Archive for the ‘Blog’ Category

I was going to turn my gun into the government, but I decided to do a background check on the ones that want my guns, I discovered that they were all mentally unstable, so I guess I will keep it in sane hands after all, mine.

Mark Shean, author of GUN SENSE, on Amazon,

Until 2018, Massachusetts prohibited anyone who wasn’t a law enforcement officer from having a stun gun—any type of weapon or portable device that uses an electrical current to incapacitate someone temporarily. After that total ban was struck down as unconstitutional, the state changed its laws to include stun guns in the legal definition of a firearm. That means that Massachusetts residents who want stun guns must meet the state’s licensing and other requirements for gun possession and use.

Stun Guns: From Ban to Regulations

Massachusetts law treats all stun guns alike, whether they deliver an electric shock on direct contact or shoot darts attached to wires that carry an electrical charge (like Tasers, a brand name commonly used for this kind of pistol-type device). Previously, the state limited the use of stun guns to law enforcement officers. In 2018, however, the state’s highest court found that the absolute ban on civilian possession of these weapons, even in one’s own home, violated the Second Amendment’s right to keep and bear arms. (Ramirez v. Commonwealth, 94 N.E.3d 809 (Sup. Jud. Ct. Mass 2018).)

Soon after that decision, Massachusetts amended its laws to get rid of the ban but to require regulations restricting the use of stun guns by anyone without a license. Civilians in the state may buy and carry a stun gun if they have license to carry firearms, as long as the electronic device is in a shape that resembles a gun. That explicitly rules out “covert” electronic weapons that resemble other objects like pens. (Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, §§ 121, 131, 131J (2019).)

Restrictions on Stun Gun Licenses

As with other types of firearms, Massachusetts law prohibits certain people from getting licenses for stun guns, including those who:

• are under 21
• have been convicted of a felony, violent crime, weapons violation, or domestic violence
• are subject to domestic violence protection order, or
• are subject to an “extreme risk protection order ” (ERPO) which prohibits gun possession by those who pose a risk of injuring themselves or others with firearms.

Because of these restrictions, you’ll have to undergo a background check before getting a license for a stun gun. If you’re served with an ERPO, you must also surrender your license, along with any stun gun in your possession or control” (Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, §§ 131, 131s (2019).)

Proper Storage of Stun Guns

Also in response to the Ramirez decision, Massachusetts added a law that requires storing any stun gun in a locked container that can only be opened by the owner or someone else who’s legally authorized to use the weapon (Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, § 131L (2019)).

No Stun Guns in Airports or Planes

It’s illegal to enter to or try to enter a secure area of an airport or plane cabin with a stun gun, even if you have a firearms license (Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 269, § 12F (2019)).

Submitted By Mark Shean, author of Gun Sense, at Amazon

About Me:
I am originally from the state of Maine, the gun culture is opposite,(as far as respect for a persons Second Amendment rights) from Ma. were we live now. I am a MA. State Basic Firearms Safety Course Instructor since 1999, Former NRA Law Enforcement Firearms Instructor, NRA instructor in six other disciplines.
The only published Firearm Instructor in Ma. GUN SENSE rated #1 on Amazon.

A Nuclear Security Officer at Pilgrim Station since 1987 to present, as well as a former Security President of Local 540 SPFPA. I have been a Merchant Marine, a painting contractor, a mason, a ditch digger, a water mechanic, and co-business owner LLC, entrepreneur/inventor (pat. pending) on a shotgun part for the KSG. Installed many a foundation pump by hand, did my share of work in the woods, rode dirt/street bikes, have been involved in the organized shooting sports since 1963, have a current technician class HAM radio operator license. I like to hunt when I can find a couple of spare minutes.

My blogs consist of words from the Founding Fathers, past and present letters to the editor, also my ‘Gun Sense’ series,(50 and counting). My writing style is my own. I lacked money to attend an overpriced left wing indoctrination center, oops, I mean college, and would only have given the ‘progressive’ professors migraine’s had I been able to attend one. I am just one of the unwashed masses, and of no real concern to the ‘lefty’ lame stream media.

