Chris Cox, the executive director for the National Rifle Association’s Institute for Legislative Action, told a national television audience Donald Trump was wrong to suggest the shooting in Orlando could have been prevented, at least in part, if patrons to the nightclub Pulse had been allowed to carry weapons – that drinking alcohol and concealed carrying just don’t mix.
“No one thinks that people should go into a nightclub drinking and carrying firearms,” said Cox, during an interview on “This Week” with ABC. “That defies common sense. It also defies the law.” [More]Well, gosh, if the Vulcan Chessmaster thinks it's logical to parrot gun-grabber talking points, who are those of us who believe the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed, but we should all be held accountable for our actions, to argue?
And then afterwards, he tries to weasel out of it. SOP.
I wonder if he recommends NRA members make sure their guns are in a different location when their wine club shipments arrive? If not, why not?
Good people don't pull out a gun and shoot innocent folk even if they are drunk. Yes, I know this from personal experience. And bad guys don't have to be drunk to start shooting people who don't deserve it. "Mr." Cox also seems to have an aptronym.
ReplyDeleteBut off duty po lice (and some on duty) do it all the time and they never,ever get into trouble.....do they?
ReplyDeleteOn page 6a in this morning's The Tampa Bay Times, the Opinions page, is a letter to the editor concerning the Orlando shootings:
ReplyDelete"Orlando massacre
An ineffective response
We can argue over guns, President Barack Obama's Muslim immigration policies, or the failure of government to properly identify this man as a potential terrorist despite all the numerous warning signs. But none of this addresses the pitiful response of the onsite police and SWAT teams, supposedly well-trained and well-armed, waiting over three hours to storm the building and neutralize this threat, and especially so soon after the Paris theater shootings.
If this is the pathetic response we can expect to a single gunman, God help us if there are two or more gunmen and a potential six-hour killing rampage. The Times should be taking the lead and asking the tough questions here."
The letter's author is correct in that the three hour response delay was two hours and 59 minutes too long. However, what is really the atrocity in this matter is that as an establishment that received more than 50 percent of their income from alcohol sales, concealed carry of weapons by non-LEOs was prohibited by Florida law. This removed the most numerous first responder who would be truly motivated to take down the shooter - the armed holder of a Florida Concealed Carry of Weapons license. Since most people are law abiding and did not want to be arrested for a second degree misdemeanor charge, none of the nightclub patrons were armed. You can thank the Florida Legislature for this problem, as the right to keep and bear arms did not cease because the Founders found themselves in a tavern.
It is estimated that Florida's population in 2016 is 20,270,000 people. Of those, 16,115,000 are age 18 or older. 1,571,000 possess a Florida CCW which requires you to be at least age 21 years, or roughly one in ten adults age 18 or older. Since 212,000 licenses are held by out of state residents who may not live in Florida for more than half of the year, we can conclude that at least one of twelve adult in-state residents of Florida have a CCW. There are a total of 1,757,000 licenses to carry of all types, with some duplication of people within the types, as found with Omar Mateen who was also licensed as a security guard.
What these numbers mean is that of the 100 people killed or wounded in the Orlando nightclub, approximately 8 could have been carrying a weapon to defend themselves if not prohibited by Florida law. This estimate does not include the approximately 200 people who escaped the nightclub unharmed. Including them would mean that potentially 24 people in the crowd could have been armed. Even if only one out of five CCW holders carried a firearm into the nightclub that night, then 5 could have responded immediately and appropriately with in-kind violence instead of waiting three hours for rescue for their friends or themselves, while those that could have been salvaged if treatment was initiated during the "Golden Hour" died. A Level 1 Trauma Center was only four blocks away from the nightclub. That is the real tragedy and an unintended consequence of a Gun Free Zone meant to promote the illusory perception of "safety".
http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2016/06/12/orlando-pulse-gay-bar-gun-free-zone-state-law/
http://www.2acheck.com/but-you-cant-carry-a-gun-into-a-bar/
http://www.freshfromflorida.com/content/download/7471/118627/Number_of_Licensees_By_Type.pdf
http://www.freshfromflorida.com/content/download/7502/118869/cw_active.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_hour_(medicine)
http://www.jems.com/articles/2008/08/golden-hour.html
http://lifeinthefastlane.com/ccc/trauma-mortality-and-the-golden-hour/
http://www.hillsboroughcounty.org/DocumentCenter/Home/View/1810