Saturday, October 30, 2010

A Virginia Gun Owner


A picture is worth a thousand words, but here's the story, if you want to read it. I seem to see more of these stories coming from gun-friendly states. Do you think there's something to that? I know we have daily reports from Chicago and New York, but as the pro-gun crowd often says, they're usually drug or gang related. The stories I'm talking about are the ones which better define the gun culture.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Two Shootings of Children in Florida

 Incredibly, only one of these incidents resulted in charges. That shouldn't be too surprising, we're talking about Florida.

Zachary White pulled a .38-caliber revolver and a .45-caliber semiautomatic gun from a safe to show the children, deputies said.

White unloaded the revolver and then handed it to the boys. He took it back, reloaded the gun and put it in a holster on top of a dresser. As White showed off the unloaded semiautomatic gun, one of the 6-year-old twins grabbed the gun on the dresser. The boy raised it, pulled the trigger and shot his 8-year-old brother in the leg.

The injured boy was taken to St. Joseph's Hospital in Tampa and is expected to survive.

Deputies said it appears to be an accident, and no one was charged.
What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

The Reno Gunman

Keeping those stats high in Nevada.



Did she say "area stores are in lockdown?" Is that normal?

They sure have some kooky stories out of the Silver State. This article says the shooter was an employee of the store who was about to be fired. One paragraph later they say the police don't know the motive.


Oh, I almost forgot.  Do you think he was probably a lawful gun owner prior to yesterday?

Please leave a comment.

Friday, October 29, 2010

Start at NRA HQ

Push to Curb Gun Violence.

The Sanctity of Life

via Laci and dedicated to that Anonymous commenter who keeps bringing up abortion.

Cops Suing Badger Guns

We're very familiar with Badger Guns.  They make Realco look like Little Leaguers.

What do you think?  Is there any chance for victory in a law suit like this?  Is it all circumstantial evidence? Is there a point in which even circumstantial evidence becomes so convincing that legal sanctions can follow?

That's what we need here.

Please leave a comment.

Air Guns in Scotland

An amazing situation is shaping up in Scotland. 

Airguns accounted for just over half the total number of offences and [Justice Secretary Kenny] Mr MacAskill said it was encouraging that action was now under way to transfer responsibility for air weapons from Westminster to the Scottish Parliament.
What do you think it means?

Please leave a comment.

Pro-Gun Advice

Here's a very interesting article by Frank Cagle, self-described Libertarian and pro-gun guy.  Basically, he says the gun rights movement might be better off resting on its laurels right now instead of pushing for more victories.

As a libertarian, I agree philosophically that I shouldn’t have to have state permission to exercise my Second Amendment rights. I refuse to get a carry permit. But I also live in the real world. If we abolish the permit system, Tennesseans also lose reciprocity—if you have a Tennessee permit you can carry in other states with permits. If we don’t have permits, you can’t. I also think background checks and ensuring people are able to fire a weapon safely are good things.
This guy has some interesting ideas, am I right? What do you think about libertarians not getting licenses? Is that too extreme?  What about the idea that by abolishing the permit system in a particular state, you lose your reciprocity in other states?  Is that an argument to keep the requirement?  And his ideas about background checks and training being good things, doesn't that clash with his other views? 

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Florida Gun Smugglers Sentenced

The sentences seemed extremely heavy at first, but after reading the article, there was more going on here than a few guns going south.

The charges stem from a long-term investigation involving multiple trips by the defendants between Florida, Alabama, and Texas to transport cocaine, methamphetamine, and drug proceeds.  During the course of the conspiracy, members of the conspiracy also endeavored to obtain and smuggle to Mexico as many as 800 fully automatic AK-47 machine guns for use in the drug war between rival drug cartels fighting for control of profitable drug routes into the U.S. 
Fully automatic? Wow. Where do you think they came from? I thought your average FFL guy couldn't sell them. Or can he?

What's your opinion? Are the sentences too severe?  Or is this the way to address the problem?  What about the source of those 800 guns?

Please leave a comment.

Thursday, October 28, 2010

The Myth of Kennesaw

Washington threw a silver dollar across the Delaware. John Henry beat a steam-powered hammer. Joe Huffman has a high IQ.

