We're the Only Ones Blameless Enough

A Hunterdon County undersheriff yesterday pleaded guilty to two counts of official misconduct and admitted that his boss, Sheriff William Doyle, unlawfully lent him the gun that accidentally discharged in a crowded private health club last October.

Hey, if it's the gun that went off, why did the "Only One" run? I mean, how much clearer could the "authorized journalists" make it in assigning the blame?

• gun that went off

• the gun that accidentally discharged

• the weapon misfired

• "My cell phone exploded" [I love it!]
  

• when the gun discharged

• the gun went off

So why is the undersheriff in trouble when it's clearly the gun's fault? And nice, how he's turning on his boss to save his own hide. Lying, running away, ratting out...this guy has just exhibited the highest character standards through and through. I'm so glad New Jersey deems creatures like him more trustworthy with a firearm than its citizens.

Of course, one could make the point that any population dumb enough to vote for the current crop of New Jersey legislators is too dumb to own a gun...

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PS: There haven't been many responses so far for the new "Only Ones Carnival"--I need submissions in by Thursday night if you want to participate...

The Elephant in Newhallville

A color graph dramatized the racial disparity in gun-related homicides in the state: while nine percent of the population is African American and ten percent is Latino, 61 percent of homicide victims in 2006 were black, and 15 percent were Latino.

I suppose it would raise all kinds of ugly accusations if someone were to sugggest graphing the race of the perpetrators of these homicides, so I guess it's less uncomfortable for everyone if we just blame the guns...

I've said it before, and I don't back down from it:

[W]e also can't forget to look at race--not as a cause of violent crime, but as an indicator of populations most directly affected by and responsive to a continuing history of destructive government policies.

Back to the Future

The COIL is composed of six interconnected modules, each as large as a sport utility vehicle turned on end. Each module weighs about 6,500 pounds and has 3,600 separate parts. When fired through a window in the aircraft’s nose turret, it produces enough energy in a 5-second burst to power a typical household for more than an hour.

I speculated about the COIL back in my July 2002 GUNS AND AMMO article,"Things to Come":

Calling it "America's laser of death," the UK's Daily Telegraph projects "the ability to vaporize enemy troops and vehicles Star Wars-style will take a few more years to develop."

Designed for deployment on AC-X "Son of Specter" aircraft gunships, we're told that "advances will be made and the power plant will shrink and one day it will dominate the battlefield." Hardly a small arm suitable for individual combatants? Just remember, not so long ago your pocket calculator would have filled a room, requiring programmers, technicians and keypunch operators...

And you can bet when that day comes, the following inscription will be prominently engraved on each unit:

"RESTRICTED FOR GOVERNMENT OR LAW ENFORCEMENT USE ONLY"

[Via John Schaefer]

A Dishonest Man

U.S. District Judge Jimm Larry Hendren is a dishonest man. Hendren practices dishonesty in the most devious and destructive form there is. Hendren lies for the State.

Don Bright shares some thoughts on the judge in the Wayne Fincher case.

An "Easy Sell-Out"

The Republican leading Rudy Giuliani's New Hampshire campaign said he thinks the 2008 presidential hopeful will be an "easy sell" - and that the ex-mayor "satisfied" him that he won't support federal assault-weapons bans, as he has in the past...

"People understand that Rudy had a commitment to protect New York against crime. That has no impact on hunting or gaming."

"Hunting or gaming." Right. You really "get it," Rudy. That's what those of us with the fire in our guts want to hear.

Let's see: John McCain hires former NRA-ILA head James Jay Baker, Mitt Romney does the shuck and jive on guns at the SHOT Show, and now Rudy tries to mask his anti-gun fascism with this tepid outreach.

Looks like Wayne Semprini won't be content until he extends his New Hampshire GOP losing streak to the national level. Looks like none of these "easy sell-outs" will be.

This Day in History: January 30

On this day in 1781, Maryland becomes the 13th and final state to ratify the Articles of Confederation, almost three years after the official deadline given by Congress of March 10, 1778.