I had it in my hand: a video of the gun control debate between myself and Dr. Arthur Romano [not shown] at Penn State. And then Dr. Romano was all like “I get to see it first and decide if it’s suitable for release.” Chump that I am, I gave the memory card back to the organizer who promised he’d send it to the booking agency. That was the end of that. It was also the end of our rematch at the Richard G. Lugar Academy; the international peace educator and certified nonviolence trainer decided he had better ways to spend his time than answering questions like “Would you want a gun if someone walked through the door and started shooting people?” So Conscious Campus has put me up against this guy . . .
My name is Juan Pacheco. I am a passionate advocate of nonviolence currently helping youth across the nation to find alternatives to the violence that affects their lives and their communities. Years back I was one of these youth, caught in the devastation that violence brings anyone or anything touched by its clutches. I was involved in youth violence that took away many things from me, including a scholarship, my freedom, and my best friend’s life. I joined because my community failed me in many ways and made me feel like a worthless outcast. As an immigrant to the USA, I faced the struggles of shaming poverty, community violence, racism, discrimination, bullying, inability to fit into the culture and community; the list goes on and on. I felt unwanted. I joined a gang because my community and environment did not allow me to “belong”.
That’s a profile from thepeacealliance.org. And here’s Juan’s description of his Conscious Campus lecture From Gang Member to Pediatrician … What Does it Take??
Mr. Pacheco’s motivation comes from his own life experience. As a youth he was involved in a gang which took many things away from him. His best friend’s life was taken away by gang violence. He had a full time scholarship from the Early Identification Program in George Mason University that was also taken away. He spent some time in jail in which his human right of freedom was stripped away due to his actions. But this is where his motivation comes from! Mr. Pacheco changed his life around. Now he is at George Mason University attaining his Pre-Med degree. He wants to become a pediatrician in the future. Mr. Pacheco believes that dreams are worth fighting for and he has. His strategies for successful community and youth work come out of his own experiences as a gang member, and now as someone who is working to help other young people turn their lives around.
So, big change then. Dr. Romano was an egghead; his misleading, stat-heavy Powerpoint presentation will be putting college kids to sleep for decades to come. Common sense questions about self-defense—put to both him personally and the audience—showed the folly of his desire to turn the world into a gun-free zone. To paraphrase Meredith Wilson, there were fish, in the barrel, and I almost heard them screaming . . .
Pacheco is about as far away from an academic as you can get. And yet he craves the unquestioned authority that a Ph.D would provide. Combine that with the fact that Pacheco blames his criminal past on community rejection and I reckon the guy has a chip on his shoulder the size of Arkansas. Given that our warm-up encounter will take place in New Jersey (Princeton on November 4th), I wouldn’t want to risk knocking it off in public, if you know what I mean.
Then again, your comments below have forced a rethink. Let’s got with this:
Which gang did you belong to? What did you do for them? Did you carry a gun? Why? Was there a gang initiation? Did it involve hurting innocent people? How should they have defended themselves from you? And now you’re telling us that we don’t need a gun for protection against people like the gang members you ran with? Like that.
I can’t find any info on Mr. Pecheco’s stand on guns but his only out from that line of attack is that legal guns flow to criminals so . . . ban or restrict legal guns. Meanwhile, I’m wondering about style. I was hipper than Romano by a long chalk. Pacheco’s street. So, am I the good cop or the bad cop? Suggestions on a postcard, below. And this time I will have a video to show for it.
I missed the October shoot, but I made the April show. My favorite gun is the WWI BAR. The Browning Automatic Rifle. Full auto .30-06.
It’s death on a stick.
I wonder what the burn permit says on it… Reason… “to blow @#%$ Up!”
Also, there are some materials available that show convicted criminals argue for gun control, because if guns are available for the law abiding citizen, their profession becomes more risky.
I find it highly amusing that the former gangbanger will happily endorse the viewpoint that helps the current gangbanger…
“My name is Juan Pacheco. I am a passionate advocate of nonviolence currently helping youth across the nation to find alternatives to the violence that affects their lives and their communities.”
