[Ed: There’s no better way to mark July 4th than to read our country’s Declaration of Independence. The original orthography is retained, but the specific complaints about King George and Parliament’s abuses are edited out in order to focus on the principles that applied then, do now, and always will. Reposted since 2019.] Happy Independence Day from DRGO! . . In CONGRESS, July 4, 1776. The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America.  When in the ...

[Ed: First appearing on DRGO 4 years ago, we repost this piece yearly.] Memorial Day has now come for the 55th time since it was officially proclaimed in 1967. It has been kept nationwide, though unofficially, since World War II, and as Decoration Day since 1868.  It was born in spontaneous memorials early during the Civil War.  Remembering war dead has been important throughout history, even as the manner of recognition has changed across time and societies. As with many things cultu...

(from alphanews.org) [Ed: This article originally appeared in a mailing from SCOPE-NY. Grassroots opinion pieces and letters to the editor are powerful ammunition in promoting the importance of the Second Amendment and private gun ownership.] Based on the number of articles appearing everywhere, gun grabbing season must be open.  It only opens once a year but the season lasts 365 days. Unlike deer season, we can shoot back (figuratively.) Newspapers such as my local Gannett Chain...

(from thetylt.com) [Ed: As the lede says, Reynolds sent this to SCOPE-NY members last year. These are thoughts worth keeping on top of one's mind.] A year ago, SCOPE sent this as an email.  It is as current now as it was then…or when Thomas Jefferson wrote them. Miscellaneous Thoughts on President’s Day by Thomas Jefferson, Founder of the Democrat Party: No free man shall ever be disbarred the use of arms. The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to ...

(from wbur.org) “States with relaxed concealed carry laws see spike in violent crimes.” October 5, 2022 “CDC data shows constitutional carry states have fewer total and gun-related homicides.” October 4, 2022 Huh? Sure, they are talking about somewhat different things (“violent crimes” versus “homicides”) yet these typically track each other. And constitutional carry (no permit required) is the ultimate “relaxed concealed carry law”. According to another study published November 1...

(from arkansasgopwing.blogspot.com) [Ed: We have published this piece annually since 2015 for Bill of Rights Day each December 15. The  Bill’s Second Amendment is the reason for our being, in more ways than one.] Today we all should be jubilantly celebrating the 230th anniversary of the ratification of the Bill of Rights, the original 10 amendments to the United States’ federal constitution. Remarkably, it slips by relatively unremarked. Yet our Bill of Rights may actually be th...

(from rightedition.com) In a recent opinion piece, the president of the American Medical Association, Jack Resneck, M.D. asserts that 2 recent shootings support an urgent need to end “firearm violence”. Dr. Resneck seems little aware of doctors’ falling into the  trap of being unduly influenced by their most recent patient. He goes on to state that “gun violence” is a “true public health crisis.” Let’s look at some numbers. The U.S. homicide rate, a statistic that captures all those ...

(from sideshow.com) DRGO member Mark Hamill, MD recently let us know about his team’s newly published paper on how firearm sales across the states correlate with crime and murder. (Short version—they don’t.) Specifically, “Legal Firearm Sales at State Level and Rates of Violent Crime, Property Crime, and Homicides” will be published in the January 2023 edition of the Journal of Surgical Research. It should be available online through November. Dr. Hamill is an associate professor of surge...