Rekindling an Issue

Some commentators who oppose what they see as unconstitutional limits on gun ownership said they feared gun control advocates would successfully use the Virginia tragedy to bolster their position, especially with Democrats’ new power in Washington. “We see calls for gun control but we may not see as much empathy for calls for armed self-defense,” said David Codrea, a blogger and a columnist for Guns Magazine.

Pretty tepid stuff. I'd settle for just kindling the issue in the first place. As I alluded to yesterday, I contacted major papers and networks with the following questions:

Why don’t you consider the fact that Virginia Tech policy prohibits firearms on campus—even for concealed weapon permit holders—important enough to inform your readers and viewers?

Why do I read, watch and listen in vain to find any reference to a bill that never made it out of committee that would have changed that? Why did Virginia Tech Associate VP of University Relations Larry Hincker say the death of the bill that would have allowed adult students and faculty the means to defend themselves made him “happy”?

Why did Hincker pen an editorial reply on The Roanoake Times ridiculing the concept of peaceable people keeping and bearing arms on campus?

Why have your respective outlets been silent on these matters?

This is what I spent the brunt of my time discussing with reporter Leslie Eaton. What she quoted me on was an afterthought to a follow-up question. To her credit, I don't think the decision to cut the majority of our conversation came from her. She sent me a follow-up email, saying in part:

i'm afraid some of my reporting on the debate over carrying ban in virginia may not make this piece because i had to include a lot of political stuff from washington. i hope to try again tomorrow. but i used your thought about the dem. congress.

I hope she does try again, and at least one major outlet covers these important questions. Here's what I wrote back:

I...appreciate that you will try again. I just don't see how the editors can consider their obligation to their readers complete by omitting discussion of VTech's campus disarmament policy, the failed bill, and the hostile public statements of the university spokesman.

I suppose I ought to look at the bright side. I got ink in "The Paper of Record," they didn't misquote me, and most importantly, they spelled my name right.

UPDATE: I just got a copy of the paper and the article appears on page A19.

A Letter WorldNetDaily Didn't (Wouldn't?) Print

In response to "How to Prevent Next Massacre":

Aside from the usual suspects, there’s one big impediment to allowing students and faculty to keep and bear arms on campus that will surprise most WND readers: The NRA.

“[W]e believe in absolutely gun-free, zero-tolerance, totally safe schools,” Association Executive Vice President and WND Books author (“Guns, Freedom and Terrorism”) Wayne LaPierre proclaimed in his address to members at the 1999 Annual Meeting. “That means no guns in America's schools, period ... with the rare exception of law enforcement officers or trained security personnel.”

But that was 8 years ago. Perhaps times have changed?

Current NRA president and new WND “On Target” columnist Sandy Froman suggested a possible shift shortly after the Minnesota school shootings in 2005, recommending “we need to look at all options.”

The following week, after a “clarification” to the press by LaPierre, Froman backed off, stating “The only people that ought to have firearms in the schools are law enforcement and trained security personnel.”

Will the massacre of the defenseless at Virginia Tech finally prompt LaPierre & Co. to admit that gun control laws don't work, and the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed anywhere? I don't know. Being a mere Life Member, they won't answer me. And while others in the gun rights community, from smaller groups to bloggers, are calling for the obvious, our cautious ostensible leaders "will not have further comment until all the facts are known."

Perhaps you, Mr. Farah, will have better luck eliciting an answer.

David Codrea

Then again, perhaps not.

33 Dead. Can We Have Some Money?

Aside from being demonstrably shameless liars, these mercenary bastards aren't above a little war profiteering while the iron is hot, are they?

The names of all the dead haven't even been released yet, and these information superhighway off ramp beggars already have their grubby, blood-soaked mitts out.

Mag Shortage?

Correspondent Andre C asks me if I've heard anything about all major wholesalers being sold out on Glock mags. Can anyone verify this, and if so, is there supposedly any connection to recent events?

We're the Only Ones Secret Enough

Two Secret Service officers were injured on Tuesday after a gun held by another Secret Service officer accidentally fired inside the White House gate...