Maybe I’m missing something here, but I read the post twice and I can’t see anything definitive where Mr. Pacheco is advocating civilian disarmament or gun control. Non Violent gangs do not seem like such a bad thing. Convincing kids, whatever their ethnicity or immigration status, that they can/should do something other than run around being gangsters and randomly shooting people, is a nice idea, if it could be done, which I doubt.
Do we have any more specific information on this person’s stand on guns?
Nope.
I’m from Washington state and when I visited Austin on a few occasions, I didn’t find it so gun friendly at all. The open carry thing for one, but also the obnoxiously large legal signs at venues that won’t allow you to carry inside…. “Booh, now feel bad about exercising your rights!”, that’s the idea I get.
On the other hand, WA has banned machine guns fully, which is one issue. On the other hand, to get a CPL, there’s no training requirement.
BAH. They should hold it the DAY BEFORE the bloody shirt-waving sobfest.
That man has a rather shiny head.
Ask him how personal responsibility factors into gang crime and just how gun laws for us makes thugs responsible.
Sorry to say it,but this is an L shaped ambush.
This guys a minority playing the victim card.IE, he caved to social pressure in the hood and paid the price.Now that he’s on the other side of the coin, he’s blaming society and the external access of firearms for his poor choice as a youth.
Unfortunately, as a Jewish white guy you have lesser cultural credibility then Michael Bloomberg lecturing at an inner city conference on poverty.It’s a setup, because the moment you start making sense the racial/cultural ad hominems will flow like a river of denial.You’re just a spoiled white guy with no idea about life in the hood or being a disadvantaged minority, so he’s right and your “racist” gun happy self is wrong.Someone like Colio Noir can make pro gun points without being subjected to such racially motivated nonsense, but you wouldn’t be so fortunate.
As an aside, it disgusts me as a biracial black man to see people of my heritage dodging responsibility for their actions.The “it’s not my fault, it’s the worlds ” mindset is why we have gang problems to start with, and dragging that mindset into academia shames us all who ,instead of cliquing up with the gangsters for street cred and social favor, actually took our lumps, “uncle tom” jokes and all, and made something of ourselves in this society.
Dirty secret of the Black Community:people who want to earn their way to a better life are marginalized as “not real” or “selling out”, while gang life and criminal behavior is championed as “sticking it to the White Man”.Big surprise we have a gang violence problem when crime is socially condoned in the inner city, and honors math is condemned as being “uppity”.
Holy shooting stuff! That looks like a blast! ! No pun intended. ..
I have no advice, just wanted to wish you the best of luck (preparedness!) I avoid these kinds of confrontational situations as I tend to get angry at repeated stupidity thrown at me.
The life of violent crime is not only fair game, but necessary to address. How should people protect themselves against people like him? I can’t imagine a response that could be reconciled with disarmament.
Ya shoulda downloaded it before giving it up! Can’t be that difficult–burned onto a CD even.
I think the tyranny angle will only make you look like an angry white guy, but the self-defense line of argument can be shifted to a discussion about the innocents, or the weak who do not have a gang to join for protection. Take it out of the ghetto and talk about the basic right to self-defense, which includes dads like you and single moms in rural America whose violent ex husbands ignore their restraining order and go after the women who left them. You can’t pretend to be from the hood, but say gun ownership, at least lawful ownership, imbibes society with a sense of ownership, responsibility, and community. Then harken back to the original notions of a community “militia” and you’ll have everyone hungry for apple pie and fireworks by the debate’s close. Keep the debate on your turf, and on your terms. Acknowledge the work he’s doing with youth to keep illegal guns out of the hands of gang members. Good luck!
That is the ugliest POS ever to be called a firearm. And, it doesn’t work to boot. FAIL
Well it really shows the science behind the silencer to me at least. Thank you for this, now I understand what people are talking about.
“When do you think about going out there and giving a gang member a hug?”
When I want to end up a statistic. What a freaking crap statement by a former banger. When he was in his gang he would have assaulted any one who approached their “territory”. What a load of sh!t!
Wipe this POS up with his own do-rag, RF
As stated earlier, he didn’t mention anything about anti-gun laws in this particular video and I agree with his views that he expressed on decreasing gang activity.
