LA Times on gun sales

[Sobriquet]

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-lopez17-2009jun17,0,1071485.column

Lousy journalism. He leads with his opinion on why we shouldn't have guns... in a non-editorial piece. So much for neutrality.

[Edit:] As others have pointed out, it's an opinion piece. Sorry for the confusion.

[Untamed1972]

"Call me a wimp, but I'm almost as afraid of guns as I am of anybody dumb enough to smash car windows because the Lakers won the championship"

Ok....YOU'RE A WIMP!!!

Gotta love emotion based journalism completely devoid of actual facts. And to think people actually pay good money for college to get a journalism degree.

[FastFinger]

It's not a "news" story, nor is it an LATimes editorial, it's an opinion piece written by a columnist.

Considering it's penned by someone who's hostile to the 2nd amendment, and our constitutional RKBA, it's not that incendiary. Subtle links between gun ownership and a propensity to assassinate the CIC, and typical sarcasm about fear of encroaching government tyranny, but otherwise not too bad. He does interview 2 people who had or have liberal leanings, but have seen the light and are pro-gun, that's a good thing.

Considering soe of the stuff I hear at gun stores, gun show, and the range, the column doesn't paint too bad of a picture.

Lopez actually responds and writes about the opposing views on occasion, maybe someone should invite him to the range or similar.

[glockman19]

I have met Steve Lopez and will make an offer to him to come to Angeles Range and shoot.

Let's show him there's nothing to be afraid about.

[Vectrexer]

It's a blog entry on a major rag's web page. A rag that is among the walking dead because of crap filler material articles like this.

[1911su16b870]

That is an opinion piece, as are most of Lopez's.

[Werewolf1021]

"Call me a wimp, but I'm almost as afraid of guns as I am of anybody dumb enough to smash car windows because the Lakers won the championship.

See my sig for my response to that.

Is it just me, or did this piece seem poorly written? Not that it was mocking 2A supporters, but that it jumped around so much that I though a high school junior could have written better. Seemed to not be able to focus on what it was trying to convey, just jumped between stories without cohesion.

[Solidsnake87]

“A fear of weapons is a sign of retarded sexual and emotional maturity” - Sigmund Freud


-Nice

[Legasat]

What do you expect from a pig, but a grunt?

Typical LA Times BS...

[Aegis]

Who cares, the paper will probably be out of business soon anyway.

[DDT]

Who cares, the paper will probably be out of business soon anyway.

They're too big and important to be allowed to go out of business. Expect a government bailout instead.

[wildhawker]

They're too big and important to be allowed to go out of business. Expect a government bailout instead.

Sadly, there may be some truth to this somewhat cynical forecast.

[glbtrottr]

Why are we discussing a second hand writer hosted by an entirely liberal, pandering company masking as a newspaper and whose profit making days are gone, which is constantly fighting for relevance and whose days are numbered?

Curious. OK, I'll bite.

Steve Lopez, wimp isn't a good characterization and is misleading. Idiot is far more appropriate.

[boxbro]

I think he's ready to come over to our side:

If I do decide to take up arms, I'd definitely shop at JW or Annie's. But what about my fear of guns, which I think goes back to watching so many people get filled with lead on the TV show "Mannix" in the 1960s and '70s?

Fried said I could overcome that fear with the right education and training. He removed a .40-caliber Sig Sauer pistol from a display case and showed me how to properly hold it.

Yo, Travis Bickle, "you talkin' to me?"

"It's the Mercedes-Benz of combat pistols," Fried said. "Like having a luxury car in your hands."

Yeah, but I still don't know if I'm up for the ride.

Then again, if there are people in this country unstable enough to think Obama might lead a jihad, shouldn't I be prepared to protect myself from them?

[ChuckBooty]

Of course all comments have to be "approved" before posting. You really think they're going to allow desenting opinions?

[Rem222]

I have met Steve Lopez and will make an offer to him to come to Angeles Range and shoot.

Let's show him there's nothing to be afraid about.

Great idea !!!!

[hellaguy]

Is that a Taurus 24/7 he's holding in the picture?

[socalsheepdog]

Of course all comments have to be "approved" before posting. You really think they're going to allow desenting opinions?

My favorite comment.

