Iran’s Theocracy Will Collapse Because of People Like Kimia Alizadeh
The nation’s only female Olympic medalist says she has permanently left the Islamic Republic due to the oppression of women.
The killing of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani by the United States military will understandably dominate headlines for weeks if not months to come.
But the actual demise of the authoritarian regime that’s been in power since 1979 will come more from acts like the one taken by Kimia Alizadeh, Iran’s only female Olympic medalist. Late last week, the bronze medalist in Taekwondo in the 2016 Summer Games announced via Instagram that she has fled her home country due to the systematic oppression of women. Via CNN:
“Let me start with a greeting, a farewell or condolences,” the 21-year-old wrote in an Instagram post explaining why she was defecting. “I am one of the millions of oppressed women in Iran who they have been playing with for years.”…
“They took me wherever they wanted. I wore whatever they said. Every sentence they ordered me to say, I repeated. Whenever they saw fit, they exploited me,” she wrote, adding that credit for her success always went to those in charge.
“I wasn’t important to them. None of us mattered to them, we were tools,” Alizadeh added, explaining that while the regime celebrated her medals, it criticized the sport she had chosen: “The virtue of a woman is not to stretch her legs!”
On the heels of Alizadeh’s self-imposed exile comes reports that two anchors for Iranian state broadcaster IRIB have quit over qualms about censorship and official lies. From The Guardian:
Zahra Khatami quit her role at IRIB, saying: “Thank you for accepting me as anchor until today. I will never get back to TV. Forgive me.”
Her fellow anchor Saba Rad said: “Thank you for your support in all years of my career. I announce that after 21 years working in radio and tv, I cannot continue my work in the media. I cannot.”
The journalists’ statements are part of a crisis of confidence following the initial attempts by state officials to deny that Ukrainian jetliner 752 had been shot down by mistake by members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp (IRGC) air defence force.
A third broadcaster, Gelare Jabbari, said she quit “some time ago” and asked Iranians to “forgive me for the 13 years I told you lies.”
This is all happening against the backdrop of massive protests in Iran following the accidental shooting down of a Ukrainian airliner that carried 176 people. Demonstrators protested rising gas prices late last year and in the years prior, there have been other protests and general strikes for a host of reasons, including increased dissatisfaction with theocratic rule. According to a Carnegie Endowment report, 150,000 educated Iranians emigrate each year, “costing the country over $150 billion per year” as relatively young and motivated residents leave for greener pastures elsewhere.
By all accounts, sanctions imposed by the United States in 2018 have hit Iran’s economy extremely hard and are playing a role in sparking protests. It’s never fully clear how those sorts of intervention, much less more militaristic actions such as the killing of Soleimani, play out—sometimes overt pressure applied by an outside power emboldens dissent and sometimes it decreases it. But when a country starts to get hollowed out from within, as seems to be the case with Alizadeh’s exile and other recent and ongoing domestic developments, autocrats should start sweating.
Police: Man Breaks into Kokomo Apartment, Gets Shot By Person Living There
KOKOMO, Ind.–He was shot shortly after breaking into someone’s apartment. That’s what police are saying happened to a man in Kokomo at about 10 Sunday night.
The Kokomo Police Department says Kris Bratton, 49, broke into an apartment at the Turtle Creek Apartment complex on the west side of Kokomo. They say they were called to the scene and realized that Bratton had been shot in the stomach by the person who lives in that apartment.
Bratton was taken to a hospital in Indianapolis. He is in stable condition.
Police are not identifying the person who shot Bratton.
Gun applications in New York Jewish community spike to nearly 1,000% after Hanukkah attack
Applications for gun permits are surging in New York’s Rockland County after five Orthodox Jews were stabbed at a Hanukkah celebration at a local rabbi’s home.
The Rockland County Clerk’s office reported a nearly 1,000% increase in gun permit applications in the week following the Dec. 28 attack. The county clerk received 65 new gun permit applications, according to the New York Post. Before the attack, the office received an average of about six applications a week.
All but five of the new applications originated from the town of Ramapo, where the attack took place. Ramapo contains several heavily Jewish communities.
