Saturday, November 3, 2012

Buy Guns Even if Obama Loses - Bryan Fischer

via Mock, Paper, Scissors

More Indications of Racism Against Obama - Hillary Would Win Easier

The Guardian
Hillary Clinton would be on course for a landslide victory over Mitt Romney, with a lead five points larger than Barack Obama's, if she was on the ballot paper instead of the president in Tuesday's US election, according to a poll.

The survey by YouGov (pdf), shown exclusively to the Guardian, has the secretary of state beating Romney by 51% to 45% among likely voters. Obama leads Romney by 48% to 47%.

YouGov estimates that Clinton's lead would translate into a massive victory in the electoral college, by 347 to 191 votes. The polling company, which surveys regularly in the US, believes Clinton would win both Florida and North Carolina, states that it projects Obama to lose.

The findings are likely to add to the clamour for Clinton to seek the presidency in 2016, when she would be the frontrunner for her party's nomination.

California Cop Shoots Himself During Training

Local news reports
An officer suffered a minor injury Tuesday after shooting himself in the leg during an accident at the Fullerton Police Department's shooting range, authorities said. The officer was undergoing the department's monthly qualifications at the range in the basement of the Fullerton Police Department when his weapon "accidently discharged," Sgt. Jeff Stuart said.

The officer suffered a "minor injury to the right leg," Stuart said, and was taken to a hospital as a precaution. The officer was expected to be released Tuesday night.

"He was alert and talking and obviously somewhat embarrassed about the whole thing," Stuart said.

"When his weapon accidentally discharged," did you get that? It was the gun's fault. This is how the so-called liberal press conspires with gun owners to downplay the individual responsibility of negligent discharges.

It would be naive to assume that people who do this kind of thing are making their first negligent action ever.  No, the incidents that come to the public attention are usually not the first. Unless people who do this kind of thing are disarmed, these incidents will not be their last.

One strike you're out is the proper response to negligent discharges.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.


PA Man who Shot Girl in Skunk Costume About to go to Trial

Local news reports - here's our original post.
A Pennsylvania man who apparently shot a young relative after mistaking her costume for a skunk has been ordered to stand trial on charges of assault and reckless endangerment. 

Police said the girl was in a black costume with a white feather or tassel on her hat during a Halloween party at a New Sewickley home on Oct. 20. The Beaver County Times reported investigators said the girl was lying face down and motionless during a game of hide-and-seek when she was shot. 

Grant's attorney called the shooting a "tragic accident." He said he'll ask to have the charges dismissed.
What do you predict, guilty to a lesser charge and keep the guns? That's my bet.

Please leave a comment.

Hidden Criminal Shoots Himself by Accident - Gets Arrested

Local news reports
Jose Rivera, 31, was charged Monday with criminal possession of a weapon and reckless endangerment. 

Police found Rivera bleeding from a wound in his left hand after responding just after midnight to a reported gunshot victim at 32 Starr Avenue. Rivera told officers he had been shot at another location. 

The officers quickly determined it was accidental and then found a loaded .380-caliber handgun wrapped in a plastic bag under the car in the driveway. Police say Rivera did not have a pistol permit to legally possess the gun.
Some of the pro-gun folks pretend to not understand what I mean by "hidden criminal." It's convenient for them to divide the world of gun owners into "good guys" and "bad guys." I guess simple minds need simple ideas to believe in.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Accidental Shooting in Ohio Leads to Someone Else's Arrest for Growing Pot

Local news reports
Officers responded to a home at 9050 Tarlton Rd., Lot B in Stoutsville Thursday at 3:26 p.m.
When they arrived, deputies found a man disabled by a gunshot wound to the upper body and unable to speak because of his injuries.  

While investigating the shooting and processing the scene, deputies reported locating a large indoor garden of marijuana inside the victim’s home.  A search warrant allowed a more thorough look through the house and deputies reported finding two growing rooms with 302 plants weighing a total of eight pounds. They seized the plants as well as currency and firearms.

Taken into custody was another resident of the house, Stanley L. Crosby, 51, who was charged with possession of marijuana, cultivation of marijuana and trafficking in marijuana. All charges were felonies, according to a release from Sheriff Dave Phalen’s office.

