Category Archives: Guns

Trayvon Martin Murder Shows Danger Of Carrying Handguns.

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No matter what happens to the “neighborhood watch captain” who gunned down an unarmed 17-year-old in Florida, two things are clear:  A promising young man’s life has been cut tragically short, and those who carry guns are all too inclined to use them.

Despite NRA claims, handguns in the hands of untrained citizens pose a greater danger to innocent people and to themselves than to violent criminals; a fact that is overwhelmingly supported by gun violence statistics.

In my opinion, there are two types of people who choose to carry handguns: 1 – Those who are seeking trouble.  2 – Those who have an irrational fear of others, particularly those who look different.  It appears the Florida shooter fits both categories.

George Zimmerman reported a “suspicious” person to 911.  But despite being told by the police dispatcher to avoid the young man, he followed Trayvon Martin with his gun drawn and he shot him.  We don’t know Mr. Zimmerman’s state of mind.  And we don’t know what led him to shoot.  But we do know that the shooting was unnecessary.  George Zimmerman could, and should, have kept his distance and allowed police to do their jobs.

So what now?

The best way to pay tribute to this young man is to do our best to ensure that others aren’t victimized by gun-toting Dirty Harry wannabes.  We can start by making sure that George Zimmerman is charged with murder (manslaughter at minimum).  Since 911 calls prove that Zimmerman pursued Martin, a claim of self-defense should not be an option.  Next, Florida’s law needs to be changed to require the shooter to prove that he shot in self-defense.  Not the other way around.  Ideally, we would also eliminate all handguns in the US.  Unfortunately, that genie is out of the bottle.  There are simply too many to destroy.  But we can discourage people from carrying handguns.  And we can require anyone who owns a handgun to obtain training and a license so that we can minimize the number of George Zimmerman’s on our streets.

Why should it be more difficult for someone to obtain a license to operate a car than to carry a handgun?

On Being Arizona.

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Arizona’s finger-wagging, scorpion-eating Governor and its Teapublican legislature continue to blame President Obama for federal policies they claim have nearly bankrupted the state.  They brag that the state has been able to weather the economic downturn only because of their firm, cost-cutting measures.

But based on their actions, it’s clearly untrue.  The Arizona legislature apparently has so much money that it feels comfortable throwing it away!

For example, by cutting corporate taxes 18 years in a row and approving millions in tax credits for private schools, the state has dramatically reduced revenue. At the same time, the legislature wants to force the state Board of Regents to spend more than $13 million on metal detectors and storage lockers to keep guns out of college classrooms should a misguided new gun bill be passed into law.

One legislator wants to spend more than $8 million on a special election to put a Teapublican version of redistricting maps before the voters because he doesn’t like the maps created by an Independent Redistricting Commission. The Teapublican legislature has already spent tens of thousands on legal fees in an unconstitutional attempt to remove the chair of the Independent Redistricting Commission. It has spent millions in legal fees to defend SB1070. It has spent tens of thousands for legal fees in an attempt to stop voter-approved medical marijuana. And it’s spending tens of thousands more to fight the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare).

And that’s just scratching the surface.

Despite a voter-approved 1 percent increase in the state sales tax intended to improve education, the Teapublican legislature refused to allocate the funds to public schools.  The legislature is treating the funds as a “surplus,” so it can further cut taxes for corporations and the wealthy.  As a result, teacher salaries are now so low that many automatically qualify for food stamps and Medicaid.  Some schools can no longer afford to perform routine building maintenance, to purchase replacement school buses, or even to buy textbooks.

Under Teapublican leadership, Arizona’s state capitol has been sold to private investors, thousands of children are being denied access to health insurance jeopardizing thousands of health care jobs throughout the state, and state parks have been closed or sold to local communities.

Instead of trying to correct these problems and improve the state’s moribund economy, Teapublicans have proposed bills that would permit hunters to use silencers and high-capacity magazines.  They’ve passed a bill allowing Bible study in public schools while banning Latino history courses.

