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The Great New Orleans Gun Grab – A Must Read
…Believe me, when you’re living in squalor, when you’re hot, when you’re living in fear of the people walking by on your street, and then your very own government starts putting pressure on you to get out, it screws your head up.
Exerpt – TGNOGG
I remember years ago talking with a gun owner, who went on and on about the 2nd Amendment and when, “they,” would eventually come over and take our guns away; he was going to be ready. I couldn’t get a word in edgewise, but I wanted to ask him one question – who were they? I wanted to know, just in case this nut was right and “they” really did come – I’d be ready too.
Now, in this compelling new book, that chronicles gun confiscations in the aftermath of hurricane Katrina, “they,” come to find out, may simply be us.
Nationally renowned shooting columnist Gordon Hutchinson and, Todd Masson, editor of the popular Louisiana Sportsman Magazine, in a collaborative effort have detailed the accounts of citizens who struggled in the days after the storm not only with the absence of basic amenities, but also with the very agencies who were supposed to provide protection in a time of lawlessness.
“Writing the book was actually Gordon’s idea,” Masson said. “He covered the NRA town hall meeting that was held in April 2006, in New Orleans, to do a story for Louisiana Sportsman. He called me the next day and filled my ear with his disgust over what had occurred in New Orleans during Katrina and in its aftermath.”
Hutchinson and Masson began making contacts and conducting interviews, only to discover that the story was worse than they thought. Masson said, “The deeper we got into it, the more sickened we both became. It was clear that the seizure of firearms wasn’t isolated to one or two rogue cops, but it was systematic. The order had been given from on high, and many officers proved loyal foot soldiers.”
Readers of Gun Grab, will not only meet Ashton O’Dwyer, Leroy Hartley and Larry and Nancy Hirst through the literary skills of the authors, but will feel the anguish and emotions of these New Orleanians as they fight off looters, face the civil authorities who disarm them, and who subsequently strong arm them to leave – in many cases losing .
Such was the case when Patricia Konie was slammed against a wall, taken to the ground, where bruised and battered, left asking herself, “Why in America, was she being taken somewhere against her will?”
The book is beginning to gain attention across America. Masson said, “The Great New Orleans Gun Grab has captured a national audience and has fanned flames of outrage in Second Amendment supporters across the country. Gordon and I have been featured on Gun Talk with Tom Gresham, NRA News, Live Fire with Larry Pratt, WWL radio as well as in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, the Times-Picayune, The Morning Advocate, the Ruston Daily Leader and Gun Week Magazine.”
When Vinnie Perval of Algiers Point, is knocked nearly unconscious cutting his head on a brick planter after being struck in the back of the head by two men who ultimately hijack his van, he decides to take matters into his own hands.
Where there was no power, no control and no civil authority against gangs that roved at night, Perval, and a few friends organized and formed a deterrent against those who would otherwise take advantage of the chaotic situation. It wasn’t until the 82nd Airborne rolled into Algiers Point that the members of “Fort Pelican and the Algiers Point Militia” would stand down.
Like from a motion picture script, readers will be intrigued by the presence of Blackwater USA and the subsequent use of Israeli security personnel, at the request of Audubon Place residents. Gun confiscation was never considered, where private security firms patrolled on behalf of the affluent.
The instances where guns were taken from law abiding citizens were not limited to New Orleans and surrounding hamlets such as Buck Town, Algiers Point and the French Quarter that make up greater New Orleans. Guns were also confiscated at gunpoint, on the waters of Lake Pontchartrain by St. Tammany Sheriff’s Office deputies.
Hutchinson views the book as a way of establishing awareness of the problems that took place post Katrina concerning the rights of citizens. He said, “As only through bringing these outrageous abuses of the 2nd, 4th and 14th Amendments to the public eye can we help insure they won’t occur again.”
Gun Grab closes by highlighting State and Federal laws that came about in response to the Katrina disaster and confiscation of firearms.
In the summer of 2006, following the disaster, Louisiana House Bill 760 was signed into law by former Governor Kathleen Blanco. The statute amended the Louisiana Emergency Powers and Disaster Act, prohibiting law enforcement officials from confiscating firearms from citizens.
HR 5013 was introduced into the United States House of Representatives by former Representative (now Governor) Bobby Jindal and signed into law on October 9, 2006 by President Bush, following a Senate version sponsored by Senator David Vitter. The bill protects gun owner’s rights during emergencies.
Regardless of the freshly amended Louisiana statute, one thing is pointed out by the authors of Gun Grab. NOPD Superintendent Warren Riley doesn’t plan on complying, should New Orleans be victimized by another catastrophic storm.
Regardless, if you’re a gun owner or not, I urge you to get a copy of Gun Grab to read the stories of these individuals and the rest of Warren Riley’s comments. “They” just might be our duly elected and appointed officials.
“The Great New Orleans Gun Grab” is available at Barnes & Noble, or can be ordered at HYPERLINK "http://www.neworleansgungrab.com" www.neworleansgungrab.com, or by calling (800) 538-4355.
If you wish to make a comment or have an anecdote, recipe, or story you wish to share, you can contact John K. Flores by calling (985) 395-5586 or by e-mail:
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