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BELCHERTOWN Joe Arpaio, former sheriff of Arizonas Maricopa County who has styled himself Americas Toughest Sheriff, will be a guest speaker this weekend at a Second Amendment rally in town.

Arpaio, who turns 85 this week, will speak at Belchertowns 4th Annual Flag Day Second Amendment Rally, which starts at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Swift River Sportsman Club.

Dave Kopacz, organizer of the rally, said Arpaio will probably speak around noon, though the official schedule for the event is still in the works.

Arpaio is a Massachusetts native, born in Springfield. He became nationally known in the last 15 years for his hardline stances on immigration, for battling findings of racial profiling in his sheriffs department, and for his campaign to prove that President Obamas birth certificate was forged, which he continued to wage as recently as last fall.

After 24 years in office, Arpaio lost his latest re-election bid in November. His trial in federal court on a criminal contempt charge in connection with racial profiling is pending.

The Belchertown rally will also feature several other speakers, including Jeanette Finicum, the widow of Robert LaVoy Finicum, one of the occupiers at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon who was shot and killed during the armed standoff in January 2016.

Kopacz said he sees gun rights and property rights as connected. He believes the issues surrounding federal land use that came to a head in Oregon are similar to issues surrounding land trusts in Massachusetts.

We want to make sure we connect and parallel that with what is going on here, he said of the Oregon occupation.

Local Second Amendment activists will speak at the rally, too. Kopacz said both national and local speakers are important for the event.

I use the national guys to bring in the crowds, and the local guys to put them to work after, Kopacz said.

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Joe Arpaio, former Arizona sheriff, to speak at Second Amendment rally in Belchertown - Amherst Bulletin

Once again, anger coupled with a weapon has unleashed another strike against the heart of what we stand for as a society: democracy.

Again, heavily armed law enforcement, yellow police tape, along with shock, grief and tears are formidable reminders of the aftermath we as a society must deal with after another man with a weapon delivers another grim message.

This time, the gunman used a high-powered rifle to spray a reign of terror over Republican members of Congress while they held a morning baseball practice to get ready for the annual Congressional Baseball Game, a tradition since 1909.

When it was over, House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., along with two Capitol police officers, Crystal Griner and David Bailey, congressional staffer Zach Barth and lobbyist Matt Mika all were wounded. Scalise and Mika were listed in critical condition as of Wednesday evening.

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The gunman, identified as 66-year-old James T. Hodgkinson III from Illinois, drives home how vulnerable we continue to be as a society of free will where the rights of people are paramount. The gunman was killed, but thankfully no others were. Lawmakers agree that but for the actions of Capitol police on the scene, the carnage could have been much worse.

According to the New York Times, Hodgkinson was distraught over the election of President Donald Trump and he was a supporter of 2016 Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.

We have been down this road before and though the names of the wounded and the dead change, the message to the United States remains the same: there are too many guns on the streets of America and too many with the wrong fingers on the trigger.

But a division of opinions, even in a hot political climate, shouldnt bring harm to those delivering a message or those supporting it.

So much of what we are and do as a society depends on the trust and allegiance of our fellow man and the ability to walk amongst each other unencumbered. But with more than 300 million guns on the streets and too many in the hands of the wrong people more solutions are needed.

No angry gunman will destroy what we are as a society, nor our determination to continue forth with our values as a nation.

Trump said, in part, we are blessed to be Americans, that our children deserve to grow up in a nation of safety and peace, and that we are strongest when we are unified and when we work together for the common good.

But to do that, Congress must come to grips with the difficulties of the Second Amendment and take action to tighten the nations gun laws.

Here in Connecticut, where we have some of the toughest gun laws in the nation, we are aware of that.

Every bullet that takes away another loved one or takes aim at another long cherished tradition, leaves us more disillusioned about our safety if Congress doesnt do something about the proliferation of guns.

