B - B Guns with Breda and Weer'd

Well, the last thing I thought I'd do on a Saturday afternoon is spend an hour listening to Weer'd Beard and Breda. Their descriptions of how they became gun owners, especially Weer'd's, were quite fascinating.  Mainly I was impressed with how nice they seemed.  This came as a bit of a surprise since they've been among the nastiest internet characters I've met. Breda banned me from her blog after I questioned and criticized her gun handling in a couple videos she'd posted.  With Weer'd, I think it's his inability to accept someone not agreeing with him, not coming around to his position.

This episode of B - B Radio certainly takes perseverance, but at about 42 minutes you'll be rewarded with Breda sharing with the listeners about her gun dream that morning. This set Weer'd off on an incredible recitation of all the types of gun dreams he's had.

This first experience of mine listening to pro-gun folks yuck it up with each other, confirmed a couple of ideas I've had all along. Discovering guns to be empowering and becoming addicted to that feeling, addiction being a good word to describe the progression both of them described, fits right in with the anti-gun observation that gun owners are inadequate in some way and the guns help to compensate.  Weer'd's description of not needing the guns but knowing he'll have one handy if he ever does, perfectly illustrated this form of mental illness.  The caller from Texas who'd owned guns since age nine said he didn't have such dreams. Breda commented on that, what was it, that he'd more completely absorbed the culture, or something.

Gun-rights advocates often claim that having moved from the liberal "anti-gun" camp to the other side of the divide lends credibility to their position. I believe it's the exact opposite. Shooting guns is exhilarating and empowering, it can be a compensating mechanism for psychological lacunae, such as in the case of Breda and Weer'd (but apparently not in the case of that caller from Texas). Many people are seduced to make the move from the anti-gun camp to the pro-gun camp. What's less common and much more difficult is to move the other way, to have had experience with firearms and decide they're bad news. That's the thing that lends credibility to one's argument.

The other thing is the dreams. Gun owners, who start out compensating for inadequacy, often experience a lively fantasy life. They dream, waking and sleeping, of using their guns, of saving the day, of fighting off the evil bad guys. This is part of the addiction, or if you will, the illness. The more a gun owner does the less fit he is for owning guns. Many of these folks are downright dangerous and something should be done about them, which is where sensible but strict gun control laws come in.

Listen to internet radio with B B Guns on Blog Talk Radio

The Gift That Keeps Giving

Psssssst. Hey you--NRA member! Yeah, you---with the ketchup stains on your AK-47 t-shirt that's two sizes too small.

Hey, didja hear about the latest NRA candidate for Congress? No, not the one who's a witch who believes they've cloned mice with human brains. Nahh...not the weirdo from Alaska who wants to repeal most of the Constitution because that's what the Founders intended.

There's this teabaggin' GOPer in Ohio who...well...see for yourself:
An election year already notable for its menagerie of extreme and unusual candidates can add another one: Rich Iott, the Republican nominee for Congress from Ohio's 9th District, and a Tea Party favorite, who for years donned a German Waffen SS uniform and participated in Nazi re-enactments.

This is what the NRA spends your dues on.

CC Bathroom Advice

It's interesting to hear all the ways it can go wrong from the pro-gun preventative perspective.

"Yes, some people figure it out on their own, obviously, but some people don't. And that's why I'm making this video."

The problem is the ones who most need these lessons are the least interested.

University of Louisville

A female student pulled out a gun during a meeting with faculty members, they think, intending to kill herself. Quick action on the part of one or more of the professors saved the day.

Too bad they weren't all armed. They could have just shot her. (/sarcasm)

What's your opinion?  In spite of this case in which the five professors were unarmed, which allowed for a death-free resolution, do you think guns on campuses is a good thing? Do you think they would do more good than harm?

Please leave a comment.

Another Police Shooting - Bonham TX

The local news reports on yet another justified police shooting. That's not sarcastic.  Although I am skeptical of these reports, I have no problem with the police, or anyone else for that matter, responding to a lethal threat.

