The PROponent Peoples Rights Organization 5 E. Long St., Suite 412; Columbus, OH 43215; (614) 268-0122 Volume 7 February, 1995 Number 2 [headline] Con-Con Once More! BIG, FAST CON-CON PUSH ... Those seeking a more "European" form of government never give up. Having been more or less blocked in there efforts to "control" the guns of the citizenry since last November, they are now turning their attention to other theaters of conflict. They have once again stepped up efforts to overthrow the entire Bill of Rights at once through the creation of a "new" constitution at a Constitutional Convention (a Con-Con). There is a major parallel effort in the Ohio House and Ohio Senate to speed through a Constitutional Convention resolution before anyone has time to wake up to what they are doing. House Joint Resolution (HJR) 3 and Senate Joint Resolution (SJR) 2 are being introduced to have Ohio add it's name to the list of states calling for a convention. Presently only two additional states are needed according to convention advocates. Several states have rescinded their resolutions but Con-Con lawyers are arguing that a state can never cancel it's request except by actually holding the convention. It's even worse than that. There is a rumor that one of the states which has not yet called for a convention is patiently waiting for "the honor" of putting the vote over the top. Thus, if the Ohio resolution passes it is virtually certain that our form of government will be up for grabs! YOU ALL KNOW THE DRILL! EVERY OHIOAN MUST WRITE THEIR OHIO REPRESENTATIVE AND STATE SENATOR AT ONCE! In the Ohio House, HJR-3 is in the State Government Committee chaired by Linn R. Wachtmann who is a co-sponsor. The bill has 24 co-sponsors. (Note that this is half the fifty-some it had last year.) Committee members are Krebs, Dateman, Damschroeder, Hood, Hottinger, Mottley, Tiberi, Wm. Healy, Mallory, Duty, Berberry, and Lubbers. There will a hearing on the resolution (only those in favor of the measure will be allowed to speak) on Wednesday, Jan 25, 1995 at 2:00 pm in room G1 in the basement of the temporary House building on S. Front Street. There will be hearings on Feb 1, and 8, as well. You may contact house members at the address: (Member's name) Ohio House of Representatives Statehouse Columbus, OH 43216 On the Senate side, SJR-2 is scheduled to have a hearing of their version in the Senate Finance Committee meeting in the South hearing room on the second floor of the Senate building Thursday, January 26 at 9:30 am. The Senate bill is sponsored by State Senator H. Cooper Snyder. Co-sponsors are R. L. Ray, R. R. Cupp, C. Horn, B. M. Gaeth, K. Gillmore, M. G. Kearns, and Franklin county's own Bruce Johnson. The committee is chaired by co-sponsor R. L. Ray, and members include Drake, Horn (co-sponsor), Cupp (co-sponsor), Finan (co-sponsor last year), Watts (co-sponsor last year), Furney, Long, Sheerer, and Suhadolnik. The Senate Address is: (Senator's name) Ohio Senate Statehouse Columbus, OH 43215 To obtain the individual telephone numbers or home addresses of Senators, call the Senate Clerk at (614) 466-4900. To obtain the same information for Housemembers, call the House Clerk at (614) 466-3357. We cannot overemphasize the importance of calling these committee members and your own Senator and Representative at once! Those seeking a "more European" form of government aren't waiting for a go-ahead to begin. They have already scheduled a "Philadelphia II" convention of all the states. All they need to turn that pow-wow into a con-con is two more resolutions; One from Ohio and one from some other state. Then kiss your Rights GOODBYE! IS BILL CLINTON YOUR KING ? [Part one] If you have trouble with your computer, every electronic jock knows that the way you fix it is to bow down and make a sacrifice to the god of computers, who as everybody knows lives somewhere in California. However, when it comes to "fixing" your Rights, most of us here in Ohio don't face East toward Washington, we know that the god of American Freedom lives somewhere out West (East of the Rocky Mountains), probably in Texas. We have proof. Now out of Texas comes a research report of astounding proportions by 13 authors. It is an examination of the powers of the president backed by more than 75 references in law and legislation. It is one of the most eye-opening documents you will ever read. The powers of the president begins with the Constitution of the United States of America. Most of us have been taught and assume that the Constitution defines and limits the powers of government and guarantees our Rights. It does. But the powers have the ability to go far beyond what you think they do. For example: "The privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion, the public Safety may require it." (Article 1, Section 9) Or "No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless upon a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger..." (5th Amendment) Or "The president shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States and of the militia of the several states, when called into the actual service of the United States;" (Article II, Section 2) The report explains what is going on here. "Habeas Corpus -- the Great Writ of Liberty. This is the writ which guarantees that the government cannot charge us and hold us with any crime, unless they follow the procedure of due process of law. This writ also says, in effect, that the privilege of due process of law cannot be suspended, and that the government cannot operate its arbitrary prerogative powers against We the People. But we see that the Great Writ of Liberty can, in fact, under the Constitution, be suspended when an invasion or rebellion necessitates." Grand Jury: "We reserved the charging powers for ourselves, didn't we? We didn't give that power to the government. And we also said that the government would be powerless to charge one of the citizens or one of the peoples of the United States with a crime unless We, the People, through our Grand Jury, orders it to do so through an indictment or presentment. And if We, the People, don't order it, the government cannot do it. If it tried to do it, we would simply follow the Writ of Habeas Corpus, and they would have to release us, wouldn't they? They could not hold us." But recall there is an exception! Commander in Chief: In the June 1993 World in Review, Dr. Coleman notes: "The president is only the commander in chief of all the armed service when there is a declaration of war and the House and Senate in joint resolution gives the president the title of commander in chief to proceed against the enemy with ALL of the armed services." Again it is national emergency that gives the president these powers. The report continues: "The concepts of constitutional dictatorship went clear back to the Roman Republic. And there, it was determined that, in times of dire emergencies, yes, the constitution and the rights of the people could be suspended, temporarily, until the crisis, whatever its nature, could be resolved. But once it was done, the Constitution was to be returned to its peacetime position of authority. In France, the situation under which the Constitution could be suspended is called the State of Siege. In Great Britain, it's called the Defense of the Realm Acts. In Germany, in which Hitler became dictator, it was simply called Article 48. In the United States, it's called the War Powers." In the introduction to Senate report 93-549 produced in 1973 comes a blockbuster revelation: "A majority of people of the United States have spent all their lives under emergency rule." "For 40 years, freedoms and governmental procedures guaranteed by the Constitution have, in varying degrees, been abridged by laws brought into force by states