Link:
Editorial: Congress must come to grips with difficulties of Second Amendment - New Haven Register

Media Matters for America

Fox guest says gay people at Pulse vigil "probably don't know what the Second Amendment is" Media Matters for America TUCKER CARLSON (HOST): Well, yesterday was the one year anniversary of the Pulse nightclub massacre, in which Islamic radical Omar Mateen murdered 49 people at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida. To commerate the shoot a vigil was held in New ...

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Fox guest says gay people at Pulse vigil "probably don't know what the Second Amendment is" - Media Matters for America

Steve Scalise speaks to the media after a meeting at Trump Tower on December 12, 2016 in New York City. (Getty)

Congressman SteveScalise has been shot at a Congressional baseball practice near Washington, D.C.

Scalise was subsequently taken to theMedStar Washington Hospital Center, and ina statement, Scalises office said that he is currently undergoing surgery and is in stable condition.

Prior to entering surgery, the Whip was in good spirits and and spoke to his wife by phone, Scalises office said in a statement. He is grateful for the brave actions of U.S. Capitol Police, first responders, and colleagues.

The Alexandria Police Department says that the suspected shooter is in custody.

So who exactly is CongressmanSteve Scalise, the representative who was shot on Wednesday? Heres what you need to know about him.

Steve Scalise speaks to the media on May 17, 2017 in Washington, DC. (Getty)

CongressmanSteve Scalise is a Republican who was elected to represent Louisiana in 2008. Before running for Congress, he had served in the Louisiana state senate for four months and in the Louisiana House of Representatives for 12 years.

Scalise was elected in a special election to replaceBobby Jindal, who had become the governor of Louisiana. In the Republican primary, Scalise defeated a number of opponents includingTim Burns, and in the general election, he defeated DemocratGilda Reed with 75 percent of the vote.

In addition, Scalise serves as the House Majority Whip. He was elected to this position by his Republican colleagues in 2014. The New York Times described this as a rapid rise in Congress.

The turning point for Mr. Scalise, who is from Louisiana, was his come-from-behindwinin 2012 to become chairman of the influential Republican Study Group, edging out a candidate who was handpicked by the committees founders and past chairmen, The New York Times reported. The group, which has 170 members, has played a central role in pushing the Republican caucus to the right on economic and social issues.

As majority whip, Steve Scalises job is to ensure that members of the Republican party vote together on pieces of legislation. In that position, Scalise helped get the American Health Care Act passed in the House of Representatives.

Passing the American Health Care Act was about saving families who are struggling under the weight of a broken law that doesnt work, Scalise said at the time.

Donald Trump shakes hands with Steve Scalise during a meeting with the House Deputy Whip team at the East Room of the White House March 7, 2017 in Washington, DC. (Getty)

During the 2016 election, Congressman Steve Scalise was a supporter of Donald Trump. Unlike some Republicans, Scalise continued to support his partys nominee after the leakedAccess Hollywoodtape on which Trump could be heard bragging about grabbing women by the private parts.

Let me be clear, Donald Trump will do more to rebuild our middle class, get our economy moving again, strengthen our national defense, and appoint Supreme Court Justices who uphold our Constitution rather than rewrite it, Scalisetold The Advocate. Those are the reasons Ive supported Donald Trump for President and that is why I will continue to do so.

Scalise did call on Trump to apologize, which Trump did. However, Scalise said that he would not allow Hillary Clinton to become president.

Electing Hillary Clinton means continuing down the failed path of radical and divisive policies, a weaker military, and rising healthcare costs, or we can elect a president who will work with Congress to create jobs, grow a healthy economy, confront the increasing threats that we face from around the globe, and get America back on the right track, Scalise said.

Steve Scalise was a supporter of President Donald Trumps original travel ban signed in January.

ISIS has said they want to infiltrate a lot of these refugee programs and weve seen them carry that out in Europe, Scalise said. So we want to make sure that people who are coming into the United States arent being infiltrated by terrorist organizations and until that can be done I think this freeze from certain countries, where we cannot vet, makes a lot of sense.

