gun control

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Deals With The Devil

June 12, 2022 by 7 Comments

Every news source this afternoon is all excited that “a bipartisan deal has been reached on gun reform” or something like that. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) reportedly has been pushing for some “compromise” so that guns as an issue are negated for the mid-term elections. The problem with that is that gun control supporters are still going to vote for the Democrats and many pro-rights supporters might just say screw you and not vote.

When you make a deal with the devil, the devil is in the details. Of course, other than about nine bullet points, there are no hardcore, defined, written in stone details.

To even get the release on the “deal”, I had to go to Sen. Chris Murphy’s (D-CT) website. My own Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) who were both negotiators on the “deal” were so proud of their own actions that they aren’t going public with the details.

Support for State Crisis Intervention Orders

Money goes to states and tribes to set up their own system of gun confiscation orders aka red flag laws. Supposedly, consistent with state and Federal due process. Right.

Investment in Children and Family Mental Health Services

I’ll give them a pass on this one. They say: “National expansion of community behavioral health center model; major investments to increase access to mental health and suicide prevention programs; and other support services available in the community, including crisis and trauma intervention and recovery.”

Protections for Victims of Domestic Violence
This would expand the Lautenberg Act prohibitions to convictions for domestic abuse and restraining orders involving current and ex romantic partners. Thus, a vengeful ex-boyfriend (or girlfriend) could get a restraining order against you which would prevent you from protecting yourself from their wrath. Think Carol Bowne in New Jersey who was stabbed to death while waiting for a pistol permit with which to protect herself.

Funding for School-Based Mental Health and Supportive Services

I don’t have many issues with this. The release says: Invests in programs to expand mental health and supportive services in schools, including: early identification and intervention programs and school based mental health and wrap-around services.

Funding for School Safety Resources

It says it will invest in programs that increase school safety in K-12 schools including providing training to school personnel and students. I doubt they mean programs like the FASTER Programs in Ohio and Colorado. At the very least, they should have “Stop the Bleed” training as well as blow-out kits for every teacher.

Clarification of Definition of Federally Licensed Firearms Dealer

This one will definitely be the devil in the details. Will it be based upon how many firearms you sell in a year such as dispersing an estate or will it be based upon intent as the current law does? Current law says that if the intent is to engage in it as a business, you need a FFL.

Telehealth Investments

The release says, “Invests in programs that increase access to mental and behavioral health services for youth and families in crisis via telehealth.” That is fine but I wonder if this will just become another government boondoggle.

Under 21 Enhanced Review Process

For those under age 21, there will be an “investigative period” with checks of juvenile and mental health records. As Stephen Gutowski notes, this could mean a non-instant background check process for those under age 21. They also say they will check with local law enforcement and state databases.

Penalties for Straw Purchasing

Is this going to be like doubly illegal? It is already against the law to engage in a straw purchase. As it is, US Attorneys and Federal law enforcement rarely bring cases to trial involving straw purchases. I think they believe the optics of going after the girlfriends and “intimate partners” of gang members have too many racial overtones.

Charles Blow, a columnist for the New York Times, had an op-ed a couple of Sundays ago calling for more gun control as well as attacking the gun culture. He said he did agree with the Republicans on one thing.

But I am on the same page as they are on one point. They see the passage of gun safety laws as a slippery slope that could lead to more sweeping laws and even, one day, national gun registries, insurance requirements and bans. I see the same and I actively hope for it.

While I vehemently disagree with Blow, at least he is honest about it unlike most politicians on either side of the aisle. It is a slippery slope and must be fought tooth and nail.

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Anti-Rights CEOs

June 11, 2022 by 2 Comments

My good friend Liston Matthews just put out a post about anti-rights CEOs. It seems a number of corporate CEOs thought it was a great idea to engage in virtue signaling post-Buffalo and post-Uvalde.

Here is a list of CEO’s who are gun banners. Not surprisingly, it includes the CEO’s of Dick’s Sporting Goods and Levi’s. Most of these I am unfamiliar with. 

Why is it that people can’t understand that we have a criminal violence problem? IF they were able to ban production from today forward, there is something on the order of half a billion firearms extant in the United States. Those won’t go away. 

And, btw, how well has their drug ban worked?

And, btw, how well did their alcohol ban work?

