The Truth About Guns

“[CaliforniaRepublican gubernatorial candidate] Neel Kashkari said Wednesday that he owns four guns and supports gun rights but -” Stop! I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: there are not ifs, ands or buts when it comes to the Second Amendment. “Shall not be infringed” does not have an asterisk indicating conditions where the right to keep and bear arms can be infringed by the government (e.g. in the interests of public safety). Putting the word “but” after expressing support for the law of the land regarding firearms freedom is like saying “I support the right to drink sugar drinks but not if they’re a danger to the consumer’s health.” OK, so, blogs.sacbee.com reports that Kash

South Carolina’s up-and-coming governor, Nikki Haley has let it be known that she’s in favor of constitutional carry (the ability to exercise Second Amendment rights without first obtaining government permission). But the Palmetto State Senate Judiciary Committee isn’t quite so enthusiastic. The committee’s chairman, Larry Martin, is credited with killing the bill. As wltx.com reports, he’s really not a fan of open carry: ”You can carry a weapon openly if this bill is adopted and I’m offended by that,” said committee chair Sen. Larry Martin

This is not my question. It’s a query posed by the headline from an article at politico.com. After a more-or-less factual recitation of the Dunn “loud music case,” author Roger Simon concludes with a question about race, and guns. “Strolla, Dunn’s lawyer, said the trial was not about race but about a ‘subculture thug issue.’ But who are the real thugs? The unarmed black kids who play loud music or walk to stores to buy Skittles? Or the white guys who are armed to the teeth and quick on the trigger?” I don’t think Mr. Simon’s f

“In the moments after lawmakers and visitors cleared a committee room Feb. 6 following a debate on concealed handgun permits, Rep. Jonathan Singer found a black canvas bag under the table where lawmakers sit,” denverpost.com reports. “Inside, Singer discovered a loaded handgun that belonged to Rep. Jared Wright, R-Fruita, who sits next to him on the House Local Government committee. ‘I just immediately notified the Sergeant at Arms and soon we realized it was Jared’s bag,’ Singer, a Democrat from Longmont, said Wednesday.” Wait a moment. Isn’t the state capitol a gun-free zone? As any politician caught with his proverbial (or literal) pants would say, I’m glad you asked me that question . . .

Troops left to fend for themselves after Army was warned of flaws in rifle washingtontimes.com‘s headline proclaims. Anyone who knows anything about the history of the M16 > M4 rifle knows that it’s been . . . problematic. Rowan Scarborough’s overview rounds up all the usual suspects: inability to run reliability without constant cleaning, overheating issues, barrel failure and a lack of “stopping power” at distance (to name a few). The report cites battle failures and names names: the politicians and pencil pushers who protected Colt’s contract to supply our armed forces with an [arguably] inadequate firearm. Oh wait. He doesn’t. The Wanat debacle? 

“Mayors Against Illegal Guns (MAIG) has always believed that the Second Amendment goes hand-in-hand with sensible laws that will keep guns out of the hands of criminals and other dangerous people,” the organization declares in a rare email blast. “We have never called for confiscating of legal guns, either publicly nor privately – and we never will.” That’s a strange thing for MAIG to say, considering that the org’s demandaction.org website declares their intention to “Get military-style assault weapons an

“What can laws do to solve immediate problems? . . . I want to say that laws have their role, but in terms of crime and guns and violence, we’ve been at this thing for more than 50 years on this very topic, and we’ve passed a tremendous number of laws. There is something else, it’s called administering the laws we have and working together in a community. That is where the greatest yield can be found in terms of making Oakland a safer place.” California Governor Jerry Brown, quoted in Brown: Another gun law won’t solve Oakland violence [via sfgate.com] [h/t DrVino]

When USA Today asks a writer for an editorial they want it USA Yesterday. That’s one reason they tap RF for pro-gun pieces; the boss can blog in his sleep. He cranked-out ‘Smart’ guns, dumb idea for usatoday.com in twenty-minutes. The result isn’t really pro-gun as much it’s anti-smart gun. “New Jersey gun owners don’t want to lose access to, trade or face the confiscation of tried-and-true non-electronic firearms. They view electronic firearms as inherently unreliable. What if your finger’s covered with dirt or blood? What if the electronic ‘smart gun’ runs out of power? What if you need to use someone else’s ‘smart gun’ in an emergenc

Derek Carlile occupies a prominent place in the IGOTD Hall Of Eternal Infamy. We’ve been following his case for nearly two years, ever since the off-duty police officer left a loaded handgun in his van’s cup holder, as well as two unattended children. His three year-old son grabbed the gun and killed his own seven-year-old sister with it. For a time it looked as if justice would be done in the wake of this easily preventable and entirely inexcusable tragedy. Carlile was fired from his job with the Marysville Police Department, and he was put on trial for 2nd Degree Manslaughter. But then everything went wrong . . .

The Snohomish county prosecutor couldn’t prove the manslaughter charge, and