On the other side of the coin, the dealer I go to is so by the book I land up doing a three week waiting period. Long story short, I bought a gun on Gunbroker. The seller didn't ship it to my FFL's (a local Ace Hardware) liking and would not release it to me until an ATF inspector said it was OK. It took three weeks for the ATF to return his phone call. Not only do I get all of my gun stuff from him, but I drive past Wal Mart to get all of my hardware stuff from him too.

The issue dates back to when the ATF became its own agency under the Treasury Dept. Before that, they were the Miscellaneous Tax Unit under the IRS.

The IRS didn't care about booze or guns, so they used MTU as a dumping ground for racists, misogynists, and badge heavy lunatics who didn't care for any of the BoR. Then Nixon gave them badges and guns, guess how well that went? There were numerous civil rights violations which led to the NRA to lobby for the current situation. Fortunatly, most of those assholes are gone, and have been replaced with more professional people. But, they still don't have the greatest leadership or reputation be it Fast and Furious or setting up intellectually impaired people and losing automatic weapons in stupid stings. In spite of that, they are a much more professional force than they were in the 1970s and 1980s. BTW, have you noticed that every TV cop show with a crooked fed, it turns out to be a ATF?

I'm glad they busted the guy and hopefully he'll get the whole ten years for each Gun Control Act violation.

"Manipulated for political gain," certainly, but there was massive incompetence on the part of the ATF, and all their whining about their hands being tied is akin to cops complaining that they can't beat confessions out of people. They knew the rules going in and can't use them as justification for their failure.

Republicans twisted the whole thing like they ALWAYS DO.

There was no "there" there.

It's like they did to the raw data from Iraq. They cherrypicked and railroaded and above all the asked endless questions designed to trip people up and tie up the entire department responding to subpoenas. All the Republicans have done is hold hearings on the Obama Administration over made up shit.

the article is a bogus puff piece of the agent in charge and smear job of one of the whistle blowers trying to pass as investigative reporting. Eban's primary source was Agent Voth whom she made out to be "super agent" in charge of a mess. Of course, that is what Voth told her. The article basically describes the whistle blowers, including Dodson, as an asshole who wore flip flops to work and moved up to lying to congress. Oh, here is the ATF attache to Mexico to Congress:
http://www.justice.gov/ola/testimony/112-1/07-26-11-atf-canino-testimony-re-operation-fast-and-furious.pdf

Eban claims to be an investigative reporter. Hopefully this isn't among her best examples of work.

Boarderland Beat is probably the best, at least that I found, English language organization reporting on the Mexican drug wars. They covered the issue extensively, here are a couple of examples.
http://www.borderlandbeat.com/2012/09/fast-and-furious-justice-department.html
http://www.borderlandbeat.com/2012/12/operation-fast-and-furious-gun-found.html
here is their archive on the issue
http://www.borderlandbeat.com/search?q=+fast+and+furious

The LA times:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/atf-fast-furious-sg,0,3828090.storygallery#axzz30BfwrkZO

The only thing bogus about Fast and Furious is Eban pretending to be a journalist while smearing the whistle blowers.

they went to congress and Fox picked it up. See LA Times and Borderland Beat.

CBS also picked it up. If you have evidence that they lied to congress, please provide it to the FBI and the perjury investigation can start.

It doesn't make it real.

Besides, the media reported Powell at the UN as PROOF that Saddam had WMDs.

It has also been reported in the Latin American media. In their versions, the US has been arming the Sinola cartel because they support the current Mexican government.

I don't give a fuck who they went to. They went to CBS and the talking heads on Fox thought it was worth mentioning for their own reasons. Eban's story was still puff feature story on Voth and a smear of Dodson using Voth as a sole source.

Besides, Powell had the appeal to authority behind him. Dodson did not. I'm guessing you didn't read any of the provided links. The Mexican Government is still pissed off, and the ATF IG said it happened.
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/fast-and-furious-questions-linger-as-ig-continues-investgation/
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/exclusive-fast-and-furious-ig-report-slams-atf-phoenix-personnel/
http://www.justice.gov/oig/reports/2012/s1209.pdf

See, my problem is that I put reason above dogma and principle before party. That means, the agents that participated and ordered it not only should lose their six figure incomes, badges, and guns. They should be in either US or Mexican prisons.

This was the result of a six moth investigation including pouring over the same documents the Republicans had.

The REPUBLICANS twisted it into a "gun walking" case when it was no such thing.

BTW: Did you read how it got it's name? The young guys who they were trying to bust were using the money to trick out their cars in neon lights like the movie.

This is a case where Republicans twisted everything into it's opposite to attack a Democratic Administration.

In fact all of her information came from Voth. I don't believe she poured over any such documents. She did have illegal access to personnel records, in violation of the 1974 Privacy Act.
Did you check out the links or are you going to stick to MSNBC and talk radio?

there is no way you read the provided links. They disprove your entire thesis.

