Saturday, September 18, 2010

Recent Comment on Weer'd's Blog

Weer'd, the ever-vigilant and super-responsible gun owner, posted this nonsense to share with all his ever-vigilant and super-responsible gun buddies. This is what I commented.

That looks like it goes very well with your ever-vigilant gun management. By the third or fourth one you'll be in great shape when that burglar you've been waiting for strikes.

What do you think? Is he more interested in gun safety and responsible gun management or just plain old partying?

Please leave a comment.

Rick Perry

The Dallas News reports that Gov. Rick Perry is the darling candidate of Texas gun enthusiasts. No surprise there. But, for me, the surprise on the video was how much he sounds like former president Bush.

He has an active permit to carry a concealed weapon, and on Thursday he urged a reporter to get one as well, if only to get through new checkpoints at the Capitol much quicker. "Those individuals are seven times less likely to be involved in a criminal act," he said. "Regardless of that reality, our national political dialogue is still divided between two groups. Those that respect and defend individual freedom and those who think big government is to equipped to make decisions for us."

What's your opinion? Is he a little too much with the macho gun talk? Can you take a guy like that seriously?

Please leave a comment.

Lewisville Texas Murder-Suicide

The Dallas News reports.

A standoff that ended early Friday with a gunman and his stepson dead at a Lewisville home began seven hours earlier when the suspect confronted his ex-wife, neighbors say.

What this angry maniac gun owner did was murder his step-son then tell the boy's mother to go get him. Of course when she found the boy dead she ran out of the house screaming hysterically. Sometime later during a police stand-off the shooter killed himself.

I wonder if anyone is bothering to investigate if he'd had a concealed carry permit. Perhaps when the guy is dead it no longer matters. John Lott and the rest of the folks who claim CCW guys are better behaved than the others are under no obligation to count him.

What about his NRA membership, is anyone checking on that? Chances are he's not a dues-paying member since the NRA has such a paltry membership compared to the number of gun owners they serve, but do you think it's safe to say he was an NRA type?

What's your opinion? Do you see a problem in a man as unstable as Daniel Peshak having "several handguns and a rifle" in the home?

Please leave a comment.

Illinois Woman May Face the Death Penalty

You know what I say? In a civilized country you cannot execute a mentally ill person no matter how angry you are at what she did. It's simple.

Life on the Texas Border - Arizona Gun Seizure

This is a fascinating video about life on the border. Interestingly it's linked to an ABC story about the ATF seizing 1300 guns in Arizona.

Friday, September 17, 2010

Violent Crime Declining

The pro-gun folks seem to think their predictions are all coming true.

Yet, they just cannot explain this.

What's your opinion? Is it possible that overall violent crime has declined due to the many factors that play a part in that complex dynamic and it would have declined still further if not for the tremendous availability of guns?

Please leave a comment.

The Other Loophole

From the Philadelphia Inquirer:

When police stripped Marqus Hill of his permit to carry a gun in Philadelphia after a 2005 confrontation with officers, Hill didn't let that stop him: He just applied for a firearms license from Florida. Though police said Hill had lost a 2008 appeal to win back his Philadelphia permit and reacted by assaulting a police officer in court, Florida mailed him a gun license last year. Early Sunday morning, police said, Hill, 28, gunned down an 18-year-old who allegedly broke into his car, shooting him 13 times.


Gun rights activists should be ashamed of themselves, starting with Sebastian whose blog has always mocked and trivialized this situation.

Robert's another one. He's written a lengthy and truly incredible hatchet job on the story, at the end of which I thought Marqus Hill might receive a medal.

Marqus Hill is an extreme example of the problem, but imagine the potential of the "3,000 to 4,000 people in Pennsylvania [who] have obtained firearms permits from Florida."

What's your opinion? Can we call this "the other loophole" without getting all side tracked? We're talking about some crappy laws in PA and FL which allow this blatant impropriety to happen.

Please leave a comment.

The Canadian Long Guns

The Chronicle Herald reports on the Police and other organizations in Halifax who have weighed in on the long-gun registry issue. They've joined their counterparts across the country Wednesday in support of the federal long-gun registry.