The officers arrived at Mr. Ramquist's rental home on North Shore Drive, north of Lake Bonham, around 11:30 a.m. The suspect confirmed he was the person named in the warrant and invited the officers into the brick home, Tackett said. But, once inside, he became less cooperative and retreated into a bedroom for a moment, Tackett said. When he came back out of it, he was carrying a gun, which he allegedly pointed at the officers.

This seems to happen a lot, so much so they've invented a cute expression to describe it: suicide by cop. But when we talk about 14,000 murders a year with guns and 16,000 suicides a year with guns, or whatever the latest numbers are, where do we put these "suicide by cop" cases?  Maybe we need another category.  Maybe the gun deaths are even worse than we thought.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Jet Packs

Opinione published this absolutely hysterical story about Fox News being taken in. The video gives me an idea, though, for the future of the re-vamped ATF once Laci takes over.

LACI FOR ATF DIRECTOR

Laci on the Lack of Socialism

At Laci the Dog's Blog there's a great post about the ridiculous accusations that Obama is a Socialist. 

The problem is that I want to see more lefty/progressive solutions, but US politics fall amazingly toward the right of the political spectrum.  Socialism my arse if any health insurance I am forced to buy comes from a non-governmental source!  In fact, Politicans in the US are far too friendly with business interests to even remotely be considered “socialist”.  I have yet to hear of any industries being truly nationalised.

Oh, I forgot, “Socialism” is one of those words that the media use to scare people into voting against their interests.  Mention “Socialism” and the average US Citizen will vote to repeal the Thirteenth Amendment, get rid of the minimum wage, and ensure they are REALLY slaves.

Opinione has a couple of good posts about alternative political parties and how they are frozen out of the political process: This and This.  The problem is that the US is a one party system posing as a multi-party system.  US MSM is able to freeze out other opinions and solutions so that US politics has begun to offer pataphysical solutions to real serious crises.  Only NPR discusses the topic of US wealth inequality since mentioning that topic raises the spectre of socialism.  Heaven knows, we can allow the rich to get richer, but if the rest of us see our standard of living decline–remember who owns the media!

When you think about it, isn't it funny the way folks will mindlessly repeat what they've heard others say. I suppose liberals do this too, but nobody can touch those tea party characters and Obama haters.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Fox News - Republicans - D'Souza

Media Matters published a wonderful article entitled Damage Control Week, highlighting recent events.

About Fox's defense of New York gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino, the author concluded this:

All this raises some interesting questions. Is there anything a Republican candidate can do that will cause Fox News to abandon them? Is there anything that Fox News can do that will impel the network to apologize or -- at the very least -- not lash out wildly at critics? Are there any standards at all? Any lines that can't be crossed?

The answer seems more and more to be "no," and that's as depressing as it is remarkable.

The part about D'Souza is fascinating too.

Gun City in Nashville

A federal judge has ruled against Nashville's Gun City USA, paving the way for federal firearms regulators to possibly yank its sales license.

The key words in this story are "paving the way" and "possibly yank."  That's after YEARS of trying on the part of the ATF. The gun laws are so disgracefully bent in favor of the gun shops and gun owners that this place has remained open and has done business as usual despite violations going back to 1999.

Naturally the pro-gun voices are claiming it's about "minutiae" and "flaws and inconsistencies."

The ATF said the store failed to document the sales of more than 1,000 guns and a handful of background checks and instances of multiple firearms sales, and did not complete other required paperwork. ATF agents helped set up a spreadsheet to track sales but said the store did not follow through.

Here's my idea. Anyone who calls 1,000 missing records of gun sales minutiae is wrong. That's something serious. A situation like that makes one wonder why. Why would so many important documents be missing?

Here's my solution. Close that place down immediately.  Sell the inventory to a legitimate gun shop and give the proceeds to the ATF for the years of work they've put in on this case.

The nonchalance with which these "paperwork" crimes are viewed needs to change. One single instance of a missing sales record should be treated very seriously, on the same par with selling a gun out the back door to a convicted felon.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

The Problem with Florida

They have their priorities mixed up. Instead of doing something about their gun problem, which directly leads to things like this and this, They're getting tough on the illegal berry pickers.