As I noted about Wild Turkey bourbon and rye, I have made the choice not to purchase their product so long as Matthew McConaughey is their Creative Director. So it is with the products put out by the companies of these CEOs. I do certainly recognize that often we do have a choice about using their product. The companies for which we labor have made that choice and we have to reluctantly go along with it. However, where you do have a choice, I would say there are usually many other viable options in the market.

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Gun Control, Matthew McConaughey, and Wild Turkey

June 8, 2022 by 2 Comments

The news yesterday was that Matthew McConaughey, a native of Uvalde, was at the White House to make a plea for gun control. You couldn’t watch any TV news, either national or local, without seeing him at the podium in the White House with a pair of green sneakers.

From Today Show

From his remarks:

So, we know what’s on the table.  We need to invest in mental healthcare.  We need safer schools.  We need to restrain sensationalized media coverage.  We need to restore our family values.  We need to restore our American values.  And we need responsible gun ownership — responsible gun ownership. 

We need background checks.  We need to raise the minimum age to purchase an AR-15 rifle to 21.  We need a waiting period for those rifles.  We need red-flag laws and consequences for those who abuse them.

These are reasonable, practical, tactical regulations to our nation, states, communities, schools, and homes.

Responsible gun owners are fed up with the Second Amendment being abused and hijacked by some deranged individuals. 

These regulations are not a step back; they’re a step forward for a civil society and — and the Second Amendment. 

In Uvalde, the killer passed a FBI NICS background check to purchase his firearms. In Uvalde, the killer was known to have issues but no one acted upon them. In Uvalde, the killer entered through a door that was not properly locked. In Uvalde, the police waited until it was too late to storm the classroom even though best practices say never to wait.

Any new law or policy that is enacted in a hurry because “we have to do something” ends up as a fiasco. More importantly, they don’t prevent or solve the issue at hand.

For those that are not aware, McConaughey is now the Creative Director for Wild Turkey and has been since 2016. Wild Turkey Distilling is owned by the Italian company Campari Group. He even has helped launch Wild Turkey Longbranch in conjunction with master distiller Eddie Russell.

Anyone who has followed this blog for any amount time knows that I enjoy good whiskey and especially bourbon. Wild Turkey does make some good bourbons and ryes. I have even toured their facilities in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky where their beautiful Visitor Center overlooks the Kentucky River. Looking over my collection I see have a bottle of Russell Reserve and an older Austin Nichols-labeled bottle of Wild Turkey Rye. I respect the work of Jimmy and Eddie Russell in crafting good whiskey.

I have a personal philosophy of not patronizing companies whose spokespeople or officers wish to run roughshod over my enumerated civil rights. As such, I will not be buying any more bourbon or rye from Wild Turkey so long as Matthew McConaughey is affiliated with them. Now my personal boycott of Wild Turkey is not going to hurt their bottom line.

However, if enough people made their displeasure known, it just might. I sent them a note last night saying I wouldn’t be buying their product any longer. You can do the same by using this contact link.

If you are a bourbon or rye drinker, the choice is yours. Do you support a company whose Creative Director wants to curtail your rights or do you go to one of the many other fine distilleries instead? I have made my choice and you can make yours.

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An Unholy Alliance

June 5, 2022 by 2 Comments

I received a press release on May 31st from the American Federation of Teachers. They are the smaller of the two major teachers’ unions in the United States. The release announced that the teachers’ union was preparing to have a series of event “to demand action on gun violence (sic) prevention.” They planned vigils outside of the offices of Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA).

It really isn’t news when a lefty union holds an event outside a politician’s office. Whether it is higher pay, gun control, or opposition to school innovation and/or charter schools, it is the same old same old.

However, what really caught my eye in this press release is that they are announcing a new partnership.

Educators, parents and students will send the message that “enough is enough” and that students, parents, educators and communities deserve commonsense gun safety laws now. The union also will be partnering with Parkland, Fla., school shooting survivor and activist David Hogg in the lead up to the March for Our Lives on June 11.

So David “Camera” Hogg and the AFT will be partners.

It really isn’t that surprising. Both are engaged in indoctrinating the youth of our country that “guns are bad”, “only the police should have guns”, and “Republicans are evil”. While it may be a good match for each of them, it is an unholy alliance for our schools and our children.