Halifax RCMP Supt. Darrell Beaton said an RCMP evaluation of Canadian firearm programs showed that long-gun related homicides have dropped since stricter controls started in 1991, from 271 that year to 190 in 2006.

The evaluation also stated that even though opponents of long-gun registration say there is a lack of criminal activity involving long guns, 2005 statistics show they were used in 25 per cent of shooting deaths. That number climbed to 72 per cent for spousal shootings and 10 of 13 police officers killed on the job were murdered with long guns.


What does it all mean? If we could only get rid of the handguns, we too could have a high percentage of shooting deaths from long guns. Then we could go after them. This sounds like the perfect blueprint for total gun elimination. I wonder if I've discovered something here. Maybe I could sell this idea to someone. What do you think?

Mr. Hands' DGU

 

Duluth Police Shooting Justified

There's a video and a blow-by-blow description. What do you think? Was there no other course of action?

I can see only two possible explanations for what happened. 1. The cop was frightened and panicked, or 2. The cop became indignant, thinking how dare this young punk do that.

Either way this was not justified. A bullet to the chest for acting like a drunk asshole is excessive in the extreme in my book.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

New NRA Hall of Fame Nominee


If elected, this picture will hang in the Harris-Klebold Wing of the NRA HQ.

Guns as a fitness training tool:

Robert Barker, a 41-year-old from Leesburg, was apparently none to pleased when his teenage stepson had to bow out of a youth football game over the weekend due to the blistering heat. His solution? Set up cones in the front yard and make the kid run some sprints -- while pointing a BB gun at him and periodically firing up into the air, Yosemite Sam-style

Another CCW Killer

At Johns Hopkins Hospital:

Baltimore city police said a 50-year-old man who shot a doctor at Johns Hopkins Hospital Thursday morning also killed himself and his mother a few hours later.

The shooter was tentatively identified Thursday afternoon as Warren Davis, but officials later identified him as Paul Warren Pardus, of Arlington, Va. Police said Pardus apparently used an alias, because the hospital knew him as Warren Davis
.


Of course, the usual suspects will be telling us this could have happened with a car idling in a garage.

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Assisted Suicide in Florida

bnd.com reports on the Miami incident.

Tired of their bickering and her husband's complaints that he wanted to die, an exasperated Cutler Bay woman asked him if he wanted his pistol.

Yes, he replied -- so she fetched the weapon from another room and tossed it on the couch next to him, police said.

Then he shot himself, fatally, in the head.

Can she be held responsible for something like that? I say yes. Is there precedent for such a position?

In preparing its manslaughter case, Miami-Dade prosecutors Lody Jean and Kathleen Hoague relied on the successful case against Jeramy Ricky Rushing, who in February 1986 gave a cocked, loaded gun to a despondent woman outside a Dania Beach bar.

A Broward County judge dismissed a manslaughter charge against Rushing, but the Fourth District Court of Appeal reinstated it, clearing the way for a trial. In 1992, jurors convicted Rushing and he was sentenced to two years of house arrest plus 300 hours of community service.

Prosecutors said Valerie Jenkins "engaged in a course of conduct that was gross and flagrant, showing reckless disregard for human life'' by giving the loaded gun to her intoxicated husband.


I know our individual responsibility friends won't like that. But maybe they have a big stake in the matter. If everyone is truly individually responsible for his or her own actions and no one else's, then each person can do whatever they want and no one can say anything. It's a convenient philosophy.

The problem is it fails to take into account that we are not individual islands whose actions have no affect on others. In a society of people, our actions and our words have an impact upon those around us, and for that we are responsible.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Oklahoma City Shooting

The shooter probably knew the victim. But I wonder if anyone is checking if this guy had a concealed carry permit. And if he has, are they reporting it to the folks who compile the statistics that John Lott and others always reference? There was no mention of that, so I wondered if maybe that fact was just overlooked.

What do you think? Please leave a comment.

Washington State 1-year-old Dead

The case is under investigation, but the officer says the shooting appears to be accidental.

