It took a whole 24 hours for Jim Moran to exploit Boston bombings to push gun control

We know he’s shameless. We know he’s corrupt. We know he’s a disgusting thug, who will tell any lie and hurl any insult to advance his leftardist agenda. So I really shouldn’t be surprised at the following letter. But Jim Moran’s gall is appalling, and what’s worse, judging by my limited interaction with his drooling, fucktarded supporters, they will nod enthusiastically upon reading this dreck and toss this bastard more money for his re-election campaign.

What occurred in Boston is a sad reminder that terrorist threats are a part of all our lives. But they will not damper the American spirit that defines us. Even in the midst of yesterday’s chaos, first responders, volunteers, runners and spectators rushed to the bomb site to help the injured, putting the lives of their fellow man ahead of their own personal safety. That instinctive call to action to help our fellow citizens is part of what makes this country great, and why no act or acts of terror will ever break us.  

Today is also the sad milestone of a horrible massacre that occurred close to home, in Blacksburg, Virginia. On April 16, 2007, 32 students and teachers were murdered on the campus of Virginia Tech in a senseless act of gun violence.
 

In the six years since the massacre at Virginia Tech, over 180,000 people have been killed by gun violence, including murders, suicides, and accidental deaths. And last December, our nation was once again reminded of the fragility of human life when 20 young children and 6 adults were murdered in Newtown, Connecticut.

Following the tragedy in Newtown, millions of Americans in communities across the country have joined together to call for improvements in our gun laws.

 

Today is the day after a tragic bombing in Boston, and as you remember the horror, also remember that six years ago – on the day after yesterday’s bombing, a gun walked in and killed a bunch of people at Virginia Tech…

Or something…

Over the next few weeks, the Senate will consider legislation to expand background checks to all commercial gun purchases, strengthen gun trafficking laws, and increase funding for school security measures.  I am hopeful that the Senate will pass meaningful gun reform legislation and that Republican leadership in the House will allow an up or down vote on the bill.

Because allowing an up or down vote on more infringements on your Second Amendment rights will prevent more bombs… um… or pressure cookers and shrapnel. We must check you out before you buy kitchen implements. And also running is bad for you, so we need background checks.

Or something…

Expanded checks are the only systematic way to keep guns out of the hands of felons, the severely mentally ill, and other dangerous people.  Far from creating new gun laws, mandatory background checks simply allow for the enforcement of laws already on the books.  This is a common sense reform that polling shows is supported by 90 percent of the American public, 82 percent of gun owners, and even 74 percent of NRA members.

Yesterday, pressure cooker bombs went off in Boston, and today we remember those who died in those bombings by pushing for more gun control, which would not have prevented a massacre six years ago in a gun-free zone.

Or something…

Now Congress must act. We owe it to the victims at Virginia Tech and everyone whose lives have been touched by the horrors of gun violence to enact sensible gun safety legislation. As we remember the lives lost and forever changed by the massacre six years ago, let us come together as a nation in continued vigilance against gun violence.

Because only background checks will stop bombings in Boston.

Or something…

Leave it up to Moran to exploit yet another tragedy that has absolutely nothing to do with gun violence to promote the destruction of your rights!

 

 

 

Crazy People and Guns (UPDATED)

So my blog buddy Don Borsch just informed me that it can now be conclusively deduced that Sandy Hook shooter Adam Lanza was…

Um…

Crazy.

Batshit.

Insane.

Off his gourd.

Deranged.

Nuttier than squirrel shit.

As more information becomes available about Lanza and his actions before he decided to steal a few guns from mummy and shoot up a bunch of sweet, innocent kids, we begin to realize that the evil NRA, gun owners, “assault” weapons and high-capacity magazines were not responsible for the deaths of children that December day in 2012.

Lanza studied serial killers/school shooters and virtually every incident of mass murder in the United States – most notably, Anders Behring Breivik, who bombed government buildings in Oslo, killing 8, and then carried out a mass shooting at a camp of the Workers’ Youth Leagueof the Labour Party on the island of Utøya, murdering 69 people, mostly teenagers, in Norway, where guns are strictly regulated by law, and carrying firearms anywhere is prohibited.

