Obama Gets Gun-Shy

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  • Posted By: gsssnipe @ 04/14/2009 4:55:27 PM

    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 is the 2nd Amendment as sent to each state by our government at the time of ratification, let us begin with this simple sentence, and work from there, I am a Vet I served 24 years, and this one sentence does not give the average American the right to keep and bear arms. Let us not be stupid and think by outlawing guns that look mean will keep us safe, I laugh at the laws that caused the development of the MAK 90, an AK 47 with a thumb hole stock and the bayonet lug ground off???but still fired the 7.62x39 round???just as deadly???if your going to honestly look at this, let us do real control of illegal guns and not go after those who obey the laws of the land???

  • Posted By: Eurocitizen @ 04/12/2009 10:06:03 AM

    As a European the love affair with guns and the power of the NRA are incomprhensible. The statistics on guns and gun deaths are mindboggling. Gun ownership in rural areas and for hunting may be normal, even for legitimate protection.
    But why would law abiding gun owners object to a simple licensing of users and registration of guns? Equally why not close the loophole of the gun shows?

    • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/13/2009 1:49:36 PM

      "As a European the love affair with guns and the power of the NRA are incomprhensible. "

      Then don't worry about it. Not even the best assault rifles can hit you from the other side of the Atlantic. This is an internal issue.

      • Posted By: LIMPbaugh @ 04/14/2009 2:20:28 PM

        A nice way of saying we in the US have some maturing to do. I can't argue with that.

        • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/14/2009 2:43:54 PM

          So, anyone who disagrees with you on this subject "needs to mature"? Nice.

          • Posted By: LIMPbaugh @ 04/14/2009 2:57:04 PM

            Not my point at all. I'm a gun owner who knows i have a right to own a gun. It was the obsession part i was referring to. Most of us are not obssessed. I know you're not. You're a little rowdy today, not like you at all.

            • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/14/2009 3:44:57 PM

              My apologies. It's allergy season up here in the high desert.

              • Posted By: LIMPbaugh @ 04/14/2009 4:46:40 PM

                My apologizes also.

      • Posted By: Maryland_Shooter @ 04/14/2009 10:50:02 AM

        Please tell me what the gunshow loophole is as I'd really like to know.

        We have a RKBA, so you may remember we liberated Europe - well half anyway, and we kicked the other half's A$$

    • Posted By: Dimensio @ 04/13/2009 1:45:41 PM

      Registration of firearms has demonstrably aided in subsequent confiscations of firearms in various locales, including locales within the United States.

      • Posted By: LIMPbaugh @ 04/14/2009 10:58:40 AM

        Carry licenses are easy to get and the course is very helpful to new gun owners. Whose guns were confisgated in the US?

        • Posted By: libertarianguy @ 04/14/2009 11:12:14 AM

          Those in New Orleans, during Katrina aftermath. Just a recent example.

          • Posted By: LIMPbaugh @ 04/14/2009 11:29:14 AM

            Just an example of a longer list of examples or wha?. if you have to go to an extreme like katrina when the populace were ordered out and criminals rules the streets. Do you know on one instance where a law-abiding citizen's home was entered and theie gun was taken away?

            • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/14/2009 11:40:52 AM

              Again, during Katrina...and they didn't disarm the criminals, they disarmed the law-abiding citizens via their registrations.

              • Posted By: LIMPbaugh @ 04/14/2009 1:24:16 PM

                I think i said that. About 1000 drivers were duped into admiting they had a gun with them and if they didn't have their carry permit or a reciept 9meaning they just bought it) the gun was taken from them. My comment said the streets were rules by criminals not that criminals had the guns. The whole idea in the cops mind was to stop the shootings. A misguided but honorable effort. It didn't make it legal.

                • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/14/2009 3:03:37 PM

                  The idea behind the second amendment was to deal with an out of control government, not simple bad laws.

                  • Posted By: LIMPbaugh @ 04/14/2009 3:22:08 PM

                    Not so really. The constitution is expressed there to assure that bad laws can't be made. why you addressed that to my comments is beyond me. You got the notion somehow that i was disagreeing with you when i wasn't and you turned crappy from then on. so, i'm good with that kiss my butt. As you said earlier, sir, i'm not here to entertain you. You're way too shallow to mess with anyway.

            • Posted By: LIMPbaugh @ 04/14/2009 11:44:39 AM

              I guess i'll answer my own question. the answer is no. the new orleans cops illegally asked drivers if they had a gun in the car. If the driver said yes and couldn't produce a carry permit or reciept for the gun it was illegally confisgated. this was a desperate move by the cops to ease the skyrocketing murder rate. I'm sure the confisgation included illegal profiling also. 2nd ammendment or not, nothing will prevent a desperate local government from stomping on our rights. this is not an example that is note worthy.

              • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/14/2009 11:49:44 AM

                "2nd ammendment or not, nothing will prevent a desperate local government from stomping on our rights. "

                You don't see the irony in that statement?

                • Posted By: LIMPbaugh @ 04/14/2009 1:20:04 PM

                  Sure I do! Local government make rules all of the time that aren't defendable but until they're tested they are enforced. I think we're talking about the federal government here.

                  • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/14/2009 2:51:03 PM

                    Any government, at any level.

        • Posted By: libertarianguy @ 04/14/2009 11:14:06 AM

          Those in New Orleans, after Katrina hit. Just a recent example.

