Knife ban latest news
From Tom Gresham & KnifeRights.org:
We're asking you to write yet again, because your letters and emails and
faxes are WORKING! You are the ones who have made this happen.
While our primary focus had been on stopping funding for Customs relating
to their proposed knife ban rule, another track was being worked in the
background to permanently solve the problem. It was initially conceived as
a follow-up to the urgently required need to stop Customs dead in its
tracks, giving time to work on a more permanent solution. Late Tuesday
evening, Knife Rights received an amendment introduced by Senators Pryor
(D-AR) and Hatch (R-UT) that would revise the Federal Switchblade Act
(FSA); an amendment that was being supported by Customs.
It was a good start, but was not quite acceptable for a variety of reasons,
but language was drafted that should permanently solve the issue. With the
cooperation of AKTI and NRA lobbyists this revised language was handed off
to Sen. Pryor who worked to get Customs to accept the revised language.
After a concerted effort by Sen. Pryor, a consensus revision emerged that
had the support of Customs and was acceptable to Knife Rights and the
industry. Late yesterday a new Amendment Number 1447 was introduced by
Senators Cornyn, Pryor, Hatch, Vitter, Risch, Chambliss, Corker, Enzi,
Barrasso, Graham, Roberts, Wyden and Crapo that adds another Exception in
Section 1244 that clearly covers conventional assisted openers and one-hand
openers. It's not perfect, but it's good enough and a major step forward.
Even better, it is a permanent solution rather than a stop-gap measure.
View the amendment here:
http://www.KnifeRights.org/SAmdt%201447.pdf
This cooperative effort has resulted in a bipartisan amendment that has the
critical support from the Senate committees which have responsibility for
the FSA and which is endorsed by the Administration (Customs and Border
Production have signed off on it). That gives it a very good chance of
making it through the process, but first we have to get it voted into the
Homeland Security Appropriations Bill.
NONE of this would have occurred without the groundswell of negative
reaction to the Customs proposal. Your thousands of written letters mailed
to Customs and the thousands more emails and faxes sent to Members of
Congress asking them to stop Customs, are what raised the issue to a level
where it could no longer be ignored. As the efforts by Knife Rights and
AKTI garnered more support from others with more political pull, that led
to the Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus' letter to Sec. Napolitano. It all
added up to a great deal of pressure on Customs to fix the problem.
Customs has responded.
The coalition of advocacy groups including Knife Rights, American Knife and
Tool Institute, National Rifle Association, Congressional Sportsmen
Foundation, Second Amendment Foundation, Citizens Committee for the Right
to Keep and Bear Arms, state gunowner groups and others were able to
leverage YOUR outrage into an effective political force in a very short
time. None of us individually could have done it alone but it would not
have happened without the grassroots support you have provided. You
deserve to pat yourself on the back for this effort to get it this far. In
an age when we often feel like Congress and the Administration simply
ignore the citizens' wishes, this is an example of them actually listening
to the citizens. YOU made this happen!
Now, we need to get the job finished. The next step is a vote on this
Amendment in the Senate. Yes, that means it is time to write again. And,
hopefully you'll need to write again to support an effort to get it through
Conference Committee. That we are in a position to ask you to do this is
proof positive that it works. We have a short and simple letter this time.
Please WRITE NOW!
Locate YOUR OWN Senators and their email forms here:
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
Sample Letter to YOUR Senators. If your Senator is one of those listed at
the end as cosponsors, change the closing to THANK them for their efforts
cosponsoring this amendment:
RE: Amendment Number 1447 to DHS Appropriations H.R. 2892
Dear Senator [Insert Senator's Name],
As a pocket knife owner, I support Amendment Number 1447 as a fair and
reasonable solution to Customs' rulemaking which would expand the
interpretation of what a Switchblade is. I am pleased that Customs has
endorsed this amendment as a solution.
I strongly urge you to accept Senators Cornyn, Pryor, Hatch, Vitter, Risch,
Chambliss, Corker, Enzi, Barrasso, Graham, Roberts, Wyden and Crapo's
amendment, Number 1447, to the Homeland Security Appropriations bill.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
[Individual Signature]
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So i can look busy...like you haha.