There was a 5-year-old and a 1-year-old, the mom and a loaded rifle within reach. That's what I call a formula for disaster.

What's your opinion? When they say "appears to be accidental," are they saying no charges will be filed? After all it was only an accident.

Please leave a comment.

Sheriff's Deputy's 3-year-old Shoots Self

...police and the sheriff's office are investigating.

It's hard to imagine the suffering it must be to lose a child like this. But, how about when the crying and the mourning is over, this LEO be fired from his job and forfeit his right to own guns for the rest of his life. No jail time, but the loss of job and guns is non-negotiable.

How's that sound?

Please leave a comment.

Jon Stewart

This is an example of why Jon Stewart is the most trusted newsman.

I definitely agree with that but I also think he's the funniest.

What do you think?

2 More Dead in Newark

nj.com reports on the latest killings in Newark. I guess someone forgot to tell Newark that in spite of all the gun sales last year, shootings are supposed to be down.

The shootings come after the bloodiest summer in Newark since 1990, with 35 people killed between June 1 and Aug. 31.

The pro-gun voices cannot restrain themselves whenever the incident takes place in NJ or CA or NY. They love to point out that the gun control laws are not working. Well, of course they're not working since other states just a few hours away have lax gun laws and all the availability you can shake a stick at.

What's your opinion? Is the problem in Newark the fact that gun control laws don't work? Or is the problem that gun availability is extremely high all over?

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Spc. Alyssa Peterson

The Huffington Post published a fascinating article on the young woman who killed herself in Iraq after refusing to take part in torturing prisoners.

It's a heartbreaking story which puts a spotlight on the issue of extreme interrogation techniques.

I don't count myself among the liberal voices who denounce all this torture business accross the board. I've watched Jack Bauer use torture for the greater good. I admit, although his is a fictional character, there may be cases in which it is necessary. I don't fancy myself in a position to judge such things.

What I do have a problem with is that under Bush and Cheney these practices were legitimized. I don't think anyone doubts that police and military and everyone else in power have used certain unsavory methods, and this applies to all countries in all times, but to put the spotlight on them and claim they're acceptable did serious harm to the reputation of the United States. And that happened under Bush.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

The FFL License

What a racket.

It's worth the price of the guide in itself.

Brandon L. Maddox likes to help people. What do you think of this guy?

Another Comment on Bob S.'s Blog

Here's the link to that post on Bob's.

Patrick, Hopefully Bob will accept this comment because I'd like to respond to what you said.

I haven't used the moderation function nor have I deleted a comment in several months. The reason for that is that there's been very little offensive stuff since Mike W. and Bob stopped coming around. And, for some reason, Weer'd, one of the greatest offenders, has been quite well behaved as far as his comments go.

So, you're wrong about that part. I'm sure it was an honest mistake because you haven't been coming around either, otherwise it would mean you, even you were stretching the truth.

So my question stands. How can a self-proclaimed defender of freedom and rights justify such a petty and pissy action as removing the link back to a commenter's site?

About that fire extinguisher comparison, let me say this. The possibility of using it to save the day, like you might use a gun in certain circumstances is a valid parallel, but the similarity ends there. No one is stealing your fire extinguisher and killing people with it. Your teenage son is not using it to bash his brains out because he got into crank and his girlfriend left him. You're not accidentally lending or selling your fire extinguisher to a prohibited person who uses it to do criminal violence.

All those things and more are happening with the guns of people just like you every day.

What's your opinion? Do you see some incongruity when one of these pro-rights characters removes links or blocks comments?

What about that comparison between guns and fire extinguishers? Does that one work for you?

Please leave a comment.

Ann Althouse Defines "Lie"

The famous Law Professor and blogger, Ann Althouse has trouble understanding three-letter words like "lie." She based her assertion that Obama is a liar on the following quote.

Nobody gets to write your destiny but you. Your future is in your hands. Your life is what you make of it. And nothing -- absolutely nothing -- is beyond your reach, so long as you’re willing to dream big, so long as you’re willing to work hard. So long as you’re willing to stay focused on your education, there is not a single thing that any of you cannot accomplish, not a single thing. I believe that.

