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Why Aren't There More Women In Tech? A Tour Of Silicon Valley's Leaky Pipeline
Antonia Cereijido
Published December 21, 2016 at 11:23 AM CST
This story was reported by Latino USA in collaboration withAll Tech Considered . The audio version of this story aired earlier on Latino USA; it is embedded below.
Micaela Honorato is looking from the sidelines as boys from her after-school program take turns racing their hand-made hovercraft on a dirt field in a city park.
These remote-controlled cardboard devices are less "hover" and more "skid-along," as the teacher Abraham Orozco puts it. Today, the middle-school kids are contending for the fastest spin around four traffic cones.
Michaela is a tall 12-year-old with a serious and focused gaze. She quietly awaits her turn, then concentrates on the controls. At 16.36 seconds, she takes the lead in the competition.
This after-school program is called HOLA — which stands for " Heart of Los Angeles" — and it serves the city's Rampart District, where nearly all residents live in poverty. Vast majority of HOLA's participants are Latino.
Over nearly 30 years, the program has helped hundreds go to college. A handful of students from Orozco's scientific arts program at HOLA have pursued successful technical careers.
But Orozco says a lot of his students shy away from the tech industry, despite technical talents: They don't want jobs with any economic risk — something quite common for work at a startup or in computer science in general.
The leak in the pipeline
It's even harder to get girls interested. At HOLA, younger kids don't get to choose their classes, but programs become elective for high-school students. Orozco's scientific arts program is "girl-heavy" in elementary and middle school, he says. At the high-school level, only two of his 13 students are girls.
And this is one of the clear leaks of the talent pipeline that feeds workers to the tech industry.
Year after year, Silicon Valley companies have been criticized for their slow process in employing more women and other underrepresented groups, which for tech are black and Latino. And often, they say they simply can't find enough qualified workers to hire.
As you go through the tech talent "pipeline" to find where it leaks, HOLA illustrates a major one. Somewhere between middle school and high-school graduation, girls' interest in tech peaks and wanes.
Down the line, women make up roughly half of U.S. workers and of the U.S. population — but on average represent less than a third of tech companies' employees. For black and Hispanic workers, the numbers drop into single-digits: These groups tend to comprise 3 percent or less of tech companies' employees.
And it's not just technical fields, but all staff and leadership roles.
The MySpace gateway
Attempting to reverse-engineer interest in tech, we asked women in a Slack group called " Techquería" for Latinos in tech: How did you first get into it?
I like to think about it as, I walked in the back door, so that I could open the front door for everybody else.
A surprising number of women replied: MySpace.
The now-arcane social network allowed for a lot of customization — users could mess with the color schemes, fonts, add bells and whistles by tinkering with the source code. The site's popularity in the mid-2000s introduced many middle- and high-school girls to basic HTML.
Dalia Icedo was the queen of cool MySpace designs: She got so good at customizing profiles that she created a whole separate page where other people could get her themes. "I would change the color scheme literally every day, probably," she says, "because I was 12, I had nothing else to do."
The skills came in handy after high school, when she started an online shop to sell things like band pins and earrings — and began tinkering with visuals that bugged her, like margins that felt too wide.
"So I started to just go into the code and started to see a lot of the HTML and CSS that I had learned before. And then from there I just started to pick up JavaScript," says Icedo, who is in college and wants to become a UX (user experience) designer in Silicon Valley. "It gave me a lot more confidence of being able to pick up coding."
The consumer/creator breakdown
Today, social media is no less popular than 10 years ago — and girls are more avid users than boys, especially on Snapchat and Instagram.
But as technology has become more user-friendly, it's also become less customizable — even grandparents can use Facebook, but how many of us understand how it works? And talking with young girls, few are drawing the connection between using popular apps and thinking that they could program them.
The number of women studying math and computer science in college peaked in the 1980s — even as overall, women receive the growing majority of bachelor's degrees. NPR's Planet Money podcast dug into this phenomenon, zeroing in on the year 1984:
"Personal computers started showing up in U.S. homes in significant numbers. These early personal computers weren't much more than toys. ... And these toys were marketed almost entirely to men and boys. This idea that computers are for boys became a narrative."
Now, both the corporate marketers and the diversity activists have been trying to figure out the sensitive matter of how to market tech togirls.
The line between "girly" and "for girls" can be thin. What matters is what girls can actually do with the technology, says Deldelp Medina, co-founder of Latina-focused accelerator Avion Ventures who's now at tech diversity nonprofit Code2040.
A small pink computer isn't terrible per se, Medina argues: Smaller keyboards are actually nice to prevent carpal tunnel in smaller hands. What's insulting is if this computer comes with less processing power, memory or useful software than a regular one.
"There's a difference," she says, "between wanting to celebrate your femininity and shrinking and pinking something."
The mentorship challenge
Targeting girls with technology can get thorny. But Andrea Guendelman, creator of Latinos-in-tech social network BeVisible, says one — if not the only — thing that works is mentorship.
In the summer of 2014, Jazmine Fernandez was one of the young women in the Girls Who Code program. Being raised by a single mother and sisters, Fernandez knew there's little women can't do. But when she heard she got placed at Facebook, Fernandez felt intimidated — excited, but mostly scared.
Women and everybody who's currently underrepresented in the tech industry has to gain those skillsets, because otherwise, it will not go well for any of us.
"Because when I went, there was just a lot of..." Her voice trails off. "There was... How do I say this?" Her mentor, Raquel Vélez, steps in: "There weren't a lot people who looked like you, huh?"
Fernandez heard Vélez give a talk at Facebook headquarters, and she made a huge impression: Latinas can get jobs in Silicon Valley.
"One of my favorite quotes ever is, 'You can't be it if you can't see it,' " says Vélez, engineering manager at software company NPM. "Believe me, I have like 25 mentors, and it's the only way I can make it through, because so often I'm the only one."
Fernandez is now studying computer science at San Francisco State University. She expects the field to always be a struggle. In one of her classes, a guy once basically tried to argue that girls can't code.
And to be Latina in tech, Vélez says you have to work four times as hard. "I like to think about it as, I walked in the back door, so that I could open the front door for everybody else."
The end of the pipeline
Where mentorship particularly comes into play is at the end of the pipeline, where underrepresented groups struggle to get hired and stay hired. Silicon Valley is a boys' club whose networks tend to stay white, male and affluent.
One company trying to break the cycle is Atipica. It has built a computer program to sift through resumes — skipping human managers to avoid hiring biases, like subconscious discrimination based on a last name or school attended.
Atipica's isn't the only resume-reading artificial intelligence. But often, algorithms reflect the biases of humans who write them. Atipica CEO Laura Gomez says her company specifically focused on designing an unbiased AI. (Neither Gomez, nor her clients, which include Slack, agreed to discuss how well Atipica's program works.)
Chicago-based Opternative offers another example of tackling diversity head-on. It's a startup that lets people do their own eye exams.
In many ways, Opternative operates like many other startups, relying on referrals from its existing employees. Yet it's grown into a pretty diverse group because from the get-go, its team wasn't just white guys and it views diversity of life experiences as an asset.
But here's the tricky part: While both companies get high marks for being racially diverse, gender equity remains a challenge.
Atipica, a Latina-run company, has one other female employee. Opternative's technical team has women on the design side and in junior positions, but all four of its senior engineers — the leaders and decision-makers — are male.
Gomez and Opternative CTO Ayo Jimoh say the women they've seen apply for their job openings were under-qualified for those positions. It's effectively the pipeline argument. Jimoh's diagnosis is that people self-select — they don't want to pursue careers that are stacked against them, they need role models, success stories of others like them.
So then, who is responsible for creating those role models? Couldn't Jimoh or Gomez, for example, spend extra time to find a female senior engineer or promote from within?
"There is a part of me that says, let me me show," says Gomez, "but I have to put my business first and foremost." Jimoh, too, says he has to balance that responsibility for equity with his other responsibilities "to my company, to my team, to myself, to my family."
In a way, the push for diversity in tech is still so new, it's often treated as a cause or a mission — and fighting for a cause and running a business aren't the same. At the end of the day, Atipica and Opternative weren't founded to heal Silicon Valley's diversity problem — but to fill what they see as a market need.
And these are small companies — the gender balance of staff is even harder to shift at massive ships like Facebook or Google.
A few companies, such as Intel and Twitter, have recently started releasing hiring goals, putting diversity in quantifiable terms. The targets are very far from lofty, but they're specific, public — presumably someone's measurable responsibility.
The future of the economy
And now, there's a new challenge. As Donald Trump takes over as president of the United States, diversity advocates are worried about a push against the very concept of promoting multiculturalism.
"I think we need to double-down on diversity and inclusion, quite frankly," says Daisy Dominguez-Auger, global head of diversity at Google. "Companies are going to have to take a stronger look at what their practices are ... in a much more collaborative way."
Fundamentally, the Trump administration's economic policy is expected to focus heavily on manufacturing jobs. One of the first conversations Trump had with a tech leader after the election, was a call with Apple CEO Tim Cook, in which Trump pushed for Apple to build plants in the United States.
From what we know, Trump has yet to address the shortage of skilled tech workers. And many economists predict, that's a major challenge for the future of America: The economy of the future is one where almost everyone has to interact with computers and code.
Diversity advocate Medina says sidelining large swaths of the population from the tech industry is no way to make sure America isn't left behind.
"We're going to have a jobs deficit that is so huge, that if we don't fill it, we're going to have severe economic consequences," she says. "Women and everybody who's currently underrepresented in the tech industry has to gain those skillsets, because otherwise, it will not go well for any of us."
Latino USA's Jeanne Montalvo, Noam Hassenfeld and Julia Shu contributed to this report.
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These 10 Sickening Tactics Of Serial Killers Will Send Shivers Down Your Spine!
Culture > History-
Added on 17 May 2017, 18:29, Updated on 19 May 2017, 09:55
Mr. PeppermintOnedio Editor
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Humans are capable of performing extremely gruesome acts, far more heinous than just murder. Just take a look at the number of murderers and serial killers in the world. But serial killers are far more inhumane than the murderers. In most cases, there is no logical reason or personal vendetta against the victim but just a psychological urge to kill. To fulfill this urge they often go to great lengths and apply various tactics so as to avoid being caught. Here we have brought together the stories of ten such serial killers whose cunning tactics will give you the chills.
1. H.H. Holmes, the 19th-century serial killer who built a maze-like hotel, "Murder Castle", where he lured in and killed as many as 200 people.
