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NYT: Americans With Assault Rifles Should 'Give Them Up For The Good Of Their Fellow Citizens'
Townhall.com ^ | December 6, 2015 | Matt Vespa

Posted on 12/06/2015 6:48:55 PM PST by Kaslin

Well, it seems the media's horrific campaign of inaccuracy hasn't stopped. According to Reuters, for the first time in nearly a century, The New York Times editorial board took their plea for gun bans to the front page on Saturday, calling our nation's inaction on gun control a "moral outrage and a national disgrace." No, we shouldn't be surprised that they decided to follow the likes of the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times with their own inane call to arms for gun control. And we shouldn't be shocked that they want policies that employ confiscatory measures, while also banning an entire class of firearms, specifically assault rifles and certain types of ammunition [emphasis mine]:

It is a moral outrage and a national disgrace that civilians can legally purchase weapons designed specifically to kill people with brutal speed and efficiency. These are weapons of war, barely modified and deliberately marketed as tools of macho vigilantism and even insurrection. America's elected leaders offer prayers for gun victims and then, callously and without fear of consequence, reject the most basic restrictions on weapons of mass killing, as they did on Thursday. They distract us with arguments about the word terrorism. Let's be clear: These spree killings are all, in their own ways, acts of terrorism.

It is not necessary to debate the peculiar wording of the Second Amendment. No right is unlimited and immune from reasonable regulation.

Certain kinds of weapons, like the slightly modified combat rifles used in California, and certain kinds of ammunition, must be outlawed for civilian ownership. It is possible to define those guns in a clear and effective way and, yes, it would require Americans who own those kinds of weapons to give them up for the good of their fellow citizens.

First, let's give it up for the New York Times, and their like-minded colleagues in the media and in politics for driving up gun sales. Undoubtedly, after all of this nonsensical discussion about gun control, gun and ammo sales will go up (that's a good thing). The irony never ceases to amaze me how the very faction of this country what wants to deploy unconstitutional gun control measures, only end up becoming better gun salespersons.

Moreover, every mass shooting is an act of terror? They're not. Mass shootings can be part of a terrorist's arsenal of carnage to push whatever agenda they have in mind, but not every mass shooting is terrorism. The same logic is applied to defining genocide. Genocide is mass killing, but not all mass killings are genocides. What happened in Paris was a horrific terrorist attack perpetrated by ISIS. They had an agenda. They deployed suicide bombers and shooters to target scores of innocent Parisians, which they thought could influence the nation's policy in the Middle East. The Islamic State attacked France for insulting the prophet Muhammad; they called Paris "the capital of abomination and perversion;" and perhaps the most important part–the French were attacked due to their intervention in Syria. There are multiple definitions of terrorism; almost every singe one includes some form of political goal. There was no such goal when Adam Lanza senselessly murdered 20 schoolchildren in Newtown in 2012, hence why it was called a mass shooting, and not an act of terrorism. Concerning the San Bernardino shooting, it's now a federal terrorism investigation. We'll know in due time the motives and aims behind this attack.

The Times says that it's easy to define "combat rifles," though they apparently didn't know the definition of terrorism and the left has tried to do this back in the early 1990s with the Assault Weapons Ban. It was a laughable piece of comedy that was attached to the overall Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act in 1994, that was partially responsible for historic Democratic losses in the midterm elections. When it expired in 2004, the data showed that these weapons are a) rarely used in crimes, which remains so to this day and b) did next to nothing to reduce violent crime. Oddly enough, the New York Times ran a piece in September of 2014 highlighting that fact:

…[I]n the 10 years since the previous ban lapsed, even gun control advocates acknowledge a larger truth: The law that barred the sale of assault weapons from 1994 to 2004 made little difference.

It turns out that big, scary military rifles don't kill the vast majority of the 11,000 Americans murdered with guns each year. Little handguns do[*].

In 2012, only 322 people were murdered with any kind of rifle, F.B.I. data shows.

