Pro-Gun Activist on Kid Shootings: "In all honesty, I really don't care."

Most pro-gun activists will make a real effort to convince you that they really do care about gun violence, while simultaneously insisting that there is absolutely nothing that can be done to prevent it (thereby conveniently absolving themselves of any responsibility to have to do something about it). But recently we met two pro-gunners who just came out and told it like it is!

The conversation in question happened on February 20, 2012 on the Facebook page of the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence. One of our fans had posted a link to a disturbing new blog, "Kid Shootings." The description of the blog is as follows:

Kid Shootings is a collaborative effort brought to you by authors from Ceasefire Oregon Education Foundation, Protect Minnesota, and States United Against Gun Violence. This blog highlights any and all timely cases of minors, ages 17 and under, who are involved in gun crimes or dangerous situations involving guns in the United States, which we can find reports of. Reported cases span the whole range of incidents: homicides and attempted homicides, accidents, suicides, stray bullet reports, defensive, law enforcement, robberies, kidnappings, “near misses,” and other categories. Some kids are shooters (including intentional and accidental), but most are victims.

Pro-gun activist Charles Cornett from Columbus, Texas jumped in first to comment on the blog posting. Cornett's Favorite Quotation as listed on his Facebook page is, "Anything worth shooting is worth shooting twice. Ammo is cheap, life is expensive." So it's no surprise that his thought on the matter was the following:

We lose 5,000 teens alone every year in car accidents, does that mean we should ban cars too?

It was a typical pro-gun feint—bring up the issue of automobile deaths to distract and change the subject; and hope that people don't realize that decades of extensive regulation of both automobiles and our roads have saved countless lives. Contrast this with the firearms industry, which remains the most unregulated industry in America.

Cornett was then challenged by the original poster in the thread, however, who replied:

You make the assumption I wish to ban guns, but I do not. What have you done, Charles, to reduce kid shootings, or teen driving accidents, for that matter?

With Cornett challenged to ante up on his mock concern regarding teen driving accidents, he found support from another pro-gun activist, Daniel Collien of Churchton, Maryland. Collien is a wonderfully candid pro-gunner who lists "Insurrection" as one of his "Activities and Interests" on Facebook. He wrote:

I hope he hasn't done anything. From a completely detached standpoint, there's too many damn people. 7 billion on a planet that can really only sustain 3 billion people. 3000 here or 5000 there, it is no matter.

But Cornett refused to let Collien upstage him in sheer cruelty. He added:

What have I done? Absolutely nothing, why? Because in all honesty, I really don't care.

Lost your child, your own flesh and blood, to senseless gun violence? Don't worry. The planet is overpopulated! And pro-gun activists? Well, they're doing everything they can to help us trim our numbers here in the United States.

Anti-Semitism Anyone?

The following remark was pasted to the Wall of the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence (CSGV) Facebook page by pro-gun activist Christopher Carter on February 19, 2012:

Jews want your guns so they can treat you like Palestinians.

It is impossible to tell who Carter had in mind when he made his remark, but CSGV executive director Josh Horwitz is Jewish.

Pro-Gun "Humor"

The following image was left on the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence (CSGV) Facebook page by pro-gun activist Ryan Ashley on February 18, 2012. Many Fans of CSGV's Facebook page are victims and survivors of gun violence. Some of them have lost loved ones, including children, to gun suicide. In the modern pro-gun movement, this qualifies as "funny."

Valentine from a Pro-Gun Activist

Isn't he the sweetest thing ever?



What nonviolent person wouldn't want to have a "rational" and "logical" conversation with the folks from the Anything About Guns Facebook page?

Parenting, Pro-Gun Style

The United States is a country in which more than 3,000 children and teens die each year from gunfire. An additional 17,000+ are injured by gunfire every year. Put simply, it's a level of pain and suffering unequaled anywhere else among industrialized democracies. And it's caused by by the weakest gun laws in the civilized world.

Few things are sacred among pro-gun activists, however, and even this subject is a source of levity and entertainment for them. Furthermore, they will always be the first to tell you that kids and guns are a great mix, despite abundant evidence to the contrary. This blog focuses on four recent stories that provide a disturbing look at American gun culture and how it affects the young.

First, we recently received some new YouTube comments from gun violence prevention activist Abby Spangler. Many of you will remember Abby as the Virginia mom who has received a litany of misogynist, threatening comments from pro-gun activists. Turns out that Abby has a new fan on YouTube who is very proud of his gun collection.