Dr. Henry Howard Holmes was one of the first documented serial killers. Besides being a serial killer, he was also a successful con artist and bigamist. To assist him to kill his victims he opened a hotel which was later referred to as the "Murder Castle". The "castle" was a multi-use building with the upper floor allocated as a hotel. Viewed from outside it was just a big building. Its interior, honeycombed with trap doors and secret passageways and walled-up rooms, was nothing short of a haunted house.
The guests who came to reside in this building were the ones killed by Holmes. In the hotel, the victims were chloroformed, gassed, strangled, or even beaten to death. Their bodies were disposed of in cellar pits containing quicklime and acids. Also, some of their skeletons were sold. Most, if not all the victims, were women. H.H. Holmes confessed to twenty-seven murders, but it is commonly said that he had killed as many as 200.
2. Dennis Rader, Nicknamed "BTK", installed alarms as a part of his job. He learned how to enter into homes unnoticed and started brutally killing people in their homes.
For over thirty years this serial killer, Dennis Rader, terrorized his hometown of Wichita, Kansas. The reason for his murderous behavior was he could not reach sexual satisfaction without binding, torturing, and killing other human beings. His unnatural urges started developing during his school days. He began by strangling local cats and dogs.
He made his fantasies a reality in 1974 when he started working at ADT Security Services, a home security company. His job was to install security alarms which helped him to learn how to enter another's home without detection. He started by killing four people from the same family. At one point he even started sending taunting letters to the police and newspapers telling them about the murders. He got caught when he sent a floppy disk to Fox TV. He thought it couldn't be traced. He is currently serving ten consecutive life sentences at El Dorado Correctional Facility in Kansas.
3. Amelia Elizabeth Dyer, A Victorian era killer would promise to take care of illegitimate babies, pocket the money, pawn the baby's clothes, and then strangle the babies. She killed more than 400 infants over a period of twenty years.
Hailed as one of the most prolific serial killers in history, Amelia Elizabeth Dyer murdered hundreds of infants in her care. Trained as a nurse and widowed in 1869, she turned to "baby farming" in order to support herself. Baby farming is the practice of adopting unwanted infants in exchange for money, and then either taking care of them or giving them to couples who were willing to adopt.
Under this guise, she would adopt illegitimate or unwanted children to collect the fee. Then she would murder them, strangling the babies by winding tape around their neck. She had even claimed that she liked watching the babies with tapes around their neck. After murdering them, she used to dispose of the bodies herself. Dyer killed as many as 400 infants before being caught.
4. Kenneth Bianchi, a.k.a. the Hillside Strangler, posed as an undercover police officer, ordered women into his car, and then took them home to sexually abuse, torture, and kill them.
This American serial killer, kidnapper and rapist, Kenneth Alessio Bianchi, was deeply troubled from a young age. His adoptive mother described him as being "a compulsive liar" from the time he could talk. His murder spree started in 1977 when he moved to Los Angeles with his cousin, Angelo Buono.
Both Bianchi and his cousin would cruise around Los Angeles in Buono's car. They used fake badges to persuade women that they were undercover police officers. Their victims were women and girls aged twelve to twenty-eight from various walks of life. They would then order the victims into Buono's car which they claimed was an unmarked police car. After taking them home, they would experiment with various methods of killing, such as lethal injection, electric shock, and carbon monoxide poisoning. Later, he started working as security guard and lured two female students into a house and murdered them.
5. Albert Fish, a child rapist and cannibal, lured young boys by offering them food and then raped, tortured and murdered them. He claims to have "had a child in every state".
American serial killer, Hamilton Howard "Albert" Fish, was a child rapist and cannibal who once boasted that he "had a child in every state". He started having sexual relations with boys since the early age of twelve and began raping boys by the time he was twenty. Fish chose people who were either mentally handicapped or African-American as his victims. That's because he assumed these people would not be missed when he killed them. He would often lure young children through various means and took them to a secluded place. He then tortured, mutilated, and murdered them with his "implements of Hell" which included a meat cleaver, a butcher knife, and a small handsaw.
Fish had an obsession with cannibalism too. He often prepared himself a dinner consisting solely of raw meat and served it to his children. He once claimed to have killed as many as one hundred children, but it is not known if the statement was truthful. In 1936 he was executed by electric chair for the kidnapping and murder of Grace Budd.
6. David Parker Ray sexually tortured and killed more than sixty people in a $100,000 homemade torture chamber he called his "toy box", drugging some victims with amnesia-inducing agents to prevent them from reporting the crimes.
David Parker Ray, a.k.a. "The Toy Box Killer", was a serial rapist and suspected serial killer. When he was a child Ray's father physically abused him, and he was also bullied by his peers. These tumults at the beginning of his life turned him into a murderer. To fulfill his sexual fetish and killing urges, Ray soundproofed a truck trailer that he called his "toy box". He equipped it with items he used for torture such as whips, chains, pulleys, straps, clamps, leg spreader bars, surgical blades, and saws.
For many years he terrorized a steady stream of women in the "toy box", allegedly including several of the women he was dating. After making the victim immobilized, he would even let his dogs and friends rape these women. Ray would often have a recorded audio tape of these actions which he played for his victims whenever they regained consciousness. To prevent women from reporting the crimes, Ray used to drug them with agents to induce amnesia such as sodium pentothal and phenobarbitol. Police suspect that he had murdered as many as sixty people from Arizona and New Mexico. Before he could be convicted for murder, Ray died of heart attack.
7. Andrei Chikatilo, the Soviet era cannibalistic serial killer, killed at least fifty-three women and children over a period of twelve years by luring them into secluded spots and inflicting multiple knife wounds.
Nicknamed as the "Butcher of Rostov", the "Red Ripper", and the "Rostov Ripper", Andrei Romanovich Chikatilo was a Russian cannibal, pedophile, and serial killer. As a child he was painfully shy which turned into self-hatred during adolescence years when his peers came to know about his chronic impotence. The humiliation colored all future sexual experiences and cemented his association of sex with violence.
On 22nd December 1978, Chikatilo killed his first documented victim – nine-year-old Lena Zakotnova. He lured her into an abandoned shed and tried to rape her. While trying to control the struggling child, Chikatilo slashed her with a knife and ejaculating while doing so. This cemented his psychological connection between violent death and sexual gratification that went on to typify all future attacks. Between 1978 and 1990, he committed sexual assault, murder, and mutilation of at least fifty-two women and children. He initially escaped conviction due to the extremely rare characteristic of having two different blood types of his semen and saliva. Finally, he was sentenced to death in October 1992 and subsequently executed in February 1994.
8. John George Haigh, a.k.a. the "Acid Bath Murderer", killed his victims and disposed their corpses in large vat full of concentrated suphuric acid.
The "Acid Bath Murderer", John George Haigh, was an English serial killer who was convicted of the murder of six people, although he claimed to have killed nine. At the age of twenty-five, he was jailed for fraud. While in prison, he devised a method of destruction of the body of a murder victim by dissolving it in sulfuric acid. He experimented with mice and found that it took only thirty minutes for the body to dissolve. He was freed in 1943 and soon he started his killing spree.
Haigh believed if the bodies could not be found a murder conviction would not be possible. So, after killing his victim he used to dump their body into a forty-gallon drum filled with concentrated sulfuric acid. The acid would dissolve the body and turn it into sludge thus removing the evidence. Most of his killings were motivated by financial profit as he forged their papers, sold their possessions, and collected the money. But his fraud and theft was eventually discovered leading to his arrest. Investigation of sludge in the drum he used revealed human gallstones and part of a denture which proved his crimes. He was hanged on 10 August 1949.
9. John Wayne Gacy, or the "Killer Clown" dressed as "Pogo the Clown" during children parties. He lured teenage boys by deception or took them by force and then sexually assaulted, tortured, and murdered them.
When viewed from afar, serial killer Wayne Gacy seemed to have led a normal life. He owned a construction business and was living with his wife and stepdaughters. He was active in his local community, hosted annual summer parties, and was once even made the director of Chicago's annual parade. Through his work with the parade, Gacy met and was photographed with First Lady Rosalynn Carter on May 6, 1978. He even used to dress as "Pogo the Clown" and "Patches the Clown" and performed at children's parties, charitable events, and at children's' hospital. But under all this facade was a serial killer and rapist who sexually assaulted, tortured, and murdered men and teenage boys.
In February 1976, Gacy and his wife divorced by mutual consent. From 1976 to 1978, he went on a sex and murder spree killing at least thirty-three teenage boys and young men. He later referred this period as his "cruising years" now that he had his house to himself. He used to bring the teenage boys to his home by force or deception. Then he sexually assaulted them before killing them by asphyxiation or strangulation. Gacy buried twenty-six of his victims in the crawlspace of his home. Three further victims were buried elsewhere on his property, while the bodies of his last four known victims were discarded in the Des Plaines River. Convicted of thirty-three murders, Gacy was executed by lethal injection at Stateville Correctional Center on May 10, 1994.
10. Fred and Rose West, sexually abused, tortured, and eventually killed two of their own children along with at least ten other women and buried them under the patio in their own garden.
Fred West first encountered Rosemary Letts when she was just fifteen. He was twenty-seven at that time with two daughters, Charmaine and Anna Marie. Soon Rose became pregnant and moved in with Fred. She started criticizing and punishing her step daughters, eventually killing Charmaine. Rose stowed her body in the coal cellar and it was later buried in the yard by Fred.
Shortly after giving birth to her second child, Rose started to work as a prostitute. Along with having a sadistic physical relation with other men and women, Fred and Rose also abused their children, Anne Marie, Heather, Mae and Stephen both physically and mentally. The couple killed Heather when she confided to her classmate about her home life and buried her in the garden. Fred frequently threatened his children, telling them if they told anyone about the going-ons in the household they would be "buried under the patio" like their sister Heather. The disappearance of Heather brought police attention to their household. It resulted in the discovery of the dismembered bodies of their two daughters along with numerous others remains in the cellar and garden. While on remand, Fred asphyxiated himself. Rose was sentenced to life terms for ten murders.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Shawn Mendes, Camila Cabello Announce Breakup After Two Years
After more than two years of dating, Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello are parting ways.
The two pop stars announced the news in a shared statement, signed "Camila and Shawn," on their respective Instagram Stories on Wednesday.
"Hey guys, we've decided to end our romantic relationship but our love for one another as humans is stronger than ever," the statement reads. "We started our relationship as best friends and will continue to be best friends. We so appreciate your support from the beginning and moving forward."
Mendes and Cabello's 2015 collaboration "I Know What You Did Last Summer" reached the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100.
They started dating in July 2019 after releasing their Grammy-nominated duet "Senorita."
In the meantime, they shared many photographs of their vibrant, hot romantic moments on social media.
During the pandemic, the couple was reportedly living with the Cabello family in Miami.