What It Means To Be an American To Me -blog post

In my view, the Constitution is not open to ‘interpretation’, it is a static document. The Constitution is only as strong as the current generation is to uphold and protect it, so protect it! If people want to keep their rights they must Be Strong, Be Proactive, Be Aware, Pay Attention, hold your elected servants feet to the fire! Remember, WE give them permission to work for US, and when they fail to represent US it is OUR duty to remove them from office to protect the continuance of OUR freedoms! Your children’s children should enjoy the same freedoms past generations, (you & I) have enjoyed, its up to US to ensure they do.

NRA and Relevance -blog post

America was founded as a Republic, the Founders were adamant about that, lest we forget. If we do forget, we are lost. Do you understand the difference? If not please read;

Is America a Democracy? Clearly no! page 1 of 2 + Republic versus Democracy, made clear, page 2 -blog posts

Socialists/Progressive’s don’t want our children to know what the Founders of this nation knew. Left wing run schools, (indoctrination centers) are ‘reinventing‘ history and feeding lies to our children as ‘fact’….its up to US to teach them!

Make America Great Again!! Go Mr. President Trump!!!

What do you think of any politicians that do not uphold the solemn oath to office that they are required to take in order to serve you? You know, that silly embarrassing little formality, the oath they swear on the HOLY Bible too, the one about upholding and defending the Constitution, and adhering to the entire Constitution. OH,,, THAT OATH!! My generous side says they should all be recalled, my vindictive side says they should all be tried for treason, impeached and/or imprisoned. Either way they should be gone! Breaking their oath, under existing law/tradition is high treason. The problem is, they are the ‘fox’ guarding the ‘hen house’ in a manner of speaking. Term limits implemented by you in the voting booth will cure this chronic problem that is dangerous to our freedoms!

As I saw it & see it still -blog post

“Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There never was a democracy yet that did not commit suicide” John Adams

{Firearm Education Will Save Lives, Firearm Ignorance Can End Lives}. Ignorance of history can end our Freedoms.

“Whenever the time shall come when we must choose between a loss of our constitutional rights and a revolution, I shall choose the latter”. –SAM HOUSTON-

Disarmament based on the acts of criminals, the mentally ill, or Muslims, is not acceptable.

“But to ban guns because criminals use them is to tell the innocent and law-abiding that their rights and liberties depend not on their own conduct, but on the conduct of the guilty and the lawless, and that the law will permit them to have only such rights and liberties as the lawless will allow.
For society does not control crime, ever, by forcing the law-abiding to accommodate themselves to the expected behavior of criminals.
Society controls crime by forcing the criminals to accommodate themselves to the expected behavior of the law-abiding.” Jeff Snyder

Any “Gun Free Zone” sign shows what, ( ’progressive’ ) liberal oath breaking politicians and the U.N. would love to do to our entire country. They would put us all at the mercy of criminals and corrupt government as a by-product of their self-serving anti-Constitution schemes, they are trying too now. Do Not Turn A Blind Eye To It ! Let them know that it runs contrary to the oath they took, and it will be political suicide should they push their luck by trying.

To me it seems absurd that we should worry about elected ‘Representatives’ in this light, but their actions show we need to watch them closely. Please, talk to your children about their rights, ( liberal left wing teachers will not tell them) you need to, that they may carry on the fight for their rights someday, this fight never ends.

Children,Their Future Rights,Are We Overlooking Them? -blog post.

Mark Shean Sr. author of Gun Sense, now #1 on Amazon.

Read more: https://www.ammoland.com/2019/06/instructor-releases-massachusetts-firearm-safety-book-gun-sense/#ixzz5xmxalB9U
Ammoland on Facebook

Instructor Releases Massachusetts Firearm Safety Book, “Gun Sense”

Ammoland Inc. Posted on June 28, 2019 by Ammoland

Plymouth, Massachusetts – -(AmmoLand.com)- When Plymouth local Mark Shean started training people on firearms safety in Massachusetts, he saw a void in materials to help guide his students. It was over 10 years ago that he started his blog Gun Sense. Today, Mark is happy to announce the compilation & release of his articles into one comprehensive guide, “Gun Sense – Massachusetts Gun Law Information and Common Sense Firearm Safety“.