That individual is a 14-year-old who goes by the screen name of "Shedneom," and here is what he had to say to Abby:

Im 14 and have a full automatic m16 and ak47, a tank, a semi a rocket launcher, a silencer for all of the above, a .50 caliber assualt sniper rifle thats anti tank, 10,000 explosive burning deadly rounds.three .50 caliber pistols, a fully automatic 12 guage shotgun. and all my guns use highcapacity magazines that hold up to 500 rounds and there always loaded in the house.

But the young man wasn't done just yet. He giddily sent Abby this follow-up comment:

And I forgot to mention that i play violent video games daily, lol.

Perhaps we should be kind and give Shedenom's parents the benefit of the doubt, assuming they're not even present in the home. They're certainly making no positive difference in this young man's life even if they are.

The next comment we discovered featured a novel solution to problem of parenting kids around guns. Posting on a thread about "Guns and Kids" at PoliticalForum.com, pro-gun activist "Black Monarch" offered the following thought about what one should do with children who are too "stupid" to avoid shooting themselves with the guns you leave laying around:

Note: stupid kids may get ahold of guns and shoot each other or themselves. If your kids are stupid, give them up for adoption to protect your guns.

Everybody has their priorities, right?

Sometimes nothing helps with parenting like a loaded gun, however. That's what North Carolina dad Tommy Jordan showed the world when he posted the following video on Facebook to "discipline" his teenage daughter:



Oh, how to analyze this fabulous example of parenting? Allow us to quote a pastoral counselor who frequently posts at the CSGV Facebook page:

A "parent" who sees no problem with possession and use of a weapon is bad enough. A "parent" who sees use of his weapon as a "parenting tool" is a significant cause for concern. ANYONE who thinks that violence is a solution to ANY situation, is dangerous. Add to that, a child who's now been humiliated publicly for her behavior and has been taught by example by said parent, and who has access to WMD, and this points to a very dangerous mix. It may be too late for "intervention" for that family and closer to time for yet another family dissolution.

Despite the fact that the video earned him a visit from Child Protective Services, Jordan brags on his Facebook page, "If I had it to do again... let's see...I'd do it almost the same." What would he change? Well, he wishes he hadn't smoked a cigarette in the video, regrets using the word "ass" in reference to his daughter, and "maybe [I'd have] used the .22 instead of the .45," Jordan tells us. Talk about missing the target...

Finally, we present an even more inspiring example of pro-gun parenting. On February 9, The Today Show launched a new investigative series. Their first target was private firearm sales, so they ventured out into shopping mall parking lots in Phoenix, Arizona, to buy military-style assault rifles from individuals who are not legally obligated to either conduct background checks or keep any records of sale.

One of the private firearms sellers in The Today Show segment brought his 7-year-old son with him to sell an undercover investigator a tactical shotgun and an assault rifle straight out of the trunk of his car, no questions asked. "I probably couldn't pass [a background check]," the investigator told the man (meaning he could have been a felon, a wife beater, a sex offender, or mentally ill—just to name a few categories of prohibited purchasers). The man sold him the guns anyway and passed the cash directly to his son, adding, "I hate, I hate the government." He then ran away liked a coward when reporters attempted to question him on camera.

Perhaps it's now time to end this blog, because we simply no longer have the words...

Virginia Mom Continues to Receive Misognynistic Threats from Pro-Gun Activists

Recently, the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence (CSGV) posted a blog about the heinous, misognynistic threats received by a Virginia mother who advocates for tougher gun laws. Now, just three months later, she has received so many new threats from pro-gun activists that we are compelled to post on this topic once more.

The mom in question is Abby Spangler. Abby has two young children and lives in Alexandra, Virginia. Following the horrific mass shooting at Virginia Tech on April 16, 2007, she started the Protest Easy Guns movement. As Abby tells it: “I'd been thinking, 'Is this what we've come to in America? But when Virginia Tech happened, I said, ‘I've had enough.’ Then when I found out the Virginia Tech shooter got his gun in a matter of minutes, I was outraged. I decided that someone had to speak out and say this is unacceptable. We're not just going to light candles to mourn the victims. We're going to protest for change.”

And that is exactly what Abby has done. To date, more than 110 “Lie-In” protests have been conducted in more than 30 states across the nation by Protest Easy Guns volunteers. These protests have called for common-sense gun laws to prevent individuals who are clearly violent and/or deranged from easily obtaining firearms.

