Saturday, May 28, 2011

More on (alleged) Gabby Giffords Shooter

This highlights one of the problems with too-easily accessible firearms; the undiagnosed mentally ill.

from the AP:

Tucson shooting suspect leaves Arizona. for Missouri, where he'll get mental health treatment

TUCSON, Ariz. - The suspect in a deadly Tucson shooting rampage was flown from Arizona to a Missouri prison facility where mental health experts will try to make him psychologically fit to stand trial.
U.S. Marshal for Arizona David Gonzales says Jared Lee Loughner arrived in Springfield, Mo., around midday Friday.
Loughner will spend up to four months at the facility. A judge ruled Wednesday that the 22-year-old was mentally unfit to assist his lawyers in defending him.
Mental health experts who examined Loughner at the same Missouri facility in March and April had concluded he suffers from schizophrenia.
Loughner has pleaded not guilty to federal charges stemming from the shooting that wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and 12 others and killed six people.

MN Gun Violence, the Rest of One Story

From the STrib:

St. Louis Park fraud suspect charged in restaurant shooting

Charges say the gunman's father subdued him by hitting him over the head with a glass and choking him.

A St. Louis Park man charged earlier this week with insurance fraud now is charged with shooting up his family's restaurant in a drunken rage hours after his release from jail.
Nick Robert Lindee, 36, was charged Wednesday with firing shots inside Lindee's Saloon and Eatery at 919 Cambridge St. in Hopkins. Hennepin County prosecutors charged him with one count each of second-degree assault, reckless discharge of a firearm and first-degree damage to property risking bodily harm.
According to charges, Hopkins police responded at 8 a.m. Tuesday to the restaurant and spoke by phone with Lindee's father, who was inside with his son. The father told police the son was drunk and had a rifle and shotgun.
Police heard screams and breaking glass. They entered the restaurant to find Lindee knocked out on the floor, and his father, whom police described as visibly shaken, with a blood spot on his shirt.
The father explained that he hit his son over the head with a glass, wrestled the gun away and choked his son into unconsciousness. Eighteen holes from shotgun blasts were found throughout the establishment, a criminal complaint said.
According to the charges: Police handcuffed Lindee and interviewed the father, who said Lindee had been battling alcoholism and had been estranged from the family for a while.
The father said he heard from employees that Lindee was shooting up the restaurant, and the father went there and confronted his son. The father said that Lindee pointed the shotgun at him as Lindee drank from a whiskey bottle. He told his father he wanted to kill himself because of the insurance fraud investigation.
At one point, while Lindee was distracted, his father subdued him and got the gun away.
Lindee was charged Monday with insurance fraud and theft by swindle, both felonies, for allegedly making an insurance claim in December 2010 that $13,668 in guns were stolen from his home.
His insurance company paid the claim, but in February Lindee's girlfriend told police during a domestic dispute that he staged the burglary. On May 18 Lindee was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving, and police allegedly found the reportedly stolen guns in his vehicle.
He was booked and released Monday, just 11 hours before the incident at the restaurant. He was in the county jail Wednesday in lieu of $100,000 bail for the assault charges and $10,000 bail for the fraud charges.
Abby Simons

Another Stupid Gun Death

I have to wonder where these kids got the gun; cause of death should be listed as terminal stupidity.

Brandon Ross Charged With Murder After Police Fatally Shoot 15-Year-Old Companion

 A 16-year-old boy has been charged with murder after a Chicago police officer fatally shot his 15-year-old friend Wednesday on the South Side.
Brandon Ross and his friend Tatioun Williams allegedly robbed a man at gunpoint in the 7000 block of South Cregier Avenue Wednesday evening, and were confronted by police officers a short time later, the Chicago Tribune reports.
When the officers told the teens to stop, Williams, who was holding the gun, allegedly turned in the officer's direction, Fox Chicago reports. Fearing for her life, the officer shot the 15-year-old, killing him.
"They could have taken him to jail, they could have done anything but taken his life," Williams' mother told the Tribune Thursday.
Under state law, police can charge someone with murder when an accomplice is killed during the commission of a crime. Even though Ross didn't pull the trigger, he was charged as an adult with murder and armed robbery. He was ordered held on $900,000 bail Friday.
The teens allegedly took a wallet and iPod from a 27-year-old man before the shooting.

Wisconsin Passing Concealed Carry Without Permit Threatens Lives

A perfect example, where under that law police could not intervene until too late:
(from Reuters, by way of MSNBC)

Wisconsin Man Charged with Plan to Attack Abortion ClinicMILWAUKEE —

A Wisconsin man who allegedly planned to shoot a doctor at a Madison abortion clinic was charged on Friday under a federal law that allows freedom of access to the clinics, prosecutors said.
Ralph Lang, 63, of Marshfield, was staying at a Motel 6 when his .38-caliber handgun discharged into an unoccupied room across the hall, according to the federal criminal complaint. Madison police were called after Lang told a motel clerk that the gun went off, and he was worried that the bullet might have hit someone.
Lang, who was arrested for reckless endangerment, told police that he had a gun "to lay out abortionistsbecause they are killing babies," the complaint said

Lang told police that he planned to go to a Planned Parenthood abortion clinic the following morning to find the doctor who was doing the abortions and shoot him in the head, the complaint said.

He was charged with attempting to injure and intimidate in violation of the federal access statute, according to U.S. Attorney John Vaudreuil.

A nurse at Planned Parenthood in Madison said she is familiar with Lang, and that she saw him outside the facility last week, according to the complaint. Lang was arrested in 2007 outside Planned Parenthood, telling an officer at the time that the "Bible states that anyone involved in abortion should be executed."

In Lang's motel room, officers found a U.S. map with dots in each state and handwritten words above the northern U.S. border that said "some abortion centers," the complaint said. Also written on the map were the words "Blessed Virgin Mary says Hell awaits any woman having an abortion. Nurse or doctor who helps will one (sic)."

Police reported seeing anti-abortion literature in Lang's motel room.

After his court appearance Friday, Lang was being held in the Dane County jail. The maximum penalty under the federal Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances statute is one year in prison and up to a $100,000 fine. He was assigned a federal public defender, who could not immediately be reached for comment.
Because, heck, nothing says valuing life like killing other people who believe differently than you do, right?  I hope that the contemplated felony charges are added, because what this guy was doing was nothing less than planning to commit murder, on a large scale.