of national emergency." "And, in the United States, actions taken by the government in times of great crisis have -- from, at least, the Civil War -- in important ways shaped the present phenomenon of a permanent state of national emergency." Did you catch that? "The present phenomenon of a permanent state of national emergency"! According to the no less authority than the Senate of the United States, the war powers exceptions of the constitution have been invoked and REMAIN invoked canceling Rights and protection we have been taking for granted and furthermore this state of affairs has been in place for all of our lives! The Texas report traces the history of this turn of events, saying, "Let us remember that, when Abraham Lincoln was elected and inaugurated, he didn't even have a Congress for the first six weeks. He did not, however, call an extra session of Congress. He issued money, he declared war, he suspended habeas corpus, it was an absolute constitutional dictatorship. There was not even a Congress in session for six weeks. When Lincoln's Congress came into session six weeks later, they entered the following statement into the Congressional Record: 'The actions, rules, regulations, licenses, heretofore or hereafter taken, are hereby approved and confirmed...'" We will see this language appear again in the history of this country. "On March the 4th of 1933, at his inaugural, President Roosevelt was saying that he was going to ask Congress for the extraordinary authority available to him under the War Powers Act..." "On March the 5th, President Roosevelt asked for a special and extraordinary session of Congress in Proclamation 2038. He called for the special session of Congress to meet on March the 9th at noon. And at that Congress, he presented a bill, an Act, to provide for relief in the existing national emergency in banking and other purposes." "In the enabling portion of the Act (48 Stat. 1), it states: "Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the Congress hereby declares that a serious emergency exists and that it is imperatively necessary speedily to put into effect remedies of uniform national application." "What is the concept of the rule of necessity, referred to in the enabling portion of the Act as 'imperatively necessary speedily'? The rule of necessity is a rule of law which states that necessity knows no law. A good example of the rule of necessity would be the concept of self-defense. The law says, "Thou shalt not kill." But know also that, if you are in dire danger, in danger of losing your life, you have the absolute right of self-defense. You have the right to kill to protect your own life. That is the ultimate rule of necessity." "Thus we see that the rule of necessity overrides all other law, and, in fact, allows one to do that which would normally be against the law. So it is reasonable to assume that the wording of the enabling portion of the Act of March 9, 1933, is an indication that what follows is something which would probably be against the Constitution of the United States, or it would not require that the rule of necessity be invoked to enact it." "In the Act of March 9, 1933 (Exhibit 17), it further states in Title 1, Section 1: "The actions, regulations, rules, licenses, orders and proclamations heretofore or hereafter taken, promulgated, made, or issued by the President of the United States or the Secretary of the Treasury since March the 4th, 1933, pursuant to the authority conferred by Subsection (b) of Section 5 of the Act of October 6th, 1917, as amended, are hereby approved and confirmed." Where have we read those words before? You got it, War Powers for President Lincoln. So now under the guise of economic emergency resulting from the Stock market crash of '29, an economic disaster widely held to have resulted from insider manipulations for profit, we find a very interesting "side effect", namely dictatorial powers for the president. But it gets still better. The Senate told us we are still in the state of emergency. So if we go to the current United States Code and turn to 12 USC section 95 (b) we find: "The actions, regulations, rules, licenses, orders and proclamations heretofore or hereafter taken, promulgated, made, or issued by the President of the United States or the Secretary of the Treasury since March the 4th, 1933, pursuant to the authority conferred by Subsection (b) of Section 5 of the Act of October 6th, 1917, as amended [12 USCS Sec. 95a], are hereby approved and confirmed. (Mar, 9, 1933, c.1, Title I, Sec. 1, 48 Stat 1.)" That's right. Exactly the same and still in force! Notice the key phrase, "heretofore or hereafter." It's a blank check extending not only into the past but far into the future as well! But let's dig deeper and find out just what they are talking about with regard to the 1917 Act of October 6th, 1917 and its amendments that supposedly confers this authority. This Act bears the title: "An Act To define, regulate, and punish trading with the enemy, and other purposes." The Texas report continues, "By the year 1917, the United States was involved in World War I; at that point it was recognized that there were probably enemies of the United States, or allies of enemies of the United States, living within the continental borders of our nation in a time of war." "Therefore, Congress passed this Act, which identified who could be declared enemies of the United States, and, in this Act, we gave the government total authority over these enemies to do with as it saw fit. We also see, however, in Section 2, Subdivision (c) in the middle, and again at the bottom of the page: 'other than citizens of the United States.' The Act specifically excluded citizens of the United States, because we realized that in 1917 that the citizens of the United States were not enemies. Thus, we were excluded from the War Powers over enemies in this Act." Section 5 (b) of the same Act (Trading with the enemy Act), states: "That the President may investigate, regulate, or prohibit, under such rules and regulations as he may prescribe, by means of license or otherwise, any transactions in foreign exchange, export or earmarkings of gold or silver coin or bullion or currency, transfers of credit in any form (other than credits relating solely to transactions to be executed wholly within the United States)." Again, we see here that citizens, and transactions of citizens made wholly within the United States, were specifically excluded from the war powers of this Act. We, the People, were not enemies of our country; therefore, the government did not have total authority over us as they were given over our enemies. Let's take a little time here to examine the scope of powers in the "Trading with the Enemy Act." Our reason for doing this will become shockingly clear later on. The Supreme Court decision, Stoehr v. Wallace, 1921 reads in part: "The Trading with the Enemy Act, originally and as amended, is strictly a war measure, and finds its sanction in the provision empowering Congress `to declare war, grant letters of marque and reprisal, and make rules concerning capture on land and water' Const. Art I, Sect. 8, cl. 11." p.241." If we look at the memorandum of law that now covers trading with the enemy, the "Memorandum of American Cases and recent English Cases on the Law of Trading with the Enemy", we read: "Every species of intercourse with the enemy is illegal. This prohibition is not limited to mere commercial intercourse." Additionally, "No contract is considered as valid between enemies, at least so far as to give them a remedy in the courts of either government, and they have, in the language of the civil law, no ability to sustain a persona standi in judicio." This means that "the enemy" has no "standing" in court. In other