They’re considering a new “birther” bill, an assortment of anti-union bills, a variety of anti-immigrant bills, and the usual anti-abortion bills.  And, in what appears to be the centerpiece of Teapublican legislative quackery, they’re pushing a bill that would allow employers to deny contraception for female employees unless the women can prove that the prescription is needed for medical reasons.  (I can see it now – female employees being asked to climb on their desks for a vaginal examination by their bosses.)

Of course, if many of these bills are signed into law, they will immediately be challenged in court.  As a result, the only people who are thriving in Arizona are the attorneys.

What Is NRA’s Endgame?

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For most of US history, the goal of civilized people was to reduce our reliance on guns to settle arguments. In many towns, guns were banned within city limits. In others, people were asked to check their guns with the marshall when they came to town. As a result, even in the so-called “Wild West,” there were fewer shootings than now.

Beginning in 1980, everything changed. That was the year the National Rifle Association first became involved in politics, backing NRA-member Ronald Reagan over Jimmy Carter for president. Since then, the NRA and its 4.3 million members have arguably become the most effective lobbying group in the US.

The group writes legislation with the clear intent of eliminating all gun laws. In 2004, it successfully fought renewal of the Federal Assault Weapons Ban and it has fought to eliminate gun restrictions ever since. 49 states now have NRA-backed “shall carry” laws that eliminate restrictions on concealed weapons. And in states like Arizona, a new round of NRA-created bills is wending its way through the wing nut-dominated legislature. There’s a bill to allow guns on college campuses, a bill to permit “hunters” to use silencers, and a bill to eliminate limits on the size of magazines.

High-capacity magazines? Silencers? Since animals don’t shoot back, what are the NRA members planning on hunting?

Based on Wayne’s Comment on the NRA website, it would seem that the organization’s most high-priority prey is President Barack Obama.

“We’ve been fighting for our Second Amendment rights since 1871, but never has there been a more critical time for our firearm freedoms. The danger is real, the stakes are immense, and the task won’t be easy. Together, however, I know NRA members will go “All In” this election season to deny Obama the opportunity to nominate any more anti-gun judges to the nation’s high court.” – Wayne LaPierre

The real question is where will all this nonsense end? There is no credible threat that anyone is planning on taking away our guns. In fact, gun ownership has expanded every year. Not surprisingly, so has gun violence. But the Second Amendment is not in jeopardy. So what does the NRA really want aside from silencers and high-capacity magazines? Fully automatic assault rifles for hunters? Sniper weapons? RPGs? Tanks? Where does it end? And if there is an end, will anyone survive?

Those are fair questions.

Guns Don’t Kill People. Gun Laws Do!

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There are more than 200 million guns in ciruclation in the US. More than 40 percent of households claim to have one or more guns in the home. And those numbers have grown dramatically ever since a man of African-American heritage was inaugurated as president.

According to statistics compiled by the CDC National Center for Injury Prevention and Control and calculated by the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, in a single year almost 100,000 Americans are shot or killed with a gun. Of those, 31,593 people die from gun violence, including the 12,179 who are murdered. Another 66,769 Americans survive gun injuries, including 44,466 who are shot in an attack. In one year, 18,223 Americans kill themselves with guns, and 3,031 more survive a suicide attempt with a gun.

Among 23 populous, high-income countries, 80% of all firearm deaths occur in the United States.

Obviously, we need more gun control. Not less. But hunters and gun collectors need not worry about common sense regulations for hunting rifles and shotguns. Gun violence statistics overwhelmingly apply to handguns.

For example, in 2005, 75% of the 10,100 firearm-involved homicides in the United States were committed using handguns. That compares to just 4% with rifles and 5% with shotguns. The remaining 16% were committed using an unspecified type of firearm. So it’s clear that merely limiting the sale and carry of handguns could greatly diminish gun violence in the US.

As for Teapublican and National Rifle Association (please note the word “rifle” in the name) claims that guns are needed to prevent crimes, statistics clearly expose those claims as fraudulent. According to the FBI, each year private citizens are responsible for approximately 200 legally justified self-defense homicides. An even more inconvenient statistic for handgun proponents is from a 2009 study which found that people in possession of a gun are 4.5 times more likely to be shot in an assault!