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Alex Kidd är en TV-spelsfigur som medverkade i sex egna spel, och var Segas maskot, innan Sonic the Hedgehog tog över 1991. Han kännetecknas av ett apliknande utseende.

Spel

Källor

Fotnoter

Externa länkar

Fiktiva figurer introducerade 1986
Segafigurer
Huvudpersoner i datorspel
Fiktiva män i datorspel

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


The next Sarah Palin may be rising from the ranks of South Dakato. Kristi Noem, and Tea Party member from South Dakota, has raised raised $1.1 million in campaign funds. This sets the record for the most funds raised by any Republican House challenger in the United States.
Only 38 years old, and a mother of 3 children, Kristi Noem has already raised twice as much money as her Democratic incumbent opponent, U.S. Representative Herseth Sandlin, according to ABC News.
In fact, the amount of money that Kristi Noem has raised in the past 3 months is more than Herseth Sandlin has raised in 2006 and 2008 combined.


As per Land Transportation Office (LTO) memorandum, please be informed that as of July 31, 2013, all previous authorities to use commemorative plates have already expired. Therefore, ALL commemorative plates installed in motor vehicles are invalid and should no longer be displayed.
Apprehension of those who are still using expired commemorative plates should be implemented immediately.


iDid: Automatic Navigation : iDid Inc.
iDid supports several automatic functions when it detects driving. One function is "Automatic Navigation/Driving Directions". iDid uses several mechanisms to detect where you may be going and through a notification asks you if you would like to pull up navigation to that place. This option is useful to learn of traffic conditions even if you know the directions to wherever you are going.
To turn on this function, check "Directions" in the "Drive Actions" Settings.


Somewhere on the other side of 3 am, I finally decided to make last call at my home bar. There was little resistance considering I was the only one left standing. This session would yield little solace other than the civil and somewhat gracious tone of Donald Trump's victory speech after Hillary Clinton's telephone call acknowledging her defeat.
Unable to sleep, I would return to the television set a few short hours later to see how America was faring after the revolution. Much to my surprise, the early morning pundits had not been cancelled or beheaded. At worst, they were eating their crow with good humor as the "I told you so" side of the panel restrained their glee. And even the stock market futures that had indicated a precipitous fall during the overnight opened on the upside. In fact, most companies trading on the Dow were enjoying healthy gains with one notable exception. Smith and Wesson had lost nearly 16% of its value.
A company that had benefited in part because of the irrational fears propagated by the NRA and right wing media may regret having a few less Democrats in power. It's funny how sometimes you wind up losing even when you think you've won. Take heed Mr. Limbaugh.
As the morning progressed, leaders and politicians from both parties took to the airwaves to talk about unity, inclusion, and healing. By early afternoon, I was feeling somewhat optimistic again about our collective prospects. Our democracy had once more demonstrated its resilience and ability to peacefully pass power from one party to the other. And while I'm not a big fan of one group having all of the political marbles–recalcitrance, obstruction, and gridlock as excuses for not governing will have to be shelved until at least the 2018 midterm election.
So once again, my silver lining syndrome remains intact. And since I was born without a team gene, I'm open to the possibility of worthwhile policy being generated by either side of the political spectrum. But there remains a lingering sadness about this election, because it resembles a civil war more than a revolution. And while we didn't sacrifice a single soul in the course of this particular domestic squabble, this nation lost some portion of its honor, dignity, and humanity along the way. And like both sides at the Battle of Gettysburg, we have to wonder if it was worth the cost?


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Jubilee: Recipes from Two Centuries of African American Cooking: A Cookbook (Hardcover)
By Toni Tipton-Martin
Availability: On Our Shelves (Note - We update this inventory once per day.)
Published: Clarkson Potter - November 5th, 2019
Whatever food culture can be said to exist here in the US is heavily influenced by Black Americans. This is that in cookbook form.
Isadora: A Novel (Paperback)
By Amelia Gray
Published: Picador - May 8th, 2018
A devastatingly beautiful novel of love, loss, and coping with both.
Are Prisons Obsolete? (Open Media Series) (Paperback)
By Angela Y. Davis
Published: Seven Stories Press - August 5th, 2003
YES!! closetheworkhouse.org
Someone Who Will Love You in All Your Damaged Glory: Stories (Paperback)
By Raphael Bob-Waksberg
Published: Vintage - May 19th, 2020
Don't buy this book if you aren't ready to laugh, cry, and have your heart ripped out.
High Fidelity (Paperback)
By Nick Hornby
Availability: Ships quickly (1-7 days)
Published: Riverhead Books - August 1st, 1996
This is a wholehearted endorsement of all things High Fidelity -- the book, the movie, the Hulu series. Make a week of it. You won't be sorry.
Weather: A novel (Hardcover)
By Jenny Offill
Published: Knopf - February 11th, 2020
This book is WONDERFUL. If it were a person I'd describe it as svelte. Basically this is hte Timothee Chalmamet of books. Do with that what you will.
Sidekicked (Paperback)
By John David Anderson
Published: Walden Pond Press - June 24th, 2014
If you liked Diary of a Wimpy Kid stop what you are doing and read this book NOW!
The Forest Feast for Kids: Colorful Vegetarian Recipes That Are Simple to Make (Hardcover)
By Erin Gleeson
Published: Abrams Books for Young Readers - February 16th, 2016
I've owned Forest Feast since it was released and it is one of my favorite cookbooks ever. I have now gifted Forest Feast for Kids to my son and it is becoming one of his as well. Not only is it ridiculously delicious; it is also amazingly simple and just about the most gorgeous cookbook I (we) have ever seen. Two (four) thumbs WAY up! -Cliff's May Staff Pick 2016
The Afterwards (Hardcover)
By A.F. Harrold, Emily Gravett (Illustrator)
Published: Bloomsbury Children's Books - March 19th, 2019
What wouldn't you fo to bring back a loved one? If the answer is nothing this book is for you. A more beautiful children's book about loving and losing, you will not find. Read every one of A.F. Harrold's books.
Modern Baking (Hardcover)
By Donna Hay
Published: 4th Estate - October 23rd, 2018
EVERY other book is garbage when compared to this one!
The Minimalist Kitchen: 100 Wholesome Recipes, Essential Tools, and Efficient Techniques (Hardcover)
By Melissa Coleman
Published: Oxmoor House - April 10th, 2018
Next to my cast iron skillet this is the most used thing in my kitchen. I picked up this book thinking I'd pick up a tip or two and look at some pretty pictures. Little did I know this book would make me completely revamp the way I do (almost) EVERYTHING. From meal planning and shopping to the way I organize my fridge and pantry, this book has top to bottom reshaped my culinary life, for the better.
Love Me Back (Paperback)
By Merritt Tierce
Published: Anchor - June 9th, 2015
This book is hard to get through, but impossible to put down! You keep going not only because of the beautiful writing and amazing storytelling, but you desparately need to know what happens to Marie. It is a book that pulls no punches and refuses to sugarcoat anything and these are far too rare.
My Own Devices: True Stories from the Road on Music, Science, and Senseless Love (Hardcover)
By Dessa
Published: Dutton - September 18th, 2018
My Own Devices? More like Chicken Soup for the Melancholy Soul. Almost no one can articulate heartbreak as well as Dessa.
My Best Friend's Exorcism: A Novel (Hardcover)
By Grady Hendrix
Published: Quirk Books - May 17th, 2016
Absolutely amazing! It's as though John Hughes wrote the Exorcist and set it to the music of my '80s themed dreams. -Cliff's May Staff Pick 2016
Best Mug Cakes Ever: Treat Yourself to Homemade Cake for One In Five Minutes or Less (Best Ever) (Paperback)
By Monica Sweeney
Published: Countryman Press - October 1st, 2014
Things we know to be true:
-You're a person
-You LOVE cake (obviously)
-You own a microwave (you have to. how else would you eat? Cook? HA!)
-You're all about instant gratification (less than five minutes? Sign me up)
-You own mugs (cause coffee)
-You need a way to combine all these things and turn them into pure awesomeness
-There's a way. Just buy this book. (seriously, single serving cake IN A MUG, IN 5 MINUTES)
-There's a section for boozy mug cakes which is the exact shape of that hole you never knew you had in your life
-Cliff's Holiday Staff Pick 2014
Simple Cake: All You Need to Keep Your Friends and Family in Cake [A Baking Book] (Hardcover)
By Odette Williams
Published: Ten Speed Press - March 12th, 2019
Exactly what it say. Simple Cake is a no-frills (okay, SOME frills) cookbook focused on the basics. A book I'd put up against any frill-heavy cookbook on the shelf.
The Enchanted: A Novel (Paperback)
By Rene Denfeld
Published: Harper Perennial - February 24th, 2015
Think of a magical place...You could have picked literally anywhere but I am willing to bet any amount of money that you didn't think "prison" and even less likely, "death row", and that is exactly the setting that Rene Denfield chose for her novel "The Enchanted". The story is told primarily through the eyes of a self-imposed mute on death row with a love of books and reading and it is amazing. Other major characters include a woman whose job it is to get death row inmates' sentences reduced to life in jail, an inmate who has accepted and welcomes his death sentence and a warden who, though he may be naturally good, has been hardened by his job. This book is amazing for so many reasons, it's sad, moving, heartwarming and (obviously) magical, but the fact that it humanizes a population that is perpetually demonized makes it necessary. No matter your stance on capital punishment this is well worth a read. -Cliff's January Staff Pick, 2015
Invisible Man, Got the Whole World Watching: A Young Black Man's Education (Paperback)
By Mychal Denzel Smith
Published: Bold Type Books - October 3rd, 2017
To simply call this book amazing would be to do it a disservice. It's so much more than that. This book serves as a tribute to all of the young, black, marginalized girls, boys, men and women who've unjustly lost their lives and futures at the hands of a system that refused to see them. With this book Mychal demands that you see them.
The Teeth of the Comb & Other Stories (Paperback)
By Osama Alomar, C. J. Collins (Translated by)
Published: New Directions - April 25th, 2017
Sweet Lamb of Heaven: A Novel (Paperback)
By Lydia Millet
Published: W. W. Norton & Company - May 2nd, 2017
The End of the Day (Hardcover)
By Claire North
Published: Redhook - April 4th, 2017
Foreign Soil: And Other Stories (Hardcover)
By Maxine Beneba Clarke
Published: 37 Ink - January 3rd, 2017
A Separation: A Novel (Paperback)
By Katie Kitamura
Published: Riverhead Books - February 6th, 2018
The Man Who Shot Out My Eye Is Dead: Stories (Hardcover)
By Chanelle Benz
Published: Ecco - January 17th, 2017
The Sudden Appearance of Hope (Paperback)
Published: Redhook - January 24th, 2017
The Boy on the Bridge (Hardcover)
By M. R. Carey
Published: Orbit - May 2nd, 2017
The Evil Wizard Smallbone (Paperback)
By Delia Sherman
Published: Candlewick - September 18th, 2018
The Girl With All the Gifts (Hardcover)
Published: Orbit - June 10th, 2014
Cliff's August Staff Pick 2014
Book from the Ground: From Point to Point (Hardcover)
By Bing Xu
Published: MIT Press - March 7th, 2014
Cliff's July Staff Pick, 2014
Confidence, or the Appearance of Confidence: The Best of the Believer Music Interviews (Paperback)
By Vendela Vida (Editor), Ross Simonini (Editor)
Published: Believer Magazine - April 1st, 2014
Cliff's June Staff Pick, 2014
What Every Child Needs to Know about Coffee (What Every Child Needs to Know About...) (Hardcover)
By R. Bradley Snyder, Marc Engelsgjerd
Published: Need to Know - March 18th, 2014
Cliff's April Staff Pick, 2014
Dept. of Speculation (Vintage Contemporaries) (Paperback)
Published: Vintage - October 7th, 2014
Cliff's March Staff Pick, 2014
The Parallel Apartments (Hardcover)
By Bill Cotter
Published: McSweeney's - February 11th, 2014
Cliff's February Staff Pick, 2014
Americanah: A novel (Hardcover)
By Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Published: Knopf - May 14th, 2013
Cliff's January Staff Pick, 2014
One Last Thing Before I Go: A Novel (Paperback)
By Jonathan Tropper
Published: Dutton - May 28th, 2013
Cliff's Holiday Staff Pick, 2013
‹ Cliff up David ›


