The Messiah's own executively-ordered CDC study on gun violence proves that the incidence of lawful defensive gun uses by Americans at the very least equals the incidence of gun crimes committed by criminals, and most likely exceeds it:
"Almost all national survey estimates indicate that defensive gun uses by victims are at least as common as offensive uses by criminals, with estimates of annual uses ranging from about 500,000 to more than 3 million per year (Kleck, 2001a)." (Emphasis ours)
There you go. Scientific proof that guns in the hands of law-abiding citizens for self-protection equals or betters the rate of their being used in crimes. Where, then, is the urgent need to further restrict their availability to those who responsibly use them?
Not that the general media reported this, as they pretty much are only in favor of scientific evidence when it helps advance their agenda, which of course is not how science works. If they had paid attention in high school they would have remembered that fact.
Showing posts with label gun control. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gun control. Show all posts
Saturday, August 24, 2013
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Hush, child. Your bottle is warming
A quick response to the Messiah's pathetic mewling in the Rose Garden earlier today:
"By now, it’s well known that 90 percent of the American people support universal background checks"
Says who? Please cite where you discovered such magical fairy-dusted numbers, sir. If anywhere close to 90 percent had truly supported that legislation it would have passed in a slam-dunk. It didn't, of course, which leads us to conclude that you in fact are the one stretching the truth here.
"We’re talking about convicted felons, people convicted of domestic violence, people with a severe mental illness"
Persons who are already prohibited from buying a firearm from anyone anywhere at any time. So you're proposing to make it doubly or triply illegal?
"But instead of supporting this compromise, the gun lobby and its allies willfully lied about the bill. They claimed that it would create some sort of “big brother” gun registry, even though the bill did the opposite."
Universal background checks by definition would create a de facto gun registry that no doubt would be used to locate and attempt to confiscate firearms at some future date. As to the ban on creating an official registry, it's true that one was in the legislation, but the one word "notwithstanding" in the bill basically negates the language and allows the Attorney General to do just that.
"There were no coherent arguments as to why we wouldn’t do this."
There were many, sir. You just dismissed them as you do any viewpoints that differ from your collectivist worldview.
"But if action by Congress could have saved one person, one child"
So we take it you're in favor of any action that saves lives, up to and including waterboarding, then?
"I’ve heard folks say that having the families of victims lobby for this legislation was somehow misplaced. "A prop," somebody called them. “Emotional blackmail,” some outlet said. Are they serious?"
Yes indeed. The same people you've been carting around on Air Force One, parading up in the Senate gallery and pimping out on sycophantic news programs? This is a textbook definition of employing the transfer technique, and you should be ashamed of yourself for dancing in their children's blood to advance your political agenda.
"And I see this as just round one"
Bring it on.
"By now, it’s well known that 90 percent of the American people support universal background checks"
Says who? Please cite where you discovered such magical fairy-dusted numbers, sir. If anywhere close to 90 percent had truly supported that legislation it would have passed in a slam-dunk. It didn't, of course, which leads us to conclude that you in fact are the one stretching the truth here.
"We’re talking about convicted felons, people convicted of domestic violence, people with a severe mental illness"
Persons who are already prohibited from buying a firearm from anyone anywhere at any time. So you're proposing to make it doubly or triply illegal?
"But instead of supporting this compromise, the gun lobby and its allies willfully lied about the bill. They claimed that it would create some sort of “big brother” gun registry, even though the bill did the opposite."
Universal background checks by definition would create a de facto gun registry that no doubt would be used to locate and attempt to confiscate firearms at some future date. As to the ban on creating an official registry, it's true that one was in the legislation, but the one word "notwithstanding" in the bill basically negates the language and allows the Attorney General to do just that.
"There were no coherent arguments as to why we wouldn’t do this."
There were many, sir. You just dismissed them as you do any viewpoints that differ from your collectivist worldview.
"But if action by Congress could have saved one person, one child"
So we take it you're in favor of any action that saves lives, up to and including waterboarding, then?
"I’ve heard folks say that having the families of victims lobby for this legislation was somehow misplaced. "A prop," somebody called them. “Emotional blackmail,” some outlet said. Are they serious?"
Yes indeed. The same people you've been carting around on Air Force One, parading up in the Senate gallery and pimping out on sycophantic news programs? This is a textbook definition of employing the transfer technique, and you should be ashamed of yourself for dancing in their children's blood to advance your political agenda.
"And I see this as just round one"
Bring it on.
Thursday, August 16, 2012
Why I Carry a Handgun for Protection, Vol. 61
So that when six 13 and 14-year old feral youth happen to target us for attack simply because the thugs were "bored and looking for something to do" we will be able to successfully defend ourselves, unlike what happened to North Cottage Hill, Ohio resident Pat Mahaney last Saturday.
Mahaney was stomped into unconsciousness by the teens was only saved from a worse fate by an alert neighbor who quickly called police. He spent four days in the hospital with internal injuries. The feral youth apparently don't feel the least bit bad about their actions, either:
"'They were pretty arrogant in the interview with us,' [Police Chief Gary] Foust said. 'It’s appalling. I think it’s despicable. This appears to be premeditated and there was no remorse on behalf of any of the assailants.'"
Foust also maintains that there was no racial component to the case despite all the assailants being black and the victim white. One can only wonder if he would be so quickly and publicly dismissive of that motive had the opposite been true.
Regardless, if Mr. Mahaney had been equipped and prepared to repel the assault he might be in a far less painful state today.
