting Sports Foundation.

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Rifle Association Honors Ron Black, Jerry Ellis

The Oklahoma Rifle Association honored radio talk show host, newspaper columnist and blogger Ron Black during its annual convention awards banquet Saturday night. The ORA also named Valliant Rep. Jerry Ellis as its "Legislator of the Year."

Black was named recipient of the ORA's 2007 Mike McCarville Media Award for his support of the 2nd Amendment and the right to keep and bear arms. McCarville received the award in 1999, 2004 and 2005; it was named in his honor in 2006.

Black is the host of "Wild Oklahoma," outdoor show heard on stations in Oklahoma City, Cushing and Guymon. A television version begins this fall. He's the co-host of "Energy Matters" on KTOK in Oklahoma City and a regular political commentator on Fox 25 News. Black also is a columnist for the Oklahoma Gazette and operates a popular news blog. Before the station flipped its format, Black was the afternoon talk show host on WKY, Oklahoma City radio station.

Previous award recipients include Cam Edwards of NRA News in Washington and The Oklahoman's former editorial writer, Pat McGuigan.

Ellis, a Democrat, was honored for his work on 2nd Amendment issues in the 2007 legislative session.

The ORA also honored three members of the Oklahoma Highway Patrol's aviation division and Kingfisher's fire chief, Randy Poindexter, for their helicopter rescue efforts in last Sunday's flood.

For blogger Mark Shannon's take on the awards, see his comments at www.markshannon.com.

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