Hold My Senators Accountable

Friday, 12/20/2019, the Washington Post published an opinion piece written by Jeff Flake, the former AZ Senator, entitled, The president is on trial. So are my Senate Republican colleagues, which can be read here.

I believe he hits the nail on the head and as such, I wrote the following letter to my Senators, Marco Rubio and the junior, Rick Scott.  I encourage you to do the same; just copy the following and send it off in the mail.  I think you may reach an actual person given that mail has become so passé.

Dear Senator,

I want to ensure that you received Jeff Flake’s memo that was published in the Washington Post Friday afternoon.  I have attached a copy.

Normally, I do not expect nor seek a response, but this time I do. Please:
1. Acknowledge receipt of Jeff Flake’s memo,
2. Whether you read it or not and
3. If you read it, that you aware of how your actions will most likely be viewed historically.

Kind Regards,

We Just Learned Of A Limit

Today the US Supreme Court (SCOTUS) decided to not hear an appeal from Remington Arms (RA) seeking to prevent a lawsuit by the families who lost their children from a massacre caused by one young white male wielding an assault rifle manufactured by RA at Sandy Hook elementary school.

RA sought to dismiss the lawsuit saying that it had protections under 2005 Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, which offers very, very broad immunity, but obviously not broad enough.

SCOTUS, in its landmark DC vs Heller decision, the majority stated that the Second Amendment is not without limits, but it failed to specifically state those limits.  Obviously there is one now even though I am not certain of the limit.

Hopefully, gun manufacturers going forward will seek to limit gun sales to individuals deemed responsible and who will not violate others's unalienable rights while exercising their own Second Amendment right.

Basis of Our Country’s Founding

Senator Marco Rubio sent me an email yesterday detailing his response to the recent killing of innocent lives within our borders by fellow Americans.

The following is my response to him and the junior Senator.

Was our country founded on the belief that:

A. “To secure [certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness,] Governments are instituted among [the People], deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed” or

B. “The right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed [… being necessary to the security of a free State by a well regulated Militia]?”

I trust that you are familiar with history are you not?

Then you know that America was founded because we have unalienable rights endowed by our creator whereas our second form of government granted the Bill of Rights from which you selectively quote in your form letter in your response to recent murders from the ill use of weaponry (aka firearms, guns, etc…).

Our founding fathers believed, as so do I, that “whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends (i.e. our unalienable rights), it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it.”  

Yet, your stance indicates that you believe it is acceptable that a certain number of people are expected to die annually so anybody can obtain a gun without:

1.            Demonstrating respect for everyone else’s unalienable rights and

2.            That they are of sound mind.

Your actions and words are the antithesis of our founding principles and either:

1. Blasphemous if you believe in God or

2. Disgusting and just shameful if you do not believe in God.

Furthermore, your choice, use and not use of certain words indicate that you do not truly understand our Constitution.  You feel it is right to lob off the prefatory clause of The Second Amendment (2A) just like five (5) Supreme Court Justices did so to effectively re-write 2A, which I contend was to appease special interest.  If people want to alter the Constitution then you should implement procedures spelled out in Article Five.

Soldiers Were Not The Only Ones to Make the Ultimate Sacrifice

Today we honor and remember those American soldiers who died defending our country in battle; arguably, those that recently died in battle sacrificed their lives willingly as we have an all-voluntary military for almost a half of century.  Most of the formal recognitions occur at cemeteries, the most well known being Arlington National Cemetery that has the most prominent memorial, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. 

But are these known and unknown soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice the only ones that lost their lives in the name of our government?  NO!  They are not the only ones.  The following UNWILLING sacrificed their lives for us to have an Unlimited Second Amendment (2A) right:

• Students at:
• Columbine High School,
• Virginia Tech, and
• Sandy Hook to truly name a few;
• Concertgoers in Las Vegas; and
• Office and factory workers in all fifty states.

