I just got back from San Francisco, and while I realize it might not be for everyone, I really like the city. My wife does too. And it has become one of our go-to destinations for vacation. We like the food, we like the weather, we like all the wine and the sea lions on Fisherman’s Warf are pretty cool, too. Austin has a lot of things, but a certain “depth” it does not. So when we want to visit cooler weather in a city, SF is usually the ticket. That said . . .

I hate traveling around SF as I’m almost completely disarmed compared to my day-to-day life in Texas. And that bothers me quite a bit as I’m sure you, dear reader, can understand. So bothered, in fact, that I’m constantly on edge walking around the city. Factor in the high number of people muttering to themselves and the “keep it weird” vibe, and I think that’s fairly rational.

Further compounding my fear (irrational or not) was a story one of my wife’s friends told to me several weeks before our trip. A resident of Oakland, she was chased down the street by a man very clearly on drugs shouting, “Come here white bitch. Give me your money!” She’s an athletic young gal at roughly 105 pounds, and managed to outrun her aggressor, but that was her only option. Had she not been situationally aware, she very well could have been yet another statistic.

I’ve met the young lady. She’s a hardass and would be well-suited to carrying a gun. Unfortunately, Oakland isn’t exactly gun-friendly if you’re on the right side of the law. Her roommate, also a friend of ours, posted this appeal to friends earlier this week.

Went to the Army surplus store for mace. Each canister contains 8 blasts. Man behind the counter suggested I buy the refills at the same time. 

So, that’s Oakland. Tell me about your city. How many canisters of pepper spray laced with tear gas does your local army vet suggest you need for your walk home?

What level of “kicked in the head” stupidity does it take to have a place where two women are afraid for their safety, but have to resort to running or pepper spray. Neither of them are withered flowers. They’re both tough as nails and, I have no doubt, given the means, could fight off damn near any attacker. But the hurdles are too high to let them use the best tool for the job.

Now if Mitchell, South Dakota decided to disarm me of my constitutionally protected, God-given right to self defense, I’d miss the corn palace, but not much more. The San Fran area, however, has a whole lot of things I like, and I think this last trip has really opened my eyes to the plight of our California-quagmired brothers and sisters.

I see them comment here occasionally, begging you to not let them fall by the wayside. Further, they tell you that what happens in California will spread to the rest of the country. Wanna call bullshit on their claims? Right here in Austin, the SAXET gun show was not able to renew their lease on the Travis County Fairgrounds because they wouldn’t comply with a demand for common sense, comprehensive background checks.

Community groups in Austin raised concern that individual sellers could sell to buyers at the show without the federal checks that are mandated for vendors. The owners of the gun show and attendees point out Saxet hasn’t had any issues in its over 20 years in Central Texas.

Those “community groups” are very likely transplants to Austin, as the SAXET show has been going on since 2010 without impediment. This move could potentially cost the city of Austin hundreds of thousands in revenue. Negotiations failed late Tuesday when SAXET rejected Travis County’s offer. This should have been a non-issue. Long story short, the transplants aren’t coming. They’re here.

Now before you brand me a xenophobe, know that I love me some immigration. If for no other reason than the kimchi tacos I get once a week. And actually kimchi is a pretty solid example of immigration being a good thing. Kogi BBQ won a Bon Appétit award in 2009 and kicked off the whole Mexican/Korean fusion food truck thing. Soon after, Austin saw Chi’Lantro serving up Korean tacos. The folks at Kogi saw a lot of success, and the people at Chi’Lantro said, “Hey maybe that’ll work here too!”

Gun control and hysteria spreads no differently. Buoyed by the success of magazine limits, feature tests, and FOID cards, out-of-state transplants attempt to implement them in their new homes because, “Hey, it worked back home and I felt safe there.”

So yeah, California matters. A lot. And that’s why I’m so pissed every time I visit. It’s one of the most beautiful places in the U.S. with beautiful coastlines, great mountains, vineyards, deserts, and everything in between. An outdoorsman’s paradise. Not to mention great wine, amazing food and culture out the ass. But my guns, my ideals and my money are not welcome there. Frankly, that’s shit. I want California back. Let’s make it ours. Only one question…how?

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

153 COMMENTS

  1. Agreed. The whole “abandon” California is poor strategy – not only are many of our fellow gun owners residents of the Golden State, the size / influence of California is too large to ignore. Especially since I’m a resident of WA, another west coast state.

    Oh, and I LOVE kimchi tacos… Kogi is legit! There’s similar Korean / Hawaiian fusion taco truck up here in Seattle called MARINATION. Worth checking out for anyone craving spicy deliciousness.

    • I agree. For me it is a matter of career options. California is home to more than 1/3 of the jobs in my industry. To make matters worse, another 1/4 of them are on the East Coast. That pretty much narrows down my job options to Texas and Washington – both turning purple by the minute.

      • Ah, nice!

        Grew up in Kent-hood, now I live in South Seattle / Sea-Tac / Burien area. The literal intersection of ’em.

  2. It’s a sociology problem which defies easy correction.

    What we need is a media system not beholden to the Bloombergs and Schumers of America. And that’s going to cost money, lots of it. Unless we have any multibillionaires on the TTAG commentary roster, that’s not going to be a viable solution.

    Without altering the social perception of firearms as a negative social force, the antis will win with time and attrition. More people inevitably brings more crime, and more crime brings more media reports on guns as a negative .More media reports on guns means more politcians can use it as a campaign issue. The rest, as is said, is history.

    • The old media of which you speak is slowly dying. Trust in the process; they are not relevant any more. It’s happening faster in some places than others. Look at MSNBC; they’re pathetic. Their media share is ridicularly small, something on the order of 250,000 in the peak of prime time. That spells failure in the long run.

    • I’ve said this here before, and it still leaves a bad taste in my mouth, but it’s the only thing I can think of.

      Almost every state has an ultra conservative bazillionare in the woodwork somewhere. They tend to spend their political money supporting legislation intended to make the rich richer and the poor poorer, restricting voting rights, eliminating education funding, minimizing food stamp eligibility, limiting access to health care, and other anti-human causes. If you have a strong enough stomach to try to get one of these Uber-SOB’s to listen, that’s where you’ll find your potential pro-2A Bloomberg.

      Good luck, and remember to take your Dramamine.

        • Would you care to specify what I’ve written that inspired your your insulting personal comment, or do you just enjoy ad hominem attacks?

  3. On our last trip to SF we walked from our hotel to our friends house. We had to walk through the Folsom Street Fair with all of its leather, whips, chains, piercings, S&M, nakedness, public drugs and sex. When we got to our friends’ house, the conversation among all of the forty-something parents with kids was excitement that the city fathers had just decided to ban McDonalds from selling Happy Meals. That to me is SF and liberalism in a nutshell – freedom means open air gay S&M, but we have to save the precious children from the evils of the happy meal.

    Place is effed up.

    • I’ve seen enough of CA. too .!