We have some people around here who love to throw that word around. I've even been accused of lying when I was offering an opinion.

What do you think? Is this something peculiar to Republicans, righties, conservatives and pro-gun advocates. It seems like it to me.

Please leave a comment.

Right Place Wrong Time

Dr. John wrote the lyric, but ELP named their album the same. Which came first, I wonder?

Just need a little brain salad surgery
Got to cure this insecurity




Since everything relates to the gun debate, this sentiment relates to many situations gun owners find themselves in.

Please leave a comment.

Oliver King and Amir Zarandi

The indictment has come down on Oliver King, whom we've looked at before.

King and Zarandi were charged with unlawful dealing of firearms and conspiring to do the same in the indictment filed late Thursday. King has also been charged with unlawful gun possession and making false statements to a government agency.

Zarandi is expected in court Thursday, when he will be arraigned on the new charges. Unlike King, he has not been jailed in the case.


Isn't that charge of making false statements to a government agency what Lakeisha Gadson went to jail for. The only difference is it was her worst offense, for Mr. King it's the least of his crimes.

What do you think? Are King and Zarandi just persecuted and misunderstood gun dealers? Are they guilty of nothing more than violating immoral laws pertaining to guns? Are they modern-day Zorros or Robin Hoods?

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Hillary Compares Mexico to Colombia

Washington Post editorial.

Some 7,000 gun stores operate along the U.S.-Mexican border. Most are not required to notify authorities even if an individual buys dozens of assault weapons in a short period. In fiscal 2009 U.S. agents revoked the licenses of just 11 stores for violations. Once the guns are purchased -- usually by "straw" buyers acting on behalf of cartel middlemen -- they are easily trafficked across the border.

Duh, I wonder what should be done? It's really a tough one.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Texas Man Shoots His Son

The Dallas News reports on this unusual domestic shooting.

I know I always support the bad guy and question the good guy with the gun, but I couldn't help wondering where the young man learned how to drink, become belligerent and disrespect his mother like that. I wondered if dear old dad had anything to do with that.

In any case, as bad as spitting on one's mother is, I don't think the appropriate answer is a bullet to the stomach. What do you think?

Please leave a comment.

The NRA, Sarah Palin and I Agree


Yes, we agree!

Although for not the same reasons. Let me explain.

The NRA--and its 926, no, 931 trillionty members--and Sarah Palin have endorsed Christine O'Donnell (Repug-DE) for the US Senate in Delaware. This makes me, a partisan Dem, very happy.

You see, these endorsements are a win-win-win situation for yours truly. If O'Donnell knocks off her Repug opponent, Mike Castle, it means the Democrat--Chris Coons--probably doesn't need to campaign; victory is assured. The endorsements also mean the NRA will be tossing its political capital--and its 3,681 eleventyzillion members--to a candidate so flawed and extremist that even GOP media outlets and blogs are campaigning against her. Here's an exerpt from the rightwing Weekly Standard:
O'Donnell, who is now challenging moderate congressman Mike Castle in the September 14 Delaware GOP Senate primary, sought $6.95 million in damages. In a court complaint, she extensively detailed the "mental anguish" she suffered after allegedly being demoted and fired because of her gender. And, although she didn't have a bachelor's degree until this year, O'Donnell implied she was taking master's degree classes at Princeton University in 2003.

Meanwhile, I get to get to have a blast noting the NRA--and its 6110 septuallion members--threw their awesommmme political clout behind a candidate who:
1) Tried to sue a conservative 'think tank' for nearly $7M smackeroos;
2) Repeated lied about her educational credentials;
3) Called her Repug opponent "secretly gay;"
4) Stated masturbation is wrong and that looking at porn is equivalent to cheating on ones spouse;
5) Claimed she won two DE counties in a 2008 race against Joe Biden when she won none;
6) Has financial difficulties that include liens and foreclosures; and
7) Stiffed 2008 campaign workers on salaries and expenses.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

J. T. Ready

Crooks and Liars has the story, which if it weren't taking place in Arizona of the US of A, I wouldn't believe it.

What do you think? Is this guy one of those veterans who didn't go for treatment that he desperately needed? Looks like it to me.