CBS are right wing sources? Please spare me. All partisan hacks are dishonest, doesn't matter what their party is.
http://www.borderlandbeat.com/2009/04/about.html

and then prove they are wrong. People who get all of their information from Fox and MSNBC and blindly believe them are misinformed fools.

What does THAT tell you?

and doesn't care about US partisan politics
CBS is CBS
Ethics Alarms attacks whoever deserves it, right or left. The linked article, those three deserved it. He is right, Pia Glenn is a racist who has a problem with interracial adoptions. It is called putting principle before party. That happens to be one of my core values along with reason before dogma. That means bigotry, racism, misogyny, and dishonesty is never OK. Lawrence O'Donnell's anti Mormon Bigotry is just as disgusting as Glen Beck's anti Muslim bigotry. Bill Mahar's misogyny equal Rush's misogyny.
Someone gives a child a loving home, it is always good regardless of their politics. Anyone who attacks an inter racial adoption, is a despicable racist that I have no use for, regardless of their party or politics. Clear?

I often tune in to those shows to see if they are covering something I already saw online.

Lately, it's been local news for Vegas and from the start there has been coverage of the Bundy situation where he's been in the wrong and all the idiots out there with guns are,...well,....idiots.

Those dumbasses actually thought "The Gubmunt" had stolen Bundy's land and his cattle to protect an endangered tortoise and put up solar panels.

the tortoises were the rational for the BLM cutting everyone's range quotas 20 years ago. The solar energy deal went bust nine years ago. One thing ranchers, environmentalists, Big Oil, and ATV/dirt bike fans have in common: They all hate the BLM and accuse them of being in the pockets of other interests groups.
I don't tune in to any of those shows. TV can only give a half assed and surface reporting. That's its limitation. Former FCC chairman Newton Minnow was spot on when he called it the "vast wasteland". Personally, I just prefer calling it the idiot box.

Here two examples of EA calling out Republicans, and rightfully so:
http://ethicsalarms.com/2014/02/25/ethics-dunces-bigotry-division-arizona-republicans/
http://ethicsalarms.com/2012/11/14/to-the-un-american-secessionists/

So please, spare me the petty hackery bullshit.

"The public tolerates the news media being such a full-throated shill for the Democratic Party"

You squander how many electrons without making a single cogent point? Can you prove him wrong?

and use the Bible to do it.

Also, it seems the NRA also got to the BBC:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-13785080

and staffed so they can do the job of enforcing existing laws. Looks like the finally got a bad dealer and I hope he goes away for a long time.

Agents and enforcement are only aus good as the leadership.

... you read that, because I strongly doubt it.

EDIT TO ADD: OK, I looked it up.

Admit it. That's what happens when you tell people owning a gun is a "freedom" issue.

Just like when Limbaugh said owning an SUV was a "freedom" issue.

So...

Free:


NOT free:

Do we NEED this many guns stores?

Want to freak out a gun nut?

Tell him he can only buy ONE gun a month.

Or do you really want to start putting usage limits on rights? How about 1 email a week, one letter per year, and one vote per 5 elections, one trial for every 10 crimes?

What is calm, dead?

How many people were killed by emails last week?
How many were killed by votes last week?

Killed by votes? Really have you forgotten the last 13 years of war?

restrict gun ownership?

Do you think that is right?

how about we compare like things like say gun stores and fast food places or McDonald's and, say, Gander Mountains? There are
160,000 fast food places and 131 Gander Mountains.

with pink ooze.

not all type 01, dealer, FFLs are gun stores. Police departments often have their own, unless officers have to buy their own guns, to buy wholesale. DC has four FFLs that are neither government or Mr. Sykes (even ATF has one, since there are few to no law enforcement exemptions in the Gun Control Act or the National Firearms Act). They are a security company, two theater companies, and Josh Sugarmann at VPC. Why VPC has one, I have no clue.

As Straw Man and I explained above. Do you believe everything you read?

Blow enough and nobody will be able to see you. Isn't that the plan?

Thanks for playing.

... I was wondering if we could consider it closed.

... of me to think you had anything left to say.

Of course.

I'm one of those multi-tasking types that has multiple projects going on at the same time.
Earlier I mowed the lawn and we went to Lowes to pick up paint sample cards to pick a color for the master bath. A friend dropped by unexpectedly to pick up about 30 Albertsons Monopoly playing pieces we've been saving for her. Then while laundry was going I was installing XP on an old computer for the guest bedroom and setting it up for the wifi and then making dinner (chimichangas) for my fiancee while personally having to fast for a colonoscopy at 7:30 in the morning. I just popped in here briefly to type this. With the stuff I drank a few hours ago I can assure you - at this time I am NOT full of shit.

Let us know that you're ok.
I know it's mainly routine, but you just never know these days with a medical procedure.

Don't want to comment on that pic as I'm not quite sure what to make of it.

Now I understand.
Thanks and good luck tomorrow.

Come back when you've got more time.

Good luck with the colonoscopy. If they offer the sedative, say "Yes," even if it means you have to hang around in the recovery room for a while afterwards.

Yes, according to Spitfire, the VPC is a "gun store."

The irony is overwhelming.