Quick Takes (v30): Guns and Money

Quick Takes

Most of us are familiar with the old adage "all roads lead to Rome." We intuitively know that every single road doesn't lead to Rome, but that there are many ways to get there, some of which require more effort and stick-to-it-iveness than others. 

For the purposes of today's post, let's recognize (and celebrate, in my case) that there's more than one way to 'get thee' and do something about guns in America. Here's a headline that appeared in the business section of my local paper:

Investors push gun industry for reforms

The article, from Bloomberg, talked about a group of 13 investors, including state pension funds in California, Florida and Connecticut, among others, that collectively have trillions of assets under management, and who are

banding together for the first time to pressure gun manufacturers and sellers to make firearms "safer, more secure and easier to trace."

The approach is not to threaten to divest from the manufacturers; instead, it's to apply pressure on manufacturers to encourage them to make changes that comply with five Principles for a Responsible Civilian Firearms Industry which focus on new technology; dealer standards; training and education programs; best practices in background checks, inventory management, and point of sale policies; proactive assistance to law enforcement; and collaboration with the signers of the Principles moving forward.

Christopher Ailman, who's the Chief Investment Officer for the California State Teachers' Retirement System (CalSTRS), said that

As investors, we're focused on taking steps to reduce risks while increasing the long-term value of the companies in which we invest. But as individuals, we are also deeply saddened by the gun-related tragedies our country is experiencing. We hope these principles serve as the start of a new conversation to address gun safety in the civilian firearms industry, and we look forward to progress through the reasonable and broad framework for engagement they provide. 

Ailman also noted that CalSTRS has tried this before. According to this NY Times article from December 2012, after the Sandy Hook shooting, the fund had about $750M invested in Cerberus Capital Management, which in turn was invested in the Freedom Group, which manufactured the Bushmaster rifle used in Sandy Hook. Here's what CalSTRS had to say:

At this point our investment branch is examining the Cerberus investment to determine how best to move forward given the tragic events of last Friday in Newtown, Conn.

Back then, there was little expectation that things would change. The problem? Firms like Cerberus and others are obligated to maximize their investors' funds, even if that means holding positions in 'sin' companies such as guns, gambling and tobacco.

Similarly, it might be a while before any impact from these Principles and these investors is seen. After all, there's long been concern from manufacturers that things could change - and yet... Here's just one example, excerpted from a note to investors about a (shelved) IPO that predates Sandy Hook:

The regulation of firearms and ammunition may become more restrictive in the future and any such development might have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. In addition, regulatory proposals, even if never enacted, may affect firearms or ammunition sales as a result of consumer perceptions. 

Two manufacturers -  American Outdoor and Sturm, Ruger - both recently had shareholder proposals approved, asking for reports on gun violence and the risks of selling guns. And while the reports didn't spur any changes in product offerings, I think it's safe to say that Americans will continue trying to find ways to deal with our mass shooting problem, whether we call it a gun problem, a mental health problem, a domestic terrorism problem, or something else entirely. A rose by any other name, and all.

Whether it's investment, divestment, or other shareholder actions; changes to the background check process; voluntary changes by manufacturers, perhaps to include limiting sales of ammunition or or eliminating the sale of bump stocks; increased opportunity for mental health treatment; ER research on gunshot victims; or what have you, sooner or later, I think we'll reach some kind of critical mass where common ground can be found.

TGIF? Not Tonight

I had ideas for tonight's TGIF post -- thoughts I had scribbled yesterday, last night, this morning. And then, of course, the news came of yet another mass shooting, more people murdered at a school, by  someone known to those who died, or at least known to the school community.

The shooter is alive, his supposed dreams of shooting up the school and then committing suicide, dashed. Whether it was a lack of courage, or strong convincing by law enforcement or pure luck, he's alive, and ten others are dead.

And we add another name to the list, we add the name Santa Fe High School to the list, just above or just below the name Marjory Stoneman Douglas, depending on how you track these horrific incidents - chronological order? Most recent to longest ago? Updating the list, again, already, less than 100 days after the last name was added. 

I'm not going to argue guns, or mental health, or how many doors a school should have, or whether a law enforcement officer doing his or her job is a hero, or whether a bully made him do it.

I'm not going to worry about whether he wore a trench coat when it was 90 degrees out, or whether he really thought he was Born to Kill like the t-shirt he posted on social media.

Do we want to understand why people do this? Sure, I guess. Maybe the insight will be helpful.

Do we want to know if anyone missed any red flags? Sure, I guess. Maybe it will make people feel better to blame someone for not stopping it, like they blamed everyone and their brother for not finding the shooter, for not reading the signs, for not entering the building, for for for whatever was or wasn't done in Parkland to prevent that one from happening.

Do we want to know how he got hold of the guns, his father's legally purchased guns?  Sure, I guess that would be helpful too, and maybe we'd learn something about... something (treading lightly here, about parents and kids and stuff).

Do we want to know what it feels like to be a student or teacher or school employee at Santa Fe, or to be the parent of one of the above? No, not really - not that I'm unfeeling or uncaring, but that the last thing I want for them is the media in their face, in their anguish, in their sorrow, in the grief, and yes, in their quiet joy if they are among the fortunate ones, loved ones still whole, still hugs to give and get, still I love yous to be spoken, to be heard.

We grieve for the terrible loss of life, and send our support and love to everyone affected by this horrible attack in Texas. To the students, families and personnel at Santa Fe High School - we are with you in this tragic hour, and we will be with you forever.

Four hours later the Griever in Chief had moved on to America being a nation of redemption and believing in second chances and that the best is yet to come (ironic for this town, this school, these families), and then to Making the United Nations Great Again (I kid you not), yet another insult to our friends, allies, the world - but then it was California's governor and 250 years of clean coal and energy dominance and we are officially -  just like that - very far removed from grieving or thoughts and prayers. The flags are at half staff already.  Did that, moving on.

