Category Archives: Politics

Another Way to Enjoy Your Trial

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Alan Korwin proposed a new law:

The U.S. Constitution, for all its strengths, revered and imitated worldwide, has a fatal flaw. A weakness of Greek-tragedy proportions. The Constitution lacks punishment for those who would violate its terms. Yes, there are avenues of recourse, but these have been neutered and rendered feckless in so many ways.

…

What America needs, what our Republic and Constitution need, is strict adherence to a policy of, “No infringement shall be tolerated.” Small encroachments—like licenses to carry arms or speech codes—must subject people proposing such violations to penalties. Gross infringements like, “We’re going to take away your favorite rifle—and of course we’ll keep ours,” require prison terms. Stiff penalties.

I’m not sure why 18 USC 242 doesn’t cover what his has in mind. Regardless, if there were a means of reliable prosecution I believe the concept is sound.

They Have to Lie to Win

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Quote of the Day

The U.S. Supreme Court is weighing whether to review a lower court ruling that struck down a law prohibiting domestic abusers from possessing guns. Speaking as someone who has represented families of women and children killed by domestic abusers with guns, the potential danger of this decision is hard to overstate. But under recent Supreme Court Second Amendment precedent, that danger is treated as virtually irrelevant.

How did we get here? Doesn’t the right of a child to live outweigh the right to own a Glock or an AR-15? In most of the world, yes. But in today’s America, probably not.

Jonathan Lowy
June 28, 2023
Hey, SCOTUS — the right to life trumps the right to own a gun

Hey Jonathan – the 2nd Amendment IS the balance between private gun ownership and public safety. SCOTUS has repeatedly said this. This is the age of the Internet. People can find and start read SCOTUS decisions with only a few seconds of effort. Nearly every sentence in your screed is an easily disprovable lie or is deliberately misleading. So stop the lying. You are just demonstrating your evil intent.

But, of course, if they were to stop lying they would have no hope of winning. It is their only hope.

Legal Bans Do Not Work

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Wherever and whenever there is a demand the market will supply the product:

Now that a year has passed since women lost the right to abortion, we can assess how our neighbor Idaho’s near-total ban on it is faring.

In short: It has accomplished next to nothing.

You can’t say categorically that the Idaho ban hasn’t stopped a single abortion. But the data suggests that is essentially the case – that the whole thing is a burden, cost and danger to Idaho’s own women, but hasn’t met the anti-abortion goals that supposedly informed it.

We know this now because clinics in the Pacific Northwest have started releasing data on where women come from to use their services, both back when abortion was legal nationwide, and now that it’s not.

Idaho women are simply fleeing.

Bans didn’t stop alcohol consumption, minors from getting tobacco, or other recreational drug use. They didn’t stop criminals from getting handguns. And it should be no surprise it didn’t stop abortions. Just as there were abortions when they were banned prior to Roe v. Wade. I knew a high school classmate who traveled from Idaho to Washington get an abortion. And women are doing it again.

Reduction and even elimination of abortions is a worthy goal. But I can’t see the legal system making a significant change in the total numbers. It has to be cultural change.

Legal bans only work when you have an adversary party involved which has the ability to support the legal action.*

* In the case of murder you have friend, relatives, and dedicated detectives to “speak” for the victim. The aborted fetus/child is unable to speak for itself and without a dependable voice from those who know what happened.

Ignoring the Obvious

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Aside from the willful misrepresentation of the scope of the problem, the creation of a new phrase “gun anxiety” they are ignoring the obvious:

Gun anxiety is making these parents reconsider school, family outings and more: ‘What we’ve seen is that it can happen and does happen anywhere’

Where would I hide or how would I get out?” These are the questions that Tess thinks about constantly, especially when she goes places with her two young daughters. She doesn’t like to take her kids into any big box stores because it feels too risky. There’s always the chance someone could walk in with a gun and start shooting, turning her mundane family errand into another tragic national headline with deadly consequences.

Many parents can relate to Tess’s anxiety over the increased levels of gun violence in the United States. There have already been more than 325 mass shootings this year according to The Gun Violence Archive, a nonprofit group that uses police reports, news coverage and other public sources to provide near-real time data about gun violence in the United States. Data from the Centers for Disease and Prevention also names firearms as the leading cause of death for U.S. children and teens, while research has found that the risk of gun violence is significantly higher for Black and Hispanic children.

