UPDATE: Camacho on life support after being declared brain dead
A Simple Reminder…
Guns should not be banned!!!
Wait what?
Yes, remember, I am all for Americans being able to carry rifles, shotguns, machine guns, and similar weapons.
What I am concerned about and what this blog is about that I feel people can forget when reading it, is banning concealed weapons from the United States. Eliminating concealed weapons such as handguns, sawed-off shotguns, pistols etc. from this country.
People still need guns to protect themselves. That is a natural right in the constitution. That right should not be taken away. Ever!
A simple change to right that specifically states concealed weapons are not allowed to be owned or purchased in the United States needs to be made. People can still hunt, compete and protect themselves with guns that are larger and more visible to the public.
Happy Thanksgiving
Wishing everyone a happy and healthy thanksgiving!
I hope everyone stays safe.
Enjoy the football games!!!
Go Jets
JFK Assination: 49 Years Later
It was 49 years ago today that John F. Kennedy was fatally assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald.
It was not a handgun that killed Kennedy, it was the bullet of an Italian Carcano M91/38 bolt-action rifle that pierced once through Kennedy’s back and then another bullet through his head (For non-conspiracy sake, we’ll say it was two bullets).
John Fitzgerald Kennedy was pronounced dead in the emergency room of Parkland Hospital at 1:00 p.m.
I am not here to debate an theories. I am writing to recognize one of the greatest Presidents to ever run the United States of America.
I was not alive when Kennedy was president and when he was assassinated. I didn’t need to be to know that he was a great man and a great leader.
It’s unfortunate that special people are torn away from loved ones and taken away from the public too soon. I can name many that inspired me. I am sure everyone can too.
John F. Kennedy: May 29, 1917- November 2, 1963
BREAKING: Former Boxing Champion Hector “Macho” Camacho has been shot, and is critically wounded
Who shot first: Trayvon, Zimmerman or Florida?
Trayvon Martin was shot and killed by Goerge Zimmerman on February 26, 2012. The case has received a ton of media coverage over the last year. There are still so many questions to be answered and hopefully the trial will help answer many of these questions.
Was Trayvon Martin just another stereotypical looking suspicious black kid?
Is George Zimmerman lying and is he really just a racist?
Was is self defense or was it manslaughter?
I don’t think these are the right questions to be asking. I think the ultimate question that needs to beasked is this:
Why is there a law in Florida that basically without fancy lingo, states “Shoot first, ask later.”
The shoot first laws, also known as “Stand Your Ground Laws”, simply states that, “a person who is not engaged in an unlawful activity and who is attacked in any…place where he or she has a right to be has no duty to retreat and has the right to stand his or her ground and meet force with force, including deadly force, if he or she reasonably believes it is necessary to do so to prevent death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or another or to prevent the commission of a forcible felony” (csgv.org).
In Trayvon Martin’s case he was walking when he was confronted by George Zimmerman. After that a struggle ensued and Trayvon was killed. It may have been self defense or it may not have been. Zimmerman left his vehicle instead of waiting for the authorities to show up. He then used his gun and killed Trayvon Martin. It may seem like it is Zimmerman who could be at fault.
What if Florida didn’t have a “shoot first” law. Zimmerman would have no case and he most likely would be sentenced to some years in prison.
If this law did not exist, things would certainly be different and maybe Zimmerman would not have been so quick to use his weapon. After all, he is an authority of some minor degree and to say that he has no knowledge or awareness of the laws in Florida is asinine. Remember, he also carries a gun so he needs to be aware of the laws in Florida.
People need to attack the law that allows for an action to take place.
The United Kingdom knows how it’s done
“James Holmes purchased a Smith and Wesson .233 high powered semi-automatic rifle at Gander Mountain gun store in Thornton, Colo, according to the law enforcement source. He also bought a .40 caliber Glock pistol at Gander Mountain gun store in Aurora, Colo. Another .40 caliber glock handgun and a Remington 870 shotgun were purchased at Bass Pro Shops in Denver, Colo. The guns were all purchased legally between May 22 and July 6 at three Colorado gun stores.