Steve Scalise holds up a Make America Great Again hat during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol November 15, 2016 in Washington, DC. (Getty)

Steve Scalise served on Donald Trumps Second Amendment Coalition.

During the Trump transition, this was a panel of advisors who advised the president-elect on issues related to guns and the Supreme Court. According to The Advocate, Scalises name was added to the list along with 63 others.

Congressman Scalise has been a supporter of the second amendment for years, and he co-sponsored theFirearms Interstate Commerce Reform Act, which had the goal of removing restrictions oninterstate firearms transactions.

According to his website, Scalise also co-sponsored H.R.645, a bill to restore Second Amendment rights in the District of Columbia. He has an A+ rating from the National Rifle Association.

In January 2016, President Barack Obama signed an executive action on guns which included 10 provisions, such as one requiring more gun sellers to be licensed and forcing them to conduct background checks, according to The Washington Post.Scalise felt this was an overreach on Obamas part.

This is an attempt to try to bully and intimidate people from selling guns and from buying guns and goes around the laws that are already on the books, Scalise said on CNN. The President is not even enforcing existing law. Thats where he should focus, but frankly hes trying to change the subject and get away from the fact that he hasnt been able to defeat ISIS.

Scalise also said that these people who would be affected by President Obamas executive order are law-abiding citizens.

Look, these are law-abiding citizens we are talking about, he said. These arent criminals. The President wont even go after people who broke existing federal law. Why doesnt he do that? Why doesnt he focus on his job instead of trying to usurp the role of Congress and trump the constitution and the Second Amendment that is so sacred to our nations founding.

Steve Scalise speaks during a press briefing after a House Republican Conference meeting July 6, 2016 at the headquarters of Republican National Committee in Washington, DC. (Getty)

In 2014, a political blogger discovered that Steve Scalise 12 years earlier had delivered a speech at an event organized by the European-American Unity and Rights Organization, a white nationalist group founded by David Duke.

This revelation caused controversy, but Scalise said that he did not know about the racist nature of the group at the time.

I didnt know who all of these groups were and I detest any kind of hate group, he said. For anyone to suggest that I was involved with a group like that is insulting and ludicrous.

Scalise said that he did not properly vet the event and that he only had one staffer at the time.

I had one person that was working for me, Scalise said. When someone called and asked me to speak, I would go.

The Louisiana congressman also said he regrets speaking at the event.

It was a mistake I regret, and I emphatically oppose the divisive racial and religious views groups like these hold, he said.

Steve Scalise and his wife Jennifer Scalise during a mock swearing-in ceremony on Capitol Hill January 6, 2015 in Washington, DC. (Getty)

Steve Scalise marriedJennifer Ann Scalise in 2005.

According to theTimes Picayune, the wedding took place at theSt. Louis Cathedral in New Orleans. After the wedding, the two honeymooned in Europe.According to Politico, Steve and his wife are members of theSt. Agnes Catholic Church.

Steve and Jennifer have two kids, Madison Carol Scalise and Harrison Joseph Scalise. His son is a member of the Boy Scouts of America.

Steve Scalise has been shot at a Congressional baseball game. Since 2005, the Louisiana Congressman has been married to Jennifer Scalise.

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Steve Scalise: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know - Heavy.com

In the world of boneheaded marketing ploys, this has to rank as one of the boneheadedest.

Kendall Jenner and that dumb Pepsi ad? Move over.

Fliers from Second Amendment Sports, a local gun shop and shooting range, started showing up in mailboxes late last week.

Im just going to describe it verbatim.

The front has large, bold lettering announcing Juneteenth.

Above it is a drawing of an, apparently, African-American man with his arms raised overhead breaking a chain.

A photo of a white mans face has been imposed onto the drawing.

To the side, the flier states, Juneteenth, Dads & Grads Sale June 15th & 17th.

