Tag: news

Smith & Wesson Pushed Out of California Handgun Market By Red Tape

PistolCalifornia’s efforts to
regulate firearms out of easy availability (an official
summary of state gun regulations runs to 50 pages) continue to
bear fruit, as Smith & Wesson announces that it’s not willing
to comply with the latest round of inane rules, effectively
removing most of its pistols from the state’s market. The specific
bit of red tape pushing the company out is a requirement that new
pistols (including modifications of existing firearms) incorporate
controversial “microstamping”
technology intended to leave unique markings on fired cases.

In a press release, the company
says:

Under California’s “Unsafe Handgun Act,” any new semi-automatic
pistol introduced into that state must comply with microstamping
laws. In addition, California asserts that anything other than a
cosmetic change to a handgun already on the California Roster of
Handguns Certified for Sale, including performance enhancements and
other improvements, requires it to be removed from the roster and
retested. For semi- automatic pistols, this means it must comply
with the microstamping requirements, as well.

Smith & Wesson does not and will not include microstamp ing
in its firearms. A number of studies have indicated that m
icrostamping is unreliable, serves no safety purpose, is cost
prohibitive and, most importantly, is not proven to aid in
preventing or solving crimes. The microstamping mandate and the
company’s unwillingness to adopt this so-called technology will
result in a diminishing number of Smith & Wesson semi-automatic
pistols available for purchase by California residents.

This is not a problem unique to Smith & Wesson. The
microstamping legislation and California’s position regarding
performance enhancements and other improvements creates the same
challenge for all firearm manufacturers, since presumably all of
them refine and improve their products over time.

In order to retain a presence in the California market for
semi-automatic pistols, the company deliberately plans to make no
improvements to the M&P Shield and the SDVE pistols so that
they’ll remain on-sale without a need to comply with the
microstamping law. Except for the Shield, all of the M&P line
of pistols are expected to fall off the roster of guns legal for
sale in California by August 2014 (revolvers are exempt).

Microstamping is held out as one of the holy grails of modern
gun controllers seeking a technological crutch for their position,
but the National Shooting Sports Foundation calls it “a
costly and time-consuming process” that’s not especially reliable.
It’s also easily defeated by the clever expedient of swapping out
firing pins or other easily replaced parts. Or just filing down the
stamp.

Ruger Firearms already
announced that it won’t comply with the microstamping rule. The
National Shooting Sports Foundation and the Sporting Arms and
Ammunition Manufacturers’ Institute have filed suit against
California over the issue

Smith & Wesson representatives didn’t respond to queries as
to whether they would follow in the footsteps of gunmakers like
Barrett and also
refuse sales to law enforcement agencies in jurisdictions that
effectively try to disarm private citizens. Such a move might
actually get officials’ attention.

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Celebrate National School Choice Week with Reason in DC Tonight from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m.!

**RSVP: http://ift.tt/1aneNNM

For the last few years, National School Choice Week has
brought together thousands of school choice advocates, educators,
parents, and children in celebration of the ways school choice is
helping kids excel.

On Thursday, January 23 starting at 6:00 p.m., Reason will be
celebrating school choice at our Washington, DC headquarters.
Please join us for a reception and panel discussion featuring
Reason’s Director of Education Lisa Snell,
Education Policy Analyst Katie Furtick,
and Reason magazine Managing Editor Katherine
Mangu-Ward.

  • What: National School Choice Week Reception and Panel
    Discussion
  • When: Thursday, January 23 at 6:00 p.m. ET
  • Where: Reason’s DC HQ at 1747 Connecticut Ave. NW

**RSVP: http://ift.tt/1aneNNM

Space is limited and RSVPs are required. Please direct any
questions to Cynthia Bell at cynthia.bell@reason.org.

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Omaha Cop Reinstated After Being Fired For Not Reporting Use of Force on Subdued Man Caught on Camera, Other Cops Ran Into Brother’s Home to Confiscate Video

hammer timeThe
Omaha Police Department
said it fired six officers after an incident of police
brutality caught on tape went viral. Those cops may be starting to
make their way back onto the force.


