Showing posts with label National Rifle Assn. (NRA). Show all posts
Showing posts with label National Rifle Assn. (NRA). Show all posts

Friday, November 18, 2022

Clips From Nasty Jack Buzz: Gun Violence

 

The night of Nov. 13, 2022, three people were shot and killed on the campus of the University of Virginia. Two others were injured. The three dead were football players. The shooter, Christopher Darnell Jones, is in custody. Yahoo!News says...

"A former student athlete accused of fatally shooting three University of Virginia football players was able to legally buy two guns after failing a background check last year and trying to get a handgun while underage four years ago, according to the gun shop that sold him the firearms."

And then only hours later, four University of Idaho students were found dead in an

off-campus house. CNN reports...

Moscow [Idaho] police said they are investigating the deaths as homicides, but did not provide any other information about what happened. As of midday Monday, no suspect was in custody. Anyone with information about the case has been asked to contact police.

Two gun violence murder scenes so close together, it was hard for the media to decide which to concentrate on. It is no doubt the Idaho killings that will receive the most focus until the shooter is caught. Authorities called it senseless killings but did not get into the basics that lead to this kind of brutality resulting in unlimited bloodshed. I looked at the Gun Violence Archive and this is the gun violence activity in only the last 72 hours. The list is almost endless with 10 pages.

The hard numbers are 39,005 gun violence deaths so far this year. There were 34,706 injuries from gun violence. Of these 285 children (age 0-11) were killed, 627 injured. Added to this teens (age 12-17), 1,194 dead, 3,354 injured. There are 390 million guns out on U.S. streets with a population of 329 million people. America rules the world as the Czar of guns and gun violence. This is not a reputation most citizens of this country want, but are comatose when it comes to action. 

I have selected a few posts done on gun violence, as follows:

This one actually came to pass in the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection of the U.S. Capitol"Gun violence bloodshed threatened if 2020 goes to Democrats." Here's an excerpt...

You would expect no less from Fox News and other conservative news outlets than to suggest gun violence bloodshed should the Democrats win big in 2020. It's looking likely that they will so these anarchistic terrorists are "threatening mass violence and a bloody people’s revolt in the streets."

And turning back to 2018, "American Medical Association asks for ban on assault weapons." It's about time the people who witness gun violence firsthand get in the act. Here's a startling clip...

The ban of assault weapons in the U.S. today should be a given based on the number of school children killed by one of these weapons in 2018 alone. Kids all over the country are expressing their fear of going to school because they are afraid they will be the next victim. Just a couple of years ago some youngsters were scared to face the school bully. That bully has now decided to arm himself and wipe out as many as 44 students.

Are COVID-19 deaths more relevant than gun deaths? Comparing gun deaths

to Covid deaths, I cite Donald Trump, then in the Oval Office, because of his reluctance to acknowledge the pandemic, as leading the American public into a state of apathy similar to the gun violence problem. Here's a selection from that post...
And here we go again says Charlie Warzel in the New York Times...

"The coronavirus scenario I can’t stop thinking about is the one where we simply get used to all the dying."

And therein rests the problem. The American public was tricked into indifference over the deaths from gun violence by Wayne LaPierre, the NRA head, and his minions. and once again when Donald Trump refused to address the coronavirus pandemic. Unfortunately both gun violence and the Covid virus continue to spread. 

Here are all my gun violence posts to read...

 


 

Tuesday, November 1, 2022

Gun Violence is here! Why are we still Debating About it?

 

The debate of whether to enact strict(er) gun laws should have ended years ago. It would have if not for National Rifle Assn. head, Wayne LaPierre, and his gun nut minions. ABC reports...
"There have been more than 500 mass shootings in the U.S. so far this year, according to a tracker from the Gun Violence Archive. Two of those shootings -- one at a grocery store in Buffalo, New York and the other at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas -- sparked nationwide outrage and debate about gun violence."

And we finally have a response from the state of Oregon where voters will consider a gun reform measure on the ballot this year. It's a start and, hopefully, other states will take notice after a year of unnecessary gun violence resulting in 37,018 deaths so far and 32,962 injuries. We've even had feedback from a "drugged" Congress in the passing of red flag laws, closing the "boyfriend loophole" and enhancing background checks for potential gun buyers under the age of 21.

Gun violence in America shows no sign of slowing after new spate of mass shootings...


Here's Rev. Mark Knutson, one Oregon's chief petitioners behind Measure 114 and chair of the group Lift Every Voice...
"It's been called the Oregon model," Knutson said, adding, "I think it'll give a lot of courage to state legislatures, if they can see a major victory come out of Oregon."

Gun control is not a priority issue today, which is unbelievable to me when you consider the above statistics. For the upcoming election the economy and abortion are on the top of the list. Issues we have to address but with minimum attention to gun violence, we can expect over 3,000 otherwise avoidable gun deaths each month. Think about it

Friday, March 11, 2022

Measuring Gun Violence a New Way...Same Innocent Deaths

 

A report by the scientific group, Trauma Surgery & Acute Care Open, reveals that "Firearms have cost 12.6 million years of life in just a decade," as reported by Erin Blakemore of the Washington Post. As a new and unique way of addressing this issue, it reflects on the problem of too many guns on the street; 390 million in a country of 329 million people. Since the number of weapons coincides with laws governing their use, here are the states with the least strict gun laws...
New Hampshire, South Carolina, Georgia, Louisiana, Maine, Texas, Montana, West Virginia, Alabama, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Alaska, Kansas, South Dakota, Arizona, Kentucky, Missouri, Idaho, Wyoming, and Mississippi.

