Questions for the Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) As It Pertains to Stabilizing Braces5/5/2023 The Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) administration has now retroactively decreed through a new unconstitutional and arbitrary "rule" (ATF Rule 2021R-08F) earlier this year (January 31, 2023) that pistol stabilizing braces are now illegal to own, possess and/or use unless you comply with their new law or what they call, "rule". Once the "rule" was published (ATF "rule" link), an individual in possession of an unregistered pistol stabilizing brace was technically committing an arrestable felony offense. Thankfully, the ATF was kind enough to allow for an amnesty period that expired on June 1, 2023. Following the amnesty period, the ATF expects law-abiding citizens to bend the knee, or what they call "comply" with their new "rule". Compliance with the new "rule" is not as simple as it should be. This is due to government overcomplicating things, along with conflicting statements made by Steven Dettelbach (ATF Director) during his testimony (under oath) before Congress on April 26, 2023 (testimony link) and then later by the ATF. During questioning from Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), Director Steven Dettelback implied through a statement that if an individual simply removed the stabilizing brace from their pistol, that was sufficient means of compliance. The ATF later stated that was not sufficient means of compliance and laid forth the following guidance.
All of those "options" provided by the ATF are not rational options. This is why I say that. For over 10 years an individual could legally and without any restrictions own, possess, and use a stabilizing brace on a pistol. That is not opinion or hyperbole, that is fact corroborated by the ATF on multiple occasions. For 10 years the ATF stated it was legal and then because of political pressure (they did the same thing with the bump fire stock following pressure from then President Trump), the ATF altered and/or changed definitions to better fit certain criteria and categories. Then, through the use of a new "rule", they go back on their previous statements and positions to make was what once a legal and common use object now an illegal, but still common use object. The ATF put this new "rule" out after millions of people purchased stabilizing braces. The exact numbers are not known, but estimates are between 10 - 40 million people own a stabilizing brace. This means the ATF, along with the politicians pushing and backing this new "rule" willingly and knowingly put a large number of law-abiding citizens into a no win legal position for possession of an object, that they were told by the government was legal to be in possession of, but now, through no fault of their own and without due process, they are forced to destroy, surrender, or register their property or face criminal prosecution. It is the job of government to protect our rights, not limit them. The actions of the government as it pertains to stabilizing braces is without a doubt limitation of rights. If they are willing to publicly do this to millions of Americans, just think what they will do outside of the public view. Another dangerous aspect of this is the precedent this sets. What other rights will the government arbitrarily infringe on? Some people vigorously embrace this action from the government because those same people do not support the Second Amendment and believe that no private citizen should be able to exercise their Second Amendment Right. That is fine, people have the right to be willfully ignorant. But if those same people think for a second that the government, at some point, will not come for a Right that they support, they are filled with stupidity. History has shown, governments will always seek more power and when they take a Right from the people, the people never get it back. The stabilizing brace issue is a pivotal moment as it pertains to free people. QuestionsQuestion 1: What is the difference between an ATF rule and a law? Question 2: Where does the ATF get the authority to lawfully punish/prosecute a person for breaking or failing to comply with an ATF rule? Question 3: Was this new rule specifically designed to target law abiding citizens who own pistol braces or was this law designed to target lawless, violent criminals who may or may not own pistol braces? Question 4: According to the research done and data compiled by the ATF in order to make this new rule not be arbitrarily constructed and disenfranchise a certain group of people for absolutely no legal reason, who is believed to own more pistol braces. Law-abiding citizens or lawless, violent criminals? Question 5: Who does the ATF have a problem with, law-abiding citizens or lawless, violent criminals? Question 6: Who does the ATF expect to largely comply with this new rule. Law-abiding citizens or lawless, violent criminals? Question 7: If it’s law-abiding citizens why did the ATF create a new rule targeting them? If it’s lawless, violent criminals, why didn’t the ATF create a new rule targeting only the criminal? Question 8: After millions of people legally purchased and used a pistol brace, why did the ATF suddenly change their mind and decide to