Tuesday, November 06, 2007

The Truth Hurts Like a Good Spanking

Two days ago, on November 4, 2007, The Real Gun Guys Posted The Journalist's Guide to Gun Violence Coverage. Two days later, on November 6, 2007, CNN.com publishd on the front page of their website Cops find themselves in arms race with criminals. Let's have a rundown:

RGG:

The first principle to remember is that subtle use of terminology can covertly influence the reader. Adjectives should be chosen for maximum anti-gun effect. When describing a gun, attach terms like "automatic," "semi-automatic," "large caliber," "deadly," "high powered," or "powerful". Almost any gun can be described by one or more of these terms. More than two guns should be called an "arsenal".

Try to include the term "assault weapon" if at all possible. This can be combined with any of the terms above for best results. Nobody actually knows what an assault weapon is, so you cannot be criticized for this usage. Your local anti-gun organization can provide you with a list of the latest buzz words like "junk guns," "Saturday Night Specials," and "the criminal’s weapon of choice".
CNN:

Designed to be fired from the hip, assault rifles such as the AK-47 can spray at a rate of up to 600 rounds a minute in full automatic mode. It is the weapon of choice for guerillas and gangsters.

There's no doubt that urban street warfare, aided by a proliferation of cheap automatic weapons, has come even to Palm Beach County, once high society's vacation mecca and a retirement destination for northern snowbirds.

"They don't have .38s anymore. They have AK-47s. ...They have automatic weapons now," said Sgt. Pfeil.

The Miami Police Department said 15 of its 79 homicides last year involved assault weapons, up from the year before. So far this year, 12 of 60 killings have involved the high-powered arms.
Score: RGG 4, CNN 0.

RGG:

Whenever drug dealers are arrested, guns are usually confiscated by the police. Mention the type and number of guns more prominently than the type and quantity of drugs.
CNN:

The Miami police department evidence room has seized AK-47s, AR-15s and an assortment of other automatic and semiautomatic weapons piled on shelves from floor to ceiling.
Score: RGG 5, CNN 0

RGG:

Never question the effectiveness of gun control laws or proposals. Guns are evil and kill people. Removing guns from society can only be good.
CNN:

Chief Timoney says he started noticing an increase since the federal assault weapon ban lapsed in 2004. Since then, he says homicides in the city of Miami involving assault weapons have been up -- 18 percent last year and 20 percent this year.
Score: RGG 6, CNN 0.

RGG:

Little space should be devoted to shootings where criminals kill each other. Although these deaths greatly inflate the annual gun violence numbers, they distract from the basic mission of urging law abiding citizens to give up their guns. Do not dig too deeply into the reasons behind shootings. The fact that a gun was involved is the major point, unless someone under 18 is affected, in which case the child angle is now of equal importance.
CNN:
...

Score: RGG 7, CNN 0.

RGG:
Any article about gun violence should include quotes from anti-gun organizations or politicians. One quote should say that we must do something "for the children". Anti-gun spokespersons should be called "activists" or "advocates". If your employer wishes to appear unbiased, you can include one token quote from a gun lobby group to show that you are being fair. The anti-gun statements should be accepted as fact.
CNN:

Across the country, at least 62 police officers have been gunned down this year -- a record pace, said Robert Tessaro, the associate director for law enforcement relations for the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence.
Score: RGG 8, CNN 0.

So the Real Gun Guys have routed CNN. Not to mention the outright lies told by CNN. Let's make a note:

"It's not nice we have to arm ourselves like the soldiers in Iraq," said Sgt. Laurie Pfeil, who supervises a sheriff's road patrol in Palm Beach County and is now certified to carry a semiautomatic AR-15 rifle on the job. It's the civilian version of the military's M-16 used by U.S. soldiers in Iraq.
Maybe not a lie, but not exactly true. They have a picture with a similar caption, and the rifle shown in the caption is the civilian version of the M4, not the M16.

Designed to be fired from the hip, assault rifles such as the AK-47 can spray at a rate of up to 600 rounds a minute in full automatic mode. It is the weapon of choice for guerillas and gangsters.
ASSAULT RIFLES ARE NOT DESIGNED TO BE FIRED FROM THE HIP! ARGH! See my own post on the subject from some time ago. And there's the obfuscation of fully automatic rifles, which are not common among America's criminals.

Cops prefer to squeeze off single shots in semiautomatic mode because it makes for more accurate shooting. Some semiautomatic weapon's can fire with pinpoint accuracy from as far as 100 yards away.
But... but... I thought they were designed to be spray fired from the hip? And they can't even get the booga booga facts right. Those AR's can fire accurately past 300 yards or more, depending on the skill level of the rifleman.