There is also another site from the state of Arizona, where, by the way, it only takes a warm body to buy a gun, which documents the most "gun friendly state" for gun owners. AZDefenders lists Alaska (122.9) as number one and New York (10.7) as least friendly. 

If you are at all interested in gun violence, compare the above site with those states with the most gun violence based on gun deaths per capita...

  • Alaska - 24.4
  • Mississippi - 24.2
  • Wyoming - 22.3
  • New Mexico 22.3
  • Alabama - 22.2
  • Louisiana - 22.1
  • Missouri - 20.6
  • South Carolina - 19.9
  • Arkansas - 19.3
  • Montana - 19.3
It's also a regional thing...
"The researchers found stark regional differences in the trends, and point out that the South — the region with the highest number of registered firearms — has a higher level of gun-related suicide and homicide than the rest of the nation."

The gun nuts will tell you that the more armed Americans are, the less gun deaths there will be. Over the years this has been proved wrong and the Trauma Surgery & Acute Care Open group reports...

“the data reveal that the resulting access to firearms has equated to magnitudes of death due to firearm suicides in the same individuals demanding access to firearms.”

EXCELLENT:  Gun violence: An American epidemic?...


My blog has posted regularly over the years on gun violence with posts you can see here. Here are some excerpts...
'I am 89 and not once has there been the case where I have needed to carry a gun. Agreed, there are limited cases where this might be required; single females living alone as an example.'
'And there is one organization that is always in the forefront to prop up 
gun violence, at least until recently, the National Rifle Assn. and its head gun nut Wayne LaPierre. pushing constantly for more guns on the streets to please its gun manufacturing supporters. Well, someone has pulled the shade down and the NRA is going down the drain...where it should be. A recent report shows their legal troubles alone have cost the group $100 million. And it's getting worse.'
'Albert Bender is a journalist and Cherokee activist taking the position that you can blame guns for most problems that face Americans today. From slavery to Native Americans, it is a gun culture in the U.S. fostered by white Americans that has created the dilemma that we are in. Bender, as many others are beginning to do, is bringing the crisis with gun violence closer and closer to the health care system, particularly mental health. Mr. Bender takes aim at what he calls a “monolithic” weapons industry that is “opting for profit over humanity.”'

There's much more in this collection of the destruction done by guns in this country over the years with the conclusion that more guns cause more deaths and until the American gun culture understands this more innocent people will die. 

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Tuesday, July 6, 2021

The Case for the Second Amendment

 

This is the 2nd Amendment as given to us by the Founding Fathers...

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

 

Now, let's look at that. Is the "well regulated militia" a state national guard or is "State" meant to represent the U.S. and "militia" the military? This makes a big difference in the interpretation of this amendment. And, the national guard or military "being necessary to the security" of either sounds like we are talking about a group rather than an individual. Of course, all of the discussions and negotiations of the 2nd Amendment were taking place before its passing, December 15,1791.

But then we have, "the right of the people to keep and bear Arms," which could be plural, referring to a group of people. What I am getting at here is that the 2nd, as it is written, is far from clear if it represents groups or whether it could include individual gun ownership. Finally, "shall not be infringed" is relatively simple and means the amendment cannot be violated. But it is still to be established whether this 200+ year old measure asserts singleness or government control.

It must be acknowledged that a law that is 200 years old, plus written at a time when there was no established law enforcement--resulting in potential instances of self protection--could need a more modern interpretation. Additionally, the United States over the last few years has shifted to a gun culture designed and implemented by the NRA's Wayne LaPierre that produces maximum profits for gun manufacturers and lines LaPierre's pockets with millions of dollars?

You should understand that all of the above incidents occur in an environment here in


this country that is rocked daily by gun violence. According to the Gun Violence Archive, there have been almost 22,000 gun violence deaths in 2021, including 315 mass shootings. There are 390 million guns on America's streets with the current U.S. population 329 million. America comes in second in firearm-related gun deaths around the world with 37,200 annually; Brazil is number 1. 

But is there a case for the 2nd Amendment? I will leave you with the above facts and figures plus a number of sites, below, relating to guns starting with the mass killings in Colorado and Georgia, in March of this year, and ideas on how to stop all this mayhem...


Opinion | 6 Bold Ideas for Gun Reform That Could Actually Happen

 



Explainer: More guns than people: Why tighter U.S. firearms laws are unlikely







After repeated ATF warnings, gun dealers can count on the agency to back off; sometimes firearms flow to criminals





213 Mass Shootings Later, What Has Biden Done on Guns?




At least 22 people shot, 2 fatally, after assailants get out of an SUV and fire assault rifles at a club, police say




San Jose mayor proposes gun owners carry insurance, pay annual fee in wake of rail yard shooting




Gun deaths surge in Iowa ahead of loosened handgun restrictions



Yes, the 2nd Amendment had its place in its day, the days of 1791, but this is 2021, and that need is no longer viable. Gun violence has consumed America due to a gun culture fostered by the National Rifle Assn. and supported by a large array of gun nuts. The time has come for change.

Thursday, August 6, 2020

NRA should be dissolved


The New York Attorney General has been investigating the National Rifle Assn. and it head, Wayne LaPierre, for some time now. Some time back the NRA was accused of an insurance scam that alleges they acted "as an unlicensed insurance producer and engaging in misleading marketing practices." That was in February with the state seeking upwards of $14 million in civil fines. In the 18-month investigation it found the NRA is "fraught with fraud and abuse."