The shooting victim may also face criminal charges related to the plants, but his name will not be released until charges are filed.
I suppose they might get around to charging the wounded guy, but not for his gun negligence.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Accidental Shooting in Tennessee Leads to Someone Else's Arrest for Cocaine

Local news reports
Danny McDaniel brought a handgun to 11 Avalon Street where a group of acquaintances were playing cards and accidentally fired it through his left hand and another man’s right hip, Clarksville Police Spokesman Jim Knoll Said.

Police found drug and drug paraphernalia at the residence and the gun was removed before police arrived, Knoll said. An officer and a police service dog located the gun near Charlemagne and Sevier streets, according to the release.

Stacey Gray, 28, who gave a 11 Avalon Street address, was charged with cocaine possession for resale and unlawful drug paraphernalia. Her bond was set at $5,500.

Knoll said additional charges are pending from an ongoing investigation.
I suppose they'll get around to charging the shooter, not so much for gun negligence as for hanging around with the wrong crowd.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Friday, November 2, 2012

Wild Bill for America Going off the Deep End

Dennis Miller and Bill O'Reilly Stumbling over their Stupidity

South Carolina Gun Shop with Inadequate Security is Robbed

Local news reports

 Live5News.com | Charleston, SC | News, Weather, Sports

More Romney Lies

USC Campus Shooting - 4 Wounded

via Florida Today
Authorities say four people have been shot and wounded during a Halloween party on the University of Southern California campus. 

 Capt. David Carlisle of the USC Department of Public Safety says two people were detained following the shooting shortly before midnight Wednesday. Los Angeles police say the four victims were rushed to hospitals after the shooting at Tutor Campus Center. 

According to KNBC, Assistant Chief John Thomas of the USC Department of Public Safety says a dispute between 2 non-students led to the shooting. The Los Angeles Times reports that the violence occurred outside the party attended by about 100 people. 

Police then declared the campus "shut down" and issued an alert urging students to remain indoors. Campus police did not provide any details on the two people who were detained.
Too bad a few of the other party-goers weren't armed too. They could have added to the fun.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Idaho Woman Shot in the Ass - Makes Jokes

Local news reports
Hailey Hodges is the oldest daughter of Cassia County 5th District Magistrate Judge Mick Hodges.

Authorities say Hailey Hodges’ husband, the son of a Democratic state lawmaker, shot Hodges accidentally with a rifle following a day of hunting.

Ian Malepeai is one of three children of Idaho Senate Minority Leader Edgar Malepeai of Pocatello, who is retiring from the Legislature this year.

According to sheriff’s reports, Malepeai was removing a 7 mm rifle from his pickup truck just after 7 p.m. when it discharged, sending a bullet into Hailey Hodges’ buttocks.

Judge Hodges said he spoke to his daughter, a Twin Falls High School graduate, and she was doing well and was making jokes about the incident soon afterward.
Negligence with guns should be taken more seriously than that.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

More on the Indianapolis Shooting

Mail online reports on this story which broke the other day.
A 14-year-old Indianapolis boy was accidentally gunned down when two older friends tried to scare him as a prank, and one of them ended up shooting the teen in the neck with an assault rifle. 

Police say Nicholas King died at the scene of the shooting Tuesday night on the city's southeast side. 

According to detectives, 18-year-old Kevin Edwards brought a rifle into a home and was allowing his 15-year-old step-brother to handle the weapon when King knocked on the door in the 5800 block of La Fleur Street about 8pm. 

Witnesses say the two ran to the door hoping to spook King, and the 15-year-old pointed the weapon at the teen and pulled the trigger.  King, a freshman at Franklin Central High School, was pronounced dead at the scene despite paramedics’ efforts to save him. 

Edwards told police that he had obtained the Romarm 7.62 assault-style rifle on Craigslist, even though the site has a policy that prohibits the sale of firearms. The teens told investigators they did not know the gun was loaded. Police are now trying to determine where the boy's parents were at the time of the shooting.
Shame on the parents for not supervising their teenage boys better than that. Shame on Craigslist for selling guns to kids. Shame on the gun-rights fanatics who keep saying accidental gun deaths are so few we don't have to worry about them.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Accidental Shooting of Maryland Teen during Halloween Spook Walk - Shooter not Arrested

Local news reports 
Police here are investigating what appears to be an accidental shooting Friday night at a longtime Halloween happening that benefits the Rock Hall Volunteer Fire Company. 

