Toledo Blade Offers Anti-Gun Editorial
In an editorial titled “Get a Handle on Guns,” The Toledo Blade offered an opinion that looser gun laws are bad and cites multiple examples:
“Nearly half a dozen gun rights bills are being considered by lawmakers in Arizona and Wyoming. The Indiana legislature passed bills last month that prohibit private companies from banning firearms in employee cars on company property.
“Other states are considering measures similar to laws adopted in Tennessee and Montana that exempt those states from federal regulation of firearms and ammunition.”
Yet the editorial lacks any actual reason for not agreeing with these laws, other than the fact that writer(s) is anti-gun. That is sort of like saying “I don’t like…” well, just about anything and then not offering your reasons why this is the case. This might be fine if there were a rhyme or reason, but this editorial does seem to suggest that guns are dangerous, yet it fails to cite any good arguments. In other words this is just a typical wishy-washy mainstream media approach to arguing. Make a statement without every making the point.
Who Guards the Guards: 78 Guns Missing From Kentucky Sheriff’s Office
Imagine what would happen if a law-abiding gun owner called the police and said, “I lost 78 guns.” Do you think this would make the news across the United States? Do you think the person would face felony charges? We think so, but yet when this happened to a sheriff’s office in Kentucky, it was barely a blip on the radar.
This followed an alleged burglary reports TheTimesTribune.com:
“The following list contains firearms that are unaccounted for following an examination of the evidence storage, written evidence logs, and documents pertaining to the release of property found at the Whitley County Sheriff’s Department following an alleged burglary which [sic] was reported on December 21, 2009.”
While the article suggests that not all the guns may have been stolen, it is still disturbing to think that criminals could have made off with all these firearms. It also should as a warning to anyone who believes that all illegal firearms begin from legal purchases!
NBA Players Allowed to Possess Guns!
Last month’s disturbing incident, which allegedly involved NBA player Gilbert Arenas of the Washington Wizards drawing a gun on a teammate, is something we haven’t really been following. There isn’t much to say. Guns aren’t toys and anyone brandishing a firearm in such a way should face severe punishment! There should be no exception, even for those rich and famous.
But what is now on radar is that the media has picked up on a few facets of the story. A recent story in The New York Daily News included this passage:
“An incident involving Washington Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas in which he allegedly drew a firearm on a teammate has set off a firestorm of opinion among current NBA players, who tell of a flourishing gun culture in the NBA. If true, it could spell trouble for NBA commissioner David Stern.” Read more
International Media Believes U.S. Fueling Illegal Arms Trade
Turn on the news of conflicts around the world and you’re likely to see the Soviet designed AK-47 time and time again. But surprisingly the United States, not the former Soviet Union, now gets the lion’s share of the blame for supplying the world with illegal firearms.
In an editorial posted by Jamaica Gleaner News on recent violence in Haiti the writers called out the United States for supplying guns to Mexican cartels. Fortunately, at least, the article didn’t see the United States in this alone:
Jamaica and her CARICOM partners should invite gun manufacturing countries such as the United States, China and Russia to a summit on small arms
This is an interesting opinion, but would Russia care – should Russia even care – about the weapons that were sold during the Cold War by the former Soviet Union? And what would a summit really mean?
Gun Sales Up in 2009, Crime Down
With a “new” decade comes the usual “end of the year” and of course “end of the decade stories” in the mainstream media. It is worth noting that technically the “new” decade should begin in 2011 – There was no year “zero” so if the calendar begins with Year 1 AD, then 10 AD is part of the same decade. Flash forward and 2010 is the final year… but the media says it is a new decade, so you can’t argue.
But there is something else that few in the mainstream media are reporting, and this is far more important. The year actually saw an increase in gun sales yet crime is down. Meanwhile, the last month has been filled of stories about gun buybacks, and “taking guns off the street.” So unless people were buying firearms for $200+ a piece, or taking advantage of those specials to buy surplus/vintage military rifles for $80+, and then handing them in for $20 food coupons, there is really no way to explain why gun sales were up, yet crime was down.