Here's what NPR reported...
"Attorney General Letitia James claims in a lawsuit filed Thursday that she found financial misconduct in the millions of dollars and that it contributed to a loss of more than $64 million over a three-year period.
The suit alleges that top NRA executives misused charitable funds for personal gain, awarded contracts to friends and family members, and provided contracts to former employees to ensure loyalty."
There's more...
"The NRA's influence has been so powerful that the organization went unchecked for decades while top executives funneled millions into their own pockets," James said in a statement. "The NRA is fraught with fraud and abuse, which is why, today, we seek to dissolve the NRA, because no organization is above the law."
 And back in September of 2019, it was also revealed by NPR that the NRA had...
"acted as a "foreign asset" for Russia in the period leading up to the 2016 election, according to a new investigation unveiled Friday by Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore."
A colossal example of how the NRA will accept support, including funding from anyone to further its goals. It seems that...
"the Senate Finance Committee's Democratic staff found that the NRA underwrote political access for Russian nationals Maria Butina and Alexander Torshin more than previously known — even though the two had declared their ties to the Kremlin."
Butina spent 15 months in prison and was then deported to Russia. The NRA has also spent time in Russia on a visit hosted by Maria including the gun group's board members and supporters. There was also concern over how the trip was financed. It is just another example of an organization gone bad, after having been created for hunters. The change from a peaceful body to one that promotes violence to attain its goals was orchestrated by NRA head, Wayne LaPierre.

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Thursday, February 6, 2020


It's official: New York will prosecute NRA for violating insurance laws, deceiving members

GP: Wayne LaPierre, chief executive officer of the National Rifle Association (NRA Inside The National Rifle Association Foundation Annual Meeting
Wayne LaPierre

New York state has been working on a case they have just filed against the National Rifle Assn. for "acting as an unlicensed insurance producer and deceiving its members with misleading marketing practices." NRA head, Wayne LaPierre and his gang of gun nuts have apparently screwed their membership by...
"having worked with insurance broker Lockton Companies to offer insurance products such as the NRA-branded “Carry Guard” to the group’s members without a license."
Lockton was fined $7 million by the New York regulator in May 2018 over its involvement with Carry Guard. The New York’s Department of Financial Services states...
"the NRA misrepresented to its members that the products were being sold at the lowest possible cost, when in
fact the group kept “substantial” royalties, sometimes exceeding 20% of premiums paid."
"The NRA sued the regulator and Governor Andrew Cuomo the same month, accusing them of illegally trying to pressure banks and insurers to stop doing business with it, in what it called 'blacklisting.'” And, a recent NRA lobbyist took a job at the US interior department in the Donald Trump administration in 2017, currying favor with LaPierre and the NRA. One can only hope this all puts Wayne LaPierre and the National Rifle Assn. where it belongs, out of business. 

Wednesday, January 29, 2020


Lobbyist to government job aids NRA agenda

Emails from NRA-affiliated interior department members show how the gun group has shaped federal land policy.

Benjamin Cassidy left the National Rifle Assn. for a job at the US interior department in the Donald Trump administration in 2017. It wasn't long before he called NRA head, Wayne LaPierre, and his minions to open the gates of the Interior to this organization. The Guardian has previously unreleased communications proving what...
"potent influence that industry lobbyists and conservative organizations enjoy at a government agency where many key leaders are former lobbyists and conservative activists themselves."
It's bad enough when it is just a Republican in Congress supporting the NRA, but when it is a government employee, from an agency like Interior, and who is a former NRA employee, there is no end to the damage that can be done. The Guardian reports...
"The NRA has made the most of this dynamic during the Trump presidency, leveraging its connections to shape policy outcomes and personnel decisions at the interior department."
And here is an excellent example...
"In 2017, for instance, Susan LaPierre, a prominent NRA member and the wife of NRA leader Wayne LaPierre, was appointed by the head of the interior department to the board of the National Parks Foundation, a congressionally chartered organization that supports park programs."
And the  interior secretary, David Bernhardt commented recently...
“Respecting our second amendment is fundamental to our constitutional republic. We’re expanding opportunities to enjoy hunting and recreational shooting on our wonderful public lands.”
There is nothing wrong with the Hunting and recreational shooting on public lands, but the narrative just illustrates how Bernhardt and the interior agency are dominated by the NRA. Like all government agencies under Donald Trump's administration. And here's something I have first-hand knowledge of...
"Target shooting in the Sonoran Desert national monument in Arizona is controversial – it has damaged archeological artifacts, destroyed saguaro cacti, and harmed other natural and cultural resources."
Target shooting in the Sonoran Desert national monument in Arizona is controversial.

I cannot tell you how many once-beautiful, age-old saguaro cacti I have seen on the side of the road that are dying because some dim-witted gun nut used it for target practice. Pathetic!   READ MORE...

Wednesday, October 2, 2019

LATEST: Gun violence/Gun control/Gun corruption


WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2019 NEWS BYTES

Gun violence must be stopped...   
NRA internal turmoil

Items have a tendency to pile up these days in the "to blog" file on Donald Trump's Ukraine call and subsequently the move to impeach him. You can't ignore it because of the intensity of the issue, and the importance of getting rid of the Oval Office lunatic. Just today Trump said, "I don't care," in reference to GOP concerns over protecting the whistleblower. There's more, Mike Pompeo is in a standoff with key House committees on trump Ukraine information.

But other news does go on and here's a wrap-up of what's happening in the Gun violence/Gun control/Gun corruption areas:

It's the 'If we could just get rid of them, gun violence would improve dramatically' organization, the National Rifle Assn. (NRA), along with its leader Wayne LaPierre. Here's the scenario...
"Its president was ousted. Its top lobbyist resigned over allegations that he engaged in an extortion scheme to kick out the chief executive, Wayne LaPierre. Its board members are resigning regularly, saying they’ve lost confidence in the group’s leadership. It’s spending more money than it’s taking in, and it’s in a brutal legal battle with its former ad agency. Oh, and its tax-exempt status is being investigated."
READ MORE...

