Joe Biden says people ought to buy a shotgun for self-defense, not an AR-15:
Fine by me:
Month: February 2013
Ulster votes to oppose SAFE Act
Niagara unanimously votes to oppose SAFE Act
All for nothing?
It is generally believed that Gov. Cuomo pushed gun control as part of a presidential bid in 2016. If Fred Dicker’s column today is accurate, it may have been done for nothing:
“A new poll from a respected Republican firm has senior Democrats worried that Gov. Cuomo is headed for a massive re-election victory next year — which could damage his chances to run for president in the process. The poll, which was being intensely studied last week by Democratic operatives, reinforced the belief that if the governor faces a weak Republican opponent — such as Buffalo businessman Carl Paladino, who was crushed by Cuomo in 2010 — the contest will be discounted from the start by a national media focused on potential presidential candidates for 2016. “Who in the national press corps is going to pay attention to Andrew’s re-election if he’s running against a bozo like Paladino?’’ asked a Democratic activist with ties to the governor. “And even if it’s not Paladino but some other Republican no one ever heard of, what good does that do Andrew for the future?’’ the activist continued …”
So, in other words, it will not matter what issues Cuomo decides to champion as Governor because the media won’t be paying much attention to him during his 2014 re-election campaign. Essentially he pissed off countless people from all around the country for nothing.
Bad investment
The NYC teacher’s pension fund has divested it’s portfolio of gun companies. With $46.5 billion in assets, dropping a measly $13.5 million in investments is nothing, and probably goes on all the time as part of managing a fund that size. Nevertheless, Comptroller John Liu did try to score some cheap political points:
“… “There is no need to support these companies, whose products can destroy lives and shatter communities in the blink of an eye,” said Comptroller Liu. “Our investment portfolio gains nothing by doing business with these firms, and this is a sound decision that sends an important message about our commitment to addressing the plague of gun violence in every possible way.” …”
According this post at GothamSchools, trustees are legally required to only invest or divest in shares that are in the best interest of the fund’s long-term health. Given that the firearms industry is one of the few sectors of the economy doing well right now it must have been hard for Liu to say that with a straight face.
Interestingly, the vote to divest was not unanimous:
“… Raymond Sarola, a senior policy adviser in the mayor’s office of pensions and investments, said in a statement, “Pension decisions should rarely, if ever, be based on other criteria except what’s best for pensioners, which should benefit taxpayers, as well.” …”
He’s right. It’s just really ironic that a guy who works for Mayor Mike is the one who said that.
Maybe Liu deserves the benefit of the doubt and we should take him at his word that he is really looking out for the pensioners best interests. So, hows the rest of his investment strategy paying off?
“Comptroller John Liu has awarded $6 million in contracts to manage city pension funds to a firm under investigation by New York federal and state prosecutors over claims it ripped off millions from public-employee pension systems around the world, The Post has learned. Boston-based State Street Corp. has faced litigation from state governments in Washington and California, as well as the United Kingdom, dating back to 2009 — each alleging the company fraudulently overbilled their retirement funds during so-called “foreign exchange” trades. But that didn’t stop Liu from doing business with the company — his administration disclosed the contract in Friday’s public record …”
Well, maybe he’s just got a lot on his mind right now:
“When then-City Councilman John Liu won his landmark victory for city comptroller in 2009, his campaign celebration was electric, with the collective energy of hundreds of public workers who saw him as their new champion … But in the time since that halcyon night, some in labor might be in the market for a new champion. Liu is increasingly on the defensive since the arrest of his campaign treasurer, Jenny Hou, on campaign finance fraud charges more than a week ago …
You can smell it
Another reporter appears to have realized that anger over Cuomo’s gun law isn’t going to go away. Buffalo News Urban Affairs Editor Rod Watson writes:
“… In a nation founded with guns to oppose government tyranny, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that shooters won’t let Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s gun-control power play fade from the spotlight. Tuesday’s rally in Albany and another slated for Feb. 28 prove that the issue has legs. So does his drop in a poll after the law was rammed through using emergency provisions to prevent debate. Put aside for a moment the irony of the governor now saying a law passed in secret will become more popular once people know more about it. With other bills, that might be true. But in this case, the more the public learns what a semiautomatic gun is – and what it isn’t – I’m betting the less likely they are to think Cuomo made a reasoned decision, rather than a political one …”
That’s what I told the Times more than two weeks ago:
“… “The more people see about this, the angrier they are getting,” said Jacob J. Rieper, the vice president of legislative and political affairs for the Rifle and Pistol Association. He recounted sympathetic phone calls from as far away as Nebraska, where a man pledged to collect donations at his gun club to support a legal challenge to the law, and angry messages from New York gun owners who were eager to campaign against the legislators who voted for the measure. “The bottom line is none of these people thought this through, and it’s starting to stink,” Mr. Rieper said …”
Yes it is.
Joe Biden caught being honest
Blocking government sales
Some smaller gun makers react to the passage of SAFE.
LaRue Tactical announced they will only sell items to government agencies that are available to the general public:
“… Effective today, in an effort to see that no legal mistakes are made by LaRue Tactical and/or its employees, we will apply all current State and Local Laws (as applied to civilians) to state and local law enforcement / government agencies. In other words, LaRue Tactical will limit all sales to what law-abiding citizens residing in their districts can purchase or possess …”
Next, Olympic Arms cut off all government sales to New York:
“… Due the passing of this legislation, Olympic Arms would like to announce that the State of New York, any Law Enforcement Departments, Law Enforcement Officers, First Responders within the State of New York, or any New York State government entity or employee of such an entity – will no longer be served as customers …”
Today, Templar Custom is stopping all government sales as well:
“… Templar Custom is announcing that the State of New York, any Law Enforcement Departments, Law Enforcement Officers, First Responders within the State of New York, or any New York State government entity or employee will no longer be served as customers …”
Admittedly, these are small companies who probably don’t do that much business in the state to begin with. Hopefully some of the larger manufacturers will follow suit.
More lawsuit press
Tom gives a brief update on the soon-to-be-filed lawsuit against the SAFE Act:
“… [NYSRPA] will file a lawsuit against the state, targeting five or six points of the new law. He also said the association is working with noted constitutional attorney Stephen Halbrook to decipher the law and make it easier to understand …”