Friday, April 12, 2013
The nation's leading gun rights organization is sponsoring a NASCAR race this weekend. Some people have a problem with that. Do you?
This weekend's race in NASCAR's top series has a topical name. The NRA 500 will take place Saturday night at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth. The Sprint Cup Series race will air on Fox Sports. U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, who represents Connecticut, location of the recent deadly elementary school shooting, sent a letter last month to NASCAR CEO Brian France asking him to change the name of the race. The request was not successful. This week, Murphy sent a letter to Rupert Murdoch, CEO of News Corp. (owner of Fox Sports) urging him not to air the race. As of Friday morning, Murdoch had not responded, at least not publicly. Murphy wrote: The race not only brings national attention to an organization that has been the face of one side of this…
Friday, January 18, 2013
What are your thoughts on President Obama's proposals to curb gun violence? Let us know by posting a comment below.
President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden unveiled a number of efforts this week aimed at curbing gun violence in the United States. Massachusetts is home to some of the toughest gun control laws in the country, with local members of Congress urging the federal government do more to prevent tragedies like the one in Newtown, Conn. The state Executive Office of Public Safety and Security provided Patch with a summary of active firearms licenses in Attleboro and Seekonk from 2008 through 2012. Here are the numbers for Seekonk, Attleboro and the surrounding area: ATTLEBORO SEEKONK FOXBOROUGH WRENTHAM MANSFIELD NORTON More information on the kinds of firearms permits available in Massachusetts can be found here. What are your …
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Gov. Deval Patrick unveiled legislation on Wednesday that would tighten gun control laws in Massachusetts while increasing funding for mental health services and enhance background checks. Is this sensible, or reactionary?
Are new proposed laws regarding guns in Massachusetts and mental health services sensible and pragmatic steps, or reactionary measures that won't increase safety? Gov. Deval Patrick introduced new legislation Wednesday along those lines in the wake of the school shootings in Newtown, CT. "I am encouraged by the palpable consensus in our Legislature that the time for action is now. All of us must pull in the same direction to bring about real change in this state and across the country," Patrick said in a press release. The bill would require gun purchasers to undergo background checks at gun shows, reduce access to high-powered rounds of ammunition, and limit licensed individuals to purchasing a maximum of one gun per month. Punishments …
Thursday, December 20, 2012
The letter calls for the president to put forward an agenda "that will make it harder for dangerous people to possess guns, and easier for police and prosecutors to crack down on them."
Attleboro Mayor Kevin Dumas was among more than 750 American mayors to sign a letter submitted Wednesday to President Barack Obama urging him to get tougher on gun control in the United States. The letter from a group called Mayors Against Illegal Guns features lead signatures from Boston Mayor Thomas Menino and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. "Together, we urge you to put forward an agenda that is rooted in common sense and that will make it harder for dangerous people to possess guns, and easier for police and prosecutors to crack down on them," the letter states. The mayors urge Obama to create an agenda on guns that includes: Let Patch save you time. Get great local stories like this delivered right to your inbox or smartphone …
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Does the massacre at Newtown, CT, signal the need for a political debate on gun regulations?
Before officials had even held their first press conference Friday, Facebook was abuzz with status updates about the Newtown, CT, massacre. The statuses were split between those sending their condolences and those asking if the country would finally deal with the issue of gun control. Some fought back, asking for respect and mourning before political debate began. Others remained fierce in their belief that stricter gun control regulations would have prevented such a mass killing, saying the victims were shot multiple times and with semi-automatic weapons, according to Fox News. The guns were not illegal and were, in fact, owned by the shooter's mother. Among them were a semi-automatic .223 caliber bushmaster rifle and two handguns. Those …
Saturday, December 15, 2012
In wake of the deadly mass shooting in Connecticut, the state representative-elect says "we need to make it easier to access and encourage mental health care more than it is easier to access a gun."
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Saturday, December 15, 2012
Attleboro State Rep.-elect Paul Heroux released the following statement in response to the mass killing at a Connecticut elementary school: If it is true that the 12/14/12 Connecticut shooter was suffering from serious mental illness, and I believe it is, the awful shooting in Connecticut reminds us of why we need to make it easier to access and encourage mental health care more than it is easier to access a gun. Put another way, our culture encourages gun ownership but stigmatizes mental health treatment. No one asks to suffer from metal illness anymore than anyone asks to suffer from asthma or diabetes. If these are treated a person can live a fairly normal life. If neither are treated, tragedy can happen. My deepest condolences go out …
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
A Massachusetts gun owners group is lobbying for passage of a bill that would confer lifetime gun licenses — no renewals necessary.
Way too much red tape. That's the complaint of the Gun Owners’ Action League of Massachusetts, a group that is urging passage of a law that would abolish the requirement of having to renew a gun permit every six years, according to the Boston Herald. For comparison, Massachusetts vehicle drivers' licenses need to be renewed every five years. But the league says local police cannot keep up with timely gun permit renewals, and legitimate gunowners go license-less until the cops get time to do the paperwork. The law now allows 40 days for turning around license applications. In Boston, almost 1,000 people have applied for gun permits so far this year, with waits running about 10 weeks, the Herald quotes police spokeswoman Cheryl Fiandaca as …
paul
2:26 pm on Saturday, April 13, 2013
Who cares what George Bush and his pals do in Texas? more ›