Unfortunately, the sight of a confident, outspoken woman working to end gun violence is more than many pro-gun activists can take. And they have responded—cowardly and anonymously—by repeatedly emailing her some of the most vicious and ugly comments you can imagine.

The following is a sampling of the comments received by Abby in the last three months alone. The first comment is in reference to a video Abby posted of Lori Haas, a mother whose daughter survived after being shot in the head during the Virginia Tech Massacre of April 16, 2007. Lori is now a staffer with the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence and also works with the Virginia Center for Public Safety. The remaining five comments are targeted directly at Abby:













Those who think this type of cowardice will stop Abby from working to prevent the 30,000+ gun deaths each year in the United States are wrong. She remains as determined as ever, and has the love and appreciation of not only gun violence victims/survivors, but all those who care about this senseless epidemic.

Pro-Gun Activists Find Humor in Tributes on One-Year Anniversary of Tucson Massacre

January 8, 2012 marked the one-year anniversary of the horrific mass shooting in Tucson, in which a young man, Jared Loughner, killed 6 innocent Americans and wounded 13 others, including U.S. Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-AZ). Despite the fact that he was severely mentally ill and a substance abuser, Loughner passed a background check and legally purchased the handgun used in the murders.

The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence organized a series of “Too Many Victims” candlelight vigils to recognize the anniversary and pay tribute to all Americans who are victims and survivors of gun violence. The staff of the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence was proud to attend a vigil in the District of Columbia at Shiloh Baptist Church. It was a moving event that included powerful testimony from gun violence survivors including Colin Goddard (who was shot four times at Virginia Tech), Nardyne Jefferies (who lost her daughter Brishell to AK-47 fire in a horrific mass shooting in southeast D.C.) and William Kellibrew (who was forced to watch as his mother’s ex-boyfriend shot and killed her and his brother). This was just one of the scores of solemn vigils that were occurring that evening in states across the country.

These events were emotional and meaningful to the gun violence survivors and other concerned Americans who participated in them. But to pro-gun activists, they were apparently humorous, something to be mocked and laughed at.

One pro-gun blogger in Massachusetts, Andrew Johnston (AKA “Weer’d Beard”) urged his readers “Do More Than Just Light a Candle” by sending him photos of their guns arrayed around a candle. Johnston explained that he “takes offense” to the term “gun violence.” And he urged those who agree to “[show] what tools you have to back up your desire to prevent violence.” Johnston was so proud of his work that he sent it directly to gun violence survivor Joan Peterson, who lost her sister in a gun homicide involving domestic violence (the comment in question was left on Joan’s blog, “Common Gunsense”). Johnston then blogged to tell Peterson, "We show respect for the victims, you dance in their blood."

Another pro-gun blogger, Jon C. Sullivan of Knoxville, Tennessee (AKA "Linoge"), wrote the following at his blog “Walls of the City”: “By holding their candle-light vigils for ‘victims of ‘gun violence’, the Brady Campaign and their sycophants are, by definition, memorializing those murderers, rapists, thieves, muggers, robbers, home-invaders, and other scumbags who were shot down in self-defense by their intended victims, or by the police in the execution of their duties. As always, ‘gun control’ extremists are aiding, abetting, and sympathizing with criminals. Disgusting.”

Christie Caywood (AKA "Bitterb"), the girlfriend of fellow NRA volunteer election coordinator Keith Milligan of Langhorne, Pennsylvania (AKA "Sebastian"), found the vigils hilarious. Along with Milligan, she co-authors the blog “Shall Not Be Questioned.” On December 19, she mocked the “Too Many Victims” tributes, writing, “Yes, they want you to light a candle. Because candles will stop violence ... If candles can stop bullets, then they can do anything in this season of holiday miracles, right?” On Twitter, she said the following about gun violence prevention activists holding candlelight vigils: "We should report them as arsonists." Caywood and Milligan also shared a laugh about Joan Peterson's loss of her sister to gun violence. Milligan Tweeted that he won a bet with his girlfriend that Peterson would ring a bell instead of lighting a candle at the vigil. He hash-tagged the Tweet #toomanyfools. Milligan was referring to bell-ringing ceremonies held by the group Protect Minnesota, of which Joan is member. Gun violence survivors step forward to ring a bell once for each loved one they have lost to gun violence. Caywood loved it. "I didn't bet against you dear," she Tweeted back.