Gabby Giffords on gun control...


And here in the wide open, 'if you are a warm body you can own and carry a gun' state of Arizona, the voting public has decided the gun laws aren't strict enough. But a gun nut legislature doesn't quite get it yet, so they plow ahead with the loosening of these gun laws that the public wants tightened. "Fifty-four percent of likely Arizona voters said the current laws in the state on the sale and ownership of guns are insufficiently strict, a 6-point rise from May."

Can you believe this?...
"Arizona is an open carry state, which means if you own a weapon you can carry it. You can also carry a concealed weapon with or without a permit.
Permits are issued by the state Department of Public Safety and involve a simple process.
You just go on our [state's] website and fill out an application. The concealed weapons unit will do a check of you and make sure you are not a prohibited. possessor."
By the way, assault weapons like the AK-47 are included in the above.

READ MORE...

Doctors are pissed-take on NRA...



And it would seem that the NRA spends more money in Texas because the gun nuts there really love their guns. But, Kim Olson, a Democrat running for a Republican seat, is trying to change that. Her passion for gun control reflects this quote, “weapons of war do not belong on the streets of America.” Here's what the author of the Washington Monthly piece said...
"One of the reasons I find Olson to be so impressive is that she reminds me of women from Texas that I have admired—like Barbara Jordan, Ann Richards, and Molly Ivins. While they didn’t serve in the military, they were warriors too. No one would have ever accused Jordan, Richards, or Ivins of mincing words. Whether you agreed with them or not, they stood their ground unapologetically."
And this is what is so sorely needed in the fight against gun violence. When you see a gun nut, call it a gun nut and let them know just where we stand on taking guns off the streets. The writer, Nancy LeTourneau, finishes with, "But one thing is for certain, Kim Olson is exactly the kind of Democrat that should scare Republicans—and the NRA." Amen!

READ MORE...

Now the NRA is charged with harboring a toxic sexual harasser who is the former favorite and chief of staff for head gun nut, Wayne LaPierre.  Josh Powell was so bad that...
Ackerman McQueen [the NRA's ad agy.] refused to work with him. According to a report, Powell was the subject of two harassment settlements at the nonprofit; the amount of money spent to keep these stories hidden is not known.
It would appear that the NRA is rotten from the core.

READ MORE...


To fix our gun crisis, we should revert to ’60s gun laws...

More NRA corruption: 
NRA board member and former president Marion Hammer obtained low-interest loan from affiliate she leads...

NRA choking...going down


WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2019 NEWS BYTES

The latest attack on gun violence...   
Assault weapons ban did work

Apparently the National Rifle Assn. (NRA) made a trip to Moscow that is a no-no for their non-profit status. If it did break the law governing nonprofit spending, the gang of gun nuts could lose its tax-exempt status. That could put the NRA out of business. And that could spark parades and flag waving throughout the country. David Love on Aljazeera says, "The tide is turning for gun control in the US."...
"In what would have been inconceivable just a few years ago, the ground is shifting in the United States on the issue of gun control and halting the proliferation of firearms. The once omnipotent gun lobby is now weakened, if not dying, and the public support for gun restrictions is increasing beyond party lines."
That combined with the NRA's internal problems from Oliver North to Maria Butina has prompted the investigation in a report...
"compiled by Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee and released on Friday, investigates the relationship between NRA leadership and Russian nationals with Kremlin ties. Those nationals include Maria Butina, a 30-year-old Russian who was convicted last year of conspiring to act as a foreign agent."
We can't let this happen...


In a 2015 trip to Russia by NRA officials, Butina promised an introduction to "powerful officials" and "those executives were told they would be given opportunities to advance personal business interests." The catch here is, "aside from the fact that the NRA is accused of willingly establishing relationships with Russian nationals with close ties with the Kremlin — is that tax-exempt nonprofits aren’t allowed to use their funds for personal gain."

There's more...
"New York Attorney General Letitia James also opened an investigation into the organization’s nonprofit status back in April following reports of financial mismanagement. The District of Columbia’s attorney general said his office launched a similar inquiry in July, sending subpoenas to the NRA and its charitable arms to collect 'financial records, payments to vendors, and payments to officers and directors.'”
House Democrats are cowards on assault weapons ban...


Aljazeera comments on American business CEOs concerned over out-of-control gun violence in the U.S....
"Other businesses have followed suit, as the chief executive officers of 145 companies wrote a letter to the US Senate, proclaiming the country is experiencing a public health crisis, and saying it is "simply unacceptable" to take no action on gun violence and mass shootings. The CEOs added that new laws mandating background checks for gun purchases 'are a common-sense solution with overwhelming public support and are a critical step toward stemming the gun violence epidemic in this country.'"
And to support the general consensus that more gun control is needed, a recent study has determined the former assault weapons ban was, in fact, effective. Here are the findings...
"The research from Stanford Law professor John Donohue and student Theodora Boulouta found that from 1994 to 2004, the Clinton-era federal assault weapons ban was associated with a marked decrease in mass shootings and victims of those shootings."
Here are the facts...
"in the decade preceding the assault weapons ban, there were 33 percent additional mass shootings and 65 percent more associated fatalities. Ten years after the ban expired in 2004, the number of mass shootings more than tripled and the number of fatalities spiked more than fourfold."
BINGO! But, then, facts don't seem to affect the votes of a cowardly Congress that has feared the NRA's wrath since head gun nut Wayne Lapierre took over. But that may all be changing as the new wave to curb gun violence begins to take hold. And when Senate challenger Mark Kelly (Gabby Giffords astronaut husband) running against Republican Martha McSally as a gun control advocate wins that seat, we'll have even more support in the Senate.