Six Immokalee men were arrested for illegally possessing 5,000 pounds of palmetto berries, according to Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

The men will be charged with several misdemeanors, same as the drunken woman in Virginia who impersonated the police and brandished her weapon. Of course, in Florida you can actually shoot somebody and not be charged with anything.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

More CC Shenanigans in Virginia

The Virginia Gazette reports:

A woman posing as a police officer caused a ruckus at a motel when she pulled a gun and began beating on a guest’s room door, demanding that her co-worker open up.

Christianna Byars, 43, of Brittania Drive in Nelson Park has been charged with impersonating a law enforcement officer, brandishing a firearm, and drunk in public, all misdemeanors. Last month she was granted a concealed weapons permit, according to York Circuit Court records.

The incident occurred around 9 p.m. last Friday when a woman wearing a holster and gun in full view walked into the office of the Travel Lodge on Capitol Landing Road and asked for the key to a specific room where a man was registered. She claimed to be with the James City County Police.

"All misdemeanors," you know what that means, right. After a slap on the wrist, she's back in action. What is wrong with this picture?

Please leave a comment.

Michigan Dad Shoots Daughter

He was cleaning the gun and didn't know there was a round in the chamber.

Here's the best part:

Wickersham said the man has a concealed pistol license. He said the girl and the father were in the same room inside the house when the shooting occurred. Other people also were home at the time. No charges have been filed.

I meant the part about no charges, but the part about having a concealed carry license is pretty good too.

What's your opinion? How is it possible for a trained person, who has fulfilled numerous (draconian) requirements to own a gun and acquire a CCW permit, to not know there's a round in there? How is that possible?

How is it possible for places like Michigan to not file charges against someone like that?

And, finally, why do gun owners who are not as irresponsibly dangerous as this guy, defend him? Are you who speak on his behalf afraid someday you'll have such a mishap?  If not, you should throw this guy to the wolves and support the newest suggestion in gun control theory, ONE STRIKE YOU'RE OUT.

Please leave a comment.

Fresno Cops Out of Control

Not only were there too many shots fired, some of them went far afield, hitting the neighbor's house and a car.

Guns on College Campuses

Another report begs the question, how could allowing guns on campus possibly improve the situation? The pro-gun folks seem to think everyone who owns a gun and especially every CCW permit holder is a member of the good-guy club.  I don't agree with that.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Private Sales of Firearms

From a fascinating site, a fascinating video.

One Dead Two Wounded - So Far

The action is happening in Illinois and Indiana. Luckily they have a description that should narrow it down.

The shooter - whom police described as a heavyset white man in his 40s, weighing about 245 pounds, with brown hair and wearing a baseball cap.

What's your opinion? Are you starting to think they have too easy access to guns, they being all the lunatics who what one.

Please leave a comment.

Gun Friendly Pennsylvania

When a woman kills her husband, a few questions always come to my mind.  Was she really acting in response to abuse from him or was she the abuser?  If she'd been abused by him, that wouldn't excuse the act, but it would help us understand it, at least.  And, whose gun was it, his or hers?

When guns and alcohol are mixed, there's bound to be trouble.  And it doesn't matter if it's an illegal drinking establishment or a family restaurant that serves alcohol. Guns and drink don't mix.

Both of these very different incidents happened in the State of Pennsylvania.  Besides that they have something else in common - gun availability.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Baltimore Awash in Illegal Guns

The Baltimore Sun seems to be singing the same song as many sensible folks around the country.  But they're hard-pressed for a solution.

It's impossible to write effective laws against illegal firearms on a state-by-state basis, because criminals in states with tougher laws can always get around the restrictions simply by driving a short distance to states where guns are easier to buy. Without sensible federal restrictions that apply across the board, many state gun laws are virtually meaningless.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Pennsylvania - Cro-Magnon Paradise

Unsurprising news from the Keystone State.  The Castle Doctrine has been expanded and the "Florida Loophole" continued.

5-Year-Old Injured in Tennessee

 The latest story of children playing with a gun has a few interesting points.

