MAYOR TAKES AIM VS. GUNS ("We will take our message to Albany, to Washington...," Bloomberg said.)

NEW YORK POST ^ | January 2, 2006 | STEFAN C. FRIEDMAN

[neverdem]

Routing the city's "scourge of illegal guns" will be the top priority in the next four years, Mayor Bloomberg pledged yesterday as he was sworn in for a second term.

"Our most urgent challenge is ending the threat of guns and the violence they do," Bloomberg said during his inaugural address on the steps of City Hall — winning the loudest applause of the 19-minute speech.

"Now we have a duty as well, one that rises above partisan politics, and one that we will pursue relentlessly: And that is to rid our streets of guns, and punish all of those who possess and traffic in these instruments of death," Bloomberg told 5,000 supporters.

Invoking the names of Officers Dillon Stewart and Daniel Enchautegui — the two NYPD cops recently gunned down, the mayor vowed to raise his anti-gun crusade to the national stage.

"We will take our message to Albany, to Washington, and to every capital of every state that permits guns to flow freely across its borders," Bloomberg said.

"This is a national threat — one that crosses city lines and state boundaries."

Bloomberg's push for a further gun crackdown comes in the wake of state lawmakers' passage last month of the "heroes law" — named for Stewart and Enchautegui — which increases penalties for trafficking in illegal guns and for gun crimes against cops.

The Post had crusaded for the law in the wake of the slayings of the cops.

In what aides said was a swipe at the National Rifle Association, Bloomberg said, "To those who distort our laws and aid and abet hardened criminals, know this: We will not rest until we secure all the tools we need to protect New Yorkers from the scourge of illegal guns."

The need for action on gun violence was...

[Coleus]

I think he meant carrying permits are hard to get. And BTW, I know a lot of NJ police officers who were banned from wearing their guns while marching in the st. Patrick's, Columbus day and Pulaski day parades. It's one of the hardest cities in the USA to carry a gun.

[GeronL]

So who are conservatives in NYC going to vote for?

[neverdem]

They voted for Tom Ognibene on the Conservative line last November.

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the ping!

[GeronL]

um... never heard of him.. =o)

[Clemenza]

RUDY is a gun grabbing scumbag.

[Cicero]

There was an article here just yesterday saying that violent crime is continuing to drop in NYC, so evidently Bloomberg has not reversed the good work Rudy did on that.

This is a lot of blather. Increasing penalties on shooting cops and trafficking in illegal firearms is not the same thing as taking away lawful weapons, so in practice that's OK too.

The problem is the language and the attitude. Plus the fact that ever since Murdoch's oldest son quit the NY Post, it has been moving to the left. The Post is getting worse than the Daily News, which doesn't leave a single conservative voice in New York City, other than the small-circulation Sun.

[NYFriend]

Long Island is kind of in between NYC and the rest of the State. First, a Nassau or Suffolk pistol permit is not good in NYC and any pistol permit issued in the State is valid in Nassau and Suffolk Counties. However, in Nassau and Suffolk, permits are issued by the local police departments (Nassau County, Suffolk County, and a few town departments in Western Suffolk, no village or city police depts. issue permits). On top of that, Nassau and Suffolk permits expire, those issued Upstate are, "valid until revoked".

[SkyDancer]

Hey, thanks for the great info ....didn't realize that's how it came about.

Not to worry re: being Celtic ... I have a problem being a Christian Jew .....

Regards,
Jane

[jjm2111]

--Very hard to get city permit.

Very hard to get a carry permit in the entire state of NJ. NJ is one of the most difficult states to get a CCW as it is not administered by county like NY and CA. So you can't live out in the boonies and get one fairly easily.

[El Gato]

Routing the city's "scourge of illegal guns" will be the top priority in the next four years, Mayor Bloomberg pledged yesterday as he was sworn in for a second term.

If y'all had way more gu"ns in the hands of the law abiding, you'd find the legal guns" would drive out most of the "illegal guns", and reduce the scourge considerably.

But I'd like to know how in a country whose Constitution states:

"A well regulated Militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed." and in a state whose civil rights law states:

A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms cannot be infringed."

there can be any such thing as "illegal guns"?