Can I guy like that be useful on the border, or is he too dangerous for that?

Please leave a comment.

Murder Rates

Domestic Shooting in Baton Rouge

Another Louisiana shooting is reported today in the news. It's your run-of-the-mill domestic squabble.

Although we've been seeing a mention or two of Louisiana incidents in the media lately, it still seems a far cry from what it should be compared to Chicago and Baltimore. NOLA alone has three or four murders a week.

Why are they so under-reported?

Please leave a comment.

Melbourne Florida Shooting

Florida seems to be in the gun news a lot lately, but it could be just business as usual.

An 18-year-old was shot and wounded during a possible domestic-related confrontation with a sibling in a Melbourne home today, officials reported.

Here's the interesting part, the part which shows that if they'd only had the one-strike-you're-out rule, this incident wouldn't have happened.

“The victim remains in surgery,” said Cmdr. Ron Bell, spokesman for the Melbourne Police Department before 1:30 p.m..

“We’ve been there in the past. In July, we were called out to a report of shots fired at the home,” but no injuries were reported, Bell added.

What's your opinion? Do you think there could be a bit too much tolerance for gun misuse in Florida?

Please leave a comment.

The First Ground Zero Mosque

Laci put together a very informative post containing details that must have been all but censored up till now.

But the real kicker is that the Real ‘Ground Zero Mosque’ Was on the 17th Floor of the World Trade Center’s South Tower!

Did you know that? How is it possible that in all the discussions about the so-called Islamic Cultural Center near Ground Zero, this is never mentioned?

Please leave a comment.

The CSGV on the Reform and Modernization Act

Completely in agreement with Paul Helmke, The Coalition to Stop Gun Violence published a statement dondemning the proposed new legislation.

H.R. 2296/S. 941 would make it virtually impossible for ATF to shut down rogue gun dealers, including those who repeatedly violate federal law. The legislation would require ATF to show that a dealer knew the specific law he/she was violating and intentionally disregarded that law, an extremely high and difficult burden of proof. It would also allow dealers who have their licenses revoked to transfer their remaining inventory to their "private collection" and sell these guns for 60 days without conducting background checks on purchasers!

What's your opinion?

Monday, September 13, 2010

Theology in Florida





















via The Frustrated Teacher

Bullets (from Wikipedia)



A full metal jacket (or FMJ) is a bullet consisting of a soft core (usually made of lead) encased in a shell of harder metal, such as gilding metal, cupronickel or less commonly a steel alloy. This shell can extend around all of the bullet, or often just the front and sides with the rear left as exposed lead.

Full metal jacketed bullets have different properties, both in terms of behavior inside the barrel of the gun and also in flight. Whereas hollow point and soft-tipped bullets are designed to expand upon impact, full metal jacket bullets are limited in their capacity to expand. In some cases this leads to decreased target damage, although not in all instances. For example, the 5.56x45 NATO round used in the M16/M4 family of firearms tends to tumble vertically upon impact, creating a massive cavity.




A hollow point is an expanding bullet that has a pit or hollowed out shape in its tip, generally intended to cause the bullet to expand upon entering a target in order to decrease penetration and disrupt more tissue as it travels through the target. It is also used for controlled penetration, where over-penetration could cause collateral damage (such as on an airplane). In essence, the hollow point bullet has two interrelated purposes: to increase its size once within the target, thus maximizing tissue damage and blood loss or shock, and by remaining in the target to expend all of its kinetic energy in the target, some of which will be lost if the bullet continues through the target.


Tell me again how "normal" the gun advocates are, the guys who seriously consider such things as "collateral damage" and ways to "disrupt more tissue as it travels through the target."

Tell me again about the reasonable folks who study such things as which bullets tend "to tumble vertically upon impact, creating a massive cavity."

Please leave a comment.

Murder - Suicide

You can't blame this one on gun availability.

Michael Savage to Jon Stewart

There's no doubt about it, Michael Savage is one of the best.

