April 21, 2018 // April 18, 2018
(Couple of days ago news. We know.)
Imagine:
A cotton ball colliding with a Q-tip.
AKA: When is news not news?
Read on.
(Couple of days ago news. We know.)
Imagine:
A cotton ball colliding with a Q-tip.
AKA: When is news not news?
Read on.
We’re going to pretend its opposite day here at Two Weeks Ago News. Instead of noting and remarking about the many, many specious people, places and things people seem to feel outraged about – particularly from about two (or more) weeks ago - we’re going to look for signs of celebrations and jubilation about a story we've just read in the news. Here we go….
The subject: guns and gun control. We agree: there is plenty to be outraged about, regardless of where you stand on gun ownership and individual freedom. Every single day – but particularly in the days following a massacre and tragic loss of life – people express their outrage by posting, tweeting, shrieking, and shouting about our society, lawmakers, gun nuts, the NRA, militia groups, gun manufacturers and everyone who is making it possible for this kind of mass murder to take place. When is someone going to do something???
The problems are many and endless:
Don’t misunderstand. If you have a point to make about guns and gun violence, by all means make it. If you have concerns, voice them. You feel outraged? Express it: in writing, in person, on Election Day. This may be one of the times when the collective outrage is legitimate. The emotion we feel and see expressed about these assaults on innocent victims is real. This tragic loss of life – especially young life – is almost too much to comprehend.
We don't presume to have answers. We believe the solution is layered and there will be many, many stops and starts by passionate and informed individuals and organizations before we end this senseless violence and preserve the right to bear arms that many thousands hold dear.
But have you heard the news? We just read that a Texas company called Slide Fire Solutions is going to cease manufacturing. And Slide Fire Solutions isn’t a minor player. They are the largest manufacturers of bump stocks in this country. (For anyone who doesn’t remember the headlines after the Las Vegas massacre, bump stocks turn semi-automatic weapons into automatic ones which rapidly fire ammunition.) According to their website: ALL SALES FINAL – On Sunday, May 20, 2018 at midnight CDT, Slide Fire will cease taking orders for its products and shut down its website. Orders placed prior to May 20th, 2018 will all be processed and shipped. We thank you for your support.
What did the news media have to say? Given the rivers of ink already on record regarding gun violence and a call for solutions, here's a brief round-up:
The New York Times – posting a seven-paragraph Reuters article - said this. Here are the last two single-sentence paragraphs:
President Donald Trump signed a memorandum in February directing the Justice Department to make the regulatory change.
Slide Fire had temporarily paused its sales following the Las Vegas shooting, but subsequently restarted it.
From The Washington Post: Excerpt - The announcement comes about a month after President Donald Trump said his administration would “ban” bump stocks, which he said “turn legal weapons into illegal machines.” An Associated Press writer contributed to this 10-paragraph story.
From The Huffington Post : Excerpt - Slide Fire didn’t say why it’s ending sales. But last month, after Congress failed to act, President Donald Trump said the Justice Department would go forward with plans to ban bump stocks. Attorney General Jeff Sessions explained that the government would reclassify bump stocks as “machine gun” accessories, making them forbidden.
The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence sued Slide Fire last fall, co-president Avery Gardiner told HuffPost. It’s unclear whether the lawsuit played a role in the bump stock maker’s decision to shut down, but Gardiner called the decision a “positive development.” Total: 7 paragraphs.
NPR covered it. They wrote a novel about it, compared to the other news media quoted here. This is the last paragraph of their 17-paragraph story: “The carnage of the Las Vegas shooting, exacerbated by Stephen Paddock's use of bump stocks, has altered the national debate on gun control regulations. It prompted President Trump to call for a ban on the devices, and in March, the Justice Department took the first step in banning their sale, manufacture or possession.”
Good news, no? A step in the right direction, surely. Finally, a substantial and measurable act that should make it more difficult to enact mass violence. No, it’s not THE SOLUTION but presumably it will make a long-term difference in the kinds of weapons available. Given the understandable outrage and demands for someone to do something, isn’t this the kind of action people have been waiting to hear?
Let’s just say it feels like the news had about as much impact as a cotton ball bumping up against a Q-tip. Where is the shouting, the celebrating, the jubilation over this significant and positive step toward curbing gun violence in this country? We haven’t read one facebook post, one tweet or one op-ed piece about this positive step.
You have to ask yourself: why? (Well, you don’t have to ask yourself but we asked why.) We also wondered if the stories, op-eds, and public reaction would have been different if the bump stock / Slide Fire Manufacturing story had unfolded under President Hillary Clinton. Unanswerable, but we wonder anyway.
Maybe the joyous reactions from the masses do exist. We don’t pretend to be LexisNexis and we like to burst our own bubble wherever possible. Maybe people are celebrating this story. Just very quietly.