[El Gato]

Of course neverdem never said his friend carried his gun, just that he shot at a particular range. A license to possess in one's home or business is much easier to get than one allowing unrestricted carry, but it's still very hard. If you have that sort of permit, then you may transport the unloaded and locked up firearm directly to or from a range. (Similar to the situation in Texas prior to CHL, except that no permit was required to purchase or posses in ones home or business). Most likely neverdem's friend had that sort of permit.

Still it's a long way from "cannot be infringed" (NY State Civil rights law) to "permit to posses", especially when said permit is not "shall issue", and is issued at the discretion of the Police Commissioner.

But I think neverdem was just pointing out that there is not an outright ban, just a right turned into a rarely granted privilege.

[El Gato]

This is a lot of blather. Increasing penalties on shooting cops and trafficking in illegal firearms is not the same thing as taking away lawful weapons, so in practice that's OK too.

Illegal firearms? What part of either "shall not be infringed" or "cannot be infringed" is unclear. There can be no such thing, under either NY's civil rights law, or the Second Amendment to the US constitution. There can criminals who misuse firearms, there can perhaps be persons who illegally own firearms (assuming the disability was part of their sentence) and their could be other sorts of illegal ownership (ie. receiving and/or possessing stolen firearms), but there cannot be "illegal firearms".

[Cicero]

By "illegal firearms" I mean firearms that have been stolen, have the SNs filed off, and the like. The Second Amendment doesn't protect trafficking in stolen weapons.

[El Gato]

I don't remember what gun rag that story came from, and I'm not certain that all of it is true. But having some knowledge of the corruption that was so prevalent in NYC government at that time (when was it not?), and the blatant favoritism that Irish NYC officials and cops gave to their Irish friends and families in that era, I tend to believe that most of it is true.

You got that about right. Here is a good synopsis of the whole sordid affair, from Gun Law News.

I found this from a NY Slimes editorial of the time (before the law) particularly interesting. The Old Gray Bitch hasn't changed much since, at least as far as the RKBA is concerned. However they have become more PC and don't usually openly show their contempt for the little people.

January 27, 1905 New York Times Editorial - [The proposed gun control] measure would prove corrective and salutary in a city filled with immigrants and evil communications, floating from the shores of Italy and Austria-Hungary. New York police reports frequently testify to the fact that the Italian and other south Continental gentry here are acquainted with the pocket pistol, and while drunk or merrymaking will use it quite as handily as the stiletto, and with more deadly effect. It is hoped that this treacherous and distinctly outlandish mode of settling disputes may not spread to corrupt the native good manners of the community.

[El Gato]

Illegal guns? Sure. Just don't touch the legal ones.

With the permission of Big Nanny, all guns are illegal in New York City. And she's really stingy with that permission. So yea, she'll let you keep your rubber band gun, AFAIK.

[El Gato]

By "illegal firearms" I mean firearms that have been stolen, have the SNs filed off, and the like.

But that's not what Da Mayor means. He means any gun that his thugs haven't given your permission to possess. There are no "illegal firearms", only stolen property. The serial number business is a recent innovation anyway. If the manufactures wish to put them on for warranty or purposes that's fine, but the requirement to have them is a federal law allowing for them to track them. Supposedly if they are found at the scene of a crime or some such. Despite what you see on TV, this rarely happens, and in any event only allows tracking back to the last owner who bought the gun through a FFL dealer. If one or more private party sales occur between that sale and the theft, they can't even get back to the lawful owner.

[El Gato]

There is one bright spot in the whole Sullivan Law business:

In September 1913 Sullivan disappeared after an all night card game with his guards. A few days later his body was found on the railroad tracks near the Westchester freight yards. An engineer stated that Sullivan was dead before the train ran over his body.

http://politicalgraveyard.com/death/railroad.html>

Struck and killed by a locomotive, near Pelham Parkway, Bronx, Bronx County, N.Y., August 31, 1913

[epow]

Struck and killed by a locomotive, near Pelham Parkway, Bronx, Bronx County, N.Y., August 31, 1913

I wouldn't have wished him dead if I had been around at that time, but if it was his time to go anyway it would have been poetic justice if some Italian dockworker had shot him with an unregistered revolver.

[El Gato]

it would have been poetic justice if some Italian dockworker had shot him with an unregistered revolver.

It would have been, wouldn't it? And it may have happened that way. Note that some reports, from the engineer for example, indicate the body was already dead when the train hit it.