Gun Sales: Will The "Loophole" Close?

60 Minutes: Fear Of Tighter Gun Control May Be Contributing To Big Rise In Gun Sales

(CBS)  When the Virginia Senate voted in February on closing the gun show loophole, it was a real stunner: the bill lost by two votes. The gun rights forces prevailed.

"You had so much going for you. You had the emotion. You had parents. You had survivors speaking out," Stahl said to Virginia Tech survivor Lily Habtu. "Police chiefs. You had the governor of the state, and it still went down. Why?"

"I would have to say that the gun lobby must have a strong base in Virginia," Habtu replied.

And so she and Omar Samaha are looking to Washington now that the Democrats are in control and with so many fresh examples of gun violence: from the Mexican drug cartels along the United States' southern border to a string of deadly domestic shootings where assault weapons were used.

One of them happened in Alabama on March 10, when a gunman crossed the state killing 10.

On March 21 in Oakland, Calif., a man killed four police officers; two with an assault weapon.

And in Pittsburgh on April 4, three policemen were gunned down. The suspect's friends say that he had lost his job and was afraid President Obama was about to re-instate the assault weapons ban that had passed under President Clinton, but was allowed to expire under President Bush.

AKs [rifles] and other firearms, once forbidden under the ban, now fill entire tables at gun shows; you can buy them from private sellers without a background check.

"These assault weapons are essentially designed and made to kill numbers of people in close combat," Senator Dianne Feinstein of California told Stahl.

Sen. Feinstein was the author and champion of the assault weapons ban in 1994. "They become the guns of choice of drug cartels, of gangs, of people who are mentally incompetent. Our police on the streets are essentially outgunned. Lesley, Friday I was at a funeral in Oakland, California. Four police officers slain."

Feinstein wants to reinstate the assault weapons ban. But what are her chances?

This is what the number-two Democrat in the Senate, Dick Durbin of Illinois, said on the Senate floor: "We don't debate guns around here much anymore. We used to. Basically, we reached a point where there just aren't many people who will stick their political necks out to vote for sensible gun control - just too big a hassle."

A "hassle," because of what happened in 1994. After the assault weapons ban was passed, the Republicans won both houses of Congress and the National Rifle Association got a lot of the credit.

[lithvak]

Feinstein will eventually be in prison or hang from the end of a rope for her crimes against humanity! It's only a matter of time, if she lives that long.

[jhenry3107]

I beleive this new legislation is a big win for consumers who is ready to buy a new car with fuel efficient models

Jhenry
Blogger
www.cashforclunkersfacts.info
http://www.cashforclunkersfacts.info

[Left-neck]

Right-wing gun owners are going to vote Pepublican anyway. The real swing vote is "Left-Necks, defined by Joe Bageant as "Progressive gun owners who change their own oil". I doubt that Nancy Pelosi changes her own oil.

[gunownerdan]

"How a politician stands on the Second Amendment tells you how he or she views you as an individual ... as a trustworthy and productive citizen, or as part of an unruly crowd that needs to be lorded over, controlled, supervised, and taken care of."
- Dr. Suzanna Gratia Hupp, Killeen Texas Luby's massacre survivor

www.A-HUMAN-RIGHT.com

[Wolf1944]

Over and over on this thread, I have seen the Internet myth about how Australia banned guns 12 months ago and saw a big increase in gun murders.

Australia instituted a buy-back program for certain types of guns 13 years ago, and it has seen a decline in murders of all kinds over that period. In 2007 the Aussies posted a record low number of murders.

See http://www.wesh.com/news/20017057/detail.html

[BuickCJ1]

If law-abiding citizens who have been backgrounded for carry permits have successfully passed the check, then they should be permitted to do so. There are not as many police around in some sectors of the nation and local law enforcement expects solid citizens to help when needed.

There are too many illegal gun toting bad guys around. These are the ones who tend to make the news and reality shows. The good folks generally act as a preventive measure in some communities which see little or no crime as the word is out to the bad guys.

Just remember why the Japanese dropped their plans to invade the U.S. in 1942. Admiral Yamamoto (who lived in the U.S. and attended Harvard) knew that many Americans were armed and would not stand for a foreign invasion. An armed society is a polite society. Sadly the bad guys mess it up for everyone else.

[Wolf1944]

The story about Admiral Yamamoto is only a rumor. It's discussed at http://www.wesh.com/news/20017057/detail.html

[joewger]

Law Abiding Gun owners dont commit crimes with any kind of assault weapon, its innercity criminals that do. Punish all criminals severely! Gun owners want you to. But that would be discrimination, so slap them on the wrist and put them back on the street to commit more crime and eventually kill someone. Then blame the Gun Owners and punish them by banning guns when you socialists and 60 minute pansies know you are the problem with this country and your biased stories.

[joewger]

All I can say to Antigun people is this. Gun owners want you to give anyone a death sentence who commits murder with a gun. The fact is that inner cities commit the most crime in this country and the criminals that possess these guns are given a slap on the wrist by a corrupt legal system and corrupt judges and lawyers out to make money. So criminals will always obtain guns no matter how strict or what kind are out there. Punishing legal gun owners is the norm and punishing criminals is discrimination. People with safes that are law abiding wont worry about their illegitmate kids killing someone over a pair of sneakers or robbing someone of their social security check. Legal Gun owners dont kill people, remember that. They protect their families from illegal ones with any weapon they choose to under the freedom to do so by the constitution of the United States.

[gastonlaw]

I wonder where Ms. Stahl's fact checker was when she spoke this line:

"AKs [rifles] and other firearms, once forbidden under the ban, now fill entire tables at gun shows; you can buy them from private sellers without a background check."

AK's, AR's, SKS's and the like (with some cosmetic modifications) *were* available for sale during the Clinton-era ban. It's an historical fact.

Automatic firearms (machine guns) have been regulated since the Firearms Act of 1934. It is that class of firearms that the "Drug Cartels" use in their trade. Police officers also have those weapons at their disposal -- check with your local SWAT team.

I understand and accept that the producers of this piece have a policy objective to pursue but please, please get your facts right.

After all, what would Uncle Walter say?

[Tvelong]

I served my country from 1964-1969 and only spent 2.5 of those years in American..the rest of the time I was on foreign soil defending our rights. Our country was built on violence..like it or not. But the other countries I served in had the violence and no way to defend themselves. I came home and then served 40 years as a police officer. I would like to think I have seen enough to tell you that if men and women do not stand up for what is right they will lose thier right to stand up. I'll keep my freedom peacefuly or...whatever it takes. God Bless America