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Concealed Handgun Licenses - In My Opinion

Oregon law does not permit Oregon's sheriffs any discretion to deny concealed weapons permits except in very limited circumstances.

(SALEM, Ore.) - The Oregonian is flat wrong in its op ed "Keep weapons permits public" in a number of respects. Of course, the newspaper is absolutely right when it guards the public's right to know what its elected officials and governments are doing.

PGE Refunds Put on Hold

The Commission’s order had directed PGE to begin running the newspaper ads this month and to complete the refund process by April 20th 2009. Commission attorneys estimate the appeals could take up to three years.

(SALEM, Ore.) - Portland General Electric (PGE) won’t be taking out ads in major newspapers this month after all to publicize a $33.1 million Commission-ordered refund.

The refund was approved on September 30th 2008 to resolve a decades-old dispute over customer rates and expenses from the now retired Trojan nuclear plant.

This week the Oregon Public Utility Commission put the refund process on hold for at least 60 days. The Commission did so because it expects a filing with the Court of Appeals that will seek to suspend the refunds until the case is fully litigated.

Gun Sales Surge in Oregon as the Industry Takes a Dive

An Oregon gun shop owner says the election of Barack Obama has dramatically affected gun sales.

(COOS BAY, Ore.) - Gun sales in Oregon have slowed dramatically because most of the desirable firearms are sold. Prices on the AR-15 assault weapon and the AK-47 have tripled, according to Coos Bay, Oregon gun shop owner George Davis. He says the shelves are bare at his store, George's Hole in the Wall Gunshop in Coos Bay.

Hillary Clinton`s Disdain for International Law -- Part II

What alarms most international observers is Clinton's penchant for military solutions.

(JOHANNASBURG) - The appointment of Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State is nothing less than a betrayal of the anti-war constituency responsible for Barack Obama winning the Democratic Party nomination and his subsequent election as president of the United States. The quintessential Democratic hawk, Senator Clinton has proven to be one of the leading militarists on Capitol Hill and her appointment as the country’s chief foreign policy representative serves notice to the international community that the change they had hoped for will not be forthcoming.

Clinton has demonstrated a marked preference for military confrontation over negotiations.

In a speech before the Council on Foreign Relations last year, she called for a "tough-minded, muscular foreign and defense policy." Similarly, when her rival for the Democratic presidential nomination Senator Barack Obama expressed his willingness to meet with Hugo Chavez, Raoul Castro or other foreign leaders with whom the United States has differences, she denounced him for being "irresponsible and frankly naive."

Police Seek Suspect in Corvallis Bank Robbery

The latest in what has almost become a daily occurrence in the Willamette Valley.

(CORVALLIS, Ore.) - Corvallis Police say a man entered the Washington Federal Savings branch at 1111 NW 9th Street today at 3:28 PM, approached the teller and showed a note demanding money.

Lt. Dave Henslee with Corvallis PD, says the suspect received an undisclosed amount of money then fled the business to the south east on a bicycle.

The suspect is described as a white male in his 50's, approximately five-foot-six to five-foot-seven inches tall, with a medium build and a larger nose.

Record Number of Oregon Gun Sales Reported on `Black Friday‏`

During the month of November 2008, there was an average of 720 daily transactions. This was an increase from one year ago when there was an average of 437 transactions in November 2007.

(SALEM, Ore.) - The Oregon State Police Firearms Instant Check System or "FICS" program, had its busiest day for firearm sale transactions on

"Black Friday" was the busiest day for firearm sale transactions in Oregon, since the "FICS" program was implemented for background checks in 1996. The Oregon State Police Firearms Instant Check System unit provides a service to all Federally Licensed Firearms dealers in the state of Oregon by conducting the Firearms Instant Check backgrounds on persons attempting to purchase a firearm, state officials said.

On Friday, November 28th, FICS staff processed 2,198 background checks. On November 23rd 2007, last year's "Black Friday", there were 1,610 transactions. The previous record number of single day transactions occurred three years ago on "Black Friday" when there were 1,731 transactions.

Polk County Seeks Alleged Rapist Michael J. Bowers

Investigators say Bowers is a registered sex offender and has been under supervision by the Lincoln County Parole and Probation Department.

(DALLAS, Ore.) - Investigators with the Polk County Sheriff's Office, along with the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office, responded to a report of a kidnapping and sexual assault in the Green Mountain area, a rural part of S.W. Polk County, on November 14th 2008.

Newberg-Dundee Police Arrest 3 Men Over Multiple Armed Robberies‏

The three men are currently in the Yamhill County Corrections Facility in McMinnville.

(NEWBERG, Ore.) - Three Newberg men were arrested for armed robbery Wednesday evening, moments after they held up a local convenience store, police say.

The case investigation resulted in the arrest of two of the men in a robbery at another Newberg convenience store about 22 hours earlier.

Changes and Improvements for National Sex Offender Website‏

Changes Announced Near the 5-year Anniversary of Dru Sjodin Disappearance.

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - The U.S. Department of Justice today announced improvements to the Dru Sjodin National Sex Offender Public Web site (NSOPW) and a new internet domain name, www.nsopw.gov. The new Web address will replace www.nsopr.gov.

The updated version has a new look, is more user-friendly and provides enhanced search capabilities to locate sex offenders. NSOPW is administered by the Office of Justice Programs' (OJP) Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking (SMART).

"NSOPW provides the public with information to protect themselves, their families and their communities from coming into contact with registered sex offenders," said Jeffrey L. Sedgwick, Assistant Attorney General for OJP.

Former Congressman Condemns U.S. Plans for Domestic Troop Deployment

Bob Barr says he has warned of domestic military involvement since the 1993 Waco tragedy.

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - Former Georgia Congressman Bob Barr says government plans to deploy 20,000 uniformed soldiers inside the United States "ignores all the tragic lessons we have learned from using the U.S. military in domestic crises."

"The government's plan to deploy initially 20,000 uniformed military personnel inside the United States goes against everything we have learned about using soldiers as police officers. Not only do these plans appear to be a violation of the Posse Comitatus Act—which forbids the use of the military in law enforcement on non-federal property—but it also opens up the American public to dangerous Constitutional violations."

Barr says his concerns are greatly heightened by the conclusion reached by the current Bush Administration in a classified 2001 Department of Justice memo...