The Venn Diagram Showing Hidden Criminals

The Venn Diagram of Gun Owners reposted from a couple years ago

A = criminal gun owners
B = law-abiding gunowners
AUB =all of the in-between guys, including but not limited to the following.

1. anyone who has ever violated a gun-law but has never been convicted of a felony.
2. anyone who abuses his wife or children in any way but has never been convicted of it.
3. anyone who is addicted to drugs and/or alcohol but has not yet been disqualified. 
4. anyone who has ever dropped a gun or caused a negligent discharge.
5. anyone who has become elderly or otherwise physically incapacitated.


I realize there are others, please feel free to mention them in the comments.  And I apologize for the disproportionate diagram.  The AUB section should be much, much larger.

UPDATE: The diagram is very much out of proportion.  Circle B would be much larger than circle A and the overlapping section representing the hidden criminals would be the largest part of all.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment

Three-Quarters of Mass Shootings are Done by Law-Abiding Gun Owners

Mother Jones

Weapons: Of the 143 guns possessed by the killers, more than three quarters were obtained legally. The arsenal included dozens of assault weapons and semi-automatic handguns with high-capacity magazines. (See charts below.) Just as Jeffrey Weise used a .40-caliber Glock to slaughter students in Red Lake, Minnesota, in 2005, so too did James Holmes, along with an AR-15 assault rifle, when blasting away at his victims in a darkened movie theater. In Newtown, Connecticut, Adam Lanza wielded a.223 Bushmaster semi-automatic assault rifle as he massacred 20 school children and six adults.

Here's the full chart, which also shows numerous shootings that are not in gun-free zones.

One has to wonder if this high a percentage of mass shootings is done by lawful gun owners, how does that translate into all the other gun violence?

What do you think?  Please leave a comment.

Concealed Carry Permit Suspended For Man With Gun, Body Armor At Theater

CBS Detroit

Authorities have suspended a concealed weapon permit for a Flint-area man who wore body armor and possessed a loaded gun while watching the movie “Red 2.”

Cassidy Delavergne was removed from Trillium Theater in Grand Blanc Township around 8:20 p.m. Tuesday after someone noticed the vest and gun. He was arrested after flashing a fake Central Intelligence Agency identification badge and telling police that he was a federal agent.

Delavergne isn’t charged with a gun crime, but federal authorities have charged him with possessing the phony CIA card.

The FBI said Delavergne was carrying a 9 mm pistol with 34 rounds of ammunition, with an additional 111 rounds of ammo in his car.

I suppose he was not charged with a gun crime because of the concealed carry permit.  But, one has to wonder what a guy who carries a fake CIA ID is capable of. It also begs the question, what are some of the other concealed carry permit holders up to?

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Child's Grandpa Charged in Accidental Fatal Shooting in Iowa

Local news reports

Clay County authorities say a 56-year-old man is charged with endangering a child after his grandsons got hold of his shotgun last night and one of them was fatally shot.

Danny Bowman is charged with abandoning or endangering a child resulting in death.

According to an arrest affidavit, Bowman left his nine-year-old and 13-year-old grandsons in the care of his disabled wife while he went to go get beer.

The affidavit states Bowman leaves his loaded 12-gauge shotgun in the house unsecured at all times.

While he was gone, the 13-year-old says the boys took the gun outside and he tried to hand it off to the nine-year-old but the gun fell.

The affidavit says when the 13-year-old tried to pick it up, a round fired, hitting the nine-year-old in the face and killing him.

He was a lawful gun owner doing what many lawful gun owners do, drinking beer and leaving a loaded shotgun accessible to kids at all times.

We've all heard the excuses, "there's nothing more useless than an unloaded gun."  And what harm can a few brewskies do?

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Accidental Shooting in Wisconsin - Granddad Shoots Grandson - No Charges

Local news reports

A Racine teen was reportedly shot Wednesday by his grandfather in Adams County, in an apparent target shooting accident, according to the Adams County Sheriff’s Office.

The 14-year-old Racine boy was reportedly shot in the abdomen Wednesday evening while on vacation in the Town of Strongs Prairie, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

He was target shooting with relatives when he was reportedly shot by his 64-year-old grandfather, who was handling a handgun, according to law enforcement.

The shooting, which happened at approximately 6 p.m. Wednesday, appears to be accidental, said Sgt. Mike Kroetz of the Sheriff’s Office.

"Appears to be accidental," are code words for "oh, well, these things happen, no problem."

What do you think?  Please leave  a comment.

Gun in Waistband Leads to Accidental Shooting

Local news reports

First Joseph A. Hewitt earned himself a trip to the hospital after accidentally shooting himself Friday night. Then he earned himself a trio of felony charges for allegedly having handling a reported stolen weapon, police said Saturday.

Schenectady Police Lt. Mark McCracken said Hewitt, 21, of Schenectady was charged with two counts of criminal possession of a weapon and one count of criminal possession of stolen property following the shooting. He said police received a call at 7:55 p.m. Friday for a man who was shot in the groin at the Imperial Motel on State Street. Police later found Hewitt accidentally shot himself with a revolver when it went off while in his waistband.

The handgun was reported stolen from North Carolina, McCracken said, adding that Hewitt wasn't able to have a gun because of a previous conviction.

This story reminds me of the discussions I've had recently with Texas Colt carry. The way he describes it, this young man is a rarity among gun owners. His type may exist in the criminal world, but among lawful gun owners guys like this are hard to come by.

Of course, I have a different impression.  I think there any too many, even among law-abiding gun owners who do stupid stuff like this.  We read about them every day, and obviously those that make the news are only the tip of the iceberg.  I suppose sticking a loaded gun in your waistband is something you learn on TV or in the movies.  It's cool.

What do you think?  Please leave a comment.

NRA Opens Museum Showing Nearly 1,000 Firearms

Napoleon's Flintlock Fowler is pictured in this undated handout photo provided by the National Firearms Museum. This 20 gauge Flintlock Fowler once belonged to Napolean Bonaparte (1769-1821). The firearm is part of the exhibition at the National Rifle Association's (NRA) National Sporting Arms Museum in Springfield, Mo. (REUTERS/National Firearms Museum/Handout via Reuters)

The Sun Times

The National Rifle Association has opened an elaborate museum in the American Midwest, displaying nearly 1,000 firearms, including those used by French Emperor Napoleon and Hollywood cowboy star John Wayne, along with subtle reminders of the campaign for the right to gun ownership. 

 The NRA National Sporting Arms Museum opened on Friday at a sprawling Bass Pro Shops outdoor retail store in Springfield, Mo., a politically conservative central U.S. city that is a gateway to the mountainous Ozarks region popular with tourists and hunters. 

Admission is free to the 7,500-square-foot (697-square-metres) museum, which has detailed dioramas and displays that were a decade in the planning stages, said NRA officials. 

 "If you are a gun person, you are going to love this place," museum director Jim Supica says in an online video promoting the museum as "one of the premier firearms museums in the world."