“A lot of people are worried, especially the large Hasidic and Jewish community in Rockland County,” said Erik Melanson, who owns Precision Gunsmiths in Rockland County. “I have had rabbis come in. Some of the rabbis already have concealed carry [permits].”
Several thousand gun owners turned out at the temporary General Assembly Building on Monday, January 13! The hearing room was divided into two areas – the larger area for gun-rights supporters and the other was a smaller area for gun-control supporters.
Gun owners filled up their side of the room quickly, while the gun controllers side was still pretty empty. To make it looked like they had more people and not look so pitiful, a search for gun-controllers in the waiting line outside the meeting room doors was conducted. Countless gun owners in the line were skipped over in the search for more gun-controllers. Whenever a gun controller was found, they were allowed to go into the meeting room, but no more gun owners were allowed in.
Sheriff Scott Jenkins of Culpeper County and Sheriff Richard Vaughn of Grayson County were in the room in support of gun owners. Sheriff Jenkins spoke twice during the hearings.
The meeting was chaired by Democrat Senator John Edwards. The Republicans on the committee pointed out multiple mistakes and even rules that were broken in the running of the committee, but the Democrat-controlled committee ignored the complaints and lurched forward anyhow, rules be damned.
Republican Senator Bill Stanley, who could not be at the hearing due to a trial he had to attend, had been promised by John Edwards that no gun bills would be heard on Monday, but Senator Edwards went back on his word and gun bills were heard anyhow. Senator Mark Obenshain brought up that broken promise, but to no avail.
Each side was only given 5 minutes total to speak on each bill.
The first gun-control bill to pass out of committee was SB 69, a one-handgun a month bill, which reinstated the last version of that law before it was repealed. Senator Saslaw’s version of that same bill, SB 22, was rolled into SB 69 and SB 69 was passed out by a partisan vote of 9 to 5. Republican senators Mark Obenshain and Ryan McDougle put up strong resistance, as did speakers who pointed out that the law had been a failure, but to no avail.
Next up was SB 70, a Universal Background Check bill. Saslaw’s version of the same bill, SB 12, was rolled into SB 70. A substitute bill was then offered for SB 70, which made the background checks only apply to sales of guns and not transfers, which fixes the problems with letting a friend or family member use one of your guns without you being constantly present. However, it still strips an 18, 19, or 20 year old from being able to own a handgun, since a dealer cannot process a handgun purchased by federal law for someone that age. Also, a background check would have to be run on all sales, even sales to immediate family members, friends, etc.! SB 70 passed by a partisan vote of 9 to 5.
Senator Barker’s Red Flag Law bill, SB 240, was eviscerated, as all the flaws and dangers of that bill were brought up by Republicans Obenshain, McDougle, and Chafin on the committee, as well as by the pro-gun speakers. None of the concerns were addressed and the bill was passed by a partisan vote of 9 to 5.
Finally, SB 615, SB 450, and SB 505, all of which allow localities to pass various gun-control ordinances, were rolled into a substitute version of SB 35, making SB 35 an omnibus bill that destroys preemption by allowing Virginia localities to create a confusing set of local gun-control laws. Again, speaker after speaker spoke against SB 35, but it passed by a partisan 9 to 5 vote.
The gun-control bills that passed out of committee will now head to the Senate Floor to be voted on in a few days. VCDL will have an acton item shortly to bombard Senators with calls and emails encouraging them to opposed the four bills.
Elections have consequences and we are in a real fight to protect our rights.
U.S. sending home 21 Saudi cadets, NAS Pensacola shooting an ‘act of terrorism.’
We don’t have to treat the Saudis with kid gloves anymore now that our technology is able to better process our own massive petroleum reserves
WASHINGTON – Attorney General William Barr said Monday that the Saudi Arabian shooter at Naval Air Station Pensacola was “motivated by Jihadist ideology.”
Barr says 21 Saudi military students are being removed from the US training program and returning home.
Barr and FBI Deputy Director David Bowdich announced the findings of the criminal investigation in a press conference at the Department of Justice.
Many of the 21 cadets being sent home had contact with child pornography and possessed jihadist or anti-American material, Barr said. None is accused of having advanced knowledge of the shooting, which Barr said was motivated by “jihadist ideology” and has been classified as an act of terrorism.