Could it be that law-abiding citizens could own guns responsibility? Maybe in this “new” decade that is something the mainstream media will report on, but something tells us that it won’t happen. So for that reason, we’re not going anywhere.
Firing Back: New Year’s Eve Edition
Many news outlets are urging firearms owners not to fire their weapons in the air as part of tonight’s New Year’s celebration, and this is solid reporting. However, many times this coverage seems slightly biased, as to suggest that this is a practice carried on by ALL gun owners.
Of course this isn’t even close to accurate. And our wish for 2010 is that the mainstream media treat gun owners with some respect. Most firearm enthusiasts know that these aren’t toys. The problem is that criminals, gangsta rappers and other celebrities treat guns as if they are toys all too often.
But let us hope for a peaceful New Year’s this year!
WaPo Editorial Provides False Facts: Cites 90% Figure Again
An editorial doesn’t need to be unbiased, but it shouldn’t try to use information that has been proven false to make its point. In this weekend’s Washington Post editorial titled “Massacre in Mexico,” the paper cites this fact:
“Some 90 percent of the guns seized from operations against organized crime in Mexico come from the United States.”
As we have reported throughout 2009, this is false. Some 90 percent of guns seized in Mexico do NOT come from the United States. Let’s hope the media does a better job of reporting on these facts in 2010.
Who Guards the Guards: DC Cops Bring Guns to a Snow Ball Fight
We can’t comment much on this story that was posted by Fox12, but it makes us wonder if this will be investigated:
“The snow also caused problems for more than 200 people at the nation’s capitol who turned up for a snowball fight today in DC.The snow ball fighters were having fun tossing snow balls to each other until they started hitting vehicles passing through which then prompted police to the scene. Officers were then seen going for their guns while warning the snow ball-ers to cease and desist.People in the crowd seemed outraged that police had cracked down so roughly on the activity.No arrests were made and no one was hurt.”
Of course given that DC residents can’t own guns of any sort, the police have no danger of turning the nation’s capital into a true police state!
Even Mass. Citizens Looking to Get Permits
It seems that even citizens in the traditionally liberal state of Massachusetts are looking to obtain firearm permits, The Boston Globe reports. According to the paper this came a surprise to everyone:
“The magnitude of the rise, evident in nearly every corner of the state, surprised law enforcement officials, and gun advocates and opponents alike.”
Maybe even liberals aren’t buying that line that gun laws aren’t being tightened, or maybe all those reports of gun sales and ammo has convinced people is time to get a permit… at least while they still can.
Canadian Press as Misguided as American Mainstream Media
Responding to Canada’s recent over turning of long run registry The Toronto Star ran an editorial this week, and as we often find with American editorials, the facts don’t seem to matter when making an opinionated statement:
“And we remember the outrage when we learned that military-style weapons were being sold to civilians and that there were 6 million guns in Canada and no one knew who had them.”
What exactly are “military-style weapons? Handguns are used by the military, rifles with scopes are used by the military as well, and of course fully automatic electric powered machine guns with multiple barrels are used by the military. So what defines a small arm that is “military” vs. “civilian.” In Canada fully automatic weapons are nearly impossible for the private citizen to own.
So this is clearly another biased article that suggests just because a firearm looks like an M-16 that it must be an M-16! That’s of course nonsense. An AR-15 is a semi-automatic, civilian version. But if it was a more dangerous weapon why wasn’t it used for hunting? The reason is that it is better at close range, while a hunting rifle is better at a distance. But most militaries around the world still rely on traditional bolt-action rifles. In fact a civilian bolt-action rifle today is probably also more accurate than a true World War II military rifle. And as far as close range, a double barrel shotgun looks nothing like a military weapon, but it can be extremely devastating in close range situations – which is why it is preferred by criminals.
So what we’re saying is why all this nonsense about “military style.” If the anti-gun lobby can tell us what they mean, instead of trying to scare the public with this notion that anyone can buy an AK-47 at a gun show, we’d have a lot more respect for those opposed to our firearms.
