Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Gun Control Logic

This is NOT original with me - but it was too good not to pass on:

"We must get rid of guns because a deranged lunatic may go on a shooting spree at any time and anyone who would own a gun out of fear of such a lunatic is paranoid."

"Most people can't be trusted, so we should have laws against guns, which most people will abide by because they can be trusted."

"An intruder will be incapacitated by tear gas or oven spray, but if shot with a .357 Magnum will get angry and kill you."

"Private citizens don't need a gun for self- protection because the police are there to protect them even though the Supreme Court says the police are not responsible for their protection."

"Police officers have some special Jedi-like mastery over handguns that private citizens can never hope to obtain."

"Police operate with backup within groups, which is why they need larger capacity pistol magazines than do "civilians" who must face criminals alone and therefore need less ammunition.

"Citizens don't need to carry a gun for personal protection but police chiefs, who are desk-bound administrators who work in a building filled with cops, need a gun.

"Guns cause violence, which is why there are so many mass killings at gun shows."

"Ordinary people in the presence of guns turn into slaughtering butchers but revert to normal when the weapon is removed."

"A handgun, with up to 4 controls, is far too complex for the typical adult to learn to use, as opposed to an automobile that only has 20."

"These phrases: "right of the people peaceably to assemble," "right of the people to be secure in their homes," "enumerations herein of certain rights shall not be construed to disparage others retained by the people," and "The powers not delegated herein are reserved to the states respectively, and to the people" all refer to individuals, but "the right of the people to keep and bear arms" refers to the state."

My comments:
The logic above is the reason why 50 years after the national gun control movement got started, support for a ban on handguns has been cut in half* , states with "shall issue"** concealed carry permits have gone from zero to forty, and when the Brady Group recently held a news conference only two reporters and one camera bothered to show up. One reporter and the camera were from the NRA.


*Only one in four now support banning handguns, in 1959 52% did.

**"Shall issue" means if meet all the criteria (pass background check, pass the class, qualify on the range, etc.) they have to give you a permit - you cannot be denied because they think you "don't really need one".

Just In Case You Have Any Doubts About Media Bias

"If you don't have anything good to say, don't say anything" may be good advice for interpersonal relationships, but it is terrible policy for journalists and news organizations. Yet this is exactly the policy most of the mainstream news media has regarding the current occupant of the White House.

For the last year the administration has come under scrutiny for a scandal in many ways worse than Watergate: The willful supplying of high powered firearms to Mexican drug cartels without the knowledge of the Mexican government. Mexican law makers are demanding that those responsible - including US government officials - be extradited to Mexico for trial. On the US side of the border a US Border Patrol Agent was killed by cartel thugs using guns supplied by the ATF!

The paper trail directly implicates Attorney General Eric Holder and also leads to a White House aide (who was quickly transferred to Iraq when his involvement became known). As a result, nearly 60 Senators and Representatives have called for his resignation and a no confidence vote is looming. In the last few months Holder has been grilled by congressional committees multiple times and there is serious talk about his impeachment.

There has been a great deal of press coverage, but if your news source is the NBC News flagship program - the NBC Nightly News - you don't know anything about this story. Why? Because in the nearly one year this story has been out there, they have not covered it once! Furthermore, the ABC Nightly News has also failed to cover the story.

So, we have a story bigger than Watergate - a serious scandal in which no one died - and the flagship news programs on two of the three major networks have embargoed the story. This is in spite of the fact that two American agents are dead along with countless Mexican citizens, including elected officials.

In contrast, Fox News, CBS News, CNN, the LA Times and lots of other media outlets from all across the political spectrum have covered the story - in fact CBS was the first major outlet to report on it. CBS beating even Fox News to the punch! Why have NBC and ABC ignored the story?

The obvious reason is both obvious and instructive: NBC News and ABC News are operating as if they are the official Obama administration media. IN THE COMING ELECTION, ALL AMERICANS SHOULD REMEMBER THIS.

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

CBS News Exposes the Real Source of Cartel Guns

In 2009 President Obama alleged that 90% of the cartel's guns came from US gun shops that "line our shared boarder". Almost immediately this figure was proven false by multiple sources - including Wikileaks, which released cables from the US Embassy that detailed where the guns really came from. Today CBS News reported on one of the primary sources of cartel guns: Direct sales of guns to the Mexican government, approved by Hillary Clinton's State Department.