The course is clear, more reasonable gun control laws in 2020 as we get the guns off the streets.

Tuesday, September 10, 2019

Gun violence bloodshed threatened if 2020 goes to Democrats


TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2019 NEWS BYTES

Fox News suggests gun violence to stop new gun legislation  

Wayne LaPierre-Always there with more guns
You would expect no less from Fox News and other conservative news outlets than to suggest gun violence bloodshed should the Democrats win big in 2020. It's looking likely that they will so these anarchistic terrorists are "threatening mass violence and a bloody people’s revolt in the streets." Here's a sampling of right media delirium...
"If you take 'people’s guns away from them, there’s going to be a lot of violence,' The View’s Meghan McCain announced. 'What you are calling for is civil war,' warned Fox News’ Tucker Carlson. 'What you are calling for is an incitement to violence.'”
Of course, these are two of the most insane of the conservative Republican media wingnuts. And the nation's gun nuts still believe the...
"Second Amendment exists not for self-defense, or to protect the rights of hunters and gun enthusiasts, but to enable citizens to go to war with the U.S. government, and to fend off a 'tyrannical' turn at home."
And that is basically what Fox is espousing, suggesting a bloody revolution will be necessary to stop the Democrats. Here's the scenario...
“The core philosophy of the Three Percenter movement, whose adherents have engaged in violence, is that citizens would be justified in taking up arms to violently overthrow the government if the government enacted stronger gun regulations.”
The Daily show's Trevor Noah on Fox News and guns...


It all started with the Obama election when the radical gun nuts were convinced he was going to take away their guns. They were supported by the head gun nut, the National Rifle Assn.'s Wayne LaPierre. Following the Sandy Hook school massacre in Connecticut...
"Fox’s Todd Starnes warned there would 'a revolution' if the government tries to 'confiscate our guns,' while Fox News Pat Caddell claimed the country was in a 'pre-revolutionary condition,' and 'on the verge of an explosion.'”
AlterNet says, "The sinister, desperate threats of bloodshed come as the public opinion pendulum continues to swing away from the NRA and its radical gun defenders." And gun owners must now look forward to the possibility of a Democratic House, Senate, and White House where new gun laws are most likely. Of course, the most immediate benefit will be for the gun manufacturers since the gun nuts will be amassing to buy more firearms.

The latest massacre in Texas follows "a long list from that state alone." The Washington Post says...
"the [Texas] governor encourages people to buy more guns and a new set of laws now allow you to take your gun to church and prohibit landlords from banning guns in rental properties."
Elizabeth Warren talks about gun violence...


Now that's a move in the right direction if your intention is to encourage more gun violence in your state. Paul Waldman of the WP muses, "If we actually told the truth about guns"...
The first thing they’d [gun advocates] say: The rote response we give after every mass shooting is just playacting. President Trump will say, “We’re looking at a lot of different things. We’re looking at a lot of different bills, ideas, concepts,” but he’s not going to do anything. He’ll claim that he’s going to stand up to the National Rifle Association, but then he’ll cave. Republicans in Congress will make sure no bill offering even the mildest controls on gun ownership will pass, even if it’s supported by 93 percent of the public. We may offer up our “thoughts and prayers,” but our main thought is “Can’t we talk about something else?” and our prayer is that voters don’t decide to change the situation we’re in.
There's more but you get the idea. The gist of all this is the fact that the gun huggers aren't serious about anything that even slightly resembles the enactment of responsible gun laws...like universal background checks. They would rather listen to the evocative rantings of Fox News and its propaganda spouters. That's why we are in the situation we are, a nation where there are more guns than people. This is bound to catch up with us soon, and we'll be sorry.

Read more about gun violence from my blog.
  

Friday, September 6, 2019

Gun violence is Moscow Mitch's speciality


THURSDAY September 6, 2019: NASTY JACK BUZZ NEWS BYTES

Moscow Mitch McConnell behind U.S. gun violence...  

Moscow Mitch-Gun violence perpetrator 
Moscow Mitch McConnell, the sub-slimeball heading up the U.S. Senate won't even allow the consideration of any new gun legislation. Could that result from the $1.26 million in NRA contributions he has received? Moscow Mitch has been a lowlife for years since he said, "my number one priority is making sure president Obama’s a one-term president." He didn't, and Barack Obama could have been a three-term president and beat Donald Trump if not limited to two terms.

Now, recognize these names? Rodolfo Julio Arco, 57; Kameron Karltess Brown, 30; Raul Garcia, 35; Mary Granados, 29; Joseph Griffith, 40; Leilah Hernandez, 15; Edwin Peregrino, 25. They were the seven massacred by a shooter in the West Texas cities of Midland and Odessa. This is beginning to happen too regularly, says the Editorial board of the Washington post. The Board asks...
"What if there was a mass shooting in the United States not once or twice or four or six times monthly, but every single day, a big one, the kind that electrifies social media and squats for days on Page 1 — would that be enough to move Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell from his insistent inertia on gun safety? Would any volume of bloodshed convince the Kentucky Republican that Congress faces a moral imperative to act? Thirty-eight people were slain in three such shootings in August — in Dayton, Ohio, and El Paso, as well as West Texas — and still Senate Republicans and President Trump refuse to act."
Hundreds rally against Moscow Mitch stand on gun legislation...


