The First GOA Alert On HB 1424

 

The Sell-Out On HB 1424

Gun Owners of America

March 11, 1999 (Pt 1 of 2)

Dear Washington Gun Owner:

The most dangerous attack is the one that comes from behind your own lines, from so-called leaders who sell out to anti-gunners.

That’s what’s happening right now in Washington state.

As crazy as it may sound, Alan Gottlieb of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (and also of the Second Amendment Foundation) is once again pushing gun control in Olympia.

That’s right, Alan Gottlieb — who presents himself as a pro-gun leader — is working with anti-gun fanatics at Mothers Against Violence to pass HB 1424, a “Lock Up Your Safety” bill. With allies like this, we don’t need any more enemies.

And unless you contact your state Representative right away, I’m afraid Alan Gottlieb will pass HB 1424.

Here’s what is going on.

Liberals like Sarah Brady hate to be confronted with the fact that firearms are used to prevent tens of thousands of murders, rapes, thefts and assaults every year. Most of the time, the mere possession of a gun by a citizen scares off most attackers. And accidental injuries by firearms have been going down for years, even as gun ownership rises.

You see, anti-gunners know they can never take our guns as long as the facts show that GUNS SAVE LIVES! That’s why they desperately want to stop you from being able to defend yourself or your family.

That’s what HB 1424 (the so-called Whitney Graves bill) is all about: To force you to “Lock Up Your Safety” with trigger locks, gun safes and the threat of a criminal prosecution or even jail.

Anti-gun spinmeisters claim HB 1424 will protect children from very rare accidental shootings. (Of course, many of the shootings they cite are not accidents, but crimes, and are not committed by children, but by 17, 18 and even 19 year olds!).

If passed, HB 1424 would make your gun virtually useless when you need it most– to use deadly force to protect yourself, your family or your property. No murderer, burglar or rapist will wait for you to get a gun out of storage or get a trigger-lock off.

And you and I both know the police may not get there until it’s too late– if you can even call them.

Failure to comply with HB 1424 will be a felony offense, resulting in a loss of rights, stiff fines and even jail time!

After Washington voters overwhelming rejected this kind of Big Brother gun control in I-676, anti-gunners came back to Olympia armed with HB 1424. Normally, I’d say you had nothing to worry about.

Politicians can count votes.

But this time the anti-gunners have a new ally in Alan Gottlieb (actually many Washington gun activists know Mr. Gottlieb has pushed Lock Up Your Safety for years, but he never did it publicly).

Now I’m afraid some politicians may get the wrong idea and think you support Lock Up Your Safety gun control like HB 1424.

HB 1424 already has passed the House Criminal Justice Committee (after Alan Gottlieb testified for it along with a host of other anti-gunners) and is awaiting a vote in the House Judiciary Committee.

Please take action right away. There’s no telling what will happen … or when:

* Call your state Representative right away. Make it clear Washington gun owners DO NOT support HB 1424 or any other Lock Up Your Safety gun control bill. Please ask your friends and neighbors to call too.

* Contact Alan Gottlieb and let him know you don’t appreciate his supporting gun control in the name of pro-gunners.

Let Alan Gottlieb know that being called names in the press or getting a handful of fake benefits (his usual excuses for supporting HB 1424) is no reason to give away your safety to the anti-gunners.

If you want to protect your rights, you must stand up for them.

Sincerely,

Larry Pratt
Executive Director

PS. Anti-gunners in Olympia may be handed a huge victory because sometime pro-gun insider Alan Gottlieb (head of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms) is working with them to pass HB 1424, a Lock Up Your Safety gun control bill.

Please contact your state Representative right away and let him or her know you DO NOT support HB 1424, or any other gun control.

PPS. The NRA, Western Fish and Wildlife Federation and virtually all other pro-gun groups in Washington OPPOSE HB 1424, too.