From KMTV Action 3 News in Omaha:

Omaha police officer Bradley D. Canterbury has been
reinstated after being fired for a rough arrest at 33rd and Seward
last Spring.

Action 3 News first broadcast exclusive cell phone video of a rough
arrest. It shows a police officer pulling Octavius Johnson to the
ground and punching him several times. It also shows several
officers running into the Johnson home without a search warrant to
confiscate video another Johnson brother was recording.
Investigators believe officers destroyed that video. What police
didn’t know, a neighbor was recording the whole thing.

According to the
TV report, an arbitrator decided in a 38-page ruling that
Canterbury’s use of force was justified, calling the strikes
“hammer hits” and noting he didn’t kick or elbow Johnson. The
arbitrator also decided the city didn’t have enough evidence to
show Canterbury purposely failed to mention the second series of
strikes, against an already subdued Johnson, in his report, even as
two of the officers are facing charges related to the cover-up of
the incident.

Video below, with the second, unreported strikes, coming in at
about 2:55, after all the other cops have already run into
Johnson’s brother’s house to take whatever he filmed of the
incident:

h/t Raven Nation

Follow these stories and more at Reason 24/7 and don’t forget you
can e-mail stories to us at 24_7@reason.com and tweet us
at @reason247.

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Poe-Rozakos engagement

Judy Dixon of Asheville, N.C. and James B. Poe, Sr. of Franklin, N.C. are pleased to announce the engagement of their daughter Betsy Poe to Hunter Rozakos, son of Teresa and Mark Rozakos of Fayetteville, Ga.

The bride-to-be is the granddaughter of the late William and Mozelle Dutton of Lavonia, Ga., the late Betty Barrett of Loganville, Ga., and the late William R. Poe, Jr. of Macon, Ga.

The groom-to-be is the grandson of Shirley and Thomas Cloe Moore, Jr. of Simpsonville, S.C. and Val and Anthony Rozakos of Fountain Inn, SC.

read more

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“Just Say Nyet” – Fedex, DHL Suspend Shipments To Russian Customers

In the aftermath of earlier comments from White House spokesman Carney that the US is considering sanctions for Ukraine violence, a move aimed squarely at Putin, at least several US private sector companies have decided to take matters into their own hands. To wit:

  • DHL, FEDEX SUSPEND SHIPMENTS TO RUSSIAN CUSTOMERS: REUTERS

Reuters has more:

Express delivery companies DHL and FedEx said on Thursday they had suspended foreign shipments to individual customers in Russia because of stricter customs procedures, making it harder for internet users to buy goods from abroad. DHL will suspend all shipments of goods for personal use to Russia from January 27, the company said in emailed comments, after already suspending most such imports already in 2010.

 

President Vladimir Putin ordered a campaign late last year to “put into order” a booming e-commerce sector. One of the proposed measures was lowering a value threshold for purchases in foreign online stores that are subject to customs duty.

 

According to DHL Express, part of Deutsche Post (DPWGn.DE), Russian authorities from January 2014 expanded the list of documents required to ship goods to individual customers, which has significantly slowed customs clearance.

 

A Moscow call-centre operator for FedEx said shipments to individual customers in Russia were “temporarily suspended”. The FedEx press office was not immediately available for comment.

 

According to a draft letter to clients from Russia’s Association of Express Carriers, seen by Reuters, other providers such as UPS (UPS.N), TNT (TNTE.AS), and DPD also decided to suspend imports.

And now, it’s time for Gapzorm to suspend shipments of natgas to European customers, just as the Qatar-mandated explosions in Sochi are set to begin. And then it gets really fun.