It is sheer lunacy that one of the biggest newspapers in this country has to pose the above question. Moscow Mitch is complicit with other gun terrorists like Wayne LaPierre and his National Rifle Assn. (NRA), and must be dealt with quickly to save the lives of innocent Americans. In a surprise move recently, San Francisco's board of supervisors passed a resolution officially labeling the NRA a domestic terrorist organization. District 2 Supervisor Catherine Stefani said...
the NRA "spreads propaganda that misinforms and aims to deceive the public about the dangers of gun violence."
The Daily Beast says, "The NRA Can Be Beaten—and Here’s How It Will Happen"...
"I’ve come to think it’s possible to beat the NRA within maybe three or four election cycles. Doing so requires three elements. One, some anti-NRA Democrats beating some pro-gun Republicans in some high-profile races. Two, some Republicans turning against the NRA and living to tell the tale." [Synopsized] Three, NRA continued propaganda will alienate pro-gun rights Republicans, flipping them on the issue.
Michael Tomasky of The Daily beast Beast thinks this could take a few election cycles. Well, I disagree in that we can't wait that long for more mass shootings and hundreds more deaths. Somehow...we must make it happen soon. NOW!

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Hello Congress-Gun control-Remember?


August 28, 2019: PROGRESSIVE STREET NEWS BYTES...Where Liberals Walk

Republicans shirk gun control, thus, killing innocent people 

NRA/Gun worshippers
A vacuum is defined as a space in which there is no matter, and that is where the gun control movement stands today...in a vacuum. And we can thank Republicans for leading the battle against responsible gun laws. Innocent lives don't matter to these gun nuts, their weapons are sacrosanct over the killing of innocent Americans. Max Boot of The Washington Post asks, "What the hell is wrong with us?" He expounds...
"Less than a month after a white supremacist allegedly killed 51 people in Christchurch on March 15, New Zealand’s Parliament voted, 119 to 1, to make the possession of assault weapons illegal. Gun owners have until the end of September to turn in their weapons as part of a buyback program or face five years in prison. More than 10,000 firearms have already been turned in."
Let's do some math. New Zealand's population is 4,885,300, the U.S. 329 million, 66 times larger. If 10,000 guns were turned in in New Zealand, might we expect to get 660,000 guns off the streets of the U.S. And that's only a drop in the bucket of the 393 million guns spread out over this country. Not even sure if it would help and am very skeptical over America's gun huggers turning over their cherished weaponry. Max Boot continues...
"By contrast, at least 59 people have been killed in mass shootings this year (and more than 9,000 in other shootings, not counting suicides) and yet we are no closer to banning assault-style weapons. These were the weapons of choice of mass murderers in Newtown, Conn.; Aurora, Colo.; San Bernardino, Calif.; Sutherland Springs, Tex.; Las Vegas; Parkland, Fla.; Pittsburgh; Poway, Calif.; El Paso; and Dayton, Ohio."
Trump pulls the trigger in gun violence...


Although 70% of voters and 54 percent of Republicans support banning these weapons of war, T-rump claims there is no “political appetite” for such action. He wouldn't because the NRA's head gun nut wouldn't let him. But not all Republicans are for gun rights. "Suburban women in some swing House districts overwhelmingly want tighter gun laws," says Ella Nilsen of Vox. And the cry for background checks comes from 90% of U.S. citizens.

"Fox News host Steve Hilton is blasting National Rifle Association (NRA) CEO Wayne LaPierre, calling him "an odious little grifter" who needs to be shown the door," reports The Hill. Three board members and three top attorneys have recently resigned from the National Rifle Assn. (NRA). Not too long ago, Dick's Sporting Goods removed guns from all their stores and reports now their sales are climbing. Guns do kill and as we slowly get rid of them, the U.S, will be a better place to live in.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Republicans have already abandoned gun control


August 21, 2019: PROGRESSIVE STREET NEWS BYTES...Where Liberals Walk

What will it take to get reasonable gun control? How many more deaths? 

What is this sick fascination?
The proof is in the congressional attitude and that currently seems to correlate with Donald Trump after his telephone conversation with the NRA's head gun nut, Wayne LaPierre. We already have enough gun laws including those that are for background checks. Here's the scenario...
"Senate Homeland SecurityChairman Ron Johnson (R-Wi) is casting major doubt on the prospects of significant gun regulations passing this fall, the latest sign that the effort to pass new firearm laws is starting to falter."
No one thought this kind of mindset was possible after Sandy Hook, or Aurora, Colorado, or most recently the California Garlic Festival, El Paso or the Dayton gun massacres. It is only possible because a cowardly Congress supported by a cowardly American public refuse to do anything. That refusal is, of course, prompted by the fact that Washington is afraid of the NRA and the public either doesn't have the brains or just doesn't care about gun violence.

There's more...
"The Wisconsin Republican said that a background checks measure based on the bill written by Sens. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and a national "red flag" bill are both unlikely to pass. He was open to GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham’s bill that would establish a red flag grant program, but said the Senate would need to 'attach to those grants very strict guidelines in terms of due process.'”
And that makes it absolutely clear that the GOP is more concerned with the NRA and gun manufacturers than they are with the innocent children and adults who die from gun violence.  

NRA problems reported by Rachel Maddow...


The New York Times says, "Following his talks with the NRA chief executive Wayne LaPierre and gun-rights activists, President Donald Trump struck a different tone on gun regulations in the weeks after two mass shootings. And this was caused by...
"The NRA reportedly launched a campaign to contact lawmakers in the wake of the shootings on August 3 and 4 in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio. Both gunmen wielded assault-style rifles in the separate shootings, which killed 31 people."
Hey, these perpetrators of gun violence are supposed to be headed down the drain so who cares what the hell they say. Chuck Schumer said...
"We've seen this movie before: President Donald J. Trump, feeling public pressure in the immediate aftermath of a horrible shooting, talks about doing something meaningful to address gun violence, but inevitably, he backtracks in response to pressure from the NRA and the hard-right."
Donald Trump lies about action on background checks...