At about 6:30 a.m. Monday, kids were playing with a gun at a home on Bryant Road, the Sheriff's Department said. The department said two brothers, ages 5 and 9, climbed into the family's master bedroom closet to get the .22-caliber gun, planning to pose with it for a photo.

"The child that was holding the gun didn't know the gun was loaded and pulled the trigger, and it of course resulted to injuries to his mouth."Investigators said the boys had shot the gun with family members in the past.

Right now, detectives said, the parents won't face charges. They are not releasing the parents or the children's names.Investigators said this accident was preventable.

I blame Tennessee. I blame their sick obsession with guns and their quick acceptance of gun accidents, avoidable gun accidents.

In this story, I'd like to know where the 5 and 9-year-old brothers learned about posing for pictures with a gun. Where did a 5-year-old learn about placing a gun in his mouth?  I'd be curious to know if the family members thought teaching the young boys to shoot would prevent something like this.

Mainly I'd like to know, how in the world could the fact that the "parents won't face charges," result from the same story in which the "accident was preventable."

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Stun Gun Mystery

The New York Post reports on this amazing story.

The NYPD is trying to find out why a stun gun didn't stop a knife-wielding man before he was fatally shot by cops outside his Manhattan home. 

Investigators will look into how Emmanuel Paulino was able to laugh and pull out the electrified prongs and keep coming at cops with a knife. Officers finally fired nine bullets, killing Paulino -- who had called 911, saying, "I'm ready to kill some cops right now."

I've heard all the center-of-mass arguments, and I understand them. But when it's one guy with no gun against a bunch of cops with guns who eventually fire nine bullets into him, are you going to tell me they couldn't have stopped him by firing at his legs?

Please leave a comment.

How Shared Responsibility Works

In cases like this, I often talk about shared responsibility.  The gun owner makes the theft easier by not following procedure, like in this case, or by some other act of stupidity or sloppiness.  The thief steals the gun.

I keep hearing cries of, "only the thief is responsible." Well, that's true as far as it goes.

Here's where we've gotten off on the wrong foot.  When I talk about shared responsibility, some people, especially the contentious and argumentative ones, think there's one only one amount of responsibility that must be divided up among all the participants. That's not it at all.

The thief is 100% responsible for stealing the gun.

The gun owner is 100% responsible for making that possible either by failing to follow procedure like in this case, officers are supposed to have their weapons with them, or by leaving the gun in a vulnerable place. In homes, depending on the state, there are safe storage laws aimed at preventing theft.

Violation of these regulations should be more carefully monitored and more severely punished.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Campus Shooting in North Carolina

Jadegold just pointed one out the other day.  Here's another. The action took place at Mid-Atlantic Christian University.

"What happened on our campus is an anomaly," university President Clay Perkins told those gathered in a hall on campus. "It's not who we are."

I guess they could always say that. Some would even add if students were allowed concealed carry this would never have happened.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Guns Don't Kill People; Floors Do

According to gunloons, this never, never happens:

EQUALITY, Ill. — A coroner in southern Illinois says a dropped gun fired a bullet that accidentally killed a 59-year-old woman in her home.

The Usual: Double Murder, Suicide, Assault Rifle

Sniper kills brother, samaritan, self:

LITTLE EGG HARBOR — A man shot and killed his brother from a window of their apartment with a military-style assault rifle Monday, then fatally shot a 21-year-old neighbor who was coming to the victim's aid before turning the weapon on himself, police said.

Another Crazy NRA-Endorsed Candidate

Recently, I introduced you to NRA-endorsed Christine O'Donnell (Repug-DE) who can't seem to remember where she went to school, thinks scientists have cloned mice with human brains, and depending on what week it is--may not be a witch.
Apparently, Alaska was feeling left out in the race to the summit of Mount Crazy.
Not to fear, though, the Repug candidate for US Senate, from Alaska, is the NRA-endorsed Joe Miller. And what a worthy contender he is for teh Crazy.
Miller, like many gunloons, has novel interpretations of the Constitution. Usually, these interpretations take the form of irritable mental gestures and bleats that make no sense or are contradictory. For example, Miller believes the minimum wage is unconstitutional. As are unemployment benefits. As are agriculture subsidies. Of course, that hasn't stopped Miller's wife from collecting unemployment. And it didn't stop Miller from picking up a few federal dollars from land he owned in Kansas.
Miller apparently favors repeal of the 17th Amendment:

He called the idea of a living, changing Constitution "bullcrap," and said he would support an amendment for term limits as well as an amendment repealing the 17th Amendment, which allows for the direct election of senators by the public rather than by state legislatures.

