Barbarian America

The Supreme Court, which is packed with Republican right wing appointees, has now ruled that Americans have a constitutional right to own weapons of personal destruction. This is a departure from the existing understanding of the second amendment, and it represents activist right wing judges creating a right that did not previously exist. The New York Times editorial board weighs in on the decision:

This is a decision that will cost innocent lives, cause immeasurable pain
and suffering and turn America into a more dangerous country. It will also
diminish our standing in the world, sending yet another message that the United
States values gun rights over human life.

We still execute people at the same time that we refuse to provide health care to about 50 million of our own citizens, we now proudly tout our "right" to kill each other with guns, we invade and occupy foreign countries on false premises, kill hundreds of thousands of civilians, and the list goes on and on. As a country we are barbarians. This is how we are viewed by other more civilized peoples.

Jim

Hand Guns: Philadelphia Shooting Gallery

For the fifth time in the last three weeks, Philadelphia Police officers have been shot in the line of duty. Two plain clothes narcotics squad cops were shot last night while attempting to serve a warrant against a drug dealer holed up in a North Philadelphia crack house. Last week, a Philly cop was buried after being shot and killed on Halloween while trying to stop a robbery.

Last night the Mayor and Police Commissioner held a news conference and decried the easy availability of hand guns in the city, something that is a problem all over the country. When Giuliani was mayor of New York City, he had an aggressive campaign to stem the tide of illegal firearms entering the city. Now that he is running for president, I wonder if he is still interested in controlling guns, or has he abandoned that in favor of pandering to the National Rifle Association?

Every time we have a killing or wounding of cops, or a high school or college shooting spree, there are renewed calls for tougher gun controls. Then little happens, it seems. Mayor Street called on state and federal officials to do something. I wonder how many more cops, or kids, will die before we bring some sanity to the gun issue in this country?

Photo: The "Railroad Connecting Bridge" that carries Northeast Corridor rail traffic over the Schuylkill River. Our Fairmount Park walking path goes underneath this bridge. This is about the third bridge that has existed at this site. The original bridge dates to the mid--ninteenth century, when independent railroads came together to "connect" and thereby provide service from the Philadelphia area to the North.

Jim

Virginia Vs. Bloomberg

7:00 AM: The New York Times is today reporting that the Attorney General of the state of Virginia has sent a warning to New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg informing him that it is now a felony offense in VA. for a non-law enforcement entity to attempt to buy a gun under false pretenses. Bloomberg has been aggressively pursuing 27 states that provide some of the guns used to commit crimes in the Big Apple. As part of the NYC effort, private investigators hired by the city are sent into other states to try to buy guns for someone else, which is against federal law. Well, Virginia, the state that was recently in the news as the site of the worst mass murder in U.S. history, can be justly proud of its determination to protect its gun dealers and the gun lobby. Said a spokesman for the mayor: “We wish that Attorney General McDonnell was as aggressive in enforcing the laws that prevent illegal guns from getting in the hands of criminals as he was in enforcing the laws that protect the gun lobby." This is a not-so-nice epitaph for the victims of the VA. Tech. massacre.

On a happier note, for dog lovers anyway, the New York City Parks Department has made it official: dogs can run off lead in certain city parks at designated times. They were doing it anyway, so, while this is just an acknowledgement of a de facto situation, it is also a humane recognition that dogs need and love to run and there is no reason why responsible owners should not be able to exercise their dogs. In Philadelphia, the same situation exists where I take Bradley several times each day. However, it's against the law for him to be off lead. The police look the other way and do not harass the many dogs and their owners who use the local "dog park." We even have our own weekly "DPHH," "dog park happy hour," on Friday evenings. The owners have a beer and chat while the dogs romp off lead. Out here on Fire Island it's a bit tougher. We run our dogs on the beach but we have to be on the lookout constantly for the authorities. When I lived briefly on Long Island, it was horrible. There is not one single legal place to take your dog for exercise in the entire county. No wonder I hated it so much!

I understand that Rev. Al apologized yeaterday in regard to remarks he made suggesting that Mitt Romney was not a man of faith. Good for Rev. Al. Something tells me that gay Americans will have a long wait for Romney's apology for his hateful anti-gay behavior and statements in regard to the gay marriage struggle while he was governor of Massachusetts.

I've invited my friend John LaRocca, who is another dog lover, not to mention a wonderful progressive thinker and writer, to join in the conversation here at HTP. I've known John for about 40 years, although we haven't seen each other in many years, since John lives in Scottsdale, AZ. I'm looking forward to his contributions, whether they be about politics, dogs, or whatever is on his mind. Welcome, John!

Photo: Frida (1990-2001) on the beach at Fire Island with a full moon. You're still in my heart, girl.

Jim

Catching Up On My Reading

Yesterday we drove to the beautiful Hamilton Station in New Jersey to catch a NJ Transit train into Manhattan. This is a most convienent way to travel between Philadelphia and New York.

The train ride gave me an opportunity to read a few magazines and other items of mail that I had stacked on my desk. The most recent issue of The New Yorker has a few great articles in it including one on Barbara Stanwyk and another on what happens to us physically as we grow old (it is not pretty.) Adam Gopnik's commentary on the VA Tech shootings and the need in the U.S. for handgun control hit the mark:

"Rural America is hunting country, and hunters need rifles and shotguns-with proper licensing, we'll live with the risk. There is no reason that any private citizen in a democracy should own a handgun. At some point, that simple truth will register. Until it does, phones will ring for dead children, and parents will be told not to ask why."

When the medical professionals and police were removing the bodies of the dead kids from Norris Hall, cell phones were ringing in the victim's pockets. It was their parents frantically calling to check on them. What a horror, but no, we don't need gun control laws and strict enforcement to prevent mentally unstable kids from purchasing 9 mm Glocks, do we?

Jim

The Va. Tech Horror

Another senseless massacre of young students has taken place, just four days before the anniversary of the Columbine shootings. I feel so sorry for those who lost their lives, and for their parents friends and relatives. And I feel sorry for all of us who feel powerless to reverse the course of this increasingly violent country. Can you believe that some people are already complaining that the University's policy prohibiting students from carrying concealed handguns on campus is responsible for this? Just what do the gun crazies want, daily Dodge City style shootouts on our college campuses?

Until the recently decided Federal Circuit Court decision that threw out Washington, D.C's handgun ordinance, no federal court decision had supported an individual right to bear arms. Read the Constitution! Law enforcement officials everywhere support strict handgun control. The D.C. decision will be appealed and, I hope overturned. Let's hope this happens before yet another massacre takes place.

Jim