In Wake of Tucson, NRA Advocates Armed Militia Movement (moran alert)

[jpak]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/josh-horwitz/in-wake-of-tucson-nra-adv_b_823275.html

Last year at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), the National Rifle Association's Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre told America, "The guys with the guns make the rules." After Jared Loughner ("You don't have to accept the federalist laws") took the NRA's advice to heart and shot Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and federal judge John Roll at Tucson--along with 17 other innocents--LaPierre took the stage at CPAC again on Thursday to deliver an angry, fear-mongering speech that seemed to call the very legitimacy of our government into question.

LaPierre's invective touched on a number of emotional touchstones for the Conservative Movement in the U.S. "Government has failed us with our money," he told CPAC attendees. "It's failed us with our financial institutions. It's failed in running our post offices and our trains. It's failed in enforcing our immigrations laws and our drug laws, and our laws on the books against violent criminals with guns. Heck, they can barely get the snow plowed." In LaPierre's revisionist history, it wasn't loose gun laws and violent politic rhetoric that led to Tucson. It was the government's creation of "gun-free zones" and "anti-self defense laws" that were at fault. Such policies, in LaPierre's view, "condemned the victims to death without so much as a prayer."

For a minute, forget the sheer hypocrisy of it all. Forget that Arizona has some of the weakest gun laws in the nation, allowing individuals to carry loaded handguns in public without any type of permit or screening. Forget that an armed citizen was on the scene in Tucson, and nearly shot a good Samaritan who had already disarmed Loughner. Forget that the NRA described the Brady Bill as an "executioner's tool" and filed lawsuits in nine states to void it entirely (the Supreme Court wouldn't go that far, but did agree with the NRA in Printz v. U.S. that the federal government couldn't compel local police to conduct background checks on gun purchasers). Forget that the NRA has fought vehemently against the renewal of the Assault Weapons Ban, which includes a ban on high-capacity ammunition magazines. Forget even that LaPierre's sole motivation is profit for the gun industry.

Forget all that, and let's look at the crux of LaPierre's speech -- a disturbing call for the privatization of law enforcement through the implementation of a militia movement untethered to government authority.

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Wayne LaPierre is an asshole

yup

[shadowrider]

1. Unbiased reporting from HuffPo. Pffffffft. n/t

[jpak]

2. Those are the words of the asshole Wayne LaPierre

yup

[HankyDubs]

24. Quick, attack the messenger!

Quote Charles Krauthammer again while you're at it.

[cleanhippie]

3. Just more anti-civil right nonsense. Its expected, its what ignorant people do.

yup

:rofl:

yup

:rofl:


yup

:rofl:

yup

:rofl:

yup

:rofl:

yup

:rofl:

yup

:rofl:

yup

:rofl:

yup

:rofl:

yup

:rofl:

[jpak]

4. My civil liberties include FREEDOM from guns with high capacity magazines

They are instruments of mass murder

Wayne LapPierre is an asshole.

yup

[cleanhippie]

5. No, they don't.

And to quote you...

"Don't like it, tough shit"


yup

:rofl:

[jpak]

6. Yes they do - gun-free schools & public buildings, gun-free malls, restaurants & bars

Gun-free public athletic fields

FREEDOM

yup

[ProgressiveProfessor]

7. Those are not "rights", but you already knew that

Continue to twist words and make up facts in your effort to restrict civil rights...it makes you and yours that much easier to identify and defeat

[jpak]

8. Those are my rights guaranteed by the 9th and 10th amendments

FREEDOM

yup

[ProgressiveProfessor]

10. Those are restrictions on the rights of others and have never been based

on the 9th and 10th amendments.

Then again, you already knew that.

[jpak]

12. My rights not specified in the Constitution are protected and retained by me

under the 9th and 10th amendments

Stupid little itty bitty NRA militias are not

nope

[ProgressiveProfessor]

14. Since they are not "rights" all you are protecting is your unreasonable

fear and hatred of inanimate objects and using it to fuel your campaign against the right of others.