      • Posted By: Eurocitizen @ 04/14/2009 10:48:25 AM

        I'm not worried about it, it's your problem, much more so than here. I was just interested in learning about the rationale for the positions on either side of the argument. That presupposed the possibility of intelligent discussion with a certain respect for the different points of view. Please note that I posed a question. Some of the other posts here were quite informative and interesting thought from intelligent people. Yours is not one of them. I regret to say.

        • Posted By: jamesmcmichael @ 04/14/2009 10:56:09 AM

          The Second Amendment is not about hunting; it is about the use of arms by citizens of the United States to resist government tyranny. It is a LAST resort position when all else has failed. A disarmed citizenry is completely at the mercy of an armed despot.

          • Posted By: MADDOG0802 @ 04/14/2009 1:11:27 PM

            pitiful, using that tired old argument. If the 'tryrants' i.e. the U.S. government ever does get control of the country and by default the U.S. military, good luck getting the rest of your fellow right-wing crazies to go up against F22's and M1 tanks with your precious little pea-poppers.

            • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/14/2009 2:50:27 PM

              "pitiful, using that tired old argument."

              Yeah, it's, what, 220 years old? Obviously anything that old is outdated, right?

        • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/14/2009 11:41:49 AM

          Well, that's too damn bad. I am not here for your entertainment, sir.

          • Posted By: Eurocitizen @ 04/14/2009 1:08:20 PM

            Pretty much in line with your previous Neanderthal remarks.

          • Posted By: Eurocitizen @ 04/14/2009 1:24:06 PM

            Well that's really too bad, I will leave this thread and not return.

            • Posted By: LIMPbaugh @ 04/14/2009 1:32:38 PM

              Oh please stay. i can't go on without your snappy patter.

      • Posted By: Jensational @ 04/14/2009 11:38:50 AM

        Euro - It' not that we have a love affair with guns and we don't object to licensing and registration of guns, either. It is our 2nd amendment right in our Constitution that we are allowed to bear arms to protect ourselves and our families from anyone who tries to hurt or steal from us and our families. We have the right to protect ourselves from anyone that intends to do us harm. If someone was breaking into your home, with your spouse and kids sound asleep, and he had a gun and was going to shoot your family, wouldn't you also want to be armed so that you could protect the most precious thing in your life??? The criminals will always find a way to get a gun and it's in our best interest to have one as well so that it'll be there when we need it most. It's not about having a love affair with guns and the power of the NRA. Our constitutional rights are very important to all of us Americans - except Obama - and we intend to preserve and protect our rights, our family and our freedom. Surely you understand that, right?

    • Posted By: ursa @ 04/14/2009 12:25:23 PM

      There is no "gun show loophole". I repeat; "there is no gun show loophole". Do the research before you start posting folks! If Europe is so wonderful, stay there. If Amercan's are so lawless and blood thirsty, get out. But the article and most of these posts are purely opinion and fiction. Please don't try to pass them off as anything more or less.

    • Posted By: Jensational @ 04/14/2009 11:45:07 AM

      Euro, it's not that we have a love affair with guns nor is it about the power of the NRA and we don't mind having to be licensed or register our guns but it's our 2nd amendment right to bear arms and protect our homes and loved ones from someone else that intends to harm us. Let me put it this way, if you were asleep one night and some crazy person came in with a gun to rape your wife and kill your kids, wouldn't you like to have a gun also so that you could protect your family before he was able to harm them? We take our Constitutional rights very seriously -except Obama - and we will use that right to protect ourselves, our family and our freedom. Surely you can understand that.

    • Posted By: hankvreeland @ 04/12/2009 10:53:14 PM

      It's nice that you feel so nice about European gun control. Today, Germany has about as restrictive gun laws as exist. The following site will give you sixty-five pages of detail on gun fatalities in Germany. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Deaths_by_firearm_in_Germany
      Hate to rain on your parade but you have to realize that feel good laws can not change people. We had a ball with Prohibition on this side of the pond.

    • Posted By: vladbutsky @ 04/12/2009 11:40:06 AM

      To answer the question about why not registering guns: gun registration is believed to be instated for a different from crime fighting reason - it is a necessary tool to disarm the people. If our legslature were really concerned about gun crime they would have conduct scientific (not political!) stucies to determin what measures would work best to prevent gun crimes. Instead all of these gun laws are based purely on politica and raw emotions. There is no debate on gun control - there is a "war" at which sides do not negotiate but talk to each other with extream measures and ultimatums. This is not good situation, but until we really start putting credible science into it, gun laws will remain restrictive and ineffective.

    • Posted By: leopard_colony @ 04/12/2009 11:21:08 AM

      • Posted By: leopard_colony @ 04/12/2009 11:35:17 AM

        Our government has a habit of confiscating firearms when you need them most for self defense. For example New Orleans government ordered police (what was left) and national guard soldiers to confiscate all firearms. So while violent criminals ruled the city innocent people were made easy victims by our government! In fact, despite repeated court orders, the cit of New Orleans continues to refuse to return those firearms. Only recently, after 2 1/2 years has the police been able to restore some order and allowed the national guard troops to return home.

        Our government doesn't confiscate cars when you need them most, like evacuations in the face of deadly hurricanes.

