The 1986 Plastic Gun Panic
Never let a manufactured crisis go to waste . . .
The leading promoter of the 1986 plastic gun panic was Handgun Control, Inc. In 2001, the group changed its name to the “Brady Campaign,” belatedly realizing that many Americans were skeptical about being controlled. So instead of saying “gun control,” the group now says “gun safety.” An officer of the anti-gun “Million Mom March,” which was later absorbed by the Brady group, explained: “Changing the name from Handgun Control to the Brady Campaign will have a positive effect, especially since this organization is a key player in the fight against the powerful gun lobby. The word ‘control’ suggested that gun safety advocates wanted control over gun rights activists by infringing on their Second Amendment right to bear arms. This couldn’t be farther from the truth.” Karie Stakem, Letter to the Editor, “Gun ‘Control’ Isn’t Our Aim—Just Gun Safety,” Virginian-Pilot & Ledger Star, June 29, 2001, at B10, available at 2001 WLNR 2096578.
The name may have changed, but the principles remain the same. In a 2016 amicus brief supporting the U.S. State Department’s prior restraint against the Defense Distributed company posting gun manufacturing files on the Internet, the Brady brief pointed out: “The UFA was passed in part in response to reports that then Libyan dictator Muammar Qaddafi was in the process of buying more than 100 plastic handguns that would be difficult for airport security to detect. Jack Anderson, Dale Van Atta, Qaddafi Buying Austrian Plastic Pistols, The Washington Post, Jan 15, 1986.” Brady Center amicus brief, Defense Distributed v. United States Department of State, 2016 WL 704978 (5th Cir. 2016).
Woman shot to death in Ferguson had order of protection, said ‘I don’t feel safe’
It’s almost as if those pieces of paper really don’t provide any protection at all . . .
The woman shot to death in a double homicide Saturday morning had gotten an order of protection in May against a man police have called a “person of interest” in her death.
The woman, Jeannie Nicole Miller, obtained the court order to keep Darrick Antione Barber away from her.
Miller and another man, Eric Johnson, 28, were killed Saturday by a gunman who forced his way into a home in the 7500 block of Halpin Drive.
Hawaiian Dad Hopes to Keep a Promise to His Late Daughter by Fighting State’s Gun Laws Up to SCOTUS
And he won the latest round. The ball is now in the state’s court . . .
During a conversation with his late daughter, Vietnam War veteran George Young explained the importance of the Second Amendment.
However, his daughter, Tim, was shocked to find out that her father could not carry a handgun in the state of Hawaii.
“I made the promise that they cannot take your Second Amendment away,” Young said in an interview with Reuters. “So to prove it to her, that’s when I started.”
After his daughter died in a car crash in 2004, Young decided to keep his promise and began a journey to fight the state’s gun laws that may end at the Supreme Court.
Gun Control Proposal Hopes to Make Gun Stores, Ranges Display THIS Outside Their Businesses
That should put a big dent in Seattle’s crime problem . . .
The Chair of the Kings County Council in Washington state has a gun control proposal he’s pushing for. The proposal takes a three-pronged approach to dealing with “gun violence” in the area but one of the proposals is new.
Joe McDermott (D), the Council Chair, wants to make it mandatory for gun stores and ranges to have safety warning signs outside of their facilities. He detailed his vision in an OpEd in the Seattle Times:
First, I propose that public safety warning signs be posted at any place of firearm sale or discharge in King County, which will articulate the very real and significant risks to health and life inherent with firearm ownership. These signs will also provide immediate contact information for suicide-prevention and mental-health resources for individuals who might be in crisis. Once passed by the Board of Health, signs will be placed at the entrances and purchase counters of every shooting range and store selling guns in King County.
Father of alleged Adelaide school stabber has 11 guns, prosecutor says
Apparently the guns were sufficiently locked away that she used a knife in her attack. And why is bail an option anyway? . . .
An Adelaide court has heard a teenage girl accused of carrying out a school stabbing last week could pose a risk to the public if released on bail, saying her father owned 11 registered firearms.
The Adelaide Youth Court heard the girl had been subjected to threats and bullying during her time in custody.
The 14-year-old — who is seeking release — will be psychiatrically assessed before the magistrate makes a decision.
She is accused of stabbing a 17-year-old student in the back on August 1, inside a bathroom of the North Adelaide school.
