Time to Think

The Gun Myth #226

By Hank Silverberg

"The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun." That line came from NRA Chief Wayne LaPierre after the Sandy Hook shooting over a decade ago. It's been the right's mantra ever since any time gun control comes up.

It was used again in a slightly different form last week by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in response to the Uvalde shooting. He proposed arming and training teachers and administrators to respond to school shootings more quickly. He called it the best answer.

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2022/05/gop-school-uvalde-shooting-response-guys-with-guns.html

But time and time again, having "a good guy with a gun" has not worked in mass shooting incidents, even when the good guy is a trained police officer.

Aaron Salter, the security guard in the supermarket shooting in Buffalo, had a gun. But the retired police officer lost his life trying to stop the shooter because his handgun was no match for the body armor, tactical helmet and an assault rifle carried by the shooter.

And that has been the case in other mass shootings. The Journal of the American Medical Association

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2776515 took a look at

133 school shootings from 1980 to 2019. An armed guard was on location in about a quarter of them. Those schools actually had a higher death rate than the schools without armed guards--three times higher. RAND Corporation also found no evidence to indicate the presence of more guns had any effect on gun violence. And criminologists at Texas State University found in their study that unarmed staff or the shooters themselves, are far more likely to end a mass school shooting than someone with a gun returning fire.

(Should teachers be armed?)

Why? Well, the RAND analysis found that even a highly trained NYPD officer only hit their intended target about 19% of the time. And it becomes even less likely when the bad guy carries a semi-automatic weapon like the AR-15 used in the Uvalde shooting. They are much more accurate at a longer range than the typical gun carried by a police officer or a civilian who might have a concealed carry weapon. So, the GOP should stop this nonsense about arming teachers and start looking for a more effective approach.

There is some hope this week, though, that there may finally be some action on gun control. A bi-partisan group of senators announced on Sunday that they have an agreement on principal to pass some legislation. At least 10 Republicans have signed on bringing the total to 60, and that would avoid a filibuster which usually kills progress on anything.

No specifics were announced, but it is expected to include some provisions for better mental health resources, including the ability for states to adopt so-called "Red Flag" laws. Red Flag would allow a judge to take away guns from people adjudicated as mentally ill. There would also be some provisions to improve school safety, and there have been some reports that the agreement would also include broader background checks on those under 21 purchasing semi-automatic weapons. Here are some other provisions the group says are in the proposal.

Support for state crisis intervention
Investment in children and family mental health services
Protections for victims of domestic violence
Funding for school-based mental health and supportive services
Funding for school safety resources
Clarification of the definition of a federally licensed firearms dealer
Telehealth investments
Penalties for straw purchasing

https://news.yahoo.com/house-poised-pass-gun-bill-204508466.html?fr=yhssrp_catchall

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2022/06/12/bipartisan-senators-announce-gun-reform-deal/7602499001/

Let us hope so!

Toy Guns

Police departments across the country are warning parents and others about a toy gun called a "Gel Blaster." The guns shoot a non-toxic biodegradable gel ball that leaves no stains. They have become popular and easy to buy on-line.

(This is a gel blaster, toy gun. Looks
real until you get up close)

The trouble is, they look very much like real guns until you get up very close. It is difficult for everyone, including police, to tell the difference.

So obviously, there is worry that a law officer or an armed civilian might think they are being shot at and return fire with a real weapon. The toy guns are illegal in some places.

Police around the country have been responding to calls from members of the public who see the guns and worry they are real. There have been incidents of kids having gun battles with them in the streets of both big and small communities.

Pets and Guns

People are really starting to put their actions where their mouths are on this issue. The owner of a California animal shelter has added a question onto the application for people trying to adopt a pet.

The Hill reports that Kim Sill, the founder of Hope Pet Shop in Thousand Okas, California, will require all those interviewed who want to adopt a pet to explain their position on gun control. In her newsletter she writes, "we do not believe that the 2nd Amendment

gives them the right to buy assault weapons." And further she writes, "If your beliefs are not in line with ours, we will not adopt a pet to you."

Why so harsh?

Thousand Oaks is 40 miles from L-A. There was a mass shooting there in 2018 at the Borderline Bar and Grill, which is near the shelter. Sill writes that a 28-year-old Marine who killed 12 people at that Bar and Grill may have used his community service time at her shelter to scout them as a potential target.

Reaction? You guessed it. Some donors who have contributed to the shelter are now threatening to pull their money back because of the new policy.

Dumbest Quote of The Week!

As you might expect, it comes from a reaction to the first night of live broadcast of the January 6th insurrection hearings.

We've heard for months discussion, testimony and fact- based reporting about why it took so long for the National Guard to get to Capitol Hill that day, even though their armory is only 1.7 miles away.

Upon hearing this testimony again on the first night of the hearings, we heard this from none other than Gold-Medal liar Sean Hannity.

Hannity interpreted it this way:

"The one person who looks good is Donald Trump. Donald Trump authorized it."

Fact: The Guard was mobilized but not actually deployed until more than three hours after the initial requests were made, well after the violence was over. Testimony from multiple people involved in the decision say Trump rebuffed and resisted the idea of sending the Guard to the Capitol for several hours, and it was actually Vice President Pence who eventually approved the deployment.

I'm not surprised that Hannity lied because he does it all the time. But the record is clear, making his comment the dumbest quote of the week.

(Your comments and suggestions are welcome)

(My book "The Campaign" can be purchased at the links below. Or you can buy a copy by emailing me at:

HankSilverberg@gmail.com for instructions on how to get a copy at a reduced price and with my signature.)