[jpak]

16. They are my rights - as the Framers intended.

They are rights not specified in the Constitution and retained by the people.

I have a fucking absolute right to live in freedom from stupid NRA militias.

yup

[X_Digger]

17. What court has specifically codified that unenumerated right?

Please, give me a case name, I can look it up on westlaw.

[jpak]

19. It's The Constitution - the way the Founders intended

I don't need a court to affirm my 9th and 10th amendment rights.

nope

[X_Digger]

21. Actually, yah, you do.. see Roe v. Wade. n/t

[DonP]

18. Then do what the NRA does, get out your checkbook and go to court!

Fight for what you believe are your rights in court and kick the NRA's ass. You seem confident that you have solid constitutional grounds to base your claim on.

That's the American way. Follow in the footsteps of famous men like Dick Anthony Heller and Otis McDonald. Fight for your rights all the way to SCOTUS. There might even still be at least oine law school professor that agrees with you, probably not, based on the Amici briefs filed in both recent cases. Hell, ever Alan Dershowitz and Laurence Tribe gave up on the stupid militia interpretation, but your never know there might still be one out there.

While you're at it, you might as well start a petition to repeal the 2nd amendment and just deal with it head on.

Come on, fight for your "rights" and stop being such a whiny little wimp about it. You should have no problem at all gathering contributions from other gun control people here. The Brady's have almost $2,500 in their war chest now and I'm sure they'll back you up.

Or are you just more comfortable being a keyboard commando?

[cleanhippie]

23. Wrong again, those are not right. FAIL, again.

don't like it? tough shit.

yup

[RSillsbee]

27. Gun free Freedom

until a criminal w/ a gun shows up

YUP

[ProgressiveProfessor]

9. Consider the source and then try and find something credible

Josh Horwitz and the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence are well past the lunatic fringe

[jpak]

11. The asshole Wayne LaPierre and his stupid NRA militias are the lunatic fringe

yup

[ProgressiveProfessor]

13. There are fringe on both sides. That you refuse to acknowledge it says a lot about where you are

yup yup

[jpak]

15. I don't want any stupid fringe extremist nutjob Wayne LaPierre NRA "militias" in my town or state

I have right to live free of them

yup

[cleanhippie]

20. Yeah, well, good luck with that.

It will go far, I'm sure.

yup


I mean, nope.

:rofl:

[RSillsbee]

30. Almost as far out there as Hoyt Hilson Who also writes for the puffpo NT

[Bonhomme Richard]

22. I just listened to the speach and I am not a NRA member.

Frankly I didn't find anything he said would be classified as outrageous. The basic point, to me, was that you don't have to be a victim and you have a right to protect yourself. Having said that, the gun carrier has a responsibility to know how to handle that weapon along with the responsible use of said weapon and have a respect for those who become upset at just the sight of a pistol. They do exist and in my head it is only good manners. My question is how do you insure that those carrying are responsible people? I suspect that there are quite a few that never practice drawing their weapon, spend very little time at a range, or really work at getting comfortable with the weapon. For me it requires more training in all aspects such as safety, trained motor skills through repetition, targeting, etc..

[HankyDubs]

25. But but but the NRA isn't right wing!

"LaPierre's invective touched on a number of emotional touchstones for the Conservative Movement in the U.S. "Government has failed us with our money," he told CPAC attendees. "It's failed us with our financial institutions. It's failed in running our post offices and our trains. It's failed in enforcing our immigrations laws and our drug laws, and our laws on the books against violent criminals with guns. Heck, they can barely get the snow plowed."

Suuuuure they aren't. Duh gubermint is incompetent...BE AFRAID OF DUH GUBERMINT!

[RSillsbee]

26. we've seen the objective reporting from the huffing and puffington post NT

[HankyDubs]

28. Attack the messenger!

Part 2!

[Dr_Scholl]

29. Moran? I think you mean moron.

Oh, the irony.