      Land of Fruits and Nuts oh and Leftist lib Dems. Wait that’s the ones with crotchless leather and wips.. Diane was that you with the pasties n tassles?

    • Never been there but the pictures of the assless chaps didn’t quite do it for me either, Randy

    • I had a third floor office on Market street for years where I was annually subjected to the insult of the LGBT Pride Day parade.

      The vanguard was “Dykes on Bikes, dozens of lesbians riding down the street topless on their Harley Davidsons. Throngs of San Franciscans lined the route and cheered as leather-clad riders on floats, their new piercings still dripping blood, tossed handfuls of condoms into the crowd. Further back men naked except for black leather harnesses and collars ran down the street as other men in black leather short-shorts, holding their leashes, followed along whipping them.

      Contrast this to November 11 of that same year. At the Veterans day parade none of the marching drill teams was allowed to carry even simulated rifles and all had to do their routines with broomsticks. The City and County of San Francisco did not even bother to stop cross traffic on Market street so that the parade was compelled to stop and wait every time they encountered a red light. The contingent of about 40 Red Army survivors marching proudly in blue Soviet-era suits, their right breasts adorned with their “Hero of the Soviet Union” and many other war service medals, brought a tear to my eye when contrasted with the contempt the locals showed for our veterans.

      And don’t get me started on the Critical Mass(holes) bicycle demonstrations.

      Now the Seattle area has been infested by these types and before much longer I am going to be looking for a more rational place to spend my remaining years.

      I’m not sure California can be easily saved, but I think it is a task for younger and more adventurous personalities than mine, for it is likely to be a long and difficult struggle.

    • That’s just another illustration that as time passes, a greater and greater percentage of the American populace wants a strong State micromanaging our lives. Oh, there are areas that are exceptions to be sure…but the trend is clear.

      • They want it only because they don’t realize it is the real danger. It is no different than Chamberlain placating the Brits with letters from Hitler saying he was a nice guy and would never attack Britain. Too many of the Brits ate that $&@* up, right up unto when the V2s started falling. in short, people will believe things to protect what isn’t important right up to their freedom is gone.

    • I don’t really get why most conservative people have beef with gay people. They want the same thing we want – the right to do what you want, how you want, when you want, without being told off from the government. Narrowminded bureaucrats tell gay people they can’t marry and they tell carry permit applicants to FOAD.

      unfortunately, the gay community chose the wrong side to ally with, and I don’t see any attempt by the right to push for gay rights.

      Then there’s the whole big government vs little government issue.

      • Because conservatives are not looking for the ability to do “what you want, how you want, when you want without being told off from the Government.” Conservatives are looking for their value system to be upheld. Christians are not prepared to see Gay Marriage anymore than they are willing to see polygamy or incest. It has to do with fundamental beliefs about right and wrong, as defined by the Christian religion.

        In contrast, the post-modern ideal is for everyone to do what they want, how they want, when they want.
        Unfortunately what you want, how you want, when you want, is at odds with the conservative ideals of right and wrong, duty, and responsibility.

        These two life philosophies are not compatible in the least.

        As demonstrations such as those described by Cliff H, and policies pursued by the Obama administration show, this is a culture war that will only have one victor.

        Read this for more information on the subject:
        http://news-basics.com/2010/liberal-vs-conservative-values/

        It’s not that conservatives have a beef with Homosexuals in particular. As any Christian will tell you, God hates all sin. Christians also have a beef with unrepentant fornicators, adulterers, liars and thieves.

        It’s that there is a philosophical gulf that cannot be bridged between the two parties. Christians believe in right and wrong as defined by their religion. Liberals do not believe in right and wrong as defined by a religion, they go with “societal norms”.

        At any rate, the side that embraces personal responsibility (conservatism) embraces firearms as well. A gun is a symbol of self reliance.

        The side that believes in a “nanny state”, that coined the phrase “don’t blame the criminal, blame the society that made the criminal”, where responsibility rests with a nebulous all powerful Government that will cure societies ills, rejects firearms. Guns are unnecessary, unneeded, and dangerous. Why do you need one? The Government will take care of you.

        There are people who fall outside these categories, but they are the minority. True libertarians do exist, but they (like Teddy Roosevelts bull moose party) will not achieve mainstream control. One of the two ideologies I’ve described will gain the upper hand and crush the other. There is no other outcome.

        • There’s a difference between conservatism and being Christian. I’m not Christian. Therefore I have no desire to see Christian morality as the standard.

          Conservatism to me is a strict interpretation of the Constitution. The Bill of Rights allows each state to legislate all things not controlled by the Fed, which would include gay marriage. All a state needs to do to recognize gay marriage is define marriage as between two unrelated persons.

        • @Craig:

          I’ve noticed a similar trend myself lately. Up until around last year I considered myself a conservative. Seems in today’s political climate “conservative” has just as much stigma attached to it as “progressive.” Different reasons, same hate. I figure, now, to avoid the confusion I’m a constitutionalist. Try that on and see if it fits (and it takes a while to start saying that instead of conservative…).

          Also, if you have the time, there is a Youtube “video” (really still pictures with audio IIRC) of an interview that John Wayne gave some un-named reporter back in the day. His statement in there is along the lines of “I always considered myself a liberal. I listen to other peoples’ opinions and form my own judgment. Imagine my surprise when that article came out and suddenly I was a radical right wing conservative…”

      • “tell carry permit applicants to FOAD.”

        You concocted a bogus scenario, and I’m calling BS. In nearly every case, the ones “tell(ing) carry permit applicants to FOAD” are the ones sponsoring, and speaking at, gatherings of public gay weddings.

        Too often, the gay marriages are not even really what is being sought, but a kind of acceptance by hook or crook: they aren’t so much seeking a right as they are trying to ramrod (ahem) others into proclaiming what they do is wonderful, and in fact ordained by God.

        • This, WB, is simply true. Those denying CCW permits are the ones saying yes to gay marriage. Gay marriage pursues the right to claim the tax and welfare benefits of marriage under federal and state law. In the end it will lead to the deprecation of accommodations meant to make traditional marriage and child rearing affordable, including a period of stay-at-home years for child raising, and the tax-free transition of assets to the spouse on the way to the children.

          As for the benefits of public displays of S&M, I differ with those who think there is any public good in that. Then again, SF and CA long indulged Willie Brown’s idea of a good time, so I think the rest of us can sit back and watch the anglos get squeezed by the Latinos and laugh. It will cost us, but I’ll still laugh.

          Make your money, live where you like the laws, and let those polities which by majority rule wish for decadence….enjoy it. If there is a price to be paid inherent in their outlook (and I think there is) then they will eventually pay it. Prop 13 will be dead within 10 years. (Don’t bother telling me you don’t think so…). The state and municipal pension schemes will have to come into line with taxes collected. It’s all good. Why worry? There are essentially seven states that have some version (east or west coast) of the false dream, and 43 states that don’t. Money and self-absorption are the reigning gods in California, robed in a language of newspeak pretending to concern for others. We’ll see what happens when the vast majority, with little savings and no particular skills, slowly realize they’ve been had. Do they have the IQ for it? I honestly think that’s an open question.

