Two incompatible gun ballot measures lead in Washington state

Reuters ^ | Apr 15, 2014 9:24pm EDT | JONATHAN KAMINSKY

[blueplum]

(Reuters) - Two incompatible ballot measures on background checks for gun buyers in Washington state enjoy majority support in a poll released on Tuesday, but the one advancing stricter gun controls is more popular.

The competing measures, both slated to be on the ballot in November in the Pacific Northwest state, are the only firearm background check initiatives up for a vote this year in the United States. :snip:

Initiative 594 would require all firearm sales, including those at gun shows and conducted online, to be predicated on a background check of the buyer. Initiative 591, however, would disallow background checks for gun purchases unless explicitly required by the federal government. :snip:

The results on the Washington state gun measures from the Elway Poll, which is independent of the two campaigns, shows Initiative 594 enjoying 72 percent support, while the other measure has 55 percent in favor. The poll's margin of error is 4.5 percentage points, and 504 registered voters participated.

When asked in a follow-up question whether background checks should be expanded or unchanged, 62 percent of respondents said they favored more restrictions.

(Editing by Alex Dobuzinskis and Mohammad Zargham)

[Crazieman]

How about, Second Amendment is my permit, disregard the rest?

[BobL]

This will not be a good year for gun control - they should have waited until 2016. The NRA will kick-in and the end result will be nothing, most likely (and thankfully).

[KeyLargo]

Newsmax
Bloomberg Organizes New Gun-Control Group, Will Spend $50 Million
Wednesday, April 16, 2014 06:16 AM

By: Elliot Jager

Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is willing to spend $50 million this year to foster a grassroots movement to take on the gun lobby, The New York Times reported.

Everytown for Gun Safety, a new umbrella group, will amalgamate Mayors Against Illegal Guns and Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America. The idea is to apply some of the same single-minded, single-issue zeal used by the National Rifle Association to make the pro-gun control case.

Bloomberg said gun opponents need to be willing to target Democrats who are soft on gun control.

The Bloomberg-funded group, modeled partly after Mothers Against Drunk Driving, wants to turn women into a political force against guns.

“Right now, women, when they go to the polls, they vote on abortion, they vote on jobs, they vote on healthcare,” Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action, told the Times. “We want one of those things to be gun violence prevention.”

[ThunderSleeps]

Three thoughts. First, how about a moment of clarity, a moment of common sense? Look at how criminals are getting guns:

• Straw purchases (already illegal)
• Corrupt licensed dealers (already breaking the law)
• Other criminals (already breaking the law)
• Stolen (ie. already via a crime)

Those are in order of popularity among criminals. So what makes anyone think that piling on yet another law for criminals to ignore and break - while infringing even more upon the rights of law abiding citizens - will make any significant difference? (here's a hint, it won't)

Two, if you don't believe me, and lack even the modicum of common sense to see #1 look around. Several states have enacted "universal" background checks. Guess what, they don't work. They have resulted in an extremely low number of rejected buyers. I can hear you lib lurkers out there thinking "Ah but it does work!" No, it doesn't. The published statistics on that do not say how many of those rejections were in error. There is a known, but small error rate of people who are mis-identified in the database. It takes time and effort to correct.

Three. Go back and read the (real) 2nd Amendment. What part of "shall not be infringed" do you not understand?

[SW6906]

504 registered voters and that’s supposed to accurately reflect how the millions of WA state residents will vote? How many of those polled were in Seattle vs the rest of the state? How many were of the demographic likely to crawl over broken glass to vote in these next elections to send a message vs. brain dead Seattle liberals too busy getting high.....?

[blueplum]

Your’s is the message that needs to be received loud and clear by Washingtonians. The good news is, this election cycle there’s only one gun ballot measure to defeat. So let’s do it by getting the message out well before poll time.

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

Confused Nanny State PING!

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the ping!

[Still Thinking]

Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is willing to spend $50 million this year to foster a grassroots movement to take on the gun lobby, The New York Times reported.

Rich busybody tyrant spends $50 mil, Old Gray Slut considers that "grassroots". [facepalm]

[Beagle8U]

“Initiative 594 would require all firearm sales, including those at gun shows and conducted online, to be predicated on a background check of the buyer.”

Once the people find out that both of those are already true, that will get rejected.