Category: State Legislation

Just because the legislature is in recess does not mean new legislation isn’t being introduced.

Case in point, S-8297, Prohibits the advertisement of firearms as combat weapons; exempts the advertisement of such rifles, shotguns, or firearms for the purposes of recreation, hunting, self-defense or other legal uses of such firearms.

From the Justification statement:

In the context of gun violence, the marketing of firearms contributes to the glorification of violence by advertising militaristic or combative characteristics of weapons.

In the case of the Sandy Hook Elementary mass shooting where 20 children and 7 adults were killed, the victims’ families assert the marketing of the specific rifle was done in an unethical and inappropriate manner, which incited violence by extolling militaristic and assaultive characteristics of the firearm. It is argued that the marketing of the weapon for “offensive assault missions” perpetuated a means for extreme violence. The marketing of the firearm as a combat weapon may have directly contributed to the misuse of the weapon as a means of perpetrating a mass shooting.

In 2017, a study by Corey H. Basch of the New Jersey Department of Health cited that exposure to regularly violent content translates to aggressive behavior. During short term exposure to such violence, a certain cognitive “priming” occurs that creates an instinctive response to mimic observed violent behavior.

Through an act that establishes guidelines on how firearms may be marketed for legal use, we may be able to assist in engaging in the fight against gun violence and the misuse of firearms. Marketing firearms as militaristic combat weapons, rather than for sporting, self-defense, and hunting may directly influence the illegal misuse of said weapons. As lawmakers, we must ensure the safety and wellbeing of New Yorkers by prohibiting incendiary advertisements of weapons as deadly combat weapons.

Antigunners are the ones who most often refer to firearms, any firearm, as “combat weapons” or “assault weapons.”

From the bill text:

“NO PERSON, FIRM OR CORPORATION ENGAGED IN THE RETAIL BUSINESS OF SELLING RIFLES, SHOTGUNS OR FIREARMS, AS SUCH TERMS ARE DEFINED IN SECTION 265.00 OF THE PENAL LAW, SHALL ADVERTISE SUCH RIFLES, SHOTGUNS OR FIREARMS TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC BY MEANS OF ADVERTISEMENTS IN PUBLIC NEWSPAPERS, MAGAZINES, BY RADIO OR TELEVISION, OR BY ELECTRONIC MEDIA DISPLAY ADVERTISEMENTS, FOR THE PURPOSE OF OFFENSIVE ASSAULT OR HOMICIDE OR OTHER RELATED OFFENSES PURSUANT TO ARTICLE ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-FIVE OF THE PENAL LAW.”

Who does this? Has anyone, anywhere ever seen an advertisement that goes like: “Glock. Reliability for when you got to bust a cap in your neighbor’s ass.”

It is worth noting that the bill’s sponsor Senator Alessandra Biaggi is the granddaughter of the notorious Congressman Mario Biaggi of “cop-killer bullet” fame who spent his political career pushing gun control right up to the point where he was charged and convicted of corruption.

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