On the back (between clip art of shackled wrists breaking chains) it says:

Celebrate Juneteenth Dads & Grads.

Emancipate yourselves from the oppression of the man.

From your chores, from your school Buy a gun!

Take that boot off your neck and enjoy some great deals!

I found an explainer, sort of, about Juneteenth saying it is recognized mostly by black Americans and commemorates the end of the Civil War and the final Southern state of Texas announcing the emancipation of slaves. (I would argue with that interpretation, which Ill get to.)

It goes on to say that Second Amendment Sports is celebrating the date to remind people that all races at one time in history were enslaved and that freedom comes at a cost.

Buy a firearm and some ammunition and take your power back from a government that would prefer you to be a slave again! says the explainer.

Then theres a convoluted line about states' rights and keeping the Union together, presumably about the Civil War.

Remember Juneteenth, it ends. Know that it has relevance to all men.

So, that cleared up nothing about this ill-conceived ad campaign.

Just as a start, I wondered if Second Amendment had used Juneteenth as a sale-a-bration marketing concept before?

What was the response? Whats the response now?

Who's face is that photoshopped onto the drawing?

I did eventually get an email from Second Amendment Sports owner Matt Janes, who defended the fliers as opening a dialogue about the fragility of freedom for everyone.

He said this is the second year Second Amendment Sports has used the Juneteenth ad campaign and reaction has been "mixed."

"Some people choose to be offended," Janes wrote. "They do not feel it is our place to bring up U.S. history when it pertains to certain subjects. Like it is taboo or exclusive to only some. Others totally understand the meaning behind our advertisement. Others are 'Hunh? What's Juneteenth?'"

As to the face imposed on the drawing: "It is immaterial and largely the point of the image. It could be an ancestor, you, me, our children...that is the importance."

If nothing else, he wrote, he hopes the flier gets people talking.

The entire thing is disrespectful, said Jason Phillips. And to turn it (Juneteenth) into a political message to fan up emotion, which leads directly to more gun sales for them, is sickening.

Reactions on Facebook and elsewhere were similar, a mixture of outrage and derision.

I'm all for standing firm on civil liberties and slapping back government overreach. But I don't think coopting Juneteenth is the way to go.

To me, the flier and tortured explainer are boorish and just plain weird.

I mean, why not hawk high-caliber rifles on Holocaust Remembrance Day as "yellow badge repellant?"

Im not going to argue whether the fliers are also racist.

Anyone who doesnt find them racially offensive will get defensive and claim the other side is overly sensitive.

Thats a spin cycle that never ends.

Instead, hey, what exactly is Juneteenth?

I will admit that I didn't know until I covered the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo, an all black rodeo, which happened to be touring in Bakersfield on Juneteenth some years back.

To me, Juneteenth is bittersweet in a lot of ways.

It recognizes the end of slavery, yes.

But it came to 250,000 slaves in Texas on June 19, 1865, two months after the official end of the Civil War.

And 2 1/2 years after the Emancipation Proclamation was issued by President Abraham Lincoln in January 1863.

And the state of Texas certainly did not announce it, as implied by Second Amendment Sports' explainer.

Union Gen. Gordon Granger landed in Galveston with 2,000 troops to enforce the Emancipation Proclamation.

Granger made it his first order of business to stand on a balcony and read aloud:

The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor.

Today, Juneteenth is typically marked with gatherings of family and friends, food, remembrances and prayer.

Its a recognition, a friend told me.

That sounds right. A recognition. Not a door buster.

Opinions expressed in this column are those of Lois Henry. Her column runs Wednesdays and Sundays. Comment at http://www.bakersfield.com, call her at 661-395-7373 or emaillhenry@bakersfield.comfollow her on Twitter @loishenry or on Facebook at Lois Henry.

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LOIS HENRY: Use of Juneteenth as marketing ploy to sell guns doesn't go over well - The Bakersfield Californian