The latest disclosure, coupled with evidence of how Lanza expertly deployed his AR-15 Bushmaster rifle in murdering 20 first-graders and six adults at the school after earlier attempting to destroy his computer hard drives, lends credence to the belief that he had been planning the deadly Dec. 14 assault for some time.

The source said that Lanza used what law enforcement professionals call “tactical loading” in firing the semi-automatic rifle, putting a fresh magazine into the weapon before completely emptying the previous one.

Authorities estimate that Lanza fired about 150 shots from the “assault” rifle in the span of 5 minutes, before he tactically shot himself.

That’s about 30 shots per minute, with a second or two to drop the magazine and reload. The typical rate of fire for a common pistol such as a Glock will depend on the shooter’s hand strength, the recoil and how fast his or her reaction is before the next shot.  Assuming he simply had a 10-round magazine, he could have emptied a magazine in about 10 seconds and popped in a new one, and he didn’t even empty the entire thing.

So if “high-capacity” magazines had been banned, and Lanza only had 15 ten-round mags, and could empty one in 10 seconds, he could conceivably have fired 50-60 rounds per minute, and have committed the same carnage in 3 minutes or less. With a handgun.

According to this report, the sustained rate of fire on a semi-automatic setting for an M-16 (the military version of the AR-15, such as the one used by Lanza at Sandy Hook), is 45 rounds per minute.

That’s on the military rifle.  That would be 225 rounds in 5 minutes. The AR-15 Lanza used didn’t even have that, and he didn’t even empty the mag, according to the report, in order to tactically load the firearm and murder people faster.

So was it the high-capacity magazine? All indications are that no… it wasn’t.

Was it the evil “assault” rifle? All indications are that no… it wasn’t.

Was it lax background checks that allowed him to purchase the evil “assault” rifle? All indications are that no… it wasn’t. He stole the rifle and other guns from his mom.

But Adam Lanza played violent video games and studied mass murders closely. He stole firearms and had no problem murdering innocent children with them.

And people like Chuck Schumer, Jim Moran and their posse of authoritarian hoplophobes want more restrictions imposed on you and me. They want bans on high-capacity magazines. They want bans on evil, scary “assault” rifles. They want bans on private firearm transactions. But what I haven’t seen is any effort to address the plethora of fruitloops walking among us, whose families are reluctant or unable to institutionalize them due to strict regulations.

Does that make any sense?

Yeah, didn’t think so.

UPDATE: The Washington Post reports that Feinstein’s assault weapons bill has passed committee along party lines, and includes a mighty heated exchange between her and Ted Cruz, where she completely loses her shit and angrily claims she has great respect for the Constitution, even as she takes a large, steamy dump on it.

Year in Review – 2012 was… interesting

This year is about to end, and I’m not sure what to make of it. I still live in Arlington with Rob, Teeny and the Redhead. We still have two attention-whoring cats. We no longer have a hedgehog, but we do have a large, slobbering, farting dog!

I still love my job. I find it mentally challenging and stimulating. I love this house. I love my kids. I love Rob.  We have established a comfortable routine together. The kids adore Rob and think he’s the coolest thing since ice cream (ice cream they pilfer freely before he can grab some for himself). They have food fights at the table. They chase one another around the house and wrestle. They all make me smile.

I didn’t blog about guns too much in the beginning of the year. There were other things going on – primaries, in particular, occupied my time – mostly because I couldn’t believe the mass amount of stupid in the field of candidates we were forced to tolerate. To be sure, there were some things with which I agreed on all ends of the spectrum, but aside from Gary Johnson, I didn’t see anyone I could even remotely stomach in the White House. Our friend Ken Vaughn had decided to run for Congress, but in the end establishment “moderates” won out, and… well….

In February, we lost one of our own – Maj. Bob Marchanti, with whom I deployed to Kosovo in 2007, was killed in Afghanistan. I was filled with incredible rage for most of that month, and much of my writing reflected this anger that month. I look back on it now, and cringe a bit at how pissed off I was! This was exacerbated by fiscal issues, as I was trying to refinance the house – a most annoying and infuriating experience – and pay the bills, while my darling ex informed me that he was too poor to pay the bills he was required to pay by our divorce agreement, and asked me to take over those payments.

In March, I expended some electrons ridiculing the circus surrounding Trayvon Martin and George Zimmerman, in particular, the theatrics of the CBC and Frederica Wilson’s unbelievable choice in hats!