        That is why no one with a brain trusts government registration of firearms!!

        And on top of it all, there is defacto registration. Every firearm sale requires federal paper work, instant background check, and paperwork has to be kept forever and be available to police at all times!

        So-called loopholes are pretty much plugged. Remember, even when an instant background check is not required the federal paperwork is. This means proof of identity, identity information recorded, sworn statements, etc. are still taken for every gun sale. The instant background checks are done later with police informed of who, where, and what made it illegal for the buyer to possess firearms. It is then up to the police to arrest the buyer and confiscate all firearms. This is why criminals DON'T GET GUNS FROM GUN SHOWS, illegal street purchases are much safer for them and much easier.

  • Posted By: chris s. @ 04/12/2009 7:48:08 PM

    Nobody, but nobody wants to take your guns away. You can't decide. If you think he's gonna let you keep your guns, you're mad. If it looks like he may take them away guess what? You're still upset. Either way you're wrong 50% of the time. My God, people get your hate under control or you're going to implode. He can't win with rednecks, NRA people, those from the south, those without a high school education, paranoid people, those on welfare, who have nothing better to do..You name it. Get your own country or state [ may I suggest Alabama] and just shoot the hell out everything and anyone that moves. You can sit around and compare the size of your gun to the size of your "manhood." Isn't that what it's really all about anyway?

    • Posted By: the last John Wayne @ 04/14/2009 3:42:19 AM

      Chis May I just say that I think that you are an ignorant git that likes nothing better than smoke some dubage and play with yourself what the heck do you even think that you are talking about I bet you more people in your own damn family own guns than you have even the slightest clue about and if they read this they would want to kick your ass son how raceist are you anyway you cant just single out a state from the south and say shoot the hell out of stuff and compare your gun to your manhood thats what its all about anyway. If i were you I would just stay at home culed up in a ball and wait for some gang banger to rape your wife and kids and steal all of your posessions, (which you could have prevented if only you would have had the balls to defend them and yourself)

      • Posted By: chris s. @ 04/14/2009 3:50:57 PM

        Wow, I hit such a nerve that you even forgot to spell and punctuate. If I were as clever as Mark, I could probably outwit you, but dumb ole' me. Well, I just don't have a chance up against you do I? BTW, what makes you think that I'm a man?

        • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/14/2009 4:10:53 PM

          The fact that you are Mark.

          Please stick to one screen name. Thanks.

          • Posted By: chris s. @ 04/14/2009 4:20:51 PM

            You are soooo off base here. But thanks for the compliment anyway. Now this is amusing. Go for it!

            • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/14/2009 4:39:55 PM

              Well, you're either him, or he's going to need surgery to get your nose out of his ***.

      • Posted By: xlntcat @ 04/14/2009 5:14:09 AM

        I am from the deep, deep South. I support gun control, equal rights for all citizens, fiscal responsibility, integrity in government, have a graduate degree and am very white. Did you fail to notice that Virginia, North Carolina and Florida were won by President Obama and that Georgia and Mississippi trended blue in the last election. If so, did it not occur to you that perhaps the South had grown and changed since the Civil War and since the 1960s. Prejudice is a preconceived judgement formed without sufficient knowledge against an individual or group. It is disrespectful and never useful in making a valid point. When you hold on to antiquated judgements, you impede progress and fuel the angry, the ignorant and the paranoid.

    • Posted By: MikeShep @ 04/13/2009 8:44:43 AM

      Wow! Your perception of the populace that enjoy and participate in shooting sports activities absolutely dumbfounds me. Your descriptive picture of firearm enthusiasts appears to omit the college educated, business professionals from ALL corners of our country. I know plenty of doctors, lawyers, CEOs, judges, etc. that enjoy an afternoon at the shooting range. Your narrow mindedness speaks volumes to either your lack of accurate information or your inability to rationalize beyond your own geographic/demographic boundaries. You obviously watched Deliverance one too many times...

      • Posted By: HolyRoller @ 04/13/2009 11:01:45 AM

        Hey MikeShep....seems you have stumbled upon one of, PrezBo-Zo's "Elite Obamabots"(paid bloggers). He is upset that myself and several others...refuse to drink their toxic potion of Hopium and Kool-Aid.....He is a little rattled because they are finding a growing number of....No Longer Silent Majority UNPAID bloggers.....We use their very own tactics against them...basically mirror who and what they are....and the above post from chris s. is a typical response...Heck, he got so shook up last night...he informed me I was wrong about Hitler and gun control...and said he knew better, cause his mothers family were Nazi's....and they owned guns.....Talk about goofy.....Anyway...great reply....BTW...Just to let you know in advance...with your reply....You are officially branded RACIST....that is their tried and true fall back line....

        NOBAMA!!!

        • Posted By: chris s. @ 04/13/2009 11:18:05 PM

          Lying comes so easy to you doesn't it? Quit twisting things and making assumptions you know absolutely nothing about.

          • Posted By: Mark Thieme @ 04/13/2009 11:30:35 PM

            chris, in case you didn't know, all that talk of insecure manhood scares hell out of some of our ironically challenged children here.

            Actually, that's the fun of it. They want to shoot everybody with a big gun and other people like to pick these screamers off with a wink and a smile.

            Perhaps it all comes from the same feeble place, but the latter approach is more sporting, methinks.