We all love myths.

Gunloons have lots of myths. This is one of 'em. It's called Kennesaw, GA.

Background: In 1982, in response to an ordinance in Morton Grove, IL which banned all handguns, the city council of Kennesaw, GA passed an ordinance requiring every head of household to own a gun.

The Myth: Predictably, gunloons have repeatedly claimed, as a result of the required gun ownership, that crime decreased dramatically in Kennesaw.

The Evidence: First, the ordinance passed in Kennesaw was purely symbolic; it's not as if police went door-to-door to ensure every head of household owned a gun. Second, when one actually performs a statistical analysis (see graph), one finds there was a slight, though statistically insignificant, increase in burglaries after the ordinance.

Geriatric Gun Owners

Daisy sent us the link to a wonderful article about growing old with guns.

I know plenty of people who are responsible gun owners. My dad was once one, too. But I think anyone who owns a gun would be wise to ask: What will happen as I age? Can I be sure I wouldn’t accidentally use the gun against someone I love?

Because that’s exactly the danger with my dad. He’s often confused enough that he doesn’t recognize his own wife. He could shoot her, or his beloved dog, or even his newly beloved cat. I know damn well he’s not the only aging gun-owner with too much exposure to Faux News and too little ability to cognitively filter real threats from those imagined.
The article was talking about how fear plays into this, but basic geriatrics is enough to be concerned with. I wonder if the pro-gun, pro-rights folks can stop fighting the good fight long enough to address this problem.  People are living longer, the problem is growing.  Yet, you don't hear much about it.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

A Near-DGU in Kansas City

If it weren't for that video surveillance this could easily have gone down as one of John Lott's DGUs.

But [Prosecutor Jim] Kanatzar said the shooting didn’t qualify as self-defense for several reasons: Jones didn’t have a weapon; he was outside the store; the clerks had Jones outnumbered; police were on the way; and Jones had tried to flee.

“The possession and use of a firearm requires a high level of responsibility,” Kanatzar said. “We’re alleging the defendant resorted to the use of deadly force in a situation where it was not necessary and therefore not justified.”
What do you think? Is this kind of abuse on the part of a legitimate gun owners as rare as the pro-gun crowd pretend?

Please leave a comment.

Kansas City Man Kills Wife

It's your usual guns-are-bad-news-for-women story.  The most amazing part of these all-too-frequent incidents is how the pro-gun crowd fight tooth and nail to deny the obvious.

A Kansas City man allegedly shot to death his wife of less than a year after an argument early Tuesday.

Authorities charged Robert L. Washington with second-degree murder and armed criminal action in the death of Robyn Hamilton.
What's your opinion?  Do you refuse to accept the findings of Prof. David Hemenway simply because he's an enemy of gun owners? I happen to think his statistics are damning to the pro-gun argument.

Please leave a comment.

More on the Pentagon Shooting

We've already expressed our surprise and scepticism last week, Jadegold here and I here, but now it really gets bizarre. (Notice I'm using Linoge's Tip no. 4)

What is a Meteorite

A meteorite is that which is 7 times more likely to occur in your lifetime than the necessity of your having to protect yourself or your family with a gun.

It's a scientific fact.

Sovereign Citizen Extremists

Via Laci.

Kids, Guns, Disaster

Salt Lake City:
A father says his son died from a shot in the head from a .38 Smith & Wesson pistol loaded with blanks, used for sound effects for a high school production of "Oklahoma!" The dad says the gun had been "altered from its factory specifications to give it a 'hair trigger,'" and his son died from a "blowback" wound that drove fragments of his skull into his brain.

You, Too, Can Write Like Linoge (Part Deux)

There are a number of general tips one needs to understand in order to write like Linoge.


Tip 1: Never write one or two sentences when you can write 30 or 40.


Tip 2: Due to your oppressive evangelical homeschooled upbringing, you are uncomfortable using swear words. But you need to sound like a tough guy. What to do? The answer is to use made-up swear words like "Gorram" or "frakkin.'"

Tip 3: Liberally sprinkle your screed with references to Firefly. Nothing says gravitas like quoting from or making references to a TV show about sci-fi space western that didn't last a season.

Tip 4: Link like crazy; especially to yourself.