I turned 41 in April. Did you know that? I don’t feel old. I feel great.

In May, Rob and I went on our annual vacation to Las Vegas. We got much needed rest, and Gary Johnson got a much deserved presidential nomination from the Libertarian Party. WIN all around! Rob and I continued to point out why Ken Vaughn is a different candidate – a candidate Virginia’s 11th district should have voted for in the June primaries – but to no avail.

June primaries came and went. Establishment candidates swept on both sides of the political aisle. We had a huge storm that temporarily turned Arlington into a third world shithole and made the Redhead temporarily believe in the Zombie apocalypse.  June was the month I also installed a DONATE button. I hated to do that, but my bills were getting out of control, and my ex not only swindled me out of $7700, but also refused to help pay for his kids’ medical and dental expenses. Ya gotta love that!

July was awesome! In July we adopted Tucker – a big, drooling, slobbering, furry, loveable Teddy Bear of a Saint Bernard. He quickly became part of the family, and we quickly learned to leave the room whenever he passed gas. There was also a shooting in an Aurora, CO movie theater that set the wheels in motion for another assault weapons ban – because (SAY IT WITH ME!) we NEVER LET A CRISIS GO TO WASTE! We also discovered that the media are assholes for trying their damnest to connect the Aurora slaughter to “right wing” violence and the TEA Party. OK – not really a revelation. More of a confirmation about what we already knew.

August was the month of election coverage, where frothing fundamentalist fruitcake Todd Akin tanked not only his candidacy, but also the candidacy of Richard Mourdock, who is also a social conservative, but not nearly as batshit crazy as Akin, who saw it fit to question the legitimacy of rape victims’ claims, because apparently, according to this renowned medical expert, the body has a way of rejecting babies conceived in situations of “legitimate rape.” Akin refused to go away, much like a bad case of the herp, which made Mourdock’s comments about pregnancy – even one that is a result of rape – being God’s will, sound much crazier than what it actually was.

The stupid came out really strong in September with Hollytwits initiating a campaign for the current president and Republicans wondering why a) they still can’t get anyone other than SOCONS and NEOCONS to get excited about their candidates, and why there were dancing vaginas at their August convention. In the meantime, our Ambassador to Libya and three other Americans got slaughtered in another September 11 terrorist attack that the administration claimed wasn’t really terrorism, but Muslim butthurt over some obscure movie that no one had ever heard of until a bunch of animals killed our Ambassador and the administration decided to blame the movie even though Libyans tagged this as terrorism like hours after it happened. Um.. yeah. Oh, and I did a CNN interview on current politics. That was fun.

October was… meh. The third debate between Obama and Romney was dull. I took a trip to Europe and somehow managed to avoid the Superstorm that pummeled the East Coast in which a tree apparently fell on our house, but managed to cause no damage whatsoever

We had Elections in November where President Obama won another term, and the Republicans were left scratching their heads about what went wrong. The CIA Director’s penis was in the news.  A lot.  And I discovered that no matter what I say or do, I’m a racist, because I don’t support the current administration’s policies. Oh well.

Now it’s December, and the worst, most hideous slaughter in recent history took place at Sandy Hook Elementary School . And as most of us grieved and wept, gun-grabbing assholes exploited the murder of children to push their political agendas.

So get ready for 2013, people! It’s going to be quite the ride!

Happy New Year!

New battle in 2013

If you thought your Second Amendment rights were secure in the aftermath of Heller and McDonald, you’re sadly mistaken. A new battle is coming and it’s going to be a doozy. It will be you against the gun grabbers. It will be you against the media. It will be you against the politicians. And your President has fired the first shot on Meet the Press this morning.

“I’m going to be putting forward a package and I’m going to be putting my full weight behind it,” said Obama in an interview aired on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “I’m going to be making an argument to the American people about why this is important and why we have to do everything we can to make sure that something like what happened at Sandy Hook Elementary does not happen again.”

While we would all love to do something to make sure that the massacre at Sandy Hook is never repeated, I cannot imagine anything that the federal government can do will be effective.

