Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Terrorists Buying Guns at Gun Shows?

Yes. Plus, anyone else who has the cashola to lay down. WITHOUT a background check. Yes, my friends, there is a loophole in our laws that not only allows this, but makes it legal. Whaaaat?

Thank you to Theresa Brown Milstein for posting the link to today's Daily Kos article: Al Qaeda leader instructs terrorists to purchase firearms at U.S. gun shows to Facebook. I was so dumbfounded, that I had to verify their information. And found a CNN Article from January 31st: Undercover investigators buy guns without background checks. I. Am. Aghast.

It's a day late, but not everyone is settling for this whackadoodle. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, cited in the CNN article, and Boston mayor, Thomas Menino, co-chair an organization of over 500 mayors that is spearheading project "Close the Loophole". This is from their website:
"A recent multi-state undercover investigation of private sellers at gun shows demonstrates just how easy it is for criminals to take advantage of the Gun Show Loophole. The investigation of 7 gun shows in 3 states involved undercover buys from 47 gun sellers using hidden cameras."
Click over to watch hidden camera videos from the investigation to see how easy it is for criminals to take advantage of the Gun Show Loophole.

 Then finally, this is an excerpt from a NY Daily News article dated June 4, 2011 :
"A chilling Internet video confirms what has long been suspected: Al Qaeda terrorists are eager to launch a gun-fueled rampage against Americans - and they know just how to do it.

Spotted on jihadist forums, the video shows American-born Al Qaeda fighter Adam Gadahn almost cheerily urging followers to action:

"America is absolutely awash with easily obtainable firearms. You can go down to a gun show at the local convention center and come away with a fully automatic assault rifle without a background check and most likely without having to show an identification card. So what are you waiting for?"

We don't say this often about Al Qaeda types, but: He's right on the facts."
Do you have chills yet? I do. I signed the petition. Tell Congress to get off their hineys and require background checks for all sales at gun shows. And everywhere else. Please?




3 comments:

  1. I have chills.

    You know, I remember a story about investigators learning how easy it was to bring weapons on a plane from Logan just months before 9/11. And nothing changed until after the attack happened. Let's be proactive this time.

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  2. Okay. Blogger's being dorky and won't let me sign in as me. But it is. And I say HEAR, HEAR! Thanks, Theresa for helping to spread the word.

    ~ Olivia J. Herrell

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  3. That may be a loophole that needs closing, but it also raises some other interesting questions...

    In the US, violent crimes are more common than terrorist attacks. Do a large percentage of guns used to commit these crimes come from gun show sales, or from somewhere else?

    The investigator had a southern accent. If the investigator had instead been of middle eastern ethnicity with arabic accent, would it have been as easy for him to obtain the guns?

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