If we are so willing to take a day off for soldiers who willingly went into battle knowing full well they may not live to see the sun rise the following day defending our government then I think we should also have a day of remembrance and a dedicated memorial for those who just happened to unfortunately win the lottery that ended their life, liberty and pursuit of happiness so anyone can obtained an instrument of death (i.e. a gun) without showing whether they are worthy and responsible enough to handle such an instrument because that is what have allowed as a society  It is the least we can do, is it not?

Life or Death, Which Do You Embrace?

The following questions are those I sent to my two Senators, Marco Rubio and the Junior, Rick Scott.

I encourage you to copy and paste in an email to send to your elected representatives.

Dear Elected Official (in my email, I just stated their first name):

Are you not bothered that an American would seek to kill another American, such as what occurred yesterday at a STEM school in CO?

Is not that behavior the antithesis of our founding core values of life, liberty and pursuit of happiness?

Are you aware that a gun is one of the most efficient weapons for an individual to wield in which to kill a living creature?

It is and as such, should we (i.e. Americans) not ensure that those who seek to own and use a gun respect our founding core values and conclusively demonstrate that they will act responsibly?

Yet, do we do that?  Do we see if people are worthy to exercise their Second Amendment right?

Anthony Scalia and four (4) other Supreme Court Justices in their DC vs. Heller ruling state, “the Second Amendment [(2A)] right is not unlimited.”  In other words, 2A has limits.

Yet, what limits do we (i.e. America) place on exercising our 2A right?

Essentially, none, am I not correct?

Why not have Universal Background Checks (UBC)?

If not then what is more important to you?

And why do you never provide me answers?  Is it asking too much?  Are you afraid to stand your ground?  I put things in writing?  Why cannot you?

Two last questions:
Which do you embrace, life or death?

If you say life (as you may point to your stance on abortion) then why not seek to protect all Americans’ lives by voting for UBC?

Think of this way when pondering my questions, guns represent death and fear.  Have a little love and desire for life.

Are We Not To Fear White Male Gun Owners?

Another gun owner, a young white man, kills one and injuries a few others. Then a few days later, another gun owner, also a young white male, walks into a college classroom and shoots two dead. Both have undoubtedly sowed seeds of terror within our nation's borders. I refer to John T. Earnest who legally obtained a gun to kill many Jewish people in San Diego CA at the start of Passover and Trystan Andrew Terrell who also legally obtained a gun to kill fellow students at UNCC, respectively.

There is a trend in these mass shootings that have been going on for over 20 years if you have not noticed.  The mass shootings are caused by gun owners who happened to be male and more recently, are for the most part, white and relatively young.

The trend is your friend or in this case our enemy.  The trend tells us, that soon, pre-teens will be doing the shooting.  It is not hard to imagine, the gun industry wants everybody to own a gun regardless of whether they are responsible or not and currently there are enough guns within our borders for each of us to have one.

If you are a white male gun owner then should you not be concerned that you may be thought as evil just like a good number of white people, especially those in the South, who thought black people, especially black men were evil years ago and to some part, still do today?  Hmm.  Something to think about.

While you are thinking, I ask you, are more guns the answer?  How about, better gun laws? How about no gun laws because guns do not kill people?  Seriously, guns do not kill people, but people, demonstratively white male gun owners, kill people. Therefore, we need laws that make it harder for individuals like those mentioned above to violate our unalienable rights.  In other words, there should be fewer gun owners - all the recent killings are proof to that.

If you are a gun owner and more specifically, a while male, are you mad at it me for what I write?  If so, is not your anger misplaced?  Other white males did the killing, should not your anger be directed at them?  Better yet, should not your anger be directed at the laws or lack of laws that enabled them to kill?  Even better still, why not direct your anger to the politicians that voted-for or failed to vote-for laws that would have made it harder for the killings to occur.  If you direct your anger at the politicians should you not stop and look in the mirror to then ask yourself, "what could I do differently so everyone's unalienable rights are better protected?"

