On the evening of Thursday, January 23, I attended a Payson TEA Party meeting featuring Doug Little. This meeting was not about his campaign for Chairman of the Arizona Republican Party. He did not bring up his campaign at all. The topic at this meeting was Gun Rights and the Second Amendment.
The overriding message from Mr. Little was: Remain vigilant and do not allow Congress or the Arizona Legislature to pass anything at all that infringes on the right of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms.
Doug Little, Firearms Expert and Trainer, Warns About Unconstitutional Legislation
Mr. Little is a firearms expert and has owned his own company, Armed Personal Defense, for the last ten years. . He specializes in teaching all forms of gun fighting via Suarez International, and certifies NRA instructors.
He educated the audience of about 60 people on several pieces of federal legislation beginning with the National Firearms Act of 1934 all the way to the current horrifying legislation being proposed by Dianne Feinstein which would virtually ban most weapons. In fact, he stated that her legislation, if passed, would require the families of gun owners to turn in their weapons upon the gun owner’s death.
He explained that even the Democrats know this won’t pass. He stated that there has been such an outrage among gun owners that the Democrats fear the upcoming election of 2014. But their plan isn’t to try to pass Feinstein’s legislation. It’s intended to shock the voters. And then, they will introduce “milder” but just as unconstitutional legislation, that they know probably will pass.
So, he warned, remain vigilant and be prepared to fight ANY legislation that would attempt to restrict our 2nd Amendment Rights.
He said that many laws are on the books today that are unconstitutional, because nobody has challenged them. Many of those laws have been driven by New Jersey Senator Frank Lautenberg, who has done more to restrict our gun rights than any other legislator. Without citizen activism, many so-called “laws” are on the books and are enforced.
What pales by comparison are Obama’s 23 Executive Orders.
They, too, are unconstitutional, Doug stated, but they direct agency heads to act and share information, and they may or may not have an effect on gun accessibility.
The real action will have to come through Congress. That is where Mr. Little focused our attention. In fact, that was Mr. Little’s most critical message: Do not allow Congress or the Arizona Legislature to pass anything at all that infringes on the right of law-abiding citizens to be armed.
Do not equivocate! he urged.
Take Action to Stop Destructive Legislation at State and Federal Levels!
He urged us to become active in defense of our 2nd Amendment Rights and to register with the Arizona ALIS system in order to track legislation being introduced. Once you go to the link here, look for ALIS. Click on Tracking, and Register. Then explore the site. He advised that you can monitor the bills through the entire process and even interact with legislators in real time while a bill is being debated. "Your messages to them affect their behavior"! he emphasized.
He also cited research that proves that more guns actually reduce gun crime. One author/researcher he cited was John Lott, who wrote More Guns, Less Crime, and he cited as an example Chicago. Chicago has the worst gun crime in the country, and the most restrictive gun laws.
He urged us to sign up with the Arizona Citizens Defense League. They are an extremely good resource and fighter for gun rights. You can sign up to be on their email list alerting you to important legislation. They make it very easy for you to contact legislators so you can urge them on your position. No equivocating!
Doug Little spoke to the Constitution and when asked about certain parts of it, he knew it.
He reminded everyone that the Founders feared a standing army, such as England’s, and that’s why they wanted citizens to be the armed militia.
He stated that it’s very important for people to get proper training in how to use a gun. In 1792, the use of a firearm was a life skill. Everybody had firearms and learned to use them from an early age. Today, it isn’t a life skill. We need the training.
He said there were 3 pillars of Criminal Success: 1) They want it to be easy. 2) They don’t want to get hurt. 3) They don’t want to get caught.
Gun free zones make it easy for criminals.
Here are a few of Doug Little’s statements:
“An armed citizen, when disarmed, is a subject.”
“Those who want to ban guns are making rules to help the bad guys.”
By passing laws that restrict gun ownership of law-abiding citizens, “the government will be in control of a defenseless people.”