Gannett offers this statement with the release of each map:
One of the roles of journalists is to report publicly available information on timely issues, even if it is unpopular. We knew providing the information in the database in the context of our story would be controversial, but we thought that sharing this information was important in the aftermath of….
CHICAGO – Gave Bates smiled through tears as she swiped her hand across her phone, flipping through pictures of her cousin playing around and striking goofy poses.
“He was a lot of fun, very good at imitating people,” Bates said of Nathaniel T. Jackson, 40. “He just had so much fun all the time. And we all grew up together in the same house.”
Jackson was standing outside a store in the Austin neighborhood around 9 p.m. Thursday when someone walked up and shot him in the head, police said. His death was apparently the 500th homicide in Chicago this year, marking a grim milestone. The city last reached that toll in 2008.
DiwataMan has put together a great timeline for the various media-spun stories surrounding Trayvon Martin, and his interactions with School Officials and the Miami-Dade School Police Department.
March 9
Martin was out of school because he was suspended for a week, and his father told the Herald that he brought him to Sanford “to disconnect and get his priorities straight.”
http://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/Father-Wants-Man-Who-Shot-His-Son-Arrested-142067953.html
March 16
His father took Trayvon there[Sanford] after the junior was suspended for 10 days from Dr. Michael M. Krop Senior High.
The family has refused to say why Trayvon was suspended, only offering that Trayvon had violated some type of school policy. They said his act was not violent or criminal.
“I wanted him to get back focused on his priorities, his goals,” Martin said of his decision to drive to Sanford with his son. “I wanted some one-on-one time.” (more…)
(Via Ricochet) [A] friend who is a congressional staffer told me about this riveting interview of David Keene, president of the NRA, by CBS’ Bob Schieffer. Keene does a good job of pleasantly responding to Schieffer’s biased and inaccurate questions.
The part that struck me? Schieffer asks if the NRA will support a ban on “military-style assault weapons,” saying that “even” police chiefs support that. Keene explains that military-style weapons are fully automatic and that the bans being proposed are actually of semi-automatic weapons. They oppose those ban attempts. Schieffer says, showing his ignorance of how semi-automatic weapons work, “How many rounds can these weapons discharge in five seconds?” Keene says, well, “They fire when you pull the trigger.” Schieffer says, yeah, “And they keep firing.” Keene explains that “No, they don’t keep firing.” (more…)
After a full two weeks of 24/7 psychological operations by the media on firearm ownership the Obama-left is not able to significantly budge the public opinion needle on Gun Ownership; And if that wasn’t bad enough news for entrenched ideologues, most Americans still have favorable opinion of National Rifle Association.
WASHINGTON – The atrocities in Newtown constituted a turning point in the Beltway debate on gun control, with Democrats now preparing to introduce – and President Obama vowing to pass – new legislation aimed at further restricting gun ownership. The tragedy in Connecticut seems to have had a similar effect on journalists, who have been even more outspoken, it seems, in the wake of this tragedy than in other instances.
Whether their sentiments are shared by the public at large, though, is another question, and a new USA Today poll suggests that they’re not. The most surprising finding comes in the last line of the story linked above: “The USA TODAY/Gallup poll found 54% have a favorable opinion of the NRA, down six points from 2005, but generally in line with a series of polls done from 1993-2000.” (read more)
Here’s that “Moderate” Gun Reform as promised: In January, Senator Feinstein will introduce a bill to stop the sale, transfer, importation and manufacturing of military-style assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition feeding devises.
Bans the sale, transfer, importation, or manufacturing of:
(Via Mediaite) On Monday, CNN host Piers Morgan invited Saddleback Church Pastor Rick Warren on his program to discuss gay marriage and the bible. Fresh off his feud with Second Amendment rights activists following his full-throated defense of stricter gun control laws in the wake of the Newtown massacre, Morgan inspired further outrage among the religious when he told the pastor he thought it was time for an “amendment to the bible.” In Morgan’s opinion, the bible, like the American Constitution, is “inherently flawed.”
Following a polite exchange between Morgan and Warren over what the bible does and does not condone, Morgan interjected to insist that the Christian holy book needs to be modernized. (more…)
The United Kingdom – The British have responded to a petition calling for the deportation from the United States of CNN host Piers Morgan with one of their own: “Stop Piers Morgan from being deported back to the UK from America.”
The counter-petition, addressed to Theresa May, Home Secretary, is a direct response to the 70,000 Americans who have signed a petition calling for Mr. Morgan to be deported from the United States because of his strong gun-control views.
The UK petition, posted on change.org reads as follows: (more…)
For three days we have shared the story of The Journal News / LoHud.Com and their decision to publish the names, addresses, and contact information of lawful gun owners. Today they doubled down on stupid; However, you can sense in the writing of it, they are only just now becoming aware of the potential backlash.
Here is what they have written today, in response to their initial article, initial decision, and the feedback received so far: (we inserted some feedback throughout /SD)
WHITE PLAINS — Thousands of people, many from outside Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties, have taken to their computers and phones in rage after The Journal News posted an online database of local gun permit holders.
The database, legally obtained from the county clerks’ offices through a Freedom of Information Act request made after the shootings in Newtown, Conn., that left 20 children and eight adults dead, has been called irresponsible, dangerous and leaning toward intimidation by several online pundits.
Notice how they insert the affirmative position they have done nothing “illegal”, and then pull into that affirmation the dead victims in Newtown.
Social media played a big part in the exponential spread of the story, whose map has been recommended more than 20,000 times. Two Facebook posts linking to the story on Sunday garnered 346 comments as of this evening. That’s in addition to 167 comments posted directly to Facebook.com/LoHud since the story published. (more…)
Whether or not you own a firearm, or care about the Second Amendment, you should watch these manuevers closely. It ain’t about guns.
Remember when President Obama’s Office of Legal Council argued defense of “Obamacare” under the auspices of taxing authority? Subsequently, the 10th Amendment was essentially bypassed.
This article focuses on the “buy back” possibility. But that is not how this crew operates. They will work through the “Permitting and/or Registration Taxation” angle. The current administration is exceptionally skilled at using regulation (see Cass Sunstein) to control freedom.
WASHINGTON DC – Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said that she and other gun control advocates are considering a law that would create a program to purchase weapons from gun owners, a proposal that could be compulsory. (more…)