Forever seems like such a short time, doesn't it?

Wondering on Wednesday (v128)

Wondering, wondering, wondering.

Guns don't kill people. Backpacks kill people. Now, no one has actually said that seriously, as far as I know, but this week students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School were handed clear plastic backpacks, to replace any they might have had previously that were not see-through.

I wonder, does anyone see the irony here? We inject transparency into book bags, put fences around schools, and require students to wear IDs, but we can't find a way to inject more clarity into the background check process, or even insure that everyone undergo one before purchasing a gun?  We make kids carry their belongings for all to see, but we look to enforce one state's concealed carry rules on every state in the nation, including those who are not interested?

Poor Ethan has been released from jail, after serving a couple of years for probation violation. Poor Ethan is Ethan Couch. You remember him, right? The teenager who killed four people while driving drunk, but was pronounced by a mental health professional to be suffering from a severe case of affluenza, and avoided jail time as a result? Affluenza only infects the wealthy, who because of their upbringing never learn right from wrong, and don't understand consequences and stuff like that.  I wonder, is he still suffering from his affliction, or did his time in jail (for violating his probation) provide a cure?

Here's a question for you: What do you call the White House? Seriously. what do you call the White House?  Do you call it, I don't know, the White House?  I wonder why the president couldn't pull that out of his hat when talking to kids and their parents at the White House Easter Egg Roll about, well, about the economy, and the military, and how they keep the building (or whatever) in tippy-top shape?

And finally, sticking with the Easter Bunny and Easter eggs, neither of these have much of anything to do with religion, or the 'reason for the season,' as they say, but we 'celebrate' them none-the-less, and have been celebrating them since the 1800s at the tippy-top shape place.

One thing that was not celebrated, I learned, was Easter in a Google doodle. And apparently, the doodlers haven't doodled for Easter since 2000, when they used two candy eggs for the OO in Google.

How did I learn this, you might wonder?  From Fox News. As you regular readers know, I try to learn about different sides of issues, no matter how painfully Red or painfully Blue the slant, because it's my job as a citizen to understand what the heck's going on and what is important other than what I think is important, or people like me think is important.

And for Fox News, and many similarly-thinking folks, this is a big darn deal.  Mind you, candy eggs in the doodle have nothing to do with the resurrection, and have nothing to do with religion - but they sure as heck count on the plus side of the ledger when you're fighting the war against Christianity, which is what Fox et al believe they're doing.

Google told Fox

We don't have Doodles for religious holidays, in line with our current Doodle guidelines. Doodles may appear for some non-religious celebrations that have grown out of religious holidays, such as Valentine's Day, Holi's Festival of Colors, Tu B'Av and the December holiday period, but we don't include religious imagery or symbolism as part of these. 

And Fox told me

Among the holidays the tech giant regularly celebrates with Google Doodles other than Easter Sunday are Earth Day, Martin Luther King Day, Lunar New Year, Halloween, St. Patrick's Day, Mother's Day, Father's Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas...

I wonder how I missed all of these 'holidays' before...particularly Earth Day, coming from the Trump News Network - irony dripping on the floor with that one, right)

And, I wonder, why it would have been better to celebrate by showing fake candy as fake eggs, given the importance of the holiday to believers? Is that really better than nothing?

And, I wonder, dare I tell Fox News that I once got a Google Doodle for my birthday?

School Safety, Trump Tweets Style

Ah...  there it is.

It's so much fun when the Republicans slam gun-free zones, as if people who have their minds set on committing maximum mayhem actually wander around looking for a places that have the little "gun free zone" signs up, and pick those places to do the deed.

I'm not pulling an OJ hypothetical thing here or anything like that, and there's a chance I may be wrong. But for the most part, I think if you're bullied at school, or picked on at school, or thrown out of school, if you're mad and want to get back at the people who picked on you, and you've got mayhem on the brain, you're not going to go to go rob a bank - you're going to go not just to any school, but to your own school, the one in your neighborhood, the one where you know the lay of the land, and do what you think, for some sad, sad reason, you have to do.

Columbine. Sandy Hook. Marjory Stoneman Douglas. Red Lake Senior High. And more, elementary schools, middle schools, high schools, community colleges, colleges, universities.

If "it's not the gun, it's the killer," why is the president no less blaming the sign? Is he honestly suggesting that "guns don't kill people, signs kill people?"

And if the president thinks it's the sign, how does he explain this? CPAC was a gun free zone, we're told. You know, CPAC where the president spoke? Where the NRA's Wayne LaPierre went into his dark place?

And let us not forget another dark, big-tent-Republican-and-Conservative gathering that was a gun-free zone?

RECOGNIZE OUR CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT TO OPEN CARRY

FIREARMS AT THE REPUBLICAN NATIONAL CONVENTION AT THE

QUICKEN LOANS ARENA IN JULY 2016

That's right -- someone petitioned to have the Republican National Convention, the one that nominated Trump, be a gun-filled zone, for a whole host of reasons, including that Cleveland is a top ten most dangerous city, they said, and the RNC and the arena were "putting tens of thousands of people at risk both inside and outside the convention site." 

And ISIS. And evil-doers and criminals. And Barack HUSSEIN Obama... those were other reasons why guns were needed.

But here's the thing: the folks who petitioned weren't fighting the arena's gun-free policy as a matter of principle - it's not like they wanted it to be always and forever gun-free. They just wanted it to be gun-free when they were there. Because, well because I have no idea. Either a person at the Q is a sitting duck, or they're not. The pro-guns shouldn't be able to have it both ways.

And yes, I know the Administration did more today than just this idiotic tweet, but JeezPete (as a friend of my brother's used to say), why does he have to tweet this nonsense? 