Mahaney was stomped into unconsciousness by the teens was only saved from a worse fate by an alert neighbor who quickly called police. He spent four days in the hospital with internal injuries. The feral youth apparently don't feel the least bit bad about their actions, either:
"'They were pretty arrogant in the interview with us,' [Police Chief Gary] Foust said. 'It’s appalling. I think it’s despicable. This appears to be premeditated and there was no remorse on behalf of any of the assailants.'"
Foust also maintains that there was no racial component to the case despite all the assailants being black and the victim white. One can only wonder if he would be so quickly and publicly dismissive of that motive had the opposite been true.
Regardless, if Mr. Mahaney had been equipped and prepared to repel the assault he might be in a far less painful state today.
Sunday, August 05, 2012
Another happy ending
Five armed thugs got the shock of their lives while attempting to rob Continental Jewelry in Garden Grove, California last week when the 65-year-old female business owner pulled out her own handgun and opened fire on the invaders:
The segment at :35 when the cowardly hoods smash into each other, Three Stooges-like, as they frantically try to exit the store all at once is particularly enjoyable. The bottom-feeders were so panicked that they actually left three of their crew behind when they drove off. Police are still searching for the suspects, but we imagine they won't be back to that part of town anytime soon.
Once again, just as we saw in Florida the other week, a legally possessed and justifiably used firearm allowed an elderly citizen to successfully defend themselves against a superior number of armed attackers. The Brady Campaign and Violence Policy Center would have you believe these sorts of incidents are rarer than unicorn farts.
Don't buy it.
The segment at :35 when the cowardly hoods smash into each other, Three Stooges-like, as they frantically try to exit the store all at once is particularly enjoyable. The bottom-feeders were so panicked that they actually left three of their crew behind when they drove off. Police are still searching for the suspects, but we imagine they won't be back to that part of town anytime soon.
Once again, just as we saw in Florida the other week, a legally possessed and justifiably used firearm allowed an elderly citizen to successfully defend themselves against a superior number of armed attackers. The Brady Campaign and Violence Policy Center would have you believe these sorts of incidents are rarer than unicorn farts.
Don't buy it.
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Why I Carry a Handgun for Protection, Vol. 60
So that if a disturbed individual happens to purchase a knife at a grocery store and then begins randomly stabbing multiple people with it we will be able to intervene and protect those victims, just like a legally armed Good Samaritan did last Thursday evening in Salt Lake City, Utah:
"Then, before the suspect could find another victim - a citizen with a gun stopped the madness. 'A guy pulled gun on him and told him to drop his weapon or he would shoot him. So, he dropped his weapon and the people from Smith's grabbed him.'"
Armed citizens can and really do regularly make a vital difference in these sorts of situations, despite the evermore-ludicrous claims to the contrary from groups such as the Brady Campaign and the Violence Policy Center. Even the local police agree that the citizen did exactly the right thing:
"By the time officers arrived the suspect had been subdued by employees and shoppers. Police had high praise for gun carrying man who ended the hysteria. Lt. Brian Purvis said, 'This was a volatile situation that could have gotten worse. We can only assume from what we saw it could have gotten worse. He [the permit holder] was definitely in the right place at the right time.'"
Congratulations and thanks are due to that brave individual for putting his personal safety on the line to protect innocent people from mortal danger, and to the police for recognizing and appreciating that effort.
"Then, before the suspect could find another victim - a citizen with a gun stopped the madness. 'A guy pulled gun on him and told him to drop his weapon or he would shoot him. So, he dropped his weapon and the people from Smith's grabbed him.'"
Armed citizens can and really do regularly make a vital difference in these sorts of situations, despite the evermore-ludicrous claims to the contrary from groups such as the Brady Campaign and the Violence Policy Center. Even the local police agree that the citizen did exactly the right thing:
"By the time officers arrived the suspect had been subdued by employees and shoppers. Police had high praise for gun carrying man who ended the hysteria. Lt. Brian Purvis said, 'This was a volatile situation that could have gotten worse. We can only assume from what we saw it could have gotten worse. He [the permit holder] was definitely in the right place at the right time.'"
Congratulations and thanks are due to that brave individual for putting his personal safety on the line to protect innocent people from mortal danger, and to the police for recognizing and appreciating that effort.
Monday, July 23, 2012
Bans don't work
Gun crimes in the supposedly "gun free" paradises of England and Wales, which have a total ban on firearms, are up an astounding 89% since the liberal Labour party there regained power in 1998 in part on their plaintive promises to "do something" in the wake of the Dunblane tragedy.
Yeah, let's copy that plan.
(Link via Unc)
Yeah, let's copy that plan.
(Link via Unc)
Sunday, July 22, 2012
Reduced to placing the jackboots on their own employees' necks
From all published accounts the information obtained from conscientious ATF employees has provided a valuable and devastating indictment of the extent of that agency's involvement in the "Fast and Furious" debacle, in which thousands of firearms were allowed to pass into Mexico over the objections of both law-abiding gun stores and those same rational ATF agents. ultimately causing the deaths of countless Mexican citizens as well as two American law-enforcement officers. The complete story is detailed beginning here for those who need to catch up on the facts of the case.
Well, the top brass at that odious department, true to their jack-booted nature, have apparently decided to try to put a stop to such inconvenient whistleblowing. Acting ATF Director B. Todd Jones on July 9 released a video message to all ATF employees, warning them in part that "Choices and consequences means simply that if you make poor choices, that if you don't abide by the rules, that if you don't respect the chain of command, if you don't find the appropriate way to raise your concerns to your leadership, there will be consequences, because we cannot tolerate -- we cannot tolerate -- an undisciplined organization,".
