Category Archives: Guns

Government Of The Gun, By The Gun And For The Gun.

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You probably thought our government was “of the people.” Not anymore. The NRA, the Republican Party and the Tea Party Parrots have changed that. When gun-lovin’ senators decided to filibuster a bill that would expand background checks on gun sales, they went against the will of 90 percent of the people.

It’s now abundantly clear who these politicians represent, and it’s certainly not us. They have chosen to represent the minority over the majority. They have chosen gun manufacturers over citizens. They have chosen campaign donations over lives.

To show exactly how far this nonsense has gone, in Arizona, the Teapublican-controlled legislature recently passed a bill making it illegal for cities to destroy guns collected as part of gun buy-back efforts, guns seized in crime investigations, even guns used in murders.

No gun shall meet its end before its time!

People, on the other hand, are treated much differently. These same Teapublican legislators have literally voted to withhold Medicaid from the poor that would have saved lives. As a result of the legislators’ decision, a number of people were allowed to die prematurely…people who could have been saved by a simple operation.

Of course, Arizona legislators have also refused to reconsider the death penalty, even in the case of the severely retarded, even when there are serious questions of guilt.

But, in Arizona, all guns will live to shoot another day; maybe even another innocent person; maybe you!

We Pledge Allegiance To The Gun Manufacturers Of America.

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Today, the gun lobby-owned Teapublicans in the US Senate filibustered a bill calling for expanded background checks. As a result, the bill failed on a vote of 54-46. It needed 60 votes to break the filibuster of rootin’, tootin’, shootin’ Teapublicans.

So the Teapublican senators would rather allow criminals and the mentally ill easy access to guns than risk angering the NRA and gun manufacturers!

These are the very same senators who were outraged (outraged, I say!) that the ATFE allowed a few guns to slip across the border in an attempt to get at the leaders of Mexican drug cartels who were using Arizona’s lax gun laws to purchase them through straw buyers. They were outraged by that, yet they’re seemingly unconcerned that thousands of felons and criminally insane will be allowed to continue to purchase military-style guns and ammunition through gun shows, the Internet and person-to-person sales without so much as a background check!

How many more mass murders will it take for our nation to take gun safety seriously? How many more drive-by shootings? How many more innocent children and young adults will have to die?

Nearly 90 percent of Americans are in favor of expanded background checks, including a majority of NRA members. It would seem that the only Americans against such sensible measures are criminals, NRA leaders, gun manufacturers and Teapublican politicians. (And it’s increasingly difficult to tell these groups apart!)

Everyday Terrorism In The US.

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To take nothing away from the tragedy at the Boston Marathon, our nation faces a far more deadly form of terrorism every single day.

At latest count, the Boston bombs cost 3 lives and 180 wounded. That’s a horrendous toll and I cry for the victims and their families. But gun violence claims 32 lives every single day! Yet there are no news specials on those victims. No 24-hour news reports. No press conferences. No grilling of terrorism experts. Most of those deaths are treated as little more than a statistic.

Since the murders at the Sandy Hook Elementary School, there have been nearly 2,500 gun deaths! But there has been little effort to stop them. Indeed, the NRA and many politicians are arguing for business as usual. No bans on certain types of weapons. No bans on large capacity magazines. No expanded background checks.

The nearly 2,500 gun deaths have been overshadowed by the Boston tragedy, pushing the debate over gun safety to the back burner.

The one bill that may actually reach the floor of the US Senate for a vote is likely to be filibustered by Teapublicans despite support from nearly 90 percent of Americans. Even if it does pass, it is already so watered down as to be of little help. It would expand background checks to most gun shows, but leave a loophole so large you could drive a semi-truck full of assault weapons through it. That’s because the bill, as it currently stands, would exempt gun sales between friends and family members from background checks. And it would exempt sales at rural gun shows if there is no licensed gun dealer nearby.

So if I’m a criminal looking for a gun, I could still buy one from a “friend” on most any street corner in America. Yeah, that’ll work.

Does Wayne LaPierre’s Advice Also Apply To Bombs?

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Following the tragedy at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, NRA Exec. VP, Wayne LaPierre said, “the only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is with a good guy with a gun.”

So after the tragedy at the Boston Marathon, will Mr. LaPierre make a similar statement about bombs? Of course not! Even someone as crass and callous as LaPierre would recognize the absurdity of such a claim.

Why the difference?

The answer, of course, is money. LaPierre and his very lethal lobbying group do not represent bomb manufacturers, so there’s no profit motive. Neither do LaPierre and the NRA represent cutlery manufacturers, so you didn’t hear them call for arming everyone with knives after the recent stabbings in Texas.

Therefore, it’s fair to ask, “Since LaPierre’s gun strategy doesn’t apply to all violent attacks, why should we listen to him at all?”

At War With Ourselves.

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Not to diminish the loss and sacrifice of those fighting in Afghanistan, but America’s most lethal war is internal.

All of our wars since 1776 (and there have been far too many of them) have resulted in the deaths of 1,171,177 soldiers. But since 1968, 1,384,171 civilians have lost their lives to gun violence in America! Of course, that number is growing every day. For what purpose? So some wannabe “freedom fighters” can own a lethal collection of weaponry intended for military use?