Microsoft is replacing Edge with its new Chromium browser
Users will be automatically transitioned
Heads Up!
Microsoft is replacing its Edge browser with the updated, Chromium-based version
We already knew this was coming because Microsoft announced the new Edge’s launch date last month, but it wasn’t clear that users would be pushed to the new version. Thankfully it will look mostly the same as the existing Edge browser, with all the same proprietary Microsoft features, except for a slightly more Chrome-esque look.
THE BENEFITS OF SWITCHING TO CHROMIUM — Since the new Chromium Edge will be based off the same browser as Google Chrome, Edge will now support all the same extensions. Last month developers were invited to port their Chrome extensions over to the Microsoft Store, with the company saying that most extensions could be transferred over without any additional work. Edge is the default browser for all 900 million Windows 10 users, so there’s obviously an incentive there to port extensions.
Being based off Chromium also means that any site optimized for Chrome will look the same in Edge, because they share the same rendering engine, and web developers won’t have to design their sites with Edge in mind. That’s important because Chrome is by far the most popular internet browser with a 70 percent market share.
MICROSOFT HAS TAKEN STEPS TO MAKE IN UN-GOOGLE — Some might be displeased about the change due to opposition over Google’s business model. By developing on the open-source Chromium project, Microsoft is helping to improve Google’s browser, which it uses to collect data for advertising purposes. There was a brief uproar last month when world spread that Apple might rebuild Safari on Chromium, a rumor that was quickly killed to the relief of anti-Google, Apple loyalists. Microsoft has actually taken pains to introduce privacy features into its flavor of Chromium that will make it less permissive of the fingerprinting and other tracking methods that Chrome supports.
Microsoft says that enterprise customers won’t see their browser actually upgraded, but will rather have the choice to stick with the “traditional” Edge or the Chromium flavor.
Family unhurt after man shot, killed during attempted robbery
‘Fiance and 10 month old child‘? Someone got the horse in front of the cart.
BALDWIN BOROUGH, Pa. — A man shot and killed an armed man who tried to rob him Sunday night at his apartment in Baldwin Borough
East Tulsa resident shoots man who reportedly kicked in back door
An east Tulsa resident shot a man who kicked open his home’s back door early Saturday, police said.
The homeowner, his son and three other people were inside the residence on 71st East Avenue just south of Admiral Place when a man, whom police did not identify Saturday, knocked on the front door and demanded to speak to his fiancee, police reported. The son told the man he had the wrong house.
Police said in a news release that the homeowner’s son has no relationship with the man or his fiancee.
The man peered through vehicle windows at the residence, then went into the backyard and to the backdoor, police said. The homeowner’s son retrieved a gun and “issued several warnings” to the man, but the man kicked open the door and entered the house, according to a news release. The son then fired one shot, striking the man in the abdomen.
homeowner shoots, wounds intruder
Jacksonville police say a burglary suspect was wounded during an exchange of gunfire with a Westside homeowner Saturday night.
Police were en route to a report of a burglary in the 7100 block of Ricker Road when the call was upgraded to a shooting about 9 p.m., the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said.
The Sheriff’s Office said investigation showed the homeowner exchanged gunfire with an intruder — a man who then fled in a white compact pickup truck. A short time later, police found the potential suspect at the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
No other information was released by the Sheriff’s Office in the case.
Resolution to add Frederick County, Va. to West Virginia passes Senate
MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — Bordering Hampshire, Morgan and Berkeley counties is Frederick County, Virginia.
On Monday, the West Virginia Senate passed Senate Concurrent Resolution 2, drafted by Judiciary Committee Chairman Charlie Trump IV (R-Morgan). The resolution provides a “standing invitation” to Frederick County, Virginia to join West Virginia.
“I’m sure there will be lawyers all over this thing if the citizens of Frederick County decided they wanted to join (West Virginia). But there is a legal basis for the argument; it has been decided and already approved by Virginia and the Congress of the United States.”
This isn’t the first time Frederick County, Virginia was considered as becoming a part of West Virginia. Most of what are now Berkeley, Morgan, Hampshire, Mineral, Hardy and Grant counties were once part of Frederick County.