            • Posted By: chris s. @ 04/14/2009 3:42:26 PM

              Mark, thanks for calming me down and putting it into perspective. Granted, I let them press my buttons and I've gotta stop. If you see me start to go off the cliff again, for Pete's Sake stop me!

              • Posted By: HolyRoller @ 04/14/2009 4:15:11 PM

                I say JUMP...Go for it....

                NOBAMA!!!

                • Posted By: chris s. @ 04/14/2009 4:33:00 PM

                  Care to join me? Oh, that's right, you've been off in the deep end for a long time now haven't you? See, there I go again. Just look at what you make me do. NOHOLYROLLER!!!

          • Posted By: HolyRoller @ 04/14/2009 7:01:40 AM

            mirror mirror on the wall....

            NOBAMA!!!

        • Posted By: MikeShep @ 04/13/2009 12:00:05 PM

          Paid bloggers? Get out.
          I thought I'd heard it all.
          And what's with all the rampant confusion between current legislation regarding SEMI-automatic rifles and fully automatic weapons? There are AK47s that are capable of fully automatic fire, and those are strictly regulated already. There are also semi-automatic versions that look exactly the same, that fall under the same classification as any other semi-automatic rifle. Post from an educated position, or just quietly sit there and read.

          • Posted By: HolyRoller @ 04/13/2009 1:56:17 PM

            The Axlerod/Alinsky model, that is taught to the Obamabots...stresses the power of confusion...Just like Rhambo saying..."never let a good crisis go to waste"...same idea...The more confused about an issue...the more likely PrezBo's Hopenosis will work... people are hoodwinked by rhetoric...and before we know better...it is too late....

            NOBAMA!!!

    • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/14/2009 4:10:12 PM

      Oh, boy, he brought out the penis comparison. Whatever shall we do?

      LOL.

      Jackass.

    • Posted By: gregcovert @ 04/13/2009 11:28:44 PM

      If "those on welfare" can afford assault style weapons- THEY ARE GETTING TOO MUCH WELFARE:) I'm just saying.....

    • Posted By: Mark Thieme @ 04/13/2009 11:21:59 PM


      couldn't have said better myself. Damn straight.

      Never thought I would live to see the day that the NRA that taught me how to shoot would provide cover for all the thumb-suckers in America.

    • Posted By: Tango7 @ 04/13/2009 2:14:37 AM

      "Nobody" wants to take them away? Please.

      Law-abiding gun owners have every right to be concerned about a well-meaning but essentially totalitarian government seeking to disarm them. Need a list?

      How about Sen. Feinstein, D-Calif., on CBS "60 Minutes": "If I could have gotten 51 votes in the Senate of the United States for an outright ban, picking up every one of them -- Mr. and Mrs. America, turn them all in -- I would have done it." (Even though she was issued a permit to carry a concealed pistol in a county where it???s almost unheard of)

      Mark Kirk, R-IL, who stated at a press conference "(Police) can feel somewhat protected from a normal pistol, but against weapons like these body armor offers no significant protection??????

      (Never mind that most officers wear pistol rated vests, and the deadliest weapon to them is typically the officer???s own sidearm.

      Joe Biden, who during the debates claimed that ???he wrote the Assault Weapons Ban???.

      Attorney General Eric Holder, quoted as saying ???there are just a few gun-related changes that we would like to make, and among them would be to reinstitute the ban on the sale of assault weapons???? (The same man authorized the Elian Gonzales raid, using a federal SWAT team with real machine guns ??? not look-alike sporting arms - to grab a 7 year old child)

      Charles Schumer, D-NY, once quoted as saying that the ???only people who used ???assault weapons??? were mass murderers??? (despite having a very difficult to obtain concealed carry permit for NYC)

      One of the biggest mouthpieces of the efforts to ban private firearms is the Freedom States Alliance - a group that gets much of it's funding from the Joyce Foundation, just like the propaganda generating Violence Policy Center*. The same foundation had a recently elected President on its Board; who also accused citizens of being ???bitter???, and ???clinging to guns & religion????

      The same person encountered John Lott at the University of Chicago in the ???90???s, and told him ???I don???t believe people should be able to own guns.???

      Say what you want about the campaign rhetoric, point to pretty union flyers, or ???official??? statements. Those of us that have followed Obama???s actual voting record instead of the press???s spotty recollection know the real beliefs that lie beneath the charming smile and teleprompter-perfect orations.

      *Propaganda: a distorted presentation of facts to achieve a political end. Josh Sugarmann, founder of the VPC coined the term in 1988 with an intention to mislead:

      ???Assault weapons??? are a new topic. The weapons' menacing looks, coupled with the public's confusion over fully automatic machine guns versus semi-automatic assault weapons???anything that looks like a machine gun is assumed to be a machine gun???can only increase the chance of public support for restrictions on these weapons. In addition, few people can envision a practical use for these weapons."

    • Posted By: Tango7 @ 04/13/2009 2:13:54 AM

      "Nobody" wants to take them away? Please.

      Law-abiding gun owners have every right to be concerned about a well-meaning but essentially totalitarian government seeking to disarm them. Need a list?