“Gun Sense” is a book for everyone. The primary focus is safety. Shean takes readers on a journey through basic firearms safety, gun handling & Massachusetts specific subjects. More importantly, Shean talks about what to teach your children about firearms…how to do it & when. In an entertaining & easy to follow narrative Shean teaches the important lessons needed to keep accidents from happening. The biggest lesson he imparts is that individuals engage their brains. From the book Shean offers sage instruction:

“Now I am going to let you in on a secret; YOU are any firearms best safety. YOU are the master safety, you can NEVER trust a manmade safety on ANY firearm… do not think for a second that it gives you license to carelessly handle that firearm! Remember that #1 rule, TREAT EVERY FIREARM AS LOADED AT ALL TIMES…That has to be our mindset. Weapons’ safety is everyone’s responsibility, especially yours. Practice safe weapons’ handling until it becomes a habit.”

Other topics that are covered in “Gun Sense” include:

• How to obtain a Massachusetts Class A or B License to Carry (LTC)
• How to obtain a Massachusetts Class C Firearms Identification Card (FID)
• If you need a “Reason” letter to get your firearms permit, how to write one…
• How to write a recommendation for a colleague or friend
• How to deal with firearms in an inheritance
• Massachusetts Gun Law in general
• Op-eds on rights and politics
• And much much more….

The kindle version of the book is extensively cited with links internally and externally to Massachusetts General Law Chapter 140, Code of Massachusetts Regulations 527 chapter 1 and other articles/resources for the reader to enjoy or gain a greater understanding. The paperback version contains the text version of links to direct readers should the wish to take their reading further on an internet-enabled device.

“Gun Sense” is available in both e-book & paperback form on Amazon. You can find it by searching “Mark Shean Sr. Gun Sense” or by following this link.

A review from an award winning journalist about my book Gun Sense, today.

U.S.A. – -(Ammoland.com)- “A little over a year ago, I was tasked with editing and formatting a book for a firearms instructor I had met through his class,” Second Amendment advocate, writer, and editor John Petrolino told me in an email. He was inquiring about my policy on book reviews.
“The book is on firearm safety, in general with … emphasis on dealing with being a gun owner in Massachusetts,” Petrolino explained. “He has some entertaining op-eds in it as well. The book is extracted from the author’s blog and I’ve spent the past year, really six months with solid focus, working on it.”

You don’t have to be from Massachusetts to get a lot of value from Shean’s book.
He was talking about “Gun Sense – Massachusetts Gun Law Information and Common Sense Firearm Safety,” by firearms instructor Mark Shean Sr.

“I’m always willing to look,” I replied. “My ‘rule’ is simple– I only give good reviews. That because it’s not fair for me to discourage someone else’s labor of love. I won’t endorse something and encourage readers to spend money on it unless it’s something I believe in. So basically, unless I can say something nice, I won’t say anything at all.”

The fact that I’m saying something now means I have no reservations about recommending gun owners buy this book, although after making time to read it I decided I’d need to postpone my review for a bit because AmmoLand had already reviewed it. Go read that one, because it gives a good overview of the types of topics you’ll find, as does perusal of the Amazon page, especially with the “Look Inside” preview and the reader reviews.

Starting out, I had my doubts. I’m not a lawyer and Shean’s not a lawyer. Besides, gun laws, especially those of states I don’t live in, don’t exactly make for light or fun reading if approached by themselves. Also, candidly, the title put me off at first, because “gun sense” is a term that’s been co-opted by the antis, more specifically by Michael Bloomberg’s Everytown, with its vacuous “pledge to be a gun sense voter.”

They also call citizen disarmament edicts “common-sense gun safety laws,” and it suddenly hit me what Shean was doing – he was taking back a term from frauds with an agenda. Those who understand the Founders’ intent for the Second Amendment and who have applied training and discipline to responsibly own and use firearms are the ones who can truly use — and rightfully claim — the term “gun sense”

Genuine common sense comes through loud and clear in Shean’s book, no doubt cultivated from his background, which includes all kinds of practical and useful experiences and skills. It comes across in his writing and I soon realized it felt more like he was talking to me than I was reading his words. It’s a gift to be able to do that.

