U.S.A. –-(AmmoLand.com)- A phrase commonly found in news articles about self-defense with a firearm is “legally registered”. It is a bizarre phrase because the requirement to register guns is quite rare in the United States. In an article published on 21 February 2021, concerning an incident in Pennsylvania, bold added:
“Because if he was getting into my house, I probably would have done the same thing if I had a gun,” neighbor Robert Gonzalez said. “I’m just going to do things a lot safer, look out for myself. Make sure whoever comes, got a look, look at his face, see what’s going on. You know, probably scope him.”
Police say the gun the woman used was legally registered.
Readers of the article would be surprised to know, registration of firearms is illegal in Pennsylvania:
§ 6111.4. Registration of firearms.
Notwithstanding any section of this chapter to the contrary, nothing in this chapter shall be construed to allow any government or law enforcement agency or any agent thereof to create, maintain or operate any registry of firearm ownership within this Commonwealth. For the purposes of this section only, the term “firearm” shall include any weapon that is designed to or may readily be converted to expel any projectile by the action of an explosive or the frame or receiver of any such weapon.
After 90 years of an intense push for gun registration by Progressives, starting with the FDR administration, only two states require registration of all guns. According to the strong proponent of restrictions on gun ownership, the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, the two states are California and Hawaii.
New York requires the registration of handguns.
Three more states, (Maryland, New Jersey, and Connecticut), besides California, Hawaii, and New York, require registration of very specific firearms such as “assault pistols”, “assault weapons”, and .50 caliber rifles.
There are nine states which ban the registration of firearms, Arizona, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and South Dakota. Federal gun registration (except NFA items) is banned by federal statute.
Other examples of the misuse of the phrase “legally registered” were easily found (bold added). From Missouri, Sept 11, 2020:
ST. LOUIS, Mo. – Two men were robbed at gunpoint in south St. Louis with their own gun.
A driver stopped at a gas station on South Grand at Connecticut Street around 12:30 am Friday. A man approached the men in the car and tried to sell them drugs.
When the people in the vehicle refused, the man returned and grabbed their legally registered gun from their car. He robbed them of some cash and took off with their gun. No one was injured.
No registration of guns is required in Missouri.
Here is another from Pennsylvania 11 May, 2016:
The legally registered gun was left in the school employee’s car on the center’s parking lot last Tuesday, May 3, officials said.
Later the same day, the employee, whose name has not been released, arranged to have students work on the car as part of one of the school’s training programs, officials said.
At the end of the work day, at approximately 3 p.m., the employee reported to center officials that the gun was missing.
In an article about an assassination attempt on George Zimmerman, in 2015, the phrase was used.
West said Zimmerman had a legally registered gun in his truck but denied he brandished it. He said Apperson could not have seen the gun because Zimmerman has tinted windows.
Zimmerman, who suffered scratches when the bullet pierced his windshield, is cooperating with investigators and credits God with saving his life, West said.
Florida is one of the states where it illegal to register firearms. From the Florida statute:
2. A list, record, or registry of legally owned firearms or law-abiding firearm owners is not a law enforcement tool and can become an instrument for profiling, harassing, or abusing law-abiding citizens based on their choice to own a firearm and exercise their Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms as guaranteed under the United States Constitution. Further, such a list, record, or registry has the potential to fall into the wrong hands and become a shopping list for thieves.
Here is another example from Pennsylvania in, 2015:
Two males were walking on Mitchell Street and Monastery Avenue in Roxborough around 11 p.m. Monday when a 39-year-old male came out of a home and began shooting at them with a rifle.
One of the pedestrians pulled out his legally registered gun and returned fire at the suspect. The suspect then ran back inside the home and barricaded himself inside.
Why is the term “legally registered” frequently and erroneously used in reporting about self-defense and firearms?
The purpose appears to be Orwellian. It is to transfer into the reader’s mind the policy desire of the reporter.
Either consciously or unconsciously, the reporter has been indoctrinated to believe firearms may only be owned with the permission of the state, the permission is temporary and readily removed, and ownership of firearms is a suspicious activity that must be highly regulated.
In Orwell’s novel, 1984, members of the Party instinctively know what to say to promote ideas accepted by the Party.
Consider a similar phrase, seldom applied to crime victims (unless to push a particular objective). Consider “unarmed victim”.
Consider the implications, if each time an unarmed person was victimized during an encounter with a criminal, reporters described the victim as “unarmed”.
Such reporting, unlike the term “legally registered” would be accurate.
The implication would be: why was the victim unarmed? The implication would be the victim might have prevented the crime, if they had been armed.
George Orwell was one of the most successful authors to show how language is used and weaponized by totalitarians.
One of the primary defenses against such propaganda is to learn and use precise language.
The term “legally registered” is meant to indoctrinate the population into accepting the registration of firearms as ordinary, well-established, and desirable. So far, the indoctrination has not been successful.
About Dean Weingarten:
Dean Weingarten has been a peace officer, a military officer, was on the University of Wisconsin Pistol Team for four years, and was first certified to teach firearms safety in 1973. He taught the Arizona concealed carry course for fifteen years until the goal of Constitutional Carry was attained. He has degrees in meteorology and mining engineering, and retired from the Department of Defense after a 30 year career in Army Research, Development, Testing, and Evaluation.
