Let's take a whiff of what National Rifle Association CEO Wayne LaPierre is spewing.
He blames the Parkland mass murder on the FBI, the police, the lack of school security – but not the easy availability of the assault rifle wielded at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. He calls the NRA to a war footing. Says more gun-safety laws mean creeping “socialism” in America. Thumbs his nose at student survivors of the massacre. Anyone who advocates getting assault rifles off the streets, says LaPierre, simply wants to “eliminate the Second Amendment” and make us “less free.” But the Never Again movement, led by children more formidable than he realizes, is not about taking away reasonable guns used for hunting, skeet, target shooting or personal protection. Never Again is no threat to the Second Amendment. We should tighten school security and bolster background checks. We do need law enforcement to perform better. But let's apply common sense. Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia, like most of the world, have police who make mistakes, schools that aren't fortresses and a fair share of mentally ill folks. Unlike America, however, they do not allow assault rifles. They do not have mass killings, not like we do. That's also ignored by Sen. Marco Rubio (R.-Fla.), NRA spokeswoman Dana Loesch and Donald Trump. Rubio and Loesch showed fortitude in appearing before 7,000 mostly hostile community members at CNN's town hall, not far from Marjory Stoneman Douglas in Parkland. Trump had his own televised round-table in the White House. Apply the smell test: Rubio says it's impossible to ban assault rifles because manufacturers can find loopholes to make weapons legal ... OK, close the loopholes. Or make all semi-automatic weapons illegal, as suggested sarcastically by Rubio – but loudly applauded by the crowd. Rubio says the NRA hasn't bought his support by giving him millions. They just admire his stance on gun control ... Even a child – like those showing such courage now – can see through that. Rubio says he is finally considering limits on super-sized assault-rifle magazines because of the Parkland massacre ... Really? He needed Parkland to make him aware that extra bullets let a shooter kill faster without having to reload? Rubio says a previous ban on the AR-15 and assault rifles like it didn't work ... Except, it did. It was in place from 1994-2004, and significantly reduced crime related to those weapons. Since the law lapsed? Tragedies have accelerated. Newtown, Aurora, Orlando, San Bernardino, Sutherland Springs, Las Vegas, Parkland. Who's next? Loesch turned combative on questioners, even students, putting on her tough talk-show personna and wielding NRA talking points like a club. The Second Amendment is sacred and has no limits. The FBI and the Broward County sheriff's office are to blame for the killings. And the media. She dodged questions about assault rifles, even when challenged by a gutsy Parkland survivor … LaPierre ought to give Loesch a raise with, as one student called it, “NRA blood money.” At his round-table, Trump clutched a hand-printed note card that – magnified by cameras – reminded him to greet his guests, listen to them, ask for ideas. Sort of a teleprompter for dummies. After everyone finished, Trump brought up his own idea: Arm teachers. Put a gun in classrooms ... Even Rubio cringed at that. For those who want to wipe away the slime of moronic, self-serving, evasive comments and outright lies, there's inspiration to be found. Check out the original song “Shine,” written and performed at the town hall by the Stoneman Douglas drama club: “We're Putting Up a Fight / You May Have Brought the Dark / But Together We Will Shine a Light.” The children shall lead. - Paul, Metairie Indivisible
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