Category: Anti-Gun Folks

Bryan Miller is speaking in a different language these days, trying to get churches involved in his lost cause of gun control:

Heeding God’s Call is adding a different religious voice to the national gun-control debate, which members say has been dominated for too long by conservative Christians opposed to firearms regulation.

The group has partnered with more than three dozen Philadelphia-area congregations — including Jews, Muslims, Quakers, Catholics and Protestants — to work against gun violence.

“Every faith tradition calls on its followers to be their brother’s keeper,” said organization co-founder Bryan Miller.

As comical as it might seem, Bryan is no doubt well aware that the lack of grass roots in the gun control movement is, at this point, limiting their ability to accomplish anything.  To his credit, he’s trying to do something about that, and churches could very well prove to be fertile recruiting grounds.  No doubt many religious folks know better than this, but all he needs is a handful, and there’s no motivator more powerful than being on a mission from God.

Those of us who can speak to religious people, in their own language, need to work to counter this, especially if Miller’s philosophy starts making its way into your own church.

According to the AP, they are asking how they lose.  Lots of sad pandas to go around:

“We’ll probably end up passing more gun bills” that expand owners’ rights “than we did during the Republican administration,” said Rep. Carolyn McCarthy, D-N.Y., a leading gun control advocate. “That is what surprises me.”

You know, that’s surprising me too.  It must be that shoulder thing that goes up.  But how about that Congressman David Price’s snub to the Brady Campaign here:

“People do not want to be on the wrong side of this particular cultural divide,” said Rep. David Price, D-N.C., who supports tougher gun controls. “It’s too bad there’s not a more responsible national organization” to counteract the NRA, he said.

Ouch, that’s gotta hurt.  Even I wouldn’t be that harsh.  The Brady’s were worthy opponents in their heyday, it’s just that once the grass roots gun owners got pissed off and fired up, they had nothing to counter it.

Rep. Lynn Woolsey of California is another Democrat frustrated by the gun debate. When she asks colleagues why they don’t support tougher restrictions, she said, they reply, “You just don’t get it, Woolsey. You don’t have our districts.”

Woolsey doesn’t get it because she’s from one of the few areas in the country where there isn’t much in the way of gun rights activists to make her life difficult.  As much as it’s tempting to say we’ve lost six or so states to gun control, it’s not really true.  There’s only a few metro areas making California anti-gun, but those districts represent a lot of people, and in those districts, it’s probably more important that their rep makes a peace statement on memorial day, than honoring our veterans.  We lost New York City in 1911, and people took their cultural attitudes on guns with them when there was the mass exodus from cities in the late 20th century.  What gun control advocates are finding is that controlling a few legacy metropolitan areas isn’t enough, and the ripples being created by Heller are likely to undo even that.  It has to be frustrating, but I can’t say I feel sorry for them.

Paul Helmke is talking to the Akron Beacon Journal:

Helmke said President Obama’s administration has been supportive of his group’s calls for reform.

”We need activists. I have 30 employees, the NRA [National Rifle Association] has 600,” Helmke said.

We’ll have to see how supported he feels when President Obama signs the Credit Card Bill with the National Park concealed carry reforms in it.  I am very confident the President will sign.  The thing to bet on is whether the signing statement mentions the carry issue at all.  I’d put my money on no.  He’ll want to play down his own party forcing him to sign a bill expanding concealed carry.

Another thing is, NRA has a lot of employees, yes, but Helmke should remember that NRA has shooting sport programs to run.  Not to mention a working museum, and thousand of clubs and associations to interact with.  NRA-ILA does not constitute all 600 of those employees.  I’d wager they don’t constitute 1/3rd of total employees.

There is no sport of protesting guns, no mater how much the Paul Helmke wishes it were so.  Wouldn’t it be amusing though?  Perhaps his sad panda demeanor is the reason he’s adopting our own rhetoric:

”This is a public-safety issue and a public-health issue,” Helmke said. ”Guns don’t kill people. People kill people. Guns don’t fire by themselves.”

That one is so old, it’s risen to the level of cliche by this point, but I’m glad that Paul has at least come around to this.

From CNN:

“The NRA is basically taking over the House and the Senate,” said Rep. Carolyn McCarthy, D-New York. “If the NRA wins on each and every bill, the American people are going to suffer the most.”

That’s probably because the Democrats got into power by running moderate pro-gun Democrats.  I for one will be happy not to have to suffer breaking the law when I cross a National Park boundary with a pistol in the glove box.

Jacob has the story here.

Today we have yet another sad panda alert.  Bryan Miller and the Philadelphia Inquirer are whining that Obama is reintroducing a modified version of the Tiahrt Amendment, which allows for more sharing of trace data with police agencies, but not politicians and the media.  This is, naturally, outrageous:

“This policy has allowed guns to remain in the hands of hundreds of criminals,” said Paul Helmke, president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. Indeed, without good tracking data on handgun sales, police, federal authorities, and the public have a tough time learning “where the guns are going and which gun dealers are selling to traffickers,” explains Bryan Miller, head of Ceasefire NJ.

You were saying that this gets in the way of law enforcement.  Well, law enforcement now has access to the trace data, even in aggregate.  They just can’t share it with you guys.  Now, at least, we know what this was about all along.

I thought Robb outdid himself with the Pant Shitting Hysterics (PSH) Icon.  Now we have the sad panda:

This time in reference to Paul Helmke, of the Brady Campaign.

This report indicates that some mothers actually did march against guns this weekend.

Hundreds of mothers and other activists have been marching the streets of New York City to protest gun violence.

Gloria Cruz of the Million Mom March in New York says she wants to honor children who have died as a result of gun violence. She also says the march is to show people will never stop fighting for stronger gun laws.

The AP claims hundreds, but they don’t provide any photos or videos.

… before Obama the Lightworker unites the pro and anti-gun in frustration over his Administration, though for different reasons.  Now Paul is upset because Obama doesn’t seem to be doing anything about Tiahrt in his budget.  I’m guessing ATF supporting it might have something to do with that.