      • I am only speaking personally, but I know this view to be shared by many that I know. Conservatives don’t have a beef with gay people, we have a beef with a political agenda. In many instances, political demands for rights for homosexuals are solidly based and about freedoms for actual people – this I have no beef with. But in many other instances, political demands are either rent-seeking and/or attempts to tear down the traditionalist fabric of society for no other reason but to tear it down. For example, there are many gays who want the right to marry because they are in a committed relationship and want the same privileges and recognitions as others; but, there are many more who wish to see gay marriage put on a co-equal plane with traditional marriage as an organizing unit of society. To conservatives, it is not on a co-equal plane. No society across the globe or throughout history has recognized gay marriage as co-equal as a bedrock societal institution. But there are those who wish to assert that it is, just because, or more sinisterly because they wish to see traditional mores of America get trampled. It is this that most conservatives have a beef with.

    • When I stayed in Frisco (that is deliberately intended to piss off any residents of SF) a few years ago, I noticed something very telling about where that city has gone. I was staying in a fairly pricey hotel with indoor parking (so my car wouldn’t be stolen), and when I went out in the morning to find breakfast, I walked around the block. This was in the business district, not the projects. EVERY SINGLE door and window on the first floor of EVERY building had security bars on it.

      Residents of Frisco are living in jail, while the criminals are out free on the streets.

  4. I always thought it would be interesting to sit at a busy venue wearing one of those a frame signs that says I want to talk about guns with you, and have a backpack full of solid reference material including FBI UCR, firearms diagrams, Papers from Kleck, Lott, and even material from VPC and Brady. You would catch a lot of flak from small minded bigots, but would be an unprecedented ability to reach outside the echo chamber and reach some new minds with solid fact. Keep the republican vs democrat libtard heartless conservative nut crap out of it. Facts, numbers, and history are on our side. Just immagine the impact a few hundred folks doing the above once a month could make in destroying the propoganda and deceit. Pipe dream?

    • Josh – I like it! Sort of a one man, mobile “Truth About Guns” station, designed to calmly and rationally demolish the fear based, emotional arguments, twisted statistics, and half truths that anti-gun zealots happily promote!
      Sure – some will become apoplectic and run off in rage, but maybe some would actually listen. It’d be fun either way.
      I’m gonna give this some thought; maybe start collecting resources!

      • Thats kinda the approach i take with the casual anti and generally uninformed albiet on a one on one scale. Won’t work on die hard haters, but we are not after them. I’m willing to make the signs and help compile the stuff for the backpacks. It also goes a long way towards dispelling the evil gun nut meme. Just be a regular pleasant, polite, calm person and argue the facts. Most eventually come around.

    • Here’s what would happen.

      1. You’d have people screaming and throwing things at you, saying you support the killing of children.

      2. The police would be called, and they’d move you for inciting a riot because people are throwing things at you.

      3. Very good likely hood that if you turn your back, someone will hit in in the back of the head.

      They don’t want a debate, they want us to die.

    • Unfortunately, the Frisco cops would arrest you for disturbing the peace, or maybe inciting a riot.

  5. went to Napa for my 10th wedding anniversary last summer. . . . gorgeous area, but too many damn hippies

    BTW – fixed it for ya Tyler – you forgot the damn quotation marks:

    the Travis County Fairgrounds because they wouldn’t comply with the unreasonable demand for “common sense”, comprehensive background checks

    • I don’t think there is anything wrong with hippies. I let them be as long as they let me be. I am all for “free love.” Just let me be free to enjoy the things I enjoy as well.

  7. Get off the Media, culture and all the unnecessary com crap. It’s numbers. If we have 9 million gun owners in a state of 30 million, you move the needle by filling the circle. ALL OTHER CONSIDERATION IS BULL SHIT.

  8. Next time you come out, visit L.A. If you think it’s bad here, wait ’till you try to do a mag change on a CA-Compliant AR or AK pattern rifle.
    Bring a video camera. I’ll have the Xanax ready.

    • The bullet button is bullshit, no doubt about that. Especially, because you can just illegally switch out to a standard mag release button if you intend to commit crimes with the firearm, or just switch the regular upper on a .22 lower (rimfire is exempt from the bullet button bullshit), but it’s not as if it is hard to change a magazine.

      I highly doubt I’m any slower changing a magazine than any person using a standard release. There are devices you wear on your finger to push the recessed spot. It does take lining up, but that comes with practice, and with ten round magazines, we get lots of practice.

      You can also get standard magazines such as the PMag 30 that have been limited to ten rounds and have the bullet button bullshit tool built in. New mag is used to release existing mag.

      • Or you can put a small magnet in the bullet button. I passed on the opportunity to buy one of these at a gun show.

        • Currently, State law is unclear on whether or not the magnet on the bullet button is legal or not.

          It’s been up to the Attorney General to decide whether that falls under the law. Previously, a report was released that it is likely illegal, and now we have Harris who hates guns.

          The magnet may get you into legal trouble.

        • Having the “bullet button” magnet may not be illegal, but using is probably a felony. Hey, you can’t make this stuff up.

  10. San Francisco, been there, done that, moved away when the first kid was born. Too much dirt, too many insane pan handlers staking out every corner in the Financial District. And too much FUD. Senator Yee, he would ban the EBR by banning bullet buttons (a device that makes it legal to own ARs and AKs) is a former SF school psychologist and City Council member. Kamala Harris, currently the Attorney General and an avid gun hater responsible for the microstamping fiasco, is formerly San Francisco City Attorney. And California Lt. Governor Gavin Newsome, who has his eyes on the governor’s seat when Brown vacates it, and is another avid anti-gun activist, is a former SF mayor and City Council member. SF former Sheriff Michael Hennessey was famous for refusing to issue CCWs to anyone (DiFi got hers and turned it in before he became Sheriff, I think). As of today, there are only 4 CCWs issued in SF County–two by the sheriff (one for an employee of the SFPD and the other for a reserve officer) and two by the SFPD (again, one for a reserve sheriff’s deputy and one for an employee of the Sheriff’s department– the latter probably for the Sheriff himself who is not a LEO and cannot carry a gun without a CCW.)

    I think it’s the water. So when you come back, Tyler, drink only Mt. Shasta spring water, drawn from a its source on the flanks of Mt. Shasta and naturally pure–and tasty too.

      • Your point being? I live about 60 miles south, and can see the mystery mountain from many places around town. This part of the state does not suffer from the liberalism of the great urban areas to the south,” a part of California that believes “good cause” for issuance of a CCW is “self defense,” and where hunters and fishermen abound. One of the members of the city council is a retired CHiPpy who runs one of the gun stores in town, and is always primed to discuss 2A issues. And although their numbers are growing, democrats are still in the minority. If we could only wrestle control of the Shasta Dam from the feds, we would have real political power; without that water, LA will get awful thirsty.