Quick Shots

Roy at Days of our Trailers makes a funny:
The reality is that there is much more diversity in opinion and leadership among firearm advocates that what is left of the gun control movement

Jim Zumbo might not agree.
Of course, everyone knows the NRA isn't predominantly "middle-aged and aging white men."

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

History of America

Via Southern Beale.

Police Selling Confiscated Weapons

I admit it would be difficult to accept the fact that we have guns in our society that are lawfully produced, owned and sold and still insist that confiscated weapons must be destroyed by the police.  The only way that would work is if one believed guns are evil and should be banned entirely.

Yet, it doesn't make much sense to continue allowing lawfully owned guns to so easily flow into the criminal world, like we do, and to feed into that flow even more with confiscated weapons.

So, until we make every effort to stop the flow of guns from the good guys to the bad guys, I'm opposed to the reselling of confiscated weapons by the police because it increases the problem.  Interestingly, the states that do this are among the worst examples of sensible gun control.

Arizona, according to the National Rifle Association, is the third state in the nation to require the sale of confiscated weapons. Kentucky and Tennessee are the other two.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

More Baltimore Gun News

It never ends in Baltimore. A city college worker was arrested for illegally selling a gun.

The City College staff member charged with illegally selling a gun to a city school police officer said he needed the money to celebrate his son's birthday, according to charging documents filed in Baltimore City District Court.

Tyree Miles, 33, was arrested Oct. 14 after completing the $400 sale of a Russian SKS assault rifle to a school police officer on the City College campus, the documents said. He served as a student support specialist at the prestigious high school, where school officials said he had been hired "to make sure kids weren't in the hallway."

Miles was charged with having a dangerous weapon on school property and the illegal sale of a regulated firearm. Both are misdemeanors, city state's attorney officials said, and carry a penalty of three and five years in jail, respectively.
Now, that's the really amazing part. That's why Baltimore can't seem to get straightened out.  A guy who peddles guns with no regard for the law is charged with multiple misdemeanors and might even go to jail.

He should be charged with felonies, the kind that make him unqualified to ever own firearms again. He's proven to be incapable of exercising that privilege responsibly.  As far as jail time, I'm not sure it would be necessary.  Close supervision from the probation department and removal of his gun rights ought to do the trick.

What do you think?  Please leave a comment.

The Gray Seal Caper

I'm sure the pro-gun voices will tell us there's no evidence to indicate the one who did this was a member of the NRA.  In fact, I would imagine they'll say he was already a criminal.

In other words, when we speculate as to a shooter's affiliations it's bad but when they do it, it's OK.
Federal authorities are investigating the shooting of a gray seal that was spotted on a Cape Cod beach earlier this month. 

Authorities say the adult male seal was spotted Oct. 2 and euthanized two days later. A necropsy showed that the animal had been shot several times in the head. 
What's your opinion? What images come to your mind that might have led to this incident? Do you picture a couple of ghetto crack addicts doing it? How about a gang related confrontation that went bad?

What I picture is a few NRA types out on a boat drinkinig beer and having a good old time. Solid members of the 10% gang.

Please leave a comment.

Irony


Hat Tip Mister Hippity
You know, you see a lot of gunloons wearing this "Don't Tread On Me" Patch.

Pity they feel the need to stomp on women.

The NRA Has a Strange Way with Women


Note both of these brave, brave men are active in KY Open Carry.

Tim Profitt and Mike Pezzano--they're your NRA.

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Realco

 The Washinngton Post reports on the problem of straw purchases as the chief source of guns used in crime.

Tracing brings into sharp relief the fact that virtually all crime guns are first sold as new weapons by a licensed dealer to someone who cleared a background check. The criminal demand for weapons - especially new ones that cannot be tied to previous crimes - puts dealers at the front line of crime prevention.


One ATF study found that about half the guns in trafficking cases started as "straw purchases" from licensed dealers.
The folks at Realco, always compliant and cooperative with investigators, do what they all do, shrug their shoulders and claim powerlessness. The truth is there's a lot more they could do.

But, since they won't, eventually we'll have to come to our senses and devise another plan.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Virginia Gun Shows

Here's a wonderful slide show depicting the tragic mental illness which runs unabated in Virginia.