The gun accidentally fired. That seems to happen a lot in "authorized journalist" reports. I'm sure no secret fingers were secretly on the secret trigger or anything...

[More from "The (Shhh...they're SECRET) Only Ones" files...]

[Via, in order: Matt M, Ron W, Andre C and Blogonomicon]

This Day in History: April 18

Listen my children and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-five;
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.

Take a moment and re-read this famous poem, preferably with a young person.

Two Personal Developments

My editor at GUNS Magazine is going to bump one of my articles in the queue to make way for "A Very Sound Policy," which focuses on Virginia Tech's weapons prohibition policy and the comments of its spokesman, Larry Hincker. Still, it will be a while before it hits the stands--magazine columns are poor places to discuss breaking news stories, but this one couldn't go ignored.

Also, I just got off the phone with Leslie Eaton of The New York Times. As I mentioned earlier, I contacted major newspapers and TV networks asking why they weren't talking about this in their coverage. I had requested we conduct the questioning via email so I'd have a context record to fall back on--I guess I'm just a tad wary of dealing with "The Gray Lady"-- but was informed they were having delay problems with their email system.

Ms. Eaton seemed pleasant and earnest, confessed she "had no idea" about some of the information I was conveying, so we'll see. One of the things she was looking for was if I thought this would increase the likelihood for more or less "gun control." I opted for the pessimistic side, so let's everybody hope I'm wrong.

I even suggested she call NRA to see if Wayne LaPierre's school gun ban endorsement applies to colleges, which she did, but so far, they haven't responded.

There's no guarantee, of course, that The Times will use any of this.

Larry Hincker's Words Should Haunt Him Forever

I agree.

And as for news outlets picking up on this, I've done what I can to email the major newspapers and networks, that is, the "authorized journalists" who would have us believe they are so much more reliable than mere bloggers for getting people information they need to safeguard their liberty. If they don't report on this, it's not because they don't know about it--it's because it doesn't serve their agenda.

Is Shooting Grounds for Gun Control?

"ABC News" has a poll up. Go take it. Yeah, it's "non-scientific," buy you know perception is everything...

Speaking of polls, The Citizens Journal has one of its own.

[ABC News tip Via 1894C]

Europeans Blaming Heston

With a view to Monday's deadly shooting rampage at Virginia Tech, European newspapers are blaming the lack of gun control measures in the United States and implying that Charlton Heston is indirectly responsible for the scope of the killings.

Now seems as good a time as any to resurrect this old GunTruths poster:

We're the Only Ones Closer to Mayhem Enough

Would someone remind me, again, why the Town of Wallkill thinks it needs a police department, or, more to the point, why it believes it can run a police department effectively?

Last week we learned that a .380-caliber semi-automatic handgun used in a shooting just off North Street in Middletown probably came from, drum roll, the Town of Wallkill police evidence room.

Perhaps we have, right here, what should be the new front in the gun-control fight: Register the guns in the police evidence rooms! Permits for the pistols in the evidence rooms!

Here's more on a story we commented on two days ago. "Only Ones" and "mayhem"? Since when?

[Via Declan]

Red's Under Fire: From More than the Feds

Once many gun dealers backed the National Association of Stocking Gun Dealers, whose efforts helped put so-called "kitchen-table gun dealers" out of business. The immediate effect was to loosen competition.

But it also loosened the schedules of thousands of overburdened agents at the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Gee, selling rope to hang the competition? Finding out an organization you depended on had an agenda of its own to take care of its preferred backers? Who ever heard of that?

Mountain Man Custom Jewelry Gun and Pawn Inc...allowed its license to lapse in January. Soon, there was an agent knocking at the business' door for the first time in more than 20 years. A three-day audit earned its owner, Gary Painter, his first warning.

Mr. Painter, it seems like only a week-and-a-half ago, you were deflecting attention to Red's Trading Post. But that's OK--it looks like Christy Newlan of Main Street Pawn and Collectibles has taken over the finger-pointing.

Christy and Joe Waldron of CCRKBA, it would seem:

"There are people that would argue the ATF is using this to intimidate gun dealers," Waldron said in a telephone interview. "If the ATF goes after a dealer, I am going to assume those gun dealers are doing something they shouldn't be."