I guess NRA-supported Miller likes the idea of slavery and women not voting, too.

Gainseville Florida - 2 Dead 5 Wounded

Does the gun-friendly nature of sunny Florida have nothing at all to do with this?

Mental illness and criminality are already being dealt with. It's the easy access to guns in places like Florida that's not being adequately addressed.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Guns in Bars

Melissa McEwan had a few things to say about the New York Times article about "gun in bars."  I think she should start a gun control blog.

You know, I've never been afraid of being shot by a criminal, but I am scared as hell of being shot accidentally by some pants-shitting nincompoop who's been given the right to carry a concealed loaded weapon, and starts firing at the first sign of "danger." Yeesh.

I feel the same way. This is an increasing problem in the U.S.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Gun Trafficking out of Las Vegas

The Las Vegas Review-Journal tells the tale of a young straw purchaser. His story is typical, he had a small-time job and made money on the side buying guns for the traffickers and getting others to do so.

The good news is, the ATF's Electronic Tracing System (eTrace) appears to have been effective. The bad news is, the guns got all the way to a Mexican drug training camp before they were recovered.

I'm glad they qualified that pat on the back by mentioning the "bad news."  I have a solution.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Straw Purchasing - The Solution

As developed over several comment threads, with the help of our pro-gun antagonists, it goes something like this.

Any gun purchaser must be licensed and each weapon bought must be registered to him.

The registration document and firearm must be presented to the local police after three months from purchase and each year thereafter in order to receive a stamp allowing continuance of the legal registration.

Failure to present oneself will result in issuance of an arrest warrant.

It is my contention this will all but eliminate straw purchasing.  What do you think?

Domestic Violence in Iowa - Woman Dead

Guns are bad news for women is what I've been saying, based not only on these daily stories in the news but on the great work of Prof. Henemway.

In today's incident it doesn't take much imagination to read between the lines. In Afghanistan they have a solution for this. In the United States it's a bit more difficult. Women are supposed to be equal members of society, but the level of gun availability makes exercising that right especially dangerous.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Muster Day

Charles Henry Granger’s Muster Day, National Gallery in Washington, DC.


Laci presented a wonderful glimpse into what it must have been like in the 1790s complete with fine art.

By 1830, muster days were under attack from those who resented the required participation. They were joined by temperance advocates, who objected to the considerable public drunkenness attending each muster, and later by critics of the Mexican War, who claimed that the existence of a peace-time militia had in fact led to this conflict.

The irony is too much. Your typical 2nd Amendment champion of the 21st century would have objected to participation in the militia. Aren't the gun advocates we know and love the very kind who would "resent mandatory participation" in anything?

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Guns on Campus? What Could Go Wrong?

Those nice Frat boys are so responsible:

CALIFORNIA, Pa. (AP) ― A fraternity at California University of Pennsylvania is on temporary suspension while the school and the frat's national organization investigate an accidental shooting that slightly injured a female student.

Police say 19-year-old Raylynn Porco, of Pittsburgh, was treated at a campus nurses' station for a shotgun pellet wound to her left side about 12:15 a.m. Sunday. California police have charged 20-year-old Dustin Ryan Fuller, of Waynesboro, with reckless endangerment, underage drinking and tampering with evidence.

The NRA War on Fashion

Apparently, the Second Amendment is about defending your eyes against fashion you don't like:
MEMPHIS, Oct. 4 (UPI) -- Police in Memphis said a man faces aggravated assault charges for allegedly shooting a teenager in the buttock when the teen refused to pull up his saggy pants.

Pennsauken New Jersey Shooting - 3 Dead

This one is not your ordinary domestic violence shooting, unspeakably tragic nonetheless. 