If you’re one of the paranoid, anti-social nitwits who see tyranny around every corner, I have some news for you. The government isn’t coming to take your revolver, shotgun and hunting rifle. The black-shirted UN troops aren’t coming, either. And your neighbors aren’t coming for your stash of food, guns and gold.

Only a very small percentage of Americans are murderers, muggers, robbers and thieves. And the only reason they have guns is because you and the NRA are too damn paranoid to allow the government to institute sensible gun safety rules.

Because you feel it’s your constitutional right to arm yourself to the teeth, straw buyers are able to walk into any of the nation’s more than 58,000 gun stores and buy assault rifles for drug cartels. Because of your paranoia, gangstas are able to buy an array of semi-automatics from gun shows without even passing a background check. Because you want to think of yourself as a real-life Rambo, felons and children are able to buy guns on street corners throughout America so they can shoot innocents and each other.

Truth is, If you’re so paranoid that you fear universal background checks and restrictions on some types of weaponry, you are as responsible for gun deaths in America as those who actually pull the triggers.

That must make you feel very proud.

Filibuster For Murder.

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Monday, Sen. Mitch McConnell announced that he will join 14 other Teapublican senators to filibuster the gun safety bill. He apparently timed his announcement to coincide with President Obama’s Newtown speech calling for gun control.

Nothing could better demonstrate the minority leader’s disdain for the president, Democrats and the majority of Americans.

Depending on which poll you choose to believe, 73% – 90% of Americans are in favor of universal background checks. Could the will of the people be any more clear? The majority of Americans do not want to see another Newtown; another Aurora; another Tucson; another Virginia Tech; another Columbine.

But those tragedies are of no real concern to Mitch and his Teapublican followers. Apparently, the only thing that matters to them is their ideology. So they must continue to stand in the way of common sense and progress.

Not even the murders of six-year-old children and the future of public safety can change that.

The United States Of Crazy!

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A recent survey by Public Policy Polling found that 13 percent of Americans actually think President Obama is the antichrist. An additional 13 percent are unsure.

The same survey found that 37 percent of Americans believe global warming is a hoax, while another 12 percent are unsure. The survey also found that 28 percent of Americans believe in the New World Order conspiracy. (The Black Helicopters are coming! The Black Helicopters are coming!). Yet another 25 percent think it’s possible,

If that news isn’t depressing enough, a 2011 Fox News poll found that 24 percent of voters believe our president is not even an American citizen. A stunning 72 percent of Tea Party Republicans and 63 percent of all Republicans thought there was cause to wonder about his birthplace!

Further, a new HuffPost/YouGov poll shows that 32 percent of Americans would favor a constitutional amendment making Christianity the official religion of the United States. An even larger 34 percent would favor establishing Christianity as the official religion of their state. Even though the First Amendment of the Constitution clearly states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion…” these people seem to believe the Founders intended the US to be a Christian nation.

They apparently assume the Founders simply meant that there should be no establishment of any specific denomination of Christianity despite the fact that some of the Founders were deists and atheists. Many of these same clairvoyants have convinced themselves that the Founders also intended for individual Americans to own all forms of armament ranging from assault weapons to howitzers.

Except for the large numbers of crackpots, none of this is particularly surprising. The US is home to all sorts of crazy.

There are significant numbers of Americans who believe in unfounded conspiracies, such as the Agenda 21 conspiracy, the “truther” conspiracy, the Roswell conspiracy, the FDR-allowed-Pearl-Harbor-to-happen conspiracy, the Obama-is-going-to-take-your-guns conspiracy, the Obama-is-converting-the-US-to-sharia-law conspiracy, etc.

On a more positive note, a new Marist College poll found that 60 percent of Americans think the laws governing firearms sales should be more strict. (After all, who would want to put guns in the hands of the conspiracy nuts.)  59 percent favor a ban on assault weapons with only 37 percent opposing the idea. And 87 percent favor background checks.

Let’s hope those background checks include screenings for nut jobs!

The NRA’s Circular Argument.

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As Congress debated the assault weapons ban in 1994, the NRA offered universal background checks as an alternative. Following the massacre at Columbine High School in 1999, the NRA again called for universal background checks. But now that we’re once again looking for solutions to gun violence, the NRA leadership is adamantly opposed to universal background checks!

Their reasoning? Background checks don’t work.

They rightly claim that universal background checks will not work because the database is incomplete; that some states have not supplied necessary data on felons and those with mental health issues. What they neglect to mention is that NRA supporters have blocked the sharing of data.

The NRA leaders also claim that there are hundreds of gun laws on the books that are currently not being enforced. Again, they are correct…but only because an NRA-backed Republican, former Congressman Todd Tiahrt, attached amendments to appropriations bills in 2003 and 2004 limiting the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. These amendments prohibit the creation of a national registry of firearms. They require data from background checks to be destroyed within 24 hours. They prohibit the ATFE from releasing any data on gun violence, except in aggregate. They even limit the use of tracing data to suspend a gun dealer’s license.