Milligan also issued the following warning to victims and survivors of gun violence: "Once your grief crosses over into trying to remove my freedoms and shred part of the Bill of Rights you can no longer claim the right to be left alone." "These aren’t people who are just concerned citizens," Milligan declared. "They are hate filled people out to destroy lives. How are these people different from a bigot who would enjoy the idea if a black man got an ass beating because he was visiting Mississippi in 1954, and didn’t know certain fountains weren’t for his kind? I posit they are no different in terms of their corrupt character, only in the form of bigotry they have chosen."

Miguel Gonzalez of Miami, Florida, author of the pro-gun blog “Gun-Free Zone,” described “Too Many Victims” as the “Candlelight Dance Over Corpses.” And as the South Florida Daily Blog and Florida Progressive Coalition Blog pointed out, he published another offensive post in which he attacked Colin Goddard—who was shot four times at Virginia Tech on April 16, 2007—for "doing nothing till he got shot" without even identifying him correctly (Andrew Goddard is Colin's father). According to the South Florida Daily Blog, "[Gonzalez] and his minions have become the gun advocates' version of Westboro Baptist Church and have decided that posting callous and inflammatory pictures that are nothing more than gun porn is the best way of delivering their message. Good job, guys ... MLK Day is just around the corner."

Illinois militia member Roy Kubicek (AKA "Thirdpower"), co-author of the blog “Days of Our Trailers,” said that those who participated in the candlelight vigils are “enablers of violent crime, religious and racial bigotry.”

St. Louis Gun Rights Examiner blogger Kurt Hoffman used the Too Many Victims vigils to reiterate his standing threat of armed violence against our government.

Perhaps most offensive, however, was a video posted by pro-gun bloggers Barron Barnett of Washington and Joe Huffman of North Central Idaho. The video shows pro-gun activists holding candles, saying “candles don’t stop violence” and then drawing their handguns and firing at paper targets that are supposed to “simulate the January 8th 2011 shooting in Tucson.” On his blog, Barnett added that those who participated in the vigils "are faster on the draw than a personal injury lawyer to dance in blood."

It’s difficult, if not impossible, to understand how pro-gun activists believe such comments were appropriate on a day when gun violence survivors and others were remembering those they have lost.

Meet a Pro-Gun Activist: Karl Hadley

In a universe of pro-gun activists that love to harass, intimidate and threaten Americans who call for stronger gun laws, perhaps no single activist is more aptly nicknamed than Karl Hadley, AKA “Kaveman.”

Hadley, a 40-year-old resident of Corvallis, Oregon, is well known to those in the gun violence prevention movement as the co-author of the blog “Days of Our Trailers” (http://daysofourtrailers.blogspot.com/). There—along with co-blogger Roy Kubicek (an Illinois militia member who goes by the screen name “Thirdpower”)—Hadley launches endless personal attacks on gun violence survivors and others engaged in the fight to reduce gun violence in America. Hadley and Kubicek pride themselves on being “the bane of hoplophobes everywhere” (“hoplophobe” being an imaginary term made up by former NRA board member Jeff Cooper to describe those with a supposedly "irrational" fear of firearms).

Normally, Hadley’s attacks wouldn’t raise many eyebrows here at CSGV, but certain comments he recently left at one of CSGV staffer Ladd Everitt’s blogs surpass even his “standard” in terms of profanity, crudeness, and viciousness.

On October 24, 2011, Ladd posted a blog at Waging Nonviolence entitled “The Racist Charge.” The blog dealt with accusations by pro-gun activists that gun control was “racist,” based on some very flimsy suppositions.

Hadley jumped in with a series of ugly comments on the blog, including this one:

"Hey Laddie, have you consulted with your mommy about the hard majic of black cock?

She sure does like sucking her own shit off it.

Don't tell your dad."



He also made some not so thinly-veiled threats, by suggesting he could post Ladd’s home address and even the location at which his wife works:



This is nothing new for “Kaveman.” Earlier this year, he celebrated the threatened posting of the home address of Joan Peterson, a gun violence survivor from Minnesota (Joan’s sister was shot and killed by her husband three years into divorce proceedings) in a blog entitled, “The Most Dangerous Game.”

There is certainly concern that Hadley could back up these threats. He has bragged of owning an arsenal of firearms and other military-style equipment (e.g., grenade launchers), is permitted to carry a concealed handgun in public in Oregon and 15 other states, and brags of serving with a paramilitary citizen’s militia in Oregon. He had at least one felony arrest in April 1994, when he was charged with manufacturing and/or dealing a controlled substance. And he is well-tied to other pro-gun activists nationwide who regularly spew venom at Americans who disagree with them about gun laws. For our part, CSGV promptly reported Hadley’s recent comments to law enforcement authorities.

