“The President is focused on doing the things that we can do that protect Second Amendment rights,” Presidential Press Secretary Jay Carney said [to ABC] after his boss flew to Colorado to commiserate with the victims of the Midnight Movie Massacre. “Which he thinks is important,” Carney added parenthetically. “But also to make it harder for individuals who should not, under existing law, have weapons to obtain them.” Yes, well, that wasn’t spree killer James Holmes, who purchased his guns legally. Bottom line: gun control has become the proverbial third rail in American politics. Even gun grabber Senator Dianne Feinstein kept GC on the DL [via sfgate.com], calling for a “sane national conversation on guns.” I think President Obama just had it.
Wait – he’s not taking our guns?
Gasp!
he won’t….but it will come from a different angle
But does this come from conviction or the demands of reelection? And what might he do to our liberties if he had the cooperation of Congress? Google “NDAA” to find out.
Not right now, wait until February.
ITYM “the next Supreme Court vacancy”.
The R’s are going to hold the House, and are likely to take the Senate. If Obama wins, he’s going to have a Republican Congress to deal with, which means legislative action isn’t going to happen. The only way he’ll be able to do anything on the issue would be via Supreme Court appointment.
You people just won’t take “yes” for an answer. You have won. No one is going to take away your guns.
The founding fathers knew that eventually muskets would have 30 round clips, and guaranteed your right to own them.
People on this board won’t be happy until Obama admits that this whole thing is somehow his fault. Sheeeeeesh.
You people just won’t take “yes” for an answer. You have won. No one is going to take away your guns.
The founding fathers knew that eventually muskets would have 30 round clips, and guaranteed your right to own them.
People on this board won’t be happy until Obama admits that this whole thing is somehow his fault.
I’d be delighted to take ‘yes’ for an answer. The problem is that President Obama’s track record in the Illinois statehouse and US Senate make it impossible for me to believe he’s sincere, instead of just waiting for an opening.
No one who came from the Chicago Machine supports the 2nd A. That’s just how it is.
Obama is toast. There will be a Republican landslide in November and the main stream press will be shaking their heads trying to figure out what happened. Enough of the American people have had with the Democrats socialist policies. Obama and his crowd have stepped on too many toes for oil and coal to healthcare.
Good residence. The Democrats have done more to harm this country than any foreign enemy.
he doesn’t need to take our guns. they’re so tightly regulated now that if you do a dgu you might save your life. but by the time you defend yourself in court and the public opinion that’s probably all you’ll have left. forget about your house and bank account.
I’m guessing that’s a Zimmerman reference.
If I fired my gun under those circumstances, I’d expect to have to defend myself in court and in the public.
So where’s the national GDU insurance mandate? Or was that covered under obamacare too? (rolleyes)
You do understand that, under Florida state law, the state’s attorney was correct in not charging him, right? The charges against Zimmerman are in direct violation of Florida’s law regarding self-defense, and were only brought forward because the media whipped a certain portion of the population into a frenzy.
We now live in a country in which the law can be tossed aside simply because of fear that people may riot.
“I’m guessing that’s a Zimmerman reference.
If I fired my gun under those circumstances, I’d expect to have to defend myself in court and in the public.”
As anyone should. But the political climate at the time and place of your DGU will have a lot to do with what your defense will end up costing you. A lot of folks aside from Zimmerman have gone broke defending themselves in court over DGU’s that turned out legitimate and were more clear-cut than the Sanford case.
The government has more time, money, and human resources available than most of us could pay for. Of course you could always go with a public defender.
It’s also simple for the government to go after you since taxpayers are paying for it. You have to hire your own attorney if you want to compete with the resources they have. Public defenders, while well intentioned, are not an equal with zealous DA offices.
So you think being a victim of attempted murder by a random person doesn’t classify as a legitimate DGU? Please tell me when you think a person should be allowed to shoot someone in self defense.
You can be perfectly justified and after 6 months and 200K in legal bills they will probably agree with you/
That is just great Mr. Prez.
How about we talk about mental health and the lack of assistance available?