Well, Mr. Jones, the American public cannot "tolerate" an "undisciplined" and rogue government organization that deliberately breaks its own country's laws as well as those of a neighboring country, directly causing the deaths of at least hundreds of innocent people, and then shamelessly tries to cover up its illegal actions by refusing to respond to a legitimate Congressional subpoena seeking to investigate those activities. Make sure and address that simple concept in your next propaganda video, sir.
What Jones also conveniently forgets is that ATF agents and even some Justice department lawyers did indeed attempt on multiple occasions to address their concerns with their superiors, only to have their "complaints dismissed or ignored". Thus, they were forced to go to bloggers David Codrea and Mike Vanderboegh as well as members of Congress to get the story out once it became clear that Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry had been shot and killed with one of the thousands of firearms that the ATF had incompetently "lost".
Congressman Darrell Issa and Senator Charles Grassley have warned Jones in no uncertain terms that intimidation of legitimate whistleblowing activities will not be tolerated. The ATF responded thusly:
"ATF spokeswoman Ginger Colbrun, though, said the video clip was 'taken out of context.'
She said the message was one of eight internal videos released since March that address topics ranging from "trust" to "mission" to "morale."
This one dealt with "choices and consequences," but she said it wasn't meant to "discourage" legally protected activities."
The ATF and Justice Department brass in both Arizona and Washington made the deliberate "choice" to break the law. It's past time they received some "consequences" of their own.
Well, the top brass at that odious department, true to their jack-booted nature, have apparently decided to try to put a stop to such inconvenient whistleblowing. Acting ATF Director B. Todd Jones on July 9 released a video message to all ATF employees, warning them in part that "Choices and consequences means simply that if you make poor choices, that if you don't abide by the rules, that if you don't respect the chain of command, if you don't find the appropriate way to raise your concerns to your leadership, there will be consequences, because we cannot tolerate -- we cannot tolerate -- an undisciplined organization,".
Well, Mr. Jones, the American public cannot "tolerate" an "undisciplined" and rogue government organization that deliberately breaks its own country's laws as well as those of a neighboring country, directly causing the deaths of at least hundreds of innocent people, and then shamelessly tries to cover up its illegal actions by refusing to respond to a legitimate Congressional subpoena seeking to investigate those activities. Make sure and address that simple concept in your next propaganda video, sir.
What Jones also conveniently forgets is that ATF agents and even some Justice department lawyers did indeed attempt on multiple occasions to address their concerns with their superiors, only to have their "complaints dismissed or ignored". Thus, they were forced to go to bloggers David Codrea and Mike Vanderboegh as well as members of Congress to get the story out once it became clear that Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry had been shot and killed with one of the thousands of firearms that the ATF had incompetently "lost".
Congressman Darrell Issa and Senator Charles Grassley have warned Jones in no uncertain terms that intimidation of legitimate whistleblowing activities will not be tolerated. The ATF responded thusly:
"ATF spokeswoman Ginger Colbrun, though, said the video clip was 'taken out of context.'
She said the message was one of eight internal videos released since March that address topics ranging from "trust" to "mission" to "morale."
This one dealt with "choices and consequences," but she said it wasn't meant to "discourage" legally protected activities."
The ATF and Justice Department brass in both Arizona and Washington made the deliberate "choice" to break the law. It's past time they received some "consequences" of their own.
Friday, July 20, 2012
Horrific
Our hearts and sincerest sympathies go out to the innocent victims of last night's theater shooting. This is indeed a sad and sickening tragedy, and we hope that the cowardly suspect is tried and punished to the fullest extent possible.
The proper thing to do here seems to be to allow more information on the incident to become available before engaging in debate on the issue of guns in society. The usual suspects, however, are ignoring that courtesy and are already dancing on the bodies before they're even cold, heartlessly politicizing things by immediately demanding that law-abiding citizens' firearms be taken away in response to this one apparently deranged lunatic.
We will limit ourselves to correcting New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's inflammatory and demonstrably false statements on radio this morning:
"'I mean, there’s so many murders with guns every day,' Bloomberg continued. 'It’s just gotta stop.'... 'This is killing people every day,' he said. 'And it’s growing.'"
Actually, sir, it's not. Violent gun crimes in the U.S. are at an all-time low even as lawful gun ownership and public carry have reached their highest rates ever.
The proper thing to do here seems to be to allow more information on the incident to become available before engaging in debate on the issue of guns in society. The usual suspects, however, are ignoring that courtesy and are already dancing on the bodies before they're even cold, heartlessly politicizing things by immediately demanding that law-abiding citizens' firearms be taken away in response to this one apparently deranged lunatic.
We will limit ourselves to correcting New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's inflammatory and demonstrably false statements on radio this morning:
"'I mean, there’s so many murders with guns every day,' Bloomberg continued. 'It’s just gotta stop.'... 'This is killing people every day,' he said. 'And it’s growing.'"
Actually, sir, it's not. Violent gun crimes in the U.S. are at an all-time low even as lawful gun ownership and public carry have reached their highest rates ever.
(Graphic from the 2010 FBI UCR)
In fact, as Mitch Berg notes via Twitter, more people die from gun violence every week in Chicago, Illinois (one of the last remaining places where "authorities" have made gun ownership as difficult as possible and all lawful public carry is banned) than perished in last night's nightmare.
We hope everyone will join us in praying for the victims.
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Senior citizen 2, armed thugs 0
Two masked feral youth charged into an Internet cafe/casino outlet (a business apparently known to deal in large amounts of cash) in Ocala, Florida last Friday evening. One of the thugs pointed a handgun and began ordering the 30 or so terrified customers around. The other, brandishing a bat, smashed an expensive computer monitor.