Worse yet, the ATFE has not had a permanent director since 2006 because NRA-endorsed Republican senators have refused to confirm presidential nominations. Even worse, the ATFE has too little money and far too few agents to do its job. Only a tiny fraction of the nearly 51,000 retail gun dealers can be inspected each year.

Things are further complicated by sequestration. Cuts to Medicaid and mental health care will likely result in even more Jared Loughners and Adam Lanzas being able to purchase guns.

This situation is completely untenable and the NRA knows it because the NRA created it to prevent any realistic limitation on gun sales. The NRA refuses to agree to universal background checks because they are incomplete and unenforceable. And the reason they are incomplete and unenforceable is because of the NRA and its lackeys in Congress!

As if all of this isn’t bad enough, the NRA has written and backed ever more permissive gun laws across the nation. In states like Arizona, any non-felon can walk into a gun shop and buy enough guns to arm a militia. The straw buyer can then walk across the street and re-sell those guns to a crime organization without restriction. If the police or ATFE agents arrest the straw buyer, the US attorney is unable to press charges because no laws were broken.

The laws may not have been broken. But the system is.

The GOP’s Continuing Attack On Voters, Workers, Women And The Constitution.

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Still stinging from its losses in the 2012 election, the Grand Old Party is becoming a Grand Old Pain In The Ass.  Not just for Democrats…for everyone.

While opposing a bill that would raise the minimum wage, the GOP is attacking labor unions across the nation and successfully ending defined benefit pension plans.  Now the GOP is pushing a bill that would loosen the rules for overtime, allowing corporations to overwork and underpay employees.

Famously, the Ryan budget, which was passed by the House, would drastically cut Medicaid, repeal Obamacare and turn Medicare into vouchers.

Although 94 percent of Americans want comprehensive background checks for anyone purchasing a firearm, Teapublican senators are threatening to filibuster any bill that would limit the sale of guns.

In states across the nation, the GOP is pushing a variety of voter suppression laws through state legislatures under the guise of preventing voter ID fraud, a problem that has been proven to be non-existent.   After gerrymandering districts to all but guarantee a Teapublican-controlled House far into the future, the GOP now senses a way to control presidential elections by changing the Electoral College.  The idea is to end the “winner-take-all” approach to electoral votes for states and, instead, award each electoral vote district-by-Teapublican-controlled-district.

If successful, this would almost certainly ensure an endless reign of GOP presidents.

In North Dakota, Arkansas and elsewhere, GOP legislatures are attempting to make abortion illegal. (Of course, the bills will not actually end abortion.  They’ll just drive it underground, making doctors and patients criminals.)  Under the guise of religious freedom, they also want to eliminate contraceptives from health insurance plans and block sex education in public schools.

In Arizona and numerous states of the Old South, a variety of so-called nullification bills have been introduced in the state legislatures.  If passed, these bills would ostensibly give the states power to ignore any federal law the GOP deems unconstitutional.  (Of course, this power is reserved for the Supreme Court and the bills are in direct defiance of the Constitution’s federal supremacy clause.)

Finally, a bill introduced by North Carolina Teapublicans will allow the GOP-controlled state legislature to name an official state religion in defiance of the Constitution’s establishment clause.

Does anyone else get the feeling that the GOP would be happier if our Constitution didn’t exist?

Apocalyptic Politics.

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Many Americans seem convinced that the Apocalypse is upon us.  Remember Y2K? Remember Nostradamus?  Remember the Mayan calendar?

There have been dead-enders around as long as I can remember.  Usually, they were part of some wacko religious cult that had bet its future on the book of Revelation.  But, in recent years, the dead-enders have become mainstream, especially after the election of our first president of African-American heritage.

Fueled by Teapublicans and the right-wing media, we are constantly told to be afraid…be very afraid.  Unless we do as they say and accept their ideology, we will suffer the consequences of a failed, bankrupt state and, quite likely, the wrath of God.  (You know, the God who personally created America by taking land from the natives and giving it to God-fearing Christians.)

All of this is disturbing enough.  But our media seem to have bought into these fear tactics in the same way they bought into the Bush administration’s lies leading up to the invasion of Iraq.

As a result, we’re exposed to Teapublican and Christian evangelical fear-mongering at nearly every turn.  Fire-and-brimstone pastors preach fear from the pulpit and tell their flocks that they will go to hell if they support Democrats.  Hate mongers such as Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck and Mark Levin spew apocalyptic nonsense daily.  And the gun manufacturers’ lobby, otherwise known as the National Rifle Association, tells you that your neighbors are out to get you and your government is coming to take your guns.

To make matters worse, mainstream cable channels offer studies in paranoia such as Doomsday Preppers.  Even the movie studios have gotten into the act with a never-ending series of disaster movies.  And, in the most egregious example, the History Channel recently produced a TV series on the Bible, casting an Obama look-alike as Satan!

The clear message is that we will all perish and go to hell unless we all become right-wing Christian Teapublicans who bow to multinational corporations, turn our backs on the poor, ignore the rights of women, show intolerance to minorities, and worship at the altar of intolerance and greed.

Now that would be a REAL apocalypse!