put law-abiding citizens in a “no win” and compromising situation for owning/using something that was legal and without committing any previous crime? Question 9: According to the research done and data compiled by the ATF, does the ATF believe that the “safety” this new rule brings about benefit society more than it benefits the millions of law abiding citizens that will potentially be labeled and prosecuted as felons now from owning and using a piece of plastic/metal that was once legal and is not a firearm? Question 10: If the benefit to society does not greatly outweigh the damage done to millions of law-abiding citizens, why is the ATF implementing this new rule? What is their motivation? Question 11: The ATF is kind enough to give people options on how they can comply with this new rule (thank you for that). Unfortunately, none of these options provide compensation for loss of property and/or time occurred by the owner in order to comply. The only compensation is lack of prosecution if one complies. Therefore, compelled seems to be a more accurate term as one would be “complying” in lieu of prosecution for owning and using something that even the ATF said was legal not that long ago. One of those options is to register the firearm as short barrel rifle (SBR) what is the realistic turn around time from moment of application submission to approval? As it stands right now, that takes many months. What happens when all of a sudden millions of applications are submitted onto of the backlog. With it now be years? Question 12: As it pertains to bump stocks, in June of 2018 the ATF said they “misclassified” some bump stock devices, which is why the agency is “entitled” to “correct” its “mistakes”. Is the same true with pistol braces? Did the ATF misclassify some pistol braces and are you now “correcting” a “mistake” on your part by issuing this new rule? If so, why does the ATF continually make these “mistakes” that will eventually lead to Americans, in some cases, millions of Americans being deprived of their property? Also, how do we (The People) know that this new rule is not yet another misclassification mistake on the part of the ATF? A reasonable person can surmise that ATF “mistakes” in the past can also happen in the present and in the future. Question 13: Are these “mistakes” made by the ATF and later “corrected” by the ATF a result of intentional deprivation of property owned by American citizens, ATF incompetence, political pressure, and/or agenda driven? If the answer to any of those is yes, leadership within the ATF should be immediately held accountable both civilly and criminally and the ATF should be dissolved since they cannot be trusted to protect the rights of The People. Question 14: What is the next piece of property that is now legal to own and use that the ATF will realize they “mistakenly misclassified” and demanded that the American people comply with (using fear of future prosecution)? In other words, what will the ATF go after next? Optics, magazines, grips, slings, triggers, charging handles, rifle cases, muzzle breaks, flip up sights, weapon mounted lights, lasers, thermal optics, etc. I would like to know that why I can better prepare to be deprived of my property, money, and/or time for subjective and arbitrary reasons without any compensation. Question 15: What does the ATF care more about as it pertains the the Second Amendment Rights of American citizens? 1: Protecting those Right from government overreach. 2: Infringing on those Rights using government overreach. The answer is either 1 or 2. There is no explanation or sidestep needed as the answer is that simple. Question 16: The ATF is allowing individuals who own pistol braces to submit the short barrel rifle paperwork without paying the fee since the ATF changed the definition which now negatively effects millions of Americans. Technically an individual is not supposed to be in possession of a SBR until their paperwork is submitted and they are approved. Since the ATF has now made millions of Americans be in possession of what they classify as an SBR, those said Americans are now in possession. If they submit that paperwork and they get an automatic deny due to background being open for more than 88 days (assuming it is because of the overflow of new submissions) what will happen to that individual? Since the ATF is making people incriminate themselves (submission of paperwork), with the ATF then take enforcement action against them for being in possession of an SBR because they government changed the definition on the previously legal item they owned? If enforcement action is taken, what can that individual expect to have happen? This situation is being caused because of the government. What this an unintentional oversight of the writers of this new rule or an intentional “oversight” to turn law abiding citizens into felons and take their guns from them? Intentional or unintentional, this is a problem. Question 17: Does this new “rule” limit our rights or protect our rights? Video Version of This Article
