Got unwanted guns? We do. They’re unwanted because they are broken down junk and we love trading junk for perfectly good cash – especially if the cash comes from the City of Chicago’s coffers . . .
That’s right: Chicago is once again looking for unwanted guns and they’ll buy them – even broken down junk – for perfectly good cash (well, pre-paid credit cards). For the first time in three years, Chicago will be underwriting a new round of gun buybacks to be held at local churches in the coming weeks. This is thanks to Mayor Rahm Emanuel diverting $250,000 to fund the symbolic effort to get unwanted guns off the streets and reduce violent crime in Chicago.
We all know that if Chicago were really serious about lowering violent crime, they would put violence-prone individuals using firearms in prison for a long, long time as they do in Florida. They wouldn’t charge them with Class 4 felonies (1-3 years in prison) after they wound two people in a gang shooting or a misdemeanor when they miss their intended target.
For comparison purposes, these individuals would all be looking at a generation in prison as a mandatory minimum if they had committed these offenses in the Sunshine State. That is why Florida is enjoying the lowest rate of firearm violent crime in that state’s history. And why Chicago has had about 2100 people shot this year and over 400 more killed.
(We wrote about this in TRAGIC COMEDY: Chicago’s justice system, not guns, at root of violence.)
Chicago’s latest buyback
These are the terms as we understand them: they will be paying $100 for each firearm in the form of pre-loaded credit cards, similar to previous buybacks. Churches will market and administer their own programs with Chicago Police on hand to take possession of the guns during the event and hand out the $100 cards for each gun, no questions asked.
The mayor and police chief want to get 2500 guns off the street.
Here’s an offer, boys: you want to get your program off to a good start Mr. Mayor? Get in touch with me and I’ll get you fifty to start with – maybe 100 if you give me a couple of weeks. They won’t be pretty, and most of them won’t actually shoot, but a gun’s a gun, right?
Intrepid readers might remember Guns Save Life’s foray into the last Chicago Gun Buyback in 2012. Here’s my account from The Truth About Guns.
The publicity was a serious embarrassment for the powers that be in Chicago. We thought it was great though. We used that Windy City cash to provide ammunition (and a few guns) for young people to attend a National Rifle Association Youth Shooting Camp – for two years in a row. We also gave another $1,000 of Chicago taxpayer money to Ford County’s Pheasants Forever Young Guns program to help build a youth air-rifle shooting trailer.
- Chicago’s gun buyback helps group pay for youth shooting camp (Chicago Tribune)
- Chicago firearm buyback program funds gun camp for kids (Russia Today)
- ‘Guns Save Life’ Turns Gun Buyback into Fundraiser for NRA Youth Shooting Camp (Guns.com)
- Chicago gun buyback unknowingly raises money for NRA kids’ gun camp (NBC News)
- Illinois Hate Group subverts gun buyback program to fund NRA camp for children (Liberals Unite) (Hate group, huh?)
- Pro-gun group uses Chicago firearms buyback program to fund shooting camp for kids (Fox News)
- Gun Rights Group Participates In Chicago Gun Turn-In, Uses Money For Shooting Camp (CBS Chicago)
- My favorite: NRA-Backed Group Scams Chicago Taxpayers Into Buying Ammo, Bolt-Action Rifles For Children (Think Progress)
- Gun Club Turns Tables on Windy City (Shooting Illustrated)
A cursory Google search yielded over two thousand entries about our 2012 visit to the event.
Frank Main from the Chicago Sun-Times inquired if we, as Guns Save Life, would be back for another dip into Chicago gun buyback cash stash.
Knowing he was in a press conference with the mayor and police chief at the time, I texted him the above photo and a note: “Yes, we would be delighted to transact business once more with the do-gooders in Chicago…Tell the mayor we need substance over symbolism, not the other way around.”
He called late this afternoon and we had a nice, long talk.
The Sun-Times published their story last night. It’s spreading like wildfire.
http://chicago.suntimes.com/news/7/71/1027846/gun-rights-group-vows-exploit-emanuels-new-250000-gun-buyback
Wow, John, you seem to have really p!ssed in their Cheerios. Bravo.
The Sun-Times pointed to Australia’s 1996 ban and confiscation as an example of a successful “gun buyback.” Nothing quite like living in Chicago. People around here will swallow every lie they are told hook, line, and sinker.
Bully for you and your organization.
What’s the limits on this? I can turn in all 3 of my 80% receivers and buy 3X as many? Genius system.
I’m thinking homemade 12ga that has about $10 in parts would be worth selling for $100. I’ve never built homemade shotgun, its legal, I might if i knew when and where I could turn the evil 12ga in.
This was hilarious back in 2012.
This is hilarious in 2015.
The media reaction is even funnier.
Right in the ol’ stink eye!
I think Abraham Lincoln was referring to the citizens of Chicago when he said, “You can fool some of the people all of the time.”
It’s time to peruse the local gun shops to see what rusty junk they might have with price tag under $100. I wish I had time to haul a pile of crap to the Windy City. I would happily donate the proceeds to a pro-2A group.
So, my 3/$90 Tactical Machining lowers are worth $100 each? Man I like this already sign me up!
Gun buy backs would be a good idea with two changes. Reject the non-working junk and advise the owner to give or sell it to a criminal. Pay for the decent stuff and make it available to poor people with concealed carry permits. Of course, they will never do this.
It’s not really a “buyback” since the guns weren’t previously owned by the City of Chicago. Perhaps they should rename it a “gun upgrade program”.