What the robbers didn't count on was 71-year-old Samuel Williams, a local resident and patron of the cafe who was sitting in the rear of the establishment:
Williams, correctly fearing for his and the other patrons' lives, drew his .380 caliber concealed handgun and opened fire, hitting both suspects. The robbers then fled the cafe but were soon apprehended by police and charged with multiple felonies.
Incidents such as these clearly illustrate the benefits realized by all, including innocent bystanders and fellow would-be victims, when law-abiding citizens exercise their inherent right to self-defense.
The State's Attorney's office has announced that Williams will most likely not face any charges related to his brave defense of himself and others. It seems the only question remaining is when he will receive the key to the city.
What the robbers didn't count on was 71-year-old Samuel Williams, a local resident and patron of the cafe who was sitting in the rear of the establishment:
Williams, correctly fearing for his and the other patrons' lives, drew his .380 caliber concealed handgun and opened fire, hitting both suspects. The robbers then fled the cafe but were soon apprehended by police and charged with multiple felonies.
Incidents such as these clearly illustrate the benefits realized by all, including innocent bystanders and fellow would-be victims, when law-abiding citizens exercise their inherent right to self-defense.
The State's Attorney's office has announced that Williams will most likely not face any charges related to his brave defense of himself and others. It seems the only question remaining is when he will receive the key to the city.
Monday, July 16, 2012
Why I Carry a Handgun for Protection, Vol. 59
Because contrary to the denials by the Brady Campaign and the Violence Policy Center that such events regularly occur, naked blood-soaked criminals high on drugs really do randomly invade houses and kill innocent people, which is sadly what happened to an eighty-something female homeowner in Sacramento, California on Sunday:
"Detectives do not think he had any connection with the victim and that it was simply a random act of violence."
California is ironically one of the states that puts up such onerous hoops to lawful gun ownership and carry that many residents simply don't bother, to some of their detriments.
These sorts of incidents really do happen and people really do horribly perish from such attacks by the detritus of our society. Be ready should it happen to you.
"Detectives do not think he had any connection with the victim and that it was simply a random act of violence."
California is ironically one of the states that puts up such onerous hoops to lawful gun ownership and carry that many residents simply don't bother, to some of their detriments.
These sorts of incidents really do happen and people really do horribly perish from such attacks by the detritus of our society. Be ready should it happen to you.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Hispanic. Everyone else. Choose one box
An interesting new change by the Obama Justice Department to ATF Form 4473, which people must fill out whenever purchasing a firearm from a federal firearms dealer:
"Every person completing this form must now, under a new question “10.a,” either confirm or deny whether they are Hispanic/Latino. Failure to do so will cause potential criminal prosecution and a denial of Second Amendment Rights. The Form 4473 has been around since 1968, but never before has one ethnic group been singled out where individuals have to affirmatively state whether they ARE or ARE NOT a member."
We fail to understand the purpose of tracking the number of Hispanics (and only Hispanics) who are purchasing guns, unless Attorney General Eric "Neutral, leaning towards favorable" Holder somehow wishes to tweak the marketing of his Mexican gunrunning campaign for even more stellar results.
And Republicans are accused of being the party of divisiveness and racial profiling?
"Every person completing this form must now, under a new question “10.a,” either confirm or deny whether they are Hispanic/Latino. Failure to do so will cause potential criminal prosecution and a denial of Second Amendment Rights. The Form 4473 has been around since 1968, but never before has one ethnic group been singled out where individuals have to affirmatively state whether they ARE or ARE NOT a member."
We fail to understand the purpose of tracking the number of Hispanics (and only Hispanics) who are purchasing guns, unless Attorney General Eric "Neutral, leaning towards favorable" Holder somehow wishes to tweak the marketing of his Mexican gunrunning campaign for even more stellar results.
And Republicans are accused of being the party of divisiveness and racial profiling?
Sunday, July 01, 2012
There are no coincidences in politics
Former Arizona U.S. Attorney Dennis K. Burke, who locally oversaw the disastrous "Fast and Furious" gunwalking debacle and who resigned after it was revealed that he was the one who released documents in a failed attempt to smear ATF whistleblower John Dodson, was a lawyer for the Democratic-led Senate Judiciary Committe back in 1994 and in that capacity apparently was a major player in getting the now-expired Clinton assault weapons ban through that body.
That really makes a whole lot of sense. What better way of garnering support for a new (and presumably much stronger, not to mention permanent this time around) assault weapons ban through Congress than to have some political hack who's on board with a new President's gun control agenda override professional street-level ATF agents and responsible, law-abiding gun dealers to allow a whole bunch of U.S.-purchased weapons to be funneled to Mexico and then "conveniently" found in the hands of some bad guys down there?
"On. Nov. 24, 2010, just a few weeks before Terry was murdered, Burke--who had begun his career in public service working to enact an assault-weapons ban--had an email exchange with another U.S. attorney about an investigation he was working on that involved 'straw purchasing of assault weapons.'
'What a great investigation. What is the ETI (estimated time of indictment!)' U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan for the Western District of Washington said to Burke in an email.
Burke responded, 'Would love to chat. We are about to indict around [REDACTED] clowns for a Gun Trafficking to Mexico operation. It's a T-III investigation that we have been working w/ATF for a long time and IRS is all over some money laundering charges. It’s going to bring a lot of attention to straw purchasing of assault weapons. Some of the weapons bought by these clowns in Arizona have been directly traced to murders of elected officials in Mexico by the Cartels, so Katie-bar-the-door when we unveil this baby.'"
Katie-bar-the-door indeed.
Were it not for the deadly seriousness of this utter screwup, which cost the lives of Brian Terry, Jaime Zapata and countless innocent Mexican citizens, we would point out that Burke and his cohorts seem to be the only true "clowns" in this saga.