Please keep in mind. not everyone is responsible or respectful of others and as such they should not be able to exercise their Second Amendment (2A) right until they can demonstrate that they can undoubtedly met those conditions.  SCOTUS in the ground breaking case, DC vs. Heller, states that our 2A right has limits.  The previously mentioned conditions - responsible and respectful - are the limits we need to ensure yours, your family's and everyone's safety and well-being from a deranged white male gunman.

JAX Firefighters Purchase Bulletproof Vests!

This morning I read a news report that Jacksonville Fire & Rescue Department has purchased bulletproof vests, the same kind used by the Sheriff’s Department, to protect its firefighters.

This fact is disturbing to me and should be to you, too, because why do firefighters need bulletproof vests?

Obviously, the world is becoming unsafe.  We have made it unsafe.

Today’s news is anecdotal evidence demonstrating the universal law of cause and effect in action.  Think about – there have been firefighters for as long as there have been fires, yet until now for the most part they did not need to worry about being shot.

It does not have to be this way.  SCOTUS (Supreme Court of The United States) states that our Second Amendment (2A) right has limits, but yet do we have any?  Essentially none.  In America:

1. Any adult can obtain a gun without verification of any sort if they know where to look and
2. The gun industry operates under broad immunity so its irresponsible behavior can go unchecked.

As a result of this lack of limits, limits that SCOTUS advocates having, we have as many guns within our borders as people. Something is bound to happen and it does from time to time!

I am doing my part to protect our unalienable rights. Prior to posting this blog entry I called my Republican representatives in Washington and I have also sent them emails.

What are you doing?  More importantly, if you are a gun owner then what are you doing to ensure that everyone’s unalienable rights will not be infringed upon by and from irresponsible gun owners?  Hopefully, you see that more guns is not the answer.  How about limits as SCOTUS points out?  Universal background checks would be a good start.  Call your representative.

The Gun Industry Trades In Fear; Acts As A Bully

I show below my third in a series of speeches I have made to the DCPS Board at its monthly meeting, which occurs the first Tuesday of the month. The subject remains the same: loss of our children's liberty due to fear associated with unchecked irresponsible gun ownership/use.

Good evening Board Chair, School Board Members & Dr. Greene.

I truly understand your frustration as it pertains to the lack of resources to properly maintain aging school infrastructure.

It must frustrate you even more - that with limited funds - DCPS must build higher fences and employee qualified security personnel to roam the hallways with guns - creating an environment that fosters fear, FEAR that has been proven to be psychologically damaging, especially so for developing young minds.

It frustrates me.

Your silence frustrates me. I suspect I may know why you are silent.

You may hope that the Federal Government and state governments will solve the problem so you do not have to.  Your hope is misplaced. These institutions ARE part of the problem.

Just last week our former sheriff, John Rutherford, voted against Universal Background checks.  He is more interested in protecting gun dealers (some of which allow guns to fall into the wrong hands) than protecting our unalienable rights. While the bill passed in the House it will most likely die in the Senate.

Polls show that 90% of Americans, which includes the majority of gun owners, want Universal Background Checks, yet we will not receive them.

Why?  Money.  The industry pimps out  hustles the Second Amendment (2A) for profits.  Career minded politicians are their coconspirators.

Collectively, their behavior is irresponsible and a threat to not only the second amendment, but also America’s founding core values of life liberty and pursuit of happiness.

However, I believe your silence stems more from your fear of the gun industry.  It is understandable. The gun industry acts like a bully.  It trades in fear –

1.      Fear of retribution if you challenge it and
2.      Fear of loss of life, how else does one achieve defense with a gun

This fear spreads like cancer and has now reached our schools, visibly sickening our children as exemplified by the recent active shooter training at Lake Brantley High School that left some students vomiting.

Our children want this to stop. We must show how to lead if we want them to be leaders. We must stop the bullying.

We must take the fight to the industry. Sue to recover funds re-directed from curriculum and buildings to fund costs incurred to counter the use of the industries products. Other school districts will surely join us because as I have previously mentioned, legal precedent has been established.

