LETTERS

Anti-gun crowd won't stop until Americans are disarmed

Posted

To the Editor:

Two events last month confirmed the Second Amendment community’s suspicion that the anti-gun crowd will not stop until Americans are disarmed.

The headline in the November 4th edition of the state’s daily newspaper declares “Advocates: R.I. judges must order more gun surrenders”. Why? The Moms Demand Action subsidiary of Everytown for Gun Safety funded by multi-billionaire and presidential candidate, Michael Bloomberg, said that “over an eight-month period, judges [in Family Court] ordered firearms surrendered in 34 percent of cases where a final protective order was issued.”

Just two years ago Governor Raimondo signed into law a bill that prohibits domestic abusers from owning firearms. At the time gun control advocates wanted to eliminate judicial discretion when issuing temporary or permanent restraining orders.

When the legislation was being debated the anti-gunners were asked whether they had any evidence that those alleged abusers who were allowed to keep their guns had subsequently used one in an act of violence. Their answer was that it was beyond the scope of their analysis. Their current “study” still avoids the question.

Everytown’s lawyer claims that this year “trained volunteers” observed 289 hearings and reviewed 165 court files and found that “judges ordered gun surrenders only in cases where a domestic violence plaintiff specifically made such a request”. Thus, they say, judges are erroneously reading the law. The “Moms” want judicial discretion eliminated.

Also ignored is the fact that a victim of domestic violence is nearly three times more likely to be killed or injured by a knife or blunt instrument than by a gun. But anti-gunners aren’t concerned about facts; they rely on emotions and feelings.

On November 12 the United States Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal of a Connecticut Supreme Court ruling that allows nine families of victims of the mass shooting in Newtown against Remington Arms Company to go forward notwithstanding that firearm manufacturers are specifically exempt under federal law from being sued under product liability laws.

This civil case was brought under a bizarre reading of a broad Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act, which bans advertising or promoting illegal activity. Their argument is that if Remington had never manufactured, advertised or sold the rifle Adam Lanza obtained from his mother after he killed her, his victims at Sandy Hook Elementary School would not have been harmed.

A lawyer intimately familiar with the Second Amendment opined that the case would never survive the discovery phase. However, no firearm manufacturer has enough money to defend numerous frivolous lawsuits especially if anti-gun state attorneys general like Massachusetts’ Maura Healey and our own Peter Nehrona join class actions.

I can see the trial lawyers trolling ads on TV now: “Have you had a family member killed by gunfire? A recent Supreme Court ruling allows firearm manufacturers to be held responsible if one of their guns was used to kill a loved one. Contact the law firm of Dewey, Sooem, Ubett and Quick for a free consultation.”

Richard J. August

North Kingstown

Comments

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  • Joe_Mal

    40,000 people died last year due to firearms... 1500 due to knives. Oh sorry, you said we're "rely on emotions and feelings". The NRA has bought the spineless GOP and our headlines are filled with shootings everyday because there are too many guns in this country... even the police know it and are starting to speakout. Other developed countries knew enough to put limits and effective laws on gun owners. Meanwhile the useless GOP does nothing while gun companies pump out thousands more everyday.

    Tuesday, December 10, 2019 Report this

  • ramrodd

    Marxists who infect our government plus the media prostitutes who protect them will gleefully lie, falsify, fabricate, slander, libel, deceive, delude, bribe, and treasonably betray the free citizens of the United States into becoming an unarmed population. Unarmed populations have been treated as slaves and chattel since the dawn of history.

    Only dictators, tyrants, despots, totalitarians, and those who want to control and ultimately to enslave you support gun control.

    No matter what any politician or hard-left mainstream media tells you concerning the statist utopian fantasy of safety and security through further gun control: They are lying. If their lips are moving, they are lying about gun control. These despots truly hate America..

    These tyrants hate freedom, liberty, personal responsibility, and private property. But the reality is that our citizens’ ownership of firearms serves as a concrete deterrent against despotism. They are demanding to hold the absolute power of life and death over you and your family.

    Ask the six million J ews, and the other five million murdered martyrs who perished in the N azi death camps, how being disarmed by a powerful tyranny ended any chances of fighting back. Ask the murdered martyrs of the Warsaw Ghetto about gun control.

    Their single agenda is to control you after you are disarmed. When the people who want to control you hold the absolute power of life and death over your family, you have been enslaved.

    American Thinker

    Wednesday, December 11, 2019 Report this

  • Justanidiot

    just remember that the nra is backed by the gun industry. they are lobbyists first and for the little guy gun owner second or third

    Wednesday, December 11, 2019 Report this

  • TheSkipper

    People who support gun control should be SHOT...

    Wednesday, December 11, 2019 Report this

  • davebarry109

    More fools suggesting the NRA is controlling everyone. The NRA has only 5 million members. There are 50 million gun owners in this country. The NRA does not need to inform me of what is crystal clear. The 2nd amendment is an individual right to own a firearm. The sensationalizing of 'assault weapons' is just a tactic to take away the citizens right to protect himself and keep a tyrannical government from oppressing its citizens. The democrats are recently proclaiming the virtues of the founding fathers. The founding fathers gave us the 2nd amendment to keep government in check. The democrats cannot control our lives if we still have guns. That is what they want. Total societal control. Many are envious of the 'social awards' system being thrust upon Chinese citizens. Total control. Maybe when the protesters in Hong Kong get gunned down en masse people hear will wake up.

    From my cold dead hands.

    BTW Joe, out of the 40,000 people killed by guns, Most were suicides. Take out suicides and gang violence and the number killed by guns is tiny.

    Thursday, December 12, 2019 Report this

  • Warwick_Resident1998

    Hey Joe,

    What share of U.S. gun deaths are murders and what share are suicides?

    Though they tend to get less attention than gun-related murders, suicides have long accounted for the majority of U.S. gun deaths. In 2017, six-in-ten gun-related deaths in the U.S. were suicides (23,854), while 37% were murders (14,542), according to the CDC. The remainder were unintentional (486), involved law enforcement (553) or had undetermined circumstances (338).

    Source: https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/08/16/what-the-data-says-about-gun-deaths-in-the-u-s/

    Thursday, December 12, 2019 Report this

  • Justanidiot

    hay dave, have seen you at the well regulated militia meetings lately. you must be at home polishing your ram rod

    Friday, December 13, 2019 Report this

  • Cat2222

    If gun control isn't the answer, what is? What will stop innocent people from dying by just living their lives, going to school, going to the mall, going to their car? The only problem is the senseless killings keep happening.

    I can see both sides of the argument. We need to start a meaningful discussion on how to halt the violence that is happening with greater frequency in our nation. Both sides fighting is getting us nowhere while innocent blood is being shed. We need solutions.

    Monday, December 16, 2019 Report this