“Something fundamental in America has to change. And all of us have to do some soul searching, including me as president, that we allow a situation in which 20 precious small children are getting gunned down in a classroom,” Obama said in a taped interview with Meet The Press host David Gregory. “And I’ve been very clear that an assault rifle ban, banning these high capacity clips, background checks — that there are a set of issues that I have historically supported and will continue to support.”

First of all, people who don’t know the difference between a magazine and a clip, have no business legislating either one out of existence.

Second, we already have background checks, which will do nothing to stop someone who steals firearms from friends or family members, like Adam Lanza, or acquires them through straw purchases, like William Spengler, who shot firefighters on Christmas Eve and like Harris and Klebold in Columbine.

“I am skeptical that the only answer is putting more guns in schools,” he said. “And I think the vast majority of the American people are skeptical that that somehow is going to solve our problem.”

I don’t know very many Americans who believe that putting more guns in schools will somehow “solve our problem.” I haven’t heard anyone propose this as a panacea. Would it help? Probably. And I’m not talking about turning our schools into armed camps. I’m talking about restoring the right of responsible, trained Americans who are willing and able to properly use their firearms to carry their tools of self defense in schools. Many teachers are former military. They have the training and the ability to take that responsibility. Many states have training requirements before one is issued a concealed carry permit. So why not?

Armed citizens stop violent thugs nearly every day in this country. For every story reported in the news about a self-defense case, hundreds more go unreported and unexamined. Most of these cases do not involve a shooting. Merely brandishing a gun is enough – and that doesn’t make the news. So why not?

Armed citizens and students have stopped rampaging madmen before. Joel Myrick in Pearl, MS stopped a teenaged gunman and prevented him from claiming more victims. Students at the Appalachian School of Law stopped another rampaging lunatic after they ran to their cars and got their firearms. So why not?

There would be no force and no obligation. Those who work in schools and are willing to help, would be allowed to do so. Why not?

No one is saying this would stop armed lunatics every time, but it would give the victims a fighting chance. So why not?

Paranoid hoplophobes will start their mass howls of protest, and politicians would react – with proposed limitations on the rights of people who committed no crime. And they are committed – dedicated to ensuring that they consolidate power in their own hands. They are determined to shove another ban down our throats, and they are ready, willing and able to fight.

Are you?

 

 

Deport Piers Morgan?

Recently, a band of media vultures decided to wrap themselves in the bloody tatters of the children at Sandy Hook Elementary School, and promote policy – specifically, the demise of the Second Amendment.

I get it.

As much as I’d like the media to be objective, there is no such thing. As much as Fox likes to pretend it’s “fair and balanced,” it’s about as skewed to the right as MSNBC MSDNC is to the left. Frankly, it’s a little silly to expect the media to be objective. They are not. They never have been.

During the US Civil War, for instance, “many newspapers published biased accounts of events, “factual” testimonials of enemy atrocities, articles proselytizing for specific political and military goals, and emotionally charged letters from citizens affected by the conflict. A quiet war for public support was waged both in the North and the South with the newspapers serving on the front lines. Issues like conscription, use of slaves as soldiers, and the validity of total war were hotly debated in the papers. The newspapers controlled the ebb and flow of public opinion and a particularly popular circulation could determine the outcomes of city or state politics.”

Likewise, during the constitutional ratification process, a literal war took place in the media between the federalists and the anti-federalists.

So, no. I have no delusions about an objective media, nor do I expect a lack of bias in reporting. That’s part of the reason why I read so many varied news sources, from BBC to local papers, to CNN, to Fox. I even turn on MSDNC on occasion… but only when Ed Schultz isn’t on, because his bloviatory (yes, I just made this word up), pompous, froth-flecked spew literally makes me want to hang him from a tree by his triple chins.

So I wasn’t surprised that CNN’s Piers Morgan went on a crazy-eyed, screeching tirade about the Second Amendment, and how it’s causing death, mayhem, etc. in our country, and how guns should be banned. I wasn’t surprised that he attacked GOA’s Larry Pratt with ad hominems, finally shrieking that Larry is stupid (a sure sign that he has lost the argument).

I was mildly amused that a petition to deport Morgan garnered nearly 70,000 signatures on the White House Petition site, and even more amused that Morgan whined about it like a petulant schoolgirl, as if he was really facing deportation!