Before we hear all the wise cracks about New Jersey gun laws not working, let's take a look at the map.  This place is a suburb of Philadelphia.

What's your opinion? Should we blame Sebastian?

Please leave a comment.

Abortion Doctor Shows Gun

This interesting confrontation between anti-abortion protesters and a doctor brings up some questions.

Is it possible for a concealed carry gun owner to show someone that he's carrying without violating the brandishing laws?  Is showing someone the weapon as a way of warning him, "don't mess with me" ever permissible?  Does the law which allows concealed carry require that the weapon never be seen by anyone but its owner?

What;s your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Corrections Officer Shot by Police

The action took place in the Bronx.

An off-duty New York City correction officer was shot in the arm early Saturday after he ignored orders to drop a loaded 9-millimeter pistol that he had pointed at a group of plainclothes police officers in the Bronx, the authorities said.

The correction officer, Victor Hernandez, 35, was taken to Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center, where he was reported in stable condition on Saturday. He was charged with reckless endangerment and menacing, both misdemeanors, the police said.

Please say it ain't so. Please say a guy who does something like this won't continue to enjoy his rights to keep and bear arms.

Does this "misdemeanor" nonsense mean there are many cases like this in which supposed law-abiding gun owners do violent crimes with guns (pointing a gun at cops and refusing to drop it which results in getting shot is violent in my book)? What do you think?

And, as a minor point, perhaps Eagle-eye Zorro can help us with the use of "correction officer," I'd hate to think the New York Times is dropping the editing ball.

Please leave a comment.

Henderson Texas - The Usual

In gun-friendly Texas, a man shot two women, who both survived, then when the police were closing in, killed himself.

I know the pro-gun answer is to arm the women too, but can't we come up with something better than that?

What do you think?

Smith and Wesson

The Truth About Guns presented this fascinating video about the Smith and Wesson company.

Exaggerating the Offense

A favorite tactic of the pro-gun crowd is to exaggerate the offense of gun control and argue against that exaggerated idea instead of the reality. Josh Blackman quoted a tweet from Professor Adam Winkler of UCLA.

“Reasonable gun control is one thing, this another. Chicago requires 1 hour on range for handgun permit but bars ranges.”

As pointed out by one of the commenters, this description is completely misleading, using the greatest of all pro-gun buzzwords, "bars." No, I take that back, "ban" is the number one buzzword, "bar" comes next.

The fact is, under this Chicago ordinance, gun ranges would not be allowed WITHIN CITY LIMITS. By simply saying Chicago "bars ranges," a distorted and false impression is given.  Anyone who could afford a gun could afford a trip to the suburbs which, I suppose, is where the gun ranges would be allowed.

What's your opinion?  Why do the so-called pro-rights advocates have such a need to exaggerate?  Why do they continually put words in the mouths of their opponents? Aren't our differences enough as they are?

Please leave a comment.

It's All About the Fantasy

Perfect Gift for the Drinking Gun Owner

When the responsible gun owner locks all his weapons away in the safe and settles down to enjoy a few drinks, he no longer has to give up the tactile pleasure of handling guns and bullets.

a quarter-pound milled-steel shot-taking machine is a pretty amazing way to get tore up

I know someone who would love this gift.  How about you?

Please leave a comment.

Shot Spotter Cameras

Crime-solving technology or invasion of privacy, you decide.

Cop Shoots Dog

I don't suppose there's much hope of their taking this kind of thing seriously when they routinely "justify" the shooting of people, but this guy went right back to duty. Shouldn't there be a more serious attempt to determine if he killed the animal unnecessarily?

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Detroit Imam Shooting Justified

It's more sad than surprising.

Dearborn Police Chief Ron Haddad said Friday that he regrets that Muslim leader Imam Luqman Ameen Abdullah died after a shootout with FBI agents, as the city released its report about the incident. The city's report backs up the conclusion of a state attorney general report released Thursday that said the FBI acted appropriately in the shooting and arrests of Abdullah's followers.

When we first talked about this case it seemed they'd have a hard time justifying it.  Sadly, that was wrong.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.