Holder in the Hot Seat – Blames Lack of Gun Control
So let’s get this straight, ATF ran an operation that saw a border control agent killed, and thousands of guns were let to walk to Mexico. And how does the Attorney General see it? It is a fault of lack of gun control in the United States, reports The Washington Examiner:
“ATF’s ability to stem the flow of guns from the United States into Mexico suffers from a lack of effective enforcement tools,” Holder told the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee today. “Unfortunately, in 2011, a majority of House Members – including all members of the majority on this Committee – voted to keep law enforcement in the dark when individuals purchase multiple semi-automatic rifles, shotguns, and long guns – like AK-47s – in gun shops in four southwest-border states.”
No one this guy won’t step down, he seems to actually believe the things that come out of his mouth!
AK-74 Sales Up in 2011 – U.S. Media Ignores the Story
Russian media outlet RIA Novosti offered a story that has barely had any pickup in the United States, noting “Kalashnikov Rifle Maker Sales up 57.4% in 2011.” The article noted:
Izhmash, the manufacturer of Kalashnikov AK assault rifles, said its sales were up 57.4 percent last year at 5.73 billion rubles (about $190 million).
Civilian weapon sales rose 25 percent and a similar increase is expected this year, Izhmash press secretary Yelena Filatova said.
Production is to increase 30 percent this year, to 5.1 billion rubles, she added.
In September 2011, Chief of the Russian General Staff Nikolai Makarov said the Defense Ministry had stopped procuring AK-74 rifles because of oversupply, indicating that new models of small arms and light weapons would replace it.
The AK-74 is the most widely used and well-known assault rifle in the world. It is used by some 50 armies around the world, as well as countless guerrilla movements.
Now this is worth noting because it does mean that not only is this the most commonly used firearm in the world at present, but is probably the most widely illegally trafficked firearm as well. While fingers continue to point at American firearms, where is the mainstream media reporting on the AK-74 sales? And notice that the Russian military has an oversupply but the sales are increasing, so where are those guns going?
A related story also noted, “Venezuela plant to make 50 million Kalashnikov rounds annually,” which is a huge number. Could those bullets be fueling the cartel wars in Mexico? Just asking…
Even Town Hall Misrepresents Guns
While Town Hall has been one of the few outlets to offer reasonably unbiased reporting on Fast and Furious, and we’ve been following their coverage closely, we do have to note that even our friends make mistakes. This week Katie Pavlich noted:
“Since finding out about Operation Fast and Furious, Arizona Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu has been anything but amused. With no regard for local law enforcement, the Obama Justice Department supplied the most dangerous criminals in North America with high powered weapons, including .50-calibur [sic] sniper rifles and AK-47s, leading to the death of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry and at least 200 innocent Mexican citizens. Now with the Southern border still wide open, Babeu and his deputies will face the barrels of those guns as they do their job to combat Mexican drug cartels illegally operating in Arizona.”
We agree with most of what Pavlich states, but we take aim at her suggesting that AK-47s could (or should) be considered high powered weapons. They are not. This is a typical mistake made in the media however. But one we continue to watch out for.
Pavlich also misspelled “caliber” and this shows that while she may understand the situation, her knowledge of firearms is somewhat lacking. This is also common in the media, but we do want to give credit where credit is due, and say kudos to Katie Pavlich for even reporting on the story, but suggest she brush up on her background on firearms.
The Gazette Explains Canadian Gun Laws
Ask most Americans about Canada and guns, and they’ll quote Michael Moore that the country doesn’t have the same love of guns as America. But this week The Montreal Gazette offered a piece that that shows that guns are big in Canada too.
The article notes:
“According to the most recent statistics from the Canadian Firearms Centre, there are more than 7.6 million registered firearms in Canada, or about one gun per four Canadians. More than 1.8 million Canadians — about six per cent of the population — have valid gun licences, with the largest concentrations in Atlantic Canada and the North. The Yukon stacks up as the most gun-loving area of the country, with more than 84 guns per 100 people.”
This piece also explains how firearms such as the AK-47 are officially banned, but notes “Czech-made CZ 858 Tactical rifle, which appears almost identical to the infamous Russian-made AK-47 assault rifle and shoots the same 7.62-calibre NATO bullet,” is legal in Canada.
In other words things north of the border aren’t all that different.
Clarion Ledger Calls Out “Control of guns reason for F&F?”
Daniel L. Gardner writing for the Clarion Ledger in an op-edit titled “Control of guns reason for F&F?” notes that “conspiracy theories abound.”
He makes a couple of key points the mainstream media continues to ignore:
“You may have heard the Obama administration or the Bush administration saying 90-percent of guns going to Mexican drug cartels come from U.S. gun store sales. Officials in the Bush administration routinely quoted this figure to justify any number of law enforcement operations. Officials in the Obama administration continue using the same figure even though actual documented figures show no more than 20-percent of these guns come from U.S. gun stores.”
We have been tracking the use of that 90 percent figure for years, and do note that the Obama administration has continued to cite it. Gardner then adds:
“But that’s not the story worth pursuing. On Dec. 14, 2010, a killer used an AK-47 – one of the F&F guns – to murder Brian Terry, a U.S. Border Patrol agent. Why would anyone in Washington approve an operation not only to facilitate sales of guns to cartels in Mexico, but also to use taxpayer money to purchase these guns? Thousands of guns have ‘walked’ into Mexico from the U.S. as a result of Operation Fast & Furious. Wouldn’t someone know that sales of assault weapons to criminals would escalate crime and violence? Some have speculated that F&F was a political plot ‘to prove’ lax gun laws in America contribute to drug violence on our border with Mexico. Such proof could be used to justify stricter gun control laws.”