That pre-1984 we had 400 beds per 100,000 Americans and today we only have 22 per 100,000. Did mental health issues disappear?
25% of the prison population has mental health issues.
Many soldiers have mental issues
This kid has mental health issues and forgetting for a moment that there is no place to go for help, there is no legal way for family to get someone help unless they hurt themselves or others, and then the only remedy is jail.
You are correct, guns are not the issue, can we now find a way to get people who need it the help they need?
Great points but it’s not the government’s responsibility to solve all mental health problems. We need to rely less on the government to do things for us and do them for ourselves. If you’re passionate about supporting mental health, get together with others and start an organization devoted to the cause. The government is not there to fix all of our problems. Creating problems is the government’s best work.
All of us have other problems that trump mental health issues. Like the problem of some wacko taking our lives because the government tried to help us with our non-existent “gun problem”. The problem where people DIE because the government has assumed the responsibility of regulating arms because they can’t read or don’t agree with the 2nd amendment. Having a mental health problem is a luxury compared the inability to defend your own life. You have to be alive to have a mental health problem. Your cause is noble but it only affects some people. Our cause affects ALL people, all the time.
Choose your battles. When you have the guns, you get to tell the government what you want it to do. If you let them control the guns, then you get to ask permission for your rights and hope for the best.
I’d like to hear you say this after you end up paying for a family member’s mental health issues. A child of mine became suicidal–and I’ve spent $60,000 out of pocket in the last 15 months for his care.
In California, Ronnie emptied the public mental health facilities and shut them down. As of this moment, there is not a acute psychiatric facility within 150 miles, and if you go to the east side of Northern California, it is closer to three hundred miles. Now those mental health issues are law enforcement issues. We pay for it one way or another.
So you regret spending that money on your child’s health and would rather have spent it on something more important to you? Wow. This isn’t about money. If it is for you then you have your priorities a little mixed up. If you can’t afford to pay for the medical care of your child, then you have no business having children. PERIOD. End of story.
If you want mental health facilities, get together with Pascal and friends and build one. There’s no reason private citizens cant get together and create the services they need by creating private companies. Stop asking the government to do everything for you.
“If you can’t afford to pay for the medical care of your child, then you have no business having children. PERIOD. End of story.”
Stop that! you’re applying common sense that makes the statists weep with sadness. 😀
Seriously though, statement of the month!
“This kid has mental health issues….”
stop.
you are drawing to wrong conclusions. Unless you can back it up, have a tall glass.
Many people are inclined to believe that mental health issues are at the root of incidents of this nature because it is less disturbing to accept an illness in the body than to be confronted by the existence of such evil in the soul.
Like hell. Increased firearms regulation has always been a goal, as he himself admitted on several occasions. Only reason he isn’t pushing for it is that it isn’t politically possible at present.
Let us hope it stays that way.
While speaking with John Lott he even stated he does not believe anyone has a right to own a gun. That statement has never been changed, or shown to be a lie.
That said I truly believe he will jump on board with any form of ATT that comes through and then try and apply it to the US by executive order or otherwise.
My only hope is that any form of the ATT will not go before the UN before November. With any luck he and Hillary won’t be able to vote on it.
It’s actually the period between election day and inauguration day that will be the most dangerous when it comes to signing away rights to the UN.
Bingo. I hate to think it’s being timed for a lame duck session but it’s possible.
“The President is focused on doing the things that we can do that protect Second Amendment rights…”
Now THAT’S funny. Fill my ears with silver.
People who think that POTUS is going anywhere near gun control before the election are in need of therapy. It looks like it’s going to be a close election, and adding yet another thorny issue to the debate would not be helpful to Obama’s chances of reelection. Besides, he shot his wad with Obamacare.
After the election, when the Chosen One is either voted out or voted back in as a lame duck, things may change. Which is why the House and Senate races are so important. Getting rid of a RINO like Dick Lugar was great, but only if the pro-2A candidate wins. The House is strong for 2A, but we’re losing Heath Schuler who was a strong 2A Democrat. The Senate is not pro-2A and needs to come over to the right side.
There’s a lot at stake.
