The Problem of Realistic-looking Toy Guns

(left real, right fake)



 The Times Herald reports

For gun lovers and criminals alike, replica gun manufacturers' trend toward ever-more realistic-looking guns is a boon.


In California, while "Airsoft" guns are sold with bright orange muzzle markings, full-body colored paint or clear, BB and pellet guns are exempt from special paint requirements, because, manufacturers say, they are not toys and should not be marked as such.

Three retail store owners in the greater Vallejo area contacted for this article in recent weeks said they no longer carried the realistic-looking guns. Two others declined requests to be interviewed.

In Vallejo, twice in less than four months, police have fired -- fatally -- on people allegedly carrying and/or wielding such replica guns.

The pro-gun folks, the contentious and disagreeable ones anyway, insist that this problem does not exist. They say there's no difference between the toy guns of today and those of years ago.

Doesn't it sometimes seem that gun-rights advocates become a bit defensive whenever we suggest gun control?  What are they afraid of?  Do they really think if they give even one inch we'll take a mile?

How about if we start out with the mile.  Let's ban realistic-looking replica guns outright.

What do you think?  Please leave a comment.

Houston's Stolen Guns

The Houston Chronicle reports

Cabdrivers Mohammed Elsayed and Blaise Nwokenaka, shot dead by the last passengers of their lives, were killed with a .380-caliber Cobra pistol - a gun stolen just 20 days earlier.

Nineteen-year-old Shanetria Grogan was slain by her ex-boyfriend, shot in the head with a .380-caliber Jimenez Arms semi-automatic pistol, also stolen. And 23-year-old Leroy Pierson, killed in a drug deal gone bad, suffered a fatal wound from a .40-caliber Smith & Wesson semi-automatic pistol, yet one more ripped-off weapon.

At least 32,000 guns, some 4,000 every year, have been stolen from Houston-area homes, cars, pawn shops and even gun dealers since 2005, with only 7 percent of them ever recovered, a Houston Chronicle analysis shows.

And this is only Houston, and what we know about. Can you imagine the extent of the problem nation-wide?

The solution is obvious.   Safe storage laws plus a reporting of stolen guns requirement would take care of the rest.

This wouldn't be a 100% solution, nothing is, but it would go a long way towards improving things.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Liquor, Guns and Cigarettes

Top 10 Reasons Not to Vote for Romney

via Policymic

 9) Gun Control: to have or not to have?

Romney has been quite wishy-washy on his views on gun control. In 2004, he passed one of the tightest bans on assault weapons in Massachusetts. But, later on, Romney bought a lifetime membership to the NRA and hopes to endorse the National Rifle Association. Though gun control is not one of the main issues for this campaign, it has been brought to recent light since the Aurora, CO shootings.

I feel sorry for the gun-rights advocates, many of whom are one-issue voters. This guy is their best choice.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Domestic Violence in Kansas City - She's Critical, He's Dead

ESPN news reports

A man shot and wounded a female parking lot employee Friday between the stadiums that are home to the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals before killing himself, police said.

Graves said the woman was taken to a hospital in critical condition. Officers found the man in a car, dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot. Both were in their 40s and knew each other, but police did not elaborate on their relationship. 

Witnesses said the man drove into the area in a silver Cadillac, several shots were fired and the man then turned the gun on himself in the car.

Often in these domestic shootings the guy kills the girl and only wounds himself. I don't know which is worse.

One thing for sure, when it comes to relationships, guns are bad news for women.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Ronald Pickett Gets Eleven Years for Accidental Killing

The Washington Times reports

A man who fatally shot his fiance by accident during an argument in their home last year has been sentenced to nearly 11 years in prison.

Ronald Pickett, 27, pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in the March 5, 2011 shooting of 36-year-old Vanessa McGee and was sentenced Friday to 10 years and 10 months in prison.


At some point during the argument, Pickett retrieved a .9mm pistol from their bedroom. As McGee tried to leave the home, she slipped, falling into Pickett, prosecutors said. The gun went off when the two collided and McGee was struck in the top of her shoulder.

Charging documents filed in the case indicate that the bullet passed through McGee’s lung and lodged in her abdomen. She died from the wound.

Eleven years for an accident sounds a bit excessive, don't you think? And that was the plea deal.

I couldn't find a picture of this guy but how much you wanna bet he's black?  White guys who have accidents don't usually get this kind of treatment, sometimes they get off with a warning to be more careful.

Let's not overlook the fact that he must have been a lawful gun owner.  Otherwise, that would have been one of the charges.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Marcus Dixon Unintentionally Shoots Himself in the Head

Fox news reports

Marcus Dixon was once a homeless young teenager who made a "180-degree turn" when a family in Stamford, Conn., adopted him at age 17, the Connecticut Post reported. He went on to become the football captain at Stamford High School -- where he graduated from in 2009 -- before making it to West Point.

Dixon died shortly after 7 p.m. Thursday when he accidentally shot himself in the head with his .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol, according to local reports. Dixon was showing his gun to two friends at an apartment in Stamford at the time of the incident. He had removed the magazine from the pistol and, thinking it was empty, tried to show the gun was safe by pointing it toward his head and pulling the trigger, the newspaper reported. One round was hidden in the gun's chamber.    

I'll never understand how people can "forget the one in the chamber." Wouldn't that be the first thing you think of when pointing a gun at your head and preparing to pull the trigger?

Which brings up another question.  Why would anyone do that?

And what is it with football players and guns.  We've seen quite of few stories.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.