That really makes a whole lot of sense. What better way of garnering support for a new (and presumably much stronger, not to mention permanent this time around) assault weapons ban through Congress than to have some political hack who's on board with a new President's gun control agenda override professional street-level ATF agents and responsible, law-abiding gun dealers to allow a whole bunch of U.S.-purchased weapons to be funneled to Mexico and then "conveniently" found in the hands of some bad guys down there?
"On. Nov. 24, 2010, just a few weeks before Terry was murdered, Burke--who had begun his career in public service working to enact an assault-weapons ban--had an email exchange with another U.S. attorney about an investigation he was working on that involved 'straw purchasing of assault weapons.'
'What a great investigation. What is the ETI (estimated time of indictment!)' U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan for the Western District of Washington said to Burke in an email.
Burke responded, 'Would love to chat. We are about to indict around [REDACTED] clowns for a Gun Trafficking to Mexico operation. It's a T-III investigation that we have been working w/ATF for a long time and IRS is all over some money laundering charges. It’s going to bring a lot of attention to straw purchasing of assault weapons. Some of the weapons bought by these clowns in Arizona have been directly traced to murders of elected officials in Mexico by the Cartels, so Katie-bar-the-door when we unveil this baby.'"
Katie-bar-the-door indeed.
Were it not for the deadly seriousness of this utter screwup, which cost the lives of Brian Terry, Jaime Zapata and countless innocent Mexican citizens, we would point out that Burke and his cohorts seem to be the only true "clowns" in this saga.
Saturday, June 23, 2012
What a brave kid
A 14-year-old boy in Laveen, Arizona was home alone with his three younger siblings (ages 8-12) yesterday afternoon when a strange woman started pounding on the door. Things rapidly went south from there:
"The boy went upstairs and got a handgun, police said. A man with a rifle had forced his way into the home. He aimed the gun at the boy, and the boy shot him, police said.
The boy and his three siblings left the house and went to a neighbor's house, where the boy called police and his father, [Phoenix Police spokesman James] Holmes said."
Make no mistake - this situation only turned out OK because this heroic young man had the proper tools and training available for repelling an apparent random home invasion. This event otherwise may have turned out very differently indeed. The cops agree:
"He took an action that no police officer, certainly no one in our community, wants a 14-year-old to have to take," Holmes said. "And yet he's safe, his siblings are safe, and so now we have to figure out why this happened and why these people were there."
It really doesn't matter, as far as we're concerned. The alleged perpetrator is in the hospital in critical condition instead of the innocent kids. Case closed.
"The boy went upstairs and got a handgun, police said. A man with a rifle had forced his way into the home. He aimed the gun at the boy, and the boy shot him, police said.
The boy and his three siblings left the house and went to a neighbor's house, where the boy called police and his father, [Phoenix Police spokesman James] Holmes said."
Make no mistake - this situation only turned out OK because this heroic young man had the proper tools and training available for repelling an apparent random home invasion. This event otherwise may have turned out very differently indeed. The cops agree:
"He took an action that no police officer, certainly no one in our community, wants a 14-year-old to have to take," Holmes said. "And yet he's safe, his siblings are safe, and so now we have to figure out why this happened and why these people were there."
It really doesn't matter, as far as we're concerned. The alleged perpetrator is in the hospital in critical condition instead of the innocent kids. Case closed.
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Back on the horse
After going through several personal challenges over the last couple of years, we finally feel ready and able to devote some time and energy to this site. We apologize for taking so long to get our act together; it was unfortunately necessary to concentrate on our health and well-being instead of outside interests. Please pardon our dust as we get back up to speed, and we hope to once again earn your readership and trust. Onward, then.
Let's see, what sorts of events have occurred during our extended absence? Surely things have changed and the maddening situations about which we previously wrote no longer occur, right? Well, no, as a quick review of just today's news tells us:
1. The House Government and Oversight Reform Committee has this afternoon voted to hold Attorney General Eric "Neutral, leaning towards favorable" Holder in contempt of that body for refusing to provide documents and emails pertaining to the "Fast and Furious" scandal, despite a last-minute (and surprise) assertion of executive privilege by President Obama (who as a Presidential candidate excoriated Bush 43 for doing the exact same thing).
Both men have previously stated (in the case of Mr. Holder, under oath) that they knew absolutely nothing until quite late in the game about this amateurish and stumblebum "operation" (in the view of many a thinly-disguised PR stunt that, had it somehow succeeded, would have been used as a propaganda tool to push for more gun control for law-abiding Americans) that has cost the lives of at least two American law-enforcement officers, not to mention those of countless innocent Mexican citizens. So, pray tell, exactly which of these highly sensitive communications between minions in the Executive Branch, concerning an operation about which this pair apparently hadn't a clue, need protection from Congressional oversight? Desperate measures indeed.
By the way, as far as we can determine not one person to date has lost their job over this utter debacle. It's good to be a Federal government employee.
2. A former head prosecutor in the Baltimore (wildly anti-lawful gun city in wildly anti-lawful gun Maryland) State's Attorney's office, the person who decided whether or not to go after people for gun crimes (and, judging by the comments to the story, an absolute jerk who insisted on charging otherwise law-abiding people to the max for such "crimes" as stopping for lunch in the city while in the middle of transporting an unloaded, cased firearm in their vehicle from Pennsylvania to North Carolina), was himself arrested last Friday night after cops stopped him for a traffic violation and discovered he had a loaded pistol in his car's center console:
"Matthew Fraling, 49, who spent 23 years as a city prosecutor and oversaw prosecutions of gun offenders for his final two years, was pulled over on Friday night at about 11:45 p.m. in the 2500 block of Guilford Ave. after an officer in an unmarked vehicle began following him.