CBS reports that State approved 2,476 guns in 2006. By 2009, the figure was 18,709. The State Department refuses to give figures for 2010 and 2011. 26% of these guns are known to be diverted to the cartels. CBS also reports that Mexican government admits that 9,000 weapons purchased from the US are missing from the Mexican police alone. Even more weapons are likely to be missing from the Mexican military. This means that literally tens of thousands of "US sourced" weapons sold to the Mexican government have gone to the cartels - vastly more than in Fast and Furious.

Missing from the CBS report is the fact that when these guns are recovered in Mexico and traced by ATF, they are counted with guns sold in US gun shops to inflate the figure - which is then used to justify gun control.

While many (if not all) those at CBS news probably do not realize that they are proving that the administration knowingly lied about US gun shops being a major source of Mexican cartel guns - that is exactly what they have done. In addition to the Mexican military and police, the Wikileaks sourced US diplomatic cables referenced by CBS also reveal that the Central American black market is the other major source of cartel guns.

The information above has been around for a long, long time (2-3 years). Senator Charles Grassley referenced it in a press releases exposing administration figures on Mexican crime guns as false, most recently on November 15th. Fox News has also reported on the issue - way back in 2009. The gun rights media has made this case on the internet for three years. Now CBS news has become the first old guard, mainstream media outlet to cover the issue. By doing so, they may have opened a can of worms that the administration would have preferred reamined closed.

Will Obama and Holder Throw the ATF Under The Bus?

In just two days, Eric Holder is scheduled to testify before Congress in the Fast and Furious scandal. What will be his plan?

I believe that it is possible that Holder and the administration will try to blame the ATF for the entire scandal - and that having done so they will join Republican Rep. Issa in calling for the agency to be abolished. Of course, all the gun laws would stay on the books, and likely be enforced by the FBI.

Here are some of the reasons why I think this move is possible:

1) The BATFE - more commonly called the ATF - has a long and troubled history going all the way back to it's beginning as the agency the enforced Prohibition. At that time the vast majority of agents were believed to be corrupt. After prohibition ended - in the depths of the Depression - it became an agency with little to do. In order to keep the agents employed, they were given additional responsibilities - including enforcement of the few Federal gun laws on the books (and a few new ones). After the passage of the Gun Control act of 1968, firearms became ATF's main job. Agency abuses began almost immediately. In the early 1980's this lead to Democratic Representative John Dingell of Michigan calling ATF agents "jackbooted government thugs". In addition to hundreds of lessor known incidents, ATF was responsible for both the Waco and Ruby Ridge debacles. Now there is Fast and Furious. Ample cause exists to conclude that ATF has major problems as agency - although many, many fine agents work for it.

2) Earlier this year, it was revealed that a "whitepaper" calling for the elimination of the ATF was being circulated within the administration.

3) The gun rights movement has been calling for this step for years. By calling for the elimination of the ATF, Obama and Holder could turn the tables on Republican critics who accuse them of being "anti-gun rights". This could make the difference in several "swing states" in the upcoming election.

4) Finally, by eliminating the BATFE the administration could prove that they are doing something to prevent something like "Fast and Furious" from ever happening again.

Will this be the administration's plan? An article in a Bloomberg publication strongly suggests that Holder will try to push responsibility back down the chain of command - and that is precisely where the ATF is.

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Is Holder Headed for Impeachment?

Eric Holder seems to be getting more and more desperate as his testimony before a joint session of the House Oversight and Judiciary Committees on December 8th grows nearer.

Yesterday, in a move that can only be described as Nixonian, he tried to intimidate The Daily Caller into killing the story. This clearly has backfired, resulting in even more coverage - albeit in the alternative media.

Even more ominous is the increasing number of House members (now 52, plus two Senators) calling for his resignation before even hearing his testimony. It is hard to imagine that these calls will decrease after he is questioned on the 8th. It is much more likely that even more Representatives will join those now calling for Holder to go.

A wise president would have asked for Holder's resignation by now. President Obama may yet do that - but if he does not, Holder is probably headed for impeachment - and a trial before the Senate.

It is by no means certain that he would not be convicted. As we all know, 2012 is an election year - and many, many senators come from pro-gun states, and many are up for re-election. These senators cannot afford to lose the support of gun owners - and less than 20 senate Democrats voting to convict would spell the end of Holder as Attorney General.

Even if Holder is not convicted, a Senate trial would be an absolute disaster for President Obama as he is running for re-election. It would bring the entire Fast and Furious scandal to the front pages, and could easily cost him several swing states, and therefore the presidency.

We will soon find out if he is smart enough to avoid this by firing Eric Holder.