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This is a paper from the Proceedings of the 37th hawaii International Converence on System Sciences - 2004, the authors are Heekyung Hellen Kim, Jae Yun Moon and Shinkyu Yang.
As this paper only examines the potential impart of the Internet on the political process in a young democracy, Roh Moo-hyun's (盧武鉉, official bio, Wiki), victory on Dec 19, 2002, only little information regarding the political system could be extracted.
It was only 10 years ago that Koreans had the first civilian President by a democratic election after three decades of military dictatorship.


In giving praise and affirmation to others, I have noticed that some people read everything you give them while others ignore written communication entirely, preferring to be spoken to instead. Some people swell with pride at being recognized in public and for others--and for other cultures as well--public praise is embarrassing and humiliating.
I have also noticed that there are times in the course of business life where praise is expected--like at the end of a challenging project or when a constituent has achieved a major milestone. You don't want to let those times go unnoticed. But praise is also needed--and makes a significant impact--at totally unexpected occasions.
Finally, there are those whose cubicles are lined with pictures of their family, their friends, their dogs, their friends' dogs, and so on. And there are others with virtually no pictures at all in their work space. In other words, there are those where work is work and life is life and the two don't mix, and others where everything blurs together. Leaders must be attentive to all of these variables.
I refer to these variables as currency. If you were in Europe you would use the euro, while in Japan the yen, and in Mexico the peso. This exercise helps leaders make deposits into the accounts of their constituents with the currency that works best for the recipient.
1. Have each participant take an 8 1/2 x 11" piece of paper and hold it up in portrait orientation (8 1/2" side up). Fold it in half from top to bottom once, and fold it in half from top to bottom again. Then fold the paper in half, this time from side to side. Now open the piece of paper.
2. Now have each participant write in the center of the upper left-hand box the word SPOKEN and in the center of the upper right-hand box write the word WRITTEN.
4. In the box that is three boxes from the top (two from the bottom), have each participant write the word EXPECTED in the center and in the center of the box to the right, write the word UNEXPECTED.
5. Finally have each participant write in the center of the bottom left-hand box the word PROFESSIONAL and in the center of the bottom right-hand box write the word PERSONAL.
Now it is time to use this matrix, combining elements from the rows and columns.
Notice how when you change just one of the elements, you a get a very different way to offer praise?
5. Again, notice how when you change the elements, you a get a very different way to offer praise.
7. Work through all the "praise possibilities" in the actual situations with the actual people your leaders encounter.
8. Have your leaders make a list of each of their direct reports and determine a specific way they will praise each of them in the next week. Have your leaders write these down and share them with one other person as a point of accountability. Additionally, consider adding supervisors, co-workers, and family members to this list.
Facilitator tips: I have used this exercise in one-on-one coaching sessions and in group training events where it never fails to turn on the light bulbs. One executive actually taped his completed paper exercise to his computer monitor to keep it at the top of his mind.
One question I am asked almost every time I present this exercise is, "Is there some way we can know a person's preferred way to receive praise?" My answer is two-fold: 1) pay attention to your people — the items on The Affirmation Matrix are pretty easy to figure out; and 2) ask them.


