When it comes to reason and logic, gun control advocates ain’t got game. For example, the anti-gun lobby’s rationale for restricting ammunition magazine capacity—madmen will pause to reload—singularly ignores the easy availability of “high capacity” magazines for criminals, the ease with which spree killers swap magazines (e.g. Virginia Tech) and the benefits of maximum magazine capacity for armed defenders. Yes, there is that. People who wish to defend themselves with whatever firearms they choose are America’s new “silent majority.” Only we’re not so silent these days. Yes but—gun rights advocates’ testimony doesn’t have anywhere near the oomph of the ballistically bereaved. Is it wrong to hope that there’s a point after which the misguided lobbying of the bloody shirt brigade loses its ability to influence the public? Are we reaching that point?

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56 COMMENTS

  1. The Newtown parents and relatives will soon fade into the background. The news cameras have already begun to shift their focus to the victims of the Boston Marathon bombing. Let’s face it, watching double amputees overcome their adversity is much more compelling and uplifting than watching a parent mourn over the loss of their young child. Sure, the Newtown parents will still be out there, but if a tree falls in a forest with no one there, does it still make a sound?

    • Let the grabbers keep pushing them out to the front of the podium or behind the President when he makes his shame on us speaches. The redundancy is making them less potent with each appearance.

      BTW, you notice that not all of the victims are adamant gun control grabbers, and at least one victim’s father clearly stated that he didn’t support the grabbers solutions because they were not helpful and only punnished law abiding citizens. Others have said nothing, refusing to be exploited by the grabber crowd.

      Could it be that most of these outspoken victims were ALWAYS gun control/confiscation proponents and their personal tragedies have propelled them (with abundant help and encouragement from Democrats and other grabbers) to mount an effort to influence support for gun ontrol as a way of closure?

      That’s my take on it.

    • Don’t underestimate the staying power of this event. Newtown is different for a few reasons. The scale of the victims is the obvious first reason. Where this happened was very important as well.

      This happened in one of the largest media markets in the world. Many of the producers, broadcasters, anchors and reporters live in similar towns in CT and are less than an hours drive from where this happened. The impact is more tangible this time to the media.

      The families in Newtown are also better equipped to deliver their message as lobbyists than others victims’ families have been. They are generally highly educated, reasonably well off and worked in the New York metro area. They are more comfortable with the media and are in relative close proximity to DC and NYC.

      It is clear the Brady is directing their actions though now. It makes me a bit more sad for them. I hope they can find peace with what happened. I think that becomes more difficult when it becomes dependent on winning battles for Brady.

  2. Good question. And the answer is yes and no. The CT families view themselves as a powerful force to be reckoned with that no politician can turn down a meeting with; but, one with national aspirations just did. Chris Christie’s staff met with the families and I think this signals that the steam is coming off the bloody shirt locomotive. Hey, I’m a parent and I feel terrible for them. Moreover, I’m not sure that I would act differently if I were in their shoes but is it just me or is their “professional victim” status becoming a bit unseemly? I mean flying from state to state to lobby lawmakers; really??

    The no part of the answer is that to the true believers out there will never get enough of this, it is the ultimate kool aid to them and they will keep drinking and drinking no matter how many new laws are passed. Hell, if they could wear the bloody shirt they would.

    • They came down to NJ for our recent hearings. On a personal note, they have my sympathy. On a political note, they can F off and go back to their own hell-hole of a state.

      • They lost my sympathy when they started using the coffins of their kids as soap boxes. They are sum. Pure and simple.

        • i think they’ve pushed too far. i stomach the pain and watch MSNBC just so i can what they’re thinking. my impression. the lady that talked so much smack to the senator from New Hampshire(i believe) crossed the line from being a sympathetic figure to one that appears to be using tragic circumstances to push her ideas on the general public. i could be wrong but that’s my impression

    • Paul all good points AAA+++. Thanks.

      I too would be thoroughly beside myself with grief, outraged and wanting to seek revenge if it had been one of my kids that were killed. But knowing what I do, the outrage would ALSO be directed at the forces who can clearly foresee that these kinds of tragedies will occur yet develop no EFFECTIVE strategy to deal with them other than creating false sense of security “gun free” zones and keeping law abiding citizens disarmed thus enabling sociopaths to succeed in pulling off these tragedies.