The officer, Det. Kenneth Ramberg, wrote in charging documents that Fraling was pulled over after he crossed the center line, and he initially told the officer he did not have any weapons on him or in the vehicle. Ramberg asked Fraling to step out of the vehicle and again asked if there were any guns, and Fraling said he had one in the vehicle's center console for which he did not have a permit to carry."
We have to agree with one of the wags who commented - Mr. Fraling has undoubtedly now switched his position and whole-heartedly supports the idea of lawful firearm carry in the backwards state of our birth.
(h/t to NJT)
Let's see, what sorts of events have occurred during our extended absence? Surely things have changed and the maddening situations about which we previously wrote no longer occur, right? Well, no, as a quick review of just today's news tells us:
1. The House Government and Oversight Reform Committee has this afternoon voted to hold Attorney General Eric "Neutral, leaning towards favorable" Holder in contempt of that body for refusing to provide documents and emails pertaining to the "Fast and Furious" scandal, despite a last-minute (and surprise) assertion of executive privilege by President Obama (who as a Presidential candidate excoriated Bush 43 for doing the exact same thing).
Both men have previously stated (in the case of Mr. Holder, under oath) that they knew absolutely nothing until quite late in the game about this amateurish and stumblebum "operation" (in the view of many a thinly-disguised PR stunt that, had it somehow succeeded, would have been used as a propaganda tool to push for more gun control for law-abiding Americans) that has cost the lives of at least two American law-enforcement officers, not to mention those of countless innocent Mexican citizens. So, pray tell, exactly which of these highly sensitive communications between minions in the Executive Branch, concerning an operation about which this pair apparently hadn't a clue, need protection from Congressional oversight? Desperate measures indeed.
By the way, as far as we can determine not one person to date has lost their job over this utter debacle. It's good to be a Federal government employee.
2. A former head prosecutor in the Baltimore (wildly anti-lawful gun city in wildly anti-lawful gun Maryland) State's Attorney's office, the person who decided whether or not to go after people for gun crimes (and, judging by the comments to the story, an absolute jerk who insisted on charging otherwise law-abiding people to the max for such "crimes" as stopping for lunch in the city while in the middle of transporting an unloaded, cased firearm in their vehicle from Pennsylvania to North Carolina), was himself arrested last Friday night after cops stopped him for a traffic violation and discovered he had a loaded pistol in his car's center console:
"Matthew Fraling, 49, who spent 23 years as a city prosecutor and oversaw prosecutions of gun offenders for his final two years, was pulled over on Friday night at about 11:45 p.m. in the 2500 block of Guilford Ave. after an officer in an unmarked vehicle began following him.
The officer, Det. Kenneth Ramberg, wrote in charging documents that Fraling was pulled over after he crossed the center line, and he initially told the officer he did not have any weapons on him or in the vehicle. Ramberg asked Fraling to step out of the vehicle and again asked if there were any guns, and Fraling said he had one in the vehicle's center console for which he did not have a permit to carry."
We have to agree with one of the wags who commented - Mr. Fraling has undoubtedly now switched his position and whole-heartedly supports the idea of lawful firearm carry in the backwards state of our birth.
(h/t to NJT)
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Why I carry a handgun for protection, Vol. 57
So that if we happen to be strolling around Denver, Colorado with a date and are accosted by the gang of feral youth there which is currently amusing themselves by bashing couples in the head with baseball bats and robbing them of their possessions, we will be able to successfully defend ourselves against their brutal assault.
"The attackers are 'not nice people,' [Denver Police spokesman Sonny] Jackson said."
That's one heck of an understatement.
Those thugs are still on the loose, Denver residents, and the cops can't be everywhere. Protect yourselves accordingly.
"The attackers are 'not nice people,' [Denver Police spokesman Sonny] Jackson said."
That's one heck of an understatement.
Those thugs are still on the loose, Denver residents, and the cops can't be everywhere. Protect yourselves accordingly.
Monday, July 18, 2011
Another crime foiled without a shot by a lawfully-owned firearm
77-year-old Congressman Leonard Boswell, D-IA, and his family successfully fought off an armed intruder who confronted them at their rural Iowa farmhouse last Saturday night.
The attacker had apparently rang the doorbell and when Boswell's daughter answered pointed a gun at her and demanded money. The congressman then intervened, grabbing the gun and wrestling the thug to the ground. Meanwhile, Boswell's 22-year-old grandson alertly grabbed a loaded shotgun from another room and chased the suspect into a nearby field, where he managed to escape. He is currently being sought by police.
Another example of a successful defensive gun usage by law-abiding citizens that won't make the official stats because (thankfully) no shots were fired. Tell us again how these events never happen, Brady Campaign and Violence Policy Center, especially to an older person who probably would have eventually lost the physical battle with his presumably much younger assailant.
We imagine Congressman Boswell is one Democrat who will flatly refuse to support the recently proposed gun-control bill, introduced by some comrades in his own party as a knee-jerk reaction to the federal "Project Gunwalker" scandal, that seeks to criminalize and punish acts which are already quite illegal. A new law, of course, that if passed wouldn't apply to the stunningly incompetent management of the BATFE, which seems to be directly responsible for allowing a significant percentage of recent cross-border gun smuggling to take place without interdiction for crass political reasons.
Remember, Decatur County residents, the alleged suspect in Saturday's incident remains at large and most likely even more desperate, and may soon target another local residence in that remote area at some point. Please prepare accordingly.