Liberal Viewer on the Killing of Bin Laden

Letter to St. Petersburg Mayor Bill Foster

Dear Mayor Foster,

Can we talk guns?

When it comes to gun violence, your first term as mayor of St. Petersburg has been a brutal one. Just this year, three of the city's finest were killed by people with guns they should not have had. Not two weeks ago, a security officer was shot dead.

In your sister city across the bay, two more police officers were similarly murdered last summer. The man arrested was a felon who, again, should not have had a gun.

Tragedy after tragedy. And beyond belief.

Some 30,000 Americans die in gun-related violence every year. Mention Columbine, Virginia Tech or the Tucson shootings, and everyone knows the scenes of horror you're talking about.
The letter writer goes on to invite the mayor to join the MAIG, which had recently visited his city. Contrary to the NRA lis and the resulting wide-spread belief among gun-rights advocates, The Msyors Against Illegal Guns is just what its name implies, a group opposed to ILLEGALLY owned guns.

In fact the group supports the 2nd Amendment.

Mayor Foster's response:
Your fellow mayors in Miami, Orlando, Jacksonville and Tallahassee have joined. Your own police chief supports them. You, however, seem reluctant.

You've said you don't know enough about the group, and anyway, the Legislature has the ultimate say on gun issues.
It seems the mayor is like many politicians who cater to the wishes of their constituents, either that or he's just another biased gun-rights supporter who can't see the forest for the trees.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Friday, May 27, 2011

1st Degree Murder for Ersland

I saw this on my go-to place for late-breaking gun news, TTAG.



What's your opinion? The kind of action that took place during those few minutes could easily diminish one’s capacity to think clearly. 2nd degree murder would have worked for me and about a ten year sentence.

How about you? Please leave a comment.

Drug SWAT Team That Gunned Down Ex-Marine Found No Drugs

It does appear both from the account of the shooting victim's family, and from the raw video footage of this shooting, that there was NOT any appropriate identification by the authorities, nor was there any of the expected opportunity offered the victim to surrender.

If there was ever an example of how guns beget more gun violence rather than making anyone safer, this would be a perfect example.  If there was ever an example of why MikeB sometimes takes exception to the conduct by police and other law enforcement, this would also seem to be a perfect example.

If there was ever an occasion where having looser 'castle' laws didn't work out as intended, this would also seem to be a perfect example.

from appropriately named station KGUN tv news in Tuscon, watch the raw footage here.
(sorry - I had trouble getting the video to embed - maybe you'll have better luck, MikeB or Jadegold?)

from abc news:
SWAT team members acknowledge in interviews that Jose Guerena never fired his weapon before the officers broke down his door and killed him with a barrage of 71 bullets, shown in a dramatic helmet-cam video released Thursday.

Guerena, 26, a veteran of two tours of duty in Iraq, was asleep after working a night shift at the Asarco copper mine when his wife, Vanessa, saw the team outside her youngest son's bedroom window and yelled to her husband. He grabbed his AR-15 rifle.

Vanessa Guerena didn't know the men were SWAT officers and thought they might be home invaders, especially because two members of her sister-in-law's family were killed last year in their Tucson home, her lawyer, Chris Scileppi, said.

Opportunity - Joan Armatrading

He owned a gun
the calibre escaped me
but I noticed straight away it made me i-itch

California Crime Down in 2010

via The SF Gate

The article talks about improved policing and social networking, but guess what? It's no coincidence that The Brady Campaign has determined California to be the number one best state for gun control. I'd say that's got something to do with it.

What do you think? Please leave a comment.

The United States Prison Politics

I wish I had a dollar for every time one of the gun-rights defenders said the problem is not the guns it's the crime. If only we'd get tough on criminals, especially violent offenders, they cry, if only we'd stop being so soft on repeat offenders, all would be well.

Like many another pro-gun argument, this one doesn't pass the truth test. I'm afraid those gun extremists are incapable of differentiating truth from falsity.

"Toy Gun" Disaster

via The Portland Press Herald


A 9-year-old boy from Naples was hospitalized late Thursday night after being shot in the head with a pellet gun.

In a statement released by the Cumberland County Sheriff's Office, Capt. Jeff Davis said the boy, Gavin Gilmore, suffered a life-threatening injury when a pellet from the .177-caliber gun lodged in the front of his brain.
What do you think? Should something be done about this?

Please leave a comment.

Regulate "Toy Guns"

via TownHall.com

Two days ago, a federal judge upheld a California state law requiring citizens to have a good enough "reason" (up to police discretion), such as a safety threat, before being given a concealed weapons permit.


But now, as if regulating real firearms wasn’t enough, the liberal California state-legislature is trying to regulate the production of BB guns. The Visalia Times-Delta reports


California Senate Bill 798 has made it over two hurdles — a Public Safety Committee vote in March and a vote last week by state senators — and now heads to the Assembly, where it will be scrutinized and argued


The bill, if approved, would require all imitation guns to be painted a bright yellow, blue, pink or orange or made translucent


The bill was proposed by state Sen. Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles, and inspired after a boy was shot in Los Angeles in December, after police mistook his BB gun for a deadly firearm


Yes, the death of the Los Angeles boy is heart-breaking. But is the extension of the law to require BB guns to be painted really going to get at the heart of this problem


I can see it now: "California police officer shot after mistaking man’s bright pink rifle for toy gun…"
It's hard to argue with that. I suppose there's only one thing to do. Regulate the so-called "toy guns," which to me is a misnomer anyway when we're talking about air-soft and BB guns.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Maine Lawmaker up on Gun Charges

via The Huffington post



Frederick Ladd Wintle


Basically what we've got here is another "lawful" gun owner who believes in that old "bad rules be damned" idea.


"There's a general consensus that his behavior has been unusual and erratic over the last period of a couple of weeks," he said. "This conduct is consistent with that erratic behavior. There are concerns that there may be health issues, whether they be physical health or mental health issues."
What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

democommie on Guns as Religion

From democommie

When logic fails, there's always religion.


From a speech by Barack Obama in 2008.




''So it’s not surprising then that they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren’t like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations."