  3. Yeah. But, what else are they going to do? They won’t give up, and appealing to emotion is the best (only) game they’ve got. They’ll just keep going until they wear down resistance. If resistance fails to wears down, they’ll just keep praying for another tragedy. Sick isn’t it?

    • Bach. Exactly. Wait until the next maniac goes crazy. “See, we told you”!!!
      This is America where in New York, you can go to jail for 10 years for having one round more in your magazine than the law stipulates but only get 5 years for murder. Go figure.

  4. I think it’s reached the point where they can go no further. The country has moved on to other interests whether it be the Boston incident, the North Koreans or Nicky Minaj. Every time they trot out another mourning parent they are just looking more desperate in their attempts to sway opinion and that turns people off.

  5. Is it wrong to hope that there’s a point after which the misguided lobbying of the bloody shirt brigade loses its ability to influence the public? Are we reaching that point?

    I have.

  6. Yeah, we’re getting there. The trouble is, there’s no shortage of stupid people who want to hurt other people, so there will be no shortage of victims for these vultures to soak up for their cause. The best way to fight that, figuratively, literally, and in the court of public opinion? Stay tooled up and ready to fight. The next time a would-be spree shooter meets his end, let’s makes sure it’s from an armed citizen.

    • The problem with that is we already know where the next one will be. A gun free zone, most likely in a slave state.

  7. It seems to me that most Americans are a bit spent when it comes to having their heartstrings tucked. The 1990s were all about these bullshit emotional appeals, but after 9/11 and all the ensuing bullshit that entailed, I think we’ve collectively had enough.

    We’re tired of seeing crises not going to waste because it is so hollow and hypocritical and reminiscent of the attitude which has costed our nation so much. The same tactics they’re using post-Sandy Hook were used to get us into a decades long war in Iraq and Afghanistan, to pass the Patriot Act, and other bullcrap… and for what? What the hell did we get out of all that?

    • Iraq, which was by the standards of that region actually not too bad at all, now has nearly daily car bombing.

      I’m not saying that they were great, mind you.

      Yeah, Big H’s kids got away with a lot of crap, but no more than small town football players do. Their secret police weren’t nearly so onerous as the Saudi religious police or those of Iran.

      Yeah, he used gas – which we sold to him because he was at war with Iran and we hate Iran.

      However, they were better – and better off – than now.

      That’s Progress, isn’t it? Our world is better for our fu<king up Iraq, and therefor we're better off, right? W, "God in the White House" said so, after all.

      Yeah, right. We of Kansas don't want their misguided, insidious and ugly "help."

      • The Great Black Hope, he of the Nobel Peace Prize, hasn’t been much of an improvement. They claim civilian casualties are down, but that’s mainly the effect of changing the definition of “militant” to “a male of military age”. That means anyone who looks like he might potentially need a shave is a militant and therefore a legitimate target.

      • I can make the same argument for South Korea after the Korean War. SK was little better to NK in some ways, and was also ran by a strongman dictatorship. But we supported them regardless, and less than fifty years later is an economic powerhouse with a fully functional democratic-republic system. Would not have happened if we had let SK rot to the North’s takeover. Yet North Korea is still the same despotic cesspool it was when it launched the invasion in the first place. Point is, it’s very hard to make an accurate assessment on a country immediately after major conflict is over, Iraq being one of them. Whether or not it was worth the blood, treasure and sweat is another question.

  8. The Sandy Hook Families Tour of 2013.
    Who’s paying their expenses?
    Their previous lives are on hold?
    Do these people have jobs?
    Who’s paying their mortgages?
    Who’s taking care of their other children?

    • I’m certain they’re receiving funds from organizations like this:

      http://newtownmemorialfund.org

      Several millions of dollars have been raised to help those affected by the Sandy Hook tragedy. With all due respect, these families basically needed enough money to pay for a funeral and time off from work for emotional distress (though I’m sure some are on long-term disability). After that, the funds should be used to establish scholarship funds in the victims names, playgrounds, donations to schools, etc. Unfortunately, it looks like some of these funds are being used to pay for their whirlwind nationwide lobbying tour. As we know, however, there’s no shortage of large donors who would happily pay their way (*cough* Bloomberg *cough*).

  9. abortion protestors have been picketing with dead baby pictures for decades.

    If they could not convince 60 senators to vote for puppies background checks, i think their influence is limited. This is not the most important issue in the country right now. Theyare starting to look out of touch.