The amendment to the US Constitution that allows it's citizens to bear arms is written to allow the population to overthrow a corrupt White House/Senate/Congress. However, they control the Army, Navy and Air Force. Unless the citizenry are allowed to stock up on F-16's, nukes, tanks and aircraft carriers, it's hardly going to be a fair fight. So leave the use of guns to the cops and the criminals. They're usually quite easy to tell apart.
Submitted by: omond

[bodger]

My favorite comment.

The amendment to the US Constitution that allows it's citizens to bear arms is written to allow the population to overthrow a corrupt White House/Senate/Congress. However, they control the Army, Navy and Air Force. Unless the citizenry are allowed to stock up on F-16's, nukes, tanks and aircraft carriers, it's hardly going to be a fair fight. So leave the use of guns to the cops and the criminals. They're usually quite easy to tell apart.
Submitted by: omond

So I guess there are only two types of people who should have guns:
COPS and.....CRIMINALS. Which as we all know, if they were to actually outlaw gun ownership and come to take our guns, WE would all be the CRIMINALS!!

So thay should just leave us alone.

[Kokopelli]

The gun crowd has a saying: Guns don't kill; people do.

But doesn't that just mean that people shouldn't have guns?

The CAR crowd has a saying: CARS don't kill; people do.

But doesn't that just mean that people shouldn't have CARS?

[lioneaglegriffin]

So I guess there are only two types of people who should have guns:
COPS and.....CRIMINALS. Which as we all know, if they were to actually outlaw gun ownership and come to take our guns, WE would all be the CRIMINALS!!

So they should just leave us alone.

apparently they don't know what Posse Comitatus is.

Then again if the government in corrupted they would ignore this.

[hkusp9c]

what are they gonna try to ban next? Kitchen knives?

[Crazed_SS]

The only part of the article I really agreed with:

Then again, if there are people in this country unstable enough to think Obama might lead a jihad, shouldn't I be prepared to protect myself from them?

[K5Cruiser]

I have met Steve Lopez and will make an offer to him to come to Angeles Range and shoot.

Let's show him there's nothing to be afraid about.
I read this article in another thread, and I did the same thing..., I e-mailed him with an offer to join me at the shooting range. It'll be interesting to see if he takes up the offer.

[Merc1138]

Honestly, I read the article(and even though it was poorly written and jumps around) I really can't find anything anti gun or anti 2a about it at all.

He did a reasonable job of pointing out his opinion in an opinion article, and interviewed and sought the opinions of those people who have differing views from his own, and seems to have fairly represented what they said without taking quotes out of context to turn them into some giant "guns are evil" essay. He's also discussing the current number of gun sales, not gun laws, and even brought attention to the bill about a 50rd monthly limit for ammo sales without saying it was a good or bad idea himself, or doing anything to portray it in a light other than being neutral.

In fact, at the very end of the article not only does he point out that the salesman had him handle a firearm and he didn't mention freaking out or having panic attacks from having a pistol in his hand, he mentions that proper safety training and education are available.

When have you heard some liberal left wing anti gun article EVER mention anything about proper safety training for firearms existing? I haven't.

[Swiss]

He had that part wrong - you can buy all the ammo you want, you just have to put yourself in a registry where records must be maintained for at least 5 years (or was it more?). You can't transfer more than 50 rounds without being an approved handgun ammunition vendor.

He's also discussing the current number of gun sales, not gun laws, and even brought attention to the bill about a 50rd monthly limit for ammo sales without saying it was a good or bad idea himself, or doing anything to portray it in a light other than being neutral.

[DDT]

I read this article in another thread, and I did the same thing..., I e-mailed him with an offer to join me at the shooting range. It'll be interesting to see if he takes up the offer.

Maybe it was all an elaborate hoax to get to go out and shoot a whole bunch of other people's guns and save his own ammo.

[Merc1138]

He had that part wrong - you can buy all the ammo you want, you just have to put yourself in a registry where records must be maintained for at least 5 years (or was it more?). You can't transfer more than 50 rounds without being an approved handgun ammunition vendor.

Oh right, because a state registry requiring a fingerprint and logging my ID for 5 years is cool :rolleyes: Yes, it'd be banning the sale unless the dealer went through a whole bunch of extra crap.

That'd be like having laws saying it's ok to do something as long as you pay for a tax stamp that you can't actually get.