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Home / About / News / Newsletter 1 2018
Newsletter 1 2018
Welcome to our first newsletter with our new brand look and feel!
We trust everybody had an excellent Easter break and school holidays and back to work refreshed and energised!
This newsletter contains information for our exhibitors, travel buyers and media as well as stakeholders who will be attending the show this year.
We are 5 weeks away from delivering the world's top travel show for destination Africa and to deliver African success stories! Enjoy the news – and send us any feedback at indaba@indaba-southafrica.co.za
African Exhibitors confirm from all over the continent
Buyers and media this year will be able to engage with a variety of products and services from around the continent; and with African Tourism Boards who have already confirmed their attendance at the show. "We have been working hard to get more African destinations to be exhibitors, and last year hosted both Ghana and Nigeria to showcase the effectiveness of the show to drive business," says Sisa Ntshona, CEO of South African Tourism. "This platform initially started out some 35 years ago as a South African initiative, but now is a truly African trade show. We know that to grow our numbers, we need to grow our appeal as a continental destination as well."
The following countries will be exhibiting at this stage:
Remember to log onto the diary system as soon as possible to log appointments with exhibitors.
Africa's Travel Indaba will build on Africa's tourism success
There are many stories to be told regarding Africa's tourism industry, and Africa's Travel Indaba provides an enormous opportunity to further showcase the tremendous economic, social, cultural, environmental and heritage value that the sector can bring to the continent.
Africa as a travel destination is poised to unleash its potential – here are some figures to bear that out:
The UNWTO recently reported that a total of 62 million travellers visited Africa in 2017 – which represented an increase of 8%, outgrowing the world average increase of 7%.
Africa's total share of the global travel market currently stands at 5%, and the feeling is that this can only grow in future and in line with global traveller trends for authentic immersive experiences.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) estimated in late 2017 that airline passenger numbers to Africa would more than double in less than 20 years – which bodes well for continued exponential growth of the tourism sector.
The Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) was launched by the African Union (AU) in January 2018, and aims to create a unified air transport market by 2063 and will eventually lead to a common African passport to promote free movement and trade between African nations. This can only be good news for the tourism sector and will promote greater intra-African travel possibilities.
The UNWTO also announced at ITB in March 2018, that they will be moving ahead with a new 10 point "Agenda for Africa" to be realised over the next four years. The programme aims to address connectivity, the image and brand of Africa, poverty alleviation, climate change, education, skills development and financing in terms of supporting exponential growth of the tourism sector on the continent.
Destination Africa is where it's at right now and in South Africa, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced in his State of the Nation speech in February this year that "there is no reason why tourism can't double in size."
South African Tourism (who fund and organise Africa's Travel Indaba) recognise the importance of the growing tourism appeal for the entire continent through connecting people and unleashing potential. "With this show we are again reiterating our belief that tourism really does have the potential to double in size in the next decade," says Sisa Ntshona, CEO of SA Tourism.
Unpacking the 2018 theme "Africa's stories, your success."
The story is the emotive side of our business – where we want to engage the hearts of our guests, our clients and our industry. We know that the modern traveller is looking for authentic and unique travel experiences. Travel in Africa offers exactly this – an unforgettable experience that leaves you with stories to tell. It is these real African stories that inspire Africa's world-class tourism products and drive their businesses forward.
The success is the rational side of the story – where we seek to engage the minds and intellect of our colleagues, partner and governments. Africa's Travel Indaba is the platform that offers the best and most authentic opportunities to take part in the new African tourism economy and to be a part of the new story of African prosperity.
The rationale for the theme is that when we start telling our own story, we embark on the journey of changing the narrative of Africa - we shift perceptions from a continent that needs saving, to a continent that is thriving. We no longer look to the world for affirmation or inspiration, the world looks to us. We are real, vibrant and driven to succeed. So, we invite the world to journey with us and tell the new story of Africa, where success is not only for Africans, but for the world. Africa's stories. Your success.
Exhibitors in particular are encouraged to use the theme for their own marketing and communication and with around 700 media attendees from around the world, delegates have a variety of platforms on which to share stories of success.
Exhibitors - Important Dates to diarise – Friday 13 April is a big day!
With over 700 exhibitors already confirmed (and expected to meet the 1008 exhibitor levels from 2017), the logistics team is in full flow confirming stands and needs for exhibitors. Please make sure you have all your requests in by the following dates – late submissions will incur a 20% surcharge!
Element Deadline
Scan Display forms Friday 13 April
Floor Space only stand design Friday 13 April
Stand cleaning form Friday 13 April
Furniture Hire Friday 13 April
Signed indemnity and risk forms Friday 13 April
Name badges Friday 13 April
Side events – exhibitors wishing to book or host a side event at the show (either on the stand or at alternative venue) are reminded to please complete the Function Request Booking form which can be obtained from Rose Madela at events@indaba-southafrica.co.za.
Please also look at our story on call for panellists at the bottom of this newsletter – the deadline for submissions is also Friday 13th.
Durban is waiting for you!
Durban is South Africa's self-styled "playground", with a balmy climate that invites everyone to make the most of the area's natural outdoor lifestyle regardless of the season.
Also known as KwaZulu-Natal's "Surf City", Durban is renowned for its magnificent bathing and surfing beaches, which stretch along the city's beachfront from Durban harbour in the south to the upmarket suburb of Umhlanga in the north.
An expansive paved promenade offers access to the best of these beaches – the Golden Mile – where joggers, cyclists, dog owners, surfers, body boarders and walkers enjoy early-morning and late-afternoon exercise.
It's impossible to miss Durban's striking Moses Mabhida Stadium, the host venue to top-notch sporting events, Segway tours, a city-viewing SkyCar and the impressive Big Rush Big Swing, which is the world's highest bungee swing at 80m. Closer to the harbour, uShaka Marine World — a world-class water park, aquarium (with fish, dolphins, seals, penguins and other sea life) and restaurant complex — overlooks the ocean and offers hours of entertainment for the whole family.
Culturally, Durban exhibits a mix of Indian, Zulu and post-colonial influences, reflected in the city's architecture and cuisine. Curries, seafood and fusion food are popular at beachfront restaurants, at Wilson's Wharf on the Victoria Embankment, and at the gourmet hot spots and coffee shops that line Florida Road and Helen Joseph Road. The art deco-style Suncoast Hotel and Casino complex, flanking the promenade, houses seafood and curry restaurants, movie theatres, a casino and coffee shops — with secure on-site parking and semi-private beach access.
Delegates – take some time before, after and in-between this top travel show to experience some of the excellent experiences on offer. Log onto www.shotleft.co.za for some great deals and visit www.visitudurban.travel for inspiration.
Small businesses are the true Hidden Gems of African Tourism
The Hidden Gems initiative (to ensure more small and medium sized black owned businesses are helped to access markets) is funded in part by the South African National Department of Tourism through its Tourism Incentive Programme.
In order to support small businesses to be at the show, South African Tourism, in partnership with the Southern Africa Tourism Services Association (SATSA), has again identified and hand-picked businesses for this year's show.
The objective of the "Hidden Gems" programme is to broaden the variety of tourism products on the market while upskilling and empowering black-owned small enterprises operating in the industry.
SA Tourism's CEO, Sisa Ntshona says, "It is crucial for the health and evolution of our sector that we help to incubate start-ups and small businesses, especially those that add new, authentic flavours to our country's tourism platter and we cannot wait to see how these innovative tourism 'jewels' shine on the trade floor."
In 2017, the Hidden Gems programme was felt to be one of the best new initiatives for the show. In addition to the South African products, many of the African countries exhibiting at the show are bringing new and exciting products to showcase.
If you can't get to see or meet all the Hidden Gems, remember that the South African Tourism speed marketing sessions will showcase some of the Hidden Gems. More about these sessions in our next newsletter.
Golf Day Sunday 6 May – sponsorships and spaces still available
Africa's Travel Indaba have a variety of sponsorship packages available for the industry attendees to take advantage of – including:
Prize giving dinner – R31,000
Registration area sponsor – R31,000
Putting Area – R18,100
Halfway House sponsor – R18,000
Premium Hole sponsorships (1,9,10,18) – R15,000
Hole sponsor – R6,200
Note all prices exclude 15% VAT applicable in South Africa.
All companies are welcome to offer exciting getaways, activities, overnight stays, gifts and other dynamic prizes. We have a wide range of players: men, ladies, international guests, members of the business events industry and local corporates. The prize-giving offers you a wonderful opportunity to advertise your product and use your imagination for prizes. Please note, amateur golf rules prohibit cash prizes of more than R4 000. Prizes can be sponsored for the following categories:
Top 4 ball
Closest to pin
Longest day
For more information or to book a four-ball to play (R6000) – please email golf@indaba-southafrica.co.za
BONDay – get ready for a great day
BONDay – the Business Organisers Networking Day, is a day where the show shares some insights, knowledge and intelligence which are designed to help businesses to grow.
BONDay falls on the Monday before the show and was first introduced in 2017 and post show feedback was really positive. So in 2018 – we have four sessions lined up for you – all of which are being hosted and moderated by Jo-Ann Struass – media entrepreneur and international speaker:
Session 1: 10:00 – 11:00 Future tourism trends where Africa can shine
Session 2: 11:00 – 12:00 The Art of storytelling – our stories our way
Session 3: 12:00 – 13:00 Immersive tourism – the cultural, rural opportunity
Lunch: 13:00 – 14:00 The ever-popular food trucks will be open
Session 4: 14:00 – 16:00 Join the fight to save Africa's natural heritage: The Conservation Lab
Space is limited for BONDay to 300 delegates – so book as soon as possible for these sessions! Contact events@indaba-southafrica.co.za to book your space. These sessions are open to registered exhibitors – however registered buyers and media are also welcome to attend and should also book their slot.
Mandela's Centenary will be a key element at this year's show
Africa's Travel Indaba has been working closely with the Nelson Mandela Foundation and their #bethelegacy project which is being rolled out around the world marking the centenary of its founder's birth throughout 2018 – Mandela was born on 18 July 1918, in Mvezo, Eastern Cape.
Remembering Mandela and his legacy to South Africa and the world will be a big part of the Foundation's 2018 programme. Foundation CE Sello Hatang said 2018 will see the organisation participate in "at least 50" projects aimed at celebrating Mandela's centenary.
As part of the celebrations South African Tourism will be launching the updates to their very successful Mandela Journey App and there will be plenty to inspire us all. The Madiba's Journey App will now feature 100 tourist attractions of significance in the life of the iconic leader, one for each year he spent behind bars as a political prisoner. Users can view the attractions on a map, build their own itineraries and share their own journeys on social media. Users can experience the emotion and relevance of each location through audio, text and image galleries. The app also offers real-time weather information, distances and details of nearby attractions.
Call for Panellists – submissions required by Friday 13 April
Each year, South African Tourism use the platform at Africa's Travel Indaba to seek collaborative inputs from stakeholders around some the of the key and pressing issues or imminent opportunities facing the industry. In the past a call for panellists had not been implemented, however this year South African Tourism would like to engage delegates to find new voices for the industry.
The following topics are planned to be discussed and debated in forums:
Business Conversation 1: Tuesday 8 May 12:00 – 13:00:
"Optimising economic transformation in the tourism industry."
Business Conversation 2: Tuesday 8 May 14:30 – 15:30
"Tourism and the 4th industrial revolution"
Business Conversation 3: Wednesday 9 May 10:30 – 11:30
"Responsible Tourism – enabling sustainable practices as the new normal."
"Strategies to maximise youth employment and leadership in the tourism industry."
If you are keen to be on one of the forum's please submit the speaker name, organisation brief biography and contact information to Thandiwe@southafrica.net before Friday 13 April 2018.
Issued by South African Tourism
Thandiwe Mathibela
Email: thandiwe@southafrica.net
Website: www.southafrica.net
South African Tourism is the national tourism agency responsible for the marketing of South Africa as a preferred tourist destination. It is headed by Chief Executive Officer, Mr Sisa Ntshona.