I used to think that a lot of the gunzloonz were just people who obsessed about their personal safety and their material wealth to the extent that they felt that anyone who wasn't one of them wanted their stuff and wanted to hurt them. The sort of paranoia that would be a natural consequence of that mindset might explain their fascination with weapons and their belief in the myth that arming the entire population will contribute to a "polite" society.

I thought that some of the others who are so deeply invested in having and using private aresenals (if only for "plinking" at the range) might just be bullies and jerks who think that the gunz give them an "edge" or some sort of moral authority in society.

And I thought that a significant fraction were just out'n'out whackjobs who don't trust anyone and are not gonna go down without taking a number of people with them.

However, after reading hundreds of blog posts at various blogs and the comments that they generated I have decided that it is more proper to see a lot of the gunzloonz as religionists, of a sort.

Upon reflection, I think that Mr. Obama's comment might better have been stated as:
"So it’s not surprising then that they get bitter, they cling to guns AS religion...".
Those who see the 2nd Amendment as a sacrosanct utterance, direct from their heavenly father; a sacrosanct utterance that not only allows but virtually requires that they own and obsess about having taken away from them, vast quantities of firearms and ammunition--yeah, you know who you are--are Gundamentalists.

Gundamentalists--noun (Post modern AmEnglish)

1.) The loose network of "believers" whose sole article of shared faith, one that is fiercely (if illogically defended--to the "from my cold, dead fingers" sentiment of Mr. Heston) is the RIGHT to keep and bear arms.

Gundamentalism is, it seems, a sort of unfettered love of gunz; a tendency to see no possibility for any sort of gun ownership to be "wrong" and a tendency on the part of those who espouse that "love" to demonize any who oppose their cherished "beliefs.

Like other religious whackjobs, the Gundamentalists read scripture (in their case the 2nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution) as an inerrant document that reflects the thinking of and a direct command from GOD. That command is that they will accumulate as many arms as they can afford to buy, along with vast quantities of ammunition. They will spend hours every week, worshipping their sacramental "items", extolling the virtues of armed vigilance and communing with their brethren in the Gundamentalist faith. They will pray for the strength to withstand the rabid onslaught of unarmed and reasonable opponents of their fetishistic attachment to firearms AND for the clear eyed, steady breathed, "squeeze don't pull" grace to drop a homeinvadin'perp in his tracks with a triple tap, center mass.

Like other fundamentalists (of every faith) or ideologues (of any political stripe) they are "True Believers" in the "vision" and the "mission" of their chosen fantasy. And, like all delusional fanatics, they will brook no dissent. They will not compromise their "ideals". They will never admit that there is some possibility that their "belief system" might be just a tad bit "odd".

Thursday, May 26, 2011

More Gun Threats in Minnesota

The phrase ''alcohol was involved" comes to mind.
Per the Strib, May 26 2011:

Two accused of waving gun at a post-tornado barbecue

Two men and a woman are accused of disrupting a neighborhood barbecue in tornado-ravaged north Minneapolis by screaming at residents and waving a handgun.

Glen A. Miles, 32, of Hopkins, and Jonique L. Shannon, 26, of Minneapolis, are charged with second-degree riot, a felony. Miles and James Flowers, 32, of Minneapolis, are charged with obstructing legal process, a gross misdemeanor.

According to the criminal complaints filed Wednesday in Hennepin County District Court: On Monday evening, about 24 hours after a tornado damaged scores of homes and businesses, neighbors gathered at Lowry and Logan avenue to grill food. Witnesses saw Miles drinking and as he became increasingly drunk, he became combative and "appeared to be looking for a fight," the complaints said.

Although witnesses said Shannon and Flowers initially tried to calm down Miles, Shannon pulled a gun, waved it around and threatened people to leave Miles alone. Flowers then took the gun and did the same. Witnesses told police that Flowers was "out of control and yelling at everyone."

Neighbors ran for cover and police officers who went to the incident described "a chaotic scene," the complaint said. Shannon admitted she'd had a gun and told officers where they could find it. Miles allegedly resisted arrest, kicking, spitting and swinging at officers. He had to be carried to a squad car, where he kicked an officer in the stomach, the complaints said.

PAT PHEIFER

Rep. Allen "Loose Cannon" West (R-FL)

via the wonderfully named and highly informative Evil GOP Bastards




Hall of Shame
May 2011
Evil GOP Bastard of the Month




Tea Party Darling, Fascist &
Freshman GOP Congressman

Rep. Allen "Loose Cannon" West
(R-FL)


In a Congress now dominated by Tea Party kooks, it takes real effort to be singled out as not only crazy, but dangerous. Representative  West fits that description. The former Capt. West was forced to end his military career after abusing an Iraqi policeman suspected of terrorist ties, later admitting "..It's possible that I was wrong." 

    While running for Congress in 2010, West utilized a
cadre of bikers to provide "security" at campaign events, forcibly ejecting Democratic partisans who attempted to make a video record of West's extremist rhetoric. As soon as he was elected, West appointed "If ballots don't work, bullets will" radical talk-show host Joyce Kaufman as his chief of staff, but he was quickly forced to backtrack.

    West is now facing voters angry at his support of the Medicare-killing Ryan budget, so West is dishonestly
screening questions at his town hall meetings and ejecting "unruly" constituentsMORE

More MN Gun Violence - Where or Where Did the Gun Come From?

from the May 26, 2011 STrib:

Ex-con admits to violent stickup of White Bear Bar

A 33-year-old ex-con has admitted that he was one of three masked men who robbed a White Bear Lake bar at gunpoint over Thanksgiving weekend last year, leaving one customer wounded as two others challenged the St. Paul bandits.
Tyice A. Phillips pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court in Minneapolis to being a felon in possession of a firearm and possessing a firearm while committing a violent crime.
Phillips' codefendents, convicted felons Percy D. Peters, 43, and Maurice A. Lewis, 41, also have been arrested and charged in the stickup.
According to Phillips' plea agreement and indictments against the other two:
Phillips, Peters and Lewis, all dressed in dark clothing with ski masks or stocking caps pulled down over their faces, entered the White Bear Bar at 2135 4th St. just before closing on Nov. 27. More than 50 patrons were there at the time.
Peters grabbed one customer trying to flee, put a gun to his and dragged him back inside. The trio then told everyone to "get down" on the floor.
A patron grabbed the barrel of Peters' gun and fought for the weapon. During the struggle, the gun went off and wounded another customer in the thigh.
Yet another patron pulled off Lewis' mask, sending him running from the bar.
Phillips and Peters took money from the till, then forced the bar manager to lead them to the office safe, where she handed over bags of cash while a gun was pointed at her head.
The pair took the loot -- $1,495 -- and got into a car, where Lewis waited.
Police followed the car to a nearby apartment parking lot, where the men ran away after the car was driven into a snowbank. One of the patrons briefly ran after the car. Phillips was found by police about 11/2 miles away. The other two were later tracked down and caught.
Phillips' criminal history includes convictions in Ramsey County in 2006 for kidnaping, first-degree aggravated robbery and first-degree burglary. All stemmed from an armed home-invasion robbery. That record makes him subject to 15 years to life in federal prison in the bar robbery. Sentencing has yet to be scheduled.
Peters has been convicted in Minnesota for terroristic threats, second-degree assault, witness tampering and theft. Lewis has felony convictions in the state for drug possession and failure to register as a predatory sex offender connected to a conviction in another state.
Paul Walsh

Another Fascinating Pro-Gun Site

"What's So Funny About Peace, Love, And Ammunition?" - Link P


Everything you need to know about Link P, aside from his bashing Joan Peterson and quoting Tam and Mike V., can be gleaned from his profile. Interests: Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, in that order.

He's been blogging for a few months now but this was my first look. Link P. is certainly in good company with the characters he likes to quote.

Good luck, man. Keep up the good fight.


John Homer Moyers, 50, was shot to death after he fired a gun at officers outside his home at 345 Cline Road following a domestic disturbance, said Claiborne County Sheriff David Ray.

Moyers went to prison in 1988 at the now closed Brushy Mountain Correctional Complex in Wartburg for a manslaughter conviction after fatally shooting a man with a pistol, Ray said.

Most recently, Moyers served time in the Kentucky State Penitentiary for felony convictions that included escape.
There's certainly nothing to complain about here, if anything the cops waited too long to take him down. He was asking for it and his record indicates he was probably a hopeless case. Plus, there was no indication that the cops shot him 73 times. So, about the shooting, I have no complaints.

What I do have a complaint about is the fact that a guy like Moyers was able to get a gun. I'll bet it wasn't hard either. That's the problem. Because of weak and ineffectual gun control laws in places like Tennessee, dangerous guys like this have no difficulty getting their hands on guns.

It may seem overly optimistic, but I believe with proper gun control properly enforced, this could change.

What do you think? Please leave a comment.

Father Objects to Gun - Son Kills Him with It


A 35-year-old Huntington Beach man was charged Monday in the shooting death of his father as the two were arguing over whether the son could keep the firearm in the home they were sharing.

Jeremy Dwayne Martin was charged with murder in the death Friday of 62-year-old Frederick Martin, the Orange County district attorney's office said. He is being held in lieu of $1-million bail and is scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday.

Frederick Martin called Huntington Beach police when an argument over the gun Jeremy Martin was keeping in the house turned into a scuffle as the father tried to take the gun away. Police left after Jeremy Martin refused to speak with the officers.

After the officers left, the two began arguing again, as Frederick Martin did not want the gun in his home. Jeremy Martin allegedly fired the gun, striking his father once. He died at the scene.
Obviously this is another of the super-rare incidents of a legitimate gun owner committing murder with his lawfully-owned gun. At least this guy knows the STFU rule when questioned by the police. The Armed Intelligentsia will be proud. You see, they stand behind certain murderers, dispensing advice to them on how to beat the rap. They don't try to help the black ghetto kids with criminal records too much. They focus on the white murderers with no criminal past.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Bucks County PA - Gun Paradise


Packing for a picnic has taken on added meaning in Bucks County.

The county commissioners last week rescinded a 14-year-old ban on bringing guns into county parks.

But if the ants invade, kindly resist the urge to blow them away. A ban on discharging firearms in the parks remains.
At least they've got a sense of humor, gracious winners I guess you might call them.

Although I hate to admit it, these gun free zones in the middle of gun friendly territority do cause problems. Up till now, I suppose, an insecure and fearful man who carried a gun to feel safe, would have to leave it in the car in the parking lot outside the park if he took his family on a picnic. That's not good. The obvious benefit was that when he started arguing with the wife over the tuna salad, the gun wouldn't be so handy. Now it's worse.

No, I'm afraid Pennsylvania has lots of problems. If only they could be open-minded and progressive enough to take their cue from California. No open carry, no concealed carry, everyplace outside your home is a gun-free zone.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Honolulu School Shooting

According to KITV, a 14-year-old was showing a gun to his friends at Highlands Intermediate School when one student brushed the weapon away with his hand, causing the gun to go off.

The bullet went through a student's jacket, ricocheted off a wall and grazed another student's hand and leg. Only one student was injured, and the teen who brought the weapon was taken into police custody.

The gun, a .45 caliber Glock semi-automatic pistol, was registered to a man who had lost it in December but did not report it stolen or missing until Monday, KHON reported.
I'm a little curious about those reporting laws. It seems odd that there might be no provisions in the law for how one stores his gun but when it gets lost or stolen he must report that to the authorities. Sounds backwards to me. What do you think?

Please leave a comment.

A Gun Nut Legally Determined Mentally Incompetent - the News on Jared Loughner

Jared Loughner is Mentally Incompetent, but so far not quite legally defined as insane, a literal gun nut.
This will presumably simply be a delay of the proceedings against him for the shooting of Rep. Gabby Giffords and the numerous other victims of this gun violence (both direct and indirect).

