Biased Take on Arizona Gun Law
The Arizona Daily Star offered a bit of bias in a feature on the state’s new legislation that would allow adults to carry a concealed weapon. Here is the spin the paper put on this measure:
“Arizona is on the verge of becoming the third state to let just about any adult carry a concealed weapon. Without a word of debate, the House voted 36-19 on Wednesday to eliminate the criminal penalties that now exist if someone has a hidden gun without the necessary state permit. The Senate already has approved the measure.”
What is missing from this explanation is a criminal can already carry a concealed weapon, but a law-abiding citizen cannot (or else he/she becomes a criminal for breaking the law). This new law just ensures that private citizens can protect themselves, but clearly the paper doesn’t see it that way.
One Law For Them, Another Law For Everyone Else
Could we ever end up with a class that is allowed to own guns, and another that is not? According to The Modesto Bee this is already happening:
“People in Turlock who want concealed weapon permits might consider running for office. Of the seven permits issued by Turlock police, two belong to City Council members. And while Councilmen Ted Howze and Kurt Spycher don’t feel they got preferential treatment, Police Chief Gary Hampton confirmed that they did.”
So in Turlock, California those in government stand a better chance of getting a concealed weapons permit? What is more interesting is that crime has been on the decline, and yet Hampton claims he considers permits to public officials for the reason “there is a great potential for an act of violence committed against people who hold office.” If crime is down, then why do the public officials need the permits – permits that other law-abiding citizens might have a hard time acquiring?
Arkansas Times Offers Insulting Blog Post on Open Carry Debate
Is it fair to label those in support of open carry rights to be “nuts?” The author of the Arkansas Times Arkansas Blog thinks so in a post titled “Annals of gun nuttery,” which provides this colorful take:
“Concealed weapon laws are no longer enough for the gun zealots. Open carry is the new rage (and I do mean rage) and the threats of angry gun packers have spooked, among others, Starbucks, into not adopting the law-allowed private property rules against guns on premises.”
Poor choice of words maybe, but this is yet another attempt to paint all gun owners as “angry” and filled with “mean rage.”
Associated Press Story Seen as Too Biased
A story running on The New York Times Web site from The Associated Press titled “Seeing Loose Guns Laws as Still Too Tight” is one that is still too biased on our opinion, and borders on an opinion piece! The article offers a few choice quotes:
- Arizona’s permissive gun laws gained national attention last year when a man openly carried an AR-15 rifle to a protest outside a speech by President Obama.
- “That’s sheer insanity,” said M. Kristen Rand, legislative director for the Violence Policy Center.
- Police departments worry that making permits optional might encourage more people with bad motives to carry concealed weapons, said John Thomas, a lobbyist for the Arizona Association of Chiefs of Police.
Of course there were hardly as strong statements from those actually supporting to move for Arizona to allow concealed weapons to be carried without a permit. But why would we expect otherwise? About the only thing missing in this one is a quote from gun hating Mayor Mike Bloomberg. Yeah, we know Arizona is a long ways from New York City, but that doesn’t stop Bloomberg from offering his opinion about Virginia or Ohio laws!
Was NYC Mayor Bloomberg Serious?
This week New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg made a very surreal statement while talking to WNYC radio’s Bob Hennelly. When questioned where there was a concern that a gun owner, with a permit, could be too drunk to drive, the mayor responded:
“If you are in a bar and you see somebody intoxicated and think they might have a gun I know what I would do, I’d either leave that bar or call the cops. I don’t want to get shot.”
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