Grieving Newtown father jeered by pro-gun activists

[oneh2obabe]

A warning for gun advocates in the U.S.: the best way to show you are not a gang of bullies is not by heckling the grieving father of a dead six-year-old boy.

Neil Heslin, whose son was shot dead in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in December, was among some 1,500 people who appeared at the Gun Violence Prevention Working Group to discuss his stance on gun control.

Considering his son was gunned down by a man with a Bushmaster semi-automatic assault rifle, he had some strong feelings on the topic.

Heslin asked lawmakers to improve mental health regulations and ban assault weapons.

According to the Connecticut Post, a dozen gun enthusiasts jeered the father, shouting "Second Amendment" as he spoke.

The Second Amendment is the “right to bear arms” section of the United States Bill of Rights that pro-gun activists claim lets them own killing machines capable of decimating a room full of children in a matter of moments.

They fear that right is under attack by President Barack Obama and Vice-President Joe Biden, who are looking to implement new gun control measures.

Some of the pro-gun crowd who joined the conversation did manage to add something of substance to the conversation.

According to the Post, Bill Stevens, whose daughter attends a school in Newtown, said this: "I will tell you here today, you will take my ability to protect my Victoria from my cold, dead hands."

He made his point not by shouting over a grieving father, but waiting his turn to speak. Although it is still not clear why he would need this much firepower.

[grammafreddy]

source?

[oneh2obabe]

Google is your friend.

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/blogs/dailybre ... 24057.html

Another one
http://news.nationalpost.com/2013/01/29 ... picks=true

[grammafreddy]

Yeah, I know Google is my friend. I just wanted to know YOUR biased source, is all.

[oneh2obabe]

Not biased but it would be nice if people listened without jeering while someone was expressing their opinion. At least Bill Stevens had the decency to wait and make his point not by shouting over a grieving father, but waiting his turn to speak.

Unfortunately, no matter how hard parents try, some people never learn it's rude to interrupt when someone is speaking.

Another article about the hearing.
http://www.ctpost.com/local/article/New ... 228992.php

[oneh2obabe]

I think people appreciate that both sides of the fence have been given the opportunity to speak at the hearing. The article just pointed out that some can't/didn't show respect when an opposing view was being given. Like everything else, there's a balance that can be reached if both sides work together.

[prairieflower]

Absolute ingorance on the side of the "right to bear arms idiots" in my opinion.... I was watching the news when this came on and was disgusted by the lack of respect these morons showed this grieving father.

[Takin it easy !]

Absolute ingorance on the side of the "right to bear arms idiots" in my opinion.... I was watching the news when this came on and was disgusted by the lack of respect these morons showed this grieving father.

Yep God bless America and their right to bear arms !

[kibbs]

Bullies love guns.I pity them , their insecurities and all that end up dead from their gluttony.Let them rant ,numbers don't lie and the truth will prevail.Last post on this topic .The only thing left to do is ignore them.Good luck, recognition only fuels their hate.

[cliffy1]

Support the right to arm bears.

[SurplusElect]

Islamic Americans disagree with the government and wish to "bear arms" to take out federal government.

Reaction : create Department of Homeland Security, illegally arrest and detain and torture, walk all over the Constitution. Charge people with terrorism, put them to death or in prison for life - even if they are children.

White Americans disagree with the government and wish to "bear arms" to take out the federal government.

Reaction : Create the most powerful lobby group in the USA, fund them, exempt them from paying taxes, let them influence lawmakers to arm more people. Promote domestic terrorism.

Nice country, if your white and Christian.

[grammafreddy]

White Americans disagree with the government and wish to "bear arms" to take out the federal government.

Reaction : Create the most powerful lobby group in the USA, fund them, exempt them from paying taxes, let them influence lawmakers to arm more people. Promote domestic terrorism.

LOL - a history lesson is required here ...

A Brief History of the NRA

Dismayed by the lack of marksmanship shown by their troops, Union veterans Col. William C. Church and Gen. George Wingate formed the National Rifle Association in 1871. The primary goal of the association would be to "promote and encourage rifle shooting on a scientific basis," according to a magazine editorial written by Church.

After being granted a charter by the state of New York on November 17, 1871, the NRA was founded. Civil War Gen. Ambrose Burnside, who was also the former governor of Rhode Island and a U.S. Senator, became the fledgling NRA's first president.

An important facet of the NRA's creation was the development of a practice ground. In 1872, with financial help from New York state, a site on Long Island, the Creed Farm, was purchased for the purpose of building a rifle range. Named Creedmoor, the range opened a year later, and it was there that the first annual matches were held.

Political opposition to the promotion of marksmanship in New York forced the NRA to find a new home for its range. In 1892, Creedmoor was deeded back to the state and NRA's matches moved to Sea Girt, New Jersey.

The NRA's interest in promoting the shooting sports among America's youth began in 1903 when NRA Secretary Albert S. Jones urged the establishment of rifle clubs at all major colleges, universities and military academies. By 1906, NRA's youth program was in full swing with more than 200 boys competing in matches at Sea Girt that summer. Today, youth programs are still a cornerstone of the NRA, with more than one million youth participating in NRA shooting sports events and affiliated programs with groups such as 4-H, the Boy Scouts of America, the American Legion, U.S. Jaycees and others.