      How about Sen. Feinstein, D-Calif., on CBS "60 Minutes": "If I could have gotten 51 votes in the Senate of the United States for an outright ban, picking up every one of them -- Mr. and Mrs. America, turn them all in -- I would have done it." (Even though she was issued a permit to carry a concealed pistol in a county where it???s almost unheard of)

      Mark Kirk, R-IL, who stated at a press conference "(Police) can feel somewhat protected from a normal pistol, but against weapons like these body armor offers no significant protection??????

      (Never mind that most officers wear pistol rated vests, and the deadliest weapon to them is typically the officer???s own sidearm.

      Joe Biden, who during the debates claimed that ???he wrote the Assault Weapons Ban???.

      Attorney General Eric Holder, quoted as saying ???there are just a few gun-related changes that we would like to make, and among them would be to reinstitute the ban on the sale of assault weapons???? (The same man authorized the Elian Gonzales raid, using a federal SWAT team with real machine guns ??? not look-alike sporting arms - to grab a 7 year old child)

      Charles Schumer, D-NY, once quoted as saying that the ???only people who used ???assault weapons??? were mass murderers??? (despite having a very difficult to obtain concealed carry permit for NYC)

      One of the biggest mouthpieces of the efforts to ban private firearms is the Freedom States Alliance - a group that gets much of it's funding from the Joyce Foundation, just like the propaganda generating Violence Policy Center*. The same foundation had a recently elected President on its Board; who also accused citizens of being ???bitter???, and ???clinging to guns & religion????

      The same person encountered John Lott at the University of Chicago in the ???90???s, and told him ???I don???t believe people should be able to own guns.???

      Say what you want about the campaign rhetoric, point to pretty union flyers, or ???official??? statements. Those of us that have followed Obama???s actual voting record instead of the press???s spotty recollection know the real beliefs that lie beneath the charming smile and teleprompter-perfect orations.

      *Propaganda: a distorted presentation of facts to achieve a political end. Josh Sugarmann, founder of the VPC coined the term in 1988 with an intention to mislead:

      ???Assault weapons??? are a new topic. The weapons' menacing looks, coupled with the public's confusion over fully automatic machine guns versus semi-automatic assault weapons???anything that looks like a machine gun is assumed to be a machine gun???can only increase the chance of public support for restrictions on these weapons. In addition, few people can envision a practical use for these weapons."

    • Posted By: HolyRoller @ 04/12/2009 8:02:52 PM

      I think you may need anger management...

      NOBAMA!!!

  • Posted By: LIMPbaugh @ 04/14/2009 4:11:56 PM

    osama bin login, me too, Sorry for the harsh words. i just came on here to comment that no person running for President or US senate, with a couple of exceptions, would be involved in 2nd ammendment legislation. As this blog has shown the second ammendment is safe because we wouldn't elect anyone who would mess with it. My mission here is to attack the GOP mouth-breathers and remind all democrats to be vigilant in answering all attacks on us. The GOP party of hate is disolving like benefiber, when you get old, those are the kind of referrences you use, and I am going to help them in everyway i can to continue that process.

  • Posted By: alcid2727 @ 04/14/2009 4:08:36 PM

    Anyone ever notice how places with ridiculously high shooting/murder rates are places where guns are banned? (Los Angeles, Washington DC, etc). In Virginia, law abiding residents can carry a concealed handgun with a permit, but are banned from carrying in certain areas (schools, courthouses, bars etc). Imagine if a student at Virginia Tech was armed with a gun when psycho-kid killed two dozen people... he would't have gotten a second shot off, and many lives could have been saved. No matter what laws and bans are made, there are always going to be criminals and nutjobs who get their hands on firearms and people NEED to be able to defend themselves. When crazy people finally stop shooting up private holiday parties, churches, and nursing homes (all of which happened in the U.S. in the past 4 months), then i will stop carrying a weapon to defend myself. Until then, I will be carrying a handgun EVERYWHERE i am legally allowed to do so.

  • Posted By: SrAN @ 04/14/2009 3:56:40 PM

    To all those calling those of us who own guns and want to see our right protected neanderthals, repigs or any other name please grow up. Just because our beliefs dont match up with the way you think life should be doesnt make us wrong or evil. Look at the facts. Most gun crimes that are committed are committed by people who are CRIMINALS. Regardless of what the law says, they broke one law already what makes you think that they are going to follow a gun law?
    I grew up around guns. Not once have I pointed a gun at an innocent bystander ( I am in the military and have been deployed, even then I didnt use my firearm). I have a respect for guns and act responsibly when around guns. Why punish the those who act responsible for the irresponsible crimes of the few?

  • Posted By: djan555 @ 04/14/2009 12:02:21 PM

    we americans love to shoot each other,its in our blood.
    we are a violent society,and that will never change.
    gone are the days of peace and prosperity,frankly we are held hostage by the 2nd amendment.
    when will we open our eyes as a society, and say murder and violence is wrong....

    • Posted By: chris s. @ 04/14/2009 3:28:05 PM

      Yes, and we are prolife. What in the world could there be about a gun that isn't prolife? Afterall, a gun is designed to........? Like Manson or Hitler being prolife.

    • Posted By: wildfyre @ 04/14/2009 12:53:14 PM

      Blankety blank network...My full reply was supposed to be...