    



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"Just Say Nyet" – Fedex, DHL Suspend Shipments To Russian Customers

In the aftermath of earlier comments from White House spokesman Carney that the US is considering sanctions for Ukraine violence, a move aimed squarely at Putin, at least several US private sector companies have decided to take matters into their own hands. To wit:

  • DHL, FEDEX SUSPEND SHIPMENTS TO RUSSIAN CUSTOMERS: REUTERS

Reuters has more:

Express delivery companies DHL and FedEx said on Thursday they had suspended foreign shipments to individual customers in Russia because of stricter customs procedures, making it harder for internet users to buy goods from abroad. DHL will suspend all shipments of goods for personal use to Russia from January 27, the company said in emailed comments, after already suspending most such imports already in 2010.

 

President Vladimir Putin ordered a campaign late last year to “put into order” a booming e-commerce sector. One of the proposed measures was lowering a value threshold for purchases in foreign online stores that are subject to customs duty.

 

According to DHL Express, part of Deutsche Post (DPWGn.DE), Russian authorities from January 2014 expanded the list of documents required to ship goods to individual customers, which has significantly slowed customs clearance.

 

A Moscow call-centre operator for FedEx said shipments to individual customers in Russia were “temporarily suspended”. The FedEx press office was not immediately available for comment.

 

According to a draft letter to clients from Russia’s Association of Express Carriers, seen by Reuters, other providers such as UPS (UPS.N), TNT (TNTE.AS), and DPD also decided to suspend imports.

And now, it’s time for Gapzorm to suspend shipments of natgas to European customers, just as the Qatar-mandated explosions in Sochi are set to begin. And then it gets really fun.


    



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Your Front Row Seat To Argentina’s (Latest) Currency Collapse

UPDATE: The Argentine Trade Balance missed surplus expectations by the most in 3 years (and 2nd most on record).

 

As those who follow Zero Hedge on twitter know, we have recently shown a keen interest in the collapse of the Argentine currency reserves – most recently at $29.4 billion – which have been declining at a steady pace of $100 million per day over the past week, as the central bank desperately struggles to keep its currency stable. Actually, make that struggled. Here is what we said just yesterday:

As of today it is not just the collapse in the Latin American country’s reserves, but its entire currency, when this morning we woke to learn that the Argentina Peso (with the accurate identifier ARS), had its biggest one day collapse since the 2002 financial crisis, after the central bank stopped intervening in currency markets. The reason: precisely to offset the countdown we had started several days back, namely “an effort to preserve foreign exchange reserves that have fallen by almost a third over the last year” as FT reported.

As the chart below shows, the official exchange rate cratered by over 17% when the USDARS soared from 6.8 to somewhere north of 8.

But as most readers know, just like in Venezuela, where the official exchange rate is anywhere between 6.40 and 11, and the unofficial is 78.85, so in Argentina the real transactions occur on the black market, where they track the so-called Dolar Blue, which as of this writing just hit an all time high of 12.90 and rising fast.

What happens next? Nothing good. “The risk of capital flight is rising by the minute. This will be very hard to control,” wrote Dirk Willer, strategist at Citigroup, adding that liquidity had “largely disappeared” with a risk of Venezuela-style capital controls. Ah Venezuela – that socialist paradise with a soaring stock market… even if food or toilet paper are about to become a thing of the past.

Some other perspectives via the FT:

Siobhan Morden of Jeffries said: “This is not an administration that respects or understands market pressure. They have been in the early stages of currency crisis since December, and yet their main strategy has been to pay off arrears and try to attract foreign direct investment.”

 

Luis Secco, Buenos Aires economist, said “It is hard to figure out what is the logic behind the authourities decision to let the peso so abruptly, without any other accompanying macroeconomic policy. It’s possible that the authorities would rather see a strong rise in the dollar, than lose, again, a large quantity of reserves.”

 

“It is a potentially dangerous situation…not least because it could give the impression that the authorities don’t have a very clear idea of how to manage the situation.”

 

Ricardo Delgado, Buenos Aires economist, said on Wednesday: “The government faces a dilemma. It wants to stop reserves from falling. But that means less imports and thus lower growth, as the economy is very dependent on imports. So the question is: do you want more growth, or higher foreign reserves.“

However, with the “currency run” having once again begun, absent a wholesale bailout and/or backstop by “solvent” central banks of Argentina, a country which has hardly been on good speaking terms with the western central banks, there is little that the nation can do.