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When Men Murder Women: An Analysis of 2011 Homicide Data
Violence Policy Center
Number of Females Murdered by Males in Single Victim/Single Offender Homicides and Rates by State in 2011, Ranked by Rate
Labels: domestic abuse, women and guns
The Smarmy Senator Cruz Schools Trayvon Martin's Mom
Posted by Unknown at 12:08 PM 25 comments:
Labels: ted cruz
Gun Control in Germany
Gunther Eggersdorf goes hunting nearly every day outside his village in Bavaria. He takes me down to the basement room where he keeps his guns.
"Here are the weapons," says Eggersdorf. "Must be in the dresser. I have only the key. So I can only open this." He unlocks a tall, black safe that's as tall as him and shows his eight firearms.
Like all gun owners in Germany, he's required to store his weapons in a locked safe.
And if gun owners don't have firearms stowed away, the consequences are serious. Law enforcers go door to door and randomly check on gun owners. If officials find that a gun owner doesn't have their weapons in a safe, they could lose their guns, be fined, or go to jail. The father of the 17-year-old gunman in Winnenden was tried and sentenced for leaving his pistol in his bedroom, where his son could access it.
Still, there are more than five point four million legal firearms in this country, or about 30 guns for every 100 people. That's the fourth highest per capita rate in the world, behind the U.S., Switzerland, and Finland.
In Germany, you have to have a good reason for owning a gun, like if you're a sport shooter, hunter or in rare cases, a gun collector. You can't buy a firearm simply for personal protection—self-defense doesn't count as a necessity here. The yearlong licensing process involves written tests and shooting practice, and costs several thousand Euros. Every applicant is background checked. And starting this year, every gun owner is tracked on a national register.
According to a 2009 poll by German public television, most Germans support strict gun regulation. But even with the policies currently in place, gun deaths and gun crimes still happen. Each year, about 200 people are killed by guns.
Labels: gun control
Preventing School Shootings Starts with Gun Safety at Home
A school shooting that left a teacher in Nevada dead last week brings the number of such shootings in the United States to 17 since last December's tragedy in Newtown, Conn. Also last week, a Washington state boy was arrested after he brought a gun and 400 rounds of ammunition to his middle school.
As Americans reflect on these horrifying events, we should also consider how preventable they were. In fact, many of the school shootings this year and in the past could have been prevented with just common-sense safety measures in the home – no new legislation or rules needed.
GALLERY: Guns in America: facts, myths, trivia
The gun used in the shooting in Sparks, Nevada – which left the teacher and the shooter, his 12-year-old student, dead and two classmates seriously wounded – was a Ruger 9mm semi-automatic handgun that was apparently taken by the child from his home. While it isn't yet known exactly how he gained access to this dangerous weapon, it is highly likely that serious safety measures were not put in place by the parents, allowing an immature mind to once again wield terrible power.
In the last year, this devastating scenario has played out again and again. School shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Red Lake High School in Red Lake, Minn., in 2005, and Heath High School inWest Paducah, Ky., in 1997 also involved legal guns taken from the home, used by young people who clearly should not have been able to carry them to school as easily as they would a packed lunch. Sadly, it is perhaps more surprising that these incidents don't occur more regularly. A 2005 study on firearm access in America showed that 1.69 million children under the age of 18 lived in homes with loaded and unlocked firearms.
Yeah, no new laws would be required if only the lawful owners of guns would lock them up. But, guess what? That ain't gonna happen any time soon. Why? Because too many gun owners are either too stupid or too uncaring to do so.
The solution: mandatory safe storage of firearms in the home. Gun owners need to be legally constrained to do what's right.
Labels: safe storage
Guns vs. Knives
Labels: murder
Maine 3-Year-old Shot Accidentally - She's Critical
Local news reports
Police in Bangor, Maine, say a 3-year-old child is hospitalized with a life-threatening injury following an apparent accidental shooting in the family's apartment.
Officials say the child, whose name is not being released, was taken to Eastern Maine Medical Center with a single gunshot wound to the neck.
Sgt. Catherine Rumsey said Thursday the shooting appears to be accidental, and that police are continuing to investigate.
Neighbor Sandra Smith told WABI-TV (http://bit.ly/1aHzFKS ) that the girl's father was distraught when he came running out of the apartment, and that the girl was breathing and had her eyes open when she was taken to the hospital.
Labels: kids and guns
Shooting at LAX Airport - 1 Dead - 1 Arrested
Paul Anthony Ciancia was described by acquaintances as quiet and shy.(FBI)
Police say that Ciancia, 23, went to LAX on Friday morning, pulled a rifle out of a bag and began shooting at TSA agents, killing a 39-year-old screener, identified as Gerardo I. Hernandez, the first TSA officer killed in the line of duty.
A law enforcement official told The Times that a note was found on the gunman expressing "disappointment in the government" and saying that he had no interest in hurting "innocent people."
Several witnesses said he appeared to shoot only at TSA agents and avoided shooting passengers. Ciancia was wounded by police. His condition was not released.
Another law enforcement source said the note contained the letters "NWO." Investigators are trying to determine whether he was a believer in the New World Order, a conspiracy theory which holds that forces are trying to create a single totalitarian government on Earth. The source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, emphasized that it is still early in the investigation and that detectives are not sure what role, if any, "NWO" played in the case.
Labels: mass shootings, spree shootings
Sanford, Florida Neighborhood Watch Bans Members from Carrying Guns
Labels: vigilante maniacs
Lawful Illinois Gun Owner Leaves Gun in School Bathroom
Local Fox News
A Plainfield southwest suburban man has been charged with bringing a gun to the west suburban school where he worked, the Beacon-News is reporting.
Michael T. Martin, 62, of Plainfield, a contractual worker for the Oswego School District 308 IT Department, has been charged with unlawful use of a weapon on school property, a Class 3 felony.
He was taken to the Kendall County Jail to await a bond hearing.
Police said that at 9:12 a.m., an Oswego East High School staff member found a handgun in a locked faculty restroom on the second floor. As a safety measure, the school was put on lockdown.
During the investigation, "the identity of a subject who was last in the restroom was determined and that subject was located off site for an interview," police said in a statement.
Police said there is no evidence that the subject had any intention of doing anyone any harm.
Labels: illinois
More on the Henderson Nevada Shooting - Lawful Gun Owner - Military Vet - Idiot
Labels: nevada
Florida 14-Year-old Accidentally Shoots his 13-Year-old Cousin
The cops really want to punish the person who provided the gun to the kid. Well, that's good as far as it goes. But chances are it was provided to the 14-year-old shooter by another kid criminal. What they really need to determine is who was the last legal owner of the gun and how he let it slip into the criminal world. If that person failed to secure the gun properly or sold it to a disqualified person, he's the one who should be punished severely. That's the heart of the matter.
Labels: florida
Lawful Florida Gun Owner Shoots his Elderly Mother by Accident - It Was the Gun's Fault
They did interview her son, Attila Frank "Sonny" Kerekes, 55.
According to OPD reports, Sonny Kerekes, who moved in with his mother several months ago, told detectives he has owned the gun, a .38 revolver, which was his father's, since his father died in the early 1980s.
He said he used the revolver to shoot sharks when he was a commercial fisherman in Miami. He said his mother wanted to see the gun, so he was taking it from a bag in which it had been stored. He said she was in the kitchen and he was in another room when the revolver accidentally went off and a bullet went through a wall.
He said he did not know his mother had been wounded until she told him about pain in her abdomen, at which point he called 911.
Labels: gun owner idiots
There Is No 2nd Amendment Right to Own a Gun and There Never Was
The Examiner
The 2nd amendment is about giving the states an absolute right to have their own armed militias which today has been transformed into the National Guard.It also guarantees that the states have the right to have the same weapons as a federal army, a right in existence today and has always been, since the National Guard of every state does have most of the same weapons that the Federal army has. National Guard units have tanks, they have fighter jets. They have bombers.And it's why National Guard units have been fighting in Iraq since 2002. The 2nd amendment guarantees the right of the states to have them. It is also what allowed the states of the Confederacy to have the weapons to fight a Civil War.
If you think the amendment gives an individual the right to have those weapons try putting a tank in your backyard.And keep in mind the entire amendment wasn't written so that it could be diced and sliced with words ignored to suit someone's purpose. The amendment means what it says.
The next line refers to " the right of the people...".
For those who don't know there are two types of rights enumerated in the Constitution, states rights and individual rights. As any Constitutional scholar will tell you, when the Framers were referring to a state's right they used the term "the people:". When they were referring to an individual right, they used the word " person".The 5th amendment is a good example. It begins with the words, "No person shall..." and lays out guarantees, among them, double jeopardy and that no person in a criminal case shall be compelled to be a witness against himself.
Once you understand who the Framers are referring to when they say "the people", which is a collective for the individual states, and not referring to an individual right, it's time to deal with the most misused and misunderstood part of the 2nd amendment - the words "to keep and bear arms".
The rest of the article is of interest too, but I like that part about the difference between people and person.
Labels: 2nd amendment
The Debate about US gun violence is being done in ignorance.
Wow, that's a pretty powerful title, but it's true.
We can start with Justice Scalia's taking the Second Amendment out of Constitutional and Legal context from it's relationship to USC Article I, Section 8, clause 16 which gives the US Congress the power to arm the militia--ONLY THE US CONGRESS. That was the concern which led up to the Second Amendment as a guarantee that Congress wouldn't neglect the militia in favour of the federal army. That means the the part about a "Well-regulated militia" is actually quite important to the understanding of the second amendment (come on, I've written about this quite extensively and you would know I am correct if you weren't lazy and actually did some research into the primary sources).
An example of this, Scalia's Heller decision is a classic case of the fallacy of taking something out of context:
The practice of quoting out of context, sometimes referred to as "contextomy", is a logical fallacy and a type of false attribution in which a passage is removed from its surrounding matter in such a way as to distort its intended meaning. While "quote mining" is also used to indicate this, the phrase also has a broader meaning which can instead describe the summarisation of key points (or those someone is opting to focus on replying to) without distorted the meaning. Contextomies are stereotypically intentional, but may also occur accidentally if someone misinterprets the meaning and omits something essential to clarifying it, thinking it non-essential.
But, that isn't really my point, although it does help contribute the US's gun problem. Which I am sure is also something else which will get the usual "guns save lives" comment.
But, where is the proof that guns actually save lives? Isn't the data showing that guns are a problem? Wasn't that why the government funding was cut since it had this tendency to contribute to the gun control argument?
That is my point. The debate is being held in a state of laughable ignorance where people who propose the concept of "gun rights" make statements that more people die from baseball bats than guns.
Jeff Nesbit was the director of public affairs for two prominent federal science agencies who has written an article titled Instead of Studying Gun Violence, Americans Just Argue About It. In this article he points out that the unfortunate truth is this: Scientists simply don't know if gun violence is a public-health epidemic, because hard statistics either don't exist, aren't current, aren't readily available or can't be researched nationally under the usual rules. Until a few months ago, federal science agencies were essentially barred from even studying gun violence within a public-health epidemic framework.
The United States is the only country in the world that treats gun ownership as a fundamental, human right. It's a privilege — not a right — in every other country but America. In countries like Israel and Sweden, you must prove that you have a need to own a gun before you're given a right to own one.
What prompts the public health question, over and over and over, is news coverage of the latest, horrific stories of gun violence at public places like schools. Everyone is appalled, and then forgets — until the next incident.
Right now, Americans are following the awful story of a 12-year-old who took a semi-automatic weapon from home to attack people at a middle school in Nevada — killing a teacher who was heroically trying to stop the violent act. Before that, it was the Navy Yard in Washington, D.C. Before that it was Newtown. And before that it was Perry Hall, Aurora, Tucson and Columbine, just to name a few. And tomorrow, it will be somewhere else.
Americans now own more than 300 million guns. The best available estimates in the United States — and they are just statistical estimates — indicate that there are about 30,000 firearms-related deaths in the U.S. each year, and more than twice that number of non-fatal incidents involving firearms. The United States has the highest number of gun-related injuries of any developed country in the world, according to those estimates.
Is that a gun violence epidemic? Can it be viewed and approached like an epidemic? Again, Americans don't know because our federal leaders — and especially the leadership of federal science agencies like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) — have largely shied away from studying it in this fashion for fear of the political repercussions.
It's long past the time for at least this part of the public debate regarding gun rights to stop. Long, long past time. There can be no harm in knowing how many people die each year from firearms, where those pockets of gun violence really are, and whether there are ways to mitigate or interrupt the violence in those pockets.
The problem is that you can't have a proper debate if the debate is run in ignorance.
Posted by Laci The Dog at 1:24 PM 13 comments:
Labels: gun violence data, gun violence research, Jeff Nesbit
For the Semper Paratus Crowd - When One Extra Magazine Is Not Enough
Tacprogear Drop-Leg Munitions Pouch
Labels: ammo
Suspects Arrested for Stealing 63 Colt ARs from Louisiana Distributor - Guns Still Missing
From the top: Cameron Johnson, Luther M. Williams, James D. Minor and David McNeil. (Photo credit: Caddo Sheriff's Office)
Guns dot com
Four men have been arrested in connection with the theft of dozens of ARs from a gun distributor in Shreveport, Louisiana, but none of the guns have been recovered yet.
One of the men was a contract security guard on duty when the shipment of Colt AR-15 rifles arrived at the Con-way Freight facility on Oct. 12. He and three other men allegedly lifted a pallet containing 63 rifles, according to a statement by the Caddo Sheriff's Office.
Two days later, company officials discovered the pallet missing. After an internal investigation failed to locate the missing pallet, company officials contacted the sheriff's office, who has been working in cooperation with the ATF from the start.
Labels: gun theft
San Francisco Approves Confiscatory Ban on Magazines Holding 10-plus Rounds
Supervisor Malia Cohen is the city official sponsoring the magazine ban.
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously approved an ordinance that places a confiscatory ban on magazines that hold more than 10 rounds of ammo on Oct. 29.
Those who are in possession of the high-capacity magazines or high-capacity ammunition feeding devices will have 90 days to turn them over to police, sell them out-of-state or render them permanently inoperable. Failure to do so will result in misdemeanor charges.
"While not a panacea, this legislation provides law enforcement with more tools to continue to address gun violence and also continues to strengthen our city's strong stance on gun regulation," the bill's sponsor, Supervisor Malia Cohen, told the San Francisco Chronicle.
In 2000, the state legislature placed a ban on the sale, transport, import or purchase of magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds, but gun owners who purchased 10-plus round magazines before the enactment of the state ban were grandfathered in.
For residents of San Francisco, that no longer holds true unless you qualify for the exemption, i.e. you're a law enforcement officer, an armored car driver, a museum curator or a Hollywood movie/television producer (these magazines can be "used as props"), according to the law.
I'm not sure if I understand what people who own handguns that come with larger-than-10-round magazines are supposed to do. Can a Glock 17 magazine or a Glock 19 magazine be simply replaced with a 10-round mag?
Labels: high capacity
Support for the Death Penalty at an All Time Low - Only 60%
The despicable Republicans are the ones keeping us in the dark ages.
Labels: death penalty
Kansas Man Receives Jail Time for Accidental Shooting
A 47-year-old man convicted in the accidental shooting of a 6-year-old boy at a North Topeka hotel on New Year's Eve 2011 will report to jail Nov. 4 to start his sentence of one year and two months.
Peter John Blancas, of Topeka, entered a plea to one count of aggravated endangering a child, a low-level felony, on Aug. 29, according to court records.
The incident was ruled an accidental shooting, a police spokeswoman said three days after the shooting.
Blancas was booked into the Shawnee County Jail at 5:54 a.m. Jan. 1, 2012, in connection with two felonies — one count of aggravated battery and one count of criminal possession of a firearm — and nine misdemeanor counts of endangerment of a child.
When the child was shot, 13 people — four adults and nine children — were in the hotel room.
Blancas has a criminal history B, court records said, meaning he has two or more person felony convictions.
On Dec. 10, 2008, Blancas was sentenced in district court to intensive supervised probation for two years and two months after he pleaded no contest four months earlier to aggravated battery, according to court records.
Blancas also was sentenced in district court in 1997 to six months in jail after pleading no contest to two counts of domestic battery, court records said. In 1993, he pleaded no contest to battery and was placed on one year of supervised probation.
He also pleaded no contest in 1995 in district court to domestic battery and criminal trespassing and in 1996 to his third offense of driving while suspended.
The sentence was too light. This is the kind of guy who should receive ten years for what he did.
Incontrovertible Evidence that Guns Are Bad News for Arizona
American Progress
Arizona Gun Violence
Arizona's gun death rate is 40 percent higher than the national average.
• Arizona is the 11th-worst state for gun deaths: There were 14.6 gun deaths for
every 100,000 people in the state in 2010. That's 40 percent higher than the
national average of 10.3 gun deaths for every 100,000 people.
Somebody is murdered by a gun in Arizona almost every day.
• In Arizona there were 271 gun homicides in 2010.
• From 2001 through 2010, 3,303 people were murdered by guns in Arizona. That
number is almost double all U.S. combat deaths in the Afghanistan war.
Women are more at risk of being killed by a gun in a domestic dispute in Arizona
than almost anywhere else in the country.
• Arizona had the eighth-highest rate of women killed by men, many of which
were committed with a firearm.
It had the 13th-highest gun homicide rate for women in the country.
Arizona has received abysmal gun safety ratings. Weak gun laws put Arizonans at
risk.
• The Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence gave Arizona an "F," ranking it 49th
out of 50 states.
• The Daily Beast listed Arizona as the second "deadliest gun state" in the United
States in 2011 because of its combination of permissive gun laws and a high rate
of gun deaths.
Weak laws make Arizona a favorite source state for gun traffickers.
• Arizona had the 13th-highest rate of crime gun exports in 2009, a marker of
illegal trafficking. Arizona supplied guns to out-of-state criminals at a rate of 75
percent above than the national average.82 Center for American Progress | Fact Sheet: Arizona Gun Violence
Labels: arizona
Mass Shootings Infographic
Labels: mass shootings
Colorado 3-Year-old Dead - Investigation Ongoing
A 3-year-old Colorado boy has died after what authorities say was "an accidental gunshot wound to the head."
Police in Frederick, Colo., a town about 30 miles north of Denver, said Tuesday thatthe boy has been identified as Sheine Steine, according to the Longmont Times-Call.
Police arrived at the boy's home Monday morning around 10 a.m. after Steine's mother Dione Warren found him on the ground, not breathing and bleeding from the head. Despite the amount of blood, Warren told 911 she thought the boy had fallen and struck his head on a bedside table. According to 7News, police found the preschooler's body next to his mother's bed and a semiautomatic handgun next to his head.
KDVR reports that the gun, a .40-caliber Glock, was legally owned by the boy's stepfather, identified as Jeremy McCollem, who was not at home during the shooting.
According to Denver's CBS affiliate, the shooting remains under investigation, with authorities still determining who shot the gun and if the gun was locked up.
I'm sure they'll need a lengthy investigation to determine if the gun was locked up. Is that some bullshit, or what?
Labels: colorado
South Carolina Domestic Incident - 6 Dead
Six people have been found dead in a South Carolina home following an apparent domestic dispute.
Greenwood County Sheriff's Office spokesman John Long told The Associated Press late Tuesday that the dead include four adults and two children. He said the bodies were discovered by a SWAT team that entered the house "after several unsuccessful attempts to make contact" with someone inside.
Long says officers first went to the home in the city of Greenwood after receiving a call from a man who said he was thinking about hurting himself. He says while police were on their way, one of the man's neighbors called 911 saying children from that address had arrived at her house and told her a shot had been fired.
