The Patriot Gospel: Guns Don't Kill People, Video Games Kill People

The Patriot Gospel: Gun Don't Kill People, Video Games Kill People

Republicans are more likely to place the blame for gun violence on video games, not guns, according to a recent poll from Public Policy Polling. Sixty seven percent of Republicans believe that such games are a “bigger safety threat” than firearms — only 14 percent think the reverse.

The only problem? There’s no data to support that position. There is evidence that limiting access to guns can help limit violence wrought by those machines. In particular, there’s evidence to show that the Assault Weapons Ban helped to limit gun violence on the Mexican-American border. And in states where gun ownership is high and gun laws are lax, violence rates are higher.

On the other hand, there’s absolutely no conclusive evidence showing that video games are the root cause of violence. There are countries with much lower rates of violence that have much higher consumption of video games.

It doesn't matter what reality says, conservative gun fetishists love believe stuff. Once they believe stuff, it is like trying to convince the member of a cult that the guy up there preaching is not a mini-god. Since conservatism has all the hallmarks of a cult, good luck with trying to get them to consume some reality.

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Why Does Mitch McConnell (R-KY) Hate America, Children and the Truth, But Wants Rapists To Have Assault Weapons

Why Does Mitch McConnell (R-KY) Hate America, Children and the Truth, But Wants Rapists To Have Assault Weapons

In an email sent to his supporters on Sunday night, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) warned that the President and his Democratic allies were planning to take Americans’ guns away.

“You and I are literally surrounded,” McConnell’s campaign manager Jesse Benton wrote. “The gun-grabbers in the Senate are about to launch an all-out-assault on the Second Amendment.”

The email falsely claimed President Barack Obama planned to issue 23 executive orders “to get your guns.” Obama plans to nominate a director for the ATF and direct the Centers for Disease Control to research the causes of gun violence, among other executive actions. None of the executive orders he outlined last week involve anything remotely like gun confiscation.

“The gun-grabbers are in full battle mode,” Benton continued. “And they are serious. What’s at stake? There are almost too many schemes to list.”

The email notes that Obama has called on Congress to renew the assault weapons ban, restrict high-capacity magazines, and require universal background checks on gun purchases. Benton alleged the background checks were actually part of a secret plot “for full-scale confiscation.”

Rep. John Yarmuth (D-KY) blasted McConnell for sending out the inaccurate and conspiracy-filled email.

“He’s misleading the people he sends that to, because what he’s saying is absolutely dishonest,” Yarmuth told LEO Weekly. “And it can also be dangerous, because people get that email who may not have been following the debate, and they all of a sudden get anxious and who knows what can happen from that kind of provocation.”

A complete and honest list of Democratic gun safety measures. None of which take away people's rights to buy a hand gun, a hunting rifle or anything that could be construed as an attack on the 2nd Amendment. Heck, they might even save a few lives. Mitch, as usual is looking out for the best interests of evil, making sure that rapists, murderers and the criminally insane have access to high powered weapons. Mitch has a long record of hating America and American values with a passion.

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They are the death mongers. They don't care about the constitution. The more people that die by gun, the more guns they sell, Major Gun Company Begins Asking Customers to Fight Obama's Proposed Reforms

Republicans Continue War On Women With Obstruction of Violence Against Women Act

Republicans Continue War On Women With Obstruction of Violence Against Women Act

Democrats and Republicans in Congress are having a hard time agreeing on anything these days. But there are some things that should never fall victim to partisan bickering. One of these is protecting women against domestic violence and sexual assault.

But for Republicans in Congress, apparently, it isn’t that simple. Thanks to the extremism of House Republicans, the Violence Against Women Act expired this month after 18 years of saving women’s lives.

Here’s how it happened. Back in April, the Senate passed a reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), which since 1994 has provided funding and training for state and local law enforcement to prevent domestic violence and sexual assault. The law has worked incredibly well: between 1993 and 2010, the rate of intimate partner violence fell by 64 percent and the reporting of domestic violence has increased dramatically. Because of this, it has been reauthorized twice with overwhelming support from both Democrats and Republicans.

But at the start of this year, the act expired because House Republicans refused to reauthorize it. They refused even to hold a vote on it, instead proposing a watered-down bill that the president promised to veto. What they objected to were the new bill’s increased protections for immigrants, LGBT people, and Native American women.

Yes, they objected to greater protections for at-risk communities. Immigrant women are especially vulnerable to domestic violence because many rely on a spouse for their ability to live and work in this country. The new law would expand the number of victims of spousal abuse who could apply for their own visas and start their own lives.

Similarly, LGBT people too often fall through the cracks of our safety net for domestic violence victims: they are turned away from shelters or denied support, simply because of the gender of the abuser and the abused. This law would fix that. Finally, many Native American victims of domestic violence and sexual assault are left without recourse against non-Native abusers when their cases get lost in the gap between federal and tribal courts.
This is no minor problem: an astounding one in three Native women will survive a rape in her lifetime, and the vast majority of crimes against Native Americans are perpetrated by non-Natives. The Violence Against Women Act would bridge that legal gap and allow all Native American survivors of abuse to seek justice in court.

Republican efforts to prevent expanded protections for these at-risk groups made all women lose important protections. This issue is especially important to me as a survivor, an advocate, and a member of the ministerial staff at an African-American congregation.

Violence against women is an issue that affects everyone in America, but it disproportionately impacts women of color. The 2010 National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey found that more than a third of Hispanic women and nearly 44 percent of black women have experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetimes.

As a faith leader — and as someone who worked with others to help enact this legislation in the first place — I feel that it is important to speak out in support of those who are most vulnerable to violence and abuse. The lawmakers who blocked VAWA aren’t just insulting victims of domestic abuse, they’re actively putting women’s lives in danger. Congress should act quickly in this new year to reauthorize this life-saving program.

This essay is licensed under a Creative Commons License

Minister Leslie Watson Malachi is the director for African-American Religious Affairs at People For the American Way.

Maybe the NRA will start handing out free assault weapons to women and Native Americans since they think running the U.S. like a last one alive video game is what the Founders intended.

Why is it that all NRA supporters suffer from hearing impairment and language comprehension. Democrats are proposing some sensible gun safety laws. Republicans are going around saying they want to ban guns. We can't have a debate about issues if one side has the IQ of a cookie. How Obsequious Conservative Media Coverage Perpetuates NRA Mythology