UPDATE: Going through my email, I found a second press release from the American Federation of Teachers issued on June 1st. It included additional comments by AFT President Randi Weingarten and “Camera” Hogg.

From Weingarten:

Our No. 1 priority is keeping our children, our members, our families and our communities safe, and that requires a commitment from every single one of us: educators, parents, students, faith leaders and legislators alike. We are teachers, nurses and public employees who have been on the front lines of the gun violence epidemic, and we’re standing side by side with the country’s students to demand action on gun safety before one more life is lost, whether it’s a mass shooting on school grounds or one of the countless instances of gun violence that take lives in our neighborhoods every day. Enough is enough. The vast majority of Americans have found common ground on preventing gun violence and want action on gun safety now.”

Gun control is not gun safety and never has been. I also take issue with “the vast majority of Americans” finding common ground on gun control. Perhaps if you use a push poll worded to get the answers you desire but that would be it.

From Hogg:

“Our teachers are everything to America’s children. They’re counselors, mentors, they’re there for our highs and for our lows. In this moment of crisis, as gun violence has soared to become the leading cause of death in our children, our teachers are there with us shielding us with their care and sometimes even their own bodies. The threat to our lives from gun violence is unacceptable, and once again our teachers are here to fight for us. We’re organizing across the country with teachers, teacher aides, and our entire school communities to say: Enough is enough. This will be the beginning of the end of gun violence, and the American Federation of Teachers is there with us to make it happen.” 

I think Hogg confuses the role of teachers with that of parents. We all have had teachers we admired and even loved. That said, they rarely were our everything.

If you really wanted to empower teachers to shield students, you would offer training such as the FASTER program along with “stop the bleed”.

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“Camera” Hogg Throws Everytown Under The Bus

April 23, 2022 by 5 Comments

David “Camera” Hogg, the most famous non-victim from the Parkland school shootings, just threw Michael Bloomberg and Everytown for Gun Safety under the bus.

In the tweet below you can read him bemoaning the fact that gun control isn’t happening sooner and suggesting that every politician, Democrat or Republican, needs to be bought off.

I’m not sure what “hmu” means but he is called out on his tweet by someone named Ben Davis. Hogg’s response is to throw Bloomberg, Everytown, and probably Shannon Watts as well under the bus.

While I’m glad that Everytown is ineffective at their astroturfing, it is a bit unseemly to bite the hand that has been feeding you for so long.

Oh, what the heck, bite that hand Mr. Hogg. There is nothing I like better than to see disarray among the gun prohibitionists.

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Taliban – You Don’t Need Weapons For Personal Protection

August 17, 2021 by 3 Comments

As the Taliban consolidate their power in Kabul, Afghanistan, they have started going door to door collecting weapons from private citizens.

From Reuters:

Taliban fighters in the Afghan capital, Kabul, started collecting weapons from civilians on Monday because people no longer need them for personal protection, a Taliban official said.

“We understand people kept weapons for personal safety. They can now feel safe. We are not here to harm innocent civilians,” the official told Reuters.

The Taliban also believe in a strict interpretation of Muslim law including women should not leave their homes unless accompanied by a male relative and to be fully covered in a burqa. There are numerous stories of how they have killed or beaten innocent women as they moved back to power.

This leads me to ponder on the the conundrum facing American gun prohibitionists like Everytown, Moms Demand Action, Giffords, and the Brady Campaign. On the one hand you have a group that brutally subjugates women like it was the 7th Century. On the other hand, they want to ban the private possession of firearms saying, in essence, the state will protect you.

Choices are tough.

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DOJ Pushes Red Flag Laws Plus Pistol Brace Rule

June 7, 2021 by 2 Comments

We knew something was coming out on pistol braces as it has been signaled for a while now. The Department of Justice just released their notice of proposed rulemaking on pistol braces and have also said they will provide states with model “extreme violence protection order” legislation. The rule, if adopted, would make AR pistols with pistol braces an NRA item. I guess those who need a brace to shoot an AR pistol due to war wounds or other disabilities need to cough up $200. Evidently, DOJ doesn’t consider that the Americans with Disabilities Act applies to the BATFE nor to wounded veterans.

Here is the press release from Biden’s Department of Justice. I have highlighted a few things in it.

