Tug of war over children's lives

[sarisataka]

TELL DOJ: CANCEL $2.4 MILLION GRANT TO GUN LOBBY GROUP

Joint Petition from Newtown Action Alliance, Connecticut Against Gun Violence, and the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence:

On September 10, 2015, the Newtown, Connecticut-based National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) announced that it had been awarded a two-year, $2.4 million grant by the U.S. Department of Justice for its Project ChildSafe program.1 The funds will go toward buying kits (containing a cable-style gun lock and safety brochure) which NSSF distributes to law enforcement agencies around the country.2 Law enforcement typically provides these kits to gun owners at their request.

While few would oppose the use of gun locks to secure firearms or the dissemination of information on gun safety, the partnership between DOJ and NSSF is nonetheless deeply troubling. Since the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary—which claimed the lives of 20 children and 6 adults in NSSF’s own community—the organization has opposed any and all attempts to strengthen U.S. gun laws to prevent future tragedies. Instead, NSSF has actively lobbied for policies that put children at direct risk of obtaining unsecured firearms. Specifically, NSSF:

Opposes all legislation that would require parents to safely store firearms in the home in the manner described in their Project ChildSafe Safety Kit brochure.
Opposes Child Access Prevention laws to hold adults criminally responsible when children gain unauthorized access to their firearms.
Supports unprecedented legal immunity for the gun industry, which prevents parents (and others) from bringing lawsuits against the industry when they market and/or distribute their products in a negligent manner.
Supports lowering the age at which Americans can purchase firearms and carry them in public.
Furthermore, Project ChildSafe has been beset with problems from the start. After hundreds of thousands of its gun locks were recalled for being too fragile and flimsy, NSSF lost federal funding for the program in 2009. Obliged to fund Project ChildSafe on its own, NSSF scaled the program back significantly.3

It’s difficult to understand why the Obama administration would possibly want to bankroll a radical lobby that has accused it of being “willing to try virtually anything to pursue its gun control agenda in defiance of Congress and existing law.”4 Whatever good might be done by Project ChildSafe is vastly outweighed by the harm NSSF does in lobbying for reckless gun laws. No taxpayer in America should have to foot the bill for a profit-focused lobby looking to improve its public image.

Tell the Department of Justice: Cancel your $2.4 million grant to NSSF and find a better partner for gun violence prevention.

http://csgv.org/action/cancel-2-4-million-grant-gun-lobby/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=csgv&utm_content=2+-+Sign+our+petition+today+and+tell+the+Dep&utm_campaign=DOJNSSF&source=DOJNSSF

NSSF Statement: Project ChildSafe DOJ-OJP Cooperative Agreement Grant

The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), the trade association for the firearms, ammunition, hunting, and shooting sports industry, has been awarded a two-year $2.4 million competitive, cooperative agreement grant from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs (DOJ-OJP).

Following announcement of the award, two gun-control groups voiced opposition to the Department of Justice’s decision to select NSSF and Project ChildSafe to receive the grant. It is unfortunate that these groups, which do not have comprehensive, practical firearms safety programs of their own, cannot find common ground to support the goals of this successful, long-standing safety initiative.

They also made false claims about the quality of the program’s cable-style gun locks. The gun locks included in the Project ChildSafe firearm safety kits exceed standards set by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) and the California Department of Justice.

The new federal funding will allow Project ChildSafe to expand its firearm safety efforts, broaden community partnerships and focus on developing new safety communication tools and distribution strategies.

http://www.nssfblog.com/nssf-statement-project-childsafe-doj-ojp-cooperative-agreement-grant/

Ultimate irony- "gun safety" groups are petitioning against a proven gun safety program. 37 million lock have been freely distributed over sixteen years, mostly through law enforcement. While CSGV and Newtown Action Alliance want the money to go to a program run by a 'better' group, they offer no suggestions. That is because there is no such program among the "gun safety" organizations. They focus 100% on lobbying for new laws while devoting no resources to education or providing the gun locks that they would like to see legally mandated.

It is especially ironic that the Newtown Action Alliance is against the program as had the rifle used at Sandy Hook been secured with a cable lock, the shooter would have been at least slowed, by having to locate the key, if not stopped entirely.

Whatever good might be done by Project ChildSafe...

