The NRA breaks its silence
 

After total silence since the Newtown shooting, the NRA finally released a statement:


"The National Rifle Association of America is made up of four million moms and dads, sons and daughters - and we were shocked, saddened and heartbroken by the news of the horrific and senseless murders in Newtown.

Out of respect for the families, and as a matter of common decency, we have given time for mourning, prayer and a full investigation of the facts before commenting.

The NRA is prepared to offer meaningful contributions to help make sure this never happens again.

The NRA is planning to hold a major news conference in the Washington, DC area on Friday, December 21.

Details will be released to the media at the appropriate time."


This ought to be interesting. They're probably gonna announce a partnership with Bushmaster to arm high school principals. :eek:

I recommend a boycott of the press conference. I've heard enough reactionary rhetoric to last a lifetime.

Regards,

D-Ray

They set it up for the day the world ends...... :D

As an Endowment Member of the NRA I have to agree with your sentiment. NRA leadership needs to take a time out and discuss what they really stand for and internalize it.

They lost a lot of street cred when Charlton Heston was tongue-tied trying to answer Michael Moore's questions in the film Bowling for Columbine. I expected the NRA spokesman to perform better.

I expect demented ramblings of staunch intransigence. And, I am confident I will not be disappointed.

Regards,
Dave

It seems that CALPERS persuaded the cheif stockholer of the Bushmaster company to dump its shares. Many other gun manufacturers are seeing their stocks head downward. Good thing maybe their obscene profits will follow.

That would be Cerberus, the same private equity firm that took Chrysler into bankruptcy. Robert Nardelli was their man at Chrysler. He was also their man at Freedom Group (Bushmaster) until recently.

Meanwhile, Bushmasters are flying off the shelves. We are a sick people.

John

Yes, it was Bushmasters fault that the lady didn't lock up her guns around her very ill kid.

Pete

Pete, I blame gun manufactures for glorifying the violence just like the media is blamed for the same. It's perpetuating a mindset that makes the ownership of assault weapons feel like that's ok for every average joe.

We all need to be a part of the social shift that puts gun ownership into a sane and healthy perspective.

CALPERS might be the California teachers pension fund. I read that they had a stake in Bushmaster, too.

edit: Here it is . California Public Employees Retirement System
http://www.calpers.ca.gov/

No, but the money they pay lobbyists and contribute to the NRA to represent their interests may have something to do with why she was able to own one to begin with.........

(If she'd never owned one to begin with, he couldn't have taken it.....imagine that.)

Regards,
Dave

Another odd tidbit - A spokesman for Cerberus Group confirmed that the father of Stephen Feinberg, the founder of Cerberus Group, lives in Newtown and its current chairman is Dan Quayle.

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/newtow...2#.UNHSrKzNmSo

I often read the American Rifleman. I have never seen an ad that glorifies violence.

Pete

Really? Wow. (Who cares.)

Have you seen our countries stats for gun related violence, Pete?

It's a f**king disgrace, a point of national shame that half or more of the American populace refuses to face. If you didn't know better, you'd think we were fighting an internal war.

Regards,
Dave

They cleaned up their act after the "jack booted thugs" flap in the mid-1990s.

IMO the NRA should hold it's ground with respect to legislation at the federal level and also state that we need to change the public discussion of gun ownership to a more healthy level. Denounce doomsday prepping as a rationalization for gun ownership simply because the daily risks of gun ownership saturation in communities don't balance with the improbability of a doomsday event. The NRA should also denounce leaving guns around the house and step up advocating keeping them in safes and limiting access to the safes to adults of sound mind. They also need to remind gun owners that they are more likely to kill someone they know than a stranger in self defense.

Your sarcastic distortions of what other people post are really tiresome.

John

Sarcasm is a poorly aimed fart.

It just stinks up the room without really shitting on the target.

So, because a lady didn't lock her guns up, take them from other people?

I see a horrible thing like this and many folks simply blame guns. However it doesn't work. There were guns before...

And based on these arguments what's the point of the assault weapons 'ban'? PLENTY of people will still have assault weapons. And if I see that gun shows will be shuttered I will stock a cabinet myself.

"Malo periculosam, libertatem quam quietam servitutem."