In 1862, Virginia’s government met in Wheeling to consider the formation of now-West Virginia. Frederick County was included along with Berkeley and Jefferson to join the new state. Berkeley and Jefferson voted to join, Frederick has not yet done so.
“In addition to the historical connections between Frederick County and the seven counties of our Eastern Panhandle, there are strong bonds and ties of every kind among the citizens – family, business, education, culture, and commerce. We share common values,” Senator Trump said. “Frederick County’s residents have so much in common with West Virginia that our separation has never made sense.”
If Frederick County were to join West Virginia, it would be the state’s second largest county. It would have at least six members in the House of Delegates and two senators in the state Senate. It would also add the historic City of Winchester, Virginia and Shenandoah University to the Mountain State.
“I’ve heard mixed things,” Senator Trump said when asked about the response from Frederick County. “I mean they’ve read it and they’ve said it’s very touching. The resolution is just really an expression of our affection and a recognition of our joint history with Frederick County. So far, no one has taken offense to it at least that they’ve expressed to me.”
Editor:
As a marginally fair-minded person, I sometimes place myself in the shoes of others to better understand their thought process. Lately, I’ve been thinking about gun control and how other people’s shoes perceive various solutions:
1. There can’t be guns in “gun-free zones.” When an armed criminal with mayhem in mind sees one of these signs, they naturally sigh “Aw, shucks” and slink back to the basement to re-examine their lives. It follows that home defense is best ensured by posting “Gun-Free Zone” signs in one’s yard, and perhaps on the front door. When you advertise that your family is completely unarmed, imagine all the nice new friends who’ll come to visit.
2. Arming teachers will make those young punks think twice. Nobody gets more annoyed at school shooters than teachers, and discipline is part of their job. (What do the sheriff’s “resource officers” know about kids, anyway?) So what makes better sense than strapping a .38 to the shop teacher’s hip and sending him swaggering forth to clean up Dodge City? Those smartypants students will think twice before joining running gun-battles in the school hallways against a platoon of sharpshooting French teachers! Plus, those quick-draw contests in the teachers’ lounge will be a fun break from second-period civics classes (bor-r-ring!)
3. If insane gun-toting gunmen didn’t have guns, they wouldn’t use guns to shoot people, insanely, with their guns. This is the sort of analytical logic that I really go for. Still, I’d take it a step further and outlaw the knives, including machetes, Swiss Army knives and so-called “butter” knives. Candlesticks and frozen pork loins are also lethal weapons, as are “assault anvils” that can be dropped from tall buildings onto pedestrians’ heads. People don’t kill people, inanimate objects kill people! If these Second Amendment gun nuts are so fired up about “rights,” let’s not dismiss the constitutional right of cognitively disadvantaged nonconformists to follow their impetuous dreams.
Thanks for your attention. Gotta go, “Live PD” is about to start.
David Christovich,
Woodstock
NRA Handing Out 30-Round Mags in VA to Fight Northam Gun Ban
The NRA will be handing out 1,000 30-round magazines in the Virginia Capitol City of Richmond Monday as part of the fight against Gov. Ralph Northam’s (D) gun grab.
The NRA used a Sunday night tweet to explain that Magpul Industries — a renowned magazine and firearm accessory maker — sent 1,000 magazines to the gun rights organization in order to have them given out to pro-Second Amendment Virginians on Monday.
Monday is January 13, the day on which the NRA has asked its members to flood into Virginia Senate meetings and ensure that pro-Second Amendment voices drown out those calling for gun control.
https://twitter.com/NRA/status/1216550061221588992
Virginia lawmakers ban guns at state Capitol in first of many expected firearm votes
Virginia lawmakers voted Friday to ban guns in the state Capitol building, the first of what is expected to be many votes on gun control legislation now that Democrats have retaken control of the statehouse for the first time in over 25 years.
Anyone with a concealed carry permit was previously allowed to bring a gun into the Capitol, although firearms were banned in certain parts of the building, according to The Associated Press. Democrats have said the new law is a safety measure, and Democratic Governor Ralph Northam previously outlawed guns in some state buildings.