Guns are used to intimidate and threaten 4 to 6 times more often than they are used to thwart crime. They are 4 times more likely to be used in an unintentional shooting than for self-defense and 22 times more likely to be used in a suicide.

Further, it’s estimated that gun violence in the US costs $100 billion annually.  So limiting the sale and possession of handguns could even help lower our national debt!

Arizona: A Nice Place To Visit, But You Probably Don’t Want To Live Here.

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Aside from our scorpion-eating and finger-wagging governor, our racist anti-immigrant bills and our fear-mongering politicians, there are plenty of other reasons to avoid setting up residency in the Grand Canyon state. For example, as Arizona celebrates its centennial year as the 48th state, look at the people it has chosen to celebrate as part of its heritage.

The entire state pays tribute to the cowboy despite the fact that the term was once reserved for ruffians, rustlers and thieves. Arizona annually pays homage to Wyatt Earp despite the fact that the man was little more than a serial killer who was allowed to write his own history. And many of the Arizona’s most celebrated businessmen were mine owners who lived in luxury while their employees worked in dangerous conditions and were paid so little they could not break their dependance on the company store.

Okay, so the state has an inglorious history, you say. Things surely must be different today.  Not really.

Arizona is home to the Hell’s Angels’ Sonny Barger, founder of one of the world’s most dangerous gangs and largest criminal enterprises. Arizona is home to Joe Arpaio, the self-proclaimed toughest sheriff in America, who forces prisoners to eat the same meal twice a day, 365 days a year; the same man who misspent nearly $10 million of county funds, who failed to investigate hundreds of sexual attacks and who is, himself, under investigation by the US Department of Justice for civil rights violations.

Arizona’s legislature is actually proud of the fact that it invests less money per student than all but one other state. Arizona’s government is proud that it “saved” the state budget by further cutting funds for education and refusing Medicaid to as many as 250,000 poor children. Arizona is the state that proclaimed the Colt revolver as the state gun and rolled back gun control to pre-Tombstone era laws. The state that sold its own capitol building in order to continue cutting taxes for the wealthy and corporations. The state where starting salaries for public school teachers are so low they automatically qualify for food stamps and Medicaid.

So please come enjoy the natural beauty of our geography. Enjoy our hotels, resorts and restaurants. Enjoy our warm climate. Purchase lots of trinkets and souvenirs inflated by, in some cases, sales taxes in excess of ten percent. But don’t be tempted by home prices that have fallen over a cliff.

Unless you’re an angry, white, right-wing idealogue, you really won’t enjoy living here.

Road Rage, Arizona-Style.

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Road rage incidents have become commonplace in every state. But in Arizona, where guns are viewed as a fashion accessory, such incidents can be particularly deadly.

For example, two years ago, a worker operating a photo radar unit was shot and killed in a drive-by shooting by a driver who simply disliked the method of traffic enforcement. Although the reason for that incident was unique, there have been many other road rage shootings across the state that are just as senseless.

Most recently, a 59-year-old attorney in Scottsdale shot and killed a 50-year-old husband and father over an incident that allegedly began when the attorney sped up to make a green light and the victim inadvertantly blocked him.  That may not seem like a life-threatening action in most places. But in Arizona anything that displeases one of our gun-slinging Wyatt Earp wannabes is a shootin’ offense.

What followed the missed green light is unclear. But we do know that the two drivers ended up in a pharmacy parking lot. When the shooting victim approached the attorney’s car, the attorney shot him in the chest, fatally wounding him. 

Now we come to what sets our rootin’, tootin’ state apart.  The attorney was arrested for second-degree murder, but the charge has been dropped “pending further investigation.” You see, a few years ago, the Teapublican-dominated legislature passed a law giving cars the same “domain” status as homes. So anyone who feels that his or her car is in danger of being invaded can shoot without consequences. It’s a matter of “self-defense.”

