Guns Again, Again

We are all very well aware of the children's crusade in support of "ending gun violence". Is there any sane person who would prefer the perpetuation of gun violence? I know, but they can be forgiven for failing to see the obvious. They are, after all, children who by definition know very little about anything. Which explains why we call them "children" not "adults".

The gun control advocates, adults who are enabling and using them, are not so blameless.

Typical among the signs these poor kids are being told to carry is the evergreen "Ban Assault Rifles". There is no weapon that is so described by weapons manufacturers.

It is almost impossible for a US resident to buy a firearm of any description that fires more than one bullet per trigger pull.

"When silly people like Seth MacFarlane and Susan Sarandon say they want to ban “automatic weapons,” what they mean is that they want to ban guns that look scary. They don’t understand that you can’t walk into a gun store and walk out with a military-style assault weapon (one that can fire multiple rounds with a single trigger pull). That’s because 1) most gun dealers don’t carry the military version of the scary looking gun, 2) you have to jump through an obscene number of hoops with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to even obtain a tax stamp that says you may purchase such a weapon (a process that takes months, if not years), and 3) the actual versions of rifles used by the military are really expensive and unaffordable for the vast majority of prospective gun owners.

What you can buy from your local gun dealer, after that licensed gun dealer has confirmed that you passed a federal background check (yep, that’s required by existing law), is a semi-automatic rifle. And now, a bunch of gun controllers who don’t understand the slightest thing about guns have decided that rifle needs to be banned. Not because it’s more deadly than a typical hunting rifle (it’s absolutely not), but because it looks scarier."

In 1994 Bill, Clinton signed into law a federal "assault weapons ban".

"...The 1994 assault weapons law banned semi-automatic rifles only if they had any two of the following five features in addition to a detachable magazine: a collapsible stock, a pistol grip, a bayonet mount, a flash suppressor, or a grenade launcher."

All of the items listed are cosmetic. They do not alter the operation of the device. They don't make it shoot any more than one bullet per trigger pull which is the only metric by which a semi-automatic gun becomes more destructive than it already is. Try getting your hands on a grenade to mount on the launcher. No, gun dealers do not sell those either.

There is a device called a "bump stock" which allows for much more rapid fire of a semi-automatic (one bullet per trigger pull) rifle. The Las Vegas shooter is said to have used these devices to increase his rate of fire and destruction. President Trump has called for their banning and I see no reason to disapprove of that position. Unlike the list of items referred to above, this one actually does make a rifle more destructive and does not appear to serve any useful purpose.

17 people really did die as a result of a gunman's attack in Florida last month. A tragedy of impressive proportion even though no bump stock was used. Examination and evaluation are required by any responsible society in the face of such carnage.

In order that useful conclusions are reached the examination and evaluation of policies which made this disaster possible must be conducted in good faith and those participating must have some understanding of what they are talking about.

Such good faith and knowledge are in extremely short supply among the advocates of more anti-gun laws.

For example.

As I wrote in my previous post, that tragedy was completely preventable. Every single adult with responsibility for the shooter and those murdered failed completely, for years in many cases. There are no gun laws that will fix this.

The only fix is to refuse to be side tracked into a discussion  of just how much we should deprive law abiding Americans of their 2nd Amendment rights and demand that the people responsible for promoting the culture in which this shooter and so many like him evolved are held accountable. That might prompt others pursuing similarly stupid policies with respect to school discipline and gun free zones to re-think their positions.

As we are only too aware the Florida shooter was spared from responsibility for many of his previous transgressions by the Obama administration's "guidance" on discipline.

Note how this absurdity begins,

"The Office for Civil Rights together with the Dept of Justice released a Dear Colleague letter on January 8, 2014 on (sic) to help schools administer school discipline without discriminating on the basis of race, color or national origin."

So now we are to believe that teachers and school administrators, among the most liberal people in the country, are racists. Right. Here is a link to the causes their union, NEA, supports. Obviously a bunch of racist rednecks.

The "guidance" produced by Obama's department of Justice  had a single goal. Force schools to stop disciplining minority students, consequences be damned.

Well now you have your consequences and somehow I am to blame for that lunatic..

I am not his parent, his teacher, his social worker, the local cops who failed to arrest him, the FBI agents who failed to act on information they received or the idiot who suggested that it is racist to discipline students or the even bigger idiots who bought into such nonsense.

I will  not be shamed into accepting the narrative that guns are the real problem here. You shouldn't either.They are not.

You have heard no doubt of a term made popular recently; Intersectionality.

Here is a great example of it. We find ourselves at the intersection of mind-numbingly stupid politically correct policy choices and the carnage their pursuit predictably produces.

It really is not that complicated after all. Too bad 17 people had to die to prove it.

Guns Again

As we have all observed the election of  Donald Trump has exposed the media and the left in general for who and what they really are.

The mask has been removed. They think we are evil and, for the most part, no longer attempt to hide their contempt for us. That is a very, very good thing.

The Parkland massacre has also been a liberating event for them. Anyone who is a 2nd amendment supporter is now a killer with blood dripping from their souls.