The policy proved costly. Mr. Clinton blamed the ban for Democratic losses in 1994. Crime fell, but when the ban expired, a detailed study found no proof that it had contributed to the decline.

The ban did reduce the number of assault weapons recovered by local police, to 1 percent from roughly 2 percent.

"Should it be renewed, the ban's effects on gun violence are likely to be small at best and perhaps too small for reliable measurement," a Department of Justice-funded evaluation concluded.

Lastly, the "it would require Americans who own those kinds of weapons to give them up for the good of their fellow citizens" part. Why? The vast majority of gun owners–99.9 percent according to Sen. Bernie Sanders are law-abiding. They have to turn them over because the liberal political class is egregiously ignorant on this issue? They have to turn them over because while they aren't used often in gun crimes, liberals are afraid of them? The Times has shown that the left is getting closer to outright saying having assault rifles in one's home warrants the National Guard, FBI, ATF, and local law enforcement busting down your door, terrifying your family, and confiscating constitutionally protected items.

Any rational person should balks at this proposal. Any Second Amendment supporter would, as in other counties, should (and probably would) completely ignore the call to hand over their firearms. But if you're a liberal in keeping with their principle that government power should be controlled by the few in order to be dictated to the rest of us you must believe this is a good policy. If ending gun violence enhances the public good, then by all means strip law-abiding Americans of their rights; the end result will pay off. It's a perverse notion.

This is where this debate is heading and it's getting messier with each horrific mass shooting. The left is now mixing terrorism and mass shootings to push a narrative to eviscerate the Second Amendment. We once again have rehashed stories about the AR-15 rifle, which isn't as powerful as a hunting rifle and rarely used in crimes. And we have the media endorsing gun control policies that would require gun bans and confiscation. They're insinuating parts of it, but the brash call to ban guns entirely is coming.

Yes, not every right is absolute. There are restrictions, but government and active citizenry should work to maximize these rights to their fullest extent. The pre-existing laws on guns are fine. We need to have a debate on how to revamp our mental health system, and integrate it into our background check system. The problem is that it doesn't accomplish the left's goal of destroying gun rights, so they'll do everything in their power to prevent that debate.

*Support for a handgun ban is insanely low



TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; Front Page News; Syria; US: California; US: New York; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: 2ndamendment; abrogation; banglist; brainiacdictatorship; california; demagogicparty; derogationofrights; diktat; doasisay; fartfaces; guncontrol; guncontroldebate; gunrights; helotization; iamwearingadiaper; intellectualarraunt; leftabsolutism; leftism; leftwingmedia; leftwingmediabias; memebuilding; nakedtotalitarians; newyork; newyorkarrogance; newyorkcity; newyorkism; newyorkslimes; newyorktimes; oopsicrappedmypants; partisanmediashill; partisanmediashills; rawsocialism; resistanceisfutile; sanbernadino; sanbernardino; screwtheconstitution; secondamendment; socialstratification; spandexpantload; thelawsareinmymouth; totaitarianism; totalitarianism; treasonoftherich; waronterror; willtopower
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To: Blood of Tyrants
NEWS FLASH!!!

It's not Matt Vespa who says Americans should give up their guns. It was the New York Slimes editorial board.

61 posted on 12/06/2015 7:22:23 PM PST by Kaslin (He needed the ignorant to reelect him, and he got them. Now we all have to pay the consequenses)
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To: Kaslin

The thing is that guys like this Matt fellow believe their tripe.

We will never be able to understand their thinking, and odds are they’ll never understand ours. Still the odds are in the favor of the wimpy progressive growing up and becoming sensibly conservative vs. a conservative becoming an immature progressive.


62 posted on 12/06/2015 7:23:21 PM PST by Blue Collar Christian (Ready for Teddy, Cruz that is.)
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To: Lazamataz

BTTT


63 posted on 12/06/2015 7:24:26 PM PST by Kaslin (He needed the ignorant to reelect him, and he got them. Now we all have to pay the consequenses)
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To: dsc
How Satan must hate the Constitution.