With all respect, I think he expects not to be re elected. With all the damage he’s done in 4 agonizing years, adding this would be the cherry on the sundae. You can elect nothing but R’s to both houses and the Oval office but undoing what has been done will take decades. His deficit alone is unplayable. Regardless of criticism, that is my humble opinion.
Sammy, if he thinks he’s not going to be reelected, he’s the only one. If the election was held today, he’d be reelected. Maybe he wouldn’t get the popular vote, but he’d win the electoral vote handily.
I know that a lot can change between now and then, but Obama will win unless Romney wins every swing state. I don’t think that’s possible.
What denial you’re in, Sammy. At least Ralph has a grasp of the reality of the present-day situation. Where I disagree with him is the future projection that it’ll be a close race. I predict Obama by a landslide, that’s 10%.
After that, I’m hoping he demonstrates the integrity of doing the right thing about gun control.
His margin of victory the first time around was 7.27%. I think it is widely accepted that the second time around is going to be a bit rougher for him. Although I also expect him to win, I think the margin is going to be a lot closer. I don’t think there is much chance of it being 10% or greater.
Did I read you right? Referring to him and integrity in the same sentence? Where have you been for the past 3 1/2 years? Show me any integrity displayed by his administration when both houses of congress were dominated by his party. Lots of integrity shown getting health rationing passed, oh you call it health care sorry.
Claiming he knew nothing about F&F and then invoking executive privilege to block congresses investigation of an actual felony. More integrity.
And I’m the one in denial.
If the threat of 4 more years of this shit isn’t enough motivation to get you politically active then America is truly finished.
And I should have said he doesn’t care if he’s re-elected. but what’s the difference. The propaganda has taken root. I’d like to see his numbers if he got the same treatment from the press that Bush did.
It starts with your local government and works it’s way up. Even if we had a super majority in both houses, states still set laws which can inhibit gun ownership.
With ATT looming in the shadows having the current administration run for another four years could open a Pandora’s box if you will with a lot of things.
Unless we had a super majority which then turns around and applies unfettered application of 2A directly to the states we will be where we are today in regard to legislation.
By this they would take directly to the supreme court a case in which 2A is directly applied to all states. Any laws whether commerce or public safety that does not reaffirm 2A, would be deemed unconstitutional and nullified.
For some reason I can’t fathom this ever happening.
Of course states would then turn around and use taxes or some other means to circumvent the 2A stipulation. It would be like saying we will put a 200% tax on all AR rifles, and parts. This pretty much would put an AR style rifle out of reach financially for most of us. I am not saying people wouldn’t buy it but it would be hard as all get out to do so.
Obama has shown with the affordable health care act, and the following:
EPA to take over regulation of oil and natural gas:
http://www.infowars.com/executive-order-federal-government-to-take-control-of-domestic-natural-gas-production-epa-set-to-move-within-one-week/
or
http://www.hyscience.com/archives/2011/08/obamas_epa_like.php
or
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=840_1338904612
All of these executive orders have given power to a centralized government while not going through normal channels of law. It has been throwing aside any review to a constitutionality of a law or order, and pretty much letting him do what he pleases.
But don’t worry it is what is best for you, they are the government and know what they are doing….
Molon labe
It starts with your local government and works it’s way up.
Sanchanim, when it comes to guns, in states with preemption it works the other way around. Also in states where the big cities dominate, like Illinois and Massachusetts, the localities can’t do a damn thing. The cities control the legislature and the governor.
Even if the lower level offices have no control over firearms issues, they are still important as they often serve as the talent pool for filling higher offices which do have a measure of control.
@ Ralph.
This is also why I am not understating the importance of our federal government. Although like in California, SB 249 has nothing to do with federal government but affects us state wide. Cities lake San Francisco also have local ordinance in place as well. Each county pretty much sets the rules in regard to CCW issuance. If you have a pro 2A sheriff then your chances are greater, even though state law sets costs and other things.
It is a jungle of laws, and even the FFL dealers are fed up with it. I am lucky to have a shop near my house which is more than happy to help with a single shot exemption pistol or work around the ins and outs of building a CA compliant AR. They do all this for free to us, but they are all also very active in fighting the BS.