Oh wait - never mind. It must be to provide cover for the fact that his school safety plan doesn't include all the things he promised?  Yeah, that's probably it.

The Update Desk: Florida Gun Laws

I've done more than a few gun-related posts over the years, the most recent of which were this past Wednesday and Thursday.

Today, Florida Governor Rick Scott signed the package of gun, mental health, and school safety provisions that the legislature approved earlier this week.  Here's part of the statement released by Scott's office.

Following a meeting with families of victims of the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Governor Rick Scott today signed SB 7026, the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act. This legislation makes significant reforms to make Florida schools safer, while keeping firearms out of the hands of mentally ill and dangerous individuals.

Scott issued these remarks (as prepared for delivery) of his own. Here's a portion of them.

Good afternoon. I want to thank everyone for being here today. On Valentine's Day, we lost 14 of our kids and three of our teachers. On a day that is supposed to celebrate love, they were brutally murdered in cold blood. Families were shattered. And unfortunately, this wasn't the first time our state has been rocked like this. In 2016, 49 innocent victims were murdered at Pulse Nightclub and early last year another five people were killed by a gunman at the Ft. Lauderdale Airport...

I want to commend the legislature for getting a bill to my desk in such a short amount of  time. I want to point out that this is a far different way of operating than the typical inefficiency we see from the federal government in Washington. Politics in DC seems to always get in the way of actually enacting measures that will help American families...

After talking about the various provisions of the bill, and expressing his belief that the bill is not perfect, particularly the (optional) part about armed teachers, he continued

There has been vigorous debate on all of these issues. I believe every side has had their chance to share their views and that is what truly makes our democracy great. At the beginning of this process, I said that we would all have to give a little and make compromises, and that includes me...

So, after reviewing the entire bill, I had to ask myself: Will this bill make a huge investment and dramatically improve school safety, in the hopes of never seeing another tragedy like this again? Will this bill provide more funding to treat the mentally ill? Will this fill give us far more tools to keep guns away from people who should not have them? The answer to all three is yes. And, that is why I am signing the legislation today.

Meanwhile, the NRA had a statement, too.

This afternoon, Governor Rick Scott signed SB-7026 (touted in the media as Florida's "gun control" bill) into law, violating the Second Amendment rights of persons between the ages of 18 - 21.

This bill prohibits any person under 21 years of age from purchasing a firearm - any firearm - PERIOD. The bill took effect immediately.

 As a result, this afternoon the NRA filed a lawsuit in federal court against the State of Florida for violating the constitutional rights of young adults between the ages of 18 - 21. 

The gun control provisions in this bill do not enhance school safety. They merely punish law-abiding citizens for the actions of a mentally ill murderer as well as the failure of government officials who did not do their jobs.  

Let the games begin.

The Irony Board: Florida Gun Laws

In yesterday's Wondering on Wednesday post, one of the topics of discussion was the Florida legislature sending gun legislation to Republican Governor Rick Scott.

The wonderment came from the speed with which the bipartisan bills were passed after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas, and how it proved that, yes, something can be done if people are willing. The multi-pronged package included an option for people on school campuses to be armed, and today Representative Randy Fine appeared on NPR's Morning Edition and talked with host Rachel Martin about the changes.

Martin asked him about the provision raising the age to 21 for all gun purchases. Fine, a Republican, had just last week made it known he was not a fan.

Well, I still didn't like the idea, but the bill was a comprehensive $400 million solution And in life, sometimes we have to take the bad with the good, and that's what many of us did in passing this compromise legislation.

That's the right spirit for legislators to have - compromise, take the bad with the good, focus on the big picture. I mean, this could have been a single bill raising the age, or a single bill addressing bump stocks, and so on - but if that was the case, we wouldn't be talking about legislation awaiting the governor's signature, would we?

Now -- what makes this an Irony Board post?

Well, Florida has some training requirements on the books if a person wants to carry a concealed weapon or firearm. For example, completing a Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission hunter education course, or an NRA training course, or a similar course offered by a law enforcement agency, a college, or similar institution. Absent the training, military service or participating in organized shooting competitions will count, as will already having a license to carry a firearm.

And now, with the new gun legislation package, they've defined some requirements for teachers to become 'guardians' and carry firearms on campus. Here's how Fine described it.

If sheriffs choose to participate and school districts choose to participate, teachers will have the option to become guardians if they go through 132 hours of training, psychology tests, weapons training. 

Clearly, we don't want anyone carrying weapons on campus if they're not sufficiently trained, and are not psychologically OK to do so. And it's probably not all that much to ask a teacher who wants this extra level of responsibility to give up over 16 days of their own time to get all of this training so they can protect themselves from a legal or illegal gun owner with a really bad idea in mind.

But by comparison, here's how long it takes to complete each of the courses listed on the NRA's training curriculum:

• First Steps Rifle or First Steps Shotgun Orientation -at least three hours long
• Basic Rifle Shooting Course - at least eight hours long
• Basic Shotgun Shooting Course - at least ten hours long
• Basic Pistol course - no timeframe given
• Basics of Pistol Shooting - which can be completed in one day
• Carry Guard Level 1 Training Course - a three-day 'intensive' course

Isn't it ironic,at least a little, how little training is required to carry a concealed firearm, versus what's going to be required for the guardians?

Wondering on Wednesday (v124)

Where should we start tonight, the wondering?  Well, let's see.

Instead of going to Jared, Jared Kushner went south of the border to meet with the Mexican president; seems his father-in-law is barely able to have a phone conversation with the Mexicans, so hopefully Jared will be able to work his magic and get things back on track.  It may not be as hard as, you know, Middle East peace or anything, but if they're talking about who's going to pay for the wall, things could get ugly.