Long says a preliminary investigation indicates the shootings were "a domestic-related incident."
Labels: domestic gunviolence, south carolina
Missouri 4-Year-old Dead - Charges Being Considered
Deputies responded to the incident on U Highway in rural Christian County. Kyle said the child and her mother were visiting at the home. The mother walked next door to a neighbor's house. That's when a 24-year-old man who lived at the home began target shooting with a .22-caliber rifle. He was standing near a shed that partially obscured his view, Kyle said. The man said he was unaware the child was in the yard as he pulled the trigger and she darted in front of him.
Labels: missouri
Virginia 12-Year-old Dead in Accidental Shooting
A 12-year-old boy was killed Saturday afternoon in the woods near his house in Madison County in what authorities, and the boy's father, are calling an accidental shooting.
Dax Dixon of Pratts, a small community in Madison, died Saturday afternoon while playing with a neighbor friend, the boy's father, Dan Dixon, said Sunday.
The Madison County Sheriff's Office responded to what it described as an accidental shooting involving two juveniles shortly after 5 p.m. Saturday, a news release said. Deputies found Dax Dixon dead at the scene, the release said.
Labels: virginia
North Carolina Dad Charged in 2-Year-old's Death
Local news reports further to our original post at the time of the tragedy.
The father of a 2-year-old girl who died after accidentally shooting herself after finding a loaded handgun hid the weapon from police investigators, according to an arrest warrant.
Melvin Andre Clark, 19, of the 2600 block of Graham Road, was charged Monday with resisting a public officer and failing to store a firearm to protect a minor.
Both charges are misdemeanors.
Clark was charged Oct. 20 with involuntary manslaughter and possession of firearm by a felon.
Clark's daughter, Samarri Tyana Beauford, died Oct. 19 after a single gunshot struck her in the head, Fayetteville police said.
The toddler was playing when she found the loaded .22-caliber semi-automatic Beretta pistol under a couch, police said.
Clark attempted to impede Detective Ronnie Hutchins' investigation by taking the pistol and hiding it behind a home on the 6500 block of Amanda Circle, according to arrest documents.
Labels: criminal gun owners, north carolina
Concealed Carry - The Best and the Worst States
51. Washington D.C.Permit Issuance: 0Reciprocity: 0Training Time: 0Application Fee: 0Stand Your Ground: 0Best States for Gun Owners: 0Duty to Inform: 0Pre-Emption: 0Issued to Non-Residents: 0TOTAL: 0It's hard to believe any place in the United States—aside from places such as prisons and mental institutions—could possibly score a zero. Until the recent Heller Supreme Court decision, residents weren't even allowed to own guns. No magazines are allowed that hold more than 10 rounds, there is no law permitting concealed carry, and there is no Castle Doctrine law.
1. Arizona
Permit Issuance: 25
Reciprocity: 18
Training Time: 10
Application Fee: 10
Stand Your Ground: 10
Best States for Gun Owners: 10
Duty to Inform: 5
Pre-Emption: 5
Issued to Non-Residents: 5
After taking the top spot in "The Best States for Gun Owners," Arizona tops the leaderboard once again. As a "Constitutional Carry" state, anyone 21 and over who can legally own a firearm can carry it concealed without a license. In addition, Arizona issues licenses on a Shall-Issue basis, allowing residents and non-residents to carry their weapons when traveling out-of-state. Arizona also has no duty to immediately inform an officer, has excellent reciprocity and a Stand Your Ground law.
Labels: concealed carry
New Orleans Gun Violence in Early October
Labels: nola
15 Ways The United States Is The Best (At Being The Worst)
Labels: The greatest country on Earth
Texas Shooting Spree - 5 Dead
Labels: shooting sprees, texas
Fascinating Discussion on Religious Fanaticism - Who's Worse?
Labels: religious fanaticism
Some U.S. Cities Have Higher Gun Violence Than Entire Countries
Here's how things shake out:
- If it were a country, New Orleans (with a rate 62.1 gun murders per 100,000 people) would rank second in the world.
- Detroit's gun homicide rate (35.9) is just a bit less than El Salvador (39.9).
- Baltimore's rate (29.7) is not too far off that of Guatemala (34.8).
- Newark (25.4) and Miami (23.7) have gun murder statistics comparable to Colombia (27.1).
- Washington D.C. (19) has a higher rate of gun homicide than Brazil (18.1).
- Atlanta's rate (17.2) is about the same as South Africa (17).
- Cleveland (17.4) has a higher rate than the Dominican Republic (16.3).
- Gun murder in Buffalo (16.5) is similar to Panama (16.2).
- Houston's rate (12.9) is slightly higher than Ecuador's (12.7).
- Gun homicide in Chicago (11.6) is similar to Guyana (11.5).
- Phoenix's rate (10.6) is slightly higher than Mexico (10).
- Los Angeles (9.2) is comparable to the Philippines (8.9).
- Boston rate (6.2) is higher than Nicaragua (5.9).
The thing that stands out for me is the place Chicago holds on the list. Did you see where it is? Why don't the gun-rights fanatics ever talk about New Orleans?
Labels: gun violence. New Orleans
John Lott Making Shit Up Left and Right
At least when Colion Noir makes shit up he sounds convincing. In this interview, John Lott sounded like a doddering fool.
Labels: john lott
NY Gun Law's Required Ammunition Background Checks Not Expected To Start In January
The Daily News
The state is holstering a key provision of Gov. Cuomo's gun control law requiring first-ever background checks on ammunition purchases.
Under the gun law passed earlier this year, the state could have begun requiring background checks as of this coming Jan. 15. It also could have ordered sellers of ammunition to begin keeping key information on buyers, including their names, the amount of bullets purchased, their addresses, and occupations.
But the State Police Sunday they are delaying implementation, a move first reported by the Buffalo News, until it can develop the needed database system allowing it to move forward.
Officials said the national instant background check system used for firearm purchases can not be used for ammunition sales.
"The State Police is working on technology solutions to be able to carry out this section of the SAFE Act so that the public, buyers and sellers are not
inconvenienced or delayed in any way when they purchase ammunition," said agency spokeswoman Darcy Wells.
Wells said one provision that will go into affect as planned on Jan. 15 is a requirement that all ammunition dealers register with the state.
Labels: ammo sales, The safe act
Gun Range Suicides
Each year, millions of people go to gun ranges and there are generally a few suicides. One gun range manager says he refuses service to customers because "it didn't feel right." (AP File Photo)
If there's one thing Ken LeVan has learned over the past 20 years, it's how to read people.
LeVan is manager of the Pennsylvania Law Enforcement Officers Association's
Firing Line indoor shooting range in North Whitehall Township. The setup is similar to that of The Heritage Guild in Williams Township, where two 54-year-old men have used guns to commit suicide since April.
LeVan said he has had to refuse service to customers at The Firing Line, 4671 Egypt Road, on several occasions because "it didn't feel right." He recalled one situation in which a man appeared nervous, pacing back and forth.
"He was soaking wet from perspiration," he said.
He turned the man away, avoiding what could have been a bad situation, he said.
The gun range hasn't had any incidents in the 28 years it's been open.
Labels: gun range suicides, suicides
The Year 2013 in Gun Deaths - So Far - It Ain't Over
Using 2010 data on firearm deaths provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Slate estimates that the number of gun deaths since the Newtown tragedy is likely closer to 28,600. As Salon's Sally Kohn points out, that works out to about 90 people a day.
Labels: gun deaths
US Child Gun Deaths Rose 60% in 10 Years
The number of US kids and teens who die from gunshot wounds in hospital has risen almost 60% in a decade, according to a new report. The study by two doctors looked at data from 1997 to 2009, and found the number of those hospitalized with gunshot wounds rose from 4,270 to 7,730, while the number of those that then died from them climbed from 317 to 503, NBC Newsreports. Eight out of 10 of the wounds came from handguns, says study author Arin L. Madenci. "Furthermore, states with higher percentages of household firearm ownership also tended to have higher proportions of childhood gunshot wounds, especially those occurring in the home," he says.
As a result of the findings, the authors say, perhaps the national conversation about gun control should move from larger semi-automatic weapons to limiting the number of smaller firearms in homes. "While public health resources and policies have largely focused on military-style semi-automatic assault weapons, it may be more crucial to intervene on handguns," says Madenci, per Medical Daily. The director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research tells Discovery that research and data like this has been sorely lacking in the field since Congress stopped funding it in the 1990s. "I see this as a huge step forward," he says.
Lou Reed - R.I.P.
Labels: great music
Mexican Standoff
Labels: gun humor
If You Let Your Guns Get Stolen, You're a Menace to Society
How then to reduce the number of thefts? Many states are considering mandatory reporting of the loss or thefts of firearms. This would help greatly if it is done in conjunction with implementation of universal background checks and a requirement for persons who transfer firearms to retain records allowing meaningful tracing of weapons used in crime. The possibility that a stolen gun will result in the owner being identified and being held responsible for negligence is a strong incentive to improve storage practices. Existing household insurance may or may not be written with language that covers this situation but should be required to do so.
We could go further and adopt legislation stipulating that a gun owner who's gun was stolen is responsible for the damage the gun causes at a later time. While courts have refused to apply common law strict liability after a theft, there is no such limitation stopping it from being enacted by statute if legislatures decide to do so. In fact some legislation introduced in the last year in various states has attempted to do this, at least for a limited time or if the theft is not reported. There are other possible measures: Loss of control of a gun could create a presumption of negligence and fault in a manner similar to the presumption for drivers who strike other vehicles from the rear. Specific requirements for locking up guns in the owner's absence and not leaving guns in cars could be mandated and failure to do so could be made a crime; but ever harsher penalties have a diminishing return in stopping either criminals from committing crimes or honest citizens from being careless.
A lot of gun owners consider their guns their own business, but when they're stolen they're everybody's business.
Phoenix Gun Owner Kills Family Next Door and Himself - 5 Dead
The Chicago Tribune
A man who killed four members of a neighboring family and their two dogs with a shotgun before taking his own life over the weekend in Arizona may have been sent into a rage by the dogs' barking, police said on Sunday.
But police said what drove 56-year-old Michael Guzzo of Phoenix to carry out the shooting frenzy may never be known for certain, as both he and his victims, who ranged in age from 17 to 66 and lived next door, were dead before officers arrived.
"It appears he had some issues with barking dogs," said Phoenix police spokesman Sergeant Tommy Thompson. "If true, it does not justify killing four people."
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