I'm not sure if this should go here or elswhere in the forum, but it certainly pertains to all of us collectors. In talking with an Auctioner today in Ohio I was told in no uncertain terms that all firearm sales of anything that fired a cartridge no matter what year it was made had to go thru an FFL transfer as per new ATF rules. These rules were explained to a large assembly of auctioneers at a convention by ATF Agents. This really got me wondering gee whats next. Well the new news today said that our fine haired Federal government is establishing a LARGE Federal security force as they can't trust our military to do it all. ACHTUNG- The Gestpo is here alive and well. This sounds like the end of a great nation and a direct threat to any gun owner as I put two and two together and come up with a large scale consification effort. And as a retired Military person I know full well  Most Active duty memeber's would refuse the consification orders and I guess Washington knows this all to well also, so, I wonder if this is the dark side of the Federal Shock troops? If you vote then please keep voting, but if you have not voted in ahile please reconsider and at the next elections let them know just how upset we all are. Any represenative who cannot abide by our Constitution needs to go.
Mike 
USN RETIRED
I almost forgot that I had seen in the Army Times magazine that these Federal folks were being trained at an Army base close to Atlanta, but that they had no idea what they were to be used for other than they did mention Civil Unrest.

If the law hasn't changed, could the administration have bypassed the US Congress via Executive Order?

Makes me think back to IFOR and the Balkans. It was amusing to see what the locals managed to pull out of hiding after the old Soviet satellite regimes lost control. And still very serviceable equipment too. 

Double D, I think you are correct, but what the person said to me was stated with a lot of conviction, even when I quoted the law as we all know it he said he knew all of that and had posed that question to the ATF fellows, no matter. I had also been told this same very thing from several dealers/ auctioneers in the state of Maine about six months back. When questioned in detail he hated that he had to do it that way as he and others know they are loosing business from us out of state bidders. But Julia's auction house in Maine was left alone, maybe the size of the dealer has something to do with it. They may have just targeted the smaller auction houses and not the big guys.
Mike

J. Pickup, I know what you mean as I also reside in California, in Ventura County. I have a few friends with Barret 50 cals and they get harrassed by the local Sherrif constantly. They bang on there front door late at night and demand to see the 50 cal. Our local Gestapo is alive and well and busy.
Mike