Pete

Eb it was jack booted thugs who shot an unarmed women through the forehead with a baby in her arms.

Only the government and their proxies are worthy of gun ownership.

Pete

Perhaps a stimulus plan would help. The statistics from Austrialia are intriguing.

Regards,

D-Ray

I like it. I guess that comes from growing up near Youngstown, a very darkly sarcastic place.

Regards,
Dave

Consider this, Pete..... Maybe because of the current mindset in our country..... That everyone needs an assault weapon, gives people, like this lady with a sick kid, the social acceptance to think it just isn't necessary to lock up guns. After all, if they were actually dangerous, they would be more tightly regulated and controlled, wouldn't they?

Well at least we're better than Swaziland and Honduras!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...ted_death_rate

Dave

Here is a fun trick, just google ".223 hollow points" without the quotes. Make sure your breakfast is well settled first.

I've always had my doubts about those gun buy-back programs. It would not surprise me at all if those guns got sold out the back door of the police station just as fast as they came in.

I would have to repeatedly witness the guns getting melted before I believe it. Americans are just too greedy.

Whew! Fouteen worse than us...What a relief! Nevermind that those places are riddled with drug cartels, gang wars and abject poverty. You'd think that with all those guns floating around they'd be peaceful and serene...........

http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-me...iolence-is-it/

Regards,
Dave

I'd like to see those stats with the inner cities pulled out.

Pete

Why, Pete? Are you planning on inner cities leaving our country?
The statistics from inner cities are just as valid as anywhere else.

What would be the point of that? And, anyway, you'd have to filter out the numbers for urban centers in every country to make it equivalent.

Try again.

John

What would be the point? Fudged numbers look better to people who can't stand the truth. That's why.

Where do "black market" weapons come from? By theft, malfeasance, or carelessness they come from legal owners.

Problem is, we now have so many in existence and so many determined to fight any effort to reduce proliferation that those of us who just want to live in peace may end up having to own a weapon of our own, like it or not.

I don't know about you, but that thought makes me sad. It says something about our society. Something incredibly ugly.

Regards,
Dave

Because the gun laws advocated as a response to our current postal insane person will have zero effect on inner city crime anyway.

Pete

Dave I agree. Unfortunately (fortunately?) where I live isn't an issue. Where most people live isn't an issue. This will happen again - no matter what.

Pete

From that wingnut rag, NewsMax;

http://www.newsmax.com/US/mass-shoot...7/20/id/445971

Two things to note.

1). Only a few listed here occured in what you might call "innercity". Suburbia seems to be the "in" place, if you on a homicidal rampage.

2). To date, there have been seven "sprees" or "mass homicides", this year alone.
(I also find it interesting that some of these never made the national news.)

Regards,
Dave

Why does it happen so often, here?

What is the principle difference between us and the countries that didn't even make those lists, Pete?

They don't have crazy people? Or, maybe their mass murderers stick to running their victims over...or beating them to death with Loofah Sponges, perhaps?

Regards,
Dave

Oh it seems the sprees are a suburban thing. You'd think it would be the neglected crack babies having some 'uncle' teasing them with a filthy bottle and smacking them when they reach for it that would go nuts :rolleyes:

But no it's usually spoiled suburban kids, at least it looks that way.

If we're comparing security vs other places, most Americans do not live in the hood. I agree then you could pull out urban areas in other countries.

Pete

There was a mass shooting in Tasmania, Australia in 1996. Thirty-five people were killed. Within two weeks Conservative Prime Minister John Howard passed sweeping gun control laws banning assault rifles and high capacity magazines, creating stricter national registration requirements and instituting a mandatory buyback program of the newly banned weapons.

Since that time, gun-related homicides have dropped by 59% and suicide rates fell by 76% with no parallel increase in non-firearm related homicides and suicides. There hasn't been a single mass killing in Australia since.

John

Really? Why?

John

Because they have reason?

There are still horrible shootings in countries that have very very strict gun laws. Maybe not all of them, but there they are.

Population also plays a part, altthough even if you count all of Europe we're still probably higher.

Pete

So, because we can never totally eliminate firearm homicides it's pointless to try to reduce them. Brilliant.

John

Gosh this is spiralling out of control again ain't it?

Pete