words, they have no right to sue. Moreover, "The produce of the soil of the hostile territory, as well as other property engaged in the commerce of the hostile power, as the source of its wealth and strength, are always regarded as legitimate prize, without regard to the domicile of the owner." So all property of "the enemy" are deemed a "legitimate prize" be it commercial property, real property or even that which is grown upon "enemy" soil. So you yawn and pick your teeth and say "so what?" Why shouldn't enemy property as well as the property of those trading with "the enemy" be up for government grabs? Especially since transactions wholly within the United States by Citizens are excluded. But what this all means to you as a citizen of this country becomes painfully clear once we see how the Act of October 6, 1917 was later amended. In section 2 of the Act of March 9, 1933, we read: "Subdivision (b) of Section 5 of the Act of October 6, 1917 (40 Stat. L. 411), as amended, is hereby amended to read as follows;" [Emphasis added by the report authors] "During a time of war or during any other period of national emergency declared by the President, the President may, through any agency that he may designate, or otherwise, investigate, regulate, or prohibit, under such rules and regulations as he may prescribe, by means of license or otherwise, any transactions in foreign exchange, transfers of credit between or payments by banking institutions as defined by the President and export, hoarding, melting, or earmarkings of gold or silver coin or bullion or currency, by any person within the United States or any place subject to the jurisdiction thereof." Do you understand the importance of what you are looking at here? For the purpose of business, the citizens of the United States, have just become the enemy! Citizens doing business with other citizens even within the borders of the U.S. since 1933 are all guilty of trading with the enemy ... unless, of course, they have permission of the president. The Texas report puts it this way; "But on March the 9th of 1933, the American people were declared to be the public enemy under the amended version of the Trading With the Enemy Act. What jurisdiction were We, the People, then placed under? We were now [under] the booty jurisdiction given to the district courts by Congress. It was no longer necessary, or of any value at all, to bring the Constitution of the United States with us upon entering a courtroom, for that court was no longer a court of common law, but a tribunal under booty jurisdiction. Take a look at the American flag in most courtrooms. The gold fringe around our flag designates Admiralty jurisdiction." While there is some doubt as to the meaning of the gold fringe, there is NO doubt as to admiralty jurisdiction. The drug confiscation laws and the Rico statutes all derive from admiralty jurisdiction. But doesn't the Constitution say, "Private property, shall not be taken for public use without just compensation .... "? Sorry, that is a PEACETIME clause! Look again at what the president can do. He can "investigate, regulate and prohibit" with just his say-so. He can tell you how much money you are allowed to keep for yourself to prevent "hoarding." He can create myriad three letter agencies responding to his word. The sad fact is that if you do ANY BUSINESS WHAT-SO-EVER, the president is your KING. His Royal word is sovereign law! So long as the state of emergency remains in effect, your life, your property and your liberty are all simply a matter of his will. It's even worse than that! EVERY president since FDR has been king. Each and every one of them has extended the "state of emergency" to retain these powers. This whole business stands as a massive monument to the ignorance of the American public, the perversity of the criminal mind, and the unmatched gullibility of the human species. Are things coming together yet? Do you understand how Japanese-Americans were legally moved to concentration camps? Does the "war" on drugs, the "war" on poverty, the "war" on crime, and I suppose the next "war" on guns begin to make sense? It is "war" that makes the president king! It is a state of "war" that makes his WORD the law of the land! In the next part of this series, we will continue to look at the role money plays in the exercise of "war powers" and examine ways out of this mess. I will tell you in advance that the Courts and Congress can't help you. We will show that only the president himself can cancel the "state of emergency" and return the country to constitutional government. ____________________________________________________________ A SPECIAL REPORT ON THE NATIONAL EMERGENCY IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA You may obtain a copy of this report for $ 20.00 (Which includes copies of all references) A two-hour video of the same report is $ 25.00 Prices include Shipping and Handling. Send check or money order to: WAR AND EMERGENCY POWERS 4656 Alta Vista Dallas, Texas 75229 OR CALL 214-750-5932 Editors: You should note that sale of this report is not for financial gain. The authors have placed it in the public domain and you are free, in fact, encouraged to make copies and distribute them to your friends and relatives. ____________________________________________________________ CITY COUNCIL REVISITED... It was as thick as a freshly dropped pile of cow dung. The smell was noisome. The act was insidious. The out-come was ordained. Yet a few of us fought back. We railed against the inevitable. We fought the good fight. In other words, we lost again in our battle against Columbus city council. They said that there had been enough discussion on the matter. There had been none. The semi-automatic ban passed 6-0. MD Portman wasn't at the meeting. Even Jennette Bradley turned on us and voted for the ban. In the gloom of impending passage of a city ordinance that would ban all semi-automatic rifles with detachable magazines, our elitist council deemed it safe to allow three dissenting voices to be heard in opposition to the onerous ordinance. They were Mike Regan, President of PRO, JJ Johnson and Pat Lucas. Regan attacked the legalities of the ordinance and reminded council of the money lost in defending the previous ordinance. JJ brought up the issue of citizen's militia. Lucas reminded council of the sleeping giant that had been awakened in the recent election. Following are the words of Patrick Lucas, spoken in stentorian tones, castigating council on their ban on guns instead of attacking crime at it's roots: Dear City Council Members: As a private citizen, I have three observations: 1 ) The American people are awake! The recent national mid-term elections sent a clear message to those politicos left in office. The American people are weary of liberal "bandaid smoke-screens" in regard to crime, such as gun control. American people know the truth, that the root causes of crime are general moral decay, broken families and substance abuse...these aforementioned maladies of society are really beyond the purview of government officials to fix. 2) The American people are in a somber and cynical mood. Like myself, I'm testifying tonight knowing full well I'm against a stacked deck. You people have already made up your minds that you will pass this bill. But the American people are not fooled. Do you think the citizens of Columbus don't notice that you scheduled this hearing on a gun ban the first day of dear hunting season in this state? Do you think the people don't know that the media sat on this information about the revised gun ban for weeks or weren't notified at all? Do you think the public isn't paying more attention than it used to? Five years ago in this room, Attorney General Lee Fisher testified that military style semi-automatic weapons are the preferred weapons of drug dealers. Ask Lee Fisher what he's going to be doing January 2, 1995? People are keenly sensitive to the increased intrusion by bureaucrats into their private lives. The problem with the section of the City Ordinance 2535-94 dealing with weapons is that it is definitively Anti-American. It creates criminals by decree. Those people who come home to Columbus from deer hunting, who have a shotgun that can be modified to hold 6+ rounds in a magazine, are suddenly in trouble with the law. Americans have always hated the methods of the monarchs of Europe who made instant outlaws by signature. 