Per the excellent site Findlaw.com:
Jared Loughner Incompetent to Stand Trial
| 
Jared Loughner is incompetent and will not stand trial for now, a federal judge ruled at Wednesday's mental incapacity proceeding. Loughner was arrested in the fatal Tucson shootings that wounded congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and killed six people.
Loughner had to be removed from the mental incapacity proceeding after an outburst. A reporter said he heard Loughner lower his head and say, "Thank you for the freak show. She died in front of me," reports CNN.
After his removal from the courtroom, Loughner watched the rest of the proceeding on a TV screen in a nearby room.
Loughner had spent the last five weeks undergoing a mental health evaluation. Prosecutors had ordered the mental health evaluation after they saw YouTube videos of Loughner wearing a hood, garbage bags and burning an American flag, reports The Houston Chronicle.
Loughner will now be sent to a federal facility for up to four months, at the end of which he will be evaluated to see if he is now competent to stand trial, according to The Houston Chronicle.
Is Jared Loughner incompetent? District Judge Larry Burns has ruled he is. If after more treatment and evaluation he is still deemed incompetent, his stay at the federal facility can be extended. If he is deemed competent, the trial against him will resume.
Let's be clear: the court did not find Jared Loughner insane.
A determination of mental competency is not the same as a determination that a person is legally insane. If a person is determined to be legally insane, they cannot be convicted and found guilty of the crimes that they are accused of because of their mental defect. The methods to prove insanity vary between states.
If a person is mentally incompetent to stand trial, the accused is simply unable to understand the legal proceedings. There is no judgment on the guilt or innocence of the party, and the trial against them may proceed when they are deemed competent.
Of course, if Loughner is found to be competent to stand trial in the coming months, the defense might mount an insanity defense. Defendants that are found to be legally insane in many states will still be committed to a mental institution.
So while Jared Loughner is incompetent now, this by no means that he will not stand trial for the Tucson shootings at some point.
There were oeople present at the site of the shooting, at least, nearby, who were armed.  It it worth repeating that it made not the slightest difference in the outcome of this tragedy, despite the insistance by gun nuts that being armed prevents this kind of violence from occurring - or at least from occurring so extensively.  There was nearly an additional shooting of victims, by armed bystander Joe Zamudio.
"I came out of that store, I clicked the safety off, and I was ready," he explained on Fox and Friends. "I had my hand on my gun. I had it in my jacket pocket here. And I came around the corner like this." Zamudio demonstrated how his shooting hand was wrapped around the weapon, poised to draw and fire. As he rounded the corner, he saw a man holding a gun. "And that's who I at first thought was the shooter," Zamudio recalled. "I told him to 'Drop it, drop it!'"
But the man with the gun wasn't the shooter. He had wrested the gun away from the shooter. "Had you shot that guy, it would have been a big, fat mess," the interviewer pointed out.
Zamudio agreed:
I was very lucky. Honestly, it was a matter of seconds. Two, maybe three seconds between when I came through the doorway and when I was laying on top of [the real shooter], holding him down. So, I mean, in that short amount of time I made a lot of really big decisions really fast. … I was really lucky.
When Zamudio was asked what kind of weapons training he'd had, he answered: "My father raised me around guns … so I'm really comfortable with them. But I've never been in the military or had any professional training. I just reacted."
The Arizona Daily Star, based on its interview with Zamudio, adds two details to the story. First, upon seeing the man with the gun, Zamudio "grabbed his arm and shoved him into a wall" before realizing he wasn't the shooter. And second, one reason why Zamudio didn't pull out his own weapon was that "he didn't want to be confused as a second gunman."
This is a much more dangerous picture than has generally been reported. Zamudio had released his safety and was poised to fire when he saw what he thought was the killer still holding his weapon. Zamudio had a split second to decide whether to shoot. He was sufficiently convinced of the killer's identity to shove the man into a wall. But Zamudio didn't use his gun. That's how close he came to killing an innocent man. He was, as he acknowledges, "very lucky."
That's what happens when you run with a firearm to a scene of bloody havoc. In the chaos and pressure of the moment, you can shoot the wrong person. Or, by drawing your weapon, you can become the wrong person—a hero mistaken for a second gunman by another would-be hero with a gun. Bang, you're dead. Or worse, bang bang bang bang bang: a firefight among several armed, confused, and innocent people in a crowd. It happens even among trained soldiers. Among civilians, the risk is that much greater.
Loughner was arguably dangerously mentally ill; it is likely that will be his defense. He wasn't in any Arizona data base, and he certainly was not in the NCIS data base - Arizona is one of the worst states for supplying names to the NCIS.  Joe Zamudio got lucky, very lucky.  He could easily have drastically compounded this tragedy.

And now, as Giffords gets better, and Loughner sits in a mental institution.  And too many other people are also recovering, wounded both physically and psychologically.

The answer to gun violence is NOT more guns, or more violence - so called 'good violence'.  The answer is LESS violence, and fewer guns, less accessible guns.

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Baldr's Take on the Legally Stoned Concealed Carry Movement


If you came upon someone on the street who was smoking pot and clearly stoned, how would you feel if they were handed a loaded gun? Do you think that person would have sound judgment, enough to handle a lethal weapon? Would they have good aim? Would you feel safer?

As always, Baldr's obversations are right-on. What do you think?

Please leave a comment.

Felony Murder in Miami


Authorities are trying to determine whether the fatal shooting of an intruder attempting to steal a wave runner outside a Miami waterfront home was justified.

Miami-Dade police say an unidentified juvenile armed with a shotgun shot 20-year-old Reynaldo Munoz in the head Saturday afternoon outside his family's home.

A police affidavit says Munoz parked outside a marina, put his own watercraft in the water and navigated it to the home.

Police say Munoz was confronted by the teen as he attempted to take the family's wave runner.

His 19-year-old girlfriend Carolina Lopez told police she was waiting for Munoz to return with the watercraft, which they planned to sell for $2,000. She is charged with felony murder for her participation in a crime that caused the death of another.
The girlfriend is charged with felony murder, are you kidding me? Why don't we charge her with intent to steal, or even more accurately, foreknowledge of intent to steal by another?

It's no wonder the prisons are overfilled. The law-and-order types want to charge people with the violation of the strongest possible laws at ever opportunity.

By the way was that a legitimate shooting? Can you blow someone's head off for attempting to steal your property in Florida?

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

More on the Ersland Trial

NewsOK reports
It doesn't sound like things are going too well for old Ersland.

“I did do just what I had to do,” Ersland told the police detective. “It’s not a deal where you have a big choice.”

The detective, David Jacobson, told jurors Ersland gave many details about the shooting that were not true. 

The detective testified Ersland also lied when he said he had killed “a lot of people” during the first Gulf War. 

The detective testified the pharmacist’s military records show he was never in combat.

Another homicide detective, Ryan Porter, testified Ersland said he wore a back brace because of an artillery attack while he was in Iraq.