A 16-year-old Chestertown boy was struck in the lower leg while attending the Spook Walk. 

The alleged shooter was someone who was helping with the Spook Walk. “He was using a real shotgun and live ammo as part of the character he was portraying,” Capt. William Dempsey said in a telephone interview Tuesday. 

A 12-gauge shotgun, which Dempsey described as “a hunting weapon,” and other evidence were recovered. Dempsey said the boy was struck by a blast of 7.5 birdshot. He said the shooting did not appear to be malicious.
This was one of your lawful and responsible gun owners who thought it would be a good idea to use a real gun and keep it loaded during this event with the local kids.

The overly defensive and fanatical gun rights folks recently argued that most gun accidents only harm the gun owner.  They also resist any suggestion that gun owners need to be better qualified to exercise their gun rights. The result is an increase in death and suffering. The gain, convenience for them.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Accidental Shooting of Georgia 13-Year-old - She's Dead - Teen Shooter Arrested not the Gun Owner

Local news reports

 
"In 2009, 642 people were killed in the United States by accidental shootings. They’re the second leading cause of non-natural deaths for kids, according to a report by the University of Utah."

The thing about gun accidents is they are easily prevented.  The thing about gun accidents involving kids in Georgia is, they never blame the gun owner.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Thursday, November 1, 2012

Ian was on the radio talking about this album.  It's topical, I thought I would pass it on:

Justice Stevens: No to Guns, Yes to Cell Phones

via Outdoor Life
Retired Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens says your right to self-defense in your own home should be limited to a cellphone "at your bedside." 

Stevens, 92, served on the Supreme Court for 35 years before retiring in 2010. A liberal jurist, Stevens wrote the dissenting opinions on both the 2008 Heller ruling and the 2010 McDonald decision, both of which were 5-4 affirmations that the Second Amendment protects an individual's civil right to keep and bear arms. 

"Maybe you have some kind of constitutional right to have a cell phone with a pre-dialed 911 in the number at your bedside and that might provide you with a little better protection than a gun which you’re not used to using,” he said to laughter, according to an Oct. 16 article by Reuters. 

In addition to telling Americans to trade in their rifles for cellphones, Stevens said the Heller and McDonald rulings leave room for restrictions on the right to carry outside the home, bans on certain styles of firearms, elimination of carry rights in "sensitive" places and background-check requirements for private gun sales. 


“The Second Amendment provides no obstacle to regulations prohibiting the ownership or the use of the sorts of automatic weapons used in the tragic multiple killings in Virginia, Colorado and Arizona in recent years,” he said.

Stevens went on to say that the legal precedent for restricting gun rights -- United States vs. Miller -- still stands, despite Heller and McDonald rulings. 

The 1939 Miller ruling limited "the scope of the Second Amendment to the uses of arms that were related to military activities,” Stevens said. “The Court did not overrule Miller. Instead it read Miller to say only that the Second Amendment does not protect those weapons not typically possessed by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes, such as short-barreled shotguns."

This interpretation of Miller is flawed, most legal scholars contend, and was strongly rebuked by Justice Antonin Scalia's majority opinion in Heller. Scalia described Stevens' argument as "simply wrong" because he "flatly misreads the historical record" of the Second Amendment. 

"In both of his dissents, Justice Stevens contended that the right to keep and bear arms was limited to state militia service," said Alan Gottlieb, chairman of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms. "It was, and remains, an astonishing position on a fundamental civil right."

False Argument: Gun Ownership is Up Therefore Crime is Down

Opposing Views
The number of violent crimes reported to police decreased 3.8 percent last year to 1.2 million, the fifth straight year of declines, the FBI announced Monday. 

Meanwhile, the total number of property crimes reported to law enforcement agencies went down by 0.5 percent to 9 million, the ninth consecutive year that figure has fallen.

The FBI’s data showed that the South accounted for 41.3 percent of violent crime, while the West accounted for 22.9 percent. The Midwest claimed 19.5 percent of the cases and the Northeast, 16.2 percent.
The pro-gun blogs are ablaze with a false interpretation of this report. Crime is down while gun ownership is up, they keep repeating. The obvious inference is that BECAUSE gun ownership is up, crime is down. Often it's more than an inference.

This is one of their fundamental misconceptions, the idea that more guns means less violence.