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To all the brave men and women in military uniform who serve this great nation across the world, we here at Intuitive Defense would like to thank you for your endless service. We know the job is not always easy, but we also understand it is necessary. As a former member of the military myself, I can relate to the difficulties faced and sacrifices made to ensure this great country continues moving forward. My time overseas and stateside was made easier by companies who helped us out by offering great products at a discounted price. Now that I run my own business, I want to do the same thing. Intuitive Defense sticker and patch designs are more for entertainment purposes than real-world practicality. Having said that, we understand how important it is to have something tangible that can bring a smile to you or your friends face before, during, or after operating in hostile environments or to help break up the daily grind of the job. We hope that Intuitive Defense product designs can do just that and as such, we would like to extend you a discount on your purchase. At checkout, enter discount code Military15 for 15% off your entire order (before shipping). Please note, this discount is not applicable to training, just tangible products. We work on the honor system, therefore, you do not need to prove service to be eligible for this discount. Lastly, this code is good for each and every time you place an order! Thank you again, Baker, owner of Intuitive Defense Infantry (11B) | E6 (SSG) | 2 Deployments - Intuitive Defense -
Train. Act. Live. To all the brave men and women in a law enforcement uniform who protect and serve communities all across this great nation, we here at Intuitive Defense would like to thank you for your endless service. We know the job is not always easy, but we also understand it is necessary. As a former member of law enforcement myself, I can relate to the difficulties faced and sacrifices made to ensure this great country, along with each and every community continues moving forward. My time as a law enforcement officer was made easier by companies who helped us out by offering great products at a discounted price. Now that I run my own business, I want to do the same thing. Intuitive Defense product designs, such as stickers and patches are more more for entertainment purposes than real-world practicality. Having said that, we understand how important it is to have something tangible that can bring a smile to you or your friends face before, during, or after operating in hostile environments or to help break up the daily grind of the job. We hope that Intuitive Defense can do just that and as such, we would like to extend you a discount on your purchase. At checkout, enter discount code LEO15 for 15% off your entire order (before shipping). We work on the honor system, therefore, you do not need to prove service to be eligible for this discount. Lastly, this code is good for each and every time you place an order! Thank you again, Baker, owner of Intuitive Defense Sheriff's Deputy | Sergeant (SGT) | S.W.A.T. Team Leader | TFO, United States Marshals Service - Intuitive Defense -
Train. Act. Live. To all the brave men and women wearing any type of first responder uniform who serve communities all across this great nation, we here at Intuitive Defense would like to thank you for your endless service. We know the job is not always easy, but we also understand it is necessary. As a former member of law enforcement who worked alongside Firefighters, EMS, and other specialized personnel, I can relate to the difficulties faced and sacrifices made to ensure that communities and their people are taken care of in times of need. My time as a first responder was made easier by companies who helped us out by offering great products at a discounted price. Now that I run my own business, I want to do the same thing. Intuitive Defense product designs, such as stickers and patches are more more for entertainment purposes than real-world practicality. Having said that, we understand how important it is to have something tangible that can bring a smile to you or your friends face before, during, or after operating in hostile environments or to help break up the daily grind of the job. We hope that Intuitive Defense can do just that and as such, we would like to extend you a discount on your purchase. At checkout, enter discount code FirstResponder15 for 15% off your entire order (before shipping). Please note, this discount is not applicable to Intuitive Defense training, just our tangible products. We work on the honor system, therefore, you do not need to prove service to be eligible for this discount. Lastly, this code is good for each and every time you place an order! Thank you again, Baker, owner of Intuitive Defense Sheriff's Deputy | Sergeant (SGT) | S.W.A.T. Team Leader | TFO, United States Marshals Service - Intuitive Defense -
Train. Act. Live. This letter is in response to his (Senator Bill Cassidy) involvement with drafting an agreement on principle for gun safety legislation on Sunday, June 12, 2022. Some of these proposed laws seem "reasonable" on the surface, but just like current gun laws, have the potential for further restrictions as it pertains to existing and/or new legal gun owners. I will list the main talking points of each proposed gun law. For further information on each or all points, please reference the article on the CNN Website.