  11. I lived in Kali for several decades at the time the greatest threat to my safety was the SLA and Weathermen w/their FA firearms so beloved by their Fellow Travelers who also pushed to disarm non-terrorists .
    I see little has changed in Kali.
    I suggest a Ban on Kimchi Tacos outside the State of Confusion they are obviously the culprit for where ever they are found Civilian Disarmament follows.
    As to your jogging friends: every decision has a consequence, I am sure they are not held in Kali against their will

  12. Thank you Tyler! This is why I am doing everything in my power to fix the wrongs of this state.
    We have said it before that California matters, and not just on gun control but a lot of things.

    • Daniel, Are you running for state-wide office? There are other things to be done, certainly, but at least publicly opposing these Progressives in their campaigns would seem to be a good start.

      I’m pretty sure you could expect some level of financial and moral support from TTAG readers.

    • All I can offer you, Dan, and the other esteemed behind the liners like Accur81, Dr Vino etc. Is a promise: when Cali has it’s Dunkirk, I will bring my truck, with trailer, and as many friends ad I can find, to the Nevada border. We’ll get as many of you guys to friendly territory as we can!

      • This made me laugh. I have an old friend from forty years ago, RVN, who recently retired (five years ago) as a very senior officer of the USSOCOM crowd. He lives in a free zone among his own kind. I made him promise to helo me out when the great split, which he expects, comes to pass. A surprising number of those guys expect a split. It surprised me at first. I laughed them off. I was probably hasty in my judgment. The lines are increasingly being drawn in legislation and voter attitudes. All the food, oil, gas, communications, and weapons are on one side. All the money is on the other. But creating new money only takes a month. The other stuff is a bit more difficult to replace. I have no crystal ball. I do see arrogance focused in particular regions. I wonder where it will lead.

  13. Interesting how the transplants felt safe because of the very laws that those of us who actually take responsibility for our own safety know create a fundamentally unsafe environment. Allow all law abiding adult citizens to own any firearms they want, and can afford, and carry guns open or concealed everywhere but specified secured locations with sufficient secure firearms storage facilities, return to community policing and curb police militarization, stop the drug war, and crack down on violent crime and repeat offenders and the country will soon be a safer place.

  14. Eh, I was born, raised and live in the heart of SF. In my experience it’s not the crazy ones you need to worry about it’s the gang-bangers and the nice folks in public housing who see you as an ATM. While we of course cannot carry legally I believe it’s just a misdemeanor if you get caught packing. Of course you’ll most likely never see your pistol again.

    • Back in the ‘90s I was busted in Orange County with a concealed Ruger P85. No other crime being claimed it was treated as a misdemeanor bust, I was not charged even with the misdemeanor, and thirty days later my pistol was returned minus the 14 rounds of Black Talon originally on board. But that was Orange County, the sole bastion of conservative sanity in the state, and I would certainly NOT count on the same outcome were I there today.

      I left the state in large part because I do not trust those nescient fascists to respect ANY of my rights, much less the RKBA.

  15. Had drinks with the owner of Chi’Lantro not too long ago, nice girl, pretty sharp too.

    I was very disappointed to hear about the Saxet Gun Show. I personally called my district commissioner and asked him to leave the Saxet gun Show as is. I need to follow up with him and see which side he fell on.

    While it’s very true that Austin is a progressive socialist hang out but…..it’s still in Texas. I’m often pleasantly surprised at some of the people I meet here that own firearms, here’s my story about it: http://walkingtofreedom.com/forum/index.php?topic=542.0. What I didn’t add to this little story yet was that this past weekend I met a guy working at Whole Foods and we made a trade: my lower for his rifle. Who would have thought, Whole Foods, the bastion of firearms enthusiasts!

  16. Coming from an SF native, I feel embarrassed to not have any open carry nor concealed carry (they lol @ you at SFPD and SF sheriff’s offices). Talk about rights being stripped so a few more people feel “safe.” I believe Thomas Jefferson had something to say about that. He who will give up essential liberty for temporary security, deserves neither liberty nor security.

    • It’s similar here in the entire State of NJ. I had a cop laugh at me for asking if I could get a carry permit. People wait months to get their permits to purchase a pistol approved (law says cops have 30 days to issue / deny), and yet I’m sure if I applied for a carry permit it would be denied within hours of application. But to be fair, even if the unthinkable happens and the police captain gives you the OK, a judge still has to approve it…oops, I mean deny it, since that’s all they do.

  17. What can be done? Right now: support Calguns, SAF, and the firearms manufacturers for their work to overturn the Roster.

    Send Exile Machine a few bucks to help them with legal costs fighting a lawsuit from (surprise) the City of SF regarding magazines sold as rebuild kits.

    TTAG could run a story or two on how Calguns and SAF are methodically restoring CCW rights to CA residents, forcing one county after another to go shall-issue.

    • We try Alpha but then again the woes of CA tend to drain on the readers too.
      It is about balance.

    • CA banned high capacity rebuild kits this Jan. I’m not sure of the details, but there was a mad rush to get them in late December.

      • Not high capacity, standard capacity. You know, like what people in less repressive states enjoy as a matter of course.

        Anyway, SF is suing Exile Machine for selling rebuild kits to CA residents BEFORE the importation of rebuild kits was made illegal on 1 Jan 2014. (Ignoring, for a moment, whether THAT law is going to stand up in court…)

        • See what living here does to ones mind? Marinate long enough and you soak up the flavor no matter how hard you try not to.

  18. …if you want even better tacos than Kogi, go try some of the tacos over at East Side King’s new place on South Lamar. They’re bad ass.

  19. Austin has basically turned into a liberal stronghold. The place is FULL of them now. Wont be long before the laws there start to make it obvious itll be like how some Colorado cities have become

    • Yep. Anyone not a member of the Texas State Rifle Association should really join. These guys have done a great job in the past decade of restoring what we already should have had all along. No doubt these next couple sessions will be focused on open carry.

      https://www.tsra.com/

  20. Was just there for my Honeymoon – SF and Sonoma. I tell you though – I was shocked to see many people with knives clipped in their pockets. Driving to Fishermans Wharf to show my wife the seals, she got tired of me counting them. I dug mine out of the bag in the parking garage first chance I got.

    • My personal experience traveling anywhere (in country, any state, or some limited travels outside) that most knife laws (i.e. None-for-you, no concealed blades, no blades over such-and-such length) get ignored out of sheer practicality. I’m not advocating stupidity or lawbreaking out of spite, but just observe what others are doing and go from there. Unless you’re being a serious dumbass, most cops will overlook a pocketknife for the same reason.

      First thing I usually do on vacation is buy a cheapish, decent knife that I won’t mind possibly losing to the TSA/Customs on the flight back, and so I don’t have to deal with the possibility of losing a good knife on the way out.