In other words, in order to get rid of gun violence we need to get rid of Donald Trump and Congress, something many Americans would agree with. Here's a headline: ‘I’m worried’: Allies fear NRA has lost its power in Washington." Anita Kumar and Gabby Orr of Politico report...
"The disarray at the NRA is alarming allies who say President Donald Trump and Congress appear to have a brief opening to pass legislation while the group is so politically feeble it isn’t able to aggressively lobby lawmakers against proposals or hold them accountable for their votes, according to a half-dozen Republicans familiar with the situation."
And finally an insider reports...
“There’s no coordinated effort. The staff feels like there is no plan. There’s not a lot of direction or a plan for how to proceed.”
If the wheels are coming off at the NRA, it can't happen soon enough.

Monday, August 19, 2019

What's for Christmas mommy? An assault rifle of course honey


August 19, 2019: PROGRESSIVE STREET NEWS BYTES...Where Liberals Walk

NRA lobbyist Marion Hammer is crazier than ever  

I thought I had heard the most bizarre comments already from the NRA's Florida lobbyist, Marion Hammer, but she proved she is still as crazy as NRA head, Wayne LaPierre with this question...
Wayne LaPierre
“How do you tell a 10-year-old little girl who got a Ruger 10/22 with a pink stock for her birthday that her rifle is an assault weapon and she has to turn it over to government or be arrested for felony possession?”
This is beyond belief that any responsible parent would give a ten-year-old child any gun, much less an assault rifle. This walking propagandist has spread more gun violence over Florida and the rest of the country than is possible to comprehend. Here are some actual facts from Hammer...
"Florida is the number five state in terms of gun production. And Hammer pressed that gun manufacturers are a $1 billion dollar industry with more than 700 firearms manufacturing license holders. In 2016, those smaller shops and large manufacturers produced more than 750,000 weapons."
NRA turmoil that could put it out of business...


 Don't know what would be best, get rid of Hammer, or just get rid of the state of Florida, which would eliminate the gun manufacturers as well. It's when you witness the idiocy of moron gun nuts like this that you realize the significance of gun control and why these gun rights maniacs fight it so hard. Hammer received a litany of Twitter activity telling her just how stupid she was for the comment, and the fact that she is lamenting the fate of the poor gun manufacturers.

What possible sane individual could give a crap about a company that is in the business of producing weapons of human destruction, particularly on young children? These lost lives also come at a large expense...
"Dr. Charles Tate, a Broward County radiologist, said Florida would save millions that way, citing that the 2016 Pulse shooting in Orlando costs about $390 million from medical costs, police, and expense to employers."
John Legend on Dayton gun violence...


Although this does not eclipse the innocent people that die from the use of these weapons, you have to look at the overall picture from a national basis. There have been at least 17 deadly mass shootings in the U.S. in 2019, 3 more that could have been. And there are numerous shooting deaths across the nation every day. Here's a headline from Quartz...
"It took more than 700 deaths over 20 years for Americans to finally dislike the NRA"
Further...
"It took at least 87 mass shootings and 725 fatalities, but for the first time in 19 years, American opinion has finally turned on the National. Rifle Association (NRA)."
And the polls support this...
"According to a poll by Fox News published Aug. 14, 47% of Americans hold an unfavorable view of the NRA, versus 42% who hold a favorable one."
With Wayne LaPierre and his NRA on the run in recent internal conflicts and fraud investigations, it is time to eliminate the major source of gun violence in this country. And then we can busy ourselves getting the millions of guns off the street.

Wednesday, August 14, 2019

Repeal of the 2nd Amendment is imminent


August 14, 2019: PROGRESSIVE STREET...Where liberals Walk

Let's get rid of the 2nd Amendment...NOW  
Time to dump the 2nd Amendment


Joel Mathis of The Week says it has in his commentary that starts simply, "Enough. No more. Stop." He refers, of course, to the Garlic Festival, El Paso and the Dayton gun massacres. And all those collective incidents in the past where innocent people have died because there are too damn many guns on the street in the U.S. 393 million guns for 326 million people. Absolutely preposterous for a nation with the best military and police forces in the world.

And don't give me the bullshit about protecting yourself from a tyrannical government. That doesn't fly anymore. After 87 years on this earth, I have never had the need to use a gun, except on Shore Patrol in the Navy. Mathis relates to the killings at the Garlic Festival and El Paso, each carried out by a white supremacist with rhetoric much too familiar with that we have heard from Donald Trump before and since his election.

El Paso shooter's anti-immigrant manifesto...


Just before T-rump took off for El Paso after the shooting, in the press pool he "did not repudiate the shooter's manifesto of anti-immigration hatred and instead agreed with it." A reporter asked, “You and the shooter in El Paso used that same language. Do you regret that?” Here is the reporter's reaction to Trump...
"Instead of denying there was any connection with the mass murderer's views or repudiate the reporter for asking that question in particular, Trump instead agreed with parts of the killer's crazed manifesto."
Completely amazed, the reporter commented further...
"This is crazy. We have a mass murderer who name dropped Trump in his manifesto and used Donald's vile rhetoric and views as a linchpin for his insane manifesto and what does Trump do? 
Trump cosigns it."
Ohio Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan was a favorite of the NRA, an "A" rating, until he realized from the Las Vegas massacre that the group would never change, and would continue putting as many guns on the street as possible. To reiterate, there are 393 million guns in the U.S. for 326 million people. These two figures themselves illustrate a gun culture completely out of control, with a further realization that nothing may ever be done about it.

NBC reports...
"The entire 2020 Democratic presidential field now supports basic gun safety policies such as universal background checks, “red flag” laws that allow law enforcement to temporarily confiscate guns from people deemed a threat, and banning assault weapons. On the stump, they all preach strident and urgent opposition to the NRA."
Wayne LaPierre causes NRA turmoil...


