YES, HE ACTUALLY SAID THAT

The Lt. Governor of Texas ripped into Black Lives Matter protestors as “hypocrites” for fleeing as the bullets flew Thursday night, killing five police officers.

While Dallas police expressed no animosity towards the attendees at the peaceful protest, with some posing for photos with protesters, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick attempted to rile up viewers at a time when Dallas Police Chief Dave Brown and Mayor Mike Rawlings had successfully called for calm and healing.

Patrick acknowledged that the protest was peaceful before launching into a rant, claiming:

 “All these officers last night lost their lives protecting people who were protesting against them. This has to end.”

VIDEO COURTESY OF CNN



The lawmaker went on to claim that “Too many in the general public, who aren’t criminals but have a big mouth are creating situations like we saw last night.”

“We have to have their police back,” Patrick exclaimed. “And I’m sick and tired of those who are protesting our police and putting their lives in danger,” before adding, “All those protesters last night, they turned around and ran the other way expecting the men and women in blue to protect them. What hypocrites!”

Congratulations Dan Patrick, you are today's most disgusting human of the world, enjoy asshat!

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Blogger-In-Chief

Roger West

"CARRY GUNS....END MUSLIMS"

Liberty University president Jerry Falwell Jr. urged more students to carry guns on Friday, arguing that if the victims of Wednesday’s attack in San Bernardino, California were armed, they would have been able to protect themselves from the attackers.

“Ive always thought that if more good people had concealed-carry permits, then we could end those Muslims before they walked in and killed them,” he said during the school’s convocation, before teasing the students about his own gun.

“If some of those people in that community center had what I have in my back pocket right now…,” he said. “Is it illegal to pull it out? I don’t know,” he joked, to laughter and loud applause. “I just wanted to take this opportunity to encourage all of you to get your permit. We offer a free course,” he said. “Let’s teach them a lesson if they ever show up here.”

Falwell later told the Washington Post that he decided to carry a .25 pistol following Wednesday’s attack, which authorities are ascribing to two individuals who may have been radicalized by the foreign terrorist group ISIS. The son of the late religious leader Jerry Falwell Sr. also clarified that his reference to “those Muslims” was short hand for Islamic-inspired terrorists. “That’s the only thing I would clarify,” Falwell told the Post. “If I had to say what I said again, I’d say exactly the same thing.”

Virginia residents who complete training and satisfy state requirements may apply for a concealed weapons permit. Students and faculty members at Liberty University may carry concealed weapons on campus but not in the residence halls. The Christian college is closely aligned with conservative politics, but is at odds with major religious groups, who overwhelmingly favor stricter gun safety measures.

Research also shows that armed civilians are unable to successfully intervene in mass shootings and that higher gun ownership actually correlates with higher instances of firearm-related deaths. One recent study found that for “every 1 percent increase in gun ownership, there was a 1.1 percent increase in the firearm homicide rate and a 0.7 percent increase in the total homicide rate.”

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Blogger-In-Chief

Roger West

JUST HOW DID THIS IDIOT GET A WEAPON

Dylann Roof, the man accused of killing nine people at an historic black church in South Carolina, was able to purchase a gun — despite the fact that a background check should have prevented him from doing so. Shortly after this news became public, early reporting relied upon in a previous draft of this post indicated that Roof obtained a gun because “data was not properly entered in federal criminal justice computer systems.” The implication was that he may have managed to arm himself with a murder weapon because of a clerical error. In reality, however, the failure in the background check system stems from a more systemic problem.

According to a statement by FBI Director James Comey, Roof obtained the gun he allegedly used in the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church murders due to a rule that permits gun dealers to transfer firearms under certain circumstances even if a background check on the person seeking to buy the gun has not been completed. As Comey explains, “under federal law, a Federal Firearms Licensee must submit biographical information about a potential purchaser to [the National Instant Criminal ann RooBackground Check System], and NICS has three business days to perform a background check and clear or deny the purchase.” If the background check is not completed within three days, however, the gun dealer “has the discretion to proceed with the transaction.”

In this case, Roof attempted to purchase a firearm on April 11, a Saturday. The federal employee began the background check on April 13, which was the next business day after Roof attempted to buy a gun. According to Comey, the federal examiner’s “initial check of Roof’s criminal history showed that he had been arrested in South Carolina March 1 on a felony drug charge.” but “[t]his charge alone is not enough to deny proceeding with the transaction.” Thus, the examiner continued to investigate whether Roof was, in fact, ineligible to buy a gun.

On Thursday, April 16, the examiner had not yet completed the background check. Had she possessed all the information about this case, she would have known that “Roof admitted he was in possession of drugs,” and this fact would have been sufficient to deny him permission to buy the gun. Because the examiner did not have this information on April 16, however, “the case was still listed as ‘status pending,’ so the gun dealer exercised its lawful discretion and transferred the gun to Dylann Roof.”

