I've been having a great time watching the historic Inauguration, or Inaugurabama, ceremonies. The media, everyone involved, seems to be enjoying the moment, particularly the parade and now "the walk." The respect they have all shown the President, and their excitement at being a part of history, is evident.
But Don Lemon, once the bad boy of Chicago media, has dsiplayed some incredible arrogance.
Standing with a couple of members of the Pennsylvania National Guard and doing his live shot, he actually had the temerity and rudeness to ask, on camera, the Guardsmen to, "Hold my hat and gloves, will you?"
C'mon, Don. You're a tiny twig in the media maelstrom surrounding the Presidential Inauguration, and about as far down the ladder as anyone could be from members of the armed services who volunteered to help provide security.
What were you thinking, you arrogant ass?
Monday, January 21, 2013
Thursday, January 17, 2013
What's Innit for Us?
Chicago politicians, particularly the Rahmster, should be vibrating with rage.
Anytime Washington passes anything the pols of the Windy City are sure to ask, "What's innit for us?"
But not a single one of President Obama's executive orders on gun control does a damn thing to help control Chicago's murder rate.
To be sure, there's plenty of paper shuffling ahead for the federal bureaucrats and even a bit to pass along to the mental health and medical communities. There are opportunities for industrial filmmakers, too. What do you think, "Launch a national safe and responsible gun ownership campaign." actually means? It's gonna be a video and a few posters.
Where's the executive order on creating, at federal expense, a federal/state/city/county gun task force pilot project to combat gun violence in Chicago? An effort that would bring together all levels of law enforcement from BATFE, to Homeland Security, to U.S. Marshals, to city and Cook County officers, to cops from the collar suburbs where straw man gun purchases are often made? A street tough gun squad, call them the New Untouchables if you like, backed by federal prosecutors flexing the muscle of federal laws to lock up the more serious gun offenders and federal judges to make certain they can't I-bond their way to freedom. Where's that Executive Order?
Where's the order that says pull in federal resources from outside the state as needed to provide even heavier manpower for such a task force? Put those new faces undercover in targeted areas to locate the sources of illegal weapons and organize heavy felony gun buys.
The President may talk the talk, and shed a crocodile tear about Newtown, but as far as kids and other innocents getting shot on their porches in Chicago neighborhoods, as far as his street cred on his own block is concerned, he didn't do squat.
Anytime Washington passes anything the pols of the Windy City are sure to ask, "What's innit for us?"
But not a single one of President Obama's executive orders on gun control does a damn thing to help control Chicago's murder rate.
To be sure, there's plenty of paper shuffling ahead for the federal bureaucrats and even a bit to pass along to the mental health and medical communities. There are opportunities for industrial filmmakers, too. What do you think, "Launch a national safe and responsible gun ownership campaign." actually means? It's gonna be a video and a few posters.
Where's the executive order on creating, at federal expense, a federal/state/city/county gun task force pilot project to combat gun violence in Chicago? An effort that would bring together all levels of law enforcement from BATFE, to Homeland Security, to U.S. Marshals, to city and Cook County officers, to cops from the collar suburbs where straw man gun purchases are often made? A street tough gun squad, call them the New Untouchables if you like, backed by federal prosecutors flexing the muscle of federal laws to lock up the more serious gun offenders and federal judges to make certain they can't I-bond their way to freedom. Where's that Executive Order?
Where's the order that says pull in federal resources from outside the state as needed to provide even heavier manpower for such a task force? Put those new faces undercover in targeted areas to locate the sources of illegal weapons and organize heavy felony gun buys.
The President may talk the talk, and shed a crocodile tear about Newtown, but as far as kids and other innocents getting shot on their porches in Chicago neighborhoods, as far as his street cred on his own block is concerned, he didn't do squat.
Monday, January 14, 2013
Want an Assault Rifle? Let's Find Out How Easy It Is To Get One
Will Congress ban the so-called semi-automatic assault weapon?
I doubt it. The Biden Commission's report is due out this week, hastily pulled together in the wake of the Newtown shootings. It may call for such a ban but I don't read about much enthusiasm for it from either side of the aisle.
To support such legislation would mean fighting one of the most powerful lobbies in the United States. Some legislators are willing to do so. Most are not willing to antogonize the National Rifle Association.
Would such a ban keep assault rifles out of the hands of those determined to kill innocents? Highly unlikely.
If a nutjob wants one, he doesn't have to go to a store to buy it. I think there are plenty of private sellers, legal and illegal, who are looking to turn a buck off the rifles already in their closets.
Don't believe it? Consider doing some easy research to discover if I'm right.
Whether you believe in owning firearms or not, you undoubtedly know people who do. First, see if they personally have, say, an AR-15 style semi-automatic assault rifle they'd like to sell you. If they don't, ask if they know anyone who does. Don't consider cost. Don't consider the logistics of acquisition: it doesn't matter if you're in Chicago and the would-be seller is in Phoenix. See if the item is available to you, regardless of easily hurdled obstacles.
I bet you'll quickly discover how easy it would be for a run of the mill person on the street to acquire such a deadly weapon without ever going to a gun store and without enduring a background check.
Can't find a rifle? Take your research a step further. Follow the same instructions as above but settle for a semi-automatic handgun capable of accomodating a magazine (sometimes called a "clip) of at least fifteen or, preferably, thirty rounds. Handguns, after all, are blamed for far more deaths in this country than assault rifles.
Of course, I am not suggesting that you follow through and buy any of the weapons you're researching, especially if you don't have the requisite credentials from a bureaucratic and a safety standpoint (ie: if you are not legally allowed to own a firearm and if you have never taken a firearm safety training course).
Let me know what your philosophical visit to the "dark side" reveals and how you feel about it.
I doubt it. The Biden Commission's report is due out this week, hastily pulled together in the wake of the Newtown shootings. It may call for such a ban but I don't read about much enthusiasm for it from either side of the aisle.
To support such legislation would mean fighting one of the most powerful lobbies in the United States. Some legislators are willing to do so. Most are not willing to antogonize the National Rifle Association.
Would such a ban keep assault rifles out of the hands of those determined to kill innocents? Highly unlikely.
If a nutjob wants one, he doesn't have to go to a store to buy it. I think there are plenty of private sellers, legal and illegal, who are looking to turn a buck off the rifles already in their closets.
Don't believe it? Consider doing some easy research to discover if I'm right.
Whether you believe in owning firearms or not, you undoubtedly know people who do. First, see if they personally have, say, an AR-15 style semi-automatic assault rifle they'd like to sell you. If they don't, ask if they know anyone who does. Don't consider cost. Don't consider the logistics of acquisition: it doesn't matter if you're in Chicago and the would-be seller is in Phoenix. See if the item is available to you, regardless of easily hurdled obstacles.
I bet you'll quickly discover how easy it would be for a run of the mill person on the street to acquire such a deadly weapon without ever going to a gun store and without enduring a background check.
Can't find a rifle? Take your research a step further. Follow the same instructions as above but settle for a semi-automatic handgun capable of accomodating a magazine (sometimes called a "clip) of at least fifteen or, preferably, thirty rounds. Handguns, after all, are blamed for far more deaths in this country than assault rifles.
Of course, I am not suggesting that you follow through and buy any of the weapons you're researching, especially if you don't have the requisite credentials from a bureaucratic and a safety standpoint (ie: if you are not legally allowed to own a firearm and if you have never taken a firearm safety training course).
Let me know what your philosophical visit to the "dark side" reveals and how you feel about it.
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