[Ed: The following article is republished from thegunwire.com with the author’s permission]
This is all the Grand Canyon State needs – more bad press – when things are going well for freedom-loving Arizonans. Here’s the story at eurweb.com: “The bullet riddled tee shirt of President Obama posted brazenly on Facebook by seven semi-automatic gun toting men among them a Peoria, Arizona police sergeant was much more than the by now standard non-stop litany of racist cartoons, depictions, web postings, and kooky loose talk threats against President Obama.”
Posting this on Facebook is pure stupidity. Posing for the pic wasn’t very bright (raising the eyebrow of Secret Service agents in Arizona, for openers), and the entire episode is in bad taste. Using the shirt for a target – well, I couldn’t care less. It could be a picture of anyone and I’d look at it the same. What if it were a picture of Sean Penn? Or George Bush? If it was George Bush, would the eurweb.com article even have been written?
It’s in bad taste to shoot at any target depicting any real, live human being, except obvious enemies like OBL or Saddam Hussein (when they were alive) or commercial targets with real people playing the role of the threat. Even then, is it really necessary? I mean, we’ve got plenty of cool zombie targets. And think about it: Obama/Zombie…Zombie/Obama… not much difference. Only one as a target is much less inflammatory and doesn’t flag you for law enforcement scrutiny.
The gun toting men and the police sergeant were taking target practice on the president’s likeness at an undisclosed desert locale. The gun toting men made a virtual public call for the gunning down of the president comes on Facebook.
That’s reading a little too much into it. They shot up a shirt. It’s a big leap to call that a “public call for the gunning down of the president.”
Again, if it were a picture of Sean Penn, would it be considered a “public call for the gunning down of a celebrity?” Doubt it. If it were George Bush? Hell, if it were Bush, I’m sure the left would give these guys merit badges. They would be invited to fancy dinners and given a big pat on the back.
There is nothing shadowy or conspiratorial about what police sergeant Pat Shearer and his gun packing friends in Peoria, Arizona did. It was brazen and very open. The clueless Shearer for his part saw nothing inappropriate, let alone, dangerous, about what he did. He chalked it up to much ado about nothing or as he put it he didn’t think that shooting up a t-shirt with President Obama’s face on it “was that big a deal.” It was more than a big deal. The target in their in gun sights, not a regular bull eye, a likeness of Howdy Dowdy, or a Cactus plant. It was President Obama. Federal prosecutors should see it as the “big deal” that it is and bring charges.
It would seem to me the LEO should have known better than to participate in such an affair, and looking at this situation, I can completely understand the outrage towards the LEO – but not the civilians. I can’t say what the outcome should be for the LEO – that’s not my call…but common sense would dictate he shouldn’t have been involved. For the other shooters, it should be a learning experience – nothing more.
Really, do any of these guys have any common sense? Or class?
Maybe they just really disagree with Shepherd Fairey’s artistic interpretation.
They’re using both their first and second amendment rights at the same time. Good for them.
It may be in bad taste, but that’s not illegal, even up here in Seattle.
As for photo targets, I usually use a portrait of Karl Marx.
Okay… I guess I’m a bad guy. Every year innumerable high schools and colleges, just prior to big football games host a bonfire. A NORMAL event is to toss an dummy dressed as the opposing team in the fire, burning them in effigy.
ef·fi·gy [ef-i-jee] noun, plural -gies.
1. a representation or image, especially sculptured, as on a monument.
2. a crude representation of someone disliked, used for purposes of ridicule.
I do not like certain people, the current president is one of them. Actually, it’s his policies, behaviors and attitudes I dislike but I digress. Is he, or any other public official, above being shot at or burned in effigy? Well, I’ll be damned! Why sir, would you deserve more protection than does Old Glory?
I don’t blame the Secret Service for investigating this but come on, the Rosie O’Donnell picture on my dart board is just as little a threat to her as these young kids are to the President.
Well, if you’re referring to the US flag, it’s an inanimate object that can’t be killed, whereas Obama or any other President is a flesh and blood person who can be. Now if you meant why should an effigy of a President deserve more protection, it shouldn’t. But shooting or burning an effigy of a President or other public official and then posting it to a public forum is going to get you investigated to determine if you’re an actual threat. That’s just as predictable as the sunrise. If you’re not comfortable with that kind of scrutiny, then choose a different form of protest.
Obama should be happy about this, he is for once making some citizens happy with this, instead of constantly doing things bad for them.