Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Even More on Fox News

From the Liberal Viewer.

It really is amazing that some people insist Fox is not biased. The other day we heard them claiming there's a big difference between the opinion sections and the news sections.

Illegal Guns in Canada

YorkRegion.com reports on the illegal handguns that have been taken off the streets in their area of Canada.

The Uzi submachine gun can spew hundreds of rounds per minute. The Glock handgun, capable of firing up to 33 bullets from a single magazine. The tiny Beretta pistol with silencer delivers noiseless death.

These lethal weapons and others were recently and illegally in the hands of criminals. Wednesday, the seized weapons were neatly and safely displayed as part of a police services board presentation on illegal firearms and weapons in our neighbourhoods.

The cache represents some of the 68 hand guns seized in 2007, the 41 last year and the 56 to date this year.

As for illegal long guns, such as rifles and shotguns, police took 188 of them off York streets last year.

This year, the tally is 196.

There's nothing like a little sensationalism when talking about guns I always say. I like that "noiseless death." But the point is well taken, guns are being removed from the streets.

The Canadians feel it's popular culture that glamorizes guns, entertainers, rappers and the like. This combined with the lucrative business of gun running, makes for a serious problem.

A legal standard 9mm pistol sells for approximately $500.

On the street, the same unlicensed weapon fetches up to eight times the price.

Do you think they're exaggerating? If those numbers are true, it's no wonder there's a thriving gun smuggling underworld. And where do you suppose those guns are smuggled from?

Of the 3.65 million firearms produced in the United States in 2008, hundreds are smuggled into Canada each year.

Of the 253,000 handguns and more than two million rifles and shotguns legally registered in Ontario, 16,000 of the former and 70,000 of the latter are in York Region.

Instead of "hundreds," wouldn't you think it's more like thousands or tens of thousands. Why not just call it 90% and get it over with?

Here's a shocker:

Firearms kill more within the 15 to 24 demographic than cancer, drowning and falls combined.

What's your opinion? I can see that cancer might not kill too many in that age bracket, but I always thought falls and drownings did. Does this sound like a credible statistic to you?

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Monday, October 26, 2009

More on Fox News



Do you think it's a fair criticism of the White House that they're failing to differentiate between the opinion segments and the news segments on Fox News?

Is Fox News the "Voice of the Opposition?" Wouldn't that indicate the White House is right in saying Fox News is not a legitimate news show?

The Biggest Gangster

Meet Semion Mogilevich.

Sunday, October 25, 2009

I Repeat, Guns Are Bad News for Women

The Violence Policy Center came out with a report entitled, When Men Murder Women; An Analysis of 2007 Homicide Data. This information perfectly supports what I presented in my post entitled Guns and Women but has come to be known as "guns are bad news for women."

Opening remarks on page 1.

One federal study on homicide among intimate partners found that female intimate partners are more likely to be murdered with a firearm than all other means combined, concluding that “the figures demonstrate the importance of reducing access to firearms in households affected by IPV [intimate partner violence].

From page 8.


In 2007, the homicide rate among female victims murdered by males in single victim/single offender incidents nationally was 1.30 per 100,000. For that year, Louisiana ranked first as the state with the highest homicide rate among female victims killed by male offenders in single victim/single offender incidents. Its rate of 2.53 per 100,000 was nearly double the national average. Louisiana was followed by Alaska (2.44 per 100,000) and Wyoming (2.33 per 100,000).

There's a table providing a more extensive listing, but you already know what it looks like. How can the pro-gun crowd deny the connection between lax gun laws, the prevalence of guns in the home and gun violence? And these statistics practically eliminate the gangs and drug killings. These are about normal gun owners who kill their female partners, you know the guys I've always been saying should never have had guns in the first place.

What's your opinion? Is this entire study suspect because it comes from the VPC folks? Is there another way to explain why states like Louisiana and Oklahoma have so much more lethal domestic violence than New Jersey and New York? Please tell us.

Feel free to leave a comment.

Store Clerk Disarms Robbers

The New York Post reports on a thwarted robbery on Long Island. You can view the wonderful video on their site.

The hero is named Mustafa Yakupoglu.

"This is the third time for me, but this time was different. I was not scared."

A native of Turkey, Yakupoglu moved to America in 1995 and worked at a gas station in Huntington Station that was robbed twice.

But his inner Charles Bronson stayed hidden during those stick-ups, and he handed over cash without resisting.

"I was new to this country back then," he said. "I couldn't speak the language. I couldn't speak English.

"Now I can speak."

What do you think of his actions? Was he foolish or heroic? One thing I noticed is he didn't shoot them in the back as they were fleeing. For that restraint I give him credit.

Please feel free to leave a comment.

Heavily Armed London Police

Security Manaagement reports on the arming up of London street cops.


Some London neighborhoods are set to look a little more like Northern Ireland as elite paramilitary police hit the streets of specific neighborhoods marked by high levels of drug-related gang violence.

About 20 officers from the Metropolitan Police's CO19 branch, the English equivalent of American SWAT Teams, will increasingly patrol "no go" zones where rival Turkish gangs have engaged in violent shootouts recently. The officers, some on motorbikes, will conduct weapon sweeps on individuals.

Drugs and violence and obviously guns are coming into London. It seems perfectly logical that the police need to meet the threat with increased firepower.

London has recently seen a significant jump in gun crimes with 1,736 gun crimes reported in between April and September—a 17 percent increase over last year. On average, there are 50 to 60 shooting deaths a year in England and Wales, according to the AP.

Do you think the increase in gun crime in spite of strict gun control laws proves those laws do not work? That's the pro-gun argument, isn't it? I say it's not necessarily so. If gun availability increased and we somehow could ensure that none of the other factors changed, then the argument might make sense, but I'm afraid that's not the case.

Often I'm accused of focusing only on the gun to the exclusion of all else, an accusation I deny. I'm well aware of the other factors involved in a violent society. Ironically, the pro-gun argument that says Chicago or Newark or London has gun violence in spite of their laws, which proves those laws don't work, pretends that gun availability is the only factor. In other words, when convenient the gun rights crowd does the same thing they accuse me of.

I ask you this, about the gun violence in London, about the suicide rate in Japan, about Chicago and Newark, if somehow we could immediately flood those places with handguns, do you think there'd be more violence or less? Do you think the violence would increase in lethality in such a case? This is how common sense and reason can give you the answer when conflicting statistics often cannot.

What's your opinion? What do you think about the opposition to London's decision? They feel it violates the tenets of English policing, which is traditionally done by unarmed officers on foot patrol. Another concern is "how the unit would handle such powerful weaponry on crowded city streets." That's a good question, isn't it?

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.