Records show Ersland spent the Gulf War in 1991 as the pharmacy chief at the military hospital at Altus Air Force Base in southwestern Oklahoma.
It's one thing to lie about the unarmed black kid you just shot 5 times AFTER he was down, but to lie about your military service doesn't look good at all. Jurors don't like that.



The detective told jurors the police investigation determined only Ingram had a gun and only the pharmacist fired any shots. The detective also testified Ersland shot Parker five more times after chasing the second robber away, coming back to the store and getting a second gun from a drawer.
Are they really saying the teenager with the gun was the one who ran away? "Only Ingram had a gun." Not only was Antwun “Speedy” Parker already shot in the head and incapacitated when Ersland came back to shoot him 5 more times, but the kid never had a gun in the first place.

And here's where the bizarre becomes travesty:

The second robber, Jevontai Ingram, then 14, was arrested days later and has pleaded guilty to first-degree murder for his role in the death.
I'm opposed to felony murder in any case, but when it's the criminal's partner who ends up dead it becomes totally nonsensical.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

A World of Pain

Walter Sobchak: [pulls out a gun] Smokey, my friend, you are entering a world of pain. 
The Dude: Walter...
Walter Sobchak: You mark that frame an 8, and you're entering a world of pain.
Smokey: I'm not...
Walter Sobchak: A world of pain.
Smokey: Dude, he's your partner...
Walter Sobchak: [shouting] Has the whole world gone crazy? Am I the only one around here who gives a shit about the rules? Mark it zero! 

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

More Minnesota Gun Violence - 2nd instance today

Gunman shoots up Hopkins restaurant, sending cleaning crew fleeing

A man fired several shotgun blasts Tuesday morning inside a closed restaurant in Hopkins, hitting cash registers but sparing the cleaning crew inside, police said.
The shooting occurred shortly after 8 a.m. at Lindee's Saloon & Eatery along Hwy. 7, just east of Hwy. 169, according to police.
The suspected shooter, a 36-year-old man, was arrested and taken to a hospital for treatment.
According to Police Sgt. Michael Glassberg:
The man entered the business and started shooting. The cleaning crew contacted the owner and fled.
The owner called police, then went inside just as officers were arriving.
Officers on the scene made telephone contact inside and heard a struggle between the gunman and owner.
Several officers entered the business and detained the suspect.
Glassberg didn't want specify what prompted the shooting but said his anger was directed "toward the business" and not anyone in the cleaning crew.
The motive "will be clear when the criminal complaint comes out," he said.

More Minnesota Gun Violence

Those who are strongly Pro-gun / unlimited 2nd Amendment use the word freedom a lot, to the point it is meaningless in their context of the term.  We are not free if we are in constant danger from our fellow citizens from the firearms in their possession.  The answer is not to have more people shooting at each other. It does not make us either more free or safe.

Minnesota is supposed to be one of the most peaceful states in the United States, including by ratings which address firearms issues.  As I have begun to pay closer attention to firearm violence, attempting to improve my awareness by posting them here, I have been stunned at the frequency of this violence.  In the context that there is MORE firearm violence in other states, this is even more unacceptable for all of us in the U.S.

Here is another example, yet again from the STrib:

Man fatally shot in S. Mpls.; shooter at largeArticle by: PAUL WALSH , Star Tribune

A 24-year-old man was shot to death early Tuesday in south Minneapolis, police said, and no arrests have been made.
Neighbors reported the shooting to police shortly after 2 a.m. in the 5700 block of Sander Drive. That's just north of Hwy. 62 near the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.
Officers found the victim outside still conscious. He was taken to Hennepin County Medical Center and soon died.
The victim's identity has yet to be released pending notification of relatives.
The shooter has yet to be found, police said.

Fox News Owns the Republican Party

The I.Q. Test



(click to make bigger)

Police Brutality

via
Carbon Paper


Now I realize we didn't see what the guy in the wheelchair did or said to bring this one, but I'd just like to say he's lucky he didn't get shot. In some places disobedience and disrespect are capital offenses.

Oregon - Pot and Gun Paradise

The Associated Press reports on how Oregon is going up in smoke, responsibly armed all the while.

The Oregon Supreme Court unanimously ruled Thursday that a retired school bus driver can have her medical marijuana and a concealed handgun, too.

The ruling upheld previous decisions by the Oregon Court of Appeals and circuit court that determined a federal law barring criminals and drug addicts from buying firearms does not excuse sheriffs from issuing concealed weapons permits to people who hold medical marijuana cards and otherwise qualify.

"We hold that the Federal Gun Control Act does not pre-empt the state's concealed handgun licensing statute and, therefore, the sheriffs must issue (or renew) the requested licenses," Chief Justice Paul De Muniz wrote in the ruling issued in Salem.

Cynthia Willis, one of four plaintiffs, welcomed the ruling.

"I feel like a big girl now," Willis said. "I feel like a real human being now, not just a source of revenue to the county."

Leland Berger, the attorney representing Willis and other medical marijuana patients in the state, said the ruling was important in the continuing national debate over making marijuana legal to treat medical conditions.

What do you think? Please leave a comment.

Proposed Wisconsin Gun Laws Too Extreme Even for the Right

When right wing radio hosts – who generally support concealed, loaded weapons in public – call pro gun legislation “screwed up,” you know it's extreme.
What do you think? Will common sense prevail in Wisconsin now that well-known gun-rights folks are speaking out?

Please leave a comment.

Philadelphia Club Shooting - 9 Wounded

The mayor is angry and wants to shut this trouble spot down.

The club has a history of gun violence, Ross said. In December, a man was shot on the dance floor. And on New Year's Day, a man was shot and killed as he walked home from the club. The incident stemmed from an argument inside. Arrests were made in both shootings, Ross said.

The club, which Ross said drew thousands of people from the tristate area, also has a history of violations with the Philadelphia Department of Licenses and Inspections.

In January, the city sued and had the club shut down, Nutter said. The owner, Maria Lopez, according to city records, repetitioned, and "somehow," Nutter said, a judge ordered in April that the club could reopen.
I guess that's like putting a bandaid on a wound that needs stitches. And the PA gun control laws need stitches, in a bad way.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Wisconsin Gettin' Tough on Crime

via Norwegianity - Talk Left reports

Omer Ninham was 14 when he was part of a group of kids that killed a 13 year old by throwing him off the top of a parking garage. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The Wisconsin Supreme Court today upheld the sentence.
What's your opinion? Is that a little severe? Bad teenagers should be allowed some chance of changing their lives around, don't you think?