Wearing full body armor and wearing a gas mask, Holmes allegedly entered the Century 16 Theater through a fire exit and threw two gas canisters into the audience. He then opened fire on the audience, hitting 79 people. At least 12 are dead and 59 more are wounded. The semi-automatic rifle, shotgun and one of the pistols were used during the massacre.” – CBS News
In the United States, it is the constitutional right for people to carry guns. While there is paperwork and background checks that are performed in the US, the steps to getting a gun is much less involved. You fill out the paperwork, perform a background check, which many sellers don’t even do, and get the gun. Some weapons have a waiting period where the owner would have to wait to receive the weapon for a couple of months but that is the entire process. It is a very loose system. That’s all there is to it.Because it is a right, law enforcement has little involvement in determining if a person should or shouldn’t be able to carry a gun.
The United Kingdom has strict laws that make it incredibly tough for someone to purchase and own a gun. It involves hours of paperwork and then proof to police that the person purchasing the gun will not be a danger to society. People In the UK gun-owners receive certificates for weapons upon purchase and these certificates can be revoked by law enforcement if they believe that the holder can no longer be trusted with the gun. The steps to getting a gun are:
- It starts with an application form that asks specific questions about why the individual wants a gun. A person needs to show “good reason” in buying the gun.
- The criteria are tougher for firearms than shotguns because weapons that fire bullets must only be used for specific purposes in specific places. These would include deer stalking or sports shooting on an approved range.
- Independent referees provide confidential character statements in which they are expected to answer in lengthy detail about the applicant’s mental state, home life and attitude towards guns.
- Officers check the Police National Computer for a criminal record and they speak to the applicant’s general practitioner for evidence of alcoholism, drug abuse or signs of personality disorder. Social services can also be asked for reasons to turn down an applicant.
- Finally, senior officers must be sure that prospective shotgun holders have a secure location for the weapon, typically a dedicated gun cabinet. Each certificate is valid for five years.
If I were to say which country gets it right, I would have to say the UK. Obviously people will disagree with me but I can’t help but wonder why according to www.guardian.co.uk, 60% of homicides in the US are by firearm compared ot 6.6% in UK.
It should make you question the gun policies in the US.
The USC shooting and what it means
It means that what I have been blogging about means something.
This is another school shooting that can be added to the list. While it wasn’t a massacre of any sort, it was still a shooting that occurred on campus. Anytime a shooting occurs on campus, there is always a threat of student involvement. The last thing parents of students that attend school want to hear is that there was a shooting on their child’s campus.
My question is simple. It’s the same question I will keep asking until something happens. How many school shootings or mass shootings will it take to remove concealed weapons from the United States?
The victim in this shooting who was critically injured, was Geno Hall, a former football prospect at Crenshaw High School. He, and 3 other people who suffered minor injuries are not affiliated with USC but that doesn’t matter.
What matters is that the two assailants were allowed to bring a concealed handgun to a party that was being hosted by USC and was on the university campus. If I had a child who was attending USC, I would not be happy at all. I don’t, but parents, you do! You should not be happy with this. It could have easily been your child who was an innocent bystander and was shot and killed.
Hopefully that doesn’t happen to anyone but please, just take a moment to see what it could feel like if it did.
BREAKING NEWS: Shooting at USC!!! Updated twitter feeds to come throughout the day as details emerge. Stay Tuned!
It may be your right, but it’s wrong…
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal…”
Imagine, that the phrase “all men were created equal” was still taken in literal context as it was when the Declaration was first created and only men as a gender were created equal. Women would not be have the same rights that as human beings, we are born with. Imagine, women that you still weren’t able to vote. Imagine African Americans were still being sold for slavery and that slavery still existed. Imagine that segregation still existed and African Americans still had to use separate facilities than white people.
Luckily the language of the Declartation of Independence was changed so that “all men” meant everyone regardless of race, religion and gender. The constitution has made changes to amendments in the past as well. These changes included the 15th Amendment when slaves were given the right to vote, the 19th Amendment when women were given the right to vote, the 22nd Amendment with the limit of two terms put on a presidency, the 26th Amendment, which gave people 18 and over the right to vote. It had originally been 21 year old.
Remember, The Constitution is a living document. This means that it can be changed anytime. So if you’re using the argument that “it’s my constitutional right to carry a concealed weapon” then that is a poor argument. People used to say that Blacks shouldn’t have constitutional rights. Men used to say that women don’t have a constitutional right to vote. How ridiculous does that sound now?
Policies and laws can always change. You only need enough people to speak out against the policy or law for an action to be taken.
Banning Concealed Guns 