LetterSenator Bill Cassidy,
Good morning sir. I do not know if you directly read these emails or if a representative of yours does, but I will address this as though you and I are speaking. Before going any further, I would like to give my background and experiences because it is relevant to this topic. I served in the United States Army (active duty and Louisiana National Guard) for approximately 11 years before being honorably discharged with the rank of Staff Sergeant/E-6, along with having two deployments to Iraq. I also have approximately 10 years in law enforcement with time spent in Narcotics, S.W.A.T. Team, and other specialized units to include a Task Force Officer (TFO) for the United States Marshals Service, Violent Offender Task Force based out of Lafayette, Louisiana. I left law enforcement with the rank of Sergeant for an antiterrorism/counterterrorism position overseas. I am still actively working overseas and am currently in the Middle East. Now the reason for this email. According to several media sites, you, along with several other Senators (Republican and Democrat) have engaged in a "compromise" as it pertains to "reducing gun violence". I have some concerns regarding this agreement on principle for gun safety legislation, which I will list below. 1) Senator Chris Murphy stated as part of a tweet announcing the deal, that it "will save lives". I would like to know the overall intentions of this "deal" along with the factual data on how more gun laws will save more lives and how these measures will be monitored/tracked to ensure that in fact these actions work. 2) Who will these new proposed laws actually impact most? Existing and/or new legal gun owners or lawless criminals? 3) Does any or all of the new proposed laws in the slightest way begin to or does infringe on the rights and freedoms of the American people? 4) Could any or all of the new proposed laws in the slightest way begin to or does open up the door (at any time) for federal and/or state governing agencies to restrict and/or remove the rights and freedoms of the American people without due process? 5) Do current gun laws impact existing and/or new legal gun owners more or less than lawless criminals? 6) Are any of these new proposed laws directed specifically at existing and/or new legal gun owners or lawless criminals? 7) "Who" is the problem? Existing and/or new legal gun owners or lawless criminals? 8) "What" is the problem? The object (gun) or the person (lawless criminal)? 9) Do any of these new proposed laws actually impact/target "who" and "what" the problem is? If so, is it the real problem? 11) Could any or all of the new proposed laws in the slightest way limit and/or reduce an existing and/or new legal gun owners ability to adequately protect them, their family or others in a defensive use situation? If so, what is the largest priority? Knowingly and willfully limiting and/or reducing one's ability for self defense or possibly limiting and/or reducing the actions of a lawless criminal, assuming they are concerned with and abide by these new proposed laws? 12) Using existing gun laws as a reference, do any or all of the current laws in the slightest way limit and/or reduce an existing and/or new legal gun owners ability to protect themselves, their family or others in a defensive use situation? If so, what is the largest priority? Knowingly and willfully limiting and/or reducing one's ability for self defense or possibly limiting and/or reducing the actions of a lawless criminal, assuming they are concerned with and abide by the current gun laws? 13) Factually speaking, will these new proposed laws be more effective at stopping lawless criminals than the existing gun laws? If so, how? If not, what is the point of the new proposed laws? 14) Who is drafting and/or helping to draft these new proposed laws? People who have real world experiences with guns and/or using them in defensive use situations (along with other pertinent topics) or people who have little to no real world experience? If it is solely being drafted and/or influenced by people who are not well-versed (subject matter experts) in these matters, why are they doing it? 15) Are these new proposed laws born out of facts and logic or feelings and emotions? Which one of those is more important and plays a larger role in the real world? Do you, Senator Bill Cassidy, truly believe that any or all of these new proposed laws on their own will save more lives from the actions of lawless criminals or limit and/or fail to give law abiding citizens the means to effectively save their own lives from the actions of lawless criminals? I understand you are a busy individual and I thank you for your work and service to Louisiana. I hope this email finds its way to you for review. I know an immediate response, more specifically an in-depth response from you personally is an unrealistic expectation, but from one professional to another, I trust to hear something at some point. These questions are very important to me especially since these proposed laws could restrict certain rights and freedoms of the American people. Because the government can not guarantee my safety all the time, it is my opinion that self defense is a personal responsibility. As such, if I so choose, I should have access, without further limitation, to the most effective means of protection; a gun, whether it be a pistol, rifle, and/or shotgun. "It is not the job of government to limit our rights, it is their job to protect them". My last question to you sir, do any or all of the new proposed laws limit our rights or protect our rights? Thank you for your time Senator. We understand that not everyone has the ability to purchase a gun and/or equipment right away. We also understand that some people who are new to guns and certain related equipment might not have the experience needed to make an educated purchase on what might be best for them. We have seen too many people who purchase their first gun on the advice of a friend or gun shop employee only to find out on