Effects of Cheney shooting on RKBA..

[The_Antibubba]

Nobody could have predicted this

The uproar seems to be, at this point, that the VP didn't report the incident to the media for over 20 hours.

I too am shocked that Cheney wasn't immediately forthcoming on a somewhat negative event; he's been so honest and direct with the American people up to now.

 

[The Scandinavian]

I too am shocked that Cheney wasn't immediately forthcoming on a somewhat negative event; he's been so honest and direct with the American people up to now.

The BBC are now reporting that Mr Whittington has suffered a heart attack as the result of a pellet having lodged in his heart.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4714264.stm

This starts to look more serious than was originally reported.

Is the idea that the early reports of a 'mild peppering' are what is supposed so stick in peoples minds??

 

[Kaylee]

Somehow I think most all of the talking heads are too busy playing the "Evil Bush Administration Coverup" song over a frickin' one day delay to worry about pushing anything regarding guns as such.

Whether that's good or bad for us, it's getting harder and harder to take 'em seriously.

 

[The Scandinavian]

Somehow I think most all of the talking heads are too busy playing the "Evil Bush Administration Coverup" song over a frickin' one day delay to worry about pushing anything regarding guns as such.

Whether that's good or bad for us, it's getting harder and harder to take 'em seriously.

One thing's definately true - it's getting harder and harder to take news reports seriously...

 

[Lobotomy Boy]

The media is just reflecting back the intense anger the general population has towards this administration. The polls show that the over 50 percent of the public has a negative opinion of the current administration, but that's not what I'm seeing. I see over 50 percent of the public so incredibly angry at the administration that they are ready to take up pitch forks and torches and burn the entire executive branch at the stake. I've never seen anything like this, not even during the Watergate hearings. These people have screwed up a lot worse than Dick Cheney did during his recent hunting trip. This latest irrelevant incident is just a focal point for that incredible wellspring of anger.

Republican strategists best take note of this development and include it as a factor in their plans for the next two elections, because if history is any indicator we are looking at the pendulum swinging radically in the opposite direction. We could be looking at an '08 presidential election where Hilary can't get the Democratic nomination because she is considered too far to the right.

I suspect that some of you pups aren't old enough to remember Watergate. You might want to do a little research on the years between 1973 and 1977. Remember, those who forget history are doomed to repeat it.

 

[Master Blaster]

The folks who hate guns in civilians hands are not going to change their minds because of this, they will still take the guns away if they get the chance.

The folks who believe in the RKBA are not going to change their minds either.
Hunters will still hunt. PETA will still protest.

In short it makes no difference.

IT was an accident, no more and no less.

Oh and watch NBC for a while the Olympics are on and they are talking about that rather than about Chenney.

 

[ctdonath]

I see over 50 percent of the public so incredibly angry at the administration that they are ready to take up pitch forks and torches and burn the entire executive branch at the stake.

Hang out at Democratic Underground a lot, eh?

Sure there are a lot on both sides who have complaints (yes, me included). Few are in a blind rage. The alternatives (Hillary, Kerry, Gore, McCain, etc.) are rather sobering.

 

[ctdonath]

The anti-gun crowd will surely milk this accident for all it's worth (dancing in the blood again). Accidents happen. This will pass - especially as the media is more upset about not being instantly informed than about the accident itself.

Ultimately it comes down to: who has the guns? Talk is cheap.

 

[Mongo the Mutterer]

I see over 50 percent of the public so incredibly angry at the administration that they are ready to take up pitch forks and torches and burn the entire executive branch at the stake.

Care to give that statistic some attribution???

 

[bogie]

The 50% who blood have wanted it since Gore went down in the Florida swamps...

You broadcast a message often enough, people begin to believe it. And people are broadcasting it on this, and other, online forums. Please, take everything, including what I have to say, and put it up against your own personal BS meter.

 

[Mongo the Mutterer]

The 50% who blood have wanted it since Gore went down in the Florida swamps...

You broadcast a message often enough, people begin to believe it. And people are broadcasting it on this, and other, online forums. Please, take everything, including what I have to say, and put it up against your own personal BS meter.

Good point. BTW where were the 50% in 2004? Guess they couldn't make it to the polls. Yep the BS meter works, but attribution would be nice, especially for lies, d**m lies, and statistics...

On a lighter note, I heard someone say today that Cheney earned some "street cred fo poppin a cap in a dude"...

 

[ctdonath]

Cheney earned some "street cred fo poppin a cap in a dude"...

Good point. For all the snide "gee whiz he's dangerous" comments coming from Brady et al, fact is this IS a VP who IS armed and DOES kill things for fun, which translates to a leader who knows what he wants, gets the job done, and accepts the risk of casualties - contrasted with drunk windbags like Kennedy, shrill shrews like Hillary, or lying waffles like Kerry. Be it by accident, Cheney demonstrated power understandable at a base level ... something not seen in US leadership for a long time.