      Got a pretty sweet switchblade last time I was in Costa Rica (super duper illegal but widely available/carried there due to only serious crims and cops having guns), but didn’t have any checked bags to put it in on the way back. And FedEx wanted $40 to ship a $20 knife back to the states, then wouldn’t ship it because of a “no weapons” policy.

      Jerks.

  22. I lived in Oakland for 5 years – the food/restaurants and intellectual culture is fascinating, the crime is heartbreaking and terrifying. I had bars on my windows and *loved* them because they meant I could sleep with my windows open (no A/C) and not wake up to find someone else in my apartment, which otherwise would have been a certainty. I lost track of how many times my truck was broken into.

    It’s well known in the Bay Area that Oakland is just fucked. They’ve given up. Armed robbery downtown is very common – criminals feed on the office workers the same way that sharks chase tuna.

    Oakland recently asked a CA legislator to pass a special law exempting Oakland from California’s gun law preemption, so that Oakland could pass even more restrictive gun laws, because the existing California laws are too loose, in their opinion. They’ve driven every gun store out of the city, as well as every store that sells ammunition. There’s basically zero chance of getting a CCW from a police chief or the county sheriff (CA law allows either to issue). I carried illegally most of the time I lived there because I’d rather be judged by 12 than carried by 6; a neighbor shot and killed a “youth” who broke into his home one night and has been terrorized by other “youths” ever since. The neighbor is an articulate, middle-aged African-American attorney, and managed to escape criminal charges, but otherwise got the Zimmermann treatment just the same.

    A very liberal friend of mine lived in SF . . until she had kids, and took them to the neighborhood park, where they found used hypodermic needles in the sand in the playground. The romance and excitement of city life turned out to be much less important than protecting her kids from hepatitis or AIDS.

  23. I wish I knew. There’s more wrong with cali than just hoplophobia. There’s the “bullet train,” a now slow moving, Amtrak 2.0 rail line that has outgrown the initial budget by several factors. It’s now technically illegal to stay construction because the legislation was worded to prevent the scope of the project from spiraling out of control. But that might not stop them from starting. If they do, it will prove that it has nothing to do with transporting Californian people up and down the state but is intended to transport Californian dollars from our pockets to friends of the legislators.

    There was a law signed recently that would allow for a school boy to decide he’s “always been” a girl and start using the girls bathrooms and locker rooms. The attitudes surrounding Gerber identity often preclude honest discussion which would facilitate abuse if this well intended bill by young pervs. (I’m not sure what’s happening with this currently).

    There seems to be a complete lack of common sense here. I think it’s been largely replaced by highly rationalized utopian ideals. The are plenty of common sense folks here but they are all drowned out by S.F. and L.A.

    On top of that the economy here is withering. All of the acquaintances I’ve made in my industry are working for companies based out of state. All of the CA based companies are in bad shape, several have gone out of business.

    I think CA is a lost cause until reality Birch slaps it hard. Until then the lack of jobs here is going to disperse our politics like pollen on the wind.

    I’ve said it before. Fortify your state constitutions now. We need to be as active and persistent as the progressives.

    Also I recommend reading Thomas Sowell, Milton Friedman, Von Mises and Murray Rothbard. Get your arguments in order. Economics and guns are what keep people free.

    • Also read “Atlas Shrugged”. The solution may be drastic, it is certainly not pretty, but forcing them to drown in their own utopian fantasy and then reclaiming the state may be the ultimate reality.

      Sorry, you guys still in their and fighting. I encourage you to keep trying, but at some point it may be necessary to simply abandon the field of battle and let them wallow in their utopian misery until they are begging the adults to come back and save them.

      The only problem with this as a state-by-state strategy is, of course, there is nothing preventing the utopians from abandoning the state as well and carrying their infection to other locales.

      • I’ll be moving this year. I don’t want to start a family here or raise kids here. Also CA women seem to be fucking crazy and the family courts are absolutely bonkers. My picker is not the best, so leaving the state will be a hedge in that regard as well.

    • Know what you mean; I was a Federal prisoner there for 12 years (Moffett Field and Point Mugu), left in ’93 and didn’t miss it at all. Then Number Two Son went back five years ago and now I’ve got him, a d-i-l and two grandsons in Oakland. (Yeah, I worry about them a lot.)

      But yeah, there was severe culture shock coming back after fifteen years gone.

      “I think CA is a lost cause until reality Birch slaps it hard. Until then the lack of jobs here is going to disperse our politics like pollen on the wind.”

      You may get your trial next year; I understand there are going to be water problems next summer; so severe that the farmers in the south are going to get bupkis for water after the Delta Smelt are taken care of. Naw. Lack of water in the premier vegetable-growing region of the country; what problems could that cause.

      • I just noticed my own typo in you quote: birch slap, lol. I think I’ll use that as a euphemism for hitting someone with a stick.

  24. I friggin love LA. It’s my dangling carrot, the place I want to be sooner than later. It’s hard to believe that in that embattled place, almost nobody can carry a gun. So, yeah. California matters to me, too.

  25. How do you fix a place where everyone there likes its being all messed up? and those same people then want everyone else to be like them?

    My wife loves SF also because her best friend lives there, even though she realizes it for the shithole it is.

    About half of the jobs in my industry are in CA and the yearly Game Developers Conference is in SF no less. So many smart dumb asses.

    • The escalators for the subway (BART) in SF were shut down in 2012. The reason was that so much human excrement had jammed up the escalators machinery. They had to send in hazmat crews to deal with it. In Dec. 2012 I was working a job in SF and outside the building on the sidewalk someone had…left a present, to borrow a pet owner’s euphamism.

      When people talk about SF as a shithole, they rarely know the half of it. Staying north of Market st. (the diagonal one, look at a map, you can’t miss it) and it’ll be nicer, that’s where all the tourist spots are.

      • hahaha truly a wretched hive of scum and villainy 🙂 Ill have to go there at some with my wife to visit, hopefully we dont see too many presents.

  27. Moscow and Peking (Beijing if you are of the chicom bent) also matter but I don’t give a damn about fixing them either. Will all work out when hard times arrive and they starting eating each other. California 2.0 perhaps will last longer.

    • “Chi com bent’? Are you suggesting that the Chinese people cannot correct a British mispronunciation of their own imperial city?

  28. Thank you for the article. As a state, I believe CA is truly buggered. I’ll fight stupid laws and speak the truth wherever I am, but this state has too many that lean way too far to the left for it to do any good. They are offended by the truth and willfully ignore it.

    While some of the fights against the obstacles against CCW permits are gaining serious traction, we have serious issues. With anti- gun politicians slavering for positions of power, we will have real issues when we no longer have Governor Brown in office. I see ammo taxes, ammo IDs, ammo permits, “ghost gun” bans, etc. all getting ready to be dusted off after the next mass shooting.

    • It’s a strange, strange world we live in, Master Jack, when Gov. Moonbeam is a moderating influence on anti-2A laws.