But perhaps the most disturbing of all our recent discoveries about “Kaveman” is that he and Roy Kubicek are treated as credentialed media by the NRA at their annual conventions. It’s a disturbing statement about how extreme today’s pro-gun movement has become.

Pro-Gun Activists Make Heinous, Misognynistic Threats to Virginia Mom

Male pro-gun activists frequently target Americans who work in the field of gun violence prevention in an attempt to intimidate, harass, threaten, and generally deter them from working to strengthen our nation’s gun laws. And the “softer” the target, the better—because there is certainly nothing brave about abusing someone online behind the anonymity of a keyboard. Sadly, the brunt of these attacks has often fallen on women.

One such woman is Abby Spangler. Spangler—a mother of two young children who lives in Alexandra, Virginia—started the Protest Easy Guns movement following the horrific mass shooting at Virginia Tech on April 16, 2007. At that point, she realized she couldn’t remain silent anymore. "I'd been thinking, 'Is this what we've come to in America?'” she told the Washington Post. "But when Virginia Tech happened, I said, 'I've had enough.' Then when I found out the Virginia Tech shooter got his gun in a matter of minutes, I was outraged. I decided that someone had to speak out and say this is unacceptable. We're not just going to light candles to mourn the victims. We're going to protest for change."

And that is exactly what Spangler has done. In just a matter of four years, her protest movement has spread across the nation. To date, more than 110 “Lie-In” protests have been conducted in more than 30 states by Protest Easy Guns volunteers. These protests have called for common-sense gun laws to prevent individuals who are clearly violent and/or deranged from easily obtaining firearms.

The success of her movement has brought Spangler acclaim from Americans concerned about the 30,000+ gun deaths each year in the United States, and venom from gun rights activists. Recently, Abby shared with us the following communications she has received from gun rights activists online. They speak for themselves:













One thing is for sure. The gun-fetishizing cowards that typed these messages in their parents' basements don't know Abby Spangler very well. Her good work to prevent the loss of life to gun violence continues, and she now has hundreds (if not thousands) of gun violence survivors across this country standing behind her. The Coalition to Stop Gun Violence is proud to stand behind Abby as well. We always will stand behind her, and all other Americans working to prevent gun violence.

New Threat from Pro-Gun Activist: "There will be no acceptance of any arms control."

By now, America is becoming familiar with the "Insurrectionist Idea" that is the foundation of the modern gun rights movement. This radical idea holds that the Second Amendment provides individuals with the right to shoot and kill government officials when they determine our government has become "tyrannical."

Apparently, the boogeyman of a tyrannical U.S. government is not enough for gun rights activists, however, because their paranoid fears also extend to the United Nations. The National Rifle Association (NRA) has raised a significant amount of money in recent years by convincing gun rights activists that a draft U.N. treaty focused on the illegal international trade in small arms is somehow a secret plot to disarm American citizens.

The following comment was recently received by Million Mom March leader Joan Peterson on her blog "Common Gunsense" from a gun rights activist in Dodge City, Kansas. The blog focused on bizarre and offensive comments that NRA Board Member Ted Nugent made about the United Nations in a Washington Times editorial:

Setting aside Mr. Nugent's rather intemperate style of speaking (he's a rock star, after all) just what is incorrect about his statements?

That historically, governments are the greatest murderers of their own citizens is without dispute. Countless millions have been slaughtered by their own governments over the last century, and in nearly every case, the massacre was preceeded by one important fact: the intended victims were disarmed.

Should it ever arrive, this treaty should be, and will be, rejected by the Senate. Frankly it does little but enable some governments to wrap the veneer of respectablity around their attempts to disarm and, in some tragic cases, murder their own citizens. It has happened before, over and over again.

Have we learned nothing?

If nothing else, the experience of Europe's Jews should have taught us all: Never again.

Never.

Personally, I'd advise each and every American gun owner to take a paper bullseye of his choosing, place a nice tight group of bulletholes in it his or her favorite caliber, and send same (with a notation of the caliber and range) to the U.N., along with these words written on the bottom: A well regulated milita being necessary to the security of a free State, the right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.

No threats. No rants. Just a simple statement of fact: we are armed, and we know how to use them. There will be no acceptance of any arms control, treaty or not. There will be no compromise on fundamental principles.

We will not disarm. Molon labe.

Not a threat, huh?