  11. “low information citizens” aside, this sort of thing was doomed, psychologically, from the start because the average, good hearted, normally adjusted, American citizen can only take so much “this horrible thing happened and YOU should personally feel partially responsible and do something about it”.

    We can only take so much because, sympathy or not, WE DIDN’T DO ANYTHING WRONG and trying to guilt us into feeling like we did will only work for a brief period.

  12. Oh, I have been done with them for some time. As bad is this may sound, please take your millions in distribution from the fund and go away. Stop trying to take my rights away because you feel bad. How about you go work the real problems of violence that has nothing to do with guns.

    They are now professional victims and they will soak this for all it is worth while being played the pawns by anti-gun special interest groups. We will be sure to see some books, a movie or two, paid speaking engagements, an appearance at the DNC, at least one Barbra Walters 20/20 interview, a few more walks, a few more bike rides maybe even a bake sale and then, then there will be the anniversary specials– the media will be all over this for a week before Xmas. The emotions of the season plus the emotions of the event….whoohoo…that will make some great TV alright. The ratings watchers are already cooking up something special I am sure.

    Round 2 will begin as soon as the state police report is released in June/July. They will be stars again for another 30 days with interviews etc. Facts will be ignored, logic and reason will be thrown away but the emotions…oh those emotions…that is what will matter. We can solve anything as long as someone can cry for us on TV.

    But, and this is a big but, nobody will take the time to say, that ABSOLUTELY nothing they are asking to do would have stopped what happened and there is this FALLACY that whatever they will do will stop another Newtown. Just like the fallacy we can stop another Boston.

    Please go away and live your lives without disrupting mine. We are all sorry, but enough is enough. Stop being political tools and pawns.

  13. Maybe if congress could at least close the loophole on background checks, these public displays might end.

    Just saying….

    • Shut the F up. They don’t want to “just” close the “loophole” they want it all, we give a single millimeter and its a goddamned uphill battle to stop a fricking avalanche. How would background checks save one life in a nation with hundreds of millions of unregistered gun? Even if 80% were registered or disappeared, that leave MILLIONs to continue to circulate for decades to centuries. Pansy Fudd, what the hell are you thinking son?

      • Background checks aren’t a “loophole”, they’re a means to registration. Lanza didn’t use the background check loophole, used the “murder your mother” loophole.

        In fact, none of the high profile killers that inspire all this activity would have affected, and criminals as a whole would barely notice. But it would be stealth registration, and prep for confiscation if they wanted to make that move.

  14. Bloody Shirt Waving occurs because, sadly, it works on many people. Until it doesn’t, it won’t stop.

  15. I’d volunteer two days a month at a school, park or mall. There are likely others who would as well.

    There are enough of “us” to make a big dent in spree killing, if only “they” would call out the Militia instead of attempting to eradicate it.

    Just sayin’.

    • Big dent? Statistically, spree killing deaths are already virtually zero. More people die from choking on their dinner than spree killers.

  16. When “Bloody Shirt Waving” is all you got…well the rest is obvious.

    Me, I’m done with it…not because it’s maudlin emotionalism, but because it’s misdirection, deceit and a total waste of time. Wave the “bloody shirt” and hide/ignore the real problems, let them continue to fester and produce the same diseased results, but don’t do anything but wrap them in the infected bloody shirt and let them get worse. We’re in a world of crackpot politics where only snake oil is offered instead of actual, workable, effective solutions.

  17. Bloomberg has been paying to bus a couple of these people to Ayotte town hall meetings the past week. They make a ruckous, ask some inane and loaded question like “why do you want criminals and crazy people to have guns?” then leave to get to the next meeting location for photo ops.

    It’s beyond ridiculous.

  18. The local news in Connecticut is doing a series on the Sandy Hook first responders and the emotional toll it took on them. Many are still out of work due to PTSD. That being said, I wonder how many of those LEO’s who are on leave have had their firearm taken away? After all, it’s only “common sense” to disarm those suffering from mentally illness.

  19. The argument about how easy it is to just swap mags just leads to laws like the one proposed in California banning removable mag rifles.

  20. People don’t know how to think for themselves, RF. They are far to susceptible to what they are told to think by the CNN, MSNBC, and even Fox News. The ability to think for one’s self and to do so critically is a lost lesson that the previous generation has chosen not to pass on to this generation. So long as the media waves the bloody shirt, people will be outraged because the anchor on the screen is outraged.

