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A peeve

I hate when someone uses weasel words like failed to mention or never mention. Not mentioning something proves little, generally, unless it’s a blatant omission of some kind. But my real peeve about it is that it 1) generally implies intent to deceive; and 2) is usually a bullshit claim.

Take for example this:

As gun lobbyists often point out, states with stringent gun-safety laws such as New York often have some of the highest firearm murder rates in the country. The implication is that stringent gun laws don’t work.

However, what the lobbyists never mention is that the firearms used to kill and maim people in states with stringent gun laws often flow from states with weaker laws.

Well, what Maureen Downey fails to mention is that most crime guns are also stolen. Stealing is illegal. She also fails to mention that moving guns into NY is also generally illegal. Something about criminals not obeying the law comes to mind. She continues:

Using federal gun-tracing data, New York identified out-of-state dealers — including five in Georgia — who had sold weapons linked to more than 500 crimes in the city from 1994 to 2001.

The city dispatched teams of private detectives with hidden cameras to the dealerships to see how easy it would be for an illegal buyer to walk in and get a gun in a “straw” purchase. That’s when a buyer who legally can’t own a gun — mainly because he has a criminal record — brings a pal to fill out the mandated federal background check.

New York confirmed that certain dealers were more than willing to engage in the straw sales that feed the gun trafficking pipeline. After the city caught 15 dealers selling guns to straw buyers, it filed a lawsuit in May that the gun lobby dismissed as a joke.

She fails to mention that said sting is illegal. That said sting is being investigated by the ATF because it’s illegal. And that the dealers (along with Bob Barr) are suing the city of NY. Still, more:

Well, two of the five Georgia gun dealers named in the lawsuit agreed to settle last week, suggesting that the lawsuit wasn’t so silly after all. The shop owners agreed to strict monitoring of their sales practices and financial penalties on any future violations.

She fails to mention that those dealers are pawn shops, who sell guns the way Wal-Mart does meaning that they do so to make money and not because they’re into guns. Still more idiocy:

New York’s sting operation refutes the National Rifle Association’s fairy tale that guns fall from the skies into the hands of criminals, and the NRA’s response has been telling. It is now pushing Congress to pass a law that would prohibit the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives from releasing gun trace information to anyone but a police department investigating a particular crime.

Actually, we pro-gun types never say that. We say guns are stolen. And the only reason gun trace data should be available is to search for a crime. If it’s merely used as a data-mining exercise, that is flatly illegal as federal law prohibits any system of registration of firearms, firearms owners, or firearms transactions and dispositions.

She also asserts:

The proposed changes come at a time when the FBI is reporting a rise in violent crime, especially in mid-size cities. Police are beginning to tie newly legalized assault weapons with increased gang violence. (When Congress refused to renew the ban on assault rifles two years ago, who did it think would be the market for AK-47s, Uzis and Tec-9 pistols — the Rotary Club?)

She fails to mention a source of that info and it doesn’t jibe with any statistics I’ve seen anywhere. I’d say it’s made up. She also fails to mention that Ak-47s and Uzis have been banned (and remain so) since 1986. And the company that made the Tec-9 has gone out of business.

She fails to mention quite a few materially significant things. But, then, she has to in order to believe the horse shit she writes. You can let her know that by emailing her at mdowney@ajc.com.

3 Responses to “A peeve”

  1. Guav Says:

    I shot her an e-mail, we’ll see if she replies.

  2. SayUncle » Others were peeved too Says:

    […] In an update to this idiotic piece by Maureen Downey, readers at AJC respond with the obvious: Blaming the crime rate in New York and other gun-restrictive cities, such as Washington, D.C., on legal gun laws in other areas is the anti-gun lobby’s stock argument. They never suggest that the super-strict banning of weapons in these cities leads to higher crime rates in these cities. […]

  3. SayUncle » This canard is growing legs Says:

    […] First, we saw it here: The proposed changes come at a time when the FBI is reporting a rise in violent crime, especially in mid-size cities. Police are beginning to tie newly legalized assault weapons with increased gang violence. (When Congress refused to renew the ban on assault rifles two years ago, who did it think would be the market for AK-47s, Uzis and Tec-9 pistols — the Rotary Club?) […]

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