To quote Admiral Horatio Nelson, “The measure may be thought BOLD, but I am of the opinion the boldest are the safest.”

Only then we might receive legislation that ensures responsible gun ownership that will enable us to stand down from this threat to our unalienable rights.

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Look Who's Starting Draining The Swamp

The following is the email I sent to one of my senators, Marco Rubio, two of my concerns: 1.) Responsible Gun Ownership and 2.) Campaign finance reform. 

Marco:

I called your office yesterday and spoke to Alex.  He represents you well.  He listened intently and answered by questions.

While I called to voice my support for universal background checks (by emphasizing that our unalienable rights that are endowed by our creator supersedes/precedes our second amendment right that were endowed by us), I told Alex that campaign finance reforms need to occur because I believe you have been unduly influenced by the gun lobby.

Just today, I saw a video posted on YouTube  by the Washington Post of newly elected Congresswoman Cortez questioning lobbyists.  You may find the video by using the following url, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRM1t4RU69c.

She OBVIOUSLY speaks the truth - No one has corrected her and no one has refuted what she stated.

She has honed in on the rotten, stinking root that has tainted our government at all levels and contributed to the vitriol in the political arena.  She, unlike your party's leader, has done more in a mere five (5) minutes to drain the swamp than he.

You and everyone else should be ashamed of yourselves for allowing yourselves to be corrupted like this. 

My question and only question to you, will contribute to the solution or continue to be the problem?

Sincerely,

James 

The NRA Acts Delusional

If you believe in responsible gun ownership then “call your U.S. Representative and Senators at 202-224-3121 via the Capitol Switchboard” to let them know you approve of universal background checks and support two bills recently introduced in Congress, H.R. 8 and S. 42.

The NRA wants you call the above number to tell them otherwise, which I think is highly irresponsible on its part and puts the Second Amendment (2A) at risk. Moreover, either the NRA and its senior leadership team are delusional* or have deliberate ignorance (aka willful ignorance)** because they presume all gun owners are law abiding, which is why they oppose background checks. However, the spate of recent mass murders by gun owners as I have repeatedly documented over the past years proves otherwise.

If you are:

1. A member of the NRA,
2. An upstanding and law-abiding citizen,
3. Respectful of others unalienable rights endowed by our creator,
4. Want to protect the 2A, and
5. Do not want mass murders and other low-lifes attached to an upstanding pro gun culture 

then call Jennifer Baker, Director of Public Affairs for NRA's Institute for Legislative Action, at (703) 267-3820 to let her and the NRA's senior leadership team that NRA should do more to promote responsible gun ownership and lawful transfer of gun ownership to another upstanding, law-abiding citizen so every Americans' unalienable rights will be better protected. 



* Delusional is defined as “holding idiosyncratic beliefs or impressions that are contradicted by reality or rational argument, typically as a symptom of mental disorder” by a Google search.

** Deliberate ignorance is the practice of refusing to consider or discuss logic or evidence disproving ideologically motivated positions per Conservapedia. Wow, what a definition.  Conservapedia should add the NRA's stance as an example as well to their definition, which I conveniently linked here.

Hey Comrade, We’re Playing Russian Roulette

The Google search engine defines Russian roulette as “the practice of loading a bullet into one chamber of a revolver, spinning the cylinder, and then pulling the trigger while pointing the gun at one's own head; an activity that is potentially very dangerous.”

On a national level all US citizens currently participate unknowingly in a game of Russian roulette.  Instead of loading a lone bullet into a chamber there are an untold number of guns with magazines loaded with bullets that could be fired at anytime.  The tipping point is when the owner becomes mentally unstable for a myriad of reasons, but the main one is that they believe killing people will solve their problem.