The good is saving children's lives...

[randys1]

1. Wanna save lives? I got a better idea, but it would require enforcing the

2nd amendment as written.

Then dont let children join the militia, problem solved.

[sarisataka]

2. You need to make up your mind

randys1
26. I am all for ONLY Black people having guns

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1172176157#post26

Are we going to enforce Amendments as written, say Second and Fourteenth for example, or will we pick and choose?

FYI children are not part of the militia- see Militia Act of 1903

[randys1]

5. Obviously there is no chance we will enforce the 2nd

and obviously only Black people wont be owning guns

I make an absurd statement to point out the absurdity of people purposely misreading the 2nd to get what they want

why cant I do that too?

And I know children cant be part of the militia, thus my point.

look, the NRA i.e. gun manufacturers got to the SC and you got what you wanted and many many many will die because of all these guns.

I wont sit back and pretend that the misreading of the 2nd is OK

it isnt

[sarisataka]

7. So given the reality

Of the situation, would you agree removing funding from Project ChildSafe is unwise?

The logical outcome is that some children will die from firearms that would have been secured with the locks.

[randys1]

8. I will make you a deal, federal funds to teach kids how not to shoot themselves, federal funds

for abortions.

[sarisataka]

9. As part of a comprehensive

Government subsidized health program; I would accept that.

[randys1]

10. Why not now, why not give money to PP to assist? Have to overturn assholes law is all.

hyde

[sarisataka]

12. Since PP is in place

There is logic to your proposal. I would support it.

[Eleanors38]

15. Sounds OK to me. I have materially supported the RTCoose for decades.

[branford]

3. Children injured while playing with guns were never part of any militia.

Of course, you knew that, but your sarcasm is duly noted.

I would similarly note that even if the Second Amendment disappeared today, not much would change. The vast majority of states have their own Second Amendment analogs, often far broader than the Constitution, and the Second Amendment only establishes the maximum level of restrictions on arms. Many firearm restrictions are entirely constitutional, yet are not law because they lack the requisite electoral support.

Now, other than the sarcasm and pipe dream about gun bans, do you have an actual opinion about the efficacy of NSSF's Project ChildSafe program or the dispute cited in the OP?

[TeddyR]

21. I don't think you really understand the purpose of the Second Amendment

I recommend doing further reading. I try to have as much information as possible when I take a position on issues, and after researching I came to understand that the Second Amendment is designed to protect an individual right to own firearms. There's a lot of literature on the topic, and two of the better articles I've read are The Embarrassing Second Amendment by Levinson and The Commonplace Second Amendment by Volokh. Either is freely available via Google and both are easy to read and pretty informative. Volokh in particular puts the lie to your contention that the Second Amendment only applies to those who serve in a militia (which has all sorts of other problems).

[petronius]

4. Wasn't there a gun control group that said it was going to distribute locks?

Perhaps they should apply for a grant as well--or even better, consult/collaborate with NSSF.

It certainly seems ... odd ... for a purported 'safety' organization to try and undermine and politicize an effective and non-political program...

[branford]

6. Even if some vehement gun control groups like Brady or MDA actually distributed gun locks,

how many gun owners would actually take the locks from them, no less offer them even the hint of tacit support?

For an actual gun safety program to work, there needs to be trust. If a group's idea of gun safety is effective gun bans or strict gun control, that trust will never exist.

[Duckhunter935]

11. There was a website that

Said something like that but it seems to be all lies as the numbers never seem to change or actually get lower on numbers they say they have distributed.

[sarisataka]

14. You are thinking of

http://besmartforkids.org/ another Bloomberg project.

It launched in May with a bit of fanfare and a video with Melissa Joan Heart. The day of release they already had 15k+ locks to donate, based on people taking the quiz. Today that total has dwindled to 1157.

Nowhere on the site or MDA or Everytown is there any indication any locks have been made available to the public, or even when/how they will be made available outside of an unspecified "local gun safety awareness event".

A cynical person would say a better name is bullshitforkids.

[Duckhunter935]

22. shows TOTAL GUN LOCKS: 18,681

when I go to it today, seems to not be very accurate

[sarisataka]

24. Wow! 17000 in one day!

Incredible! Unbelievable!

[Duckhunter935]

25. It will be down tomorrow

What a joke

[sarisataka]

26. You called it

down to 1742 today.