Please leave a comment.

Monday, May 23, 2011

California Ruling NO on Concealed Carry

 From Findlaw.com:

No Right to Carry Concealed Gun, Judge Rules

| 
A federal judge in Sacramento, California has upheld a portion of California's concealed gun law.
The decision likely sets battle lines for an appeal on Second Amendment grounds, which could eventually go to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Gun rights advocates challenged a policy set by Yolo County Sheriff Ed Prieto that requires applicants to state a reason, such as a safety threat, to obtain a concealed weapons permit.
Plaintiffs, the challengers to Yolo County's policy, claimed requiring a reason to get a permit infringes their right to keep and bear arms, as stated in the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, reports AP.
Thus Judge England rejected the plaintiffs' contention that California laws allowing unloaded gun carry, but prohibiting concealed carry without a permit--which by implication makes a self-defender load up before shooting--infringed on Second Amendment rights.
Judge England's ruling states that the Second Amendment "does not create a fundamental right to carry a concealed weapon in public."
Gun advocates have already filed a Notice of Appeal in the Sacramento case, and will take their contentions to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. The case could be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, predicts Examiner.com.
Since similar lawsuits against concealed gun laws are pending in several states, further U.S. Supreme Court participation in Second Amendment issues appears likely.

Ted Nugent Calls Semi-Automatic Weapons Machine Guns




This old video was posted in response to Nugent's saying he was the victim of Lefty threats. What I liked was the final observation by Rack Jite.

BTW, for any gungoons, Ted Nugent himself claims he is holding "machine guns".
Isn't that a riot. Not only is Ted a disgracefully foul individual, an embarrassment really, but he made the same mistake that is ridiculed no end when gun control folks make it. He called semi-automatic weapons machine guns.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Bad Laws Be Damned - AztecRed Style

On a recent comment thread, AztecRed linked to an old post of his which says it all.
"Sometimes good people have to break bad laws."
I suppose, after vehemently opposing any attempts on my part to explain shared responsibility, he's saying it wouldn't be their fault if they were forced against their will the break laws that are so draconian that they have no choice but to break them.

What do you think?  Is there a bit of a double standard there?

Please leave a comment.

Gary Kleck Says Gun Theft is Number One

The Wall Street Journal published a fascinating article by the renowned criminologist Prof. Gary Kleck

The best available study, by researchers at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, indicates that criminals obtain guns from a wide variety of largely interchangeable low-volume sources. Criminals usually get their guns in one of three ways: as a byproduct of thefts, primarily residential burglaries; by buying guns one at a time from friends and relatives who neither regularly sell guns nor act as "straw purchasers" (legally qualified buyers who purchase guns for those prohibited from doing so); or, if they have no criminal convictions, by lawfully buying guns from licensed dealers.

As my colleague Kevin Wang and I found by examining federal crime data, the overall volume of gun theft alone is huge—at least 400,000 to 600,000 guns are stolen each year in the U.S. This is easily enough to resupply the entire criminal population with guns even if they were completely disarmed at the start of each year.
The main point of the article is that big-time gun trafficking accounts for a tiny percentage of guns that end up in the wrong hands. Although Kleck mentions straw purchasing and the fact that some criminals buy guns legally before they become disqualified, he's clearly saying that theft is the number one source of gun flow into the criminal world.

Do you believe that? Do you find his half-a-million stolen guns a year credible?

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Pennsylvania is Just Like Florida

 


"That's insane! I mean I moved from Florida, I'm originally from West Palm Beach, Florida to get away from that and it's like Florida again, no lie," said Weaver about the shooting.

Helicopter Hog Hunting



Texas is about to make this a legal commercial activity. What do you think?  It looks like lots of fun, in that video-game kinda way, don't you think?  Perfect for those guys who never grew up.

What kind of gun owners would pay for the opportunity of going up in a helicopter to shoot animals?

Please leave a comment.

Attempted Murder, Murder and Suicide in Illinois

The Quad-City Times reports all the gory details. But basically it's the same old story: abusive boyfriend, restraining order, he comes back with a gun.

The sister of the shooting victim wants to know one thing:

"How did a homeless man living in a laundromat get a gun?"
Now, that's a good question. The answer's simple though. Thanks to the gun-rights movement anyone can get a gun. The NRA and the gun lobby have worked hard and invested lots of money to ensure that anyone who wants a gun can get one. Of course they're talking about law-abiding folks, they certainly don't condone arming criminals. But, the easy access that criminals and mentally ill abusive boyfriends have goes hand-in-hand with the gun rights of the law-abiding.

It's called gun flow. Guns flow from the legitimate gun owning world into the criminal world like the mighty Mississippi.

For this reason gun control necessarily focuses on the law abiding. We hope that enough gun owners and even gun-rights activists are not of the fanatical kind and will eventually prevail along with their gun-control counterparts to improve the gun laws in the United States.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Sunday, May 22, 2011

Gunpowder Art?

KSTP News:



Of course, I couldn't resist posting this, since we have recently been more actively including art in our discussions here.  My apologies if some advertizing comes through; I couldn't find a video clip without it.

Here is an additional video of the artistic process taking place:

Today's posts have ranged from the absurd but doesn't quite make it the distance to the sublime.  Although the painting is rather interesting, and could be very attractive in the right context and setting.

A Different Kind of Gun Powder Plot.....

I came across this story while looking for the correct link to some articles on gun powder as a medium for creating works of art.  I'm still going to post those, but I had to share this story first.