      • You do realize, Ralph, that Brown got that moniker not because he was some kind of hippy, but because he was a backer of NASA and space exploration? And that he fostered California industries that built the rocket engines and many of the components of the space program? Brown is a fiscally conservative moderate, by California standards. And that’s why this year at least (until the drought takes its toll) there is a budget surplus after years of multibillion dollar shortfalls. And that he, as State Attorney General, wrote an amicus brief in McDonald in favor of extending the 2A to the states? True, his support is not as strong as we’d like, but he is the only thing that has prevented a holocaust of new bans and regulations in the last two sessions.

  29. I live in Oakland. You pretty much nailed it. I live in a really nice neighborhood in the hills, but when my girlfriend comes over, I go out to her car to meet her and walk her into the house, even during the day.

    I am selling my house this year and moving to Sonoma County. You can still buy a house there with a lot of land, and plenty of room to shoot.

    • I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that the far-right’s xenophobia provided a convenient hook for liberal/progressives and their media friends to hang all Republicans on.

      Also going out on a limb, I’d say that the majority of people — “middle America,” moderates, whatever — see relatively open, legal immigration as the ideal to strive for.

      Finally, to establish my own xenophobic credentials, kimchi is an abomination second only to vegemite. Anyone who might want to eat either of those “foods” while here in the US should be turned away at the borders. Or kicked out if they’re already here (present company *not* excepted).

      • Kimchi is basically spicy sauerkraut. And it’s awesome. Not fond of Vegemite, but kimchi is one of life’s great pleasures.

        • I’m only slightly exaggerating my loathing for the stuff.

          Several years ago I lived in an apartment above some Koreans who made their own kimchi. In the beginning I tried some, and though it wasn’t really to my taste (as my bbq cheeseburgers weren’t to theirs), it wasn’t horrible either. But the smell of the fermentation… It permeated everything in the building. Strong enough to make my eyes water sometimes. There was no getting away from it and no getting used to it.

          Sometimes I wanted to kill my kimchi-brewing neighbors. And then I felt like the most horrible person in the world, because they were truly some of the nicest people I’ve ever met. Sun Il fixed my computer and Hyun Mi volunteered to tend my young children, and her son traded Hot Wheels cars with mine. They even gave my infant daughter a cute Korean nickname (which I use to this day). They were kind, intelligent, and hardworking. I liked them a lot. And then another batch would ripen, and I would want to kill them again.

          In the end they moved back to Korea, having parlayed their postdoc appointments into jobs at a university in Seoul. I was sad to see them go, but inwardly I rejoiced in the thought that the kimchi would go with them. Except that it didn’t. Months later I still caught whiffs of it in my carpet, in my kitchen, on my clothing. To this day I can’t smell it without a physical reaction.

          So Carlos, I’ll be sorry to see you go, but if you insist on eating that stuff, go you must. In the great battle against the scourge of kimchi, sacrifices must be made. 🙂

  31. “I want California back. Let’s make it ours. Only one question…how?”

    There are only two ways to “get California back”:
    (1) Populate it with a super majority of people who embrace personal responsibility, fiscal responsibility, limited government, our Natural Rights (including the Second Amendment), etc. Oh, and they have to vote accordingly. Or,
    (2) Fall back on the “might makes right” approach and take it by force.

    Look, you never get something for nothing in life. What are you going to give up in California? Are you going to give up the yuppy dual-income no kids lifestyle and early retirement to have large families of Second Amendment friendly children? Or are you going to sacrifice any or all of your job, business, income, freedom, family members, and possibly even your life as a consequence of using force?

    • I think it’s going to have to be the first option, but in 20 years or so. At least not until the politicians figure out that they are killing the state economy. Once CA has become more business friendly, and it becomes reasonable to support a family there, move back and vote on guns.

      As always, I could be wrong.

    • Im with DJ down below, Ill take:
      (3) Chinese Invasion

      Its just more attractive an option than the other two.

  32. I’m glad my city, Fresno, issues CCW permits to all eligible applicants so we can carry in SF whether the leftards like it or not.

      • Go to the CGF link posted above, and just look at the raw numbers for any county you like. You will find a huge disparity in issuance from county to county. SF has 4 right now (almost a record historic high), and ALL of LA has 622 for a population of about 10,000,000. My home county, by contrast, with fewer than 200,000 occupants, has over 5,000. The central valley has, generally speaking, a pretty liberal policy towards issuance.

  33. SF is such a beautiful city until you go there. Wife and I used to do get aways to the city. No more, refuse to spend my money in such a efffed up city. Between the citys politics, bumbs, panhandlers and mentals I would rather go to Monterey or Tahoe. Only in SF do people go to the Bd of sups to complain about the smell of a bacon restaurant. They got it shut down for awhile and limited hours of operation there after.

    Once went to a training class at SFPDs academy. got there early to beat the traffic. There was a women sitting in the classroom, thought she was a bag lady off the street, turned out to be an SFPD officer. Very strange dept for a screwed up city.

    I think CA. is lost. just to many libtards on the coast and can out vote the inland areas. This year you will see a big push on new gun laws and laws to end hunting and fishing…..The head of the Humane Society USA walks the gov’s dog, and has members on the Fish ans Game comish. Its sad!

  34. California is going to be an extreme uphill battle for gun rights. After a year of convincing “conservative” co-workers (Gun Owners!) that concealed carry does not increase violence or turn the whole county into road-rage inspired shootouts, I got told that we should ban the new R.I.P. round. Even though its ineffective compared to conventional rounds, just because it looks so scary.

  35. Is “Hope for a Chinese Invasion” an appropriate response?

    Californians are doing it to themselves. The majority clearly support these policies and have no interest in a discussion. I feel sorry for the poor souls who are there for jobs or family.

  36. As someone who put in his time in California, here’s my #1 suggestion to SF, Oakland and Berkeley to attract tourists:

    Get the bums off the streets. Make people quit using random business doorways as a urinal.

    The stench of SF/Oakland/Berzerkeley in the summer is, at times, overpowering.

    And I say that as a guy who has been around animal feeding operations, with hundreds of head of cattle in a couple of acres of ground.

  37. Cali Dems figured out a long time ago that they could rule forever if they cobbled together a coalition of every lunatic fringe wacko in the state. So they did, and they do.

    Sorry, but Cali ain’t coming back to planet Earth any time soon, or not soon. It’s gone. And it’s managed to Californicate a lot of decent states. Get used to it, because it’s not going to stop.

    Disease spreads.

  38. I have two words that will easily describe why SAXET gun shows is now having difficulties with the people in Austin despite years of well run shows. Kimchi Tacos. Problems for Texas gun owners arrived right along with that type of nonsense.

  40. I think legal challenges, like what happened in Illinois are probably our best bet. That takes money and support from all POTG. It’s my belief that if we can break gun control in CA we will have won the battle. If not, well the disease does spread.