“You wonder why there’s anti-Semitism, Jon? Jon, you wonder? You wonder why Jews like you cause anti-Semitism, Jon? You can’t figure it out? Jon Stewart, Mayor Bloomberg, two prizes of the Jewish religion. Two superb prizes of the Jewish religion. The man comes up with what he thinks is a parable, to show you what happens when you use drugs for too long. His dumb writer writes, I was thinking I would like to build a mosque on St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and press the laugh line button. Not only is this idiotic and illogical, it is not funny. It is the product of inbreeding. It is only the product of inbreeding. How could you compare a joke to build a synagogue on St. Patrick’s Cathedral to building a mosque on the ruins of the World Trade Center, which was ruined by Muslim fanatics?”
What do you think? I guess we could play the substitution game with that line: Jews like you cause anti-Semitism.

Please leave a comment.

A DGU Against Breakfast



Kentucky has lax gun laws.

So, when you mix lax gun laws, trailer parks, guns, and a botched breakfast--well, the results aren't good:

Stanley Neace became upset over the way his wife had prepared his breakfast eggs so he shot her to death, together with his stepdaughter and three of his neighbors


At this rate, the NRA is going to run out of members.

Sunday, September 12, 2010

A Recent Comment on Bob's Blog

Here's the post.

Here's my comment:

Weer'd, Your pride-swelling is nice, but where were you when your country needed servicemen in uniform? You would have been about the right age for one of the Iraq wars. Where were you?

Bob, Your silly remark, "You want to let the criminals have a monopoly on force against the law abiding — be glad we don’t see you as an enemy." just shows how out of touch you are with reality. How many DGUs have you executed personally? Have you had occasion to brandish your weapon a time or two to frighten all these criminals away who have the monopoly?

No, you haven't. You're just a paranoid frightened man, like many gun owners, who feels more secure with a gun. Then you go through all this blustering nonsense to justify it.

I was kidding the other day about your shooting yourself in the foot. I hope you never have an accident with your beloved toys. I hope no one ever steals one of them from you and uses it to kill someone. I hope you or one of your family members never get so depressed that you or they turn to the gun for a solution to that. But all these things are more likely to happen than that you'll ever have to use the gun to save the day. Your fantasy is very dangerous for yourself and others.

Don't you get sick and tired of flag-waving guys like Weer'd who never did military service themselves? I think they should just keep quiet about it. What do you think?

And, what about Bob, continually beating that drum about being prepared for the criminals. Where does he live, in the ghetto?

Please leave a comment.

All Eyes on Australia

The future of gun control, Australia style.

The ATF Gets Tough on Shawano

As we've discussed before, The Shawano Gun Shop is one of the obvious offenders. Finally the ATF is stepping up to the plate.

Smith & Wesson Sales are Down

I guess it's time for some more trumped up reasons to buy guns.

Texas Gun Dealer Goes to Jail

Fox News reports on the fascinating case.

"Agents witnessed the Defendant (Copeland) negotiate a price for a handgun with Hipolito Aviles, who then handed cash to a second Hispanic male, who then handed Aviles' cash and his own identification to the defendant."

How anyone can claim this Copeland character should not go to jail, is beyond me. If their only complaint is that the straw purchaser escaped prosecution, I agree. He should go to jail too, and be deported. But Mr. Copeland is a perfect example of what too many gun dealers do.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

More on the Psychological Impact

It's an interesting report although much of it goes without saying.

"We found that the greater the severity of exposure to the shooting, the greater the risk of developing post-traumatic stress or other psychological disorders," says Dr. Stéphane Guay, Director of the Trauma Study Centre of Louis-H. Lafontaine Hospital and a member of the research team.

What do you think? Could this constitute another difference between DGUs and gun violence?

Let's take John Lott's example of the most common type of DGU, the famous brandishing. In each of those cases, which are far less numerous than some would suggest, but in each one that actually takes place, the gun owner thwarts a criminal with no muss and no fuss.

In each incident of gun violence, on the other hand, the psychological damage of even uninvolved witnesses is significant.

I believe this report from Canada about the terrible results of shooting incidents has important lessons for the U.S.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Gun Control in America





via Laci who added:


Or the "Gun control means hitting your target".