3) There is a long range danger. The British in 1775 under-estimated the common Colonial. The English visualized the Massachusetts countryfolk as politically ignorant, malleable bumpkins, but at Noah Concord Bridge they knew they had awakened a terrible and implacable foe. This type of gun legislation, and all like it, is creating a growing rift of trust between the government and the people. We risk the polarization of the people and the police into ever more sphere's of individual suspicion. In my travels, I find a mood of total non-compliance by legal gun owners to anymore gun laws. I see a festering cool resolve on the part of the citizens who have drawn a line in the sand. That's why so few are here. They no longer have any intention of obeying any further gun legislation regardless of what you do. Pat Lucas Pro Member I'm sure that the above speech can only inspire pride in all PRO members. We all need to thank each of the speakers who spoke against the legislation at the Council meeting, as well as those few who managed to show up to demonstrate their support for our rights, in spite of the Council and media blackout of the event. Each and every PRO members now needs to join with Pro spokesman, Pat Lucas in drawing a line in the sand for these cynical and disgusting professional politicians who would clearly stand ready to sell out your rights, your property and even your lives simply so that they might gain a few dollars or have a chance to run for a slightly higher office. Then when they find themselves out on the streets, at least they can't say they weren't warned. ____________________________________________________________ "As a lady friend of mine said once: 'Honey, if you want empowerment from a magazine, put down the paper one, pick up the metal one and put it in the Pistol.'" Pyotr Filipivich (quote found on Internet) ____________________________________________________________ NEW NUMBERS... With the recent election of many new members of delegates to the Ohio and nation's capitol, many have asked for their phone numbers. Listed below are the few that we have so far. In the March or April issue, we will publish the complete list as we do every year after an election. Ohio Senators can be reached at: (614) 446-8842. Ohio Representatives can be reached at: (614) 466-9900. In Washington, you can reach Senator Mike DeWine at: (202) 224-2315. Senator John Glenn can be reached at (202) 224-3353. The Ohio representatives, with their numbers are: John A. Boehner 202-225-6205 Sherrod Brown 202-225-3401 Steve Chabot 202-225-2216 Frank A. Cremeans 202-225-5705 Paul E. Gillmor 202-225-6405 Tony P. Hall 202-225-6465 David L. Hobson 202-225-4324 Martin R. Hoke 202-225-5871 Marcy Kaptur 202-225-4146 John R. Kasich 202-225-5355 Steven LaTourette 202-225-5731 Bob Ney 202-225-6265 Michael E. Oxley 202-225-2676 Rob Portman 202-225-3164 Deborah Pryce 202-225-2015 Ralph Regula 202-225-3876 Tom Sawyer 202-225-5231 Louis Stokes 202-225-7032 James Trafficant 202-225-5261. The fight is not over yet. Use these telephone numbers as your ammunition for the coming year! DEAR PRO ... (Quote from January PROponent) "Soldier of Fortune magazine may indeed be an indicator of a potentially violent personality. The reason is not that it is a "gun magazine" but rather that it is a war story magazine." If you'd have told me a few years ago that i'd be defending Soldier of Fortune... well, you know the cliche. Anyway, I recommend that the writer of the above worthy-of-an-anti-gunner mis-truth pick up and read a copy of the much maligned magazine. yes, it does include war stories. This is not in itself a bad thing. If reading war stories was an indicator of a violent personality, then the fact that the book Rogue Warrior spent several weeks on the top of the NY Times best seller list should scare us all. The reason I, and many other non-violent gun owners read SOF is that it features better investigative reporting on issues relating to the RKBA than any other magazine I know. Their articles on the Waco atrocity were quite a bit more level-headed than many of the rumors circulating at the time. (This made the facts that they did bring out all the more damning.) Similar kudos go to their coverage of Ruby Ridge and the Vince Foster cover-up. Besides convincing me beyond a doubt that Mr. Foster did NOT die by his own hand, the latter also left me rolling on the floor in laughter. (if one doesn't laugh at political murders at the highest levels of our government, one would be compelled to take to the street with rifle in hand.) In short, please don't give in to the same kind of stereotyping that has been used against us. Just another beer swillin', SOF readin', gun totin' neanderthal, Jason (from Internet) [Editors: Here we go again. The editors seem to have firmly planted their foot in their mouth. What can we say? Apparently we have been reading anti-gun drivel for so long that now we are even starting to sound like them! First of all let's make it very clear that we did not wish to imply (nor did we say) that reading or enjoying war stories makes one prone to violence. What we meant to imply was that being a war story magazine, many readers tend to be military and ex-military personnel. This is relevant not only because military personnel have been trained in doing violence, but also because of the connection we mentioned to the rash of post office shootings. Indeed, PRO was informed by a source relatively high in the USPS management that the shootings were very likely due to the rules which forced them to hire vets regardless of other considerations such as mental stability. Of course PRO has no problem with giving Vets a leg up on getting a government job. We think the government should show gratitude for the service these men and women have provided to their country. But both we (and our source) have problems with rules that provide jobs as some kind of substitute for the government providing proper treatment. You should notice, however, that by following the concepts in the book under discussion, one must conclude an honorable discharge would be a reason NOT to hire a person! For those authors seem to reason that if some ex-military person goes nuts in the workplace and does violence, then being ex-military is obviously an "indicator." Clearly, this logic is patent nonsense. Let me say that neither editor is a big fan of the Soldier of Fortune war stories (we get plenty of those from certain PRO members ... you know who you are!), but we, like you, ARE big fans of their dynamite investigative reporting. We will even confess that many of the facts you read here in the PROponent often originate at least in part from them. It even is better than that. When Bill Buckel, who ran against Congresswoman Deb Pryce, wanted to know where he could learn more about Waco that wasn't some kind of propaganda, we steered him to Soldier of Fortune. He loved it. He incorporated the Waco incident into a major part of his position paper on gun control. If we came off sounding like Sarah Brady, we apologize. In fact, the thought of that rather makes us sick. CIRCLEVILLE SHOW SELLS OUT! Gun Show report by