The attacker had apparently rang the doorbell and when Boswell's daughter answered pointed a gun at her and demanded money. The congressman then intervened, grabbing the gun and wrestling the thug to the ground. Meanwhile, Boswell's 22-year-old grandson alertly grabbed a loaded shotgun from another room and chased the suspect into a nearby field, where he managed to escape. He is currently being sought by police.
Another example of a successful defensive gun usage by law-abiding citizens that won't make the official stats because (thankfully) no shots were fired. Tell us again how these events never happen, Brady Campaign and Violence Policy Center, especially to an older person who probably would have eventually lost the physical battle with his presumably much younger assailant.
We imagine Congressman Boswell is one Democrat who will flatly refuse to support the recently proposed gun-control bill, introduced by some comrades in his own party as a knee-jerk reaction to the federal "Project Gunwalker" scandal, that seeks to criminalize and punish acts which are already quite illegal. A new law, of course, that if passed wouldn't apply to the stunningly incompetent management of the BATFE, which seems to be directly responsible for allowing a significant percentage of recent cross-border gun smuggling to take place without interdiction for crass political reasons.
Remember, Decatur County residents, the alleged suspect in Saturday's incident remains at large and most likely even more desperate, and may soon target another local residence in that remote area at some point. Please prepare accordingly.
Friday, July 08, 2011
Why I carry a handgun for protection, Vol. 56
Because, despite disingenuous propaganda to the contrary, unprovoked bear attacks can and really do occur everywhere from Yellowstone National Park (fatality) to Pinetop, Arizona (massive head trauma and probable loss of movement in both arms).
That's odd. Wasn't it just a few short years ago that the Brady Campaign filed suit (and lost) to prevent the government from jettisoning their unconstitutional rule banning law-abiding citizens from carrying firearms when visiting national parks, loudly claiming that there was just no earthly reason for "allowing" people to exercise their inherent right to self-defense in such places? Sadly, the Yellowstone incident has proven the Bradyites to once again be completely wrong. Innocent people should indeed be able to defend themselves from predators (whether two- or four-legged) wherever they may happen to be, particularly when hiking in a popular yet remote tourist attraction.
The Arizona case is especially illustrative of our position because the 61-year-old woman involved apparently sustained many of her injuries while trying to fight off the 300-pound black bear with her bare hands.
Would an appropriate-caliber handgun have allowed the victims to successfully fight off their ursine attackers? We'll of course never know for sure, but one thing is for certain - an immediately available and properly used firearm would undoubtedly have given these victims a much better chance at a happier outcome.
That's odd. Wasn't it just a few short years ago that the Brady Campaign filed suit (and lost) to prevent the government from jettisoning their unconstitutional rule banning law-abiding citizens from carrying firearms when visiting national parks, loudly claiming that there was just no earthly reason for "allowing" people to exercise their inherent right to self-defense in such places? Sadly, the Yellowstone incident has proven the Bradyites to once again be completely wrong. Innocent people should indeed be able to defend themselves from predators (whether two- or four-legged) wherever they may happen to be, particularly when hiking in a popular yet remote tourist attraction.
The Arizona case is especially illustrative of our position because the 61-year-old woman involved apparently sustained many of her injuries while trying to fight off the 300-pound black bear with her bare hands.
Would an appropriate-caliber handgun have allowed the victims to successfully fight off their ursine attackers? We'll of course never know for sure, but one thing is for certain - an immediately available and properly used firearm would undoubtedly have given these victims a much better chance at a happier outcome.
Wednesday, July 06, 2011
He's not going quietly
Acting ATF director Ken Melson is reported to have met on Monday, July 4 with congressional investigators and told them that the Justice Department is actively obstructing the probe into Project Gunwalker, the absolute disaster of a botched "sting" operation that has directly resulted in the deaths of two American law-enforcement officers as well as those of countless innocent Mexican citizens.
Gee, no wonder Eric "Neutral, leaning towards favorable" Holder and the other top brass at Justice appear to have wanted Melson gone in the worst way. Too bad for them the acting director has chosen not to be the fall guy for the ones who apparently really thought up and implemented this scheme and has decided to go down swinging.
Oh, and get this - Melson is also said to have stated that the prime target of the scheme, a previously deported drug dealer, is an FBI informant. Talk about a classic case of one hand at a massive government agency not knowing what the other is up to, mostly because of turf wars and other maddening intra-departmental squabbling. As former senator Tom Daschle once famously stated, though, "You can't professionalize until you Federalize". Right.
It's about time that someone has finally gone on record as stating that the obvious attempted coverup of this mess is coming from the highest levels of Justice, presumably because the authorization for and administration of the failed operation came from the very same offices. It otherwise wouldn't make a lick of sense for those in charge to try to obstruct the investigation, since if it really were just some rogue subordinates who were responsible for Gunwalker the easiest and safest course of action would be full disclosure and punishment for those involved, leaving Holder, Lanny Breuer and others at the top of Justice smelling like a rose. The fact that those higher-ups are making such a risky move does more than anything else to leave the blame arrow pointed directly at them.
Mr. Melson's official interview with the inspector general is today. It will be interesting to see what other interesting nuggets of information are going to be shortly coming out.
Gee, no wonder Eric "Neutral, leaning towards favorable" Holder and the other top brass at Justice appear to have wanted Melson gone in the worst way. Too bad for them the acting director has chosen not to be the fall guy for the ones who apparently really thought up and implemented this scheme and has decided to go down swinging.
Oh, and get this - Melson is also said to have stated that the prime target of the scheme, a previously deported drug dealer, is an FBI informant. Talk about a classic case of one hand at a massive government agency not knowing what the other is up to, mostly because of turf wars and other maddening intra-departmental squabbling. As former senator Tom Daschle once famously stated, though, "You can't professionalize until you Federalize". Right.