I liked picture no. 16, containing the following explanation.

Bailey shows his personal FN .45-caliber handgun. "Do I feel responsible for someone using a gun in a crime? Honestly, I don't," Bailey said. "If somebody goes down to Lowe's and buys a lead pipe and goes out here and beats somebody to death . . . nobody in Lowe's feels responsible for that."
The pro-gun crowd have various ways of expressing this idea. Of course it's complete nonsense. There are often indications that a certain buyer of a gun, or a lead pipe for that matter, is not fit to have it. But in order to make it into that coveted group of the top suppliers of guns used in crime, you have to turn a blind eye to stuff like that.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Decatur, Georgia Police Shooting

It sounds legit. What do you think?

Police say two officers were working off-duty security jobs at an apartment complex on North Hairston Road Sunday night.

They heard a woman screaming.

Police say the woman was in a struggle with a man at the apartment.

And when they approached him, he pulled out a gun.

Police say when the man refused to drop the weapon, the officers opened fire, killing him.
Whether it was justified or not, and it certainly sounds like it was, let's not overlook the terrible plight of gun availability in Georgia and its role in this tragedy.

Please leave a comment.

Guns in Bars - NC Style

SNL On Brett Favre

You, Too, Can Write Like Linoge (Part Uno)


Hardly a day goes by when I'm not approached on the street with a familiar request. "Hey, JadeGold, how can I write like Linoge?"

I'm often tempted to offer the flip reply: "Experience severe brain damage" or "Lots of drugs and alcohol in conjunction with traumatic head injury" or "Be home-schooled in an oppressive evangelical setting."

But I realize a sincere question merits a sincere answer. It's not something I can answer in a sentence or two; like Linoge's writing, brevity is antiethitical to a suitable response. However, having given this at least 45 seconds of thought, I think I've hit upon a response. I shall illustrate by example. To begin, we must concoct a scenario that would prompt Linoge to pen one of his screeds. I offer this scenario from PortConMaine. In Part Deux, we shall examine a typical Linoge response.

WaPo Accidentally Commits Journalism

Part II of "The Hidden Life of Guns" is up on the WaPo.
The store, on Tyre Neck Road, is unimposing. Inside, gun gear hangs on one wall, a worn cargo-style couch sits by the counter and a dirty crockpot rests on a chair. Placards in the window say "I'm the NRA."

The series also has a Q&A with one of the dirty FFLs. It's amazing how he parrots NRA talking points. Also, if you were to substitute "heroin" for "guns"--itwould make as much sense.

Guns in Bars Are A Good Idea--Why?

North Dakota:
A call was received from Whispers at 8:15 p.m. Friday that a customer had used a handgun to shoot a urinal in the men’s bathroom.

Maybe the urinal made fun of his...well..

Monday, October 25, 2010

Winterhaven, Florida Shootout

Another domestic disturbance, but this one fuelled by alcohol.  The guy shoots at the cops, the cops kill him.

Steidley, a contractor, had been drinking since the previous night, Judd said. An argument between him and his live-in girlfriend, Rebecca Lawson, 46, escalated when he threw some of her belongings into a pool and her pocketbook on the roof.

Lawson met deputies at a nearby church about 2 p.m. before they went to the home. She told them there were guns inside, but neglected to add that Steidley had aimed one at her daughter, Melanie Lawson, 23, earlier, Judd said.

Melanie Lawson lives at another address in Winter Haven.

A neighbor on the street also did not report seeing Steidley with a gun in his waistband Saturday, Judd said.

If the deputies had known Steidley had been handling a gun, they likely would have approached his house differently.

What do you think?  How could they have handled it differently? Are they trying to spread the blame around by intimating that the daughter failed to disclose all she knew and that's why they couldn't help but kill the guy?

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Rifle, Colorado Shootout

The police responded to a domestic disturbance.  The guy produced a handgun and shot one of the cops. The cops shot him multiple times but he survived, not for lack of trying on the part of law enforcement. 

Just another day in gun friendly Colorado.

What do you think? 

The Fascinating Story of Todd Ice

In the United States we sentence mentally ill children to death. It's a disgrace.