Mike Duve The January 14 - 15 Circleville Gun Show sold out of dealer tables, which is not all that unusual at Circleville. What is unusual is that the Circleville show has expanded from one building with only 120 tables to two buildings with more than 160 tables! We not only sold out, but we sold out two weeks before the show, and we could have sold at least 40 more tables to those dealers that waited until the last minute to try to make reservations. We are also sold out of table space for the next Circleville show. What does all of this mean? It means that the Circleville show has become very popular with dealers. When PRO-Central first started the Circleville show three years ago it was often difficult to sell even 90 tables. Now look at how we have grown. I believe we will see the same kind of growth in popularity for the new PRO Springfield Gun Show ( March 11 - 12 ). With almost unlimited space for growth, Springfield could well become one of the largest central Ohio Gun Shows. Gun Shows and How You Can Help. PRO will have a supply of posters for our upcoming gun shows for the remainder of the season. If you can help by posting one of these in your place of business or even on a telephone pole at a busy intersection, please take some of them with you. PRO would like to thank the dealers that have in the past put one of our gun show dyers in the window of their shop to inform customers where they were on the Saturday and Sundays of the Gun Shows that they set up at. Recent surveys of those attending the Gun Shows reveal that over 25% of those attending heard about the show from a" friend" or" word of mouth", and another 10% saw a flyer somewhere. So get those mouths working, tell your friends about the show, hand out some dyers, and put up a poster or two if you can. Policy change on Free admission to the Gun show for PRO Members. PRO members at future PRO gun shows ( including Hilliard, Circleville, Marion, and Springfield) will be required to present a new PRO membership card which has a row of numbers across the top of the card in boxes. Each time a member wishes to enter a PRO gun show, they will present the card and the card will have one of the numbers punched out. The member will then be given a hand stamp and the card will be returned. Each membership card will then give you a single admittance to each of our scheduled shows. If for example, you came to a show on both Saturday and Sunday, you will have had your card punched twice, once for each day you attended. You may use your punches any way you wish at any of our shows. You have 13, one for each show this year. We have been forced to do this, because it has come to our attention, that some of our members are passing on their cards to their friends for free admission to our shows. For example, a member attends the show on Saturday morning then returns home and gives his PRO membership card to his neighbor, who is also admitted free to the show on Saturday afternoon or Sunday. Even though they will still be able to do this, it will cost them a card punch each time someone gains admittance to our show. That means that when they run out of punches they run out of passes and will have to purchase an admission ticket, or better yet have their friends buy their own PRO membership. Don't worry if your card does not have the numbers at the top. You can exchange your current PRO membership card for a new one with numbers at any of our Gun Shows. PRO ON TV ... That's right. PRO will soon begin producing a regularly scheduled television program for cable access TV. Cable access TV is available here in Columbus on all three cable systems, Warner, All American, and Coaxial. Cable access TV is a free channel, available to groups like PRO, that want to espouse their views. Access TV is truly free speech in action. The cable companies provide this service or access to the public in exchange for the franchise rights, or a monopoly, on the area they serve. Access TV is available in most major cities, and PRO hopes to air their programs not only here in Columbus, but in Cleveland, Toledo, Akron, Youngstown, Cincinnati, Dayton and other major markets throughout Ohio. The PRO programs will be 30 to 60 minutes long, with no commercials, and will cover such topics as, gun safety, gun shows, and second amendment issues. We need your comments as to what else you would like to see on the PRO TV show. Our goal here is to show others what PRO is all about and to invite them to join us. We also need a title or name for our productions. If you have any experience with Television productions, or would like to learn, we could use your help. Do you know how to run a video camera or edit video tape? If you would like to help us produce the show Access TV will train you to use the equipment. Would you like to be a guest and express your views on gun control or tell of your experience with a particular firearm, ammunition, holsters, ranges, etc.? PRO plans to start producing the first programs in February, with the first broadcast probably not before April. Feel free to call Mike Duve with your comments, suggestions or to volunteer to help at (614) 523 7767. This is a 24 hour voice mail number so call any time. ____________________________________________________________ "You have rights antecedent to all earthly governments; rights that cannot be replaced or restrained by human laws; rights derived from the Great Legislator of the Universe." John Adams ____________________________________________________________ WE BLINKED... You elected a republican House and Senate in Washington D.C. You threw out the tax and spend liberals. The same liberals that steadily denied and limited our Second Amendment rights. You gave republicans the majority in both house for the first time in 40 years. They owe you. But we blinked first. In the political maneuvering of the first 100 days, gun owners have been pushed to the rear in the order of business. The republican leaders say that it would detract from the rest of their contract with America, and they want to have as smooth sailing as possible with it. The NRA fixed a "deal" with the new Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich. After President Clinton renewed his vow to veto any legislation repealing the ban on "assault weapons", the NRA and Gingrich postponed an early vote on repealing the ban. The NRA had lined up several House members in spite of fierce lobbying by Gingrich. The Speaker cut a deal, saying that he would schedule hearings toward the end of the "100 Day Contract" at which the NRA and other pro-Second Amendment groups could air their views on the "assault-weapon" ban. The hearings would also be a platform for our side to argue that gun ownership is a Constitutional Right and not a hunting right. Tanya Metaska, NRA/ILA, said that Gingrich also promised a free standing debate towards the end of the 100 days to repeal the ban. The repeal movement had gathered enough momentum to force the White House to send Janet Reno to Capitol Hill to lobby against it. She said "People have got to understand that these weapons are not in any way for recreational purposes." No kidding. The Second Amendment is not about the recreational use of firearms. If hunting, plinking, collecting and all types of target shooting were banned, you would still have your right to defend yourself against your government. Maybe it was a sensible ploy, to delay a vote on the gun ban, but we blinked first. We had the momentum on our side and we let the politicians sidetrack us again. You also would have found out who is on our side and who is against us. This would have given us more time to find and endorse pro-Second Amendment candidates in the 1996 elections. NEW BILLS... As of January 15, 1995, two bills have been introduced