Though it is impossible to know whether Roof would have obtained a gun through different means if he’d been prevented from making this particular purchase, it is possible that the nine people allegedly killed by Roof would be alive today if the examiner had been able to prevent the sale from happening until after she’d completed Roof’s background check. Instead, because the current legal standard prioritizes speed over completed background checks, Roof was able to obtain the gun he attempted to purchase on April 11.

[h/t thinkprogress]

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STAFF WRITER

KANSAS SAYS EVERYONE CAN CONCEAL THEIR GUNS

KANSAS GOVERNOR SIGNING GUN LAW 

Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback signed a bill into law on Thursday that allows Kansas residents over the age of 21 to carry concealed weapons without any permit or training requirements, “as long as that individual is not prohibited from possessing a firearm under either federal or state law.”

“Responsible gun ownership – for protection and sport – is a right inherent in our Constitution. It is a right that Kansans hold dear and have repeatedly and overwhelmingly reaffirmed a commitment to protecting,” said in a statement on Facebook posted alongside a photo of him signing the bill.

Every town for Gun Safety expressed their disapproval on Facebook as well. “This bill will let people carry hidden, loaded guns in public with no training whatsoever, and with no permit required,” the statement read. “It’s irresponsible legislation that puts all Kansans in danger.”

The legislation passed with overwhelming support in the statehouse. One state legislator, Rep. Travis Couture-Lovelady, described gun safety training to the Kansas City Star as a “personal responsibility” and “not something the government can mandate.” He pointed out that since the state adopted permits for concealed carry weapons in 2006, “We haven’t had any of the Wild West shootouts.”

The state will still issue concealed permits in the state, but they aren’t required. Residents do still need a Kansas to carry weapons in other states or jurisdictions where they are required. At least five other states and most of Montana also do not require permits to carry concealed weapons, but all 50 states have passed laws allowing citizens to carry firearms in public.

Many pro-gun groups such as the Crime Prevention Research Center have argued that since the rise of concealed carry laws in the states, there has been a decline in violent crime. This ignores the fact that violent crime is on a general downward trend across the country, regardless of whether the states have concealed carry laws or not.

The research on whether conceal carry laws are effective has been mixed and little studied, in part because until recently there has been a ban on federal funding for this type of research. However, a study by the National Research Council found “no link” between right-to-carry concealed weapons laws and violent crime rates in the raw data. However, many point to international data as a guide. In Japan, for example, where almost all forms of gun ownership is illegal, there are single-digit shooting deaths in the country each year.

Another study released by Stanford last year took a new look at this research and did find some ties to allowing weapons without a permit and some types of violence. It was difficult to tie right-to-carry laws to violent crime, but researchers did find an estimated 8 percent increase in aggravated assault cases — and this may actually be an underestimate. Researchers described finding the effect of such laws a “vexing task.”

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STAFF WRITER

BAN FLAGS ALLOW GUNS

What is the bigger risk inside a state capitol building: openly carrying an American flag or an assault rifle? In Virginia, visitors to the state legislature cannot bring American flags and signs affixed to sticks, because capitol security considers sticks a public threat. Firearms, however, are allowed.

A group of gun violence prevention activists discovered this when they arrived on Monday to attend a Martin Luther King, Jr. Day event. According to Virginia Capitol Police, the groups were informed beforehand of the restriction barring sticks at permitted rallies, because they can be used as weapons. Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America’s Gena Reeder said they were aware of the rules, but “certainly not in our wildest imagination thought that could apply to the American flag.”

While the moms tore out the dowels of their flags, capitol grounds visitors with firearms were ushered through the entrance. That day, Virginia Citizens Defense League and other gun rights groups organized a “Guns Save Lives” day. The Richmond Times-Dispatch reported that about half of the crowd was armed, packing weapons that ranged from handguns to assault rifles.

The anti-gun violence activists couldn’t reconcile this conflicting message in their heads, Reeder explained. “We are sending a message that you cannot hand carry an American flag into a state capitol, but you can bring a loaded weapon,” Reeder said. “Are guns becoming more patriotic than an American flag?

The same weekend, gun violence prevention activists faced a similar situation in the Washington state capitol. Moms Demand Action’s Washington Chapter Leader Kate Beck said the group arrived to lobby the capitol for gun violence action, only to find out all signs with sticks could not be carried inside. However, Washington state allows firearms on its capitol campus.

Virginia is not the only state that allows guns in its legislative buildings. Texas faced an awkward situation last year when police confiscated tampons from the gallery in the midst of a debate on abortion restrictions, while allowing others to walk in with firearms. In Kentucky, another state with open carry inside public buildings, a lawmaker accidentally fired a handgun in her capitol office. Kentucky state Rep. Leslie Combs shrugged off the incident. “I’m a gun owner,” she said. “It happens.”

Maybe if we affixed the flag to the gun?

cross posted from thinkprogress

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Editor-In-Chief

Roger West