Wednesday, February 28, 2018

Four sensible gun laws that would have an effect

Scientific American published an article that research shows actually reduces gun violence.  Here is a summary of the article:
  1. Require permits to purchase - rather than background checks, which are done by sellers and aren't really complied with, this would require in person applications for a permit with local law enforcement.  10 states do this and it resulted in a 68% reduced risk of guns being diverted to criminals.
  2. Ban individuals convicted of any violent crime from gun purchase.  Not just domestic abuse convictions, but all violent crime convictions would ban you from buying guns for life.
  3. Make all serious domestic violence offenders surrender firearms.  Apparently, the current law only asks offenders to voluntarily surrender their guns.  A study showed that relinquishment laws are 50% more effective than non-relinquishment laws.  Tempers flare in domestic situations, and if guns are available...
  4. Temporarily ban active alcohol abusers from firearms.  Research says that DUI offenders are 4 - 5 times more likely to violent crime than those with no criminal record.  The suggestion is no guns allowed for those with two or more DUIs in the last five years.
These are specific and targeted gun laws that would focus on high risk gun buyers and be of no threat to Second Amendment advocates who are afraid that a tyrannical government is out to confiscate their guns and establish a totalitarian police state.

I think these are well thought out.  Too bad they won't be considered by the NRA and their Republicans elected officials afraid of NRA condemnation.
 

Saturday, February 17, 2018

Mueller indicts the Russians

Friday was a very important day in the history of American democracy. Robert Mueller and the Justice Department indicted Russians for interfering with United States elections, including the 2016 presidential election in opposition to Hillary, and in favor of Trump and Sanders. 

This confirms what our intelligence agencies have been saying for well over a year. This is a very big step toward stopping Russian interference in our democracy. 

Our president immediately tweeted that he was vindicated and that there was no collusion between him and Russia. 

Right. 

Wouldn’t it be nice if our administration was actually leading the efforts to stop Russian influence on our elections rather than helping cover up Russia’s attack on America?

Friday, February 9, 2018

By his actions you shall know him...

Donald Trump is apparently refusing to release the Democratic rebuttal to the Nunes memo.  The Nunes memo was supposed to totally discredit the Mueller investigation into Russian interference in our 2016 election, but failed pathetically.  The notion of that memo was that the investigation was based upon former MI5 intelligence officer Steel's dosier, which was paid for by the Hillary campaign, was actually initiated by anti-Trump conservatives during the primary season.  But, the memo itself recounted that the investigation had started earlier when Trump foreign policy advisor George Papadopoulos drunkenly told an Australian diplomat that the Russians had dirt on Hillary.  That diplomat was so distressed at the interference into the U.S. election process that they informed U.S. intelligence.  And the investigation began into Russian interference.  

So - Nunes memo - dud.

The outraged Democrats claimed that the Nunes memo was cherry picked and distorted and just a political hit job to protect Trump.  So, they called for a vote to release a Democratic memo rebuttal.  Trump won't release it.  Why? Forget the silly, transparent excuses.  It is obvious why.  Trump wants only one story out there, his story that the Mueller probe is a political hit job against him.

An innocent president would have immediately been outraged when all 14 intelligence agencies concluded that a hostile foreign power, Russia, had interfered with the American election.  An innocent president would have done everything in his or her power to investigate the Russian interference and prosecute the guilty regardless of who would fall.  An innocent president would have put in place a very formidable governmental effort to stop them from doing it again, and from doing it now - which they are doing now. 

A guilty president would have denied that there was any interference from the Russians.  A guilty president would have done everything he could to stop the investigation into Russian interference.  A guilty president would have obstructed justice by firing the head of the FBI in charge of that investigation. A guilty president would have the same party committee chairman issue a false memo to invalidate the investigation.  A guilty president would fire the man at the FBI that is in charge of the Mueller investigation.  A guilty president would fire Mueller.

A guilty president would force his own impeachment.
 

Wednesday, February 7, 2018

Donnie wants a Big Parade



Oh my goodness.  What a child the Republican elected president is. Donnie wants a really big military parade.  Like the French do on Bastille Day. 

Congress is fighting tooth and nail over a budget, with how much money to spend on the military being a very contentious issue, and this little boy in the White House wants to spend millions of military budget on…a parade.



I guess that is better than nuking North Korea, and maybe if he can get his Big Powerful Military Leader feelings by looking at a parade rather than starting WWIII we should all be grateful.