The Government Buckles on One

If you hadn't heard, the Dept of Defense had stopped selling fired small arms brass to ammunition manufacturers under the Obama administration:
By Drew Zahn
© 2009 WorldNetDaily

A recent government policy change has taken a bite out of the nation's
already stressed ammunition supply, leaving arms dealers scrambling to find ammo for
private gun owners.
Georgia Arms is a company that for the last 15 years has been purchasing
fired brass shell casings from the Department of Defense and private government
surplus liquidators. The military collects the discarded casings from fired
rounds, then sells them through liquidators to companies like Georgia Arms that
remanufacture the casings into ammunition for the law enforcement and civilian
gun owner communities.
But earlier this month, Georgia Arms received a canceled order, informed by
its supplier that the government now requires fired brass casings be mutilated,
in other words, destroyed to a scrap metal state.
The policy change, handed down from the Department of Defense through the
Defense Logistics Agency, cuts a supply leg out from underneath ammunition
manufacturers.
The policy has compelled Georgia Arms, for example, to cancel all sales of
.223 and .308 ammunition, rounds used, respectively, in semi-automatic and deer
hunting rifles, until further notice. Sharch Manufacturing, Inc. has
announced the same cancellation of its .223 and .308 brass reloading components.
"They just reclassified brass to allow destruction of it, based on what?"
Georgia Arms owner Larry Haynie asked WND. "We've been 'going green' for the last
dozen years, and brass is one of the most recyclable materials out there. A
cartridge case can be used over and over again. And now we're going to destroy
it based on what? We don't want the civilian public to have it? It's a
government injustice."
As WND reported, firearm sales have spiked since the election of a perceived
anti-gun president, and Americans stockpiling bullets have produced a stressed
ammunition market.
The Orlando Sentinel reports months of steady, heavy buying have left gun
dealers in Florida facing shortages of ammunition.
"The survivalist in all of us comes out," John Ritz, manager of a Florida
shooting range, told the Sentinel. "It's more about protecting what you have."
"People are just stockpiling," said a spokeswoman for Georgia Arms, which has
seen bullet sales jump 100 percent since the election. "A gun is just like a
car. If you can't get gas, you can't use it."
WND contacted the Defense Logistics Agency, the Department of Defense's
largest combat support agency, several times seeking comment or explanation for the
policy change but received none.
The National Rifle Association confirmed to WND that the DLA had been
instructed to require the scrapping of the brass casings but declined further comment
at this time.
Other gun advocates, however, have sounded off on the issue, eyeing the
change in government policy with suspicion and filling the blogosphere with
speculation that the effects of the policy change may be deliberate.
"It is an end-run around Congress. They don't need to try to ban guns – they
don't need to fight a massive battle to attempt gun registration, or limit
'assault' weapon sales," writes firearm instructor and author Gordon Hutchinson
on his The Shootist blog. "Nope. All they have to do is limit the amount of
ammunition available to the civilian market, and when bullets dry up, guns will
be useless."
A writer named Owen at the Boots & Sabers blog suspects the policy change is
an effort by an anti-gun administration to raise the cost of ammunition.
"This policy didn't come out of the blue," writes Owen. "The Commander in
Chief is clearly sending a message to gun owners that they should be paying more
for ammunition. If he can't do it through regulatory action, he'll do it by
forcing ammunition manufacturers to spend more on production."
Hutchinson reports Georgia Arms was manufacturing over 1 million rounds of
.223 ammunition every month, but without the ability to purchase expended
military ammunition, the company may be forced to lay off up to half its workforce
But due to pressure from across America this was changed:
NOTICE!!!
A hardy congratulation is due to our loyal customers, our good friends, and our fellow shooting enthusiasts through out this great nation! Due to the diligent and overwhelming effort of many thousands of you, calling, writing, and emailing our elected officials, DOD Surplus, LLC, has rescinded its prior directive that ALL small arms spent casings be mutilated rather than recycled. This was a huge victory for common sense and we would like to thank each and every person who made an effort and played a role in correcting this mistake. We at Georgia Arms are proud of everyone who took the time and had the courage to stand up for our rights. We believe, that by your outpouring of anger and dismay, you not only extended our liberty and freedoms but also took a stand for economic common sense in a time when we know our government should be trying to reduce costs at all levels rather than throwing money away for some politically correct reason or the other. Again, our hat is off to everyone who helped and thanks to God as well. We will roll up our sleeves and go back to work; we have 223’s and 308’s to build! (Below is a copy of the email we received from DOD on 3/17/09 @ 4:30pm)

GOD BLESS AMERICA !!!!!
(This was pertaining to an outstanding bid on a lot of brass that we won prior to the mutilation order. DOD sent us a bill for the brass after we had refused it due to the mutilation requirements. DOD on Monday sent us a bill for the brass and when we responded that we had already refused it due to the mutilation clause, we received this reply via email.)

I am sorry you hadn’t been informed –
Word came down that all shells 50 caliber or smaller CAN still be purchased without the mutilation requirement as long as kept in the US.
(As it was in limbo, I did not sent your EUC to Battle Creek until today, also why I have not contacted you for payment until today.)
Thanks!
Arana K. Wolin
Document Verification Supervisor
Government Liquidation, LLC
DOD Surplus, LLC
15051 N Kierland Blvd. #300
Scottsdale, AZ 85254
As was said in the Georgia Arms post on their website, congratulations to all who helped change this outrageous plan by voicing their opinion, and a special thanks to those who published this government 'end run' attempt around the second amendment.
This illustrates the need to protect the ENTIRE Bill of Rights. Great job!!!

1944 Vision Realized in 2008

This quote was sent to me by a reader and I found it fascinating.
Sixty-five years ago:

Norman Thomas knew what was going to happen to our country
in 2008 !!!!

Norman Mattoon Thomas (November 20, 1884 – December 19,
1968) was a leading American socialist, pacifist, and
six-time presidential candidate for the Socialist Party of
America.

The Socialist Party candidate for President of the US,
Norman Thomas, said this in a 1944 speech:
"The American people will never knowingly adopt
socialism. But, under the name of "liberalism,"
they will adopt every fragment of the socialist program,
until one day America will be a socialist nation, without
knowing how it happened."
He went on to say: "I no longer need to run as a
Presidential Candidate for the Socialist Party. The Democrat
Party has adopted our platform."