I like meeting goals.
Last year, the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence gave Ohio a failing grade, awarding us 13 out of a possible 100 points. I said at the time, and reiterated it in an article earlier this year, that one of my goals was "to expand freedoms for gun owners and lower our Brady score as much as possible." Mission accomplished.
The latest Brady report card shows Ohio with just 11 out of 100 points!
They are very disappointed in us. The biggest complaint seems to be the "gun show loophole," which doesn't really exist. What they claim is a loophole is really just the fact that a private citizen can sell a gun at a gun show under the exact same laws and procedures that would be followed anywhere else. Ohio was also awarded zero points in categories such allowing random police inspections of gun owners, handgun rationing laws, ballistic fingerprinting, microstamping, requiring permits to purchase guns, requiring all new gun sales to be "smart guns", assault weapon bans, magazine bans, and other such nonsensical requirements that do nothing to solve or reduce crime.
Despite this great success, Ohio still has some work to do. Utah managed to get a perfect zero score this year, so we have something to shoot for, pun intended. The real tragedy is California, which got the higest score of 79 points.
Fortunately, most of the country realizes that restricting the freedoms of the people not committing the crimes does nothing to reduce those crimes in the first place.
Allowing the police to show up at my door to check my guns isn't going to stop a gang banger in Cleveland from selling a stolen handgun. One-gun-a-month gun rationing doesn't apply to black market sales. Ballistic fingerprinting has proven to be a failed concept. Microstamping is a proprietary technology being pushed by its inventor for personal gain and has never even proven itself under field conditions. Requiring lawful gun owners to get a permit from the government before exercising a right does nothing to stop illegal gun sales. Smart guns don't even exist in production and the technology is so flawed that law enforcement agencies refuse to even consider testing them. Assault Weapons Bans have been proven by the government as ineffective in reducing crime as have magazine bans which are usually included.
Gun control is a failed experiment, and I'm proud of Ohio's grade. Now, let's aim lower.
Comments
Way to go Daniel. Thanks for all you do to help. Maybe next year we can get below 10. Restaurant carry ought to do the trick.
It's worth noting devised that The Brady Campaign's rating system reflects the standards advocated by the Legal Community Against Violence (LCAV) in their report “Regulating Guns in America. An Evaluation and Comparative Analysis of Federal, State and Selected Local Gun Laws.”
The LCAV includes lawyers suing gun makers for gun crimes. No conflict of interest there. Unfortunately.
www.thetruthaboutguns.com
Keep up the good work sir.
Yay! An article on gun control by person who is actually smart! Kudos to you.
Our goal should, and always shall be, to have a score of "0". This will ensure the citizens of Ohio that the freedoms guarranteed us in the Constitution and Bill of Rights, will never be taken from us. The goal of the Brady Campaign is the total destruction of America and the freedoms enjoyed by all. The Founding Fathers would have them labeled as "traitors" and have them all hung.
I looked at the Brady site and good old Idaho only had 2 points, that is ok ,but 2 is to many points.
WOO HOO!!! The only time we can be proud of a state failing! Thanks OFCC for helping achieve this, hopefully the Brady Nazis will give us a lower grade next year and eventually disband.
Lets not get too comfortable here, we can always slip back up again.........single digits, here we come.
It's chilling to see that with all the restrictions in place in California, it still only scores 79/100 with them. This shows just how much more they really dream of accomplishing.
Callin’ it the way I see it, these anti-American, anti-rights groups are filled with misguided, misdirected and some really pathetic people.
None of ’em keep guns out of the wrong hands. None of ’em disarm any criminals. None of ’em take responsibility for themselves like all responsible adults have been required to do since before the official founding of America and provide themselves with arms, and if their ban-the-gun ideas worked at all, Washington D.C. with the strictest gun laws on the books and filled with armed government agents would be the safest, most crime free place in America. Fact is, the District’s crime rate is something every American should be ashamed of, and since the Brady Campaign’s H.Q’s in the District, that says it all in my book.
If their hairbrained ideas won’t won’t work in D.C., they won’t work anywhere. Sensible Gun Laws Save Lives was in the top five list of the dumbest statements I ever heard. ( Got pushed down one notch with Vote For Change. )
The BC'ers and VPC'ers aren't a solution, more an example of a symptom of a real problem that goes a whole lot deeper than meets the eye. If the men in D.C. would throw down their Brady Campaign signs and take up muskets and head into those high crime areas and roust the violent gang members that’d be a start toward cleaning up D.C.
Givin’ credit where credit is due though, there’s an idea in that scorecard worth some thought. Someone who has the time ( I don’t, cause I have to produce something to make a living ) might make a scorecard and track the numbers of violent criminals the justice system puts back on the streets and keep stats on the number of citizens that get robbed, assaulted, raped and murdered as a result. Another category could be for instances when armed citizens stop criminals in the act and a 10 score rating for those who defend themselves and the outcome is stopping a career criminal in their tracks permanently.
Sensible Criminal Control Laws Save Lives
As noted earlier, even Kalifornia only gets a C. What would it take to get an A? I suppose that if private gun ownership were banned, it would put a state in the running for a B from these loonies. It also worth mentioning that the higher the Brady grade, the more violent crime there is.
I don't know about aiming lower though. We get 5 points for a mandatory reporting of lost or stolen guns. I don't think that really needs to be mandatory, but you really should report it if your gun was stolen. It could defiantly save your skin if it is stolen and used in a crime!
We get 2 points because you must be 21 to buy a handgun. I was 18 not to long ago, I remember my 18 year old peers, I don't think most of them should own a gun! If you parents think your responsible enough to own one, they can more or less buy you one anyways.
Finally, we get the final 4 points because colleges and employers aren't required to allow handguns on the premises. I kind of like this one too. I carry every day and think I should be able to carry anywhere I choose. I'm not hurting anyone. However, I also don't like it when the government tells people what to do.
I do believe though that the owners or employers of a businesses or school should be held 100% responsible for you safety if they don't allow you to protect yourself. There is no doubt that Ohio needs to reform some of their laws. If we cant get H.B. 203 passed, then restaurants should at least be required to hang a sign that says they serve alcohol.
Did you know chukie cheese serves alcohol? I sure didn't, oops! What's worse law abiding citizens who are capable of saving your child's life or unattended open containers of alcohol, that look kind of like koolaid, and can kill you child???
It is your responsibility to take care of your family. If I had a child, and they wanted to go to chukie cheese, I wouldn't care what the law says, I would carry anyways...
Got something to say?
Examiner.com is looking for writers, photographers, and videographers to join the fastest growing group of local insiders. If you are interested in growing your online rep apply to be an Examiner today!