  21. They lost my sympathy the moment they tried to use their loss to disarm people. And like Cindy Shehan, when she’s no longer politically useful to the progressives, they will drop them and you’ll never see their faces on the news again.

  22. The gun control crowd doesn’t have friends, it has fuel. They’ll take these people and get every BTU out of them they can to push their engine forward.

    They don’t care about these people. They just want them to relive their horrors over and over again for the cameras. It sounds like a psychological torture technique. But if it can save just one life?

  23. The mass media, gun-grabbing advocates, and politicians keep waving the bloody shirts and increasing numbers of new and previous gun owners keep buying more guns.

    There are other national issues to address in poor and declining health care, schools producing idiots, infrastructure collapsing, illegal immigration, environmental pollution, economic decline, the people’s liberties being stolen by new laws, debt, homelessness, more people falling through society’s glass floor into poverty and prison, etc. The obsession by the gun-grabbers are distracting Americans from addressing other problems.

    Once again, I think the politicians are failing to read the pulse of the American people.

  24. POTUS is exploiting Newtown not merely to drive his failed gungrabbing scheme, but also to energize his failing administration. The Newtown parents are his proxies, and he needs them since the nation’s Obama Fatigue is very evident. The problem he is facing is that Newtown Fatigue is even more pronounced than Obama fatigue, and that’s saying something.

    The wall of propaganda noise from Obama’s media accomplices is already falling on deaf ears. America is tuning out the overload. That’s what happens when a political snake overplays his hand.

  25. The Democratic Senator that spoke last said “…they were doing something meaningful in the state with the second toughest gun laws in the country.” If all those other gun laws were working so well, why did they need to add this one?
    And meaningful? Pullll-eeeze. Criminals won’t obey the magazine limit law!

  26. The answer can be found in the example of Cindy Sheehan.

    The press put her into our faces for years… until she was no longer useful, and then she was dropped like a hot rock.

    This is an agenda of the press, people. The political hacks are just trying to find a way to keep their faces on TV, and this is where the cameras are pointing just now.

  28. The media will never stop. Why? Don’t know. Where do they get their $ for there programs? Don’t know. Nobody watches show like Piers Morgan, yet he remains.

  29. Some nut went to a school
    teachers and kids got killed
    I didn’t squeeze the trigger
    why you push on ME the guilt?

    Another loon killed in a theater
    on a sad and dark night
    Why because of this occurrence
    do you wish to take MY rights?

    Peaceful gun owners
    who commit no crime
    should not be the ones
    forced to serve the time

    So while you may wish
    to take a stage to moan
    I beg you please
    to leave MY rights alone.

    Andres ‘Pantera’ Vazquez 2013

  30. One reason the A.W.B. failed so bad was 1st the world supply of already made magazines was high , and second a few USA changes would allow most firearms, and as always the bad guys never obey the laws , (the black market) met supply and demand, China got banned for supplying Full-auto Ak’s to USA Drug gangs etc…

  31. Hey, we killed the million mom march by laughing them right off the media, we’ll get to these other pricks, Randy

  32. Although I had utmost empathy and sympathy for the victims of Newtown when it happened, I now find myself sliding into the opposite side. I’m becoming more and more irritated at their use of their children to emotionally blackmail the rest of us into agreeing with them.

    I found it interesting in the new Star Trek movie that a commander of a starship had to step down from his or her command when it could be shown they were emotionally compromised. Intense, emotional shocks can impair judgment and clear thinking. Yet, these family members who have lost loved ones would have us limit a clearly worded Constitutional right, deem illegal a practice that has saved probably millions of lives (concealed carry in general, now absolutely illegal at schools), and vilify a tool that could be used to protect our children as well as hurt them, all based on grief and hurt and emotional pain. Talk about emotionally compromised! I for one am showing those who use Newtown as the basis for their argument no sympathy; they’ve had our attention for too long.

  33. These events are starting to come regularly, at least frequently enough to keep it in the news. When Boston fades we might see another one. And then another. The problem is obviously we have to win each battle, they only need to win one. Once the bans are in place that’s it. They won’t have sunset provisions and will use general language designed to snare everything.

    Shoot what you want while you still can.

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