The proof of their fallacy is in the geographic breakdown. The South, which has a high concentration of gun ownership, accounts for 41% of the violent crime.  The Northeast, which has a much lower concentration of gun ownership, accounts for only 16.2%.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.




Paul Ryan's Sick Hunting Behavior

Emily Miller writing for the Washington Times
Mr. Ryan also likes to challenge himself by shooting with his revolver. “He likes hunting with a handgun,” Mr. Olcott said of his brother-in-law.  “He’ll carry his .357 in the stand -- in a holster -- and wait for a deer comes in range for a handgun, which is more like bow range, 30 yards or closer,” said Mr. Olcott. “He’s shot a lot of deer with his handgun. He really likes that.” 
Did you get that? They're talking about the "challenge" of sitting in a tree stand and waiting for a deer to come into handgun range. Now, to me that's sick behavior.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Chris Christie on Obama's Response to the Storm

Accidental Shooting by Indianapolis Teen - His Friend's Dead - He's Arrested

Local news reports

 
The failure in Indiana when this kind of thing happens is that the owner of the gun is not arrested. Every time a kid does something stupid with a gun, an adult should be held accountable.  14-year-olds should not have unsupervised access to guns.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Cenk on Climate Change

October Visits and Page Views - All Time Highs

(click to make bigger)

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Comparing Gun Control to Prohibition is Silly

The gun-rights crowd love to say that Prohibition of alcohol didn't work, why do we think gun control will.  They say this in a condescending way, as if everyone is stupid but them. They often compare suggestions for common sense gun control laws to the War on Drugs. People still get heroin and cocaine, don't they? They repeat these things in various ways, over and over again, picking them up from one another, but I wonder if any of them ever stopped to consider what they're really saying and how nonsensical it is.

If we said the solution to gun violence is to make civilian ownership of guns illegal, no exceptions, and to confiscate all the guns out there to have them destroyed, then they would have a valid comparison.  Then they could say, Prohibition failed and so would your attempts to eliminate guns.  Then they could say, the War on Drugs is a dismal failure, so would your attempts to eliminate guns be. That would make sense.

But, we don't say civilian gun ownership should be illegal and they should all be confiscated and destroyed, do we?  

No, what we propose are sensible ways to focus on the major sources of guns used in crime and by the mentally ill. But rather than deal with that, they come up with one false argument after another. First it's things like gun control won't work, Prohibition failed, then it's criminals will always get guns anyway

I believe these bumbling attempts at denying the obvious are evidence that the gun-rights folks are losing the argument. They try to make up for that in numbers and repetition and with these bizarre arguments, but they're losing.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.


The Humorous Paranoia of the Gun-Rights Folks

An op-ed by Warren Thomas in the Daily Republic.
What Democrats usually ignore is the deviousness with which President Obama, a consistent anti-gun advocate, plans to assault our Second Amendment rights.

By winning re-election Obama will have the freedom to bypass Congress without that nagging problem of being responsible to American voters. He can simply impose restrictive executive firearms orders.

Historically, at least two things immediately occur whenever legitimate governments fall to despots — guns are confiscated and voting is eliminated. We yet have a few days to prevent that from happening, but only a few days.
We often hear this kind of nonsense, but I'm wondering, how can a democratically conducted presidential election ever be confused with a "legitimate government falling to despots?"

Are the gun-rights folks so infantile that when they disagree with someone's politics they resort to calling them names?  

Another oddity in their continual bashing of the possibility of gun confiscations is this.  Did England and Australia become tyrannical?  Did they do away with voting? Have they begun to round up their undesirables into concentration camps? 

No, of course not.  So, even if the unthinkable happens in the US and the 2nd Amendment is abolished or eliminated, and all the guns are rounded up and destroyed, tyranny would not follow. The Republic would endure. Only the ego maniacal gun-rights fanatics think it all depends on them.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

California Man Arrested for a Killing that Someone Else Did

Local news reports

A 28-year-old Redding man was arrested early Sunday in the shooting death of his friend, even though he didn't fire a gun.

The victim was shot and killed early Sunday morning when his friend stirred a confrontation while looking for his ex-girlfriend in Shasta Lake, Shasta County sheriff's officials said.

But authorities make no secret they believe it was that friend, William Roy Thietje, who caused the death — not the shooter.