It would be nice if there was an actual way to wipe out what has been and level the playing field for all of us. I can always dream can’t I? 🙂
So…does this make Obama better on guns than Reagan now?
http://www.nytimes.com/1991/03/29/opinion/why-i-m-for-the-brady-bill.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm
Good thing I’m not a one-issue voter. 😉
Well, the guy damn near died. How do you expect him to respond? Another BTW the original assault ban inspired by the Brady Bunch was lifted because FBI records showed it had no effect on gun violence.
I suppose it’s too much to ask an average man to act out of principle, instead of emotion, no?
If you want a sane national conversation about guns, you won’t find one with a gun-grabber. Sanity just isn’t their thing.
My lawyer, who happens to be a really decent guy, knows I carry. He told me “if you ever draw your gun in public, regardless of the circumstances, your life will never be the same” Meaning, even if justified in criminal court you could still loose in civil court where the chances of loosing are much higher. Not to mention the plaintiffs could draw out the proceedings for a costly and lengthy period of time.
BTW where do I go for therapy? Cause I think that signing a gun ban, whether or not ratified, will portray this guy as the man who after less than 2 weeks of the Colorado shootings got all the (legal) guns off the streets, just like he was the guy that got bin laden in only 3 1/2 years after taking over the chase. Laugh all you want, but I know of people who believe he got OBL on his own. And ask 10 people on the street if they even know about the ATT and I’ll give you a shinny quarter for every one who is aware. And I’ll give you a hundred if you find anyone who gives a damn.
Hey, the President is from the home (well, adopted home) of the Chicago Palm Pistol. Eh?
In any case, not surprised. I think the pols have the right message on this one, and I think he’s wise enough not to scapegoat a bunch of legally-minded gun owners (don’t bother me with the conspiracy theories please – an absence of evidence is certainly not evidence).
In the rougher points of political theory, the Democrats have already been worried that the F&F scandal (remember that?) is going to alienate more of the “natural Democrats, in another age” that Dan Baum writes about in his argument, and weaken or obscure the Democratic platform. That’d be bad.
At some level most people understand what they have control over and what they do not. Most people understand that outside of a prison-state, they can not exert any control over someone else’s choice to break a law. They understand they can not control how available a cop is or who a cop is. They know they can not control someone’s insanity, or someone’s decision to attack them. Most people regardless of politics know that they can only control that which they are present for or involved in. Until the moment of attack you have no control over the issue. Once you are part of it, all you can control is your response. Weapons are the best chance of exerting the only control you really have to change the outcome of an attack. People wonder why the issue of privately held weapons is such a powerful one. It is because this issue of needing to understand what you can control and what you can not has been with humanity since the dawn of the species. Long before our present day politics, long before mechanised war, before kings, and before nation states, before man had any leaders or gods to appeal to, early man roamed the earth with tools designed to multiply his own force for survival and for protection. After all of our civilizing, there is still no all powerful entities to appeal to for help when it is you and an attacker together alone. Weapons are still the best of few options and slim chances to survive. It is a deeply embedded feature of our species to rely on and protect our best chance to have a favorable outcome. There have been periods of time in places where people were deluded by relative security into thinking these fundamental problems in the world no longer exist. We are not in one of those periods now. This is why gun rights are a third rail in today’s politics, this is why gun rights are becoming less politically divided than ever before, and this is also why the traditional gun rights demographic needs to think about not alienating their allies based on fickle things like other politics.
-D
What’s so funny is after he wins re-election or doesn’t everyone will still have there guns and what will be next? Your guns aren’t going anywhere, never have and never will. Many of you have fallen for this trick and continue to. They told you that your guns were going to be taken away and many of you ran out and started buying up everything you could find in response to that. Now 4 years later, your gun rights are exactly where they were and the gun companies are raking in RECORD PROFITS! So keep believing the hype and in a few months or 4 years when Obama is out office, you’ll are going to look real ridiculous…guns to the ceiling, and no change in any law that would act to curb your passion. Now back to being sheep! And yes I’m a gun owner and a supporter of the 2nd amendment by the way, just not an idiot!
says you. and i’ll bet your mommy told you that you were smart and good looking and all the other kids really liked you.