Speaking of  the great, big, beautiful wall, I can't help wondering whether Kushner is supposed to stay in Mexico until all of the issues are resolved, or until the wall gets built, whichever comes first? Given his loss of clearance, and all the unpleasant news about the family business, he could be on the president's short list for clearing bad vibes out of the West Wing.

Sticking with the White House for another moment, did you hear about the lawsuit against the president for blocking people on Twitter?  A Seattle woman was blocked by the @realdonaldtrump verified Twitter account, which is the one the president uses several times a day to bully his opponents (and appointees), brag about how much size matters, and let the world know when he'll be making call-ins to various Fox News shows -- and, at times, to announce policy decisions.

The offending tweet that led to her being blocked was a video clip of Pope Francis dropping his smile when he looked at Trump. And it kind of makes sense that it would be something so trivial that caused the blockage; after all, he probably thinks this post is about him...

The case is being watched closely not only for its curiosity value, but also as a test of how courts will apply the first amendment in the context of public officials' use of social media accounts, at a time when the role of social networks in politics has generated intense controversy.

 Can elected officials block their constituents? Or are social media accounts essential avenues for citizens to petition leaders? Is it the constitutional right of all Americans to start an online flame war with the politician of their choice, as the founders surely intended?

Somehow, the Justice Department is trying to make the case that the @realdonaldtrump account is a personal one, not a political one - which is truly laughable. I wonder, have they even read any of the president's tweets?

On the wonderful front, legislators in Florida have passed new rules on guns - and more - less than a month after the shooting at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School, which just happened on Valentine's Day.  Among the proposals:

• raising the age to purchase all firearms;
• banning the purchase and possession of bump stocks;
• setting a three-day waiting period to buy any gun - shotguns and rifles included

But that wasn't all - there are provisions to address mental health (mobile crisis teams included) and school safety too, by adding metal detectors, bulletproof glass, and resource officers. There's also a provision that allows for allowing some school personnel to carry firearms.

People who have been calling for a comprehensive approach might want to take a look at this one - it brings consistency to existing laws, actually provides funding for mental health issues (instead of just hand-wringing), and it addresses the 'hardening' of schools.

I wonder if folks, seeing something like this get from point A to the governor's desk in less than a month, will still maintain that thoughts and prayers are all we can do? Certainly there will be people who are not happy with some or all of the provisions -- on both sides of the aisle - but this shows what can be done when people listen, and learn and come together.

And finally tonight, circling back to government officials using Twitter, Betsy DeVos got a taste of people paying attention when the posted a couple of stock photos - one old, one really old - as representative of public school classrooms.

The reaction was swift, as teachers from across the country posted pictures of actual public school classrooms, which look nothing like the pictures DeVos posted.

Many commenters pointed out that what she posted looked more like charter schools than public schools, or that she might actually want to go in a public school classroom to see for herself what actually happens in one. What was nice was that, for the most part, the comments were polite, if firm, and there were not all that much snark.

I wonder whether she's read the comments? And whether she'll actually take up the offer from any number of teachers who invited her, politely, to visit them?  And then I wondered, what on earth am I thinking?

Sunday School 2/25/18

I only wanted to see one classroom today - ABC's This Week with George Stephanopoulos, where the NRA's Dana Loesch was going to be the guest.

Loesch, you'll recall, is the national spokesperson for the NRA, who sort of hit the big time after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, with her comment that

Many in legacy media love mass shootings. You guys love it. Now I'm not saying that you love the tragedy. But I am saying you love the ratings. Crying white mothers are gold to you and many in the legacy media...

Stephanopoulos started right in on the first question, wondering whether the NRA would back the president's call for raising the age to purchase rifles to mirror the age for purchasing a handgun.

DL: Well, the NRA has made their position incredibly clear. The five million members of the NRA have made their position incredibly clear, and I do want to caution people...

 GS: And that's a no, then?

DL: Well, I do want to caution people, because I know that people are trying to find daylight between president Trump and five million law abiding gun owners all across the United States. These are just things that he's discussing right now. I think that it's great as president he had all of these individuals, all of these constituents come into the White House, he had this listening session. He's really looking for solutions. He wanted to hear what they had to say, and that's what he's doing. So, nothing's been proposed yet. The NRA's made their position clear...

GS: Well, let me just -  the position is you do now want to raise the age?

DL: That's what the NRA came out and said. That's correct. 

How hard is it to say "yes, we agree that the age should be raised?" The same difficulty happens on the bump stock question. Stephanopoulos asked if the NRA was backing that.

Well the NRA already called for -- they already made it clear, the ATF needs to do their job and they need to make sure their definitions are consistent. The NRA called for this before the president made a statement...

She went on to say that the  ATF is on the same page as the president and the Attorney General.

GS: No, they're not, they're actually not on the same page. The ATF says they don't have the authority right now to ban bump stocks. The president has now said he wants those to be banned. Will the NRA back that?

DL: The NRA doesn't back any ban. The NRA has asked the ATF to do its job and make sure that these classifications are consistent. 

If you're out of the loop like I am, you might be wondering what the NRA is referring to with "classifications.' Here's some information on that.

Following the Las Vegas shooting, a significant amount of public attention has been focused on bump stock-type devices. ATF has received correspondence from the general public and from members of both houses of Congress requesting that ATF reexamine is past classification decisions concerning bump stock devices to determine whether they should be classified as machine guns... (it is) the initial step in a regulatory process to interpret the definition of machine gun to clarify whether certain bump stock devices fall within that definition. If, in a subsequent rule making, the definition of machine gun under section 5845 (b) is interpreted to include certain bump stock devices, ATF would then  have a basis to re-examine its prior classifications and rulings.

So - do we know whether or not the NRA supports classifying bump stocks as machine guns, which would make them much harder to obtain? You'll have to be the judge of that. I just know that Loesch said they don't back a ban.