[Duckhunter935]

29. randum number generator, lol

TOTAL GUN LOCKS: 16,463

[Straw Man]

13. Just another lamentable instance ...

... of ideological "purity" trumping actual safety.

[Eleanors38]

16. The big problem is the controllers Don't want legitimacy given the "gun culture."

Even if that means walking away from efforts to safeguard kids.

[sarisataka]

17. I doubt they see the parallel

between the effort to defund Project ChildSafe and the efforts of conservative groups to prevent schools from giving out birth control.

In both cases the groups value their own interests above child safety.

[Eleanors38]

19. Good comparison.

[clffrdjk]

18. wasn't one of the grabbers just on here trying to claim that newtown

Supported project child safe?

[oneshooter]

20. Yes, but only if the right type of people get the money. n/t

[Duckhunter935]

23. would not surprise me they would be passing

such lies. Looks like none of Bloomberg's "gun safety" organizations.

http://www.projectchildsafe.org/supporter-orgs

[jimmy the one]

27. NSSF opposes Child Access Prev laws

sarisaka: Ultimate irony- "gun safety" groups are petitioning against a proven gun safety program. 37 million lock have been freely distributed over sixteen years, mostly through law enforcement.

NSSF: They {various gun control groups} also made false claims about the quality of the program’s cable-style gun locks.

NSSF’s Project ChildSafe program has been plagued with problems from the start. At one point, hundreds of thousands of the locks they distributed to law enforcement had to be recalled because they were so flimsy.
There has been no bigger opponent of sensible gun reform than {NSSF}National Shooting Sports Foundation. They have relentlessly lobbied against every single piece of legislation that would prevent children from obtaining unauthorized access to firearms, including Child Access Prevention laws and criminal penalties for adults whose weapons are obtained by minors. http://www.truebluepolitics.com/tag/gun-locks/

sep 2013: Since 1999, the NSSF has coordinated a safety initiative to distribute gun locks to law enforcement agencies, which in turn pass them on to gun owners, free of charge.. the implementation has been plagued by problems. Hundreds of thousands of the flimsy, fragile locks were recalled. Then, when a $50 million DoJ grant dried up and NSSF was obliged to finance the lock giveaway on its own, the program was scaled back significantly. http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2013/09/the-gun-lobbying-group-you-dont-hear-about/279616/
Last year, NSSF lobbied in support of the Sportsman’s Act of 2012, which included a number of provisions regarding conservation of public lands, access and fees for hunters, and a clause that would have exempted ammunition from regulation by the Environmental Protection Agency. Ecologists objected, saying the lead bullets and chemicals in gunpowder are dangerous to certain habitats..the bill ultimately failed.

sarisaka: While CSGV and Newtown Action Alliance want the money to go to a program run by a 'better' group, they offer no suggestions. That is because there is no such program among the "gun safety" organizations.

Gun locks are a dime a dozen in places; I got 3 free ones from the VA hospital I go to, & I don't even own a gun.

sarisaka: It is especially ironic that the Newtown Action Alliance is against the program as had the rifle used at Sandy Hook been secured with a cable lock, the shooter would have been at least slowed, by having to locate the key, if not stopped entirely.

Utterly specious lame reasoning. As if adam lanza would'nt've been able to access his mother's ar15 bushmaster, had it been locked (dunno if it was or wasn't). I bet he knew where the key was. His mother was a 'law abiding gun owner' as well as a gunnut: Nancy Lanza as a "gun enthusiast who owned at least a dozen firearms". She often took her two sons to a local shooting range and had them learn to shoot. Peter Lanza said he does not believe Nancy Lanza feared her son Adam. She did not confide any fear of Adam to her sister or to her best friend; she slept with her bedroom door unlocked and she kept guns in the house where she lived with Adam.[

Specifically, NSSF:
•Opposes all legislation that would require parents to safely store firearms in the home in the manner described in their Project ChildSafe Safety Kit brochure.
•Opposes Child Access Prevention laws to hold adults criminally responsible when children gain unauthorized access to their firearms.
•Supports unprecedented legal immunity for the gun industry, which prevents parents (and others) from bringing lawsuits against the industry when they market and/or distribute their products in a negligent manner.
•Supports lowering the age at which Americans can purchase firearms and carry them in public.