First the willful misrepresentation.

The National Institute of Justice has studied mass shootings. The database they use reports five mass shootings this year. NOT over 300 hundred.

The obvious and ignored solutions are:

  1. Use the best defense against a murderer with a gun. A trusted adult with their own gun.
  2. If you are suffering from “gun anxiety” to the point of thinking about mass shootings constantly and are afraid to take your children into large stores over something that happens less than ten times per year in the entire country then get some counseling.

It is Clearly About Control

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Quote of the Day

Like other wars that feckless American “elites” have waged against inanimate objects (such as drugs) or military tactics (like terrorism), the war on guns will completely miss the mark.

The goal is supposedly about public safety.

Yet, of the roughly 81 million registered gun owners in the United States, hardly any of them—around 12 percent—have used their firearms to commit crimes. The vast majority of gun crime in America is done with illicit firearms, usually perpetrated by criminals.

So why is the Biden Administration intent on trying to make lawful gun ownership so hard? It isn’t about public safety at all.

In fact, it is clearly about control.

Brandon Weichert
June 17, 2023
Joe Biden’s War on Guns Misses the Target

“Registered gun owners”? I believe he is assuming facts not in evidence. His citation does not support his claim.

But that is nitpicking. His conclusion is sound.

A Tribe of One

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Quote of the Day

Nothing good comes from organizing societies along collective groups pitted against one another. Transcend this bullshit. You are a tribe of one.

Gad Saad @GadSaad
Tweeted on June 11, 2023

I have nothing to add.

Politicians and Political Power

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Quote of the Day

President Trump once joked that he could shoot someone “in the middle of Fifth Avenue” and he wouldn’t lose any voters. Hunter Biden could actually do it, high on cocaine, bare-assed naked and surrounded by U.S. Attorneys and plenty of hookers and he wouldn’t spend a day in jail.

There is no justice at the Department of Justice anymore. There is one set of rules for the Bidens and their ilk, and another for us lowly non-Bidens.

Lee Williams
June 20, 2023
Hunter Biden gets a pass from his dad’s war on guns

Anymore? We also saw this with Hillary Clinton and her disregard for the handling of classified information. And the gun running with operation Fast and Furious.

The list is probably endless both in time and space as far back as the existence of the first justice system within non-humans. This doesn’t mean that it should be ignored. It just means there will always be justification for reducing the number of politicians and political power.

In the present day and on the current topic it means more people will disrespect and disobey the law and feel totally justified. This increases the “friction” and “tension” in multiple ways including economic, political, and sense of justice.

See also CCRKBA: HUNTER BIDEN GUN CHARGE DEAL AN OUTRAGE, INSULT.

It is Part of Their Nature

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Quote of the Day

In a 2022 survey from the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), 63% of liberal faculty said they can think of cases when it would be acceptable to shout down speakers, compared with 47% of moderates and 12% of conservatives. Nearly a third of liberal faculty (31%) believe that there are cases where blocking other students from attending a campus speech is acceptable, while just 16% of moderates and 5% of conservative faculty feel the same way.

Samuel Abrams
June 19, 2023
Critical differences in protesting between liberals and conservatives. Here’s why

This is consistent with my assertion that “liberals” are inherently violent (see also here). The use of force to get their way is part of their nature.

This tells me that they know they cannot subject their ideas to a public debate and contact with reality.

Prepare appropriately.

Avoid the Mess

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Quote of the Day

I’ve seen some pretty tough enemies before in my life, and I’m not scared of the gun lobby.

Wes Moore
Maryland Governor
June 18, 2023
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore says he’s ‘not scared of the gun lobby’ after the NRA sued him over the state’s new gun-control law

This is the problem. They have nothing to lose from infringing upon the rights of millions of people. This is why 18 USC 241 and 242 exist. These laws put some bite into the denial of civil rights. But, of course, since the infringers are essentially the enforcers of the laws, they can safely ignore them.

I don’t think they are looking far enough into the future. At some point people will “vote from the rooftops” and things get very messy. It would be far better for the laws to be enforced and we could all avoid the mess.

Biden Spent Billions to Prosecute 31 People

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Quote of the Day

It’s already saving lives. There are fewer deaths occurring,

Joe Biden
President Unite States of America
June 16, 2023
The US passed a landmark gun deal one year ago. Is it working?

Really? How does he know? The FBI crime numbers cannot be trusted.