Never mind that you can simply put the car in gear and drive away when threatened. Never mind that you could avoid the confrontation by not stopping in the first place. Never mind that you can drive to the nearest police station to assure your safety.

What’s the fun in that? After all, Arizonans not only like to carry guns. Many of our Second Amendment-citing citizens like to use them.

Teapublican Lie #21.

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“Teapublicans are pro-life.”

I guess it depends on whose life we’re talking about.

Yes, Teapublicans do protect the unborn by fighting all abortion, even if carrying the child to full-term endangers the health of the woman. But, after the child is born, as far as they’re concerned, it’s on its own. For example, Teapublicans have opposed or cut funding for stem cell research that could save lives, even if the stem cells are taken from umbilical cords after the birth of a child.

Teapublicans have opposed or cut funding for so-called “Welfare Moms” that would help to feed and house children. They have opposed funding for SCHIP, the federal program that provides healthcare to children of those living below the poverty line. They’ve opposed the extension of unemployment benefits forcing many families into homelessness. They’ve opposed programs such as Early Childhood Family Education. They’ve opposed sex education, which might result in fewer unwanted pregnancies and abortions. Indeed, they’ve opposed education in general, as evidenced by their draconian cuts to the funding of public education in virtually every “Red” state.

What Teapublicans do favor is easy access to guns which result in the homicides of more than 12,000 Americans annually. They also seem to favor war, such as the “blood for oil” wars in Iraq and Afghanistan which have killed tens of thousands of Iraqi and Afghan children, not to mention more than 4,600 US troops.

So even though Democrats favor a woman’s right to choose when it comes to her own body, tell me. Which is the true pro-life party?

A Fast And Furious Gunfight.

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Teapublicans, especially those in Arizona, have their tea bags in a knot over a botched 2009 sting operation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives code-named “Fast and Furious.”

The operation, which apparently began out of frustration with the courts’ failure to adequately convict and punish those who provide guns to the Mexican drug cartels, focused on a group of “straw buyers” who purchased more than 1,500 weapons from Phoenix-area gun dealers. According to records, dozens of AK-47 type weapons would be purchased at once. The buyers would often return a few days later to buy many more weapons from the same stores. Rather than bust the buyers, ATF agents were told by supervisors to let the guns “walk” in hopes of tracking them to those who were directing the gun buys on behalf of the cartels.

When two of the weapons were later found to have been involved in the death of US Border Patrol agent, Brian Terry, there was understandable outrage.

The Teapublican-controlled Congress seized upon the story in order to embarrass the Obama administration. Congressman Darrell Issa even called for the resignation of Attorney General Eric Holder.  Yet it was Teapublican interference and policies which created the environment that led to the operation.

B. Todd Jones, who has now assumed command of the bureau is the fifth “acting director” since 2006. Thanks to Teapublican obstructionism, the 5,000-employee ATF has not had a permanent director since it was spun off from the Treasury Department in 2006. All of the people nominated by the Bush and Obama administrations to regulate the $28 billion firearms industry have been opposed by the gun rights lobby, including veteran ATF agent, Andrew Traver, whose nomination has been stalled in the Senate Judiciary Committee for nearly a year.

Also, Arizona’s Teapublican-sponsored gun laws are at the very root of the weapons smuggling problem. The state’s laws, which were written by the National Rifle Association, permit any citizen who can pass a federal background check to walk into an Arizona gun shop and buy as many weapons as he or she wants. The laws are even more lax when it comes to the state’s many gun shows where there are no background checks.

Finally, the state’s laws provide little real punishment for the straw buyers. If they’re caught, they usually face charges of falsely stating that they purchased the guns for themselves, a punishment that hardly fits the crime.

Body Armor For Teachers.

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Now that Arizona and several other states are well on the way to permitting (nay demanding) guns in public places, including college campuses, it doesn’t take much imagination to see into the future.  All professors will be issued body armor along with the keys to their classrooms.  Lecterns will be outfitted with bulletproof glass. Grades will be based on who draws a gun first – the teacher or the student.  And graduating with honors will be determined by the caliber of the student’s sidearm.