So for all those morbidly curious individuals who are curious what the slow-motion train wrecked death of yet another currency will look like, below is a link to the DolarBlue website, aka the front row seats where the true level of the Argentina currency can be seen in real time. If and when this number takes off parabolically, that’s when the panic really begins – first in Argentina, then elsewhere.

 

Of course, it’s not just Argentina – most of the world’s emerging market FX is getting hammered year-to-date…


    



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Your Front Row Seat To Argentina's (Latest) Currency Collapse

UPDATE: The Argentine Trade Balance missed surplus expectations by the most in 3 years (and 2nd most on record).

 

As those who follow Zero Hedge on twitter know, we have recently shown a keen interest in the collapse of the Argentine currency reserves – most recently at $29.4 billion – which have been declining at a steady pace of $100 million per day over the past week, as the central bank desperately struggles to keep its currency stable. Actually, make that struggled. Here is what we said just yesterday:

As of today it is not just the collapse in the Latin American country’s reserves, but its entire currency, when this morning we woke to learn that the Argentina Peso (with the accurate identifier ARS), had its biggest one day collapse since the 2002 financial crisis, after the central bank stopped intervening in currency markets. The reason: precisely to offset the countdown we had started several days back, namely “an effort to preserve foreign exchange reserves that have fallen by almost a third over the last year” as FT reported.

As the chart below shows, the official exchange rate cratered by over 17% when the USDARS soared from 6.8 to somewhere north of 8.

But as most readers know, just like in Venezuela, where the official exchange rate is anywhere between 6.40 and 11, and the unofficial is 78.85, so in Argentina the real transactions occur on the black market, where they track the so-called Dolar Blue, which as of this writing just hit an all time high of 12.90 and rising fast.

What happens next? Nothing good. “The risk of capital flight is rising by the minute. This will be very hard to control,” wrote Dirk Willer, strategist at Citigroup, adding that liquidity had “largely disappeared” with a risk of Venezuela-style capital controls. Ah Venezuela – that socialist paradise with a soaring stock market… even if food or toilet paper are about to become a thing of the past.

Some other perspectives via the FT:

Siobhan Morden of Jeffries said: “This is not an administration that respects or understands market pressure. They have been in the early stages of currency crisis since December, and yet their main strategy has been to pay off arrears and try to attract foreign direct investment.”

 

Luis Secco, Buenos Aires economist, said “It is hard to figure out what is the logic behind the authourities decision to let the peso so abruptly, without any other accompanying macroeconomic policy. It’s possible that the authorities would rather see a strong rise in the dollar, than lose, again, a large quantity of reserves.”

 

“It is a potentially dangerous situation…not least because it could give the impression that the authorities don’t have a very clear idea of how to manage the situation.”

 

Ricardo Delgado, Buenos Aires economist, said on Wednesday: “The government faces a dilemma. It wants to stop reserves from falling. But that means less imports and thus lower growth, as the economy is very dependent on imports. So the question is: do you want more growth, or higher foreign reserves.“

However, with the “currency run” having once again begun, absent a wholesale bailout and/or backstop by “solvent” central banks of Argentina, a country which has hardly been on good speaking terms with the western central banks, there is little that the nation can do.

So for all those morbidly curious individuals who are curious what the slow-motion train wrecked death of yet another currency will look like, below is a link to the DolarBlue website, aka the front row seats where the true level of the Argentina currency can be seen in real time. If and when this number takes off parabolically, that’s when the panic really begins – first in Argentina, then elsewhere.

 

Of course, it’s not just Argentina – most of the world’s emerging market FX is getting hammered year-to-date…


    



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Knocking The Nikkei: Japan Down 500 From Yesteday’s Highs

With the ongoing strength in JPY, Japanese stocks (the highest beta to the previous collapse in the Yen) are crumbling. The Nikkei 225 is now down over 500 points from yesterday’s highs and at its “cheapest” to the Dow this week… Still think it’s all about China?

 

 

Fun-durr-mentals…


    



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