Piers! Buddy! Take a chill pill! This is America. We don’t deport people for being disagreeable douchebags. We don’t deport people whose views we deplore. You’re missing the whole irony here. Or did they not teach you the meaning of the word in the UK? You use the First Amendment to castigate the Second – both vital parts of our Bill of Rights – so people used their First Amendment rights to castigate you! You still can’t seem to find irony with two hands and a flashlight, and I find that hilarious!

I also find it ironic that the very people who come here for the opportunities and freedoms this nation offers, then proceed to try and destroy those freedoms in order to make their new homeland resemble the one they escaped. And ironically, the homeland that Piers Morgan escaped – which has traditionally had low levels of crime committed with firearms to begin with – has seen its gun crime nearly DOUBLE since its ban was instituted post-Dunblane.

Gun crime has almost doubled since Labour came to power as a culture of extreme gang violence has taken hold.

The latest Government figures show that the total number of firearm offences in England and Wales has increased from 5,209 in 1998/99 to 9,865 last year  -  a rise of 89 per cent.

In some parts of the country, the number of offences has increased more than five-fold.

In eighteen police areas, gun crime at least doubled.

Now, obviously, as Morgan correctly pointed out, Britain has much fewer deaths by firearms than the US. No one is denying that. However, Morgan’s claim that our high firearm death rates are caused by the fact that we have the right to keep and bear arms is absurd, given the fact that Britain has eliminated said right and has subsequently seen rising gun crime rates.

Britain –> guns banned — no gun ownership by law-abiding citizens –> gun crime skyrockets.

US –> guns not banned — gun ownership rising –> gun crime generally declines with fluctuations year-on-year.

Notice, I am not pointing to the UK gun ban as the cause of rising gun crime rates. But they are, in fact, on the rise, and even Piers Morgan cannot possibly deny this fact.

What does this tell us?

Well, anyone with half a brain should realize that banning guns will do nothing to stop crime. In fact, if the trend in the UK holds true here, we will see a staggering increase in massacres should the Second Amendment be abolished. Is that what Piers Morgan wants? To turn the US into the country he left?

I find Morgan a galling, arrogant git. He honestly seems to believe that he – as a guest in this nation – is more qualified to craft its laws and decide who should be allowed to exercise what right than those of us who are actual citizens! I consider this to be the ultimate sign of disrespect to a nation that welcomed him and afforded him the opportunity to advance his career, achieve and earn!

Of course, this is unsurprising from a pompous, pretentious prick who recently told a guest on his show that the Bible should be amended to include gay marriage. Yes, Piers Morgan actually said this: “My point to you about gay rights, for example, it’s time for an amendment to the Bible.”

Erm… uh… dude! I’m an atheist, but even I get the whole “Christians think the Bible is the word of God” thing! How is it you think they’re going to amend it? Seriously?

This also shows Morgan’s ignorance about the laws of his adopted country.

Our Bill of Rights – the first ten amendments to the Constitution – cannot be amended. It is a constitutional Bill of Rights, that according to the Law Dictionary, “cannot be changed except with the approval of that country’s voting public.” Good luck with that, Piers.

Despite Piers Morgan’s histrionic, victim mentality-laden rants, no one is going to deport him. If he is here legally, he’s not getting booted out. We are generally a nation of laws, and most of us abide by those laws, even when inconvenient or unfortunate. So believe it or not, deporting Piers Morgan is not, can not and should not be on the agenda. Yes, he actively works to undermine our rights. Yes, he actively uses his position to promote views antithetical to our foundational principles and the ideals on which this nation was built. Yes, he’s an arrogant douche. Yes, he’s a hysterical prima donna.

But the beauty of this nation is that we have freedom – freedom for everyone – even arrogant British douchebags who actively work to undermine our freedoms.

To quote The American President, “America isn’t easy. America is advanced citizenship. You gotta want it bad, ’cause it’s gonna put up a fight. It’s gonna say “You want free speech? Let’s see you acknowledge a man whose words make your blood boil, who’s standing center stage and advocating at the top of his lungs that which you would spend a lifetime opposing at the top of yours. …”

Freedom isn’t easy. Freedom is for everyone – even for those with whom you disagree.

So while I find the movement to deport Piers Morgan amusing, and the UK petition to keep him here even more so… deporting Piers Morgan is just silly. And it makes gun rights advocates and supporters look stupid.

So can we stop? Please?