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 THE LIBERTARIAN ENTERPRISE Number 625, June 26, 2011 "What can possibly be worse than a politician?"
Attribute to L. Neil Smith's The Libertarian Enterprise According to Wikipedia the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms (now the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives) was created in 1972 from the ATF division of The IRS. Also according to Wikipedia the first example of ATF abuse was in 1971 (the ATF agents involved were convicted in 1973). ATF was crooked before it even existed. This was followed by a history of persecuting collectors, swallowing camels and straining at gnats in going after convictions on technicalities, entrapment, falsification of evidence, intimidation, mass murder and starting a private war with Mexico with the intent of trashing the Second amendment. If I remember assertions made in 1979-80, originally part of the problem was that ATF agents were "Revenooers" collecting taxes on alcohol, tobacco. They took this mentality into how they enforced gun laws (I bow to others who have worked as gun dealers to specify the taxes peculiar to guns, ammo, parts, and components), applying the rules used to enforce excise taxes where it's not so much about getting convictions as getting people to cough up the tax money they didn't pay as well as fines and penalties. Unfortunately Gun laws are about seeking convictions and pulling people's licenses to sell weapons. Combine this with a series of antigun presidents interrupted only by Reagan and we end up with the cosmic abortion (thank you Friedrich) we have now. The ATF needs to be dissolved. It was started using the wrong people. At the very least (and this only because I realize Congress won't do what most of us really want) AT should be separated from FE, sent back to Treasury and enforce taxes on 'baccy and 'shine and nothing else. Firearms and Explosives should be made part of the Marshal's service and stripped of power to make regulations. None of ATF's current employees should be transferred to the Marshals. While we are at it Melson, Hoover, Eric Holder and his assistants should get their walking papers with negative recommendations so that their arrest warrants for Operation Gunwalker be served at home instead of in Federal Offices. These things are listed here because under the circumstances of Gunwalker these are baby steps we should expect the current Congress and President to take. Next year we can run candidates for President and Congress who are pledged to get rid of the antiConstitutional laws the firearms division has succeeded in enforcing so badly and unjustly.
TLE AFFILIATE
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