the range that that gun is not right for them. If you find yourself in either one of the above-mentioned categories or similar situations and still want to benefit from our training courses, we highly recommend using our equipment to complete the training. This is a great way for you to get the training you need along with gaining firearms experience and how they function to see what is right for you before making a large purchase. Something else we offer is the ability to purchase ammunition from us. We understand that sometimes certain calibers can be difficult to find in stock, especially in larger quantities needed for a training course. If you want to benefit from our training and already have your own equipment, but you are unable to find ammunition or you are new to the types of ammunition or for any other reason, you can purchase it from us. We will make sure it is available to you on the day of training. You can purchase a full loadout or partial loadout (100 round increments) if you already of have some of your own. Lastly, a unique thing we offer to those who are new to handguns/rifles or those looking at purchasing another handgun/rifle is what we call the "John Wick Experience”. With this you can shoot several different makes, models, and calibers, of handguns and/or rifles at the end of the training course. This is a great way to experience other handguns/rifles and see first had the differences between them, especially if you are looking at buying your first handgun/rifle and/or a new one. The John Wick Experience includes the 100 rounds of ammunition along with the different types of handguns/rifles you want to shoot and a John Wick patch. You can shoot all one caliber or several different calibers as we will have different calibers available for your 100 rounds. Please note this is course specific. The handguns are made available for handgun training courses and to those who purchased the John Wick Experience only. The rifles are made available for the rifle training courses and those who purchase the the John Wick Experience only. Below are prices and options for equipment rentals and/or ammunition purchases, along with additional information on the John Wick Experience. Please note, depending on the current market, some prices might fluctuate. Gun and Equipment Rental Handgun Only: $45.00 Glock 9mm (17, 19, 19X or 45X) or similar style pistol with holster, 3 magazines, and magazine holder/carrier Rifle Only: $65.00 AR-15 with red dot sight, adjustable sling, 3 magazines, and magazine holder/carrier Gun/Equipment and Ammunition Bundle $245.00 – Handgun (9mm Glock or similar 9mm style pistol) with training course ammunition $340.00 – Rifle (AR-15) with 5.56 with training course ammunition Ammunition Purchase Full Loadout: Ammunition loadout specific to the selected training course (price depends on caliber and course type) Partial Loadout: $40.00 – 9mm, Full Metal Jacket (FMJ), 100 rounds $50.00 – .40 caliber, Full Metal Jacket (FMJ), 100 rounds $60.00 – .45 ACP, Full Metal Jacket (FMJ), 100 rounds $55.00 – 5.56, Full Metal Jacket (FMJ), 100 rounds $55.00 – .223, Full Metal Jacket (FMJ), 100 rounds The John Wick Experience Handgun: $95.00 Includes 100 rounds of ammunition and your choice of handguns to shoot, along with a John Wick patch Rifle: $125.00 Includes 100 rounds of ammunition and your choice of rifles and/or pistol caliber carbines (PCCs) to shoot, along with a John Wick patch
* The John Wick Experience Disclaimer: The handguns are made available for handgun training courses and to those who purchase the John Wick Experience only. The rifles are made available for rifle training courses and those who purchase the John Wick Experience only. Please note, not all listed handguns and/or rifles (to include PCCs) will always be available, but there will always be a variety of different handguns and/or rifles (to include PCCs). If you have any questions regarding this or other topics, please contact use here: EMAIL
Intuitive Defense, LLC "Train. Act. Live." WARNING: This post is about freedom, individual thought, and pointing out hypocrisy. If those things intimidate you, I’d recommend retreating to your “safe space” immediately. Wear a mask or don’t wear a mask, leave your house or don’t leave your house, get the vax or don’t get the vax, go to a crowded event or don’t go to a crowded event; I don’t care because at the end of the day you have the freedom to make your own choice that you think is best for you based on your own specific reasons and health. Life is dangerous and every day without question we make decisions that could positively or negatively affect others. Your freedom does not end where someone else fear beings. What I do find annoying over the last 18 months is politicians and celebrities who have been continually preaching to the masses about how “selfish” or “irresponsible” you are for not wearing a mask, or not social distancing, but when they have the opportunity to praise themselves, they do it at crowded events while not wearing masks. We’ve seen this “rules for thee, not me” mentality from elitist politicians and celebrities time and time again. Based on their political affiliation or social group allegiance they are given a pass to create or attend events or parties that would be otherwise labeled as a “super spreader event” if done by other people/groups. These range from Obama’s birthday party to the Met Gala where the “important” people played by a different set of rules than the “help”. They are fast to give recommendations, but slow to follow. They insist it’s about “science”, but refuse to apply science to other topics. This “science” however only applies if:
They quickly replaced freedom with mandates and science with silence. There will be no additional questions about it. If you don’t like their “answers” or ask for clarification or have your own opinion, you are a “science” denier and it does not matter how popular you are, they will still shun you for not following the status quo. Don’t believe me, just ask Nicki Minaj.