The NRA. It is and always has been the problem. With the turmoil it is currently going through, one can only hope that in a short period of time the head gun nut, Wayne LaPierre, and his minions will be a forgotten part of America's gun culture. Unfortunately, we will never be able to put the gun violence the NRA has given us out of our minds.



Guns don't kill, people do outdated and boring

August 14, 2019: Commentary on gun violence

393 million guns for 326 million people - Why guns kill  


Is this what gun rights people mean?
Makes as much sense, duh!
The time has come to look at America's gun culture and realize that we are a country of gun violence simply because of our gun laws which stem primarily from the Republican Party with the regular incitement of Wayne LaPierre and his National Rifle Assn. (NRA). We are a nation of gun nuts, defined as follows...
You are a gun nut if... 
You think assault weapons should be legal...
You object to universal background checks...
If you favor weapons straw purchases...
You oppose red flag gun laws
You think you should be able to carry your gun anywhere...
You are afraid of a national gun registry
There's more, but this is the essence of the gun rights movement that has been instilled in the minds of gun owners since Wayne LaPierre took over the NRA. The years outdated 2nd Amendment is sacrosanct, and no one must question its meaning or validity, according to these gun nuts. But 70% to 80% of NRA members want universal background checks, plus other changes, meaning the gun nuts are in the minority. They're just the ones with the loudest mouths.

NRA in turmoil...


Elie Mystal from The Nation says, "It’s Time to Repeal—and Replace—the Second Amendment," an article that no doubt makes LaPierre shudder to think anyone would attack his fabricated piece of outdated ideology. She says...
"The meaning of the amendment has been so badly mangled that our only choice is to start over with something that allows for real gun control."
Yes, and the mangled interpretations of the 2nd Amendment clearly come from the propaganda spewing of the National Rifle Assn. and its minions promoting gun violence. But lately NRA board members are dropping like flies with Julie Golob, a professional sport shooter and a strong public advocate for gun rights resigning before her tenure was up. The fourth member in the past two weeks to desert the sinking ship.

Three other board members, Esther Schneider of Texas, Sean Maloney of Ohio and Timothy Knight of Tennessee left when...
"they were stripped of their committee assignments after they asked questions about allegations of lavish spending by NRA chief executive Wayne LaPierre and other financial excesses."
Former SCOTUS Justice Stevens wanted to repeal 2nd Amendment...



Newsweek reports that the NRA's tax-exempt status is in danger as donors revolt with the most recent development the New York State Department of Financial Services investigation of "the NRA's now-defunct Carry Guard insurance product, which purported to insure gun owners when they kill another individual." The inquiry reportedly involves...
"kickbacks that the NRA is alleged to have received for facilitating the purchase of insurance policies. The NRA is not licensed to provide or market insurance policies and their involvement in the development of insurance services could run afoul of state law."
The NRA is in a shambles and most of it can likely be traced back to head gun nut, Wayne LaPierre. In a former post, I blogged former Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens made a push recently to repeal the 2nd Amendment, following the Parkland, Florida shooting massacre. Another recent post, Big time NRA donor, David Dell’Aquila, wants Wayne LaPierre dumped, calling him radioactive. Just now realizing Wayne LaPierre has been threatening for years.

Pathetic!

Friday, August 9, 2019

Donald Trump still inspires hate/white supremacy


August 9, 2019: Today's Commentary

Donald Trump responsible for El Paso/Dayton 


The shooter, Patrick Wood Crusius, age 21, with a legally purchased version of the AK-47, travels from Allen, Texas to El Paso and shoots 46 innocent people, killing 22 of them. He was targeting Mexicans because he felt they were invading America, the same rhetoric Donald Trump has used repeatedly to rouse his lowlife gang of followers. As if taking a page from T-rump's white supremacist book, he published a white nationalist, anti-immigrant manifesto on social media immediately before the attack. That was August 3.

El Paso shooting video...

Then we move on to Dayton, Ohio, just one day later, where another gunman shot 24 innocent people, killing 10, including his sister and a friend. He used a pistol configuration with a shortened barrel, chambered in .223 caliber ammunition and equipped with a 100-round drum magazine, a semi-automatic AM-15, based on the AR-15. The shooter was Connor Stephen Betts, a 24-year-old from Bellbrook, Ohio, wearing body armor. Apparently no political agenda, just hate and he liked killing people.

Dayton shooting video...

The El Paso shooter's mother called police with information that she was worried about her son's obsession with the AK-47 style weapon; they said it was legal and nothing they could do. Neither pursued the situation so it stopped there when the police should have asked more questions and the mother should have pushed on. Likewise, although the Dayton killer wasn't that political, he had retweeted posts that supported the Antifa movement and opposed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents and police officers. He was obviously violent.

And then after all the violent gun carnage, Senate head, the bottom-feeding Mitch McConnell, refuses to reconvene Congress to consider gun control measures that would have prevented this mayhem. Donald Trump expresses some support for gun control legislation but then gets a call from his buddy, Wayne LaPierre, at the National Rifle Assn. (NRA). Nothing happens, as it has been all the way back to Columbine, then Sandy Hook, to El Paso/Dayton and the numerous gun homicides and mass shootings in between.

McConnell says he will take action in September, but now that the Oval Office lunatic has been warned by the NRA, it is unlikely that we will see any real action. Until the people of this country finally come to their senses and rebel against the gun lobby, specifically the NRA, innocent children and adults will continue to die on a daily basis on the streets and in mass murders like those recently. The blame clearly goes on the Republican Party and its partner, the NRA.


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