Virginia Democrats have said they plan to make gun control a priority. An assault weapons ban, red flag laws and universal background checks have all been proposed. In a Facebook video posted Tuesday, Northam insisted “our eight pieces of gun legislation don’t threaten the Second Amendment.”
“We have no intention of calling out the National Guard,” Northam said. “We’re not going to cut off people’s electricity. We’re not going to go door to door and confiscate people’s weapons. We’re going to pass common sense legislation that will keep guns out of dangerous hands and keep Virginia safer.”
Republicans are opposed to the new laws and municipalities across the state have declared themselves sanctuary cities for the Second Amendment. Virginia Beach, where 12 people were killed in a shooting rampage at a municipal building in May 2019, earlier this week adopted a resolution declaring itself a “Second Amendment Constitutional City.”
Pro-gun rights advocates are planning on holding a rally at the Capitol in Richmond on January 20. Philip Van Cleave, the president of one of the lead organizers, Virginia Citizens Defense League, labelled reports that suggested it would be an “armed protest” as “totally inaccurate.”
Greta Snaps Over Demands: ‘We Want This Done Now – As In Right Now.’
Far-left climate extremist Greta Thunberg demanded in a new op-ed that world leaders cave to her anti-capitalist agenda “right now” as they prepare to meet in Davos for the 50th anniversary of the World Economic Forum.
“We demand that at this year’s forum, participants from all companies, banks, institutions and governments immediately halt all investments in fossil fuel exploration and extraction, immediately end all fossil fuel subsidies and immediately and completely divest from fossil fuels,” Thunberg wrote in an op-ed in The Guardian. “We don’t want these things done by 2050, 2030 or even 2021, we want this done now – as in right now.”
This Year’s Flu Shot Doesn’t Match What’s Circulating.
Yeah, just what pop at 95 needs to hear.
There’s more bad news about the flu: The main strain of flu that’s circulating right now doesn’t exactly match what’s in this year’s flu shot, according to a new report.
However, the strain in the vaccine may still be close enough to offer some protection, officials said.
The news comes amid a particularly severe flu season in the U.S.; the season started early, and it’s unclear if flu activity has peaked yet.
At the start of the season, officials noticed something very unusual: The main strain of flu virus circulating was a type called influenza B. Typically, influenza B does not cause as many cases as influenza A strains (H1N1 and H3N2) and tends to show up later in the flu season, not at the beginning. Indeed, the last time influenza B dominated flu activity in the U.S. was during the 1992-1993 flu season, according to the new report.
An Open Letter to Those Who Would Do Away With the Second Amendment
The fallacy that by severely restricting the sale and ownership of firearms as a means of curbing violence in America is easy to discredit, in fact, we need look no further than across our southern border.
Did you know that there is only one gun store in Mexico, guarded by armed military personnel? And it takes months of paperwork to even have the chance to buy a gun.
If you are not law enforcement or military you are lucky to procure a .22. The common people in Mexico have about as much chance of being adequately armed, enough to protect themselves and their families, as they are of winning the lottery.
And even if they are able to jump through all the hoops, getting ammunition is another steep mountain to climb.
In other words, the rank and file citizens of Mexico – for the most part – are not armed and have no hope of being armed.
Now, that is not to say there are not plenty of guns in Mexico. The dope dealers and cartels have an abundance of guns of any and every caliber they want, in fact, the paramilitary security forces the cartels use to enforce their will are about as well-armed as a combat soldier in the field.
Now how were these guns obtained in a country with one gun store and such impossible requirements to buy firearms?
The black market, of course.
Unfortunately, many of them are purchased in the United States, a fact that is seldom – if ever -mentioned or maybe even known, by the gun control crowd and something strict border security and shutting down rogue gun dealers could help curtail.
So, in essence, we can say that with the exception of law enforcement, military and a handful of people who can either bribe or game the system, practically all the guns in Mexico are illegal.
Now, let’s look at what effect such ultra-restrictive gun laws have had on crime.
Between 2000 and 2012; 215,000 people were murdered. In 2012 Mexico had a murder rate of 21.5 per 100,000. In 2018 there were 33,341 murders and it is expected, when the 2019 statistics are complete the number will be even higher.