I especially enjoyed the reaction of the good folks in Eastern Kentucky.

...many in Powell County said that if Ice was old enough to kill, he was old enough to die for it.
What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Colin Goddard on Oprah

Laci mentioned the Colin Goddard appearance on Oprah and included this quote from the young man.

I will always believe I was in the right place at the right time in class at 9:00 am. And despite the horror, I survived as one of the luckier ones.
For the 32 Hokies who were lost that day, and for the 32 Americans who are lost everyday to gun murders, I’ve decided to devote this time in my life to making a difference, so their memories might be honored and the damage to our society lessened.
Many people say we can’t or shouldn’t improve the gun laws in this country. I’m part of the next generation, I reject that premise, and I say we can and should do better.
What's your opinion? Why would the pro-gun folks talk so badly against him? He seems intelligent and just the perfect example of common sense.

Please leave a comment.

A Tour Around Gunloon Nation


Arizona? How are those lax gun laws working for you?
A 4-year-old girl fatally wounded Saturday near Wickenburg was accidentally shot by her 8-year-old sister, authorities said.

Louisiana? Those lax gun laws work well, huh?
Sergeant Tim Prunty was shot around 3:30 a.m. Sunday morning. Prunty was standing outside a Circle-K store at Bert Kouns and Dean Road, talking to the store clerk, when a driver drove up and started firing shots.

Ohio? Guns 'n' dope--bad stuff.
The charge comes a day after Roush's wife, Corrina Roush, 35, was charged with drug trafficking. Deputies said they found 104 handguns, rifles and shotguns and 1,700 marijuana plants on the couple's property.

Sunday, October 24, 2010

WaPo Investigative Articles on Crime Guns

Read.

Under the law, investigators cannot reveal federal firearms tracing information that shows how often a dealer sells guns that end up seized in crimes. The law effectively shields retailers from lawsuits, academic study and public scrutiny. It also keeps the spotlight off the relationship between rogue gun dealers and the black market in firearms.
We'll be discussing further. I'm sure the gunloons are awaiting their talking points from NRA HQ.

We're Americans With a Capital A

Thanks to Jadegold for reminding me of this funny movie and thanks to FWM for reminding me that "We're not Watusi, we're not Spartans, we're Americans with a capital A."

Guns Save Lives in Arizona


This is the controversial sign, which was ordered removed by the city of Phoenix.  Maybe the city officials feel that "Guns Cost Lives," would be more accurate.

What do you think?

Shootings in the News

In Cleveland there were two dead and one shooter arrested. To me it sounds like a domestic situation that spilled over into the workplace.  It could have been anything though.

In Juarez, though, just over the border, the bodies were so many they were hard to count. Some reports say eleven and some say twelve.  Probably drug related, wouldn't you say.

You know what they have in common, right?

Two Confidence Fraudsters Discussing Alan Grayson

 Actually, I quite enjoyed their sense of humor.  



Besides the Grayson remarks which come near the end, there were some other truly fantastic ideas, like the Tea Party candidates who get elected next month will be the only ones not susceptible to the usual political pitfalls, getting "co-opted," they called it.

And just the idea of Glenn Beck demanding a retraction and apology from someone, is pretty funny.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

In Which We Taunt Sean A Second Time


So, I'm reading why Sean Sorrentino--gunloon and impersonator of the Knights who say 'Ni'--has opted to ban Mike B.

After all, don't gunloons want "open, honest, and rational" discussion? (Note Jon C. Sullivan aka Linoge still hasn't responded)

Anyhoo...Sean writes:
I am a peaceable armed citizen. I’m not exactly a “law abiding citizen,” because there are unjust laws. One cannot be moral and decent while simultaneously honoring and respecting unjust laws. All the same, most of the time laws are just and should be followed. As an honest citizen, it behooves me to scrupulously avoid the company of the low, unjust, and the plain criminal. MikeB, by his own admission is such a criminal.

Huh?

Apparently, Sean D. Sorrentino is very troubled by someone who has admitted to breaking the law. Very, very troubled. Of Course, Sean admits he hasn't always obeyed the laws--just the ones he considers "just." The "unjust" laws--in Sean's mind--are ok to break.

And you wonder why he dresses up like a server from Medieval Times?