This is the type of hypocritical “woke” BS that is dividing this country. Virtue signaling has become such a competitive space amongst people lately that even CBS was looking at capitalizing on it by creating a reality TV show called The Activist where six “inspiring” activists would out “woke” each other. At the moment this show is now being “reimagined” (another popular BS term) because a lot of people didn’t buy into the agenda, but the idea proves that the majority of these social justice movements or other areas of activism have become nothing more than propagandized woke theater in which the main motivation is personal recognition and money. This picture is from the recent Emmy Awards and shows that the people you idolize do what is best for them, not for you. If you have to continually prove or tell everyone how “good” a person you are, you’re probably not that great of a person. Actions speak louder than words. Enough of the hypocritical, controlling BS. Stop allowing these people to influence your life and convince you that your freedom is bad all while they’re taking full advantage of theirs. Your freedom is yours to use, not theirs to control. Just because they give you excuses to use doesn’t mean you have to use them. Just because they force their opinion on you doesn’t mean you have to accept it. Just because they treat you like a peasant doesn’t mean you have to act like one. Point being, live your life, not the life they authorize you to live. There are people around the world who wish they had the freedom and rights that a lot of Americans are eagerly trying to give away just so they can show how “good” a person they are. Just a reminder, the Biden administration is still actively promoting further gun control within the United States a short time after allowing (through their own blunders and failures) the Taliban to acquire several hundred thousand guns, which they are now using to hurt, kill, intimidate, and disarm people within Afghanistan.
If you think this continued gun control push by the Biden administration is not part of a political agenda, but rather, they are doing it with your best interest in mind and done so with specific intent to only save lives based on facts and logic, I have a jar filled with magic unicorn farts that I will sell you. Having said all that, I will give credit where credit is due. The Biden administration has made one thing abundantly clear. When it comes to personal protection and having the ability to effectively protect you and your family from potential threats in dark times, do not put all your trust and/or confidence in the government because when they fail, you are on your own to deal with whatever force remains. Don’t believe me, ask the people in Afghanistan who are now fighting for their lives. The U.S. went approximately 18 months without any combat related deaths in Afghanistan. Unfortunately, that ended yesterday when 13 U.S. service members were killed due to a suicide bomber, along with another attack at the Kabul airport.
In my opinion, the failures of President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and the rest of the administration is to blame for these death. I hope they are learning from their mistakes, but based on their actions and their statements, I am not confident they are. Hopefully the ignorance of this administration will not result in more American blood spilled. Our thoughts are with all the family and friends of those killed yesterday, along with those injured. We know it is a dangerous job and we are very thankful for their service. Make your voice heard! The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) is attempting to change rules and regulations as they pertain to stabilizing braces, which if passed, will negatively affect law abiding citizens who choose to exercise their Second Amendment right. This is an important issue if you are a firearms owner, regardless if you own/use a stabilizing brace or not. In my opinion, the reasons why it is important is because a stabilizing brace is an accessory. How people use it and for what reasons is well outside the scope of authority in this matter. Attempting to regulate stabilizing braces is a slippery slope and could potentially lead to further overreach in other areas, including, different firearms related accessories and/or attachments. It is not the job government (or the ATF) to limit peoples rights, it is their job to protect their rights. It is my opinion that any stabilizing brace regulations, laws, or legislation will only limit peoples rights, not protect them. If you want to make your voice heard, please do so by clicking the link below to post your comment. It is recommended to not use vulgarity as your comment might not get approved and/or posted. September 8, 2021 is the last day for submissions. Website Link: 👇👇👇 **link no longer active**
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