Violent incidents, armed robbery, etc… increased from 5.2 million in 2017 to 6 million in 2018.
One of every 10 women in Mexico has been a victim of sexual assault ranging from groping to rape and there are 120,000 rapes a year, one every four minutes making Mexico the number one nation for sexual violence.
Nearly 1,200 kidnappings happened in Mexico in 2018.
Mexico is among the most popular sources and destinations for international child abductions and has one of the least effective systems of protecting and returning internationally abducted children within its borders.
Politics in Mexico are, and basically always have been, as crooked as a barrel of fish hooks and as corrupt as a mafia horse race.
There is simply so much money generated by the drug trade that by means of buying off or intimidation the drug cartels do practically anything they want to without fear of official intervention.
Some of the most gruesome murders of the century have been committed in Mexico, mass graves, grisly, hideous show murders as warnings to informers, politicians and law enforcement officials who refuse to cooperate.
So now we arrive at the crux of my article.
What have all these super stringent gun laws done to protect life in Mexico?
If you will be honest, you’ll have to admit that it has done the opposite.
It has armed the criminals who have no regard for any law and will obtain weapons by whatever illegal source available to them while leaving the law-abiding citizen without the means to protect themselves.
This policy has created and encouraged the rise of the powerful cartels, who, for all practical purposes, control the country.
Now, the most important question of all.
Do you not understand what happened in Mexico and do you not believe that the same thing, or something very similar, could happen in America?
Can you not see that when you take away the means of protection from law-abiding people, it is not going to reduce the gun population among the criminal element one half of one percent.
In fact, it emboldens them.
It has been proven over and over that about the only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun, and no matter how vehemently self-serving politicians may contest this, the fact, and it is a fact, remains irrefutable.
In fact, the next time you see Bernie, Uncle Joe, Elizabeth or any of the other anti-gun candidates, ask them “If good guys having guns is bad, why do you always have armed security with you?
What do you think?
Pray for our troops our police and the peace of Jerusalem.
God Bless America — Charlie Daniels
Hero Jack Wilson Will be Awarded “Governor’s Medal of Courage”
While Democrats are memorizing Iranian terrorists Republicans are rewarding American heroes.
While Democrats are memorizing Iranian terrorists Republicans are rewarding American heroes.
Governor Greg Abbott will present the “Governor’s Medal of Courage” to the brave man who stopped a gunman during a deadly shooting at a church in North Texas last month.
On Monday, January 13th Gov. Abbott will host Mr. Wlson at the Governor’s Mansion to present him with the Governor’s Medal of Courage. The medal is given to civilians who display “great acts of heroism by risking their own safety to save another’s life.”
It is the highest award given to civilians by the Governor and nobody deserves it more than Jack Wilson.
High-level pro-Iran militia commander is assassinated in Iraq by unknown gunmen.
A prominent pro-Iran militia commander has been killed by unidentified gunmen in Iraq.
High-level Popular Mobilization Forces leader Taleb Abbas Ali al-Saedi was shot dead late on Saturday in Karbala, a city about 62 miles southwest of Baghdad.
Local media reported that al-Saedi was ‘assassinated’ by unknown gunmen, but no further details about the shooters were immediately available.
Al-Saedi was the commander of the Karbala Brigades, a unit within the Iran-backed Shiite PMF umbrella group.
U.S. Central Command, which oversees American military activity in the Middle East, did not immediately respond to an inquiry from DailyMail.com about the shooting.
Man Fatally Shoots Robbery Suspect in West Dallas
A suspected robber was fatally shot Friday night when he approached a group of people having a cookout in West Dallas and demanded property, police say.
Witnesses told police that they were in their front patio in the 3400 block of Chicago Street shortly before midnight when three people approached the house.
Two of the people were armed with handguns and demanded property. A man who was visiting the residents pulled out a gun and shot one of the suspects, police said.
Man shoots, kills intruder during Bradenton home invasion
BRADENTON, Fla. — A sleeping man woke up to find a stranger pointing a pistol at his head, deputies say.
It happened just after 11 a.m. Friday on 27th Street West in Bradenton.