And from the same article:

The event comes as available data suggests the U.S. is seeing a year-over-year decline in murders nationwide. At the same time, mass shootings appear to be accelerating.

And the numbers they do claim are very telling:

At least 31 people have been charged in 17 cases under new federal straw purchasing and trafficking criminal offenses, data from federal prosecutors through April shows.

31?!!! And strawman purchases were already illegal. Out of probably 15 to 20 million sales they charged 31 people under, what they claim, is a new law. And they think this is success?

Denials stemming from enhanced background checks for people under 21 blocked more than 130 firearm purchases between November and April, Peter Carr, a spokesman for the Department of Justice, previously told USA TODAY.

How many of those 130 blocked purchases resulted in an increase in public safety? And how many of those block purchases resulted in a decrease in public safety?

And at what cost?

It created a $750 million funding pot to incentivize states to create “red flag laws,” closed the “boyfriend loophole” by adding convicted domestic violence abusers in dating relationships to the national criminal background check system, clarified the definition of a “federally licensed firearm dealer,” made it a federal crime to traffic in firearms, stiffened penalties for “straw purchases” made on behalf of people who aren’t allowed to own guns and enhanced background checks for buyers under 21.

The law also appropriated billions in funding for schools and mental health services. That includes $150 million for a national 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, $250 million for states and territories to enhance community mental health services, $500 million to increase the number of school-based mental health providers and $500 million to train school counselors, social workers and psychologists. It also set aside $250 million in funding for community-based violence prevention initiatives.

Billions were spent to prosecute 31 people and block sales to 130 people who, almost for certain, were not a threat to anyone.

And this is even with them playing their game by their rules instead of based on whether what they are doing is a violation of the Second Amendment, which it is.

They lie, they deceive, and they ignore the specific enumerated right to keep and bear arms.

I hope they enjoy their trials.

This is Not Bad Faith

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In fairness, some ghost guns are also produced by the criminal element. And it’s also true that these firearms have become increasingly popular amongst prohibited possessors. But in a country that has largely traded any real concern for order, public safety, or property rights for legalized shoplifting, mass encampments of homeless drug addicts, and civil rights patronage schemes, one must remember that our government is simply acting in bad faith when it comes to gun laws like 05F.

If it were important to the government to stop gun crime, they would focus their efforts on St. Louis or Baltimore. But it’s not important to the government to stop these crimes, it’s important to the federal government to stop you from being able to defend yourself from them.

Lee Enphield
June 9, 2023
Ghost Guns Come Back to Haunt the Biden ATF

It is far beyond bad faith. They enable crime and then insist the victims not be allowed to defend themselves from the criminals. This is evil.

There is a solution to evil. The G0: 0% PISTOL.

Dunning–Kruger Effect on Display

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I think the time and energy it would take to ratify a 28th Amendment could be put to better use.

Instead of taking decades to secure approval of two-thirds of Congress and three-fourths of the states, I believe a gun summit at Camp David — with gun-rights advocates, law enforcement and survivors — could hammer out new, commonsense gun safety measures in a matter of days.

Denny Freidenrich
Laguna Beach
June 12, 2023
Letters to the Editor: We need an answer on gun violence now, not Newsom’s 28th Amendment

I find it amazing how ignorant some people are and yet think they know the situation better than the people directly involved.

Democratic Western Countries Will Become Fascist Dictatorships

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Quote of the Day

Over the next decade, it is quite likely that most democratic Western countries will become fascist dictatorships – this is not a tail risk, but the most likely overall outcome. Politics is not a typical LessWrong topic, and for good reason:

  1. it tends to impair clear thinking;
  2. most well-known political issues are not neglected;
  3. most political “debates” are simply people yelling at each other online; neither saying anything new, nor even really trying to persuade the opposition.

However, like the COVID pandemic, it seems like this particular trend will be so impactful and so disruptive to ordinary Western life that it will be important to be aware of it, factor it into plans, and try our best to mitigate or work around the effects.

alyssavance
June 10, 2023
The Dictatorship Problem

I remain unconvinced. There were some interesting trend lines which made for interesting reading and possibly good discussions. But some claims were almost certainly wrong and there was not a set of evidence which I found convincing.

Alberta to Vote on Joining the U.S.

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Quote of the Day

Many conservatives who live in Alberta, Canada, have had a gutful of what they say is their government’s heavy-handed policies and are backing an effort to secede.