Thietje, 28, was arrested on suspicion of involuntary manslaughter and felony assault after he allegedly rammed his van into another parked car in a fit of anger while looking for an ex-girlfriend. That action, deputies said, prompted a homeowner in the area to shoot at the van to stop Thietje from hitting a nearby pedestrian.

"The actions by William Thietje caused the death of his friend," according to a sheriff's office news release.
I find it hard to believe that a gun owner who intervenes by "shooting at the van" is considered within his rights while the driver of that van is blamed for the killing the gun owner did.

I'm always suspicious when gun owners shoot at vehicles to stop them from running people over. That's the kind of thing Bruce Willis does in the movies. In real life, it amounts to out-of-control behavior motivated by rage or outrage.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Murder Trial Begins of 10-Year-old (Now 12) Killer of Neo-Nazi Dad

The Washington Post reports
The 10-year-old son of a neo-Nazi leader told his younger sister that he planned to shoot their father, then a day later took a gun from his parents’ bedroom and fired one bullet into his father’s head as he slept on a couch, a prosecutor alleged Tuesday.

The boy’s father, Jeff Hall, was an out-of-work plumber who as regional leader of the National Socialist Movement headed rallies at a synagogue and a day labor site.

In opening statements at the murder trial, Riverside County prosecutor Michael Soccio dismissed the notion that Hall’s neo-Nazi beliefs contributed to his son’s behavior, as the defense maintains, and instead said the boy, now 12, was a violent child who had been kicked out of every school he attended.

Defense attorney Matthew Hardy countered in his opening statement that his client had grown up in an abusive and violent environment and was conditioned to believe it was right to kill people who were a threat.

Hall taught his son to shoot guns, took him to neo-Nazi rallies and once to the Mexican border to teach him how to “make sure he knew what to do to protect this place from the Mexicans,” Hardy said.

“If you were going to create a monster, if you were going to create a killer, what would you do?” he said. “You’d put him in a house where there’s domestic violence, child abuse, racism.”

Hardy also claimed the boy’s stepmother Krista McCary, who is expected to testify, goaded the boy into killing Hall because Hall was planning to leave her for another woman. Hall sent her text messages on the night he was shot saying he would divorce her, Hardy said.
Fortunately for the boy he lives in California, a civilized state, where juvenile crimes are handled in juvenile court. It's only too bad that spending the rest of his youth in a maximum security facility will only make him worse. I don't see much hope for him.

The gun was unsecured in the bedroom. Do you think that was a factor?  I do.

Please leave a comment.

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Let's go Flippy Floppy: Vote for Mitt!

He was for it before he was against it!

Or was he against it before he was for it?



Schizoid Man! Schizoid Man!


Star Trekkin'

Since someone around here is a Trekkie!:

South Carolina Gun Owner Shoots Neighbor Through the Wall




An 18-year-old Florence man was arrested Monday morning after he fired a shotgun in his apartment, injuring a neighbor on the other side of the wall.




Fabian Frost, 18, of 304 Royal St., is charged with discharging a firearm into a dwelling and assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature in connection with an incident that happened about 7:30 a.m. Monday, Florence Police Maj. Carlos Raines said.

It appears Frost accidentally fired the shotgun, but the bullet went through the wall of the apartment and pellets from the ammunition struck a neighbor who was lying on a couch on the other side of the wall, Raines said.
I'm sure his race had nothing to do with the arrest, not in South Carolina.

Cenk's Take on the Mass Shootings - Racial Angle

Manchester-by-the-Sea, Massachusetts Police Sergeant Arrested in Domestic Incident


 Local news reports
Police responded to 15 Devon Ave. around midnight Friday after a report of a domestic disturbance involving a shot fired from a gun, according to a statement released by police on Saturday night.

According to the release, officers arrived on the scene to find the altercation over and John “Jay” Swallow, a sergeant with the Manchester Police Department, outside on the sidewalk.

Police said the victim had been arguing with Swallow, who left the room and returned with a silver Ruger handgun, which he pointed at the victim. According to the victim, he then pointed the gun at a dog in the room, stating he was going to kill the animal.

“The victim asked Swallow to leave, but when he refused, the victim pushed past him and went to the neighbor’s house. As the victim was walking outside, a single gunshot was heard inside the house.

Swallow told officers that the gun had accidentally discharged while he was en route to put it away.”
Officers seized weapons from the home, including 16 handguns, 11 rifles, eight shotguns, a large amount of ammunition and four samurai swords.

