To the GOP, The Gun Manufacturers Matter More Than 49 Lives

It isn't the slightest bit shocking to me, but it's just as repulsive as ever to know that the U.S. Senate doesn't give a damn about it's citizenry. When a madman mowed down a bunch of little children at Sandy Hook, we couldn't get them to vote to vote on universal background checks. I'm hardly shocked that another madman shooting up a night club didn't move them now.

Even so, 53 Senators voted last night against such things as preventing suspected terrorists from buying guns. They voted against preventing people who aren't allowed on an airplane, because they're a terrorist, from buying a gun. They would rather allow Omar Mateen to be able to buy a gun, or the next version of him, than protect the public. Let's be clear, this man was a known potential problem, but there was no legal way to stop him yet. Those 53 Senators voted against things like alerting the FBI that people like him bought guns. That's where we're at.

I'm sure that many of you who are repulsed will end up in an argument with a good ole' fashioned "gun nut" over whether or not these bills should have passed, and you'll probably tell yourself it's amazing that these people get their way. We're talking about people who think arming everyone will keep us safer, or that we can't have licensing and registry of guns because the "guvmint'" might come take them. Let me be clear though- the lunatic that argues with you that he needs an AK-47 in case he has to fight the government is not the kind of person that convinced those 53 Senators. Oh sure, those Senators will accept their support and take their credit, but they did not vote against gun safety measures because of your local "gun nut."

What happened on the Senate floor yesterday was clearly the work of the gun manufacturers' lobby, which is basically now the NRA. While the NRA pretends to represent their members, it's worth noting that most of their members support universal background checks and preventing terrorists and criminals from buying guns. The NRA does not really represent their membership though. They represent big companies that produce guns, and fund the NRA. They are nothing more than a lobbying arm for the gun manufacturers, as are the other groups like them. In this case, money talks.

And so it goes again- 49 dead humans are no match for the cold, hard cash of a gun manufacturer. Human life, the anguish of the families, and the sadness of a nation are all no match for those who fund the "Big Gun" machine in Washington. Take note America, one party voted at the behest of the NRA. The other one didn't. Recognize who runs one, but not the other. As long as the Republican Party runs the Senate, expect more of this. Expect the same in the House. When you say "they are all the same," this is just the latest example of why you are wrong.

Some Basic Gun Facts for the Gun Nuts

Let's establish a number of things about guns-

1. The U.S. leads the world in mass shootings. We've had more than a mass shooting a day. They happen everywhere. Gun death in general is much more common here than anywhere else too. We're way ahead of the world in guns and gun deaths. The U.S. has the highest gun ownership rate in the world.
2. States with more gun control have fewer gun deaths. This includes all forms of gun death- homicide, suicide, accidental death, etc. It is absolutely true that homicide specific rates do not correlate directly to gun laws. That is moving the goal posts fairly far though, as accidents and suicides are still gun deaths.
3. The "good guy with a gun" myth does not hold up to scrutiny. For one, sometimes who the good guy is gets murky. It's more likely gun ownership will kill you than save you (both are actually rare, though). It just doesn't hold up to scrutiny. 
4. Mass shooters don't really "target" gun-free zones. Many of the "gun-free" zones cited by conservatives aren't even "gun-free." 
5. A gun in the home doesn't make you more safe. Women in domestic violence situations are at high risk. Over one accidental death a day happens, many involving small children (but we don't know exactly how many), from guns.

Gun statistics are difficult to gather, but they exist. It is true- guns and crime do not move together, based on gun control policy, generally (during the assault weapons ban period, crime went down, but that isn't clearly from the ban). It's also true that having more guns available has meant more gun deaths. Mass killers prefer to use guns too, at least here. If there were less guns, it stands to reason there would be less shootings. That does not mean less violent crime- nothing supports that. I'm not sure that is a good argument to not regulate gun traffic.

San Bernardino Doesn't Need Your Prayers, but America Needs New Gun Laws

Everyone is sick and tired of the damn-near weekly mass-shootings in this nation. People may disagree with the root causes, but no one disagrees there is a problem. Whether it's a school shooting with grade-schoolers, a shooting in the streets of Chicago, or a gunman shooting up a Planned Parenthood, the whole thing has become old. It's time for something to change. Your prayers after each shooting aren't doing much about the problem, which is kind of predictable. Obviously the average person can't do much more. Our legislators can change the laws of our nation though.

There are three main arguments that the pro-gun lobby and it's brainwashed public supporters cite as reasons to not pass gun control. They are:

1. Criminals don't listen to laws anyway.
2. The second amendment protects gun ownership.
3. Gun control wouldn't stop every shooting anyway.

Of course, their alternative is insane- arm more people. A "good guy" with a gun will stop the bad guys. Like they did in Columbine (Sheriff's deputies). Like they did at Fort Hood (it's a military base for God's sake). Like they did at Planned Parenthood last Friday (an officer ended up dead). A "good guy with a gun" at the Gabby Giffords shooting in Arizona a couple of year's ago almost shot the wrong person. This is nothing more than nonsense driven by an industry group that wants to escape scrutiny.

So let's take them at their own points for why not to do anything. Each one doesn't stand up to basic scrutiny.

1. By definition all criminals don't listen to laws, it's why we call them criminals. Are we going to get rid of murder, burglary, rape, or any other number of violent crime laws, because the criminals don't follow them? If you proposed this, you'd be laughed out of a legislature. It's just as stupid to say we don't need gun laws because criminals don't follow them.
2. The second amendment says, "A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the People to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed." That part about "a well regulated militia" is part of the amendment, not just the not infringing part. Your personal gun collection doesn't make you part of a militia. Now, I'm not saying ban all guns, but let's not pretend this amendment means guns-on-demand.
3. No, gun control won't stop all shootings, that's true. Anti-racketeering laws don't stop all racketeering. We don't hold laws up to the standard of having a perfect record of stopping crime. If the laws prevent a few crazies from getting guns, and save a few lives, they are worth it. Perfect is not the enemy of the good.

The truth is, it's easier to get a gun than a car in most of the United States. That really shouldn't be. Until we address that, we're going to be accepting this as the new norm. This should not be a norm. This should be stopped.

Why You Should Vote- "There is Nothing Better Than an Unregistered Gun"

From PolitickerNJ

Every election matters. You should always vote. If you don't, you end up with representation talking like this-

At a Tuesday candidate forum in LD24, Assemblyman Parker Space, who is up for reelection this year, declared: “There is nothing better than an unregistered gun, believe me.”

I can live with this level of crazy, if only because I can't really wish away all conservative extremists. What I can't live with though? This talk-

“I’m saying is that when the liberals take over everything they are not going to be able to track you down and take your weapons away from you,” Space replied.

Grace called Space’s statements “extremely paranoid.”

I'll go a step beyond "extremely paranoid"- that statement should be criminal. Assemblyman Space is talking as though there will be some form of dictatorship soon and there will be a need for armed rebellion. We've heard this kind of talk during the Clinton Administration, the Obama Administration, and even when Democratic Governors call for gun safety legislation. No one has ever tried to round up and take away all the guns, and no one will. It's not happening in California, Illinois, New York, Maryland, Connecticut, Massachusetts, or any other state with gun control laws. It's not happening in New Jersey.

When an elected leader pushes straight paranoia and fear, that to me is a wrong we can't allow to go unchallenged. Mr. Space is a wing-nut, clearly, but his statements are heard by people who are not as stable even as he. This kind of dog-whistle can have deadly consequences. I hope Mr. Space will steer clear of this kind of language in the future, though I doubt it.