Also, note from the same article about the ATF, it was noted that when they reached out to manufacturers, they asked whether "new regulations would hurt sales or a company's bottom line."

What else did Loesch offer?

• Well, that the shooter at the Congressional baseball practice was a "former Bernie Sanders staff member" who, according to reports, was a one-time volunteer for Sanders, and a supporter of his candidacy - but not a staff member.
• When Stephanopoulos talked about no other country having the "wide access" to AR-15s or  the "frequency or intensity of these kind of shootings"  Loesch argued that France had in one year a higher casualty rate than the two Obama terms. Which I guess is true, if you compare a coordinated ISIS attack across multiple locations, including both bombs and guns, to be the equivalent of multiple school shootings resulting in the deaths of children. 
• Stephanopoulos noted a recent Quinnipiac poll reflected 97% of Americans supporting background checks for all gun purchases. Loesch said that "the question for that poll, by the way, was do you support background checks if it prevents, you know, those who are dangerous and -- terrorists, et cetera from getting firearms" when in fact, the question simply asked "Do you support or oppose requiring background checks for all gun buyers?"

One point she raised that I thought was actually a valid one, was asking Stephanopoulos if he was going to start having politicians on the show to grill them about whether their states were submitting all of the required information to the NICS background check system, because we're told that many states are way behind in their reporting. Stephanopoulos said it was a good idea -- we'll see if he goes through with it.

Stephanopoulos did not push her on her comments at CPAC; I'm not sure whether it was because he knew he'd get nothing new, or else he thought he might not have been able to control the interview - which I suspect was true. 

I'm not sure there's a way to control any of these interviews on guns, gun control, and finding common ground. I think it probably starts with wanting to find the common ground...

See you around campus.  

Wayne's World

Did you catch Wayne LaPierre's talk at CPAC the other day?

He talked about 'hardening' schools and making them safer, of course. He also took credit, on behalf of the NRA, for the National Instant Check System, and for fighting to make sure that all the bad people who needed to be in the background system were there. Many people disagree with those characterizations of the NRA's positions, but that's a story for another post.

What I wanted to share with you is LaPierre's vision of America; if you like the 2016 Republican National Convention or Trump's inaugural address, you'll love this stuff.

As usual, the opportunists wasted not one second to exploit tragedy for political gain. Saul Alinsky would have been proud. The breakneck speed of calls for more gun control laws, and the breathless national media eager to smear the NRA - think about that, in the midst of genuine grief, in an understandable passion, as millions of Americans searched for meaningful solutions, what do we find? Chris Murphy, Nancy Pelosi and more, cheered on by the national media, eager to blame the NRA and call for even more government control. They hate the NRA. They hate the Second Amendment, they hate individual freedom....

For them it is not a safety issue, it is a political issue. They care more about control and more of it, their goal is to eliminate the Second Amendment and our firearms freedoms, so they can eradicate all individual freedoms. 

 They fantasize about more laws stopping what other laws fail to stop. The truth is, laws succeed only when people obey them, that is what the law-abiding majority in this country practices. But once again, so many existing laws were ignored. Their laws do not stop illegal criminals from crossing our borders every single day. Their laws do not stop this scourge of gang violence and drug crime that savages Baltimore, Chicago and every major American community. Their laws have not stopped the plague of opioids and Chinese fentanyl that floods the streets and kills victims every single day in this country. No wonder law-abiding Americans all over this country revere their Second Amendment that protects them more than ever. They do not care if their laws work or not, they just want to get more laws to get more control over people. 

Hold a moment please - the "breakneck speed" with which LaPierre moved from hardening schools to protect children to accusing Democrats and the media of being responsible for, or at the very least complicit in, all of society's ills and of trying to take over the universe was truly breathtaking.

And that's not all. There's a whole cabal of America-hating bastages at work here that need to be foiled, don't you know?  You don't know?  Well, follow along.

Obama promised a fundamental transformation of our country. And you know what? It began with his own national party, a party that is now infested with saboteurs who do not believe in capitalism, do not believe in the Constitution,  do not believe in our freedom, and do not believe in America as we know it. 

Obama may be gone but their Utopian dream, it marches on and president Trump's election, while crucial, cannot turn away the wave of these new European-style socialists bearing down upon us. I'm not just talking about Bernie Sanders, I mean, he's near the end of his career. What about Elizabeth Warren, Bill De Blasio, Andrew Cuomo, Cory Booker, Christopher Murphy and Keith Ellison?  They are not Democrats in the mode of John F. Kennedy or Tip O'Neill.

They hide behind labels like 'progressive' to make their socialist agenda more palatable and that is terrifying. And that should terrify every citizen who values the American ideal in this country of individual liberty. They politicize the Department of Justice. They weaponize the Internal Revenue Service, the EPA, perhaps cripple the FBI and the Intelligence Community, and seized and embedded leadership in all of them to advance their agenda 

Set aside, for a moment, the idea that my Sonofa Gov Andrew Cuomo and New York City's mayor Bill De Blasio have anything to do with the DOJ, the IRS, the EPA or the FBI and the Intelligence Community. Note also that that Keith Ellison, as a DNC executive - and a Democrat in the House - has even less influence than do Warren, Booker and Murphy in the Senate. But again, the truth and facts are not what we're looking for here.

This is a raw meat fest, CPAC is, and everyone knows it. I was naive, I guess, as to how raw the meat was - it's still on the hoof, for Pete's sake. It's blue and mooing, I tell you. Ready to get some of that?

Absolute control in every corner of our government is their ultimate dream. These intellectual elites, they think that they are smarter than we are. They think that they are smarter than the rest of us. And they think they are better than we are. They truly believe it. And you know it. 

