Out here in the Wild West, Colorado has passed three new gun control laws: One bill limits ammunition magazines to 15 rounds, another requires universal background checks, and the third charges gun customers for the cost of the checks. If Colorado can do it, so can Washington.
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Last week our new woman in Oregon legislature spoke at my retirement community. Thinking specifically of moves then being made in Colorado, I asked if people around her paid attention to nearby states on this issue–or others. Her reply was, to her surprise, that they did not.
Good for Colorado but intimidation by local NRA people who fear losing money they make from NRA (that’s the real story no one talks about) makes outlook here grim. But we will keep pushing.
I don’t really expect state legislators to pay much attention to what other states do; they take a lot of pride in doing their own thing. If our legislators had taken their cue from surrounding states, they probably wouldn’t have done anything. At least we’ve put a chink in the NRA’s armor and proved it can be done.
I couldn’t agree more PT – Go Colorado! Amongst all the speculation surrounding the Tom Clements murder is a possible link back to these new laws being passed. I really hope that isn’t the case…
I think Clements was killed the night before the governor signed the bills, but can’t say for sure without looking it up. I’d hate to think opponents of gun control would resort to murder, but some of them seem to be that crazy … Looks like the Texas HP might have taken down the killer this afternoon. If so, we’ll probably never know for sure what his motive was.
Naomi’s comment reminded me that Rachel Maddow did a couple of segments showing how the NRA is using a strategy similar to, but much more effective than, the one used by Big Tobacco to create “straw men” to advocate their side so the gun manufacturers don’t have to directly defend selling products that kill both the people who use them and those around them. You can check them out at Big Tobacco models disinformation, distraction strategy and NRA keeps spotlight and accountability off the gun industry
They got a little more direct here. One of the manufacturers of large capacity magazines is based in Colorado, and they threatened to pull out of the state, taking several hundred jobs with them, if our bills passed. No word yet on whether they’re packing …
Good grief. With the state of the jobs market, every other state is liable to offer up tax incentives to get them to move there!!! 😯
It will cost them money to move, and it certainly isn’t necessary since they can continue to sell their product all over the country. It will be interesting to see if they follow through on their threat.
So I have this fantasy. What if a state with the least restrictive gun laws would offer the best incentives to gun manufacturers to move there. That’ North Dakota. The rest of us could rest easy? North Dakota also has the most restrictive ban on abortion…a right-wing paradise.
Fantasy? More like nightmare.
Yes, a nightmare on the way to Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale.”
At the mention of a “right-wing paradise,” my first thought was of Weird Al’s “Amish Paradise.” But that’s not quite weird enough, a true “right-wing paradise” would have to be its “Bizzarro World” equivalent: 😯 😆
Hey – so can each state ( if they don’t already have those…some already do)
No need to wait for people at a distance to take care of your own community when you can do it faster and better yourself.
Time to be grown-ups and adults and take responsibility instead of depending on others.
Many’s the day I wonder what ever happened to all the grown-ups and adults …
walked away, I think
There was a song about that … “Where have all the grown-ups gone” … oh, wait …
And there’s nothing wrong with any of them. Actually, until just the past few years – probably Aurora is when I began to realize that these three did NOT exist. I always thought those were required by the law. I had no idea that the laws have gone to lax over the years. I was floored that gun are sold at gun shows without background checks.
Same here. Not until the last few years did I become aware of the “gun show loophole.” Who’d have thought guns were sold without background checks? Nor had I given much thought to the lunacy of allowing civilians to buy the same weapons that the military and law enforcement use.
I know. Exactly. Gun addicts have gone insane and now set the laws.
Most of the big money influencing the lawmakers comes from the gun manufacturers and their lobbyists. The NRA is just their public face.
The military has always obtained it’s weapons from us civilians, but we may have to stop that.
Oh joy, more “good” news.