It is no great surprise that, once again, they insist against all of the evidence, very, very loudly, that our gun control laws are lax or non-existent and that the only solution to the problem of lunatics getting their hands on guns is to deprive law abiding citizens of their 2nd amendment rights.

An excellent summation of the situation is provided by Branco, via Steven Hayward,
   



Being big government enthusiasts the left is not able to blame those responsible for the complete failure of the elaborate gun control regime and maintain any credibility. Every single government agency, schools, police, social services and the FBI, involved in the shooter's life failed completely and spectacularly. As I have written before, this sad state of affairs is the norm, not an aberration.

The situation is much worse than it appears. Via Instapundit, we have this, incomprehensible to ordinary people, outcome in a "straw purchaser" and illegal resale of  multiple guns prosecution.

"A Chicago-area woman arrested last year for her role in illegally selling guns to prohibited buyers, some with gang affiliations, was sentenced to probation and community service last week."

So, not only are the police, school administrations and FBI apparently disastrously indifferent to our safety, in  the occasional event that the authorities actually arrest someone for breaking our supposedly non-existent gun control laws, there is no meaningful punishment for the offender.

The cognitive dissonance is deafening.

Obviously more laws that we will enforce occasionally at no real detriment to the criminals involved will ameliorate the problem. Good luck with that.

Several corporations which have offered discount programs to NRA members for years have discontinued the programs in the face of SJW social media attacks encouraging boycotts of anyone and anything connected to the NRA. Some retailers have announced changes to the guns they will sell and to whom they will sell them in service to the same SJW's. A very bad business model in both cases. The SJW's are never satisfied.

I will no longer rent cars from National. I have been renting from them exclusively for a very long time. I unsubscribed from Dick's Sporting Goods email list.

Yesterday I joined the NRA. I don't own any guns. Yet.

Massacres and the Government

I have written before about reliance on government for your safety and the safety of those you love.

"The real problem stems from one word in the sentence above beginning with "Let's". That word is government.

The latest shooter was a convicted felon who bought his weapons from a licensed fire arms dealer who received the all clear from the government. There is that word again.

The arm of the government that convicted the shooter of multiple felonies failed to post those convictions in the government data base.

I have another "sensible step" to suggest. Do not ever assume that the government will get anything right. Look after yourself and those you love. As the saying goes, when seconds count the police are only minutes away."

As you know, another lunatic went nuts a few days ago. Another lunatic whose bizarre behavior foreshadowed his killing spree. Another lunatic who was known to the authorities. Even the FBI. Nothing was done, other than warning the FBI, and 17 people were massacred.

The usual braying about gun control is swamping the media. It is a useless reflex.

How many of these lunatics have walked into a police station and opened fire? None.

How many of them have walked into a "gun free zone" and opened fire? All of them.

A few years ago an Islamic nut fired into a Navy recruiting office. Correct, another gun free zone.

  "We realized it was an actual shooting, so we then initiated our active-shooter drill: getting down low to the ground, moving to a safe location. And we waited until everything seemed to be clear.”

Several years ago a US Army Major went on a shooting spree in an army processing center. You guessed correctly. Gun free zone.

" According to testimony from witnesses, Hasan passed up several opportunities to shoot civilians, and instead targeted soldiers in uniform,^[25] who – in accordance with military policy – were not carrying personal firearms." (Emphasis added)

I do not know the provenance of the rules that prevent members of our Armed Forces from being Armed. I do know they appear to be ridiculous and occasionally deadly.


You do see the real problem here I am sure. It is well-intentioned but incredibly, predictably, stupid policies promoted by people who so abhor human nature that they pretend it does not exist and legislate accordingly.

The crazy people who carry out these awful crimes are crazy, not stupid. They do not choose venues for their mayhem that might result in them being disarmed or killed quickly. They follow the path of least resistance. A very common human trait.

Be prepared to defend yourself. Our various governments have failed miserably at doing the most basic job the Constitution   assigned to them.

"...insure domestic Tranquility..."

Gun Control

As everyone but the dead knows, the Muslim Orlando Massacre has made a lot of news.

As the left fulminates and plays hide the bean, professing to be confused about the registered Democrat Muslim murderer's motives, the usual dishonest gun control debates are front and center again.

The 2nd amendment gives us the right to own guns for the primary purpose of defending ourselves from the government.

The amendment was enacted in 1791. At that time, except for cannons and explosives, guns used by the military and police were, as far as I can tell, the same as those owned by citizens. One could argue that at that time gun ownership was an effective method of defense against governmental tyranny.

In 2016 (and long before) we are no longer effectively armed to defend ourselves from the government. Despite hysterical and disingenuous arguments to the contrary, it is already illegal for citizens to own automatic weapons. We can only own single shot weapons. That is not the case for our federal agencies.
http://www.nationalreview.com/article/376053/united-states-swat-john-fund

While armed to the teeth federal agencies are a problem they are not, in my opinion, the primary problem with respect to defending ourselves against a tyrannical government.

This is http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/09/us/war-gear-flows-to-police-departments.html 

It is impossible for citizens to defend against even local governments now.

We have already been effectively disarmed and have been for quite some time.

As I said in my previous post, "Good luck to all of us".