What about the impact of firearms on the college social scene?  Will football games be followed by shootouts?  Will the NCAA include target-shooting as a varsity sport?  And what of dating?  Does “no” still mean “no” if the unwanted suitor is armed?If these laws would have been passed before the attack on Congresswoman Giffords, it’s likely that her attacker would have unloaded his 33-shot magazines on the Pima Community College campus.  After all, he spent weeks railing against the college and shooting videos.  Had the new gun law been in effect, he might have been encouraged to view his professors and students as targets.

What will it take for U.S. citizens to realize how dangerous the NRA-sponsored gun laws can be?  Where will it stop?  Will we eventually allow citizens to own artillery?  Tanks?  Nukes?  It’s entirely possible.  We seem to ignore the hundreds of gun deaths each year.  We decry the gun violence of Mexican drug cartels, but refuse to tighten laws governing the sale of guns at gun shows which allow the cartels to easily arm themselves.  Indeed, we have more regulations governing the operation of motor vehicles than guns.

What a country!

Arizona Leads U.S.

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It’s true.  The state of Arizona is leading the nation.  Just not in a good way.

For example, we have one of the nation’s worst economies.  Our schools, home prices, and poverty rank among the nation’s worst.  Our gun shows lead the nation in exporting weapons to the Mexican drug cartels.  And, based on the actions of our state legislature, we must have more non-institutionalized lunatics than any other state in the union.  (Of course, if said legislators have their way, we may not be part of the union much longer.)

To elaborate, just consider the bills currently pending in a legislature that is overwhelmingly dominated by Republicans:

SB1433 would set up a committee of 12 lawmakers (of course, they would be mostly Republican) to review federal laws and regulations to determine which are “outside the scope of the powers delegated by the people to the federal government in the U.S. Constitution.”  If passed, the legislation would directly challenge federal supremacy as written in Article 1, Sections 8 & 10 of said Constitution.

SB1308 and HB2562 would limit federal authority setting up interstate compacts to honor each others’ birth certificates segregating children who are considered U.S. citizens from those who are not.

SB1309 and HB2561 would redefine Arizona citizenship in defiance of the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

SB1328 would make it legal for Arizonans to defy any federal law or rule if federal employees or members of Congress do not have to comply.

SB1391 would create an interstate firearms freedoms act guaranteeing the right of citizens to bear arms free of federal regulation.

SB1393 declares that the state has the exclusive right to regulate carbon dioxide emissions within the state boundaries while SB1394 protects the right to emit carbon dioxide from human-caused activity.

SB 1545 would allow the production of nuclear fuel in Arizona free from federal regulation.  (It’s unknown if that also includes the production of nuclear weapons.)

SCR1016 would require the approval of the legislatures of half the states in order for Congress to increase the federal debt.

HB2077 requires any federal agency coming into an AZ county to first register with the county sheriff before conducting official business.

HB2471 would bar the appropriation of any state funds to comply with a federal mandate unless the federal government provides a report to show the mandate is constitutional.

HB2472 would allow the state to acquire federal property by eminent domain unless the federal government first receives permission of the state legislature.

HB2537 permits the AZ house speaker and senate president to defend last year’s SB1070 immigration law by lawsuit if necessary.

HB2544 requires U.S. presidential candidates to provide certain proof of citizenship before they can appear on the ballot in Arizona.

HCR2015 calls for a constitutional convention to adopt an amendment to require the consent of three-fourths of the states to increase federal debt.

HCR2022 proposes a constitutional convention to require a balanced federal budget.

On top of all this, the state attorney general has just announced that he is suing the federal government for not defending the border against illegal immigrants and drug smugglers.  (I guess more than 10 border agents per mile doesn’t qualify as a defense.)  Amazingly, it seems that Arizona Republicans are more interested in attacking the U.S. government than dealing with the very real problems in our own state!  Can’t you just picture Nero fiddling while Rome is burning?