Daily Archives: November 11, 2014

Michael Baryl, of Tracy Rifle & Pistol, has until February to take down this window display to comply with a Bureau of Firearms order. (Photo: Tracy Rifle and Pistol)

How much is that handgun in the window?

Thats a question Californians cant ask, thanks to a law that states handguns, or even pictures of them, may not be visible from outside of gun stores. Four Golden State gun dealers are challenging the law, saying its their First Amendment right to advertise their wares.

I run one of the most heavily regulated and inspected businesses in existence, but its still illegal for me to show customers that I sell handguns until after they walk in the door, said Michael Baryla, the owner of Tracy Rifle & Pistol. Thats about as silly a law as you could imagine, even here in California.

While most federal lawsuits involving gun rights invoke the Second Amendment, the gun dealers are claiming it is their First Amendment right to freedom of speech that is violated by California Penal Code section 26820. That law, first enacted in 1923, bans gun stores from putting up signs advertising the sale of handguns but not shotguns or rifles.

The First Amendment prevents the government from telling businesses it disfavors that they cant engage in truthful advertising, said Bradley Benbrook, the lead attorney on a legal team that also includes UCLA Law Professor Eugene Volokh.

- Michael Baryla, the owner of Tracy Rifle & Pistol

Controversial goods and services, such as abortion and contraceptives, are clearly protected under the First Amendment, Benbrook added.

The suit was filed Monday in the Eastern District of California, in Sacramento. It names California Attorney General Kamala Harris and Stephen Lindley, who heads the state Department of Justices Bureau of Firearms, as co-defendants.

Tracy Rifle and Pistol, a gun store and firing range in San Joaquin County, was recently cited by state authorities for having pictures of three handguns in window signs that could be seen from outside the store. A photo of an AR-15 rifle in an adjacent window, part of a display ad for which Baryla paid a total of $3,000, did not draw a citation. He has until February to take down the photos.

Excerpt from:
Gun dealers sue over law barring window displays

Director Jeff Osborne might not know how the First Amendment works

Nicki Minaj took some well-deserved flak for her recent"Only"lyric videodue to its alleged use of Nazi imagery. To her credit, Minaj issued a convincing and sincere-seeming apology on Twitter earlier today, explaining that although the Nazi connection was uninentional, she took "full responsibility if it has offended anyone," adding that she'd "never condone Nazism in my art."

However, the video's director Jeff Osborne was thoroughly unrepentant in a conversation withMySpace, boldly stating that the imagery really was "all representative of Nazism." We'll let Osborne throw himself under the bus in his own words:

Before I start, be clear that these are my personal views and not the views of Nicki Minaj, Drake, Lil Wayne, Chris Brown, or Young Money.

First,I'm not apologizing for my work, nor will I dodge the immediate question. The flags, armbands, and gas mask (and perhaps my use of symmetry?) areall representative of Nazism.

But a majority of the recognizable models/symbols are American: MQ9 Reaper Drone, F22 Raptor, Sidewinder missile, security cameras, M60, SWAT uniform, General's uniform, the Supreme court, and the Lincoln Memorial. What's also American is the 1stAmendment, which I've unexpectedly succeeded in showing how we willfully squeeze ourselves out of that right every day.

Despite the fact heavy religious and economic themes were glossed over, there's also Russian T-90 tanks, Belgian FN FAL, German mp5 (not manufactured until 1966), an Italian Ferrari, and a Vatican Pope.

As far as an explanation, I think its actually important to remind younger generations of atrocities that occurred in the past as a way to prevent them from happening in the future. And the most effective way of connecting with people today is through social media and pop culture.So if my work is misinterpreted because it's not a sappy tearjerker, sorry I'm not sorry. What else is trending?

If Osborne's words are to be understood, the director apparentlywants people to commemorate the horrific events of Holocaust by watching a music video in which Nicki Minaj boasts about who she has or hasn't slept with. Osborne also seems to lack any sort of understanding of what the First Amendment actually means yes, he's free to make this stupid video, but the rest of the country is also free to give him crap for making such a stupid video. That's the American way, after all.

The rest is here:
Director of Nicki Minaj's 'Only' Video Refuses to Apologize for Nazi Imagery