So how about some more specifics about the actual content?
Again, I’ll point you to the prior AmmoLand review, and browsing through the Amazon preview should give you a “flavor” for what to expect. Several quick-to-read chapters are included there covering subjects like the lethal dangers of “unloaded guns,” educating children, misfires and hang fires, squib loads, “uncontrolled bullets,” ceasing fire, dry-firing, safeties, home safety slugs and defensive loads, and “the aftermath of defending your family/home.”

There’s also a chapter included in the preview “specific to MA” on litigation challenging arbitrary police decisions on gun licensing.” That and discussions of Massachusetts laws and regulations should not put off gun owners who live in other states.

It’s instructive to see what kind of harassment citizen disarmament bullies impose when they can get away with it through Democrat majorities, and you’d better believe similar efforts to gain traction for such infringements are already underway in your state. The plan is for an incrementally disarmed United States, and if you don’t believe that, you haven’t been paying attention, which the gun-grabbers are counting on.

Part of being an effective advocate is being an informed one. “Gun Sense” is a book for every gun owner who understands the critical necessity of that.

About David Codrea:
David Codrea is the winner of multiple journalist awards for investigating/defending the RKBA and a long-time gun owner rights advocate who defiantly challenges the folly of citizen disarmament. He blogs at “The War on Guns: Notes from the Resistance,” is a regularly featured contributor to Firearms News, and posts on Twitter: @dcodrea and Facebook.

Submitted by Mark Shean Sr. author of GUN SENSE, now on Amazon.

I think that we all can agree that laws do not stop anyone who has the intension of breaking them, from breaking them, evil intent can not be stopped by legislation. Only certain politicians pretend not to know this.

Anytime someone with a gun commits a crime, politicians, backed by the disingenuous media networks start pounding the drum for ‘gun control’, like more gun laws/controls would have stopped what ever it was that the criminal did. We have recently witnessed a string of bomb attacks on our east coast, I am steering this conversation toward ‘control’. How long do you suppose that explosives have been illegal and the use of them ‘controlled’? A very long time. Now do you suppose that the person who made the bombs out of pressure cookers and pipe bombs gave one hoot in hell about them being illegal?  Do you think the Boston Marathon bombers cared ? How are all of the laws and ‘control’ pertaining to explosives working out these days?

Alcohol abuse and all the resulting death and destruction from it nationwide…….there are laws designed with the explicit intension to stop people from harmfully misusing alcohol yet there are far more deaths yearly related to it than from firearms, in accidents or crime related. How are the legal ‘controls’ governing alcohol working out?

Heroin is illegal, it is also an epidemic all over the country. Families torn apart, crime, usually in the form of homes being burglarized as addicts attempt to get their next ‘fix’. In Massachusetts heroin is not even treated as a crime anymore….politicians evidently don’t care, people are overdosing everyday, just check out the obituaries’ in your local fish wrapper,(news paper).

Firearms? lets see, machineguns have been outlawed since the 1930s, there are no so-called ‘assault weapons’ in private civilian hands without a huge background check and very expensive license. Maybe someone could contact the phony ‘journalists’  in the media to investigate……

Oath breakers,(elected public servants) screaming for more and more gun control know that they are overlooking the FACT that laws do not stop evil intensions, and disarming law abiding citizens is not a way that citizens can protect themselves from madmen….Just look at the loons shooting up the Wal-Marts recently, ask a politician which law would have stopped them.

Never allow any politician to disarm you, never comply.

Mark Shean Sr. author of GUN SENSE, rated #1 on Amazon!

From, Mark Shean at Ma Firearm Safety

Rated #1 at AMAZON in the Shooting section!!

I have just published a book that is now on Amazon, It covers updated Ma. Gun Laws as well as a series I have written over the years called ‘Gun Sense‘, covering a range of information and serious safety aspects.

This is not Ma. specific, it applies to anywhere you may live. A good reference book to have at home, the gun club or hunting camp. Good information concerning children as well.

This book would make a valuable go-to for hard to answer gun related questions. Please check it out. It will keep you informed and even entertained. If you like it, please tell your friends. the Gun Sense series is like having my class, and has answers to questions you probably did not get in yours.