It’s because Republican politicians don’t push back – they allow Democrats to control the narrative and the vocabulary. A large percentage of white, suburban women believe: Guns must be legally registered; Gun violence is a thing; Assault weapons are actually things; AR15s are assault rifles; AR15s are automatic; and Violent criminals obey gun control laws, so we need more laws. They believe those things and they look at you funny if you tell them they are misinformed. How often do you hear Republican politicians who are “fighting for our 2nd Amendment rights” attempt to correct the misconceptions? How often do… Read more »
I have many thousands of books and remember the phase legally registered even in books from the 40’s and 50’s.
There has been a push by the media for decades to convince the American people that gun control is the way.
I agree – and not much push back.
https://boebert.house.gov/issues
Definitely sends a message.
She could also add something about the 2nd Amendment to the existing list of issues on her website. She could differentiate herself from her Republican colleagues by beginning to put some of the more commonly proposed gun laws in that section and provide arguments against the laws.
A subset of the people who look up to her don’t understand the issues.
No doubt. I suspect interviews of white women living in and near Denver and Boulder would yield a different result.
She could be helpful in influencing people all across the US who are willing to learn and who look to her as someone they respect. They have been lied to for a long time and they take a different view on why laws should be passed.
“A large percentage of white, suburban women believe.”
Good luck trying to show them that what they “believe” is in fact not so. You might as well piss into the wind. Of course they are joined by many others of various stripes. Stupid people make me tired. Willfully ignorant people make me tired. I spend a lot of my time being tired these days. One day I will rest and those people won’t bother me anymore.
It’s un uphill battle now for sure.
RoyD,
AMEN!
Guns are registered to the purchaser with the FFL application process and that should be all that is required . Those purchase records are available to law enforcement if a crime is committed with a firearm . Any further registration by states is unconstitutional as it is infringement . I would not live in a state that requires a secondary registration. If Joe signs executive orders requiring registration of all firearms I will not comply. I legally bought my guns and the FFL paper was filled out and I passed the background check . I own them and the FFL… Read more »
FFLs do not “register to the purchaser” the guns they sell or perform a transfer for. They keep a record of the transaction, but it is not a “registration”.
Biden want’s to make criminals out of every law abiding gun owner. Last time I checked the took an oath to DEFEND the Constitution not DESTROY it! MORON in Chief is all I can say.
The problem with guns and the 2nd amendment is purely contrived. A perceived threat is just that, perceived. Now that the media is the propaganda wing of the left. Anything is fair game. Now even free speech is a threat. Especially when anyone speaks against the leftist dogma.
if federal law says no firearms registrations, why or how can states do so?
The news uses the term “registered gun” or “unregistered gun” a lot. So does almost every TV series or show that deals with law enforcement. I think mostly because they are uninformed or do not understand the term. They assume registration is required or as Dean says, they are trying to give the impression firearms registration is an okay or necessary thing. Or maybe if your State doesn’t have registration, it should because TV said so. The most under-reported thing ever about registration is Canada had long-gun registration for 14 years. I say HAD because after 14 years and a cost of $2.7… Read more »
Kind of ironic isn’t it that a gun can be illegal, but invaders who enter our Country illegally can’t be called illegals. It’s racist they say.
It seems to me these progressives need to review the licensing processes and requirements involved in the government authorized press. Maybe a waiting period on the publication of articles would enhance editorial quality and fact checking. State or federal government mandated and provided journalism safety courses, anyone? How about a background check on every journalist each time they want to publish to make absolutely sure that they have not become a pedophile over night. And those word processors. They really need some oversight by the feds. Far too many loopholes in their spell checks and auto fill functions. Some should… Read more »
fact, think not; look at history…
Cuba
Nazi Germany
Russia
China….
not the US you say
CA, NY
As a “Trial Run” just to see how it goes, lets try REGISTERING/LICENSING JOURNALISTS……….
IMOA, Registration will lead to confiscation in the future, they’ll know where the guns are and where to get them when you fail to comply to voluntarily to turn them in.
I’ve seen the same term used with ammo. As Capitol for example. Unregistered ammo. lol
There are other States where a specific ban on registration does not exist in Law, but the State also does not have a Law requiring registration. I live in South Carolina and there is no ban or requirement for registration.
In fact 43 States neither require or prohibit registration.
ballotpedia dot org/Firearm_registration_requirements_by_state
“There are nine states which ban the registration of firearms, Arizona, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and South Dakota.”
Partially incorrect. Vermont bans registration. Arizona only bans local registration.
Federal gun registration (except NFA items) is banned by federal statute.
Sir,
I notice that you refer to PA several times. IIRC, the State Police do keep a list of handguns purchased even though that is illegal. I remember reading about it a few years ago.
Also, the People’s Republic of MA registers all modern firearms. It’s now online and digital. It used to require filling out an IBM card-sized form, either at licensed dealer (at both Federal and State levels) or for a private transfer (which would then be mailed to the State Place HQ).
