Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Freshman Brad Schneider and Veteran Jan Schakowsky come away with different impressions of the same message. Sen. Mark Kirk joins the chorus on gun control.
Rep. Brad Schneider (D-Deerfield) and Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Evanston) saw President Barack Obama’s State of the Union through different eyes but came away with the same message Tuesday. Both north suburban lawmakers praised and ratified the President’s proposals to raise the minimum wage, stimulate job growth, implement gun control and more. They heard the same message but saw it differently. Earlier: Schneider, Schakowsky Give Back to Honor King Schakowsky, a seven-term veteran, was excited by the challenge the President laid at the feet of Congress while Schneider was awed by the full experience of his first State of the Union address on the floor of the House of Representatives. “It was a pretty incredible experience,” Schneider said…
Monday, February 4, 2013
Some Patch readers say concealed carry laws work to stop crimes. Other readers disagree.
Following the Atlanta school shooting on Jan. 31, where a student opened fire at Price Middle School, shooting a 14-year-old in the neck before armed officer at the school stopped the shooter, Patch asked readers Do you believe Obama’s gun proposal will help prevent school shootings? Patch received more than 10 comments; here are some of the responses, which have been edited for length, grammar and clarity. “Hard to say guns are the issue, seems who is in possession of the gun is the issue,” Patch reader b garrett wrote. Some readers say a strong defense is vital to stopping shooting sprees. “If all civilians were licensed to carry guns, it would make for a very polite society,” Patch reader Harry Gio wrote. “These ‘shooting spree’ …
Saturday, February 2, 2013
Do you believe Obama's gun control proposals will help prevent school shootings?
Another school shooting took place in Atlanta Thursday, the Huffington Post reports. A student opened fire at Price Middle School, shooting a 14-year-old in the neck before being stopped by an armed officer at the school. The wounded boy was taken to a nearby hospital and later discharged, the website reports. The school does have metal detectors, and it’s unclear how the weapon got inside, Fox Atlanta reports. This incident is the latest school shooting in recent months. Most notably, 26 people, mostly elementary school children, were gunned down at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. in December. The Newtown shooting sparked a nationwide debate over gun control. President Obama made several proposals regarding the topic in mid…
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Patch wants to know what you think of companies distancing themselves from gun-related business? Join our discussion in the comment section below.
Groupon Inc. has canceled all its firearm-related offers a month after the school massacre in Newtown, Conn., the LA Times reported. “All scheduled and current gun-related deals featured on Groupon North America, including shooting ranges, conceal-and-carry and clay shooting, have been placed on hiatus while we review internal standards that shape the deal inventory we feature, “ Groupon spokeswoman Julie Mossler in a statement issued to various media outlets. The Chicago-based daily deals company is not the first business to distance themselves from gun-related businesses. Dick’s Sporting Goods pulled some firearms off its stores’ shelves, while private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management sold its stake in the firearm conglomerate …
Monday, January 21, 2013
Boisterous members of the Illinois State Rifle Association filled the auditorium at the New Trier Democrats panel Sunday, often yelling at speakers. A mass email urged them to show up early so that their supports dominated the crowd.
Gun ownership advocates intentionally packed Sunday’s gun control panel by the New Trier Democrats, as pro-gun advocates — who were encouraged to come from across the state in a mass email from the Illinois State Rifle Association (ISRA) — argued and yelled at panelists throughout the program. “Remember, this is our Lexington, this is our Concord,” the email read. “Be prepared to teach the gun controllers a lesson in liberty.” The email also encouraged attendees to arrive between an hour and half an hour early, to “ensure that there are more of OUR people there than THEIR people,” according to the email. That resulted in venue at the Glenview Police Station auditorium filling up, with many would-be attendees turned away at the door. The …
Panel hosted by New Trier Democrats heavily attended by pro-gun advocates.
The New Trier Democrats' panel on gun control turned raucous Sunday, with some members of the audience yelling and interrupting during the speakers. The panel, which was held at the Glenview Police Station auditorium, was entitled “Guns and Public Safety: Where We Stand After Sandy Hook,” and aimed to discuss issues related to guns, including legislation, victims, conceal and carry laws and the history behind the nation's current laws. The crowd, which was so big that many attendees were turned away at the door, was largely made up of National Rifle Association (NRA) members and other pro-gun advocates from around the state. Many were there because of an Illinois State Rifle Association email sent out asking members to come, and some were…
Sunday, January 20, 2013
President Obama presented several proposals for increased gun control this week.
President Obama made several proposals for increased gun control this week. Among the president's proposals were background checks for all gun sales, even those by private sellers, reinstating and strengtening the assault weapons ban that expired in 2004 and limiting ammunition magazines to 10 rounds, the New York Times reported. The White House's entire 15-page proposal can be downloaded here. We also attached video of the president discussing the plan to this post. Other aspects of the plan include putting 1,000 more school resource officers and counselors in schools and improving mental health services. "We are going to need to work on making access to mental health care as as easy as access to a gun," Obama said. The proposals come …
Monday, January 14, 2013
We asked, you chimed in. Patch readers suggested various ways of fighting gun violence, from handing out tougher sentences to criminals who use guns to looking at the side-effects of psychiatric drugs.
Nearly a month after the horrific Newtown shootings, many people, regardless of their politics, are trying to figure out what they can each do to prevent similar tragedies in the future. We invited readers to join our discussion on How Can We Each Fight Gun Violence? And many readers said curbing gun violence isn’t about getting rid of guns instead it starts with controlling criminals and handing out tougher sentences. “Get rid of guns and you still have a crime problem. Get rid of criminals, and you won't have to worry about guns,” Patch reader Carl Castrogiovanni wrote. Patch reader Jim says most people are not violent, “If you want to change the violence for the better, the culture will have to change and the [police] don't have the …
Sunday, January 6, 2013
The majority of Patch readers said publishing gun owner information could do more harm than good.
We asked Patch readers this week, in response to a New York paper's decision to publish names and addresses of gun owners, if they thought media should publish such lists. As of Friday afternoon, the majority of Patch readers said no. While gun owner license information is exempt from the Freedom of Information Act in Illinois, similar information is publicly available in other states such as New York, where the Journal News created a map listing names and addresses of handgun permit holders in Westchester and Rockland counties. Our article, Should Maps of Local Gun Owners Be Public? generated more than 100 comments. Close to 80 percent of users voted no when asked if the media should be publishing these sorts of maps. Patch user Holly …
Saturday, December 22, 2012
Following the deaths of 28 people in Newtown, Conn., as an unbearable heaviness lingers across the country, Sally Higginson takes a moment to appreciate the everyday aspects of raising children.
The country is still stunned, saddened and sober, focusing on the same things: How to talk to children about fear and death. How to assure them that what happened at one school won’t happen at their school. How to explain to children the difference between the reality of gun violence in our world versus the fantasy of gun violence in so many shows and games. And we parents ask ourselves: how do we continue to wrap holiday presents for our own children while our hearts are at half-mast for the families who have most recently lost theirs? How do we let go of our children as they walk out the door each day, heading beyond the safety of our controlled walls and into the world of concealed, and once again revealed, danger? Not that much has …
J.Lyn
12:53 pm on Sunday, February 17, 2013
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