    And I see terms like “Low Info” voters all the time on this site. How low info do you have to be to believe that an entire state totalling 30+ million people and counting are all represented by the crazies in San Francisco? A lot of states don’t have total populations that match CA’s gun owners in numbers.

    If this state is lost, so is 2a.

    • jwm,

      When you find a way to get the 9th Circuit Court to act on cases promptly, I’ll consider donating to the appropriate groups in California. Meanwhile, I am donating my money to causes in states that are actively strengthening our rights and really have something to show for it.

      For example I recently read about one region of a Midwestern state where concealed carry licenses increased over 30% last year alone and there are huge increases in the number of women who are getting concealed carry licenses. Those people may have favored civilian disarmament laws in the past. I guarantee that they are Second Amendment supporters now. Even more importantly, the children of those adults will most likely grow up to be Second Amendment supporters.

      You must understand the importance of that news that I found. This sort of thing is growing and spreading everywhere in the U.S. except for California, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, and Hawaii. That is monumentally important.

      • The Ninth Circuit isn’t the impediment that you think it is. Because the Ninth is so insane, Supreme Court watchers have long maintained that SCOTUS should have two dockets: one for everything else, and one just to overturn the Ninth.

        The Second Circuit is much more dangerous. The judges hate 2A with a passion, and they’re much smarter than the dolts on the Ninth.

        • Remember the days of Rose Bird on the CA Supreme Court and the number of last-minute appeals up through the Ninth on California death penalty cases? It became so bad that SCOTUS had a policy of rejecting the last-minute appeals (made at 2350 hours or so, California time, which was nearly 0300 DC time) out of the Ninth as a matter of habit, never mind law.

        • I disagree completely. First, while it is certainly true that the Second has never seen a gun law it could not uphold as a reasonable “public safety” restriction on 2A rights, even it realizes that restrictions can only go so far, a conclusion it is loathe to announce. Currently pending in the district court is Palmer v. D.C., a case challenging the District’s complete ban on any kind of personal defense carry outside the home; no open carry (see Adam Kokesh) and no provision for concealed carry. That case ground to a halt after motions for summary judgment were filed, and the trial judge could not come up with any sort of rationale to uphold the law, so he just sat on the case. It got so obvious tht this is what he was doing, the Court of Appeals eventually assigned a senior (retired) judge to hear the case. THAT judge order reargument, and has sat on his decision for 18 months. Again plaintiff sought relief in the Second, but this time, realizing what the outcome had to be, the Second denied the writ and said that it hadn’t been too long, and gave the judge more time. He has not acted in the months since this denial, and I suspect he may never rule unless forced to by the Second Circuit, which of course has absolutely no incentive to force him to issue an opinion invalidating the City’s ordinance. And of course, any decision he makes, no matter what it is, will be immediately appealed, and the Second will sit on that decision as long as possible–probably for at least several years. Thus, with the most important case on the docket snafued by politics, the Second is relegated to a side show.

          The Ninth may be the “most reversed” circuit, but it is also the largest. Google it on a map–it covers most of the western states and Hawaii, and has the heaviest case load by a sizeable margin. Thus, even if its rate of reversal was the same as for the other circuits, it would still have the most reversals of any of them. Further, there is a lot of cutting edge stuff that happens out here on the left coast, new issues that warrant Supreme Court review. It is hard as hell to get review by the SCOTUS; its portfolio is limited mostly to questions of federal law and cases that are of national significance. Since SCOTUS is a policy making body, by nature, reversals are likely on leading edge issues.

          That said, the Ninth has any number of conservative jurists and friends of the Second Amendment. And its importance in this arena cannot be understated. There are currently a number of cases argued and pending before the ninth, four California “may issue” cases, one Hawaii “may issue” case, and an appeal of denial of a preliminary injunction in an open carry case. Thee of the carry cases were argued together n December 15, 2012; yet no decision has been issued. At the time of the trial court decisions, California still allowed “open unloaded” carry of both handguns and long guns in all parts of the state, and since there was at least “some” method by which an individual could carry, even in jurisdictions that were virtually no issue for CCWS (LA and San Diego), since that time California has banned all open carry in all incorporated cities and towns, which means an essential ban on carrying of firearms for millions of Californians. Now let’s add one more fact: the Ninth Circuit is the only circuit that has not issued a decision concerning laws that restrict carry outside the home. 2, 3, and 4 have all weighed in affirming such laws, and the 7th resulted in shall issue carry in Illinois. it is my belief that the Supreme Court has not granted cert in any carry case presented to it so far since McDonald (Woolard is one of he big cases), and will not grant cert in a carry case, until the Ninth Circuit weighs in. [And maybe this is why the Ninth has delayed its decision–either that or there is a huge, but silent political fight going on about the second amendment behind closed doors).

      • One region of a midwestern state had a 30% increase in ccw’s. What does that translate into in raw numbers? Arizona has a total population of 6 million. Gun owners and non gun owners. CA has 8-9 million gun owners.

        The grabbers have to be forced to accept that 2a is the law of the land. Everywhere, not just a midwestern region. Otherwise our freedoms will never be safe.

        • “The grabbers have to be forced to accept that 2a is the law of the land.”

          I agree completely.

          And the golden question is: how are you or I going to force the grabbers to accept the law of the land? There are cases pending in the 2nd and 9th Circuits that are just sitting there for well over a year for no reason whatsoever … and there is no indication that those courts will ever even act on those cases much less issue rulings that are consistent with our United States Constitution.

          There are only two ways to force gun grabbers to accept the law of the land … and the key word is force. If the courts fail — and it sure looks like they are failing us — there is only one option left. I hate to even think about it. Nevertheless, it is what it is.

          Our United States Constitution talks about calling up militias to suppress lawlessness and restore our land to law and order. I am confident that most people, when hearing that, picture calling up the militia to squelch a riot or a bunch of criminals taking over a town. Well I see no reason why that cannot also apply to a criminal justice system that is corrupt and no longer functions … which appears to be the case in the 2nd and 9th Circuits.

  41. You are complicit in providing support to that which you oppose. It’s like you’re saying, “I am voluntarily suspending my rights to drink and taste food and to experience mild weather and coastlines.” Barring geography and weather if you want “great wine, amazing food and culture out the ass” doesn’t it make sense to promote those luxuries where you live?

    “Great wine, amazing food and culture out the ass” which are fleeting, seems to be a poor trade for your protected rights, which also may be fleeting.

    You are not pissed when you visit. You are under no compulsion to plan your vacations, spend your free time or your money in a place that is contrary to the Constitution.

    You have made it clear your rights stop at tasty food, wine, geography and weather. You know this, but you persist.

    • This. Don’t tell me to fight for Cali while you spend tourist dollars that support the powers that be. Spend that money supporting Calguns or similar, and vacation someplace that doesn’t keep their people defenseless.

  42. Tyler,
    Come on up to Oregon.
    Better wine, same sea lions. (Salmon eating gluttons).
    Sea food is just as good.
    Deserts, forest, summer skiing…
    Better hunting.

