3/30/13

Residents of East Orange Encouraged Not to Think

by Jim Gerrish

The management of the Brick Church Plaza in East Orange has come down on the side of encouraging city residents NOT to think before signing petitions. That's the only thing I can conclude, having spent an hour of my time there on Saturday requesting citizens to THINK before signing a petition on gun control that was being passed around by Ms Harris of Essex County Organizing for Action. People were being asked to provide her with their signatures, their addresses and (optionally) their e-mail addresses. I was encouraging them to THINK before giving a "stranger" their identities- their signatures and addresses. I was not very successful in this because only a few people had second thoughts and then did not sign her petition. She kept telling those signing that I was against Gun Control and to pay no attention to me. So she was definitely against my encouraging them to think before signing.

My own petition is this, and you are not required to sign it; just say it to yourself and follow it if you agree with it.

However, eventually security guards were sent out and one of them, David of Sterling Security, told me directly that his boss told him that I was "not to make people think." Finally, his boss, the on-site manager, acting for RPM Development Group, who would not identify himself, told me I had to get off the property, because I was "asking people to think", so I left.

I'm sorry fellow citizens of East Orange. Apparently you are being intentionally discouraged from thinking for yourselves and I am not allowed to remind you that you have a right to think before you sign a petition you haven't read or about which you have not received full disclosures.

The on-line petition does not make full disclosures, either. It states:

Since they do not provide full disclosure, I will and you can check on it because you obviously have access to the Internet.

#1) Since 1968, "more Americans have died from gunfire than died in … all the wars of this country's history."
This is a quote from Mark Shields, made on Friday, December 21st, 2012 in the PBS NewsHour.

But that is true if you only count dead bodies from war records, which does not include those merely injured, but whom eventually died, and those who were accidentally shot, or who committed suicide. We have no way to collect that data on those past wars now, so the increased numbers are largely ignored. The total number of dead bodies is generally agreed to be 1,171,177.

On the other hand, when counting civilian deaths from gunfire, the count includes not only homicides (murders), but also suicides and accidental deaths. The total figure generally given is: 1,384,171 which makes the quote true. However, actual homicides are estimated (by the FBI) to be one fourth of that number, bringing the number of dead bodies down to 346,043, which makes the quote greatly exaggerated.

So those numbers are only valid if you deflate one set of numbers and inflate the other set of numbers.

Let's try comparing how many Americans died in automobile deaths since 1968. We have accurate figures on that: 2,025,338 but no one wants to ban automobiles, do they?

#2) This is completely unprovable because the source for the information is not given. You could not have a statistic as high as 92% without you or someone you know being asked if you "support background checks for all gun sales." I don't know about you, but I was not asked this question and no one I know has been asked it, either. The statistic is likely a made-up number. It goes unchallenged because we probably both agree that there should be background checks required for all gun sales. But it is wrong to lie on a petition of this nature, and I believe the number of 92% is fiction, not fact.

#3) Information from The White House's own web site from January 2013 states "Over the last 14 years The Brady Act has helped keep more than 1.5 million guns out of the wrong hands." Which is it? 1.5 million or 2 million? We won't really know because no source of any of that is given, either on this petition or on the White House web site. All I know, is the information as stated on the petition is inaccurate because they do not mention the period of 14 years of collecting that data, and they exaggerate and inflate the number because it fits their agenda.

#4) In January 2013, The Washington Post Fact Checker reassessed a claim by President Barack Obama, who has said "as many as" 40 percent of all gun purchases are conducted without a background check. After further review, Obama was given "two Pinocchios" out of a possible four -- the Fact Checker’s rating for a statement that contains "significant omissions and/or exaggerations."

This made-up percentage is based on the idea that many gun sales -- such as those done at gun shows or over the Internet -- don't involve a criminal background check of the buyer because only licensed firearm dealers are required to do the checks.

But if so many gun sales are done without creating a government paper trail, is it even possible to know what percentage of guns aren't sold by licensed gun dealers? The answer is clearly, no. Don't make up statistics, Mr. President.

Note: I was NOT stopping anyone from signing the petition. In fact, it is on-line HERE; If you still want to sign this flawed petition, be my guest. At least now you know what you are signing. All I want you to do is to READ the actual petition, then THINK before you sign your name or give your address to strangers.

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© 2013, James Gerrish