Justice Department Issues Proposed Rule and Model Legislation to Reduce Gun Violence

New Steps Would Enhance Enforcement of the National Firearms Act and Aid States in Drafting “Extreme Risk Protection Order” Laws

Today, the Department of Justice announced two new steps to help address the continuing epidemic of gun violence affecting communities across the country. First, the department issued a notice of proposed rulemaking that makes clear that when individuals use accessories to convert pistols into short-barreled rifles, they must comply with the heightened regulations on those dangerous and easily concealable weapons. Second, the department published model legislation to help states craft their own “extreme risk protection order” laws, sometimes called “red flag” laws. By sending the proposed rule to the Federal Register and publishing the model legislation today, the department has met the deadlines that the Attorney General announced alongside President Biden in April. 

“The Justice Department is determined to take concrete steps to reduce the tragic toll of gun violence in our communities,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Today we continue to deliver on our promise to help save lives while protecting the rights of law-abiding Americans. We welcome the opportunity to work with communities in the weeks and months ahead in our shared commitment to end gun violence.”

The department issued a notice of proposed rulemaking that would make clear that the statutory restrictions on short-barreled rifles apply to pistols that are equipped with certain stabilizing braces and intended to be fired from the shoulder. The National Firearms Act imposes heightened regulations on short-barreled rifles because they are easily concealable, can cause great damage, and are more likely to be used to commit crimes. But companies now sell accessories that make it easy for people to convert pistols into these more dangerous weapons without going through the statute’s background check and registration requirements. These requirements are important public safety measures because they regulate the transfer of these dangerous weapons and help ensure they do not end up in the wrong hands. The proposed rule would clarify when these attached accessories convert pistols into weapons covered by these heightened regulations.

Once the proposed rule is published in the Federal Register, the public will have 90 days to submit comments.  To view the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, please see here.

The department also published model legislation and detailed commentary that will make it easier for states to craft “extreme risk protection orders” authorizing courts to temporarily bar people in crisis from accessing firearms. By allowing family members or law enforcement to intervene and to petition for these orders before warning signs turn into tragedy, “extreme risk protection orders” can save lives. They are also an evidence-based approach to the problem. The model legislation, developed after consultation with a broad range of stakeholders, provides a framework that will help more states enact these sensible laws.

To read the model legislation, please see here.

To learn more about the rulemaking process, please see here.

There is so much bull shit in the paragraph on pistol braces that it would keep most farms fertilized for generations.

As to the legality of it, I really don’t see how they can square it with the 6th Circuit’s ruling in GOA v. Garland in which that court found that only Congress can change definitions like this when a criminal penalty is involved. Trump really screwed up things when he pushed DOJ to ban bump stocks.

As to Merrick Garland, I owe Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) a big thanks for keeping him off the US Supreme Court.

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Misplaced Priorities

May 18, 2021 by 2 Comments

The NRA-ILA posted yesterday that they plan to spend at least $2 million on fighting gun control. The post also dealt with Legislative Town Halls. This is all well and good.

That is until you think how much was spent elsewhere.

For example, the NRA has spent $8 million in legal fees to avoid paying former ILA Director Chris Cox the $2 million severance his contract called for.

This is on top of the approximately $10 million in legal fees spent on their abortive attempt at bankruptcy.

Now it might just be me but I’d sure as hell rather have seen $18 million spent on fighting gun control and protecting the Second Amendment than on legal shenanigans. Imagine if just a fraction of the money spent on Brewer, Attorneys and Counselors, had been spent in the Georgia run-off election. Instead of a 50-50 Senate with the Democrats running things, Cocaine Mitch would still be running things and would have served as a bulwark against the anti-rights, anti-gun moves of the Biden Administration.

As I said in the headline, misplaced priorities.

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Biden’s BOHICA

April 8, 2021 by 3 Comments

The White House just posted the proposed Executive Actions along with their intent to nominate David Chipman to head BATFE.

It has all the stuff we’ve been expecting.

“Ghost guns” (sic). Check.

Pistol braces under NFA. Check.

Red flag law. Check.

Infrastructure monies to “community violence intervention.” Check.

So you don’t have to go and pull it up, here is it in its entirety.