Look for Gun Sense on Amazon, it is in paperback form or in Kindle.
Link to book, Rated #1 at AMAZON in the Shooting section!!

https://www.amazon.com/Gun-Sense-Massachusetts-Information-Firearm-ebook/dp/B07T8ZSJS3

Sincerely, Mark 🙂

Mark Shean & Son
www.mafirearmsafety.com

We have repeatedly, constantly heard the hype from media talking heads, and their politically elite pals concerning ‘assault ‘ weapons. I would like to broaden the scope of this erroneously overused misused term. Not to add to the panic mode propagated by the media and politicians that they want everyone to feel, but instead to use a little satire to show their true agenda.

In their blind zeal to disarm us they have overlooked a wide variety of ‘assault’ weapons, it amazes me. Here goes, seriously folks!

Rocks, the first and arguably the oldest ‘assault’ weapons, they are still lurking around us to this very day….

Rocks, are not just rocks, sure, on the outside they may look like your run of the mill ordinary innocent inanimate objects, but don’t let that fool ya, they can become deadly ‘assault’ rocks at a moments notice, we could even be justified in calling them minute rocks! Just take a good look down at the ground, you will see them looking back at you, sizing you up for the kill!

There are sharp edged scary looking shaped rocks, smooth rounded beach bum rocks, they may look benign, but make no mistake, they are just as capable as the sharp scary looking ‘assault’ rocks, believe it or else….

Let’s not forget the single shot slingshot rocks, (a very high trajectory) or the high capacity bag of rocks, these are very bad actors…..then there are the catapult grade of rocks, very lethal and destructive, they have been known to take down castles! Ya, castles!! So how secure do you feel in your stick house now?

People have been, and still are stoned by rocks using the carpet bomb method in large caliber configurations…. Boulder sized rocks should be classified as weapons of massive destruction!

Should laws be passed banning rocks? Maybe all rocks should be destroyed as an answer to stopping the evil they seem to be surely capable of! Loner rocks need to be rounded up and studied to see why they became loners, were they bullied by larger rocks when they were mere pebbles?

This is the reason rocks get away with evil doing, rocks, like many other objects, (except one) have the uncanny ability to do evil deeds, then shift the blame onto unsuspecting humans! This is completely missed by politicians and the media alike!

I’ll give you a few examples; Hammers, if you bother to look up the stats on these little hoodlums you will discover that they get away with hundreds of blunt trauma deaths every year. They are true masters at shifting the blame to humans…..undetected by politicians who should be writing legislation to ban them! Really!

Knives, and all their sharp edged ilk, even dull ones are no joke, yet with all the death and mayhem that yearly they are responsible for, they get away with it by shifting the blame to humans! Politicians again appear amazingly clueless! No save the children speeches if one life can be saved! No legislation to ban them, nothing. True statement!

Vehicles of any size. The deaths these are responsible for on a yearly basis eclipses almost everything else combined!
You are innocently driving down the road and suddenly, without warning, your vehicle careens off the road into a large group of people! The media immediately shifts the blame away from the vehicle and onto you! The vehicle has evilly shifted the guilt from itself to the human who was riding helplessly inside! And no one notices! No one!
As a matter of fact everyone is in agreement with the media that the person in the car is to blame!

Again, there is no hysteria from politicians to ban vehicles, amazing! There is no room here to even scratch the surface on drugs and alcohol and the deaths it causes…

The objects already noted, as well as countless others not mentioned, all have the unique ability to shift their evil deeds onto humans, undetected, all except one category, guns.

Guns must not have evolved to that level of deceit yet. Maybe it’s because in the larger overall scheme of things, they have not been around that long? They still have a learning curve? Who knows.

It is blatantly obvious that guns cannot fool the politicians or media, guns are blamed for every act they commit, as if they had a mind, to do it.
Politicians jump up and scream, think of the children! Ban the guns! With no thought of swimming pools and children…if they really cared about children….

I am completely stymied, really, as to why media manure spreaders and their political cronies can’t see blame in the other examples of objects mentioned? They certainly and clearly see that blame ‘needs’ to rest on the guns??

Footnote:
Definition of ‘assault’; noun, a sudden, violent attack; onslaught.
Law, An unlawful physical attack upon another; an attempt or offer to do violence to another, with or without battery, as by holding a stone or club in a threatening manner.
Verb, (used with an object) to make an assault upon; attack; assail.