into the Capitol Hill legislative process. Their numbers are HR 464 and HR 125. HR 464 was introduced by Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (R-Md) and Rep. Steve Stockman (R-Tx), and is a bill to repeal the gun control provisions in last years Crime Bill. It is imperative that you call your representative and ask them to co-sponsor this bill. HR 125 was introduced by Rep. Jim Chapman (D-Tx), and would also repeal the gun control measures in the Crime Bill. Call your representatives and ask them NOT to co-sponsor this bill. Chapman voted for the "rule" to bring the assault weapon ban to the House floor for debate on May 5, 1994. On Nov. 10, 1993, Chapman voted for the Brady Bill. He is not our friend, nor can he be counted upon to stand up to the democratic big-wigs when push comes to shove when his bill is considered or when compromises are considered. Call your Representative in Washington and strongly urge them to co-sponsor HR 464 as soon as possible. [Editor: The above information was faxed to PRO by the Gun Owners of America. They can be reached at (703) 321-8585.] CHAPEL HILL... On January 26, 1995, a law student killed two people and wounded two more. One of the injured was shot subduing the criminal while he was changing clips. The shooter had an M-1, semi-automatic rifle. The type that has no detachable magazine that the Columbus City Council recently banned. As one can see from this tragic incident, it is not the firearm, but the person using it. In this case, a well educated law student. Columbus does not need laws against inanimate objects. It needs laws against felons and criminals that will deter others from following in their footsteps. A recent letter to the editor of the Dispatch said that jails weren't for revenge, but for rehabilitation. But, jails if used properly can do both. Victims or the families of victims often scream for revenge. They demand that the perpetrator "pay" for his/her crimes. While one can understand the feelings of the victims, we do not lock persons up simply to avenge their victims. We seek public protection in locking them up so that they can't hurt any one else. Furthermore, "paying" for crimes is rehabilitation. It is Skinner-style behavior training pure and simple. It sends the hard message that if you do the crime, something unpleasant happens. Rehabilitation beyond simply paying a debt to society should also be a condition of their incarceration. If an individual is sentenced to a prison term, they should stay the full term if they refuse to obtain a GED or other form of education. Upon completion of schooling they should then be allowed "early" parole for good behavior. And for no other reason. This is a debate that will continue on for as long as we have liberal bureaucrats in charge of prisons and in positions of authority. With the last election, we made sweeping changes in our government, now we need to change the people behind the public eye that "stick" us with all sorts of foolish notions and regulations. The bottom line in all this is that our prison system has drifted away from rehabilitation because it has drifted away for punishment. When the message is crime pays, there is no behavior modification and hence no rehabilitation. It just reinforces a continued life of crime. DEAR PRO ... I just received the January issue of the PROponent. As always it was informative and interesting. As much as I look forward to receiving and reading the PROponent, let's face it, it is a little like the proverbial preaching to the choir. If the exceptionally well researched articles were written with a little less attitude and leaned more toward donning a facade of neutrality, it would be much more useful for distributing to the less educated and uninformed. Subtle guiding is the most effective way to persuade. In support of PRO and freedom in general, I am including three membership dues payments for 1995. Respectfully, V. Barnes, Canton, Ohio [Editor: As anyone can see since 1968, the neutral, get along members of our movement have cost us an enormous amount of our Second Amendment rights. Waiting periods and outright bans of entire classes of firearms have been forced upon us by do-good politicians and well-meaning gun owners. The phrase "sporting purposes" came from a gun owner. If you believe in the your right to own firearms to protect yourself from your government and all else that comes after that (self-protection, hunting, collecting, shooting of all types) then there can be no neutrality. A facade of supporting one class of gun owners over another does nothing to support the original intent of our Founding Fathers, which was that all people be armed so that they can protect themselves from a government that has become oppressive. Much as the one that we just kicked out of office. In Ohio there are over 400,000 deer permits sold every year. Only 100,000 belong to the NRA, and a lot less belong to PRO. We have to have an attitude to regain our precious freedoms and to protect our Second Amendment rights. Let's say it right here: The purpose of the PROponent IS to "preach to the choir." It's purpose is not to convert the neutral or educate the gun-grabbers. That is the function of our speakers who go to meetings or appear on radio and TV. That is one purpose of our firearm classes. That is also what YOU are for! The purpose of the Proponent is to take people who are already gun owners and grab them by the shoulders and give them a good shake. Quite frankly, we think the "choir" needs to be singing a little louder! We've been around the gun clubs. We've talked to the sportsmen who think "sporting purpose" is a good idea. We've talked to those who think "gun control" is no problem, so, long as "they don't take MY gun!" We saw Amy Salerno run for office and then noticed that basically two PRO members helped her campaign - one covering much of the South end and the other covering much of Grove City. So our advice is to start with the facts in the PROponent and go out there knocking on doors and spreading the word and converting the neutral. That's your job. Our job is to get as many of you doing that as we can. Believe us, it's important!] AUSCHWITZ... Fifty years ago, in January of 1945, the world learned of the horrible atrocities committed in Auschwitz and other "relocation" camps by a government turned beast. 1.5 million people died in Auschwitz. 90 percent were Jews. The rest were Poles, Gypsies, czechs, French, Russians, gays and others that the Third Reich deemed socially and morally inferior. The total number dead from Nazi hate and racism are tabulated at 11.5 million people. 