I own a BSA sweet 22 6-18x scope for my savage mkii fv-sr 22lr and I have to say it is probably the best .22lr scope I have ever seen, or used. Bullet drop compensated for 3 common grains of 22 lr ammo, side parallax adjustment, crystal clear, and just a wonderful scope to shoot with. Easy to move from 200 yards to 20 yards with just a few well marked turret turns. It only costs about 130 bucks also. If you want a serious 22 scope go with the sweet 22 IMHO
My Remington 870 works first time, every time, with every load out there. If I need more than six I’m breaking out the AR for lots of little holes or the Garand for long range fun. I wouldn’t pay $1200 – hey I wouldn’t go $2.00 – for a defense weapon that isn’t reliable. And its ugly too!
Dang your right!!!
Well that seems kinda odd doesn’t it, or not…
Well, they are changing the name to Mom’s Demand Action at Gunpoint. After all, you can get more with a kind word and a gun than you can with a kind word alone.
Maybe because most of us were indoctrinated into the gun culture by a father, uncle, or father of a friend who when the topic of gun safety came up was capable of being really, really scary. I remember asking my best friend – whose father was a cop – when we were maybe 10, why he never touched his dad’s service revolver (this was long ago) and he answered, “because if I did he would kick me to death.”
I believed him, even more so when that scary father of my friend introduced me – with my parent’s agreement – into the gun culture.
Did anyone else record the debate?
No sir. No one would have recorded it if I hadn’t insisted.
This country is where it is because people have failed to be direct in their questioning and answering. That and a failure to hold people accountable for the sake of political correctness. Its always society…never the person. No personal responsibility for their actions.
Dude was a thug, and him and his crew probably jacked up a whole bunch of lives. You dont get a pass on that…period. You rip his heart out and you show it to him…
Society didnt fail this knuckle head, it kept him from swirling the bowl and is more than likely paying for his college. His parent(s) failed him. I wonder how many baby momma’s he has…and how much of a father figure he is in their lives. Apples dont fall far from trees.
Should be called Mom’s Demand Baby Bottles.
meh. California resident. Nothing for me to get excited about.
Glock. I prefer a high end 1911 any day but the Glock is cheaper to replace when confiscated. My Glocks go bang every time anyway
I think we need opinions on this from Sarah Palin and Gabby Giffords. One was targeting Congressional seats with bullseyes, and the other’s shooting was blamed on that. Maybe we can blame the weekend toll in Shitcago on MDA’s ad.
Don’t forget to bring the civil rights issue into the discussion. Nobody should be denied their right to vote, speak freely or own a gun. You’re more eloquent than I, pad it out a little.
“BATFE seems to ignore or misunderstand that many NFA firearm owners choose to use trusts to hold their NFA firearms and other property for estate planning reasons, one of which is to simplify the transfer of the firearms to the heirs of the owner.”
No, they understand perfectly well, and want everyone to have to relinquish their NFA items instead of passing them on to heirs.
Nice baffle strike on that one on the far-right of the last photo. Ouch. It’s not clear what happened there, but it sure as heck wasn’t originally made that way.
First, a 10 day suspension for speeding during a chase doesn’t seem unreasonable. Second, there is still a grand jury investigating the actions of the cops involved in the shooting. So it isn’t like anyone got off with a slap on the wrist (yet). This article seems a bit alarmist to me.
BTW – where are Jackson and Sharpton?
sorry, I saw “gang banger” and all I thought was, gee, I wonder what shannon watts is doing right now.
LMAO!
Yes. At any given service, staff estimates that there are ~40+ concealed carry weapons present in our non-denominational East TN church of ~5000 weekly attendance (along with an occasional OC weapon). There are also a number of church funded SD deputies (working overtime) on the property via agreement with SD. The half-life of a brandishing criminal would be miniscule.
.
“Take a whiff of the sea of liberty you find yourself in”
Yup.
“You carry a gun to church?”
I carry everywhere I can legally do so. Why would church be any different?
And if you are writing a letter to the ATF about this, don’t forget they are also still taking comments for the other EO for not allowing importation of surplus firearms as well. (just remind them that even Diane Feinstein made a special exemption for them in her last AWB bill).
