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Newspaper Caters to Gun Owners 1/23/2013 10:42:59 AM
The Minneapolis Star Tribune published a front page picture
of a new gun owner brandishing his weapon.
I’m sure most people know by now that after a gun incident like the one in Newtown, Connecticut, many Americans run right out and buy a gun. So many purchased Assault weapons and Glocks that there’s now a shortage.
The Minneapolis Star Tribune thought this was such a significant story that they featured it on their front page, along with a picture of a man waving a 9mm. You know, like those Civil War pictures where a young soldier sent home photos of himself cocking a pistol. This guy said he’d never had a permit before, but he needed one to protect his family and to insure his second amendment rights. Wrong on both counts. The odds are 22-1 that he’ll shoot a member of his family, a neighbor, a co-worker, or an innocent bystander before he’ll thwart a break-in. There have been two recent cases which illustrate my point. A four-year-old boy got hold of his dad’s gun, which he kept under his pillow, and shot and killed his two-year-old brother. At least the guy in the STRIB picture kept his in a gun safe. But how long will it take him to rationalize keeping it in his bedside table so he’ll have easier access? The second illustration was about a grandfather who shot his granddaughter who was trying to sneak back into the house after partying with her friends. The lights were on in the living room, and he shot her twice before he realized who she was. Gun fanatics also come up with the occasional instance where a convenience store clerk defends himself against a stick-up artist, but I think most people will admit this guy is badly outnumbered. If I were a UPS driver I would refuse to deliver packages to a homeowner I knew possessed a gun.
One would think the massacre of twenty innocent six and seven year olds and six brave teachers, would have more of an impact on these new gun owners, especially since there has been at least one case where another troubled young man was planning on doing the same thing before neighbors complained about his target practice in his backyard, and the police found his arsenal of weapons. The only difference was this kid had already killed his mother when he was fourteen. Where did he get those guns, huh?
As far as protecting his second amendment rights, the 9 mm. brandisher should check out his history books. Prior to NRA propaganda the second amendment meant something entirely different than what Fox News says it does now. Thomas Jefferson was worried that a monarchist or a dictator would take over the country. Such founders as John Jay and Alexander Hamilton seemed to support a king and a parliament over a republic. Americans may need to fight for their freedom against. Also the word militia in the second Amendment doesn’t quite square with anybody who wants one owning an assault rifle with cop killer bullets. Throughout American police commissioners are begging for tougher gun laws and these are the people who risk their lives every time they make a traffic stop.
Antonin Scalia and his conservative activists shot down tough Chicago gun laws and now Chicago is one of the worst places in America for homicides. If Antonin Scalia ever had a pistol pointed at him, he’d pee his pants. I can guarantee it. It’s time we stopped catering to childish grown-ups who rationalize playing with dangerous toys; the STAR TRIBUNE, called the RED STAR, by Minnesota conservatives because of their supposed liberal content, needs to put that story on page six and skip the picture. Conservatives are never going to read your paper anyway.