From KSTP news:
Waseca Man Charged After Turning Sex Toy Into Bomb

A Waseca man is charged with making a sex toy into a bomb, and plotting to give it to an ex-girlfriend.
According to a criminal complaint 37-year-old Terry Lester rigged a sex toy with explosives and told two women, he planned to send it to one of two ex-girlfriends because the relationships had ended badly.
He told the women, that when one of his exes used the sex toy, he would pull the trigger and blow them up.
One of the women Lester had talked to about his plan, called police after finding the explosive and bags containing more sex toys, wires and gun powder at their apartment.
The Bloomington Bomb Squad disarmed the bomb. Lester faces ten years in prison if convicted.
The story was later updated in February to show:
Lester pleaded not guilty to felony charges of possessing an explosive device and making terroristic threats. He faces ten years in prison if convicted.
A jury trial is scheduled for May.
While WCCO had the details of the outcome:
Terry Allen Lester, 37, has been charged with felony counts of creating an explosive device and making terroristic threats. (credit: Waseca County)
Terry Allen Lester, 37, has been charged with felony counts of creating an explosive device and making terroristic threats. (credit: Waseca County)
WASECA, Minn. (WCCO) – A Waseca man who was charged with turning a sex toy into a bomb, with the intentions of giving it to an ex-girlfriend, has reportedly reached a plea agreement.
KEYC-TV in Mankato reports that Terry Allan Lester will plead guilty to his charge of creating an explosive device in exchange for having the charge of making terroristic threats dropped.
The incident was reported to police on New Year’s Day. Authorities said Lester had been staying with the apparent intended victim and another woman.
He had been forced to leave the apartment by the landlord but left behind bags, one of which contained a container marked “Christmas Gifts.”
According to the original criminal complaint, police examined the package and found it had been modified with gun powder and buck shot, which were connected to a trigger inside the battery port.
Authorities say Lester planned on giving the sex toy to one of three women he had previously been involved with where the relationship ended poorly. Materials were found suggesting he intended to make two other similar devices.
Police say the device was missing a key starting element, but it still could have exploded.
Sentencing has been set for June 28, KEYC reports.
I'll post an update in June when the sentencing occurs.  I'm struggling with alternating emotions of horror, and laughing out loud.

"Il Tiro" the Espresso Gun

For the gun / coffee lover who has everything.

More Information on Quakers - Meet Annie Oakley

via TYWKIWDBI where I learned more about Quakers to share with That Mr. G Guy.


FAMILY BACKGROUND: Quaker parents Jacob and Susan were originally from Pennsylvania. After a tavern fire ended their livelihood as innkeepers, they moved to a rented farm in Ohio. Father, who had fought in the War of 1812, died in 1866 from pneumonia and overexposure in freezing weather.
Annie Oakley's father owned a tavern, fought in a war and taught her to shoot. Did you know a Quaker could do all that?

Please leave a comment.

Hero Bus Driver Disarms 12-Year Old

ABC News reports

A bus driver in North Carolina is being hailed a hero after convincing a gun-wielding seventh grader to hand over his loaded gun during a terrifying bus ride. 

The 12-year-old boy tried to hijack the school bus to Washington so he could shoot government officials, witnesses told ABC News Charlotte affiliate WSOC-TV.


Driver Evans Okoduwa said today that while was scared during Monday's incident he knew that if he didn't get the child to drop his weapon he "could have been shot."
Where do you think he got ideas like that, to kill politicians? I'll bet he got them from the same place he got the gun, from daddy?

The older the juvenile offender is the harder it is to blame the parents, I suppose, but don't you think there should be some attempt to determine what went on in the family?

Please leave a comment.

Conservative Louisiana - And They're Not the Only Ones


The State of Louisiana says there’s no such thing as evolution. There’s no such thing as climate change. And that’s the law.


Outrageous as it sounds, this is the situation that thousands of science teachers find themselves in as more and more states pass radical laws promoting the teaching of creationism and climate-change denial in public classrooms.


On April 15, Sen. Karen Carter Peterson introduced SB 70 to repeal the Louisiana Science Education Act.
Is it any wonder these guys have a problem with common sense gun control?

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Proper Training for Policewomen





Policewomen practice assembling and disassembling Kalashnikov automatic rifles during a training course at a police academy in Kerbala, 80 km (50 miles) southwest of Baghdad April 27, 2011. About 50 policewomen took part in a 45-day basic training course, a police commander in Kerbala said on Wednesday. (Mushtaq Muhammed/Reuters)

Typical Gun Owner Response to Osama

via 22 Words entitled "The most American response to Osama's death possible."

The Center-of-Mass Baloney


Basically this is what happened. A suicidal man was walking down the street with a gun. Eight cops responded. A gunfight began. Five cops used their weapons. When the smoke cleared, the suicidal guy was dead and the cops were unharmed.

Investigators cleaning up the mess left behind by the late-night gunfight that killed a Sioux Falls man Wednesday found at least 50 shells from three different calibers littered throughout the residential neighborhood where the incident took place.

But police say the number of bullets - some of which hit homes and cars in the 3100 block of E. 19th St. - is not necessarily overkill.

Of course they say it wasn't overkill. Cops are as loyal to each other as gun-rights activists. The interesting thing is they go on to defend the fact that they shot the guy in the chest instead of the legs. I didn't see any justification for why some of the bullets ended up hitting houses in the neighborhood. I guess that's just part of the deal.

Police spokesman Sam Clemens on Friday said officers are trained to shoot at the "center mass" of anyone who fires on or threatens to fire on law enforcement "until the threat is stopped."

There is no specific number of shots officers must take, Clemens said. They are taught to shoot until the situation is safe.

"You always hear about officers maybe shooting someone in the leg or shooting someone in the arm, but realistically, that's a small target and it may be moving," he said.
Now let me ask you this. Five cops shooting as many times as is necessary in order to stop the threat, could shoot at a guys feet, couldn't they. Even if they only hit him in his lower legs and feet once or twice each, don't you think that would be sufficient to stop the threat? And wouldn't that keep the trajectory of the bullets under better control?

I can understand if there's a gunfight in which the cop faces an kill-or-be-killed situation, and he decides to shoot at the center of mass. But in many of these cases, there are other options.

What do you think? Please leave a comment.

The Toll of Gun Violence is not Only Counted in Dead Bodies

The Indy Star reports on the recovery of Chance Jackson shot twice one month ago.

The boy had significant damage to seven vital organs. His gallbladder had to be removed. He had operations on his liver and pancreas; a kidney was injured. A major artery in his stomach was severed and had to be removed. A bullet broke one of his ribs.

He had trouble putting weight on his legs after being stuck in an Indianapolis hospital bed for two weeks. He can walk and talk now, but both wear him out.
Can you imagine the monetary and emotional cost of something like this. And the thing is, it happens dozens of times a day all over the country.

Often we get caught up counting deaths, but in a sick way, serious woundings are even more costly.

I place the blame on the easy access to guns in Indiana, the prevalent attitude that guns are the answer and the gun-rights folks who make those two things possible.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.