November 21, 2003

Appeals court reinstates gun lawsuit - The 2-1 ruling by the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reinstates a lawsuit filed against gun manufacturers and distributors whose weapons were used by a white supremacist from Western Washington who shot a Filipino-American postal worker to death and wounded five people at a Jewish day-care center in a 1999 Los Angeles-area rampage.

This isn't the first time the 9th Circuit has made wacky rulings to make a point. I'm very much pro-gun control, but I'm not sure going after gun manufacturers is the way to do this. Isn't this more of a social problem?

posted by Kimberly 20 years ago
  • Gun manufacturers have been sued unsuccessfully before. But they are claiming something different in this case: they claimed the industry knowingly participated and facilitated an underground illegal gun market. Interesting twist. Holding manufacturers (read: deep pockets) responsible for the illegal sale of their product is not a new concept. Think of all the cigarette machines that disappeared after the tobacco industry trials, because that's how underage kids got their nicotine fix.
  • Assault weapons ban renewal in doubt "Feinstein won a momentary victory on March 2 when the Senate voted 52-47 to adopt the renewal as an amendment to a gun manufacturers' liability shield legislation backed by the National Rifle Association. But the NRA scuttled the entire bill when it told its supporters that it didn't want the liability shield, which was the industry's main legislative goal for the year, to pass with Feinstein's assault ban amendment."
  • That's very scary.
  • Had just now an unwelcome vision of a society where assault weapons are sold in vending machines: EEEK!
  • Hi, nickdanger! You spastic.
  • Did I ever mention how irritating I think Feinstein is? Is she still a senator?
  • Gosh, I hope nobody gave Bone a nickle for the vending machine.
  • I believe she is still senator.
  • I keep tryin' to get away, but they keep dragging me right back.
  • Feinstein's still in office. If only I could vote. Actually, I *can* vote, it'd just be a felony if I did.
  • This running-through-every-dang-thread thing is beginning to take on a Twilight Zone patina.
  • Guns don't kill people. Physics kills people.
  • Okay, I think the once and future BearGuy are coming together.
  • thats so beautiful, Bearguy, coming together is always the best ;)
  • BearGuy's always been thoughtful that way.
  • guns don't kiss people all by themselves first they have to be gripped and swung into the lips guns don't kill people unless a human hand slips a bullet in the chamber or pulls the innocent trigger
  • When people say to me "guns don't kill people, people do" I usually respond "yes, and nazi gas chambers don't kill people, either, nazis do." Almost always, my point (which is that the device itself is designed for one purpose only; killing, and is thus inherently evil) is missed entirely, and I come off sounding a weirdo. I would like a more succinct analogy to use in this situation but I can't think of one.
  • How about "yes, and cheese graters don't grate cheese; cooks grate cheese"? I dunno. They'd probably still think you were a weirdo.