Cash for clunkers… gun version.
No questions asked, bit a picture is worth a thousand words.
I love government logic.
Cash for clunkers… give people minimum trade in for their old car to get people to buy more new cars.
Gun buy”back”… give people minimum trade in for their old guns… but not buy more new guns.
Genius. Why do they expect a different result?
From the Chicago Times story:
Anthony Guglielmi, spokesman for the Chicago Police Department, said officers will check to see whether turned-in guns are operable but won’t check the IDs of the people who bring them in.
“If people want to game the system, society is the victim,” he said. “I think those people need to ask themselves, are they part of the solution to reduce violence?”
Society is the victim, eh? If that’s so, then I’m obliged to point out another truth: It was YOUR people, Mr. Guglielmi, who set up the public as victims. Wasting hundreds of thousands of dollars on pointless gestures that have nothing to do with your city’s violence problem and won’t do a damn thing for any of the victims you claim to care about…
The anti-gun crowd is so fond of saying “if it only saves one life…” Well, what if it doesn’t save any? What then? What if you could save dozens or hundreds, instead of just one, by taking a clear-headed look at the problem and doing something different?
I, for one, am glad to know that people like John Boch are ready to turn at least some of this arrant idiocy into something useful.
Soooo incredibly stupid. I turned in a shotgun and 2 revolvers that were so bad the shotgun wouldn’t pump and one revolver the cylinder was so corroded it wouldn’t turn anymore. The other one had a visibly bent barrel and the hammer wouldn’t cock. Paid 30 dollars for all three. Made $270 dollars from these idiots.
And yeah…… used it to buy a new shotgun.
Whatever happened to the proposed federal law to allow a tax credit (~ $2,000) for turning in an assault weapon? (definition included just the lower receiver…)? Anybody know?
I have a beat up lower that i would offer up for an incentive like that. Would be a good excuse to build an AR-10 afterwards. 😉
Ah life. She is a beautiful thing.
Perhaps I should make a trip to the city, and see if I can get an inexpensive Python or Luger…
Good job, John..
While you”re there be sure to have some Deep Dish Chicago Pizza too!!
Good. I’ve got some junk I plan to sell to the city.
Theoretically, you could pay off a Ghost Gunner machine by selling printed lowers.
I spend a fair amount of time in and around the Windy City as my folks live on the north shore. It’s always amazed me that such a vibrant city as Chicago is with generally a very bright and progressive thinking population allow for such twisted and corrupt political machines to thrive and continue to screw the people! I can’t imagen how the Chicago police are able to function having to work under the structure they do. The Illinois State government is no better.
However, they do provide a constant stream of amusement for the rest of us and if they wish to also once again fund firearms safety and training or a new shotgun, maybe just a better Christmas expierance thur an inept recovery program, who are we to dissuade them? After all this is the city who is now stuck with a privet company who “bought” the rights to all the paid parking in the city by loaning the Daily Jr. Administration money in exchange for an open ended 99 year lease. An that’s just one of the MANY examples of Chicago politics. Mayor Rom E. is no better than any that have held the office with two notable exceptions.
So, collect your junk an take their money! The $250K pittance that Rom is doling out is nothing and will do nothing for the city and its problems. It dosnt even do much for him politically either! It’s just a waste of money but if he wants to give it away then we should be helpful and releave him of it.
If you think Chicago is a vibrant city with a bright and progressive thinking population, you need to get off the north shore. Hop on an L train and ride it to the end of the tracks and back. I did this once. You’ll ride through mile after magnificent mile of putrid, decaying inter-urban wasteland. The parts of Chicago you see are nothing more than polished aluminum foil covering a casserole of rotting sewage.
Chicago’s hypocritical politicians spending more taxpayer money for worthless gun buybacks to promote their own political agendas at the expense of their citizens. A better solution would be to keep the bad guys that use guns for crimes in jail and away from the rest of us. But that would be too simple and would not help the politicians look better to the uninformed and those that think guns are evil.
Good luck guys, I wish I had anything to get $100 for. BTW this security theatre was ALL OVER the snooze yesterday. No critical comments from any of the talking heads…I did have an Indiana pawn guy tell me he saves up Hi-points and Cobras(or Lorcin,JA or similar junk) and made a good chunk o’ cash in 2012…
Anybody from this group in the middle GA area, I have an old P.O.S 22 rifle that’s missing the bolt that I’d donate for this cause!
I’ve been to the site of Guns Save Life. Love their attitude!
Can I strap a piece of iron pipe to a hunk of wood, call it a shotgun and get paid?
John,
Buy some $60 lowers from Ares, mill and drill them, then go cash them out.
AJ
Lord! If I had a piece of junk that didn’t work or was damaged I would definitely take advantage of this program grab the card and use it to purchase another firearm! I feel that is the BEST way to utilize tax payers dollars.
I need a gun buyback somewhere local to me. I have a broken polymer lower “Assault Weapon” and I would like a gift card for it!
Very nice work, Mr Boch.
As the blogfather would say- “Troll Level: Grandmaster” (in a good way).
Or “Mock Them”.
I’m passing this one along, everywhere I can.
Kudos to the Chicago Sun-Times as well, for growing a pair.
Well done guys. As Shakespeare expressed it:
For ’tis the sport to have the enginer
Hoist with his own petard, an’t shall go hard
But I will delve one yard below their mines
And blow them at the moon.
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