In May 2006, a small group of mayors, including ousted Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels, were invited to a “summit” in New York by Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino to found Mayors Against Illegal Guns.
The purported idea was to get so-called “illegal guns” off the streets; a lofty goal for sure, but might it not be a better idea to get criminals off the streets instead?
Of course, removing a criminal element from society has never been the MAIG goal. This group, which now boasts more than 400 members claiming to represent 56 million American citizens – legions of whom are undoubtedly law-abiding gun owners who are steadfastly opposed to more gun control measures – is only focused on removing what it calls “illegal guns” from society.
At the time, the Bellevue-based Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms correctly categorized this group as one more gun prohibitionist lobby. If this group was truly interested in solving crime without bothering law-abiding gun owners, its members would already be sitting down with gun rights organizations.
We're offering to take guns I guess off the street or from people who don't want them anymore. I'm calling it unwanted guns. And we're recycling them back into the community." Barry Bauer, Herb Bauer Sporting Goods
If Nickels had traveled across Lake Washington to visit with the CCRKBA and its sister organization, the Second Amendment Foundation, instead of rubbing elbows with the extremists at Washington CeaseFire and lobbying on behalf of their agenda, he might not have lost his job in last month’s mayoral primary. It may have even been a public relations coup. Instead, his rants against legally-carried firearms on public property and his threat to ban them by executive order despite state statute and state constitutional provisions against such a ban lost every critical vote from gun owners in his city. Instead of cooperating with the mayor on some truly beneficial enterprise, SAF and CCRKBA have been poised to sue Nickels the moment he inked such an order.
All of that said, nobody has ever clearly defined what constitutes an “illegal gun.” Perhaps it is because there really is no such thing, and the MAIG ringleaders know it.
A firearm may be illegally possessed by some criminal.
It may have been illegally altered for some criminal enterprise.
It may have been illegally purchased by someone who could legally buy a gun, on behalf of some scumbag who could not.
But when that gun left the factory, it was a legally-manufactured, highly-regulated and carefully inspected product that worked exactly as it was designed to work. The firearm does not determine its own destiny. It is an inanimate object as incapable of breaking the law as a hammer used to bludgeon someone.
MAIG has made a big deal out of partnering with Wal-Mart to prevent illegal gun sales, but the National Shooting Sports Foundation beat them to the draw with its highly acclaimed “Don’t Lie for the Other Guy” program.
It claims to support “gun safety” measures, but the National Rifle Association already wrote the book on that subject, and has a nationwide network of firearms safety instructors whose services have never been enlisted by anti-gun metropolitan mayors.
Firearms will be taken with no questions asked, Chief Nick Kaiser said. The person turning in the weapon will receive a $150 gift certificate to Crossgates Mall.
MAIG supports so-called “gun buyback” programs, which are essentially fraudulent in that they subliminally suggest that the guns being collected by police departments were once owned by them or the government at large. Furthermore, these programs give the false impression that somehow violent crime will be reduced because people turn in a bunch of junk guns for money or gift certificates, “no questions asked.”
Recently in Fresno, CA an enterprising gun store, Herb Bauer Sporting Goods, started its own gun buyback with one clever difference. Instead of destroying the guns, this shop “recycles” them back into the community by selling them to law-abiding citizens.
MAIG says it does not want people illegally carrying guns. By the most phenomenal of coincidences, neither do the millions of law-abiding American gun owners. Trouble arises, however, with MAIG members like Nickels, who simply cannot acknowledge that citizens can legally carry guns every day, not only concealed, but openly, depending upon the jurisdiction.
A gun carried legally is not an “illegal gun.”
Bloomberg and his cohorts would like very broad latitude to determine who can and cannot own or carry a gun. Gun rights activists submit this authority is not really theirs; they cannot simply disarm citizens by fiat.
They are mayors, not monarchs. That the leaders of this bunch would happily outlaw all guns does not make it so.
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And Don’t forget to visit:
For more info: National Shooting Sports Foundation. National Rifle Association. Second Amendment Foundation. Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms.
Comments
Because the group is created by Bloomie, he is using NYS definitions.
Because we have a possession law on guns, any gun possessed by a non-licensee, is an 'illegal' gun. Simply put, in NYS, you can not possess, or even touch, a gun without a license. So, he pushes the phrase 'illegal gun,' as it sounds so good..
All states, except NYS, do not have a possession law on guns, so hence, they can't have an 'illegal' gun.
Like Hitler's head people knew, tell a lie enough times, and it becomes the truth. Bloomie is a king, when it comes to propaganda.
Can’t be certain on this one, but it’s not unusual for 'officials' to use confiscated tax-dollars and legitimize travel to most anywhere.
Bloomberg’s well-aware he doesn’t have to travel very far at all, knowing there’s a disproportionate amount of gun (& sex) crimes committed in public housing and on publicly-owned property. Likely as not the case is the same in every city represented by other Mayors in the coalition.
