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Posted on 04/26/2002 5:58:23 AM PDT by Stand Watch Listen
An organization calling itself "Americans for Gun Safety" has financed a wave of radio ads, currently running in selected cities, that claim gun shows are a source of weapons for foreign terrorists. Listeners are urged to pressure Congress to fix this allegedly urgent problem.
These radio spots are deceptive political attack ads, like those we complain about at election time. It takes only a moment's thought to recall that terrorists have numerous sources of armaments that are vastly superior in price, quality and selection to what can be obtained at American gun shows.
Today's real terrorist threat does not even involve guns. Terror bombers use explosives and hijackers use improvised weapons like box cutters. We are also concerned with weapons of mass destruction, which certainly do not come from gun shows.
The strategy behind this strange series of ads can only be understood by looking at the reality of Americans for Gun Safety (AGS). The important questions to ask are how many members have joined this organization, where does their money come from, and what is their interest in gun safety?
The answer to the first question is easy. There are no members. AGS is a front organization for billionaire Andrew McKelvey, who likes to spend his money influencing public opinion.
Choosing an issue to support was probably tough for a rich urban liberal like Mr. McKelvey. Many liberal issues involve restrictions on corporations and free markets, not the sort of thing his high society friends would approve of.
Campaigning for tougher gun laws is the perfect solution. McKelvey is certainly aware that all the laws he is proposing will never affect his kind. No self-respecting billionaire would ever be seen looking for bargains at a gun show with all those icky working class peasants. No matter how strict gun laws become, the rich will always have easy access to guns.
Their claimed interest in gun safety is also easy to explain. They really aren't interested in promoting gun safety at all. Their entire safety effort appears to consist of some simple advice on their web site. As far as I can tell, they have not sponsored a single gun safety or hunter's education class. All of their money goes into anti-gun advertising, other anti-gun organizations, or to support political candidates who are cozy with McKelvey.
To better understand the disingenuous nature of this slick operation, visit their website (americansforgunsafety.org) and note the prominent opening claim that AGS "supports the rights of individuals who own firearms for sport, protection, and collection."
Then view the page labeled "about AGS." Read the list of AGS priorities to see what they are actually doing. Don't hold your breath as you search for projects that actually support the rights of individuals. All you will find is a list of ways they are spending McKelvey's money in support of more laws to restrict gun rights, while doing absolutely nothing to defend them.
The basic premise of AGS is therefore a deception. It is simply a unit of the anti-gun lobby operating under a false flag.
There are logical reasons why the anti-gun lobby has chosen to attack gun shows. First, they are an easy target. Only a small percentage of people have attended a gun show, so it is easy to inaccurately portray them as havens for criminals and terrorists.
Perhaps even more important, gun shows offer fundraising and outreach opportunities for gun rights organizations. By attacking gun shows, AGS strikes at the heart of their enemy.
Unfortunately for AGS, attacks on gun shows have lost momentum since a government study revealed that only seven tenths of one percent of criminals obtained their guns from gun shows. This may be why they are stretching the truth in a desperate attempt to link gun shows with terrorists.
As with all political attack ads, the reality does not match the rhetoric. And the story behind the ads is more interesting than the ads themselves. Radio listeners would be well advised to do their own research and make up their own minds.
Dr. Michael S. Brown is a member of Doctors for Sensible Gun Laws.
References:
Justice Department study on sources of guns for criminals
Americans for Gun Safety
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Osama et al are going to fly halfway around the world to attend a gun-show in America, when more powerful weapons are can be bought at a fraction of the price in their own backyard?
Purchased from a retail store 8.3 percent
Purchased at a pawn shop 3.8
Purchased at a flea market 1.0
Purchased in a gun show 0.7
Obtained from friends or family 39.6
Got on the street/illegal source 39.2
* Well Damm there goes the gun show loophole argument*
* Other interesting facts from the Bureau of Justice (Barf)*
The percentage of residents in each of the 12 cities who said they were fearful of crime in their neighborhood ranged from 20% in Madison, Wisconsin to 48% in Washington, D.C. and Chicago, Illinois.
In 1998, women experienced an estimated 876,340 rape, sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault and simple assault victimizations at the hands of an intimate
WASHINGTON, D.C. – About 18 percent of state prisoners and 15 percent of federal prisoners reported in 1997 that they were armed when they committed the offense for which they were imprisoned, the Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) announced today. This is an increase from the 16 percent of state inmates and 12 percent of federal inmates who reported they carried a firearm in 1991
According to the 1997 Survey of State Prison Inmates, among those possessing a gun, the source of the gun was from - a flea market or gun show for fewer than 2%
a retail store or pawnshop for about 12%
family, friends, a street buy, or an illegal source for 80%
Recidivism Of the 108,580 persons released from prisons in 11 States in 1983, an estimated 62.5% were rearrested for a felony or serious misdemeanor within 3 years, 46.8% were reconvicted, and 41.4% returned to prison or jail.
In 2000, almost 6.5 million people were under some form of correctional supervision including\
6.5 million people were on probation, in jail or prison, or on parole at yearend 2000 -- 3.1% of all U.S. adult residents or 1 in every 32 adults.
State and Federal prison authorities had under their jurisdiction 1,405,531 inmates at yearend midyear 2001: 1,252,743 under State jurisdiction and 152,788 under Federal jurisdiction.
Local jails held or supervised 702,044 persons awaiting trial or serving a sentence at midyear 2001. About 70,800 of these were persons serving their sentence in the community.
Source of data
U.S. Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/abstract/fuo.htm
I wonder if they have a phone number or an e-mail address. I'm sure many of us would be interested in contacting them to inquire about such classes.
In an effort to create a high quality Internet Service that helps promote and protect Second Amendment rights, the National Rifle Association has launched NRA Online.
The service provides unlimited dial-up access, up to five e-mail addresses, free web hosting and 24 hour live technical support for only $19.95 a month.
Covering more than 95% of the U.S.population through more than 1900 local numbers (which will grow to 2300 next month), NRA Online provides nationwide coverage for Freedom-loving Americans.
"We're excited about NRA Online," says NRA Treasurer Woody Phillips. "So many people have requested a high-quality, pro-gun alternative to the mass market ISPs that we felt the time was right to launch one.
We've spent considerable time building a solution that will be appreciated by our supporters while helping the NRA protect and defend our Constitutional Rights."
NRA Online can be downloaded right from the Internet (http://join.nraonline.com) in just a few minutes, or a CD can be requested from their toll-free 24 hour hotline, 1-866-602-6402.
Some people in Kalifornia were concerned when a man was charged under our "three strikes" law for taking a piece of pizza, as if the act were an isolated act of negligence.
A person who has already committed and served sentences for two felonies and who robs children of the very food which is on the table in front of them, belongs behind bars. To imagine that such a person manages to live even a single day without committing a crime is to be blind to the truth.
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