We have allowed this to happen because … well I am at a loss for words to succinctly describe how the electorate allowed themselves (today it is “ourselves”) to be duped by marketing interests that twist(ed) and manipulate(d) our patriotism to fill the coffers of a few with nary of a concern and respect by those few for America’s core value of “life, liberty and pursuit of happiness.”   This misleading marketing wrapped up in the American flag has gone on for such a long time (in excess of 50 years), it is hard for people to see, let alone say, that they have been duped so they continue promulgating the message; that message essentially being, guns for everyone. Even the lead creator of the manipulative messaging, the NRA, got duped as evidenced by the picture below when some of its high level executives unwittingly and infamously visited Russia a little over three years ago.

As a result of this avarice a third of Americans now have enough guns so every American can have one.  Yet, do we have mandatory:

1. Firearm training on a periodic basis, no less than 2x a year
2. Firearms under lock when not in use and
3. Mental health checks to ensure one is of sound mind to handle an instrument of death?

No, no and NO!

As result, we can be shot anytime, anywhere for no good reason – kind of like Russian roulette.  Look at my posts from last week.  Better yet, walk less than a mile from my house and you will see the scene of a shooting that occurred less than 2 hours before I started writing this post.  The shooting left a bicyclist dead. DEAD, spelled with a capital “D,” capital “E,” capital “A,” and a capital “D!”

For 10 years I rode my bicycle to work.  Numerous times I almost got hit because drivers did not know the rules of the road.  If I could I would engage the driver in a conversation to help them know what rule they broke.  Sadly, I got in yelling match with one driver, he finally came to his senses when I told him I may be right, but I do not want to be dead right.

We do not know whether the above killing was crime or road rage related.  Regardless of the impetus, the use of a gun is highly destructive and should only be used as a last resort in saving one’s life; there are many other things that can be done prior to getting in that situation, such as walking away.

Separately, I recently attended an event at a Jewish Community Alliance (JCA) facility to watch a one of my children in a play sponsored by this local JCA.  As I sat there, I wondered if someone might walk in at anytime with a weapon or two to kill us just like what happened in Pittsburgh of Colorado or.... well, you get the picture.  Others did too, sadly, as evidence by armed security guards standing out front at the same performance the following week.

This is sad on many levels.  Sad that:

• I and others have lost some freedom (of thought) as we now have to think about how to protect our lives and those of our loved ones and
• The local JCA has to now spend money on non-accretive activities instead of enriching programs for its members 

It does not have to be this way. I do not want to be in this game of Russian roulette. If you do not want to play Russian roulette then I encourage you to:

• Have conversations with extended family members, friends and neighbors and
• Tell all of your elected representatives that we want and must have “people laws” to ensure responsible gun ownership by only those deemed capable of owning an instrument of death because “guns do not kill people; people kill people.”

I provide scripts below you may consider using to overcome what I believe are the four (4) main objections heard when discussing how to end gun violence.  These 4 are:

1. There is no need for more restrictions, as guns do not kill people, people kill people.
2. The US Supreme Court Opinion for DC vs. Heller says that I have the right to own a gun for self-defense.
3. Per capita death rates have declined over the last forty years; we do not need gun restrictions.
4. Restrictions will infringe on my Second Amendment Right

Good luck and I look forward to learning from you how we may improve this dialog to end gun violence and this game of Russian roulette.

Again! Another Gun Owner Commits Mass Murder

In just a few days, 2 gun owners killed about 10 people and destroyed untold number of lives.  The most recent gun owner that killed four did so in Pennsylvania.

There are several things I have focused on if you have not fully read my blog, which are:

1. The people that kill people with guns are typically gun owners (a fact the NRA ignores)
2. We must change the message; instead of saying "gun control" we should use the NRAs own language for example, "we do not need gun control because guns do not kill people, but we do need people control because people kill people" and
3. As such. we should institute laws that ensure responsible gun ownership; conversely, if one cannot be responsible then they forfeit their Second Amendment (2A) right until they can conclusively do so.

In short, its about people control, not gun control.

I believe in the phrase, "you abuse it, you lose it."