CJ our rights are already infringed.
If you live in CA or DC as an example, we can not purchase quite a bit in regard to other states. The right to carry either OC or CC is also non existent for the most part. I am not saying it isn’t possible but if you are lucky enough to get a CCW and qualify on lets say four different firearms you are looking at about $1,000.00 in cost. Each firearm you need to qualify on is by serial number. We are limited to a bullet button and 10 round mag. Try a 3 gun competition sometime that way, not easy.
Everything is limited in the eye of public safety. Well in AZ or gee pick another state there is shall issue, constitutional carry, and well those folks have magazines, and all sorts of “bad” things, and we don’t see whole sale slaughter all over the place. I am not saying that what happened in Aurora wasn’t a tragedy, it was. But unlike Anders Behring Breivik, Norwigens aren’t calling for some drastic changes. It was horrible and it is more important for them to grieve, heal, and move on. Here in the state people demand something must be done! Maybe folks need to learn that really nothing could have been done. If he is crazy or delusional he would have used different means to the same end. The gun was one of many options.
Why is Obama touching his throat with two fingers as if he is checking his pulse?
It is a secret signal to liberals, but we are not allowed to say what it means. 😉
I’m ok with that as long as it is not a secret message to the Illuminati 🙂
Most normal people are pretty insane these days, for instance many have irrational fears of terrorism, crime and many fear inanimate objects, so screw it I say we do nothing
Doing nothing is the first step to losing everything. The German people were up to their necks in internal problems, some forced from sanctions from the first world war. Along comes someone that promises a better tomorrow, but first we need to “cleanse” ourselves of our problems. In our case, it starts with guns, in the case of Germany, it was certain ethnic groups. By the time everyone knew how wrong it was, they were powerless.
Make a stand for what’s right. Make a stand on the Constitution. Abide by the rules of the constitution and the intent of the founding fathers, as they wrote it, not the intent of someone who stands to gain by redefining them they way they see fit. Use the soapbox and the ballot box to voice your disdain for politics that ignore the “We the people” for “we the power-hungry.”
As someone who has been shooting avidly for most of my life, I understand the dangers that surround firearms and their use. Safety is always the first priority no matter the given situation. However, over time it has become more and more clear that more comprehensive screenings for firearms is needed. Making the process more comprehensive might deter your average idiot who is in a bad mood, wants to get a gun, and wants to use that gun to shoot someone. But let’s not kid ourselves: it isn’t likely to decrease occurrences like this. There are people out there (and I’m surprised I haven’t seen more people make this connection considering what movie he did this in) who “just want to watch the world burn.” You can put all the obstacles you want in front of someone like this and they will inevitably acquire the means to kill. Even if they have to make it themselves. It seems obvious that this individual, James Holmes, was sadistic on such a level that he led a seemingly normal life just so he could obtain the firearms, ammunition, explosive materials, trigger mechanisms, chemical weapons, body-armor, and the knowledge needed to use all of these things to strike exactly when, where, and how he wanted. He clearly isn’t just some loser who “snapped.” I bet he spent months, possibly over a year, planning this. Sadly, there are people like this out there and the fact of the matter is that lethal technology exists. Even if you could manage take all the guns and so forth away, you cannot take away the knowledge of how to create it, or the ability to engineer new and unexpected ways to kill each other. Gun control is not the issue; why so many people choose mass murder as their life achievement–that is the issue.
we already have a system in place for the “losers that just snap”. at least that’s what the pols claimed when they saddled us with waiting periods,or as they were called, cooling off periods. we also have background checks. we have tons of restrictions on exercising 2a rights. none of this stops the looney fringe.years ago in modesto a neighbor went next door and killed 2 kids playing in their own yard with a pitch fork. loonies abound and the only real answer to them is to have the means to fight back. doesn’t mean you’ll win, but at least you have the chance.
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