According to Beverly police, Swallow is charged with assault and battery, assault with a dangerous weapon, discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a dwelling, witness intimidation, and three firearms security violations.
How much you wanna bet he pleas it down enough to keep his job and guns?

What do you think?  Please leave a comment.

Fargo Man Shoots Himself by Accident - No Charges

Local news reports
The man was on his way to the hospital at about 1:50 a.m. when he called authorities to report the incident, Sgt. Jim Kringlie said. Two other people were home at the time of the accidental shooting in the 2200 block of 57th Avenue South, but they were not injured. 

The pistol was a .40-caliber Glock similar to what police carry, Kringlie said. 

“To disassemble it, you do have to pull the trigger, but you’re supposed to empty it first,” he said. 

While it’s illegal to discharge a firearm within city limits, police are not recommending prosecution, Kringlie said.
Total nonchalance. Why would they want to charge a guy for proving he's an irresponsible and dangerous gun owner? That might prevent his killing someone next time he forgets there's one in the chamber.

My opinion is this is absolutely unacceptable. The pro-gun crowd like to downplay the personal responsibility in these cases because they what the same tolerance themselves when they do something stupid. It's wrong.  Gun owners should he held to a higher standard that does not allow for "accidents." One strike your out is the answer because you can be sure these people we read about every day are not making their very first mistake ever, and, unfortunately, the way the general acceptance of their misbehavior is now, it won't be their last.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Virginia 9-Year-old Girl Dead in Shooting Accident - No Arrests


Accomack County Sheriff Todd Godwin said authorities are uncertain whether she shot herself or whether she was accidentally shot by her 11-year-old brother.

An investigation is continuing into the accidental shooting.
Disgraceful nonchalance. Every story about a kid getting accidentally shot should include the arrest of the gun owner. It doesn't take a lengthy investigation to determine what went wrong in these cases.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Clumsy Idaho Hunters

Local news reports
Ada County Sheriff's spokeswoman Andrea Dearden told the Idaho Statesman that the first hunter was in Elmore County on Sunday when he rested his rifle on his foot while he climbed into his truck. Dearden says the rifle discharged, shooting the hunter in the toe.

Later Sunday, three hunters near Atlanta were unloading their weapons when one of the guns discharged, the bullet hitting one of them in the ankle. The men were able to wave down Ada County Sheriff's deputies on Idaho Highway 21, and the man was taken to a hospital.

Dearden says hunters should remember to always treat their weapons as if they are loaded.
Well, that's not all they should do. They should follow the entire 4 Rules of Gun Safety. And failure to do so should be taken very seriously.

Accidental Shooting in Texas - Three Wounded including an Infant - No Charges

Local news reports
According to police reports, several people were in the apartment at the time of the shooting. A 19-year-old woman was seated holding the infant. At the same time, a 21-year-old man was unloading a 9 mm pistol. 

When the pistol accidentally discharged, it struck the man in his left hand. It then struck the young woman in the left hand before striking the baby in the face. The bullet continued on and entered the residence next door, where it lodged in a piece of furniture. No one was injured in the adjoining apartment.

The investigation into this incident is continuing. No charges have been filed and no arrests have been made in this incident.
This is another disgraceful example of the nonchalance with which "accidents" are treated. That unnamed 21-year-old idiot should be behind bars and never allowed to legally touch a gun again.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Monday, October 29, 2012

Vote for Obama - Here's Why

Why gun guys feel safe....

The gun fairy will protect them from evil

Obama on MTV on Gun Control

Get More: Music News

"Criminals Will Always Get Guns" is a Poor Argument

"Criminals will always get guns," is one of the most touted little pieces of wisdom the gun-rights crowd has. They repeat it incessantly. If you propose gun restrictions in the hope of thwarting criminal gun abuse, they trot out the old tried and true dictum, "criminals will always get guns."

I suppose what they mean is "since criminals will always get guns no matter what gun control laws we try, we shouldn't try any at all." Of course, this is false for two reasons.

Number one, criminals will not ALWAYS get guns. If guns are harder to come by, many criminals will not make the extra effort necessary to find alternate means of acquiring them. With proper gun control laws in place, private sales with no background check will not be an option. Theft will be harder due to safe storage law enforcement. Straw purchasing will all but cease to exist with licensing and registration. What's left is buying from other criminals, but even this will be more difficult due to the other restrictions. Guns on the black market will become more scarce. What we have to remember is that criminals are like everybody else, they seek the path of least resistance. If guns are harder to come by many will do without.

