The Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms issued a release yesterday severely criticizing the media’s double standard when it comes to the NFL. On the one hand, they go all righteous and pro-gun control when Jovan Belcher kills the mother of his child and then himself. On the other, they barely blink an eye when Dallas Cowboy Josh Brent drives intoxicated and kills a fellow Cowboy teammate.<\/p>\n
From the CCRKBA:<\/p>\n
\nNEW NFL DEATH SHOWS MEDIA\u2019S DUAL
\n STANDARD ABOUT GUNS, SAYS CCRKBA<\/p>\nBELLEVUE, WA \u2013 After yet another tragic death involving an NFL player over the weekend, there is the appearance of a double standard in media handling of the case, the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms said today.<\/p>\n
\u201cA week ago,\u201d noted CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb, \u201cNBC\u2019s Bob Costas was having fits about a so-called \u2018gun culture,\u2019 but what about the culture of big money, flashy cars and alcohol that permeats the NFL? Dallas player Jerry Brown is dead from what appears to be a drunken driving crash involving teammate Josh Brent. Brown is no less dead than Javon Belcher or his girlfriend and Brent faces criminal charges. Costas was alarmed at the number of NFL players with guns, but he\u2019s said virtually nothing about the ones who drink and drive.\u201d<\/p>\n
Costas ignited a firestorm last week, showing a lack of knowledge about firearms, current laws and the so-called \u201cgun culture\u201d when he editorialized about the Belcher case and then had to do damage control for several days.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat Bob Costas doesn\u2019t know about guns,\u201d Gottlieb said, \u201cwould probably fill a library. His remarks about violent crime, gun owners and semiautomatic firearms demonstrated why the firearms community distrusts mainstream press because many, if not most, of the talking heads don\u2019t know what they\u2019re talking about.<\/p>\n
\u201cAccording to FBI crime data,\u201d he continued, \u201cthe number of homicides involving firearms has declined over the past several years. Last year, out of 12,664 homicides, firearms were used in about 8,500 of those crimes, and handguns were used in less than half.<\/p>\n
\u201cCompare that to more than 10,000 deaths attributed annually to drunk driving,\u201d Gottlieb said, \u201cyet where is the great discussion about that after Brown\u2019s death?<\/p>\n
\u201cLast week, Costas asked who \u2018needs\u2019 a semiautomatic firearm,\u201d he added. \u201cWell, who needs to drive drunk? NFL players certainly have enough money to pay for a cab ride, don\u2019t they?<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many drunks are on the road every weekend following tailgate parties at NFL games,\u201d Gottlieb questioned. \u201cWhat\u2019s more dangerous, a citizen with a firearm or an NFL player with a bar tab?\u201d<\/i>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n