You would think that after WWII, there would be more acceptance of the right to bear arms, but I do not see that in TV shows of the time. Perry Mason of California usually hammers home the permit or registered phraseology. Some of the westerns of the time depict the acceptance of gun prohibitions in western towns post 14th Amendment, as if nobody knew what the 14th Amendment conveyed about other rights. Of course, Hollywood made these shows but people across this country watched them without pause. People do not seem to be supporters of the Rule of Law in… Read more »
And just think, so many were concerned about a “Bump Stock” ban!
I think many were concerned with yet another Republican politician flip-flopping on gun control: Failure to get the “2nd Amendment Coalition” up and running (like he promised less than a week before the 2016 election) Setting an example by ordering the Administrative State to implement gun control via Presidential Memorandum Re-opening the issue of rate of fire and the things that can influence it (that logic path will eventually be used against semi-automatic firearms in general) Giving further credence to the notion that inanimate objects are the cause of violent crime Encouraging and commending Red Flag laws Encouraging the seizing… Read more »
I must have heard him incorrectly. My apologies.
Regarding not encouraging the next guy to flip-flop or my facetious comment about hearing him incorrectly?
“It is the Sheriffs duty to protect the citizens”. In my case my sheriff did not support my 2nd Amendment rights. It is therefore up to me to hold the Constitutional line.
HLB
A truly excellent insightful analysis , JSNMGC ! Although the Bumpstock was an accessory amounting to two pieces of plastic, many that see themselves as pro-gun saw only the item and ignored and condemned any defense of it , rather than recognizing the method of restriction was plainly unconstitutional. Let us not forget that as the president changed horses with his new found willingness to consider gun control measures, Wayne La Pierre literally stood right by his side. Much has been said about Rush Limbaugh recently with his passing. I can not praise him either because he paid so little… Read more »
Seems like you’re the kind of guy who got us this current nightmare administration. Are you truly better off now than you were then?
I’m the kind of guy who voted for Trump in 2016 and 2020.
I’m the kind of guy who developed relationships with state level Republican party officials and, prior to the 2020 election, begged them to contact Trump’s sons to sit down with their father and have him order the BATFE to stand down on their escalating enforcement on braced pistols because, not only was it wrong, it was going to cost Trump votes from the firearm community.
Why do you hate the truth?
Why do you want to encourage future Republican candidates to implement more gun control?
Huh?
Did you read what he said?
He is saying Trump, Rush, and worthless La Pierre (what a piece of crap) should have done more.
We are in this situation because almost all of SCOTUS are a bunch of worthless pieces of crap and are just as bad as the Liberal Socialist Left.
For the first time I’m actually ashamed to be an American.
TDS-Type B. Dubi Loo is fine with yet more gun control as long as the legislation is encouraged by Trump and signed into law by Trump. Not only that, but he gets upset when people (who have worked diligently to preserve rights protected the 2nd Amendment) point out the facts. Hero-worship is what has gotten us to where we are – almost all gun control was passed with the support of numerous Republican politicians. If we ever want to stop the continual erosion of our rights we have to be prepared to hold politicians to a higher standard. Trump did… Read more »
Yes, because all arms laws are unconstitutional and every infringement should be resisted. 2A advocates understand this.
“Legally Registered” certainly sounds redundant. Maybe there is such a thing as ” Illegally Registered “. I’m thinking the law that prohibited the government from establishing a nation wide gun registration system depended on any paper records of the transaction held by the government had to be destroyed in 30 days. This was done in a time when electronic records where not a consideration. Maybe our government has it’s own little loophole.
Does anyone know of a law that specifically forbids the government from keeping electronic records to establish Registration Lists ?
The last time any sort of nationwide “registration” was required was and still is with the Selective Service System and the active Vietnam era draft. We have no idea of the compliance rate today, but in the early 70’s the non compliance broke the system. That was active unarmed non compliance and deliberate obstructionism. Imagine how much more an armed non compliance could accomplish.
You’re giving LEOs heart palpitations.
The consensus among the majority of them seems to be:
Is that you Harold?
You commented on armed non-compliance.
Who are those armed non-compliers going to be confronting – David Hogg? Robert Francis O’Rourke?
The last time you walked away from this conversation.
The items I listed above do seem to be the consensus among LEOs who have commented here and elsewhere.
Harold is off on a different path – the reference is odd.
And just like that . . . poof.
3 % is all it takes, poofter.
Then why did you ask if I was Harold?
Why the personal attacks – now you call me a homosexual and last time you questioned my education.
My first post was supporting your comment.
Seriously, what is your position and why do you get so angry?
“One of the primary defenses against such propaganda is to learn and use precise language.” Exactly so. Learn to be precise in your speech and endeavor to use neutral terminology rather than push an agenda. “Unarmed victim” is NOT a neutral term. Neither is “legally registered”. Both push an agenda, but two polar opposites. A second very important defense is just to be aware of the speech that others use. If someone is using these types of loaded propaganda terms while talking with you, beware of that person’s hidden agenda! Once one starts looking for people’s secrets, one usually finds… Read more »