Number two, even if criminals would always be able to get guns anyway, that does not justify making it easier for them to do so.

One thing the pro-gun crowd likes to overlook is that almost every single gun used in crime in the US started out the lawful property of some gun owner. That's why, as much as they hate the idea, it makes sense that most gun control laws focus on them, the law abiding. Everyone knows that criminals won't obey laws, so by constraining gun owners to act more responsibly, access to guns by the bad guys is diminished.  

I reject the other argument too which says all this would put undue hardship in those law-abiding gun owners. There would be additional requirements but I don't see them as excessive. Even Second Amendment adherents, who I think are completely wrong in their thinking, have to admit that "reasonable restrictions"  are allowed.  So says Justice Antonin Scalia, one of their own heroes.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.




Rod Stewart's Carjacking Story

Celeb Buzz reports

Rod Stewart was forced to help a weapon-wielding carjacker steal his own Porsche after the criminal failed to start the vehicle.

The British rocker, 67,  was visiting a storage unit in Los Angeles with his daughter, Kimberly, who was a young girl at the time, when he was approached by the thug who demanded his keys.

“He said, ‘Put your hands up’ and I gave him the keys,” he told Access Hollywood about the incident which took place 20-years-ago.

Stewart was relieved to escape unscathed, however his ordeal wasn’t over. “He came back and said, ‘I can’t start the car,’ so at gunpoint, I had to walk out on a side street with a gun in my back and get in the car and start it for him. It started on a button.”
What would have happened if Rod had been carrying a gun for his own protection?I don't see it ending better for either the thief or the celebrity.  Do you?

Indiana Library Finds Gun in Donated Book

Local news reports
An employee at the Valparaiso branch of the Porter County Public Library made a shocking discovery this week after cracking open a donated book. The book, which carries the title "Outerbridge Reach," was hollowed out and contained a historic-looking handgun, according to Valparaiso police.

The weapon was described by police as a gold, wooden handle, A.S.M. brand, .31-caliber, single shot, black powder gun.
And the kicker? This was not the first time it's happened.

In Florida, Mentally Ill Son Kills Mom and her Boyfriend

Benjamin K. Bishop


 The Tampa Bay Times reports

Bishop, 18, had a history of mental illness, addiction to bath salts and violence toward his mother, Imari Shibata, 49, a nursing assistant, according to the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office. Shibata and her boyfriend, Kelley Allen, also 49, a popular swim coach, were so concerned for their safety they removed all the knives from their home before Bishop returned in September from a 10-month stint at a rehab center.

Startled by her son that night, Shibata looked at him and the 12-gauge shotgun he bought through a friend, Pinellas Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said Sunday. She asked her son what he was doing. Bishop answered by pulling the trigger. He fired several times, reloaded, then fired again — eight rounds total, killing his mother and her boyfriend, the sheriff said. Then he called 911 and admitted to the crime.

Deputies arrested Bishop on two counts of first-degree murder.

Bishop is unemployed and a diagnosed schizophrenic.

Bishop tried to strangle his mother in July 2011, authorities said Sunday, and probation for that incident prevented him from being able to buy a gun.

On July 26, 2011, according to Florida Department of Law Enforcement records, Bishop was arrested on charges of obstructing justice by tampering with a witness and domestic battery by strangulation, both felonies. The counts were reduced to a lesser battery charge, the records show, and he pleaded guilty. A judge withheld adjudication and the teen was sentenced this year.

Bishop also had been held four times under the state's Baker Act, Gualtieri said.

A few weeks ago, Bishop told an 18-year-old friend he needed a gun for protection from local gangs. He gave the friend $279 he had made by pawning electronic items, according to the Sheriff's Office.
Is that allowed? Can you buy a gun for a prohibited person as long as it's not a handgun? Can 18-year-olds do that?

He's being charged with 1st Degree Murder which is wrong. He's not mentally sound enough to be guilty of such a thing.  The State of Florida should be charged with felony murder for making gun availability what it is.  That's where this thing went wrong.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Lawful Gun Owner in Vermont Goes Bad

Boston.com reports
State police and Border Patrol agents were called to a party in Charleston about 1 a.m. Sunday regarding a shooting.