It's about time that someone has finally gone on record as stating that the obvious attempted coverup of this mess is coming from the highest levels of Justice, presumably because the authorization for and administration of the failed operation came from the very same offices. It otherwise wouldn't make a lick of sense for those in charge to try to obstruct the investigation, since if it really were just some rogue subordinates who were responsible for Gunwalker the easiest and safest course of action would be full disclosure and punishment for those involved, leaving Holder, Lanny Breuer and others at the top of Justice smelling like a rose. The fact that those higher-ups are making such a risky move does more than anything else to leave the blame arrow pointed directly at them.
Mr. Melson's official interview with the inspector general is today. It will be interesting to see what other interesting nuggets of information are going to be shortly coming out.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Start making the popcorn
John Solomon of The Daily Beast is reporting that the Senate Judiciary Committee has reached a deal that will allow Ken Melson, the acting head of the ATF, to testify before that body next month about the disastrous "Project Gunwalker" debacle that has claimed the lives of at least two U.S. law enforcement agents as well as those of countless innocent Mexican citizens.
Since Mr. Melson has already stood up for himself by refusing to be the fall guy and resign his position amid the fallout from the botched "investigation", he will presumably be quite eager to explain in great detail exactly who among his superiors at Justice (and at State, since this mess involved an international border) knew about and authorized allowing thousands of straw-purchased guns to be sent to Mexico over the objections of street-level ATF agents and even the gun dealers themselves.
Bob Owens of Pajamas Media theorizes about the possible repercussions from Melson's upcoming appearance. We think Owens's third scenario is the one most likely to come about - that Attorney General Eric "Neutral, leaning towards favorable" Holder will ultimately be held accountable over this. Why? We think it's because Senator Chuck Grassley smells important blood in the water, otherwise he wouldn't have paid the relatively high price he did (releasing holds on three Obama nominees) for securing Melson's on-the-record testimony. Representative Darrell Issa is also apparently convinced (and is working like mad to prove) that Holder perjured himself when he testified in front of Issa that he didn't know about the failed scheme until it broke in the national news.
Be sure to tune in for this particular hearing. We look forward to watching the roaches scurry away from the light.
Since Mr. Melson has already stood up for himself by refusing to be the fall guy and resign his position amid the fallout from the botched "investigation", he will presumably be quite eager to explain in great detail exactly who among his superiors at Justice (and at State, since this mess involved an international border) knew about and authorized allowing thousands of straw-purchased guns to be sent to Mexico over the objections of street-level ATF agents and even the gun dealers themselves.
Bob Owens of Pajamas Media theorizes about the possible repercussions from Melson's upcoming appearance. We think Owens's third scenario is the one most likely to come about - that Attorney General Eric "Neutral, leaning towards favorable" Holder will ultimately be held accountable over this. Why? We think it's because Senator Chuck Grassley smells important blood in the water, otherwise he wouldn't have paid the relatively high price he did (releasing holds on three Obama nominees) for securing Melson's on-the-record testimony. Representative Darrell Issa is also apparently convinced (and is working like mad to prove) that Holder perjured himself when he testified in front of Issa that he didn't know about the failed scheme until it broke in the national news.
Be sure to tune in for this particular hearing. We look forward to watching the roaches scurry away from the light.
Tuesday, June 07, 2011
Why I carry a handgun for protection, Vol. 54
So that if we happen to be walking down a street and are randomly attacked by a group of 15-20 feral youths (there's the clinching argument against imposing an arbitrary 10-round limit on firearm magazine capacities right there, Ms. Brady) we will be able to successfully defend ourselves, unlike the innocent Japanese doctor tourist who was the latest to find himself beaten and robbed of his belongings last Saturday on North Lake Shore Drive (not exactly what one would call a bad neighborhood) in Chicago, Illinois.
These brutal mob attacks are fast becoming a regular occurrence in the Windy City, no doubt mainly due to the fact that law-abiding citizens there are prohibited from carrying firearms for self-defense against the kinds of violent and cowardly thugs who prey on the public because they have no fear that their targets will be able to fight back against such overwhelming numbers:
"Police sources said they have been aware of large groups of teens causing trouble along North Michigan Avenue for at least the last year. One source said the fear is the attacks could become more frequent as the weather gets warmer."
The cops themselves admit they have a huge problem on their hands and are helpless to put a stop to these incidents or protect the local residents, yet the Illinois "authorities" consistently block permitting law-abiding people to exercise their constitutional right to self-protection, a policy that has resulted in a steep drop in violent crime rates in every state in which it's been implemented. No wonder those boogers of society in that town feel so empowered to take whatever they want from whomever they wish.
It's going to be a long and hot summer. Our recommendation for your own safety is to spend it anywhere except Chicago.
These brutal mob attacks are fast becoming a regular occurrence in the Windy City, no doubt mainly due to the fact that law-abiding citizens there are prohibited from carrying firearms for self-defense against the kinds of violent and cowardly thugs who prey on the public because they have no fear that their targets will be able to fight back against such overwhelming numbers:
"Police sources said they have been aware of large groups of teens causing trouble along North Michigan Avenue for at least the last year. One source said the fear is the attacks could become more frequent as the weather gets warmer."
The cops themselves admit they have a huge problem on their hands and are helpless to put a stop to these incidents or protect the local residents, yet the Illinois "authorities" consistently block permitting law-abiding people to exercise their constitutional right to self-protection, a policy that has resulted in a steep drop in violent crime rates in every state in which it's been implemented. No wonder those boogers of society in that town feel so empowered to take whatever they want from whomever they wish.
It's going to be a long and hot summer. Our recommendation for your own safety is to spend it anywhere except Chicago.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
