Everyone Can Relax, Sandra Bernhard and O'Reilly Have Opined On Gun Issue

Ok, Ok, everyone can just pipe down now on gun control!  One of the great thinkers of our time, Sandra Bernhard, has issued her proclamation via Twitter.  Doesn't that photo just exude sagacity and erudition?  

Sayeth Professor Bernhard:

@BarackObama  I am a supporter mr obama but please reinstate gun control laws over automatic weapons, "courage is what we need to fight #NRA

AND....

watching #democracynow big discussion about gun control and more it's time to stand up to the gun lobby and reinstate gun control now!

Read the story here at twitchy.com.  Sadly, as remarkable as Ms. Bernhard's ignorance is, it is not unique.  Even SACSTW favorite Bill O'Reilly fell into the gun controllers trap on his show Tuesday evening.



Just a few problems with this.  First Bill starts ranting about the availability of "heavy" weapons such as "mortars, howitzers, and machine guns".  Although it comes as news to Bill and Sandra, those weapons ARE regulated by the National Firearms Act (NFA) of 1934 and Title II of the Gun Control Act of 1968.  An American most certainly CAN NOT buy a machine gun without the federal government, specifically the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (BATFE) knowing about it.  Purchasing such a weapon requires an extensive background check including phototgraph and fingerprints, a $200 federal tax stamp (per purchase), BATFE registration, and a signature from the Sheriff or Chief of Police in the locality of the applicant.  Even moving a properly licensed and registered NFA weapon across state lines requires prior written permission from the BATFE.

Of course, those gun control laws assume the purchaser of the weapon is predisposed to follow the law.  That presumption falls a little short when we are talking about most violent criminals, a fact that gun control nuts refuse to acknowledge.

O'Reilly's assertion that you can buy any gun you want at a gun show without reporting of any kind is simply ludicrous and inaccurate.  Bill goes on to wildly exaggerate the amount of ammo the Aurora shooter had stockpiled, claiming he had purchased "60,000 rounds" on the internet.  The actual number is 6,000,. but hey, what's a little factor of 10 between friends?

Then all of a sudden, O'Reilly describes "semi-automatics" and "ammunition" as heavy weaponry.  Pathetic.  Semi-automatic is a phrase that describes many if not most firearms sold in the United States.  Tomorrow we will take a closer look at the definitions of semi-automatic and automatic when it comes to firearms.  Who knows, maybe Bill will read it.  As a Factor fan, I was deeply disappointed with Bill's level of misinformation on this subject.  C'mon Factor, you can do better!