Anti-Gunners Are Howling As Their Agenda Stagnates
August 10, 2005
by Joseph P. Tartaro
Executive Editor
The heat wave that hit much of the US this summer seems to have finally broken, and in many areas, rain is falling where there was drought. It may not be enough, but as the anti-gunners are so fond of saying: It’s a good first step.
Thunder and lightning accompany much of the weather change and that’s not the only cause of much of the noise we are hearing these days. The biggest sounds are the screams of the anti-gunners, who, with all their media management, are not doing well these days.
They have been on a long losing streak and they appear headed for even bigger ones, notably the possible loss of their lawsuits which were launched in 1998 as an end run around the democratic legislative process. I’m referring to the prospect of imminent passage of S-397/HR-800, The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Firearms Act.
Last year, the House passed the tort reform measure but the Senate ended up killing it after the anti-gunners turned it into a veritable Christmas tree for the Brady Bunch. Last November, the voters made changes, and there is the prospect that the Senate could pass a clean bill before the end of July.
Of course, the anti-gunners will try to poison the measure again this year, but chances are good that a clean bill can be passed. President Bush has repeatedly said that he would sign a clean reform bill on firearms litigation.
House Prepared
The House has been doing its work, too, although giving the Senate an opportunity to avoid the 2004 debacle. House committees have already met, amended and reported out HR-800. All it will need is a vote in the full House where more than a majority of representatives already are listed as co-sponsors of the bill.
If the measure finally passes and is signed, it will staunch the hemorrhaging of almost a quarter billion dollars from the gun industry which has been spent to defend against more than 30 municipal, county and state lawsuits instigated by the anti-gunners. That’s money paid to lawyers to defend against frivolous lawsuits.
While passage of S-397/HR-800 won’t drive a stake through the anti-gun vampires’ hearts, it will at least spread some sunshine and a fair amount of garlic.
The antis have been on the losing end of the curve for quite a while now, sustaining losses in several elections, so much so that some Democrats want to steer clear of the gun issue which is a mainstay of the extreme liberal wing of the party.
They failed to reauthorize the Clinton gun and magazine ban last summer, but they are still trying. Some of them consoled themselves with the passage of the Columbus, OH, ban, which they claimed was a local response to the failure of Congress to act. But they will keep trying; maybe this week, as an amendment to the tort reform measure.
Name-Calling
The anti-gun websites and editorialists keep sinking to ever wilder claims and name-calling as they scream like devils being exorcized from their victims.
Here’s one example from the perennially anti-gun New York Daily News, published July 25, entitled, “A call to arms against the NRA.”
As might be expected from The News, they open with name calling. The editorial begins:
“The gun-huggers at the National Rifle Association will not be holding their 2007 convention, as had been planned, in Columbus, Ohio. Lucky Columbus. Of course, the NRA would never even consider NYC. This city does not believe in blowing the heads off small animals. Or people. Which is why it wants to get tougher on illegal weapons. Guess what group is opposed?
“City officials are trying to cut off the plague of weapons at its source by suing gun makers and distributors that carelessly deliver their wares to unscrupulous dealers who, in turn, sell to criminals. It’s a strategy any levelheaded politician would love—but the NRA and its pals in Congress are doing their darnedest to keep the supply lines open.
“Bills headed for votes in the House and the Senate would grant gunmakers immunity from lawsuits like New York’s. In other words, the manufacturers could turn a blind eye to the 1% of dealers who are responsible for 60% of the illegal guns on the streets.
“The city isn’t trying to bankrupt the industry; it’s not even seeking monetary damages. It merely wants manufacturers to adopt basic safeguards to prevent weapons from falling into criminal hands.
“Although the manufacturers tried to get the (New York’s) case dismissed, it’s heading for a trial—perhaps as soon as this fall—in Brooklyn Federal Court. Rather than defend their behavior before a New York City jury, they turned to Second Amendment zealots in Congress, knowing they’d be willing to throw common sense out the window.
“Last year, Sens. Chuck Schumer and Hillary Clinton and the rest of the New York delegation led the fight to block the outrageous law, weighting it down with unfriendly amendments until even the sponsor refused to support it. Now, emboldened by Republican victories in last year’s elections, supporters of this bill have made it even worse—adding a clause that would block not just lawsuits, but also “administrative proceedings” by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and other regulators.
“Mayor Bloomberg is calling on New Yorkers to contact their representatives in Washington and urge a no vote on this dangerous legislation. We’ve dodged the bullet before; we can do it again.”
.50-Cal. Shopper
But The News is not the only newspaper stumping for the anti-gun cause, and when the journalists aren’t screeching about the tort reform measure, they are still fixated on .50-caliber rifles.
Just to keep the pot boiling on that issue, backing up the journalistic clowning of CBS, NBC and CNN, newspapers around the country seek ways to pump some public indignation into an issue that the public doesn’t seem to be that excited about. The Peoria Journal Star, for example, on July 23 ran a piece by David Haney, in which it claimed that an anti-gun activist bought a .50-caliber rifle over the Internet to show how easily it can be done.
According to The Journal Star, Scott Vogel had never before owned a gun when he purchased a bolt-action .50-caliber rifle over the Internet a few months ago with little more than his Illinois driver’s license and Firearm Ownership ID card.
The newspaper identified Vogel as a Chicago resident and coordinator with the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence. He told the newspaper he did make the purchase on the group’s behalf “to show how easy it is to obtain a weapon powerful enough to strike targets more than a mile away, one that is able to pierce armor plating and potentially ground a jet aircraft during takeoff or landing.”
“It’s fairly easy to do,” Vogel said of the purchase, noting the seller “threw in 150 rounds” of ammunition for free for buying the rifle.
Members of the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence toured the state this week “educating citizens” about the rifle’s ability as what they claimed is a potential terrorist threat as well as touting a bill in the Illinois legislature aimed at restricting possession and selling of a .50-caliber rifle.
But Richard Pearson, executive director of the Illinois State Rifle Association, said that if the group wasn’t targeting the .50-caliber rifle, it would be a different gun, The Journal Star reported.
“The point is, it’s the rifle of the week they want to ban. Next week, it’ll be the .49-caliber, then the .48-caliber,” Pearson said, according to the newspaper.
And countering claims that purchasing the .50-caliber rifle over the Internet could more easily get it into the wrong hands, Pearson said every state requires a potential buyer undergo a state and federal background check. Return to Archive Index