Today, the Biden-Harris Administration is announcing six initial actions to address the gun violence public health epidemic. The recent high-profile mass shootings in Boulder – taking the lives of 10 individuals – and Atlanta – taking the lives of eight individuals, including six Asian American women – underscored the relentlessness of this epidemic. Gun violence takes lives and leaves a lasting legacy of trauma in communities every single day in this country, even when it is not on the nightly news. In fact, cities across the country are in the midst of a historic spike in homicides, violence that disproportionately impacts Black and brown Americans. The President is committed to taking action to reduce all forms of gun violence – community violence, mass shootings, domestic violence, and suicide by firearm.

President Biden is reiterating his call for Congress to pass legislation to reduce gun violence. Last month, a bipartisan coalition in the House passed two bills to close loopholes in the gun background check system. Congress should close those loopholes and go further, including by closing “boyfriend” and stalking loopholes that currently allow people found by the courts to be abusers to possess firearms, banning assault weapons and high capacity magazines, repealing gun manufacturers’ immunity from liability, and investing in evidence-based community violence interventions. Congress should also pass an appropriate national “red flag” law, as well as legislation incentivizing states to pass “red flag” laws of their own.

But this Administration will not wait for Congress to act to take its own steps – fully within the Administration’s authority and the Second Amendment – to save lives. Today, the Administration is announcing the following six initial actions:

The Justice Department, within 30 days, will issue a proposed rule to help stop the proliferation of “ghost guns.” We are experiencing a growing problem: criminals are buying kits containing nearly all of the components and directions for finishing a firearm within as little as 30 minutes and using these firearms to commit crimes. When these firearms turn up at crime scenes, they often cannot be traced by law enforcement due to the lack of a serial number. The Justice Department will issue a proposed rule to help stop the proliferation of these firearms.

The Justice Department, within 60 days, will issue a proposed rule to make clear when a device marketed as a stabilizing brace effectively turns a pistol into a short-barreled rifle subject to the requirements of the National Firearms Act. The alleged shooter in the Boulder tragedy last month appears to have used a pistol with an arm brace, which can make a firearm more stable and accurate while still being concealable.

The Justice Department, within 60 days, will publish model “red flag” legislation for states. Red flag laws allow family members or law enforcement to petition for a court order temporarily barring people in crisis from accessing firearms if they present a danger to themselves or others. The President urges Congress to pass an appropriate national “red flag” law, as well as legislation incentivizing states to pass “red flag” laws of their own. In the interim, the Justice Department’s published model legislation will make it easier for states that want to adopt red flag laws to do so.

The Administration is investing in evidence-based community violence interventions. Community violence interventions are proven strategies for reducing gun violence in urban communities through tools other than incarceration. Because cities across the country are experiencing a historic spike in homicides, the Biden-Harris Administration is taking a number of steps to prioritize investment in community violence interventions.

* The American Jobs Plan proposes a $5 billion investment over eight years to support community violence intervention programs. A key part of community violence intervention strategies is to help connect individuals to job training and job opportunities.

* The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is organizing a webinar and toolkit to educate states on how they can use Medicaid to reimburse certain community violence intervention programs, like Hospital-Based Violence Interventions.

* Five federal agencies are making changes to 26 different programs to direct vital support to community violence intervention programs as quickly as possible. These changes mean we can start increasing investments in community violence interventions as we wait on Congress to appropriate additional funds.

The Justice Department will issue an annual report on firearms trafficking. In 2000, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) issued a report summarizing information regarding its investigations into firearms trafficking, which is one way firearms are diverted into the illegal market where they can easily end up in the hands of dangerous individuals. Since the report’s publication, states, local, and federal policymakers have relied on its data to better thwart the common channels of firearms trafficking. But there is good reason to believe that firearms trafficking channels have changed since 2000, for example due to the emergence of online sales and proliferation of “ghost guns.” The Justice Department will issue a new, comprehensive report on firearms trafficking and annual updates necessary to give policymakers the information they need to help address firearms trafficking today.

The President will nominate David Chipman to serve as Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. ATF is the key agency enforcing our gun laws, and it needs a confirmed director in order to do the job to the best of its ability. But ATF has not had a confirmed director since 2015. Chipman served at ATF for 25 years and now works to advance commonsense gun safety laws.

I’m surprised that they didn’t add a PS saying, “Fuck you, all you bitter clingers.”

I fully expect each and every one of these proposals to be fought in the courts. If it was good enough for President Trump’s immigration Executive Actions, it is good enough for this.

As to Chipman, you damn well better start calling your senators. Filibuster or no filibuster, he must be stopped.