Why, Mr. Waldron? Why would you automatically assume BATFU does not have such an agenda, and side with them over dealers, particularly at a time when Red's is fighting for its life?

If it's your and CCRKBA's position that ATF activities are constitutional, I'd appreciate hearing you out. If it's your and CCRKBA's position that citizens found in violation of state and federal gun edicts are presupposed guilty, and the enforcement agencies presupposed acting legitimately, please flesh out your thesis.

Should we assume you meant every word, or that you were misquoted and your statement was taken out of context?

This Day in History: April 17

April 17, Washington writes the New York Committee of Safety. New York has not yet come down decisively on the side of independence, and merchants and government officials are supplying the British ships still in the harbor. Washington, angry at the continued communication with the enemy, asks the Committee if the evidence about them does not suggest that the former Colonies and Great Britain are now at war. He insists that such communications should cease.

Imagine if Students Were Armed

Read this letter and see the contempt Larry Hincker, associate vice president for university relations at Virginia Tech, publicly heaps on the suggestion that students may need to defend themselves.

Here is the letter he ridiculed.

Comments on Virginia Tech Shooting

Naturally, amidst the horror, we could expect this:

"We live in a society where guns are pretty well accepted," said Jim Sollo, of Virginians Against Handgun Violence. "There are 200 million guns in this society and obviously some in the wrong hands."

And just as obviously, not enough in the right ones. Per the Virginia Tech Campus and Workplace Violence Prevention Policy:

2.2 Prohibition of Weapons

The university’s employees, students, and volunteers, or any visitor or other third party attending a sporting, entertainment, or educational event, or visiting an academic or administrative office building or residence hall, are further prohibited from carrying, maintaining, or storing a firearm or weapon on any university facility, even if the owner has a valid permit, when it is not required by the individual’s job, or in accordance with the relevant University Student Life Policies.

Any such individual who is reported or discovered to possess a firearm or weapon on university property will be asked to remove it immediately. Failure to comply may result in a student judicial referral and/or arrest, or an employee disciplinary action and/or arrest.

2.3 Authorized Exceptions to Prohibition on Possession of Firearms or Weapons

An employee may possess a firearm or weapon if it is:

• Used by an employee who is a certified law enforcement officer employed by the Virginia Tech Police Department;
• Required as a part of the employee’s job duties with the Commonwealth of Virginia; or
• Connected with training received by the employee in order to perform the responsibilities of their job with the university.

Employees and students may possess and use appropriate tools, such as saws, knives, and other such implements, necessary for the performance of their job duties or school work, or for student recreational purposes approved under University Student Life Policies. Certain agricultural workers have been authorized to use firearms, and hunting on university property may be authorized by the appropriate university officials. Some employees reside in university-owned houses and are permitted to keep personal firearms on these premises; however, this exception does not extend to employees living in university residence halls.

As stated in The University Policies for Student Life, students may not possess, use, or store firearms or weapons on university property; however, firearms and other weapons may be stored with the Virginia Tech Police Department to be checked out for use off-campus. Organizational weapons of the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets, approved by the Commandant, are not prohibited by this policy.

Other exceptions must be approved by the Vice President for Business Affairs, in consultation with appropriate university offices.

Here's one other thing we can expect: The renewed cries for disarming you and me will push this debate into a level of hysteria and demands that will be unlike anything we have yet encountered. This will be a catalyst. Count on it.

Stanley Taken Captive

At about 11:30am Denver time, as Rick and I were exiting our bank, a dozen or so swat team descended upon us. They fired stun grenades in order to disorient us and screamed at us to get down on the ground. They proceeded to tie our arms behind our backs, then handcuff us. As they were doing this we were asking "what is going on?" They merely told us that Rick's bond had been revoked by a judge.

Here's the most recent update I've received (Sunday, April 15, 2007 9:17 PM):

I just got back from Denver County Jail a few minutes ago. I was able to visit
with Rick for about 10 minutes after waiting approximately 2-1/2 hours. My
sister-in-law and her husband were kind enough to take me down there and wait
with me, although only 1 of us was allowed up to see him. We got there at about
6:40pm and they allow 3 groups of 10 in, starting at 7:00pm. I was in the 3rd group.