6 million were Jews. Since the mass extermination of whole towns and a race of people, the world has learned little. One can look at the front page of any newspaper on any given day and see that mankind is still trying to eradicate itself. Some of the reasons are so old that the real reason for the feud are lost in time. No country or race is morally, physically, intellectually or biologically better than any other race or country. America, with all it's problems, is a melting pot of all nations of the world. That is one of our great strengths. Yes we have problems with racism and hate mongering in our society, but we do not resort to ethnic cleansing to solve our problems. Yes our prisons are full, and the down trodden and poor have plenty to gripe about. Yet our poor are richer than the poor of all other countries. Our racism does not call for the extermination of those that are hated or are in the minority, or are in any way different from the norm. America, of all the advanced nations of the world, believes in liberty for it's citizens and most citizens try hard to live by the Constitution and our cherished Bill of Rights. The document that sets us apart from the butchers of the world. Pol Pot in Cambodia, as well as the leaders in Boznia, Russia, China, Uganda and Cuba are just a few. Our Constitution and Bill of Rights are under assault from the left-wing "liberals", the United Nations and many nations of our planet. They say we are racist. We exploit our poor, and we have too many guns. In America, our way of life is protected by the Constitution. The Constitution is protected by the Bill of Rights. And the Bill of Rights is protected from the government by the Second Amendment. Without the Second Amendment, the United States of America could very well be another Nazi Germany. Never give up or comprise on your Second Amendment rights. Let us celebrate what America is today by remembering what those millions died without in the concentration camps. A good, decent government that governs at the wish of the people and is just a little afraid of the populace that can throw them out by the ballot box or the cartridge box. NOW! ... The Columbus Dispatch carries a nationally syndicated section called NOW!, and is distributed by Knight-Ridder. This section deals with adult material presented in a manner that children can understand. On Wednesday, January 18, 1995, the NOW! section dealt with a balanced budget, a balanced budget law and the Bill of Rights. Above the list of Amendments was a sentence explaining them. It read: "The Bill of Rights, the first ten amendments to the Constitution, were established to protect the rights of individuals." This is a great step forward for newspapers in our country, especially the Dispatch and Knight-Ridder. BULLET BANS ... The EPA could ban lead bullets if they find that lead bullets are toxic to the environment. This could lead to a either a complete ban or partial restrictions on the manufacturing of such bullets. This is just another attempt by Clinton to have gun control. While having no constitutional authority to do so, the EPA will study the problem to determine if they should be banned or regulated. The EPA could even ban the bullets even if they never complete their study. They can issue "an order to prohibit or limit the manufacturing, processing, or distribution of lead bullets" while they continue their risk evaluation. Already a range has been shut down in Texas by the state "EPA" known as the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (TNRCC). The gun range called S. W. Tactical in a Houston suburb owned by Bob Arwady was closed by the TNRCC and he was charged with "shooting solid, toxic waste into the environment". Any further use of the range will mean a fine of $25,000 per occurrence. We presume that means 25 grand per bullet! You thought it was your property, but it seems that it turns out it's "the environment". Needless to say, this camel's nose under the tent poses a great danger to all trap and skeet shooters. It you wish to help Bob, his number is (713) 723-8583. In the national EPA fight, you need to contact your Senators and Representative at (202) 225-3121, or at one of the numbers listed elsewhere in this edition. Urge them to voice their opposition to this new gun control attempt. Use the docket number OPPTS-50618. A letter can also be sent to the EPA at: OPPT Document Control Officer(7407), Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics, Environmental Protection Agency, Rm. E-G99, 401 M St., SW, Washington, DC 20460. All correspondence must be in triplicate. Along with the bullets, the EPA will be considering a ban on lead soldiers, gutters, fishing sinkers, motor fuel and more. Stop this unscientific fear mongering before it begins. (The exception here being leaded motor fuel which really does (and did) put large amounts of dangerous lead into the air.) POET... Protect our earth's treasures (POET) has won a legal battle against The Ohio State University and animal research. They won a Supreme Court ruling that makes OSU reveal the names of it's animal researchers along with documents concerning their research. Many of the researchers have canceled their projects due to their fear of being harassed by members of poet. Ritcie Lymon, spokeswoman for poet, said that the researchers need not fear them. They just want to stop unnecessary animal research. She also said that she "is unaware of any terrorist acts in the United States attributed to animal-rights groups." Wrong, wrong, wrong. The US Department of Justice and the Department of Agriculture reported 63 attacks on animal-research facilities between 1977 and 1993. Most were acts of vandalism, with some resulting in considerable damage. The Animal Liberation Front(ALF) was indicted for the 1992 fire-bombing of a Michigan State University animal-research lab. There was $20,000 worth of damage. ALF has also been connected to several bombings at animal-research centers in England, where "humans" have been injured. ALF and poet are also some of the same people that want to ban hunting. An easy way for them to do that is to ban guns. TELEVISION EMULATION ... Does tv really foster violence? The following is from the January issue of Entertainment Weekly, January 27, 1995. Natural Born Killers: Nathan Martinez allegedly shot and killed his stepmother and half sister after seeing NBK at least SIX times. A Clockwork Orange: British youths raped a young woman while singing "Singing in the Rain," leading to the film being banned in England. Magnum Force: William Andrewsand Pierre Dale Selby, claiming inspiration from the film, forced five people to drink Drano during a holdup before shooting them, killing three. Taxi Driver: John Hinckley shot President Regan to impress Taxi co-star Jodie Foster. First Blood: Richard Miller allegedly shot and killed his former boss, reportedly after seeing the movie 20 times. A psychologist at the trial testified that "Rambo gives us approval to kill people." Not guilty by reason of insanity. Robocop2: Nathaniel White, who slashed the first of his six murder victims. said that he did :exactly what he saw in the movie." Interview With the Vampire: Donald Sterling allegedly stabbed his girlfriend seven times and then sucked her blood after the couple had seen the film. He doesn't blame the movie but admitted to being "influenced by it." Yet he still maintains his innocence. A twisted and sick society where movie madness can leap from the cell into the minds of "normal" people and make them commit acts of savagery. Personally, having seen four of the six films, I have never felt like running amuck. I have been glad that most of the bad guys got "blown" away. We must differentiate between what is real and what is movie madness. If it is on the screen it is not real. Even the "real-life" stories that they depict. The magic of tv and movies always changes the story to make it sell better. FRIENDS OF THE NRA... Ticket sales for the March 28, 1995 Central Ohio Friends of the NRA Banquet are 100% ahead of last year. Tickets are $25.00 per person and can be obtained at most gun shops in the Columbus area, and at any PRO or PRO-Central gun show. The dinner will be at the Villa Milano on Schrock Rd. Drinks and Happy Hour begin at 6:00 pm with dinner served at 7:15 pm. The auction begins at 8:30 pm and lasts until everything is bought. There are a wide variety of firearms, gun accessories, bows, jewelry, and hunting equipment along with many fine one-of-a-kind collectors prints. If you wish to contribute an item for the dinner, or to reserve a table of 8, 10 or 12, please contact the PRO hotline so that we may get your name printed in the program. Everyone last year had a great time and a better one will be had this year. See you there. ____________________________________________________________ DUES REMINDER ... Please don't forget to pay your dues for 1995. They are due now, but your subscription