I’ll cut him a tiny bit of slack because he is still grieving and likely in quite a bit of shock, but how stupid.
Ms Parker’s father, Andy, acknowledged it would be an uphill battle to change the law, but said the president could take on the challenge as he had with other issues including healthcare reform.
“Mr President you need to do this. Please do it. Please do it for us and for other people so they’re not going to lose their Alisons and their Adams,” he said in anemotional message.
President Obama supported legislation to extend background checks for gun buyers and a ban on rapid-firing assault weapons after 26 people were killed at a school in Newton, Connecticut, but it was rejected in 2013.
It is a mindless reflex to attack the instrument of a madman before we have even learned the whole story.
Everyone supports gun control for the mentally deranged.
Where are the protests and calls to ban the rainbow flag?
The guy was not deranged. He allowed anger to take over his psyche. There’s a reason that anger is one of the capital sins along with pride, lust, (etc.)
Let’s be VERY careful about assigning “they’re mentally ill” to killers. That ‘mental illness’ thing is far too easy to manufacture. Ask Joe Stalin.
Thanks for cutting him a little slack .
I’ll do the same for you when your daughter is murdered .
What an a hole !
The “instrument of a madman” could have possibly been kept out of his hands if longer waiting periods and background checks were in place. Again and again it’s the same old story and the center piece is always a gun. As a gun owner I can honestly say that I’m willing to do my part. Longer waiting periods (for complete, accurate and thorough background checks), registration, licensing, mandatory classes and insurance should be required before ownership. I am willing to accept some perceived inconveniences and am willing to tell the NRA to stick it if it could save a life. Responsible gun ownership should be tasked with the prevention of irresponsible gun ownership. Sacrifices need to be made but not with the blood of the innocent.
Flanagan bought two Glock 9mm handguns from a federally licensed gun dealer in Virginia, and there was nothing in his criminal background to prohibit the transaction.
A longer waiting period would not have stopped this. A background check was conducted. If you want to deny Second Amendment rights on emotional issues, then you can immediately revoke those rights for Mark Maley and Fairs Fare.
There is not one single, solitary law that would have stopped this short of a complete gun ban.
Except for reports to the police by the t.v. station about his irrational and threatening behavior. Also, an apparent history of instability. Waiting periods that allow further incite into ones history would have turned up red flags that could have prevented this gun sale. This could have been prevented and a failure to acknowledge that in defense of gun rights is shameful and irresponsible.
Paul, whether I am for umlimited gun rights or against , I don’t lose any rights including the right to call out an egregiously out of line comment about a grieving father .
Maybe we could wait until his daughter was buried before we chastise him for comments we disagree with
I would do the same for your daughter –
I forgot the ” mindless reflex ” comment in the post .
If your child is murdered in public , what frame of mind would you be in ?
USAToday is reporting that he put a deposit down on the two guns on June 19. Mid-June to Mid-August is two months. He also passed the background check. Expecting anything more seems pretty ridiculous.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/08/27/flanagan-virginia-guns-background-checks/32477133/
The “instrument of a madman” in this case was a gun, by far the most efficient instrument an individual can utilize to kill someone. There are other weapons that can be used to commit homicide, but nothing gets the job done better than a firearm specifically manufactured to kill human beings.
Is “expecting” to cherish human life over the profits of the gun industry to much to ask. I would gladly give up liberties to save innocent life. Simply asking for more regulation, which by the way the VAST majority of citizen want, is only being held back by an industry motivated by profit. Time for change!
This “madman” handed a cross to a coworker as he was being escorted by police off the premises upon his dismissal and said “you’ll need this”. A clear threat and one that could of and should of been documented. This is something that in the future could be a red flag added to a profile of police contacts and cause for further scrutiny. Is that also to much to ask?
Asking for what amounts to an employer-reference-check before clearing a gun purchase is ……ahhh…….impossible, to be exceedingly kind.
The murderer was never committed, either voluntarily or otherwise. He was not fired for “anger issues” anyplace–because that would have resulted in an immediate and successful lawsuit.
And as we learned in Charleston, human error plays a part; the criminal indictments were filed in another county and not picked up by the FBI’s check.
Sorry–but I’ll go back to the top. The guy was not, and IS not “deranged.” He’s a murderer, and would have used any other available weapon if “guns were outlawed.”
Time to move on.
In the beginning I would give the dad a break but after he said he needed a gun to protect himself from gun right advocates, I lost whatever respect I had for him.
I’s one thing to be angry that your daughter was killed by a racist thug but he ignored that and turned his attention to gun right advocates.
So, no slack for the fool and his liberal point of view.
The lawsuit was settled for an undisclosed amount…NEXT. Mental issues are considered…NEXT.
FF, does your list of babble address the issues? Or are you just going to ignore sin entirely? If so, how do you justify THAT?
dad29,
So, because you assumed there was no lawsuit and YOU WERE WRONG it now falls upon me to explain sin. Talk about babble… “If guns were outlawed” this guy would have gotten the crap kicked out of him by three people and a couple of eyewitnesses. See, people actually stand a fighting chance against “any other available weapon”. Now, it’s “time” for the citizens of this country to demand effective gun regulations. It’s “time” to put human life before profit and it’s “time” for blow hards like you to have independent thought and stop blindly following every idiotic group (NRA) that shoves an idea up your hind end. However, if you have specific “issues” you would like me to address please advise and I will gladly prove you wrong… again. You sir can make every excuse in the book but the fact remains the VAST majority of U.S. citizens want more effective gun regulations. Sorry if the idea of saving human life doesn’t fit into the agenda but you will soon fall on the wrong side of history… Again.
Fairs Fare, I see nothing helpful in your babble.