He seems to be holding up well under the circumstances. He was allowed a shower this morning and he is still in the clothes he had on yesterday when they took him into custody. There is a large hole in the back of his shirt and a large bandage on his back from where they bean bagged him when they ambushed us yesterday. Apparently he was burned pretty bad by that. Needless to say, I am pretty upset about that! You know him though, he seems to be taking all this in stride. I think he feels the worst that I was subjected to their abuse as well.

We expect that he will be moved to Adams County tomorrow. Then he will hopefully get a hearing as soon as possible and a new bond set. I will advise everyone as soon as I get more information

Pam Stanley

Here's a link to the last "news" story I could find. The "authorized journalists" make quite a show out of portraying Rick as a "threat" on behalf of their government partners.

Here's a link to what I had to say about that.

It doesn't look like the oppressors are going to stop poking with that stick, does it?

Exercise your unalienable Second Amendment-recognized right to keep and bear arms in the United States of America and end up in the gulag as a political prisoner.

Dear Abby, Dear Abby, My Fountain Pen Leaks...*

I don't know what to do, and aside from whether or not my parents would approve, and all other logistical/material concerns aside, I'm not really sure whether I should buy a gun.--Sane Gun Lover

-------------

Why not say that, as interesting and psychically rich as our twisted Southern heritage is, it's time to retire the guns.--Cary Tennis

Gun Lover, Gun Lover
You have no complaint
You are what you are and you ain't what you ain't
So listen up Buster, and listen up well
Tell hoplophobe Cary to go straight to hell

Oh, and while you're at it, stop being such a nihilistic emo wuss. You come off like the Goth kids on South Park.

* With apologies to John Prine

[Via Dan Gifford]

I Use My Hands to...

...murder an animal companion.

The Brady Campaign/God Not Guns/Enuretics United coalition issued a "Hands Without Guns" coloring book a while back because it's something smug liberals think is relevant for turning their children into good little herd animals.

One thing I always get amusement out of is when the Stupid Left turns on itself--and I try to encourage that from time to time. For instance, when Levi Strauss supported citizen disarmament a few years back, I emailed People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, complaining about the tag the company put on the back of their jeans, which, while politically acceptable enough to be imitation leather, still depicted a cruel scene of capitalist exploitation via whip-driven animal slavery.

Well, I, for one, can't sit still while the thoughtless religious zealot specists at the Brady/God Alliance endorse the sport murder of beings that "are smart, interesting animals with their own unique personalities—just like the dogs and cats we share our homes with."

That assertion comes from our friends at PETA, who even have their own comic book to prove it, and hopefully deflect some of the ichthyocidal violence initiated by a cult group of superstitious fanatics. I mean, it's bad enough that Jesus fed the multitudes with the flesh of these gentle souls.

Join me in asking PETA to demand the retraction of "Hands Without Guns" until the hideously offensive depiction of a child...a child, for Dagon's sake...stalking what should be finny friends, with premeditated and horribly agonizing murder in her heart, is deleted.

And while we're at it, let's not forget the impaled worm and the exploited goat hostage...

We're the Only Ones Triangulated Enough

The State Commission on Judicial Conduct issued the suspension order in the wake of charges Aruajo shot her husband March 10 over a reputed love triangle, and threatened a niece of Mayor Roger Stapp in an unrelated incident March 8 in which she allegedly threatened the niece during a phone conversation that she could “put her away” and had the power “to do anything she wanted” as JP.

More torrid drama in an ongoing soap opera I may start calling "Only One Life to Live."

The Single Biggest Problem

"We know what happens in Dade County will affect what happens in Broward County," Jenne said. "The single biggest problem in South Florida is the rise in the use of AKs."

Actually, it sounds like the single biggest problem is Dade County has a liar for a sheriff when it comes to talking to the media about militia-suitable arms.

But I guess blaming a class of weapons he'd like to see you and me criminalized for owning is easier than tackling the real issues, plus it guarantees an enthusiastic cheerleading squad and plenty of free publicity from the "authorized journalists."

[Via Nathan F]