[sarisataka]

28. Are you referring to this

CPSC, National Shooting Sports Foundation Announce Recall to Replace Project HomeSafe (Now Project ChildSafe) Gun Locks
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Gun Lock Phone Number: [phone] or [phone]

February 07, 2001

NSSF Contact: Bill Brassard, [phone]

Release # 01-078


WASHINGTON, D.C. - In cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), of Newtown, Conn., is voluntarily recalling about 400,000 gun locks for replacement. Under certain conditions, these locks can open without the use of a key. This can give unauthorized access to a firearm.

The NSSF and its lock supplier, Adstar Inc., of Merrick, N.Y., are unaware of any instances of unauthorized access by adults or children.

The locks resemble a bicycle cable lock and have a red cable with a black padlock. Red vinyl bands around the top and bottom of the locks read, "PROJECT" and "HOMESAFE." "MADE IN CHINA" and "30mm" are imprinted on the bottom of the locks. The gun locks were distributed in clear plastic cylinders with Project HomeSafe literature.

The gun locks were distributed nationwide by NSSF as part of its Project HomeSafe (now Project ChildSafe) Campaign for safe firearm storage. Law enforcement agencies distributed the gun locks free of charge from September 1999 through October 2000.

When the NSSF did the responsible thing and issued a recall for the defective locks? Would you prefer they acted like GM and left the bad locks out there?

TrueBluePolitics-

Speaking the Truth About the DOJ’s Ties to the NRA
Leave a reply


Dear Blog Readers:

I just learned from my friend Ladd Everitt that the Department of Justice has awarded the gun lobby group NSSF (National Shooting Sports Foundation) more than $2 million in grant money for its “Project ChildSafe” program.

A blog. That's authoritive

Those VA gun locks-

The VA began giving out the locks in 2008, modeling a national gun safety program called Project ChildSafe. A firearms trade group partners with local police departments and VA medical campuses to hand them out.

http://www.npr.org/2013/03/07/173609220/va-offers-free-gun-locks-to-help-prevent-vet-suicides

NSSF initiatives-
Project ChildSafe- http://www.projectchildsafe.org/
Don't lie for the other guy (anti-straw purchase campaign)- http://www.dontlie.org/
Fix NCIS (to get all 50 states cooperating in putting all required information into NCIS database)-http://www.dontlie.org/

So they don't support every piece of legislation that comes up; they are taking action. Something that cannot be said of gun control groups.

Yet you would see the funding removed from providing locks. Has any GC group stepped up to take over or will they just let preventable tragedies happen?

[jimmy the one]

30. chinese junk locks

sarisak: Are you referring to this .. When the NSSF did the responsible thing and issued a recall for the defective locks?

No, I'm referring to this:
1) Newtown Action Alliance, CT Against Gun Violence, and CSGV wrote: Furthermore, Project ChildSafe has been beset with problems from the start. After hundreds of thousands of its gun locks were recalled for being too fragile and flimsy, NSSF lost federal funding for the program in 2009. Obliged to fund Project ChildSafe on its own, NSSF scaled the program back significantly

What NSSF wrote, referring to gun control groups above:
2) They also made false claims about the quality of the program’s cable-style gun locks. The gun locks included in Project ChildSafe firearm safety kits exceed standards set by American Soc for Testing and Materials (ASTM) and Calif Dept Justice.

How did CSGV & the two other gun control groups make false claims about flimsy & fragile gun locks - which could lead to malfunctioning - when the claims are corroborated by reputable websites and you yourself by your link?
Do you dispute that hundreds of thousands of NSSF gun locks were flimsy & fragile? or just Chinese junk?

sarisak posted: The VA began giving out the locks in 2008, modeling a national gun safety program called Project ChildSafe. A firearms trade group partners with local police departments and VA medical campuses to hand them out.

Was there a point you had? it seems the VA gunlock giveaway was 'modeled' after the program, but not an integral part of it. Hatch Act & all that (perhaps). As I said, gunlocks are a dime a dozen, & I suspect most 'public demand' (if even so) is by people wanting something for free. Don't most all guns come with gun locks anyway these days?

[friendly_iconoclast]

31. They still gave away 2000X as many quality gun locks as the "gun safety" orgs did