Things are moving in America on the brink of the NRA Annual Meeting and Exhibits taking place in Indianapolis this week. A couple of news tidbits have developed close to home for me. First, the mother of Trayvon Martin made an appearance at K-State University Student Union on Tuesday. She said that his death was "needless" and that we "need to have difficult conversations about . . . gun violence," according to a report in the Topeka Capital-Journal. She then said that he was after "a drink and candy," not mentioning the drug nexus alleged by some and said " . . . racial profiling still exists." What was unreported was that there was an allegation that Martin was the aggressor, that Zimmerman fired in self-defense and that "gun violence" is no more than an emotionally charged moniker. Our readers know that "gun violence" is a loaded term and that it doesn't exist in reality - like "smart politician." Violence describes acts between people. Only those with an agenda use the term "gun violence." Now, with their gun problem solved, the UK is facing a crisis of "knife violence." Same song, second verse. Meanwhile, the Kansas Governor signed a bill into law that addressed the issues of CLEO approval on NFA transfers, carry of handguns - concealed and otherwise, forces return or sale of seized firearms and cleans up the preemption statute. The chief law enforcement officer in a local jurisdiction is required to approve transfers of NFA regulated firearms unless a condition exists that prevents it - a legal disqualification, not "Silencers are icky." Municipalities will be forbidden to demand CHL status information on municipal employees and may not discriminate against an employee who is so certified. Additionally, "gun buyback" (sic) programs shall not be funded by local government taxes under the new law. There are other provisions to the statute, which is effective 1 July 2014, but those are some highlights. -- Rich Grassi