One might tend to think that if public servants can’t stop gun crimes in areas they’re directly responsible for and supposedly under their control--it’s not likely they’ll be effective anywhere else...even less likely in safe and secure meeting places.
Since no stats have been forthcoming touting any of their personal successes, the question of how many MAIG’s it takes to get one ‘illegal’ gun away from any criminal must be inferred as more than 400.
Note that individual Citizens accomplish this task on a daily basis at their own expense, (not to mention peril)
Under some law or another, any person, act or thing can be declared illegal.
Stealing another person’s money is illegal.
Depriving another person of their ‘Rights’ is the very basis of an actual crime and thus constitutes a prosecutable criminal offense.
That is, EXCEPT; for those who enact ‘laws’ making systematic, institutionalized theft legal.
EXCEPT; for those who enact laws making denial and intentional deprivation of ‘Rights’ legal and under other laws, immunize themselves from liability and culpability--not only for their personal actions, but for the consequences of their actions on others.
With the aforementioned in mind...
If all the 'illegal' guns were placed in one pile and all the 'legal' Mayors in another pile, which of the two piles would represent the greater danger and most likely contain something criminal?
Problem is, NSSF promotes safe and responsible OWNERSHIP.
MAIG try to promote NO OWNERSHIP.
Why would anyone choose to live in a Police State? There's no "Berlin Wall" around New York. Vote with your feet and deprive them of your tax dollars. Research states with less gun laws and more freedom and move there. Leave New York to the crooks (including the crooked politicians).
These people belong to the Axis of Idiots. Either that they are trying to become dictators. Look at art. 4 in the US Const. We are two states away from a const. conven. where a 2/3 majourity of the representatives of the states at the conv. can do anything they want with the const. That is what the oldbummer crowd is trying to do while the some of them blow up great smokescreens. and we discuss the smoke. That and hireing new reps by ballot is what we should be doing. as the man sid, DEATH TO TYRANTS! make them know they cannot treasd of us.
Altering a gun from its original form does not make its owner illegal, except that an unconstitutional law says so.
If the criminal is a free man (not incarcerated), then he can own a firearm (No free man should be debarred arms.)
A person cannot illegally buy a gun for someone who shouldn't have it, for the same reason as above.
Maybe a constitutional convention wouldn't be such a bad thing. Article 4 also says the 3/4 of the states have to ratify whatever they come up with. Perhaps we would
1) eliminate the income tax (not replacing it with anything) - starve the Federal gov't out of all of its unconstitutional intrusion
2) strengthen the 2nd amendment - take out that confusing part about the militia
3) require a balanced budget
4) Add term limits for ALL Federal elected positions
5) Require all gov't services to be bid out to private industry
6) Establish that the death penalty is ok with DNA evidence
7) Remove Federal pensions for elected officials - since they can only serve two terms
8) Require random drug testing for any recipient of Federal funds, including students and faculty at universities
I could probably think of some more but that's a good start.
"Illegal guns", according to these hoplophobes, are any guns not owned by the police or the military. It doesn't matter to them if the guns are bought through proper channels, with paperwork completed - in their mind it's an "illegal gun".
Why oh why to these idiot politicians keep getting elected? Bloomberg,is a disgrace to the society he is supposed to do good for. And, by the way, he always travels with armed body guards. Diane Fienstiene has a ccw permit. Mayor Daily, always with armed protection when out and about. Get rid of the criminals, and you will be rid of the "illegal" guns. Obviously, you can not get rid of all the criminals, so you can not get rid of all the "illegal" guns. Stop voting these knuckle heads into office, and we won't have to be constantly fighting to keep a right that all decent citizens should have.
Thanks for another great article.Next time maybe you could hit on the fact that the gun banners' terms themselves are designed to play on most people's ignorance and that they suggest things that are simply not true.For instance,as you pointed out,there really is no such thing as an "illegal gun",yet the hoplophobe promoters like Mayor Bloomberg constantly use the term to reinforce in the public's mind that there are such,nor can anyone who is an American citizen own or carry a gun "illegally" because the Constitution,the supreme law of the land,guarantees their right to do so.Yet the gun banner term "reasonable control" has been and still is,likewise,used to pass an endless stream of unconstitutional gun ban laws that "infringe" on Americans' Constitutional right to keep and bear arms.The amazing thing to me is that the gun banner terms, propaganda,and laws have been so successful to the point that now we see people just accept these outrageous attacks on our freedom and liberty.
Illegal guns? How about an illegal that was elected? How about illegal drugs? The number of 400 is greatly exaggerated due to the recent dips in polls and the number of mayors are dropping like flies. It's funny how it's no longer hip to proclaim that being a Marxist or Socialist is cool when affects their re-election chances. Too bad Van Jones doesn't use one of the "illegal" items on himself.
RealAmerican , please don't try to help us by spewing the nonsensical crap about "illegal that was elected"
Spewing crap like that, well, you're doing more damage than help to pur cause.
Lets stick to facts.
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