The privileged and the powerful, they think they deserve to be in charge of every level of power but you know what? The United States Constitution makes it absolutely clear that they are not in charge. We, the people, are in charge of this country! But Washington - OH. MY. GOSH. The city likes to ignore that. Our intelligence community shrouds everything in secrecy, driving into darkness every dirty memo. And every dirty institutional secret and memory, in the name of national security. But when the leaks come, as so often occurs in the light of day, it reveals nothing about the security of our country and it reveals everything about the corruption of those in power. That is because in a captive society, the loss of transparency results in the loss of truth. 

And I'm thinking, "in the midst of genuine grief, in an understandable passion, as millions of Americans searched for meaningful solutions", the Executive Director of the NRA went off the deep end, way off the deep end, into the dark spiral of paranoia.

I can understand a bit of bad apples in organizations as large as the FBI. But what is hard to understand is why nobody at the FBI stood up and called BS on its rogue leadership. I mean, really, where was the systemic resistance that should protect every powerful institution that serves us? The lowest-ranking Marine knows to resist an unlawful order. The rank and file in every powerful institution must police its own leadership.

Do you think the membership of the NRA was hearing that call, to resist the urges of LaPierre and his bizarro world vision? And do you think LaPierre was right to co-opt the Parkland teens' rallying cry of "we call BS" for his own purpose?

But still, too much of today's Washington, nobody speaks out. Nobody challenges authority. Everyone keeps their mouths closed and their heads down. And that is exactly how socialistic societies function, when leaders do whatever they want, when resistance and repercussion disappears, and when the fundamental concept of moral behavior is expunged. 

The state rules the day and anyone who resists is smeared right into submission. Yep, you know it. - yes, the "art of the smear." 

The state rules the day, and the president, its leader, is a master of the art of the smear - it's one of the ways he vanquished his 16 opponents.

We live in a socialistic age of the art of the smear. It does not have to be true, it just has to stick somewhere, anywhere. It is designed to degrade, destroy, and it is all over the national media to serve their agenda.

Lock her up! Lock her up! Lock her up!  Oh, sorry - I digress. I was practicing the Art of the Smear, which I'm sure will be a new Trump book now that the title has been handed to someone on a sliver platter.

And socialism is a movement that loves the smear. Racists. Misogynist. Sexist. Xenophobia and more. These are the weapons. These character assassinations scream to permanently hang on their targets and create a growing segment of victims. Because socialism feeds off of manipulative victims. You name the group and they will find a way to turn them into victims, they keep their movement growing by finding somebody to be offended every minute of every day.

You know, those 20 manipulative first graders and the six manipulative adults at Sandy Hook, and the 14 manipulative teenagers and three adults at Marjory Stoneman Douglas, and all of the other manipulative victims of other mass shootings, the bastages. 

They do not like free speech any more than they like the Second Amendment. They like only limited speech, controlled speech, controlled by them through safe zones where they can shame the outspoken or riot to shut them up. If you still think that we have full First Amendment freedom in this country, try going right now at Berkeley and speaking out in favor of conservative causes or even the Second Amendment.

Forgetting, he must be, the sad tale of Milo Yiannopoulos. You see,  CPAC's sponsor invited Milo, who was the victim of those riots-against-free-speech-at-Berkeley to speak at the 2017 gathering of this same voodoo-juice-drinking crowd -- and then disinvited him when his free speech was a little too freely offensive. How soon, how soon, the conservatives forget that CPAC is a safe zone itself!

He then talked about how the "socialist state dreams of manipulating schoolchildren" to get information from them, all kinds of information about their parents, what they watch on TV (ironic, since the NRA and LaPierre point out how violent video games cause mass shootings) and if they own guns and stuff.

And all that private information will be entered in to the ultimate list, that cloud of data storage that couldn't care less about due process and constitutional freedom and your privacy as an American citizen and then it is just a short hop to the systematic destruction of our most basic freedoms in this country and you all know what they are, but let me say them: family; faith; individual responsibility; and self destiny. A free market economy; patriotism; respect for our national flag and our national anthem. Personal liberty and justice for all... It will not take long if we stay on the path we are on to erase them completely. That is the consequence of this new socialist wave in America.  

You know, I hear a lot of quiet in this room and I sense your anxiety. And you should be anxious and you should be frightened. If they seize power, if the so-called new European socialists take over the House, and the Senate, and God forbid they get the White House again, our American freedoms could be lost and our country will be changed forever.

I wonder, was the anxiety coming from LaPierre's ranting and raving?  Mine sure was.

And the first to go will be the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution. History proves it. Every time, in every nation, in which this political disease rises to power, its citizens are repressed, their freedoms are destroyed, and their firearms are banned and confiscated. It is all backed in this country by the social engineering and the billions (billions of dollars, he means) of people like George Soros, Michael Bloomberg, Tom Steyer and more, and gleefully promoted by those who have risen to power in the so-called national news media and seized control of social media to spread their propaganda.

They do not tell us news, you all know it and people know it all over the United States. They say it to me every day, they do not tell us news, they tell us what we need to think... 

You know, some people out there think that the NRA should just stick to its Second Amendment agenda and not talk about all our freedoms, but real freedom requires protection of all of our rights, and the Second Amendment isn't worth its own words in a country where all of our other individual freedoms are destroyed...

Forewarned is forearmed -- the NRA TV channel is looking to be way more bigly involved, and way more bigly accessible, just like NBC and CNN. Which are fake news. And Fox, which is real news, except that it does exactly the same thing as LaPierre just described the media doing, which was bad, in case you didn't catch that.

And now, the big finish - and yes, he does talk about guns again. I forgot that he was the Executive Director of the NRA for a second there - as, I think, did he.

Let's be clear. We are never talking about an armed resistance against the socialist corruption of our government. We are always talking about a resistance armed with the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights in our country. The genius of those documents, the brilliance of America, of our country itself, is all of our freedoms are for every single citizen and there is no greater personal individual freedom than the right to keep and bear arms, the right to protect yourself, and the right to survive. 