"They don't have .38s anymore. They have AK-47s. ...They have automatic weapons now," said Sgt. Pfeil.
You know, it seems to me that they've lost the latest "assault weapons" battles, so to speak, and they're counter-attacking with the same crap they used in the '90s to get the ball rolling in the first place. The real clincher that they ARE ALL FULL OF SHIT is this:

He lays the blame squarely on lawmakers who allowed the assault weapons ban to expire in 2004.
Read my lips: THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE! How can the lifting of a ban on features such as bayonet mounts, flash suppressors (but not muzzle breaks), grenade launchers (WWII variety) and the like have POSSIBLY MADE ANY DIFFERENCE? Look at the graphic below:

Illegal "Assault Weapon" during the "ban"



Legal "Assault Weapon" during the "ban"



CNN, grow up, grow some balls, and try to be honest in the future.

7 Comments:

Blogger Stickwick Stapers said...

He lays the blame squarely on lawmakers who allowed the assault weapons ban to expire in 2004.

This is assuming criminals pay attention to weapons bans in the first place.

11/06/2007 9:04 PM  
Blogger mikej said...

Some years ago, I read a Chicago Tribune story about a man who was shot with a "bolt action assault rifle," actually an old milsurp Mauser. I wish I could still find it on the web.

I vaguely recall reading somewhere that cops have been replacing their traditional shotguns with AR-15s simply because the .223 round has less penetration in common building materials than 00 buckshot. The transition doesn't necessarily have anything to do with gang violence or "urban warfare."

When I was living in Miami in 1980, I read a story about a Cuban "cocaine cowboy" named Miguel Miranda in the Miami Herald's Sunday magazine. Police and the DEA took an interest in Miranda when they found two bodies in a washing machine carton with Miranda's address on it. Rocket scientist Miranda owned a number of illegal automatic weapons, but did all of his killings with the same .22 Hi-Standard semi-auto pistol. I expect that pistols remain the weapon of choice for routine gangland assassinations.

CNN can't even tell the truth about Palm Beach County. Palm Beach, the playground of the rich and famous, is an island separated from the mainland by the intracoastal waterway, also known as the Great Divide. The mainland part of Palm Beach County has always been less pretentious, and is now a typical Latin American city. It is somewhat amazing that CNN could find three Anglo police officers to interview in South Florida, most English-speaking Americans having left long ago.

11/07/2007 7:19 AM  
Blogger BobG said...

CHICAGO COP SHOT BY ROOFTOP SNIPER
Suspect, 19, Said He Was Firing at Streetlights
July 19, 1999

By Pete Brush

CHICAGO (APBNews.com) -- A veteran West Side policeman responding to a call of shots fired was seriously wounded by a sniper's
bullet Sunday, police said today.

Shortly thereafter, police arrested a 19-year-old in connection with the shooting as he climbed from the roof of a nearby building.

Jorge Negrette of West 51st Place was charged with attempted first-degree murder on a police officer and aggravated battery with
a firearm in connection with the shooting, which took place just after 2 a.m. Sunday in the 2000 block of South Rockwell, police
spokesman Cesar Guzman said.

A Model 98 bolt-action assault rifle was found on a nearby roof after the shooting, police said. Guzman described the weapon as a
large-caliber, high-powered sniper's rifle. Ballistics tests conducted Sunday showed the trajectory of the shot to be consistent with
the location of the recovered rifle.

Bullet passed through arm, leg

Police said Negrette told them he had been trying to shoot out streetlights. It was unclear whether the suspect recognized that his
victim was a police officer, but Guzman characterized the shooting as "intentional."

Michael Ytsen, a 29-year veteran, sustained serious damage to his left forearm, Guzman said today, and will likely need major
reconstructive surgery to repair the damage. The bullet passed through the door of the car before passing through the officer's left
forearm and upper left leg and lodging in his upper right leg, Guzman said.

Guzman said today that police believe the gunfire was gang-related but did not give details.

Negrette was slated for a bond hearing today. No information was available on whether the suspect had a prior criminal record.


Pete Brush is an APBNews.com correspondent.

11/07/2007 5:24 PM  
Blogger carnaby said...

Bolt action assault rifle, nice :p


Thanks BobG

11/07/2007 6:43 PM  
Blogger mikej said...

BobG, you da man! I knew I should have saved that story.

11/09/2007 8:43 AM  
Blogger BobG said...

I guess maybe during WWI it was a top "assault rifle"...

11/09/2007 9:53 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

[Police spokesman] Guzman described the weapon as a large-caliber, high-powered sniper's rifle.
A Mauser Gew. 98 variant? "High-powered," arguably yes (like most WWI/WWII-vintage rifle rounds). "Sniper rifle," maybe, but only if you're talking about an accurized version equipped with a scope (and if it was in the hands of 19 year-old, that's highly unlikely). But in what universe is 7.92x57mm "large-caliber"?

Evidently, Chicago PD's public affairs office didn't bother asking the opinion of someone who actually knows something about guns either.

11/11/2007 8:56 PM  

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