This guy nursed his anger for two years after being fired. He put a deposit on a gun two months before the shooting. He passed a background check. This guy seems willing to have waited however long it took and done whatever needed to get a gun.
JSR,
Of course you don’t because you have been brainwashed by a party that caters to lobbyists unwilling to protect human life over profit. Police knew of his anger, threats and had two years and the two months since he put the deposit down to intervene. This shows that with more thorough regulations there would have been plenty of time to stop the purchase. Of course he could have purchased the gun from the street but that shouldn’t be an excuse to condone “madmen” getting guns from a failed system. I will never understand how people who clam to be “pro life” have such an issue with trying to prevent murder. Nobody wants to take your guns away just trying to make difficult for those “madmen” to get caught up in the system. It’s only a matter of time and these laws will be put in place. As a responsible gun owner I choose to actively participate in the conversation and am willing to make some sacrifices (inconveniences) in order to stop the murders. It’s the least I can do to have the right to own guns.
FF, you are not living on this planet.
There was no lawsuit b/c the guy was not fired for “anger issues,” he was fired for ‘incompetence’ and wearing an Obozo pin AT A POLLING PLACE WHILE REPORTING. Ready to apologize yet?
Don’t. Because you are obviously TOTALLY ignorant of blade-fighting and I will not take the time to review the 7-second rule with you, NOR with reviewing the law of physics which also applies to bystanders to a fight: an object at rest tends to stay at rest. But go ahead, test the blade-fight theory. I’ll send roses to your funeral.
Left the NRA about 10 years ago. They’re not my style. Planned Parenthood, just like you, believes that “profit” comes before “lives.” I don’t, but YMMV.
Evidently, your “vast majority” cannot elect a Congress which is willing to ignore the 2A. You’ll have to try a lot harder, after you win that blade-fight while you are unarmed and expecting help from nearby folks.
Best wishes!
FF,
It’s obvious from your screed that you think I am a Republican. I am not. However, I find myself just as disappointed in Democrats as in Republicans.
It’s also obvious that you think a background check should be as deeply invasive as a colonoscopy. That’s just not going to happen, for reasons involving the costs as well as limitations imposed by constitutionally-protected rights.
If the police had two years of knowledge of his anger and threats, why did they not take action? Because he never quite crossed the line into an actionable offense.
Is it your position that the police should have veto power on your ability to purchase a firearm without any reason beyond that they don’t think you should have one? If so, may your chains sit lightly upon you.
dad29,
I have already won more than one blade fight in my life (have scars to prove it) but how could you have possibly known. I have also disarmed two individuals (separate incidents). Once while being robbed at gun point and once coming to the aid of a woman being abused by her husband. I admit to having some special training and knew that I had the upper hand in both situations. I never asserted he was fired for “anger issues”… You did and I suggest you do more research because there was more to the madman’s termination then wearing a pin. Ready to apologize yet? Don’t, an apology from someone who puts profit before human life means nothing to me. If you really want to prove your theory about blade-fighting or to test my skills please stop by the Waukesha Mixed Martial Arts School and take a class or we could always go a couple of rounds. Oh and by the way… Your assumption that I support Planned Parenthood or abortion is wrong and I have always been outspoken about my position. Jerk!
JSR,
I agree “he never quite crossed the line into an actionable offense” but that’s my point, he almost did. With all the resources (crime data bases) out there and with the time he was in the spot light and because of the threats he should have triggered a second look. What would that do? Maybe further scrutiny in the form of psych. tests/evaluation, classes, insurance or even a extended waiting period. I don’t have all the answers but clearly there were flags. Maybe those flags were yellow instead of red but certainly flags existed. Yes, I do believe background checks should be as invasive as a colonoscopy when it comes to saving human life. Can you put a price (“cost”) on human life? As I said, I’m willing to make sacrifices even allowing more invasive checks that may compromise my rights but they are my rights and as a responsible gun owner willing to protect innocent life it’s the least I can do. Most people with nothing to hide shouldn’t have a problem with that. Do you have a problem filling out U.S. Census forms and do you trust that the government will do there best to protect that information?
FF,
May your chains your chains sit lightly upon you.
FF,
May your chains sit lightly upon you.
I guess your ignore the Census. It’s shocking what information people will provide the government but God forbid they provide any to obtain an instrument of death. The most basic right is life and to sacrifice some privacy to help assure others have a safe environment in which to live seems a small price to pay. I choose life and safety over profit.
… And for future reference you are misquoting Samuel Adams. The second to last line of his famous quote actually reads “May your chains SET lightly upon you”. Nice try!
… It is fitting that the first line reads “If ye love wealth better then liberty”…
Obviously, ye love wealth better!
There are cases where clearly there should be better screening to weed out people who shouldn’t own guns from buying them. Those cases make good examples for people like me, who think universal background checks are a pretty decent idea.
This, however, isn’t one of those cases. It’s weird to me that it’s the pro-gun crowd pointing this out. I suppose to them it’s a good example of why having those kind of regulations won’t work. To me it’s a good example of why we just shouldn’t have the guns in the first place.
Not having guns in the first place is unrealistic. We need common sense regulations, licensing and insurance that aims to keep guns out of the hands of even the questionable. At this point and just to prove a point I’m contemplating publicly destroying my guns to raise funds to sponsor an ad campaign and raise awareness. It’s becoming a popular movement.
Things are only politically unrealistic until they aren’t. But you’re probably right. I don’t sense that such a thing is within striking distance in today’s America. And I do agree that issues like universal background checks are winners with Americans. They just don’t seem to be winners in Washington.
We need to step up the pressure.
I’m in. Let’s do what’s doable.