      We already know that murder and violence is WRONG. What you fail to realize is that many of us figure that our lives and families are more valuable (to ourselves and society at large) that the lives of the criminals who prey upon us. When you can assure me that every criminal has been either disarmed or placed behind impenetrable steel walls for life I will give up my personal protective firearms. Of course you'll also have to prove to me that there is no chance that any criminlas will slip through the cracks or that my own government will never become a tyrany. Personally I don't think that day will ever come... either in the U.s. or whatever fantasy land you happen to inhabit...

    • Posted By: wildfyre @ 04/14/2009 12:41:58 PM

      When you can assure me that every criminal has been either disarmed or placed behind impenetrable steel walls for life.

  • Posted By: dorf @ 04/14/2009 3:19:31 PM

    It never was a big deal for Obama. It was mentioned, but not as a "must-do" item.

    All the panic and neurosis about people taking away stupid men's "empowerment" when their lives do not offer it is strictly a fabrication of the NRA and the political right. They poured millions into scaring lame men to death - using robo-calls and many articles talking about how their right to murder 30-40 people in one sitting (vs. having to re-load) would be taken away if Obama was elected.

    Naturally - reason prevailed - and these millions of lame men have gone out and bought every weapon they can - spending all the money they have on bullets and weapons. Sometimes they don't pay their mortgages so they can exercise their 2nd ammendment right. Sometimes their kids eat package macaroni because they can't afford healthy foods when the gun and ammo bill is so high.

    I have no problem with folks owning a gun. I own one. Owning six of them - several with clips that carry 18-30 bullets in assault weapons is ludicrous. That is how we have classrooms and living rooms and old peoples' home and churches full of dead and wounded people. True - people kill - not guns. But they would be far less effective killers if their weapons only could carry a max of six bullets.

    Obama is not the problem. Lobbyists in this society peddling fear and anger are. Men might also wonder why they are so powerless without a gun. Says who? The NRA and your local gun shop - of course. Most of these guys have never read the constitution. They just parrot what they are told.

    I guess when the economy is bad and they have no self respect - the gun makes then feel like a big deal. After all - they grew up on a steady diet of Rambo, Chuck Norris and Arnold , and their problem-solving skills are similar.

    Owning a gun is one thing. Obssessing about guns is another. Obama is not obssessing about guns. The NRA and all its lemmings are.

  • Posted By: dennisj414 @ 04/14/2009 12:00:31 PM

    I would be careful about who you mental giants call a moron. Did the article not just point out that Richard Poplawski bought (most) his arms at a local dealer and filled out the necessary paperwork that failed to pick up on his violent history? I have guns too, and I will keep them, but, you guys sound like a broken record to me. You have no constructive input other than clear the way for more guns. My guess is, you all are probably strong on the religious right as well. Now Jesus, there was a dude who would bust a cap on your ass, right? I have always had the opinion that If America ever degenerated into lawlessness(a strong possibility), the most lawless and blood thirsty will come from the Religious Right. Your gene pool is already ruined.

    • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/14/2009 3:00:51 PM

      "My guess is, you all are probably strong on the religious right as well."

      Actually, no. I'm an agnostic liberal, as anyone who has read my posts on any other subject will know.

      • Posted By: LIMPbaugh @ 04/14/2009 3:12:14 PM

        This is true. i've been reading your posts for several months now. i remember when you joined us, you were more supportive than outspoken. I've had three handles in that time. When you came aboard i was repubsuck, bellai2 and basspro before that during the Presidential Campaign. when i started using my boat laptop i had to reregister. You original comments were limited to "how we were kicking the GOP mouth-breathers butt. For some reason you've mis analized my comments today. no big deal.

  • Posted By: dennisj414 @ 04/14/2009 12:33:16 PM

    If you were a gun dealer and you could circumvent the law and sell some arms (no questions asked)and make a shitload of money,,,,,,,would you do it? We are the most armed populace in the world and I have serious doubts that the gun lobby is just eat up with moral purity.

    • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/14/2009 2:59:24 PM

      No, I wouldn't. I value my personal freedom too much to go to jail, or to spend my life looking over my shoulder.

  • Posted By: dennisj414 @ 04/14/2009 1:12:11 PM

    Look, I don't know where they get these arms, maybe Santa brings them. I certainly don't want to get into a semantic argument, it just depends on what one is predisposed to believe. Automatic arms cannot be freely purchased on the street corner,but, if you happen to have a couple of tractor trailers full of cash, I would not, personally put a lot of confidence in the sanctity of gun dealers. Are we Capitalists for nothing? LOL as you may, but, beware as well.

    • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/14/2009 2:58:37 PM

      "I certainly don't want to get into a semantic argument, it just depends on what one is predisposed to believe."

      I am not willing to give up my rights because you are predisposed to believe something.

  • Posted By: hungarianpsychrn @ 04/14/2009 1:29:37 PM

    The U.S. leads the industrialized world in handgun deaths at 38,000 per year, we lead the industrialized world in children being killed by guns, we are the second largest manufacturer of guns, our trained and armed police force are killed by guns (ask the Philadelphia police dept.), the NRA is enormously powerful in Washington because they represent a billion dollar industry, kids are sitting ducks in schools, walking down the street, in college, sitting in church, at the mall, at the local community center (kid shot yesterday at Camden community center at a dance), and these are all places people have recently been shot. The United States is pathetic when it comes to gun laws even though gun laws are aimed at people who have a history of mental illness (remember Virginia Tech) and a history of problems with the law/police. People who are mentally healthy do not have to fear gun laws, it's not all or nothing. The United States is a society obsessed with guns and it's reflected in the media, in music, it's everywhere. The right to be shot in the U.S. is greater and more powerful than the right not to be shot. And those who oppose gun laws are so concrete and stubborn and uncomprimising that the only time they change their attitude regarding gun laws is when someone they love is shot. The NRA does not care about your rights regarding guns, they care about your money, they don't care about your life, they care about your money, after all, it's a billion dollar business... Good luck to you gun folks when your kids are sitting in a high school classroom or in a college classroom because before this year is over, there will be another shooting and someone's kid will be dead. But, that can't happen to you, just someone else.

    • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/14/2009 2:57:44 PM

      "The U.S. leads the industrialized world in handgun deaths at 38,000 per year"

      And we get squished in car wrecks all the time, too. Life is dangerous. Wear a helmet.

  • Posted By: Clonakilty32 @ 04/13/2009 5:55:29 AM

    The NRA was meant to be organization supporting sportsmanship in hunting and hunters rights. There is not sportsmanship in AK 47s. These inanimate objects are meant for one purpose ... wholesale killing of humans. The general public should have no use for these inanimate objects. Like motor vehicles gun rights and drivers licenses should be earned and a demonstration of responsible ownership and usage a privilege earned. We don't just turn people loose with vehicles. We should not turn unstable irresponsible people loose with guns. Our ancestors that framed the constitution saw the need for the right to form a well maintained militia and the right to bear arms but they did not foresee the AK 47 and like weapons just as they did not foresee automobiles and extremely large transport vehicles hurtleing down superhighways at high speeds. There has to be a middle ground on this subject and reasoned minds to compromise. Guns are part of our society and always will be. There will be no taking away of guns but there should be a limiit to what a citizen of this society should own. Its totally insane for law enforcement personnell to try and keep society in check when they themselves can be assaulted by superior firepower on every given day.

    • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/13/2009 11:32:01 AM

      "There has to be a middle ground on this subject and reasoned minds to compromise. "

      Why should I compromise on my rights?

      No deal.

      • Posted By: Skallywag @ 04/14/2009 1:23:25 PM

        I'm back, I will not go see another place to live as you suggested, I defended people like you for over 20 years and have earned the right to stand here and have my say. Have you? If you have, I offer to shake you hand (metaphorically, obviously) as a peer. Well, as I pointed out yesterday, this is not Iraq, nor is it the wild west. This is a civilized country. We, as private citizens do not NEED assault weapons. In reality, we really don't need guns at all, but there are various GOOD reasons for our right to bear arms. So go down to the local gun shop, fill out the proper paperwork, jump through all teh legal hoops and buy a Weatehrby Mark VII. It is an excellent rifle for various justifiable purposes and in a pinch may be used to defend yourself from a home invader who you HOPE is actually armed so when you escort him out the door with a .270 slug, you won't go to jail (maybe we should all go get a Saturday Night Special to use as a drop gun). The same goes for , say, an Ithaca model 37 shotgun or even a Smith and Wesson model 29, or many other similar guns. The whole assault weapon ban is designed to take assault weapons of the streets. Assault weapons - weapons designed with one and only one pupose in mind - kill people. They were not designed with the recreational shooter in mind, any honest to goodness marksman disdains such a gun in favor of accuracy. If you hunt with one, you are likely to get venison burgers instead of roast. We can't buy military specific weapons such as a tank or howitzer for home defense or hunting (maybe if dinosaurs still existed you could justify them), so why would anyone NEED an assault rifle ? Are people really that paranoid to think think the red coats are comming back? Nobody is asking you to completely give up you right to bear arms, what is being done is a movement that is in line with good, responsible, ethical and moral behavior. It just isn't right to let sillyvillians have military type weapons. It is not written anywhere, it just makes good sound common sense. There is no edict that you step inside to avoid a lighhtning storm, it just makes good common sense, even if it is your right to stand outside.

        • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/14/2009 2:56:30 PM

          Yes, I served.

          And, again, the second amendment does not stipulate need in any way. You don't NEED your car, you can take the bus. You don't NEED your TV, you can listen to the radio.

          I am also not defending the right to bear assault weapons as a home defense option, and never have...and yes, their only purpose is to kill people. The government has them, for that express purpose, and therefore so should the people. That's the whole idea behind the second amendment.

      • Posted By: pinkpanther87413 @ 04/14/2009 12:11:45 AM

        thats what the black market is for.. you can even build a nuke as the Russian Mobs end game plan is, to build and blackmail.. you can buy atomics for 100,000, you can buy every military weapon ever made on any street corner in the USA..Deal with it.. this is going by the way side of our newly Nationalized Banks and Predetermined dictator--no where

        • Posted By: MADDOG0802 @ 04/14/2009 12:55:46 PM

          'you can buy atomics for 100,000'
          Yeah, right....as if Al Queida or one or your own right-wing crazy groups could buy a nuclear weapon for 100,000 and haven't already done so and subsquently used.....why are people like you so stupid?

        • Posted By: wildfyre @ 04/14/2009 12:39:04 PM

          Yeah you can buy a real full-auto M-16 or UZI on any street corner... LOL You just try that and let us know how long you stood there.

    • Posted By: Osama Bin Login @ 04/14/2009 12:24:00 PM

      "and usage a privilege earned."