Due to the overwhelming growth of NRA's shooting programs, a new range was needed. Gen. Ammon B. Crichfield, Adjutant General of Ohio, had begun construction of a new shooting facility on the shores of Lake Erie, 45 miles east of Toledo, Ohio. Camp Perry became the home of the annual National Matches, which have been the benchmark for excellence in marksmanship ever since. With nearly 6,000 people competing annually in pistol, smallbore and highpower events, the National Matches are one of the biggest sporting events held in the country today.

Through the association's magazine, The American Rifleman, members were kept abreast of new firearms bills, although the lag time in publishing often prevented the necessary information from going out quickly. In response to repeated attacks on the Second Amendment rights, NRA formed the Legislative Affairs Division in 1934. While NRA did not lobby directly at this time, it did mail out legislative facts and analyses to members, whereby they could take action on their own. In 1975, recognizing the critical need for political defense of the Second Amendment, NRA formed the Institute for Legislative Action, or ILA.

Meanwhile, the NRA continued its commitment to training, education and marksmanship. During World War II, the association offered its ranges to the government, developed training materials, encouraged members to serve as plant and home guard members and developed training materials for industrial security. NRA members even reloaded ammunition for those guarding war plants. Incidentally, the NRA's call to help arm Britain in 1940 resulted in the collection of more than 7,000 firearms for Britain's defense against potential invasion by Germany (Britain had virtually disarmed itself with a series of gun control laws enacted between World War I and World War II).

After the war, the NRA concentrated its efforts on another much-needed arena for education and training: the hunting community. In 1949, the NRA, in conjunction with the state of New York, established the first hunter education program. Hunter Education courses are now taught by state fish and game departments across the country and Canada and have helped make hunting one of the safest sports in existence. Due to increasing interest in hunting, NRA launched a new magazine in 1973, The American Hunter, dedicated solely to hunting issues year round. NRA continues its leadership role in hunting today with the Youth Hunter Education Challenge (YHEC), a program that allows youngsters to build on the skills they learned in basic hunter education courses. YHECs are now held in 43 states and three Canadian provinces, involving an estimated 40,000 young hunters.

The American Hunter and The American Rifleman were the mainstays of NRA publications until the debut of The American Guardian in 1997. The Guardian was created to cater to a more mainstream audience, with less emphasis on the technicalities of firearms and a more general focus on self-defense and recreational use of firearms. The Guardian was renamed America's 1st Freedom in June of 2000.

Law enforcement training was next on the priority list for program development. Although a special police school had been reinstated at Camp Perry in 1956, NRA became the only national trainer of law enforcement officers with the introduction of its NRA Police Firearms Instructor certification program in 1960. Today, there are more than 10,000 NRA-certified police and security firearms instructors. Additionally, top law enforcement shooters compete each year in eight different pistol and shotgun matches at the National Police Shooting Championships held in Jackson, Mississippi.

In civilian training, the NRA continues to be the leader in firearms education. Over 55,000 Certified Instructors now train about 750,000 gun owners a year. Courses are available in basic rifle, pistol, shotgun, muzzleloading firearms, personal protection, and even ammunition reloading. Additionally, nearly 2,800 Certified Coaches are specially trained to work with young competitive shooters. Since the establishment of the lifesaving Eddie Eagle® Gun Safety Program in 1988, more than 21 million pre-kindergarten to sixth grade children have learned that if they see a firearm in an unsupervised situation, they should "STOP. DON'T TOUCH. LEAVE THE AREA. TELL AN ADULT." Over the past seven years, Refuse To Be A Victim® seminars have helped more than 15,000 men and women develop their own personal safety plan using common sense strategies.

In 1990, NRA made a dramatic move to ensure that the financial support for firearms-related activities would be available now and for future generations. Establishing the NRA Foundation, a 501 (c) (3) tax-exempt organization, provided a means to raise millions of dollars to fund gun safety and educational projects of benefit to the general public. Contributions to the Foundation are tax-deductible and benefit a variety of American constituencies, including youths, women, hunters, competitive shooters, gun collectors, law enforcement agents and persons with physical disabilities.

While widely recognized today as a major political force and as America's foremost defender of Second Amendment rights, the NRA has, since its inception, been the premier firearms education organization in the world. But our successes would not be possible without the tireless efforts and countless hours of service our nearly four million members have given to champion Second Amendment rights and support NRA programs. As former Clinton spokesman George Stephanopoulos said, "Let me make one small vote for the NRA. They're good citizens. They call their Congressmen. They write. They vote. They contribute. And they get what they want over time."

[SurplusElect]

A Brief History of the NRA

...thanks for quoting Wikipedia.

The Second Amendment promotes domestic terrorism for white, Christian Americans. The NRA is the primary protector. The focus of the gun debate in the US is a US's citizens ability to attack the government when they feel oppressed.

Up next - the Canadian government will be letting Hezbollah lobby Canadian senators to write laws. Tax exemption on all donations to Hezbollah - they can even even speak at press conferences after suicide bombings.

[grammafreddy]

...thanks for quoting Wikipedia.

Nope - right off the NRA site. http://membership.nrahq.org/about-us.asp

A little education about the NRA is a good thing. They are not the boogeyman you want to believe they are.

[SurplusElect]

A little education about the NRA is a good thing.

...and going to their self-appreciating website is the best way to learn?

The NRA / 2nd amendment promotes domestic terrorism.

The entire US gun debate hangs on this fact. They do not want the ability to "take out the government with guns" taken away from them.

So what about American Islamic terrorists? They don't like the US government. Shouldn't the US be spending tens of millions of dollars to make sure they have access to dynamite and blasting caps?

Its the American way.