It is not bestowed by man, but granted by God to all Americans as our American birthright. So I call right now today on every citizen who loves this country and who treasures freedom to stand and unflinchingly defend the Second Amendment, the one freedom that protects us all in this country.

And yes, in case you were wondering, LaPierre did close with the "the only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is with a good guy with a gun.

And yes, in case you were wondering, CPAC, according to several reports, including this one, and this one, is a gun-free zone.

Sunday School 2/18/18

Only visiting Fox News Sunday today and only giving a handful of excerpts from the show.

First, the students of Marjory Stoneman Douglas school.

Cameron Kasky: Today, I'd like to announce that we have an event coming up to have everybody in the nation talking about what we're talking about. And one of the things we've been hearing is that it's not the time you have to talk about gun control and we respect that. We've lost 17 lives, our community took 17 bullets to the heart and it's difficult to come back from that. 

So here is the time that we are going to talk about gun control. March 24th, we have the March for Our Lives which you can find at MarchforOurLives.com... The March for Our Lives is going to be in every major city and we are organizing it so students everywhere can beg for our lives, because at the end of the day this isn't about the red and blue, GOP and Democrats. This is about adults and kids.And at this point you're either with us or against us. We are giving all our politicians a clean slate and in the next election, we are saying if you are accepting money from the NRA, there is a badge of shame on you because you are enabling things like this to happen.

David Hogg: This is a student-led grassroots movement and this is not a debate, this is a discussion between Americans because we've had too many debates before and they've gotten nowhere. From the Republicans, they can talk about mental health care and from the Democrats, they can talk about gun control. 

But what we need to do -- but what we need to do here is come together not as Democrats or Republicans but as Americans and work together to solve this issue through love and compassion, because this event occurred on Valentine's Day sadly and sadly 17 people had to take a bullet to the heard and so did our community This is a time for change and we can't let this ever happen again...

Our elected officials need to get together, overcome their political differences and get some things done because they need to save the future of our country, in the future of our country are those children that are currently dying because politicians refuse to take action and continue to take money from the special interest groups. 

Emma Gonzalez: This is a case of, simply, please stop. Please stop allowing us to be gunned down in our hallways... Every generation is supporting us with countless, countless amounts of energy. So many people are coming up to us in the street saying "thank you" and we want to thank them by communicating what we're trying to communicate. We want to get  the support for March for Our Lives...

We want people to -- we want students to be at that march and to be with us. We want to be with those students who we didn't understand their pain before and it's all too tragic that we all have to understand the same pain now. 

Kasky: We're here for everybody's kids.  

Also on the show? Rush Limbaugh. 

What I found interesting about the students  and - they are very articulate and you have to feel for them. And  - I mean, this is -- it's with their lives. They are a combination  scared and angry. 

But Chris, I have to ask if anybody is really serious about solving this because none of this - by the way, I couldn't care less about the gun angle of this. None of this is going to solve - prayers and condolences don't solve it and marches aren't going to solve it...

We have security, armed security at virtually every public entity in this country except schools. For some reason, they are a gun free zone and everybody who wants to shoot up a school knows that they are going to be the only one armed. Until we're willing to get serious about where we are and how do we stop this from happening and marches aren't going to do it, saying no more guns isn't going to do it, bashing the NRA isn't going to do it...

You know, we're told, well, we can't do anything until the crime has been committed. That's what has to change and is going to take some really smart people to figure out how to do that without violating civil liberties and the Fourth Amendment and so forth. But it's clear that the way we deal with this no -- this, Chris, this is totally political.

The students think they are taking politics out of this. The minute they bash the NRA, it's politics. And the point for many of this is - this is an event that advances a political agenda for the American left and the Democrat Party to bash the NRA.

Mark Kelly was on the show, too. You know - Mark Kelly, husband of Congresswoman Gabby Giffords. They're working on a number of issues, including laws that would allow family members to have guns taken away from their own, or to keep their own family members from getting guns.

He spoke about the kids differently than Limbaugh did.

Well, these kids are incredibly articulate and certain members of Congress are really good at not listening to their constituents. I mean, these - you know, these reforms are supported typically by 70 to 90 percent of Americans. And to have high school kids who went through this horrific shooting, calling for change, should matter. I would hope in our society that that would make a difference.

This is a very political issue, though.  We've got to get people to vote on this issue. I can guarantee you that those kids you had on today are going to vote on this issue probably for the rest of their lives. They're going to encourage others to do, to do that as well. 

See you around campus.

If Only...Except That

If only we let God in schools, this would never happen. God is everywhere you want Him to be, just like Visa used to be, whenever you want Him to be there. He will never leave you alone, I'm told. Besides, God doesn't prevent things from happening, He makes it more bearable when things do happen, I'm told. So you can't blame God not being in schools.

If only we didn't have violent video games, this would never happen. Except that everyone who plays video games doesn't go out and shoot up schools.  It's just fantasy, millions of people are just fine who play these games, they don't have mental health problems, they just like sitting in the dark shooting things. So clearly you can't blame God not being in schools, or the video games.

If only parents acted like parents instead of like friends, this would never happen. Except that many parents do act like parents, and do make their children behave and do have rules and curfews and make their kids do their homework and go to school and go to church and not hang out at the mall playing video games, so you can't blame God not being in schools, and you can't blame video games, and you surely can't blame the parents.

If only someone would say something if they saw something, this would never happen. Except that people do say something, and in the Florida case, they did say something and the ball was dropped, they say, because this kid still did what he did.And so you can't blame God not being in schools, or video games, or the parents, or the community. 