      The 2d amendment defines it as a right, not a privilege.

    • Posted By: wildfyre @ 04/14/2009 8:50:07 AM

      Last time I looked through the Bill of Rights there was no amendment protecting your right to keep and bear an automibile, or any other form of transportation for that matter. The reason the founding fathers put the 2nd amendment in was that they had direct experience with a government that disarmed it's citizens in order to control the. The 2nd amendment has nothing to do with hunting or sports shooting. It is all about the ability of the citizenry to resist a government which has become tyranical. Restricting the general public to flintlocks and bows and arrows makes them a strawman and renders them incapable of effecting a meaningful resistance against repressive government forces.

      One thing to note... when a wacko in DC plowed through a street fair with her car and killed and injured numerous people, I saw no hew and cry to ban automobiles. People misusing automobiles kill many more people in this country than all of the criminal and negligent homicides, suicides, and other deaths involving firearms combined. Lets just outlaw cars! Afterall, who needs a 2 ton killing machine of an SUV? Even a tiny Smart Car is capable of killing a pedestrian so better outlaw them too. People don't need personal transportation do they? Everyone can take the bus or the subway right?

      Finally, the root issue here is "criminal control"!!! Criminals will get firearms regardless of any law banning them (please read the definition of "criminal" if you can't understand this basic premise). Stop trying to control the tool and try instead to control the hand that weilds in in a irresponsible or criminal manner.

    • Posted By: Cowboygunsmith @ 04/14/2009 7:28:05 AM

      One question please. Every person you mentioned drove to where they did their crime with a gun. Doses that mean we need to review and do away with any make of auto they drove. Oh by the way can anyone give me one good reason why we should have cars on the road that will go faster than 70 miles an hour as that is the posted speed limit in most states. Also why should anyone owen a Bently, Rolls, Caddy, or any luxary car after all, all that is required is for it to get me from point A to point B. But we do know with cars if there is not gass they will not be used and so it is with ammo and reloading supplies. (Try and buy some right now)

    • Posted By: hankvreeland @ 04/13/2009 9:58:03 AM

      The AK47 is a fully automatic weapon and is already rigidly controlled by the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms. I have never heard of the NRA calling for the decontrol of fully automatic weapons.

  • Posted By: thehappyamerican @ 04/14/2009 2:50:35 PM

    The "Power" of the NRA has been handed to it on a silver plater by News Week and others who attack firearms owners with a discrimination campaign. and with lies! Adding to this annoyance are politicians here in the USA who work to find ways to administrativly lose violent criminals upon us!
    You in Europe, may not have jerks like this in your government, but we sure do!
    And such politicians, like vice Presidident Biden, also lie about firearms and wage a discrimination campaign.
    So , how can the NRA not have "power" as the USA's oldest Civil rights organizations and that Americans are urked by discrimination campaigns.
    the polls actually prove this now!
    If your politicians in europe are reputable and insist murders, rapists, assailents serve long prison sentences, then it's good for you!
    As for the USA, the violence is almost ALWAYS from someone who has a criminal history, but got a light slap on the wrist!
    Lieing politicians, lies in our news media,an organised hate campaign from groups in Washington is going to generate 'power" for the oposition. And those who want violent criminals to serve long prison sentences. A reasonable quest! It's not a love affair.
    i can't understand the hate affair!

  • Posted By: usa_must_die @ 04/14/2009 2:38:18 PM

    Smart choice as I'm sure you know what would happen if you actually tried to go through with removing these guns from citizens. I dare you to try it.

  • Posted By: gheyud6464hh @ 04/14/2009 1:25:05 PM

    I'm glad to see that Newsweek isn't biased at all! What a trashy publication...

  • Posted By: ertdfg @ 04/14/2009 12:29:03 PM

    So the Mexican Cartels buy their weapons (mostly fully auto and RPG Launchers, some grenades) in the U.S. legally, which is why we need to ban these? Where?

    Seriously, since you're willni to make this stupid claim; please inform me where I can purchase an RPG launcher and some ammo; or a case of grenades, or a fully automatic firearm in the U.S. legally (as illegal purchases won't be affected by new laws).

    Oh, none of those can be legally purchased in the U.S. and those are the common weapons used by the Mexican Cartels, and your claim is they buy weapons from the U.S. in spite of the fact that this claim is impossible on its face?

    Damn, RPG's just look fun... you've ruined my day here. Oh, and you've dished out enough misinformation, lies, and idiocy to do some serious harm to your credibility... wait, sorry I forgot you were NewsWeek... like you had credibility in the first place.

  • Posted By: mr_newsjunkie @ 04/14/2009 12:06:01 PM

    Please explain to me how mexican drug cartels buy guns from our stores without the required background check which they couldn't get without verifiable identification? What examples do you have that substatiates this claim?

  • Posted By: mr_newsjunkie @ 04/14/2009 12:03:40 PM

    Please explain to me how mexican drug cartels buy guns from our stores without the required background check which they couldn't get without verifiable identification? What examples do you have that substatiates this claim?

  • Posted By: mr_newsjunkie @ 04/14/2009 12:02:53 PM

    Please explain to me how mexican drug cartels buy guns from our stores without the required background check which they couldn't get without verifiable identification? What examples do you have that substatiates this claim?

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