Moral of the story:

So ‘assault’ is a behavior, not a weapon, an object cannot ‘behave’ one way or another, it can only be manipulated.

It always ends up with a human engaging in unacceptable behavior, not the inanimate object a criminal uses….

Mark Shean and
Co-conspirator in this
Satirical endeavor
Ed Sinnott

The Past:

The Firearms Reform bill s.2367, was passed by the Ma. House and Senate making it law on 6-29-2004. It created the Firearms Licensing Review Board, (FLRB). Firearm license applicants disqualified by a prior misdemeanor conviction could now file a petition for review, (see Gun Sense #20) now moot, in front of a seven member board. The petition could be filed 5 years after the conviction, adjudication, commitment, probation or parole.

The Firearms Reform bill s.2367 merely took the existing state references to Federal law, and fixed the language to a point in time in 1994. Lawmakers followed that Federal language supposedly in 2004 as well, and believed the net effect on Ma gun owners should be zero.

Under M.G.L c. 140/ 130B, since 2004, people who were previously denied a firearm license were able to sometimes successfully petition the FLRB to regain or gain a firearm license. Police chiefs would ultimately have the final say but normally were comfortable with the findings of the FLRB.

PRESENT DAY:

Recently,…..

To read this chapter in full, and any other articles in the Gun Sense series, it is available as an Ebook and a Paperback at Amazon under:
Gun Sense Massachusetts Gun Law Information and Common Sense Firearm Safety By Mark R. Shean Sr.

Submitted by Mark Shean Sr. author of GUN SENSE, on Amazon.

BATFE Advises Ma. Firearm Licensing Review Board NOT to Restore Licenses

In a 2004 firearm licensing reform bill, GOAL was successful in establishing the Firearm Licensing Review Board (FLRB). The Board’s purpose was to restore Second Amendment Civil Rights to those who have had their rights taken away for having committed minor misdemeanors. According to the state, approximately 350 people have successfully acquired an FID Card or LTC by the Board.

Recently, GOAL has been made aware the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE) has advised the Department of Criminal Justice Informational Services (DCJIS) that the FLRB is issuing FID Cards or LTCs to persons who are considered to be prohibited under federal law. As a result, the DCJIS has shared a letter they have sent to the BATFE confirming their opinion.

Essentially, the BATFE is claiming that all of those that were granted an FID Card or LTC are still statutorily prohibited under federal law. Under federal law 18 U.S.C § 922(g) convictions for all of the applicants were misdemeanors punishable by more than 2 years. This would mean that the crime cannot be forgiven unless it is expunged or vacated somehow.

There has always been an issue with federal law not recognizing a so-called partial restoration of rights. They have always claimed that if a person loses their Second Amendment Civil Rights, they cannot be restored piece meal. Either they are fully restored or they are not. This would be similar in fashion to voting rights. If you were convicted of a crime that resulted in the loss of voting rights, the government would not accept a process that would restrict your right to vote in certain elections.

Another issue brought up by the BATFE was a 2007 United States Supreme Court case called Logan v. United States 552 U.S. 23. The use of this ruling involves language stating that civil rights cannot be restored that have not been taken. Essentially what the ruling is saying is that if the actual law a person violated does not itself include as a penalty the loss of rights, then the rights have not been taken. So for example, the penalty clause in the driving under the influence statute would have to list the loss of civil rights.

Our problem here is that the BATFE does not seem to equate the loss of a license to the loss of a civil right. In their eyes, the civil right is maintained, but the “privilege” of a license is lost. This is a very contorted way of looking at things to be sure.

GOAL has been informed that with the BATFE’s opinion, FID Cards or LTCs for those previously approved by the FLRB will no longer be renewed by the state. The state does have the authority to revoke a license, so they simply won’t renew them. However, local licensing authorities can make a decision to either revoke them or simply let them run out.

GOAL is consulting our friends at the national level to see if there is a way to rectify this problem. It is bad enough these good folks lost their rights once, now it is going to happen to them again.
DCJIS Letter:
FLRB Statute: https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXX/Chapter140/Section130B