If only this particular kind of gun was harder to get, this would never happen.  Except that there's millions of them out there, and so you can't keep them out of the hands of people who want to get one. If they can't get one legally, they'll get one illegally the way MS-13 gang members do. So you can't blame God not being in schools, or the video games, or the parents, or the community, or the easy access to a very particular gun that is used in so many mass shootings.

If only we had had better background checks, this would never happen. Except that the background check process works just fine, look at all the people who are not able to buy guns, and besides, look how hard it is to get a pistol! So clearly, we can't blame God not being in schools, or video games, or parents, or communities, or the particular gun of choice for shooting up schools and such, and you can't blame the background check process.

If only people who had mental health issues got treatment, this would never happen. Except that this does happen when people are getting help for mental health issues. And at what point did we decide that everyone with dark thoughts has mental health issues? So no, you can't blame God not being in schools, or video games, or parents, or communities, or the gun of choice, or background checks, or mental health. 

If only kids couldn't buy guns before they were old enough to buy a beer, this wouldn't happen. 

Because drinking, you know, that's a serious thing, and society needs to make sure you're protected from a can of Bud Light until you're mature enough to understand the consequences of yelling dilly dilly like an idiot. So you can't blame God not being in schools, or video games, or parents, or communities, or the gun of choice, or the background check process, or mental health, or being able to buy guns before you can buy a beer. 

If only we didn't have half the country wandering around on medication for their mental health issues, this wouldn't happen.  Except that people need these medications to function, to be contributing members of society... pastors and parents and doctors and lawyers and teachers and the rest, and the vast majority of these medicated folks are just fine and never commit mayhem, so no -- you can't blame God not being in schools, or video games, or parents, or communities, or the gun of choice, or the background check process, or mental health, or the age of majority, or prescription drugs either. 

If only people had more respect for each other, this wouldn't happen. Except that there is no law that says you have to be respectful, there's no legal definition of respect, there's open season on anyone and anything you don't like from the top all the way down (and you know what I'm talking about here, right?)  Besides, millions and millions of people who don't respect other people go about their daily lives and never commit a crime, never murder school children. So, don't blame God not being in schools, or video games, or parents, or communities, or the gun of choice, or the process, or mental health, or the age of majority, or prescription drugs, or the lack of respect.

If only teachers were armed, this wouldn't happen.  Except that if teachers wanted to be cops they wouldn't be teachers. Nope - don't blame God not being in schools, or video games, or parents, or communities, or the massacre gun, or the process to keep guns out of the wrong hands, or mental health, or the age of majority, or prescription drugs, or a lack of respect, or unarmed teachers.

If only the NRA wasn't able to buy all those politicians, this wouldn't happen. Except that if  George Soros can buy politicians and unions can buy politicians and everyone else can buy politicians, the NRA has to be able to buy politicians too. So, not you can't blame God for not being in schools and you can't blame video games, or parents, or communities, or the killing gun, or the process, or mental health, or the age of majority, or prescription drugs, or the lack of respect, or unarmed teachers, or the NRA buying politicians.

If only people cared as much about their children as they did about their own rights, this wouldn't happen. Except that rights are rights, and children aren't. Or are simply, sadly, collateral damage for us having rights. Don't blame God for not being in schools. Don't blame video games. Don't blame parents. Don't blame communities. Don't blame the gun. Don't blame the process. Don't blame mental health. Don't blame the age of majority. Don't blame prescription drugs. Don't blame the lack of respect. Don't blame unarmed teachers. Don't blame the NRA.Don't blame people not caring about kids, and don't blame my rights.

If only thoughts and prayers kept us safe, this wouldn't happen.  Except that they don't and this does. 

The Speed of Safety

Beginning in late September 1982, the Chicago area, and in fact the entire country, was on edge as seven people died after taking Tylenol laced with cyanide.  Tens of millions of packages were recalled; people were afraid to take any medicine for a while, fearing they could suffer the same fate.

Less than a full year later, the NY Times published an article about industry-wide efforts to develop truly tamper-proof packaging.

Companies that make over-the-counter drugs and other consumer products are still struggling to cope with the packaging worries that began with the contamination of Tylenol capsules last year, resulting in the death of seven people.

Since then, over-the-counter drug makers have spent $173 million to meet the requirements of the Food and Drug Administration for tamper-resistant packaging, according to the Proprietary Association, a trade group of non-prescription drug makers. 

The article noted some of the challenges in coming up with something that was truly tamper resistant, and also the challenges faced by consumers trying to get into the new packages to use the products. This is still an issue today, I can attest, as I'm currently battling the flu with both prescription and non-prescription medicine, and it takes several minutes of meditation, a pair of scissors, and often a knife to get the meds out of their protective covers. I surely would have a drink to help steady my nerves before attempting to get the pills, if alcohol weren't contraindicated.

We also learned from the Times article that the original deadline for the entire non-prescription drug industry to be 100% compliant with  the tamper-resistant packaging rules was February 6, 1984 - a mere 495 days from the first Tylenol death.

On December 22, 2001, Richard Reid tried - and failed - to light a fuse in his sneaker, hoping to take down a plane flying from Paris to Miami.  On July 10, 2003 - only 565 days later - the TSA issued a press release attempting to clarify what they had been doing with shoe screening for months.

TSA's increased focus on screening shoes in recent months reflects a necessary reaction to information gathered by federal intelligence agencies. But just as TSA, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security, achieved consistency last fall by clarifying procedures for the screening of drinks carried through security checkpoints, the agency is moving now to make sure its shoe policy is implemented consistently from coast to coast. 

"Our screeners have always worked hard to make sure a 'shoe bomb' does not get on an aircraft," Admiral Loy said. "Now we must make sure our security process is consistent so air travelers know what to expect at every airport in the country." 

The shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School occurred on December 14, 2012. The shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School occurred 1,888 days later.

Still too soon?