Investigators say the intruder went into the man’s house, fired the gun next to his head, and began to pistol whip him.
The man fought back.
During a scuffle, deputies say the intruder dropped the pistol — allowing the homeowner to grab it and shoot him.
The homeowner then ran next door for help.
When authorities showed up, they found a pistol and the back door open. But, they say they couldn’t find the intruder who was shot.
With the help of a drone and K-9 unit, they spotted a man, believed to be the intruder, on the ground outside a nearby condo building. He was unresponsive.
They say it looks like he died from a gunshot wound. Now, detectives are trying to piece together exactly what happened and why.
Virginians Are Warning Of Civil War, But This Isn’t New
Things are tense in Virginia, to say the least. With Democrats having complete control of the state government, Governor Ralph Northam sees a golden opportunity to hammer gun rights activists in his state. After all, he needed a gun control win to completely overshadow the blackface scandal that plagued him for months, and he didn’t get it.
Now, somehow, he’s got the legislature and he’s going to make it so no one even thinks of “Coonman” anymore.
Unfortunately for him, though, there are those in the state that are warning that things may well get beyond Northam’s control and the usual suspects are freaking out over it.
Thousands of Virginia residents have shown up at meetings across the state to try to block Democrats from enacting new gun laws, with some gun rights supporters openly discussing violent resistance and civil war.
The backlash to gun control in Virginia is being fueled by conspiracy theories and misinformation, and some observers worry that the escalating rhetoric may spark violence.
When Democrats won control of Virginia’s state government for the first time in 26 years in November 2019, they pledged to pass a series of standard gun control laws, including universal background checks and bans on military-style “assault weapons” and high-capacity ammunition magazines. The agenda was no surprise: state Democrats had run for office on a platform of gun violence prevention, backed by funding from national gun control groups.
…
Some of these activists have warned of violenceif Democrats push forward with gun control. Multiple Democratic lawmakers have reportedly received threats, including death threats. At heated public meetings across the state and in long social media comment threads, some gun rights supporters are openly discussing the possibility of civil war. Many have warned of the need to fight back against “tyranny” or have compared Democratic lawmakers to the British forces during the revolutionary war. “I really do think we may be on the brink of another war,” one speaker told a crowd of at least 800 people in Pulaski county, the Roanoke Times reported.
Here’s the thing, though. This talk of a civil war isn’t new. We’ve been talking about this for years as a warning that if anti-gun zealots come after our guns, they’re going to have a bad time of it.
This is nothing new.
However, it’s also important to note that we’ve also been pretty clear that there’s a line in the sand and, thus far, no one has crossed it. Right now, bills have only been proposed. Nothing’s passed and nothin’s signed. It’s just a lot of rhetoric. As long as Northam and company bear in mind that this is a topic that yes, a lot of people will go to war over, we shouldn’t have a problem.
We on this side have been clear about what will set us off. The problem is that Northam and company don’t seem to really care to listen. There’s been nothing from his side to tell Virginian gun rights activists that their concerns will be accounted for. Instead, we’re seeing a lot of “we won, you lost, suck on it.”
Yes, there are warnings of civil war, but that war isn’t inevitable. It’s up to Northam, though, to decide if he really wants to push people so far that they don’t feel they have any other choice. It’s all on him and his allies in the legislature.
It’s not too late to settle things down.
Iranians have gathered in the streets of Tehran to demand the resignation of Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei after the regime admitted it had mistakenly shot down a civilian passenger plane.
Angry crowds gathered on Saturday night in at least four locations in Tehran, chanting ‘death to liars’ and calling for the country’s supreme leader to step down over the tragic military blunder, video from the scene shows.
What began as mournful vigils for Iranian lives lost on the flight soon turned to outrage and protest against the regime, and riot police quickly cracked down, firing tear gas into the crowd.
‘Death to the Islamic Republic’ protesters chanted, as the regime’s security forces allegedly used ambulances to sneak heavily armed paramilitary police into the middle of crowds to disperse the demonstration.
Ukrainian Airlines Flight 752 was carrying 176 people, at least 130 of them Iranian citizens, when it was shot down by hapless Iranian Revolutionary Guard air defense forces shortly after taking off from Tehran on January 8.