They want to carve out a new border and become the 51st of the United States of America.

…

A vote on the referendum in Alberta is set for June 30.

John Thompson
June 10, 2023
Canadian Conservatives Have Had Enough: Alberta To Vote On Becoming 51st US State

The referendum is unlikely to pass. But if they reach the point where secession is viable I think the U.S. should give it serious consideration.

Orwellian Freedom

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Quote of the Day

I’m proposing the 28th Amendment to the United States Constitution to help end our nation’s gun violence crisis.

The American people are sick of Congress’ inaction.

The 28th will enshrine 4 widely supported gun safety freedoms — while leaving the 2nd Amendment intact:

1) Raising the minimum age to purchase a gun to 21

2) Universal background checks

3) A reasonable waiting period for gun purchases

4) Banning the civilian purchase of assault weapons

Gavin Newson @GavinNewson
Tweeted on June 8, 2023

Emphasis added.

“Gun safety freedoms”? This is classic Democrat Orwellian speak. It ranks right up there when Democrats demanded freedom — to own slaves. And it deserves the same amount of respect.

See also what CCRKBA has to say about this.

I hope he enjoys his trial.

No Confusion

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For state legislators trying to respond to constituents’ concerns about rising rates of gun violence and mass shootings, this historical test — and the subjective manner in which judges deploy it — makes it difficult to determine which laws are constitutional and which ones are not.

Paul Blumenthal
June 7, 2023
The Supreme Court’s Gun Rights Decision Is Causing Confusion In State Legislatures

The only confusion is in their simple minds. And I have doubt about that. I think a strong case can be made that they know perfectly well what the Second Amendment and SCOTUS say.

It’s very simple. Shall. Not. Be. Infringed.

Only in Hindsight

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There used to be a meme in the prepper community to the effect of “How will we know when the SHTF?” How will we know when we are truly in the soup? The best answer I ever heard was from a man I met at Auschwitz in Poland, a man who had survived the hellish nightmare of the Balkan genocide. Couldn’t you tell, I asked him?

“Hindsight,” he said. “You can only tell in hindsight.”

Michael Bane
June 6, 2023
The End of the World as We Know It…and We’re Not Fine

I have nothing to add.

Oath of Office is Not a Trivial Inconvenience

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Quote of the Day

The Courts will indeed decide this issue, and in the meantime things like an Oath of Office appear to be nothing more than a trivial inconvenience, as it certainly is not adhered to as a rule here in Vermont.

Chris Bradley
President Vermont’s Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs
June 2, 2023
Vermont governor doubted gun control bill was constitutional, but he just allowed it to take effect

It certainly isn’t limited to Vermont. I would claim that 99.9% of all politicians in the country give it less thought than the Vermont governor. And it is not a trivial inconvenience to any of them. They do not even consider it.

There needs to a be a multitude of trials.

Top Gun Rights Organization Membership Salesmen

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Quote of the Day

Interest in SAF membership has been simply stunning. In our 49 years of existence, we have never experienced such a spontaneous organic groundswell of public interest, from all over the country. Not only does this show the importance of fighting these legal battles on behalf of our members, and American gun owners in general, it also underscores the degree of public interest in the arm brace issue. We are both proud and humbled by the surge in memberships from people who see SAF as leading the charge against the ATF’s flip on pistol braces.

Alan M. Gottlieb
SAF founder and Executive Vice President
June 5, 2023
SAF MEMBERSHIP SURGES AFTER JUDGE CLARIFIES SCOPE OF ARM BRACE INJUNCTION

Gun banners always make the best gun and gun rights organization membership salesmen.

Firearms Policy Coalition members also have immunity from prosecution for owning a pistol stabilizing brace.

Become members of both, just to make sure.

Can’t wait for a civil war

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Quote of the Day

No, it’s about a well regulated militia. That would be our military. You idiots that walk around with assault weapons either have really tiny penises or are cowards or both. I can’t wait until you idiots try and start a civil war. It will be OUR MILITARY that quells it.

Penelope Jane (Formerly LOVER OF DEMOCRACY) @PenneyJane2022
Tweeted on February 7, 2023

It’s not only another Markley’s Law Monday, it is another science denier!

I think she will be “disappointed” should there be a civil war. I’ll bet she doesn’t even know what the phrase total warfare means and that it is more likely to occur in Ideological or religious conflicts,