Beacause it was, IMHO, an act of God that created it.
64 posted on 12/06/2015 7:24:35 PM PST by farming pharmer
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To: theBuckwheat
It is a moral outrage and national disgrace that people who own, manage and determine the editorial philosophy of a keystone of an institution that enjoys specific and unique protection of the Constitution are so ignorant and directly hostile to another key provision of the Bill of Rights, and an essential civil right.

Bravo! Well said!

FMCDH(BITS)

65 posted on 12/06/2015 7:25:35 PM PST by nothingnew (Hemmer and MacCullum are the worst on FNC)
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To: Kaslin

They’re asking politely now.

They’ll be back soon though to ask roughly.


66 posted on 12/06/2015 7:26:12 PM PST by Tzimisce
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To: Blue Collar Christian

My mistake on Matt Vespa of Townhall! The pens at NYT is where my ire is directed.


67 posted on 12/06/2015 7:26:13 PM PST by Blue Collar Christian (Ready for Teddy, Cruz that is.)
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To: nothingnew

And the New York Times should submit all their news stories to a conservative review panel before publishing,’For The Good Of Their Fellow Citizens!’


68 posted on 12/06/2015 7:29:32 PM PST by petenmi
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To: Kaslin

“Assault rifles”


69 posted on 12/06/2015 7:30:50 PM PST by wastedyears (uchikudake - toki michite - ikiru tame - tokihanate)
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To: petenmi

Just don’t buy the NYT or read it anywhere. Their advertisers just might get the message. They are in bad shape now, and i sincerely hope they sink in the slime along with their L.A. compatriot in crime.


70 posted on 12/06/2015 7:35:02 PM PST by Mollypitcher1 (I have not yet begun to fight....John Paul Jones)
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To: Kaslin

The “good of my community” is better served by my being armed than otherwise. So no.


71 posted on 12/06/2015 7:35:13 PM PST by Billthedrill
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To: Paladin2

An assault weapon is any one pointed at me.

The left can go eff off.


72 posted on 12/06/2015 7:37:11 PM PST by Henry Hnyellar
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To: All

NYT: ESAD


73 posted on 12/06/2015 7:38:24 PM PST by PGalt
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To: musicman

Re Background checks: Brilliant! Let’s pass a federal law that requires every candidate for office and/or office holder to be subject to a standard background check like applicants for a firearm go through. That would include Obama, and everyone else in office right now. Why object, unless you have something to hide? Let’s do it! Now!


74 posted on 12/06/2015 7:38:35 PM PST by Avid Coug
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To: Sgt_Schultze

I totally agree with the front page priorities of the NYT. The two greatest threats of the last hundred years have been guns and Warren G. Harding.


75 posted on 12/06/2015 7:40:25 PM PST by Rinnwald
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To: Blue Collar Christian; Lazamataz
Like Lazamataz says in post#42 Matt is on our side.

Now read the article thoroughly and don't fly over it again like you obviously did.

76 posted on 12/06/2015 7:40:56 PM PST by Kaslin (He needed the ignorant to reelect him, and he got them. Now we all have to pay the consequenses)
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To: Kaslin
I think the NYT should give up the 1st Amendment “for the good of their fellow citizens”.
77 posted on 12/06/2015 7:41:02 PM PST by SunTzuWu
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To: Kaslin
The New York Slimes should turn themselves in, plead guilty to being traitors, and accept the sentence of the court, for the good of the 2nd Amendment and their fellow citizens.
78 posted on 12/06/2015 7:49:00 PM PST by Carl Vehse
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To: Kaslin

First, they are semi-automatic rifles, not so-called assault weapons.

Second, every American home should have five or ten of them, for defense of the family and the nation.


79 posted on 12/06/2015 7:49:12 PM PST by july4thfreedomfoundation (Just say NO to muslim "immigrants")
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To: muir_redwoods

I truly wished one of these libtard writers from the MSM REALLY...REALLY try to confiscate guns.


80 posted on 12/06/2015 7:50:17 PM PST by max americana (fired every liberal in our company at every election cycle..and laughed at their faces (true story))
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