  44. Hey, I’m a citizen of the Golden State, and honest to God, I think the battle’s already been lost. Even if we get the gun laws on track that’s not gonna fix the major problem of California: Liberals. We talk about the massive hurldles of gun owner ship in California, that’s not even close compared to the massive hurdles of just living here. They’re actively murdering the middle class, businesses, and companies with unfair tax rates, and liberal legislation. Just look at how desolate Hollywood, and the aerospace industry is. Until we get a major influx/change of voters in California it’s gonna stay the same. Especially with the number of “unregistered Democratic voters”, the illegals, in the state that’s constantly growing. The only advice I can give is to seal off the other border states, and hope for the best. Also sorry if I come across as a racist OFWG, I have no problems with Mexicans, and actually really enjoy their company. I’m just pissed that they always vote left.

  45. The way I see it, the people running the show have a 40~50 year head start. Those of us of the same “social” (an important term) generation, who today resist, fell asleep at the wheel sometime ago and they ran us over. Then we woke up and now it’s late. Don’t look anyplace else. It was our fault.

    We failed to invest the time to pass our values to the new generations. Those of us who tried to fight were fought at our children’s level by peer pressure from the children of parents on the other side of the argument, and mostly defeated. My record is 50/50 and I gave it my best shot, including retiring early with less money so I could spend more time at home passing on my experience and values to my children. To me 50/50 is a Fail.

    The 24/7 media propaganda machine finally reached everyone in the country about 15 years ago and they hammered the new Political Correctness to the young and naive, up and coming generation who easily identified with lack of morality, drug culture, etc. and embraced it as “their” resistance to authority, their new “social” generation.

    My money is on the present generation being the last generation with some semblance of the 2A left in place because the will not protect their rights – any rights. They already know that everything they do on their mainly digital world is being recorded and they don’t give a hoot in hell.

    Changing the course would take at least one, if not two more generations. And that fight would be intense. It starts with the young ones, and the other side has that part sewn up, all the way up to the Federal level, controlling the schools and the rules.

    Either that or some major event in the history of the country that changed the direction of the tide would have to take place, and that would get really ugly in a hurry.

  46. My daughter lives in San Francisco and my wife and I love to visit. It’s the most livable large American city and I’ve been to all the ones I consider in that category But the people! I’ve never seen such a bunch of pathetic weirdos and that’s after working in NYC for twenty-five years.

  47. California can be won politically with support for pro-gun rights liberals, or judicially if the Supremes continue their work from Heller & McDonald…..

    ….but keep in mind that this is coming from a CA liberal who is normally to the left of Obama. Civilian disarmament is the only issue in which I disagree with President Obama without also disagreeing with the mainstream GOP line (maybe NSA spying if you think Paul and Cruz are GOP mainstream).

    • Well I disagree with Obama on virtually everything, and voting for liberals promotes the active destruction of your gun rights. Plus there’s the added “benefit” of higher taxes, bigger government, Obamacare, scandals, intrusive searches, greater debt, and less freedom. We’ve seen Obama’s administration run in abject failure – to see people still in support of the same ideals just seems asinine.

      • Couldn’t disagree more, which is why I say that if this is a conservative vs liberal issue, you’ve lost me and my support. Rather than argue on the non-2A issues here, I’ll simply reiterate that if we don’t support pro2A liberals, there will be no 2A political victory in CA.

        • And I will reiterate that if you support and vote for Obama and his ilk, you do not support the 2A. So we have never had your support. But that is funny, pro-2A liberals in CA. Really? They must be everywhere.

        • It doesn’t have to be a conservative vs. liberal issue. Our political parties are set up that way (unfortunately), but we don’t have to toe their ideological lines.

          There are liberals who respect the Second Amendment — my wife is one. I used to be one (now I’m a moderately libertarian-minded constitutionalist).

          Even if it ultimately is a conservative vs. liberal battle, framing the Second Amendment as an individual right, a civil right, and part of the natural human right of self-defense can turn it into a powerful wedge issue. There are a lot of people like Wassim on the left who are profoundly uncomfortable with the government’s authoritarian overreach — we just don’t hear about them much. Get enough of them riled up about their 2A civil rights, and the Democrats might be forced to change from within.

  48. Sure glad I got out of Kalifornia a few years ago. I have a question!
    Is it illegal to cut out a picture of Dianne Feinstein from the newspaper, and use it for a bulls eye?

  49. Oakland is to SF as Newark is to NY. In other words, most visitors would never leave SF to visit Oakland.
    (I work in Emeryville, which is sandwiched between Berkeley and Oakland).

  50. http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Governm…-Patients-Away
    “I’m a complete fan of the Affordable Care Act, but now I can’t sleep at night,” Nelson said. “I can’t imagine this is how President Obama wanted it to happen.” — from the Cancer patient in the LA Times article.

  51. I came to CA via the military in 1980 and without reservation CA is a awesome state. No other state has terrain variation or diversity of cultures and people. SF is NOT a micro of the state.

    The group driving out business is the bureaucrats, non elected employees creating legislation, rules & regulations (HR, work rules, EPA laws). Combine that with state, county and local jurisdictions fees, business being tasked with building roads, its mind numbing. In the wings an army of lawyers shaking down businesses with fake sexual harassment, workman comp, handicap access, the list is endless.

    Government is a business that continues to grow, reaching into every wallet & account, In its quest for equality, destroys the wealth of corporations, and victimizes the handful of people who have the courage to build factories, production facilities, and equipment.

    People, its not about our guns or the right to carry. Collectively we must stop mindless regulations and start handing out pink slips to bureaucrats.

  53. I guess we could wait for all the idiots in CA to move, and then when they’re gone we could go buy property there in CA and remake it the way we’d want it to be. The only problem is that the ones who move to other states will just move back to CA once they’ve ruined the places to which them move.

  54. Regarding the issue of Kalifornians (or New Englanders) fleeing the insanity but bringing it along with them to TX (or other free state)….
    Sounds like the Welcome Wagon basket should include a membership form for your favorite pro-gun organization…

  55. I live on the central coast. But love visiting the Monterey bay area with my wife for our honeymoon and now anniversaries. But life on the central coast where the sheriff won’t approve a CCW unless you are a cop or you donate 6 figures to his campaign fund doesn’t seem quite fair. I don’t trust my wife being out with our one year old after dark when gangs and drug violence are growing worse and cops are shooting cops while on duty.

    We have a beautiful outdoor range in the area and a good third of my coworkers in a 200 person building are all shooters and builders of ARs. Don’t discount California as lost, we are just outnumbered by big money and a Shit ton of people living off our tax dollars and EBT cards…

  56. I know some Americana wine areas that is famous for winemaking Napa Valley, Sonoma, and Virginia. All the areas Very close to California. Here is many small vineyards. Veritas Winery and Vineyard my favorite winery for several reasons let i tell you something. They have our favorite type of wine in the entire world, ice wine. It is a fabulous place.

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