An armed society

It was a few years ago. I was traveling on I-480 at the perfectly acceptable speed of 78 miles per hour. A local law enforcement representative, however, saw things a little differently.

The lights went on behind me and I pulled the Mini Cooper over to the berm. Yes, I got a ticket. Yes, I paid the ticket. And, YES, that year, the Goat put a Matchbook cop car in my Christmas stocking as a little reminder of my infraction.

O'Brien Speedway

But this post isn't about any of that. This post is about the way that cop handled the situation and what it says about me, you, and a dead little Cleveland boy.

I've only been pulled over a couple of times in my life, although I might be forgetting a ticket or two. Once when I was 17 and going about 40 in a 25, a cop pulled me over, asked for my license, saw it was my birthday and let me go. Another time I was in my mid-twenties, riding my motorcycle. A cop pulled me over. As he approached me, I took off my helmet and my hair spilled out, which obviously surprised him. He quickly scanned my license, told me to stay safe and sent me on my way.

Those cops were different than the one that pulled me over that day in the Mini. And, no, I don't mean about letting me off the hook. It was in the way he behaved. As he walked up to the immaculate Mini Cooper, he was crouched down, hand on his gun. He inched up to the window and just peeked in, minimizing the exposure of his head in the window. The guy was clearly assuming I was a threat and he was taking the precautionary offense in a potential micro arms race between him and me.

As he went through the process, his manner continued to be overtly guarded--as if I was already a suspect. (Which of course I am. We all are. Don't believe it? Go to the airport and see if they make you take off your shoes.) Nonetheless, I was taken back by his suspicious questions: Where you comin' from? What were you doin' over in Willoughby Hills? Where you going? and how he scanned the interior of my car.

Let's fast forward to the conclusion.

How many times have I heard comments from the pro-gun camp about an armed society is a polite society, or I love guns; I think everyone should have one?

You wanted to be an armed society? Okay, fine. You've got one, pal. And like it or not, we're going to collectively treated as such--whether it's little ol' Erin O'Brien in her Mini Cooper, a 12-year-old kid with a toy gun or a guy reaching for his wallet, cops are assuming we're all armed and dangerous, armed and drunk, or just plain armed and stupid.



So just hope you don't come face to face with a cop that misinterprets your actions or is poorly trained. In fact, best hope to not come in contact with any armed person with poor judgement and a mean hankerin' to stand his ground. Because there is no difference between Trayvon Martin's death and that of the 12-year-old boy killed by an idiotic* cop here in Cleveland over the weekend. They are both about the shoot-first-ask-questions-later mentality. They are both about the man with the gun acting as judge, jury and executioner.

I don't care if you've got a badge or not, manslaughter is not an appropriate response to "feeling threatened."

How the hell did we get here? When does it stop? When does it ever ever ever stop?

*a reader took exception to the word idiotic, and I agree it may not be the best choice of words. That said, what is the right word?

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Obama finally does something the GOP loves

Here's a bad idea, I'm going to make a prediction:

The AP phone records grab story is going to fade fast.

I mean come on. Does anyone believe the GOP will really do anything about a covert investigation that included seizing private phone records from the "liberal mainstream" media?

Nope. After all, the right side of the aisle certainly doesn't want any real reforms or legislation in place when it's their turn to spy on journalists.

Now they do have to act like they're upset about the issue because it's associated with Obama, so they might bellyache and get all red-faced, but then this thing is going to disintegrate like a wet Kleenex.

Folks, if something this public and this egregious gets glanced over by our government, say goodbye to the last thin remaining strands of privacy festooning the Constitution.

Aside: How funny is it that the Second Amendment zealots are afraid of a gun registry? As if the gov doesn't have every single one of them on a list anyway. They can find out anything about anyone without any reason, including what guns you own and whether or not you wear ladies' underwear.

Man-o-man, it ain't easy for libs. We put a "lefty" in the Oval Office and he starts doing stuff that would make Nixon blush.

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Coming soon: a pro-gun control NRA

A few days ago, NBC ran a story about people using 3D printers to manufacture guns and gun components.

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CPL's MakerBot Replicator 2

Whatever viewers take away from that footage, a few obstacles remain before John Q. Public is pumping viable machine guns out of his den. I have a little experience with this. During the research for this story, I had the privilege of seeing some 3D printers up close.

Lower end machines such as the MakerBot Replicator 2 run a couple thousand dollars and produce low quality, low resolution items, mostly suitable as models. At the top of the line, you'll find machines such as the Fortus 400mc, which can produce high quality objects and will run you about $60,000--pretty cost prohibitive (for the curious, creating any sort of weapon or gun is prohibited within the walls of think[box]--I know, I asked). I saw the Fortus printing with the same hard plastic used to make Legos; and while there are other options for input material, most metals require a little more muscle than the Fortus 400mc can muster. As for a study in polymers, I have no idea what sort Glock uses or if a 3D printer could process a such a material. Nonetheless, I think it's safe to say that 3D printed guns ain't quite here yet, but they're coming.

The one entity that will do everything within its power to stop that is the NRA.

Fortus 250mc and 400mc at CWRU

When those DIY guns make a solid landing, they will seriously threaten the sovereignty and bankrolls of the gun industry. I predict the NRA will obediently serve its master and become the most emphatic pro-gun control lobby imaginable. First order of business: demonize DIY guns as beneath industry standards, ineffective, unreliable and unsafe. They'll have videos of homemade guns misfiring, melting, whatever. The NRA will back all measures that restrict the home manufacture of viable weapons: taxes, expensive certifications, etc. I wouldn't be surprised if they turn a new leaf and back punitive laws for possession/sale of homemade guns and gun parts or even a gun registration program that further delineates homemade firearms from the professionally manufactured ones that line LaPierre's pockets.

Want a precedent? Enter Big Tobacco. That lobby was all indignant and in-your-face over smokers' rights when the bans started coming down. It was also the first one to throw smokers under the bus when roll-your-own cigarettes became a viable and less expensive alternative to their product. Tobacco lobbyists claim roll-your-owns "evade federal and state cigarette taxes and don't comply with state fire standards for cigarettes. They also don't bear the congressionally mandated Surgeon General warning labels and do not meet other FDA regulatory criteria."

It won't be so easy for the NRA. Big Tobacco always billed itself as Big Tobacco. The NRA slithers around beneath the guise of a pro-gun owner organization. Thus far, LaPierre & Co., haven't had much trouble fooling gun enthusiasts (and a slew of others) into believing that the protection of their "rights" looks exactly like the protection of the interests of the gun industry. Unfortunately for LaPierre & Co., those two schools of thought will part ways when the viable DIY gun comes to fruition.

So to the gun campers, I say this: the NRA couldn't give a damn about your rights, buddy. It's all about the money.

Man, is this going to be fun to watch.

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Thirteen words the NRA would like to shoot down

1. A

2. well

3. regulated

4. militia

5. being

6. necessary

7. to

8. the

9. security

10. of

11. a

12. free

13. state