is being carried until March. After the March issue, no more PROponent and no more entrance to the PRO Gun Shows. Please rejoin. ____________________________________________________________ CLINTON... President Clinton has blamed the NRA and gun owners for the republican wins in the last election. In his recent trip to Cleveland, Clinton told the Plain Dealer that "the fight for the assault weapons ban cost 20 members their seats in Congress." This was the first time that Clinton had made this statement for the record, and occurred on January 13, 1995. Tanya Metaksa, when contacted about Clinton's remarks stated "For once the President and I agree." HOUSE JUDICIARY... Two members of the Ohio delegation to the House of Representatives in Washington are on the House Judiciary Committee. They are: Steve Chabot (R-1st District) and Martin R. Hoke (R-10th District). Chabot can be reached at 202-225-2216, and Hoke can be reached at 202-225-5871. Hoke has a fax number which is 202-226-0994. It is a lucky break that Ohioans have some leverage on this committee where most gun control legislation begins. CERTIFICATE OF APPRECIATION... The National Rifle Association of America has given a Certificate of Appreciation to Dennis Walker (PRO Secretary and PROponent co-editor) in recognition for outstanding service to and in support of the Association. A letter accompanying the Certificate stated: You and your fellow volunteers accomplished what many in the media thought was impossible--for gun owners to unite and flex their muscles at the ballot box to elect lawmakers who support our rights, while simultaneously sending those proponents of curbing our civil liberties on a permanent recess. Although we didn't win every race, we came pretty close, as NRA-endorsed candidate seeking federal office were successful in 80% of their respective races. Of the 276 candidates NRA supported for the House and Senate, 221 were victorious, and this was due in large part to you and your fellow NRA members who contacted you to help elect pro-gun lawmakers to office." The certificate is greatly appreciated as it is the result of many hours on the phone talking to NRA members about whom to vote for in the last election. Another person deserving of this award is Jerry Smolack. Mr. Smolack answered as many phone calls as did Walker, while conducting his transmission business on Westerville Road. Thank you Jerry and family for the hours you spent last fall answering the phone for the NRA. If you would like to win this award, simply volunteer to have YOUR PHONE NUMBER placed on the cover of the American Rifleman as a candidate information source before the next election! ELECTIONS... Elections of PRO officers for the 1995-96 year are to be held February 21, 1995 at Veteran's Memorial, rooms 206-207 at 8:00 pm. Mike Regan is the sole nominee for President. William Johnson and Dennis Walker are running for Vice-President. Dan McBride and Ron Herman are running for Treasurer. Todd Koehler is running for Secretary. Nominations were not closed at the last meeting, so if you feel capable of holding an office, come to the meeting on February 21 and get nominated. At least come and VOTE. CAMPAIGN STATEMENT: Mike Regan ... I appreciate the nomination to serve another term as chairman of PRO. Last year was one of incredible political activity and to those who believe in civil liberty it had victories and defeats. All the defeats I believe will be annulled by the change of the U.S. Congress and the Ohio legislature. I read in a news article that the mid term election was a conservative revolutionary wave that crested in Ohio. This is no guarantee of the people of getting the system corrected but it tells the press and those in power that the people want this country on a straight path to simplifying and shrinking our government. PRO members and leaders also must look at our organization at setting sharp goals for 1995. Our system must be kept simple and stay on a course of performing the duty of getting those who believe in the constitution as our founding fathers had to teach others to do likewise. We have the opportunity to aid in the lobbying of several pro-sportsman and second amendment issues in the Ohio statehouse and I would like us to be very active at this. On the slate are concealed carry permits and Sunday hunting. If you want it you must squeak your wheels and get it. [Editors: Mr Regan's letter is the only one we could find at press time. We seem to remember receiving another one, but we couldn't find it. We apologize if we lost it.] NEED VOLUNTEERS ... PRO needs volunteers to help out at the upcoming Ohio Deer and Turkey Expo. The Expo will be held March 17, 18, and 19 and we still need volunteers to cover the time-slot 3-9pm on the 17th and the time-slot 11am-5pm on the 19th. If you are willing to help out, call the PRO hotline: (614) 268-0162. COMMITTEE OF 1776, Inc... The Committee of 1776 has announced the date of its second rally in support of the Second Amendment in Washington, DC. It will be held on June 4, 1995. Confirmed speakers at this time are Joe Tartaro, Sheriff Richard Mack, Roy Innis and G.G. Liddy. They are also trying to get Pat Buchanan and Steve Stockman. Stockman defeated Rep. Brooks in Texas. There is a planning meeting in St. Louis on Feb. 4, 1995, at the Airport Marriot from 9 am to 7 pm. For further information, please contact Ron Long at (508) 939-4867 or Dan Shea at (207) 683-2169. CLEVELAND ONCE MORE ... Cleveland City officials continue to lead the rush to armbands and jackboots. They are proposing a new ordinance, Number 52-94, with "Brady II" features. The ban is an assault on Cleveland's poor inner city residents who now not only must live with the inability of police to control criminals, but also will have to fork over not $9 but $15 for a handgun owner's card which the ordinance re-defines as a license. In other words, the Rights of Cleveland residents are now to become privileges granted by city government. Furthermore, the ordinance bans "Saturday Night Specials" so named in obvious reference to the racial slur "Niggertown Saturday Night" a mythical time when blacks supposedly party wildly and kill each other with great frequency. In addition, 20 guns or 1000 rounds of ammo requires an "arsenal" license and all private transfers (even within a family) must be reported to police within 5 days. What a waste of police time and a slam on Cleveland's law-abiding inner-city minorities. The hearing is Feb 1, 1995. ____________________________________________________________ The PROponent is published by: Peoples Rights Organization; 5 E. Long St., Suite 412; Columbus, OH 43215; Tel (614) 268-0122 Fax (614) 275-0092 EMAIL: 73427.1615@compuserve.com Michael T. Regan, Chairman; Ron Herman, Vice Chairman Dennis Walker, Secretary; Sherry Herman, Treasurer Editors: Dennis Walker and Frank Jacoby Contributions, either written or financial are gladly accepted. Anyone wishing to reprint all or part of an article from the PROponent may do so. Please mention the PROponent and the issue that the article was in, and send a copy of your publication to our PRO office. (We like to know what your organization is doing too.) Also, PRO will exchange newsletters with any pro-gun, pro-rights, pro-hunting, etc. group to further grass-roots communication. Put us on your newsletter mailing list and we will put your club on ours. Unlimited electronic distribution of all or part of this text file is permitted so long PRO is credited. PRO general meetings are held the third Tuesday of every month 8:00pm at Veterans Memorial Auditorium, W. Broad St. Columbus, Ohio. "That government of the people, by the people, and for the people, shall not perish from the earth" _________________________________________________________________