Clearly we aren’t the only ones who see that the mis-cited 90 percent number, added up with the approval of Fast and Furious, coupled with calls for gun control could add up to a conspiracy. We’re not saying we believe this to be the case, but it is does make you wonder.
Factor in that President Obama uttered the words “under the radar” when he said he was working on gun control, and add in the calls for an assault weapon ban by three Democratic Senators including Charles Schumer, Dianne Feinstein and Sheldon Whitehouse and the conspiracy theory doesn’t sound so farfetched.
Assault Weapon Under Fire
Last month we missed a post from Media Matters for America titled, “Gun Blogger Under Assault Over Term Assault Rifle.” This article basically discussed how Eric at the Gunmart Blog, writing for our friends at Ammoland.com, didn’t like the term assault weapon.
As we’ve long noted, the term is dubious because it implies that people think assault weapons are something they are not – mainly military firearms. While this debate will likely continue… we were shocked by some of the comments:
“And accurately labelled [sic] in the original. It is used for assaults. I have hunted numerous times, and have yet to see someone taking down a deer with an AR-15 or an AK-37 [sic].”
This just shows arrogance. If this guy doesn’t want to hunt with an AR-15 it must not be good enough for anyone else. And this notion of “it is used for assaults” is nonsense and an utter simplification. The Germans who produced the first assault rifle, the StG44 were surely on the defensive in 1944 and 1945 but used the small arm. This is like saying only a sniper can use a sniper rifle. Nonsense.
And there is this comment:
“Are assualt [sic] weapons fully automatic? I thought fully automatic guns were against the law?” Read more
More Anti-Gun Bias From Time Magazine
While the gang war south of the border continues, Time magazine once again managed to point the finger at American guns. In a story titled, “Mexico’s Gangster Send a Grisly Message on Crime” there is not one mention of Fast and Furious or the ATF. Instead the article offers this passage:
“President Felipe Calderon was in New York telling the United Nations General Assembly that ‘organized crime is killing more people and more youngsters than all the dictatorships put together’. Since Calderon took office in December 2006, more than 40,000 people have died in drug related violence. The president also struck out at the United States for failing to stop guns sold in the U.S. from reaching Mexican criminals, and urged the U.N. to take on the problem. Tests show that a majority of the automatic rifles in the hands of Mexican criminals were purchased in gun stores north of the border. ‘For what reason do criminals have access to AK47s, grenades and rocket launchers?’ Calderon asked. ‘The U.N. has work to do on this.’”
The problem with this reporting is that it essentially backs up the notion that the United States is the source of illegal guns. But let’s look closer at that sentence:
“Tests show that a majority of automatic rifles in the hands of Mexican criminals were purchased in gun stores north of the border.”
This is Time magazine, not some high school newspaper. Shouldn’t the fact checkers be doing their jobs? Even most high school newspaper editors would probably catch the point that you can’t buy “automatic” as in “full automatic” weapons at gun stores in the United States. The second problem is that this statement is based on evidence that has been widely debunked. In fact, tests show that the majority of guns do NOT come from gun stores.
Finally, what about the grenades and rocket launchers? Time doesn’t take the time to even address that these are not the types of items one can purchase at any gun store in the United States.
Somali Teens Earn Guns
Numerous outlets, including CNN.com, are reporting that Somali teens are earning guns for reciting the Quran as part of a contest organized by Al-Shabaab-controlled Radio Andalus.
The winners – if you can call them that – were awarded AK-47s and/or grenades!
“’We want the children to fight for defending of their country and their religion … just take these guns,’ Sheikh Moktar Robow abu Mansur, a senior Al-Shabaab leader, is quoted as saying. That means battling the Somali government and African Union peacekeeping troops in the country, according to the RBC report.”
No doubt some anti-gun groups will claim the NRA and other groups that promote safe shooting are no different. But in America we don’t encourage children to pick up guns to “battle” the government or our enemies. However, we do note a similarity in the culture of youth gangs and violence.
In fact, it is this disregard for authority that is the issue, not the guns. Criminal gangs in America recruit younger children, and put innocents at risk. Worse still is the fact that America continues to disarm itself, not seeing the potential threat looming on the horizon.
American soldiers have done well in wars because of our culture of learning to shoot. We fear what will happen when it comes time to eventually fight these people who are encouraging their youth to pick up guns, while we are trying to send a message to ours that only bad people have guns. Time will certainly tell.
Even Voice of Russia Believes American Guns Fueling Mexican Drug Wars
There is some irony in the reporting from Voice of Russia this week. The website suggested that American guns are behind the violence in Mexico, and reported on the ATF debacle known as Fast and Furious, noting:
“The Mexican government had repeatedly asked the US to implement stricter gun control, since most of the weapons used by Mexican criminals are being illegally trafficked from the US.”
First, the story doesn’t note that this is in fact note true. The writers for Voice of Russia are buying the line that 70 to 90 percent of guns are coming from the United States. But there is some other irony.
What the story doesn’t note is that many of the guns favored by cartels are variations of the AK-47, a gun of Russian origin!
Chicago’s Real Problem – Gangs, Not Guns
The Chicago Tribune reported this week that members of the notorious gang “Almighty Gaylords” have been arrested for “selling an AK-47 assault rifle,” as well as being charged with “state drug and gang crimes.”
Chicago has extremely strict gun laws, and yet this street gang has retained power for decades, with its origin dating back to the 1970s. So is this really a gun problem in the Windy City or a gang problem?