Sadly, a few gun owners have abused the 2A right by infringing upon our (as in ALL OF US) unalienable rights endowed by our creator and in doing so, these few put at risk OUR 2A right.  I know one gun owner who believes that the 2A right, which was endowed by our government, precedes those rights endowed by our creator.  What gets my goat is that this gun owner has touted his belief in Jesus Christ. Go figure.

I digress, the point is if the NRA is truly the protector of the 2A that it claims then it needs to promote responsible gun ownership to ensure that ALL gun owners will respect their's and more importantly others' unalienable rights.  While changing their message will help, they need to support laws that will ensure it.  Another way to look at, not all people should be able to exercise their 2A right, because they are detrimental to themselves and more importantly, you, me and our way of life.

Yes, it will be a cumbersome to gun owners, but less cumbersome then lying stone cold dead on the ground with no where else to go. 

Oh, by the way. the 2A remains intact.  Is that not what we want?

Another Gun Owner, Another Mass Shooting

Guns do not kill people, but gun owners do as evidence by the mass shooting in Sebring, FL yesterday.

Some bullets fall on rocky ground, but some bullets tear the hearts out of people.  These bullets that lead to destruction are just like seeds that fall on fertile ground.  Unlike the seeds that will grow and eventually bear fruit, the destruction from the bullets will metastasize to eventually lead to repealing the Second Amendment (2A) unless gun advocates embrace responsibility – people most demonstrate without a doubt that they will respect other’s unalienable rights endowed by our creator else they are not worthy of exercising their 2A right.

Attack the Problem, Not the Symptom

Tonight I spoke at Duval County Public Schools (DCPS) monthly school board meeting, the second in a series.  You could say this presentation is a follow-up to my presentation this past September entitled, Sue the Gun Manufacturers.  My speech is as follows:

Good evening Board Chair, Fellow Board members, Superintendent Greene, Guests and fellow attendees.

Is not the purpose of an education to gain the cognitive thinking skills with which to solve problems?  Reading, writing, arithmetic are just means to that end are they not?  Many educational institutions based on perusing their websites do not share this goal; instead I mostly found oblique objectives.

I contend this lack of focus and direction is not new or our country would not be encountering problems that should have never arisen. We have allowed our own laws to infringe upon and even annihilate for some the unalienable rights endowed by our creator.  We respond to these outcomes with the very same activity that leads us there- passing new laws that further rub out these rights.

When in a hole, stop digging.  Some may even say the hole in which we find ourselves is analogous to hell given that lives were snuffed out in Parkland, FL and Duval county schools now look like the pea farm (James I. Montgomery Correctional Center).

As I understand it, some of you want more guns on campus. We do not need more guns. I am not alone in this thought as evidenced by the Gifford Law Center (GLC) lawsuit.  However, I think GLC is misguided as well.  It tackles the symptom not the disease that has led to this rot and stench and in doing so forces DCPS to consume precious resources that should be used to educate our children. 

When I stood before you back in September I advocated that you sue the Federal government.

In 2005 Congress passed the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act.  Arguably it is unconstitutional as it gives gun manufactures protections that neither you nor I have and it hinders your ability to protect my children’s unalienable rights; worse, it has led you to infringe on their rights. Meaningful change will not occur until it and other misguided laws are altered or abolished.

We do not need gun laws, as guns do not kill people; people kill people.  Since people are well, human, we need laws to ensure people are:

1. Capable of handling an instrument of death and
2. Will respect other’s unalienable rights.

I call these laws, Responsibility Laws.  

Madam Chairwoman, School Board Members, and Doctor Green I encourage you to set aside your differences with GLC and seek to overturn those laws that force you to infringe upon my children’s unalienable rights. After I leave this meeting I will share these thought of mine with GLC representatives.

I encourage both DCPS and GLC to join forces to fight for our unalienable rights because "whenever any law becomes destructive of these [rights], it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new [laws] to [a]ffect their Safety and Happiness."

Most of the words in that last sentence were written ~ 250 years ago. I just nipped and tucked in a few places.

Let’s fight the good fight.  Let’s fight for our children’s well being.