Robert, it’s not failiophotography, it’s faliaphotography. And while 3 million views is pretty respectable, I’m sure I’m not the only man who’s watched a few of her videos more than once. Of course I’ve watched some Nutnfancy videos more than once too…
I love goin to knob creek the October shoot is usually cooler and less humid than the April shoot.
Just for Piers I’m going to repost my recipe for Lampooned Tyrant.
Recipe: Lampooned Tyrant.
Ingredients:
1 tyrant . 3 parts pine pitch. 1 part turpentine. 1 lbs of feathers, preferably white and downy from the undercoat. 1 split fence rail. Several lengths of bailing wire. 4 stout porters. A large crowd of indeterminate size, a town line and a strong alcoholic punch may be added to taste.
Combine the pitch and turpentine in a suitable kettle or cauldron over low heat and stir until the whole attains a consistency that will coat a paddle or spoon but also pour freely.
While the mixture combines prepare the tyrant by stripping and binding it. It may be helpful if the tyrant is bound to a tree or post before the next step.
Once the proper consistency is attained the mixture may be poured or brushed over the tyrant. Apply it so as to liberally coat all surfaces or the feathers will not stick properly. Once the tyrant is evenly coated with the pitch mixture the feathers may be shaken or thrown over the tyrant, or else the tyrant may be rolled in a bed of feathers spread on the ground. If using this latter method, be sure to spread the feathers over an old bed sheet or tarp so that dirt is not trapped in the pitch.
When your tyrant is coated in enough feathers that the majority of the pitch is covered you’re ready to bind the tyrant to the fence rail. Traditional presentation demands seating the tyrant upright on the rail, with the legs and wrists so bound as to keep the tyrant upright as if riding. If you’re in a hurry or hosting a less formal gathering it’s perfectly acceptable to bind the tyrant beneath the rail so that when carried they depend from the rail by wrists and ankles.
Your tyrant is now ready to be run out. Typically the tyrant is dashed with all haste to the nearest city, county or other jurisdictional line, often then being ceremonially thrown over it, but if you’ve prepared a holiday tyrant you may wish to parade it through the nearest population center. Patriotic songs or slogans may be sung while the tyrant is run out, and usually punch made with liquor is served along the route.
Alternately a tyrant may be hung from a tree after having been run out, either by the ankles so that they may be viewed by passersby who were unable to attend the running out, or by the neck in the event that the lampooned tyrant is of the most egregious variety.
As with all recipes, the type of tyrant you have and locally available ingredients will influence how you prepare and run out your tyrant. It’s perfectly acceptable to alter the ingredients list or method of preparation to suit availability or local tastes.
150 Days? In rural upstate NY it took my permit 300 or so days to be issued. This does not count the month or so it took me to complete the application which included 4 notarized character references, a 4 hour free course (thanks to my county’s federated sportsman’s clubs), and $100 dollars to a bogus private fingerprinting service located in a closet (even though due to non firearms certifications mine were already digitally on file with the state police).
Once my app was in, it was a 7 plus month wait for a personal interview with a judge to explain ‘proper cause’ for a concealed permit and then another 2 months for the license to be created by the sheriff, sent to the judge to sign, and mailed to me.
All this, and now our formally lifetime permits must be renewed every 5 years under the (un)SAFE act in a process they haven’t disclosed yet.
All in all, once a commander sized 1911 finally found a home on my hip I felt like I won the lottery.
This guy derives his authority on the gun control topic from his life (i.e. anecdotal) experiences. You should have a few anecdotes up your sleeve where every day people, especially minorities and women, defended themselves from gang bangers and thugs. Try to anticipate the topics he will bring up and use counter examples where guns were not used or guns were used to defend the innocent.
PS: Sorry but anyone over 16 yrs old that still uses the word “Dude”…I’d bet still lives in his moms basement ! (Mike)
The Argentine elephant in the room? Bersa Thunder .380
Love mine. Probably the most accurate pistol i own. DA/SA with a decocker. I got the nickel plated one. Costs less than half what the mustang costs. i’d trust my life to it.
… Also, i’d much rather carry a full-size pistol. I’m with you fellas – little pistols are better than no pistol, but i’d rather have something with a bunch of rounds, preferably bigger ones.
At least Joe did not shoot someone in the face like Cheney or allow non-biding contracts to his former employees.