“That’s a good thing that you just giving up, and don’t worry about it. We all go through something in life.“
—Antoinette Tuff, bookkeeper at Ronald E. McNair Discovery Learning Academy in Decatur, Ga., speaking to would-be mass murderer Michael Brandon Hill
hile many news outlets are, rightly, focusing on the revelation that the National Rifle Association has secretly—I repeat: secretly—collected “information about gun owners from state and local offices and has built the country’s largest privately held database of current, former and prospective gun owners,” Clare Kim began an article on The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell blog this way:
A 20-year-old man who went to a Georgia elementary school with an AK-47 assault rifle and close to 500 rounds ammunition told a school clerk that he was prepared to die in the attack. But the woman calmly persuaded him to lay down his weapon. According to 911 tapes released Wednesday, Michael Brandon Hill said he didn’t care about dying and should have just gone to a mental hospital.
The details of this amazing story, a story that seems to contradict everything the NRA’s propaganda machine pumps out like a mass-murder unloading his AK-47 into innocent victims, I will let Lawrence O’Donnell present:
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The Erstwhile Conservative: A Blog of Repentance 
Jim Wheeler
/ August 22, 2013The most important message of the story of the would-be shooter at the Decatur school ought to be that powerful high-capacity, high-power guns are too easily obtained and need to be regulated. However, thanks to the NRA’s powerful single-issue lobbying, that hasn’t happened and likely won’t until we the people change our minds on the subject. O’Donnell is right that this story needs to have as much publicity as it would have if the shooter had murdered children.
I note with interest a flyer delivered with my local paper this morning. It is from “Cabela’s”, a hunting/fishing retailer in Rogers Arkansas. It touts a “door buster sale” this Saturday featuring an assault rifle, $40 off, “while supplies last – limited quantities – 5 hours only”. It looks exactly like an AR-15 but it’s described as a “Windham Weaponry Centerfire Tactical Rifle”. It has a large clip, sale price $899.99 to $959.99. I assume the higher price probably includes a laser sight.
I don’t hunt myself, but the autumnal hunting ritual must be interesting these days. Shoot, (pun intended), using that baby a real he-man hunter ought to be able to bring down a whole herd of deer without even re-loading! Yee-Haw.
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Robert J Roberts
/ August 22, 2013I just read article stating that the NRA has the largest registry of gun owners in the US. Yet they vehemently oppose any registry or publishing of lists of gun owners. Do you suppose there’s a double standard here?
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R. Duane Graham
/ August 27, 2013Hypocrisy to the core, my friend.
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Michael D. Gaden, BSNE, MBA
/ August 23, 2013The US of A is a capitalistic society. To find out what is going on in a capitalistic society, all you have to do is “follow the money”! We know with certainty who gains monetarily from unfettered sales of weapons, particularly guns (it ain’t the NRA – where do they get their money?)
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ansonburlingame
/ August 24, 2013Could I thus assume, Micheal, that you believe a “capitalistic society” is bad for America? If you say Yes, then what would you replace it with? “Sort of capitalist” is too vague, for me at least. And if you call for a European-like society, I will give you credit for honesty at least.
Anson
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R. Duane Graham
/ August 27, 2013It’s a cycle Michael. The gun manufacturers make the profits then feed campaign cash to the politicians, who then make it more difficult to pass sensible gun laws, which make the gun manufacturers even more money.
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King Beauregard
/ August 23, 2013If you use a gun you’re a pussy anyway. Real men use bows, crossbows, atl-atls, clubs, slings, spears, swords, axes, knives, and halberds (mildly prissy but still acceptable). Do you really want to reach the afterlife, meet your ancestors, and disappoint them as “the one with no manly talents”?
Just being able to build a fire with flint or sticks is manlier than gun ownership. Hell, owning a poodle is manlier.
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ansonburlingame
/ August 28, 2013Well King, I know how to build a fire, camp out, hunt, fish, use a gun and yep I own a poodle, a BIG one. Smartest dog I have ever owned as well!! Far better than what I read herein sometimes.
But I agree we should get better control of guns, eliminate hand guns, etc. But such is politics, like it or not.
Anson
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