Oh, for the return of Teddy Roosevelt.

 

[RealGun]

Oh, for the return of Teddy Roosevelt.

Who failed to get reelected.

 

[captain obvious]

Who failed to get reelected.

He was reelected, just lost his bid for term #3.

 

[ctdonath]

Teddy Roosevelt was not reelected.
Bill Clinton was reelected.
Does that mean Clinton was the better President?

EDIT: Both made it to a second term. TR didn't get a third term; BC likely would have if he could; the question remains.

 

[RealGun]

Teddy Roosevelt was not reelected.
Bill Clinton was reelected.
Does that mean Clinton was the better President?

EDIT: Both made it to a second term. TR didn't get a third term; BC likely would have if he could; the question remains.

Sorry for the diversion, but let's get this right. TR became President when McKinley was assassinated. TR was elected for another term. After a four year break he ran as a Bull Moose progressive and lost.

 

[Camp David]

The uproar seems to be, at this point, that the VP didn't report the incident to the media for over 20 hours...

As others have said, VP Cheney does not have an obligation to the Washington Press corps... his obligation was only to seek medical care for his friend (which he did) and report the incident to the local sheriff (which he did). The Washington Press corps vultures are angry becuase they were scooped on this story by a Texas newspaper, which was told of the incident by the landowner, which is proper but again, not necessary.

I have a new found respect for VP Cheney, who fulfilled his obligations following a tragic accident. I have no respect at all for the media, who are using this story for partisan purposes.

 

[RonC]

For those who wishful thinking is that this is overblown, no big thing, and that there will be no significant repercussions: you better hope that Cheney's shooting buddy doesn't die. He has been moved back to intensive care while the physicians decide what to do about the pellet lodged in his heart muscle, causing atrial fibrillation.
Here's more: "The downturn in Mr. Whittington's health significantly changed the tone of the White House reaction to the hunting accident. In Texas, Carlos Valdez, the district attorney in Kleberg County, said a fatality would immediately spur a new report from the local sheriff and, most likely, a grand jury investigation."

The reality is that Cheney's negligence could cost the RKBA movement. Just as progress (limited, at best) has been made on gun rights, this incident throws a wrench into it. You can bet that few public relations advisors will suggest that politicians should tout their support for gun rights in this upcoming election. Effectively, Cheney's incident will put gun rights on a back burner.

It's obvious that I see this a a big setback.

Ron

 

[ctdonath]

The reality is that Cheney's negligence could cost the RKBA movement.

Not sure about that. At this point, pretty much everyone has taken their sides and won't budge. One side will decry a hunting accident with an obscure shotgun as, once again as they dance in the blood, clinching proof that assault weapons and .50-caliber sniper rifles should be banned lest criminals and terrorists use them. The other side will say "accidents happen; FMCDH."

They're already far more wrapped up in knots over not being instantly informed.

 

[CAnnoneer]

In politics, though, it also doesn't matter if people who are already 100% committed to voting a certain way become a little more shrill when preaching to the choir.

That would only be true if all voters vote monolithically, i.e. they never vote on issues but always on party-prompted response. I am not convinced that that is the case. For example, many that are of somewhat dem leanings and would have voted against GWB in 2004, voted for him instead, when faced with the prospect of legalization of gay marriage. That is a fact.

In the same way, my impression is that many dem voters are either neutral or ambivalent towards gun rights. That means if a Proposition gets tabled about further gun restrictions, they might choose to leave that blank at the ballot. However, if guns get associated with their favorite totem of hatred, they are likely to vote anti-gun by association.

 

[progunner1957]

Kennedy 1, Cheney 0

Ted Kennedy's car has killed more people than Cheney's shotgun.

Somebody PLEASE make a bumper sticker!!!

I can see the antigun bigots trying to use this incident for fearmongering. If they can use it to get The Sheeple and the soccer moms to fear hunting anywhere within a 5000 mile radius of their little condos and their yuppie housing additions, they will do it.

I'm sure the (socialist scumbag) Bradys and the Moronic Million Mommies are already working on it, along with the Violence Policy Center and every other hive of antigun bigots in exsistence.

 

[Biker]

Addition to bumper sticker; (But Not For Lack Of Trying!)
Biker

 

[longeyes]

If Cheney's screw-up can mean the loss of RKBA we don't deserve to have it.

If ANYTHING can mean the loss of RKBA we don't deserve to have it.

We already know that the other guys want our guns and won't stop trying to get them. Our job is to keep the mindset that says, "Hell no, Molon Labe!"

Who cares what a hysterical press corps or Lucinda Bassett's soccer moms think anyway?

(Birdshotgate doesn't impress me; I don't know about you but I'm worried about six major ports being managed by the UAE.)

 

[RealGun]

I am not in agreement with the hand wringing here. All this will amount to is a source of a cheap shot, EXACTLY like some drag out when Ted Kennedy's name comes up.

 

[Henry Bowman]