When police arrived, a crowd pushed 24-year-old Lee Sykes of Charleston against a trooper’s cruiser, telling police he had shot another Charleston man, Eric Baker, during a fight.

Officials say Baker was taken to North Country Hospital by his wife with a gunshot wound to the hip.  Sykes was also treated for injuries to his face and hand from the fight and from the crowd that went to Baker’s aid.

Sykes is being held on $25,000 bail at the Northern State Correctional Facility on a charge of aggravated assault. 
This is in gun friendly Vermont where according to the gun-rights folks this kind of thing just doesn't happen.

What do you think?  Please leave a comment.

Sunday, October 28, 2012

The Right to Hunt and Fish

Salon reports
 

In four states this November, voters will decide whether to institute a constitutional amendment ensuring the “right to hunt and fish.” These measures are being pushed by the National Rifle Association primarily as a way of preemptively protecting hunters and gun owners from “radical” animal rights groups.

To most people, these amendments probably sound like a solution without a problem. But the NRA has been warning voters and state legislators that “radical” animal rights groups could come for their guns and traps any day now. As the NRA’s legislative arm, the NRA-ILA, wrote on its blog, it’s working to “protect the citizens’ hunting heritage from attacks initiated by well-funded anti-hunting extremists who have assailed sportsmen throughout the country in recent years.”

The main “extremists” the NRA-ILA refers to are PETA and the Humane Society of the United States (unrelated to the organization that runs local animal shelters but often attacked as radical for pushing for things such as crackdowns on puppy mills). But HSUS says it has no plans to go after hunting and fishing rights, and it called the Kentucky amendment “inconsequential and merely window dressing.”
Aren't those the same scare tactics they use for gun rights in general? Yes, that's what the NRA is all about.  And the insecure and frightened gun-rights activists love it.  It plays right into their damaged psyches.

People who own guns are often motivated by the supposed empowerment they provide. The ones who find this most attractive are those who lack power in the first place. Of course this is all in their minds.  Usually it's an imaginary lacking, an underlying fear which in their fantasy life is made complete with a gun.

Hunting is worse.  it combines all the psychoses involved in gun ownership itself with the actual killing of animals. That's just sick.  People who get off on killing animals have mental problems, in my opinion.

Now, none of this translates into banning guns or outlawing hunting.  That's just hysterical exaggeration on the part of the gun owners and hunters. Gun control is about ensuring that folks who do decide to own guns, for whatever reason, are qualified to do so.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Arkansas - Gun Availability

 KATV - Breaking News, Weather and Razorback Sports

10-Year-old Girl Dead in another Preventable and Unacceptable Gun Accident

Local news reports

A 10-year-old girl was fatally injured in what appeared to be an accidental shooting at a Saxis Road residence Thursday night.


Deputies when they arrived at the residence found the girl had sustained a gunshot wound to the body. The victim was transported by ambulance to Peninsula Regional Medical Center in Salisbury, Md., where she was pronounced dead.

Godwin said investigation into the shooting is continuing but it appears to have been accidental.
Did you get that? "BUT it appears to have been accidental," as if that makes it all right. That's one of the ways in which they diminish the responsibility of gun accidents. The other is they keep telling us how few they are, as if that makes it all right.


What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Car Thief Accidentally Shoots Himself Trying to Escape

The Orlando Sentinal reports

Tracy Joyce was riding through Winter Park on Friday afternoon when he saw someone drive by in his stolen blue Volvo.

The scenario ended when the teenager behind the wheel of the Volvo rammed an unmarked police car and accidentally shot himself in the leg as he tried to run away.

He jumped from the car and ran north toward the railroad tracks with officers in pursuit, leapt a hedge and pulled a .44-caliber handgun from his waistband, according to the report. The next thing officers heard was a pop. 

Johnson had accidentally shot himself in the right calf. He was booked into Orange County Jail about 11:15 p.m. after being treated at a hospital.

The passenger in the Volvo, Gerald Lavert Jones, 18, also was arrested. He was not hurt.
It's a good thing they didn't shoot the kid. But, it's a bad thing that every teenage car thief has easy access to guns. Unfortunately, that's how it is in Florida these days. We can thank the gun-rights advocates and their gun lobby for that.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.