Saturday, December 22, 2012

A Response to the NRA concerning the Sandy Hill shooting

District of Columbia v. Heller ((No. 07-290) 478 F. 3d 370, June 26, 2008)

2.       Like most rights, the Second Amendment right is not unlimited. It is not a right to keep and carry any weapon whatsoever in any manner whatsoever and for whatever purpose:  For example, concealed weapons prohibitions have been upheld under the Amendment or state analogues. The Court’s opinion should not be taken to cast doubt on longstanding prohibitions on the possession of firearms by felons and the mentally ill, or laws forbidding the carrying of firearms in sensitive places such as schools and government buildings, or laws imposing conditions and qualifications on the commercial sale of arms. Miller’s holding that the sorts of weapons protected are those “in common use at the time” finds support in the historical tradition of prohibiting the carrying of dangerous and unusual weapons. Pp. 54–56.

Monday, December 3, 2012

Support the ratification of the U.N. Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities by the U.S. Senate Tomorrow


Tomorrow, the U.S. Senate will vote on the ratification of the U.N. Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) at 12 noon (EST)/8:00am (PST).
Some Republicans oppose the convention because of specious arguments concerning how affirming the U.N. agreement would override the sovereignty of U.S. law. These are the same folks who believe that the United Nations is home to those who seek a “New World Order” that will destroy private property rights and force upon us all a one-world government of "elites" through radical environmentalism, public transportation, Mexican immigration, and who knows what else. In short, these Republican conspiracy theorists believe that although communism is a failed form of government, it hasn't really disappeared. These one-world order folks have simply reconstituted themselves as the environmental movement and they are pursuing the goals of a communist state. Having established the U.N. as the center of this new movement to confiscate all the private land in the world, our local governments have now bought into the secret plans (which take the form of non-binding resolutions) and are working with “them” against “us.” The evidence is everywhere, they claim. They see it in everything from concerns about overpopulation, to town water regulations, to zoning-board decisions, to "Green Teams" formed in local high schools, to the smart meters on home appliances, which they believe are really monitors that transmit data to a kind of central command that, one day, will punish people who use too much power.
In recent years, these theories have grown, with, in addition property, the U.N. trying to take away Americans’ rights — including the rights to bear arms and raise kids the way parents see fit.
These Senators want to block the adoption of a document that ensures the basic human rights of persons with disabilities out of fear that it would give away U.S. sovereignty.
In the last few hours before tomorrow’s vote, please help in this significant fight for lasting change and equality.
The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocol was adopted on December 13, 2006. There were 82 signatories to the Convention, 44 signatories to the Optional Protocol, and 1 ratification of the Convention. This is the highest number of signatories in history to a UN Convention on its opening day. It is the first comprehensive human rights treaty of the 21st century.
It follows decades of work by the United Nations to change attitudes and approaches to persons with disabilities. It takes to a new height the movement from viewing persons with disabilities as "objects" of charity, medical treatment, and social protection towards viewing persons with disabilities as "subjects" with rights, who are capable of claiming those rights, and making decisions for their lives based on their free and informed consent, as well as being active members of society.
The Convention adopts a broad categorization of persons with disabilities and reaffirms that all persons with all types of disabilities must enjoy all human rights and fundamental freedoms. It clarifies and qualifies how all categories of rights apply to persons with disabilities and identifies areas where adaptations have to be made for persons with disabilities to effectively exercise their rights and areas where their rights have been violated, and where protection of rights must be reinforced.
The Convention was negotiated during eight sessions of an Ad Hoc Committee of the General Assembly from 2002 to 2006, making it the fastest negotiated human rights treaty in the U.N.’s history.
Here’s how you can help!
2) Tweet your support with this sample tweet:
@(SenatorID) Support the #CRPD #UNCRPD in 2012! This is a #disability issue and we say Vote YES!
Thank you for your assistance.