The subject: guns and gun control. We agree: there is plenty to be outraged about, regardless of where you stand on gun ownership and individual freedom. Every single day – but particularly in the days following a massacre and tragic loss of life – people express their outrage by posting, tweeting, shrieking, and shouting about our society, lawmakers, gun nuts, the NRA, militia groups, gun manufacturers and everyone who is making it possible for this kind of mass murder to take place. When is someone going to do something???
The problems are many and endless:
- The problem is every lawmaker who is not doing one thing to change the laws, and unapologetically accepts campaign contributions from gun rights organizations.
- The problem is the NRA, with its powerful lobby and seemingly endless funds.
- The problem is gun manufacturers who build these weapons, and companies who build aftermarket accessories.
- The problem is every merchant and every gun show that won’t address the myriad challenges surrounding regulations and rules about gun sales and gun ownership.
- The problem is our healthcare system that does not adequately address mental health issues.
- The problem is our entertainment culture, which serves up and celebrates violence on screen.
- The problem is society: the family is in disarray.
Don’t misunderstand. If you have a point to make about guns and gun violence, by all means make it. If you have concerns, voice them. You feel outraged? Express it: in writing, in person, on Election Day. This may be one of the times when the collective outrage is legitimate. The emotion we feel and see expressed about these assaults on innocent victims is real. This tragic loss of life – especially young life – is almost too much to comprehend.
We don't presume to have answers. We believe the solution is layered and there will be many, many stops and starts by passionate and informed individuals and organizations before we end this senseless violence and preserve the right to bear arms that many thousands hold dear.
But have you heard the news? We just read that a Texas company called Slide Fire Solutions is going to cease manufacturing. And Slide Fire Solutions isn’t a minor player. They are the largest manufacturers of bump stocks in this country. (For anyone who doesn’t remember the headlines after the Las Vegas massacre, bump stocks turn semi-automatic weapons into automatic ones which rapidly fire ammunition.) According to their website: ALL SALES FINAL – On Sunday, May 20, 2018 at midnight CDT, Slide Fire will cease taking orders for its products and shut down its website. Orders placed prior to May 20th, 2018 will all be processed and shipped. We thank you for your support.
What did the news media have to say? Given the rivers of ink already on record regarding gun violence and a call for solutions, here's a brief round-up:
The New York Times – posting a seven-paragraph Reuters article - said this. Here are the last two single-sentence paragraphs:
President Donald Trump signed a memorandum in February directing the Justice Department to make the regulatory change.
Slide Fire had temporarily paused its sales following the Las Vegas shooting, but subsequently restarted it.
From The Washington Post: Excerpt - The announcement comes about a month after President Donald Trump said his administration would “ban” bump stocks, which he said “turn legal weapons into illegal machines.” An Associated Press writer contributed to this 10-paragraph story.
From The Huffington Post : Excerpt - Slide Fire didn’t say why it’s ending sales. But last month, after Congress failed to act, President Donald Trump said the Justice Department would go forward with plans to ban bump stocks. Attorney General Jeff Sessions explained that the government would reclassify bump stocks as “machine gun” accessories, making them forbidden.
The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence sued Slide Fire last fall, co-president Avery Gardiner told HuffPost. It’s unclear whether the lawsuit played a role in the bump stock maker’s decision to shut down, but Gardiner called the decision a “positive development.” Total: 7 paragraphs.
NPR covered it. They wrote a novel about it, compared to the other news media quoted here. This is the last paragraph of their 17-paragraph story: “The carnage of the Las Vegas shooting, exacerbated by Stephen Paddock's use of bump stocks, has altered the national debate on gun control regulations. It prompted President Trump to call for a ban on the devices, and in March, the Justice Department took the first step in banning their sale, manufacture or possession.”
Good news, no? A step in the right direction, surely. Finally, a substantial and measurable act that should make it more difficult to enact mass violence. No, it’s not THE SOLUTION but presumably it will make a long-term difference in the kinds of weapons available. Given the understandable outrage and demands for someone to do something, isn’t this the kind of action people have been waiting to hear?
Let’s just say it feels like the news had about as much impact as a cotton ball bumping up against a Q-tip. Where is the shouting, the celebrating, the jubilation over this significant and positive step toward curbing gun violence in this country? We haven’t read one facebook post, one tweet or one op-ed piece about this positive step.
You have to ask yourself: why? (Well, you don’t have to ask yourself but we asked why.) We also wondered if the stories, op-eds, and public reaction would have been different if the bump stock / Slide Fire Manufacturing story had unfolded under President Hillary Clinton. Unanswerable, but we wonder anyway.
Maybe the joyous reactions from the masses do exist. We don’t pretend to be LexisNexis and we like to burst our own bubble wherever possible. Maybe people are celebrating this story. Just very quietly.