Dick’s Out
“When we saw what happened in Parkland, we were so disturbed and upset. We love these kids and their rallying cry, ‘enough is enough.’ It got to us.” So said Dick’s Sports CEO Edward Stack as he announced that the sporting goods giant is permanently ending sales of assault-style rifles in stores. The momentum for an assault weapons ban (and more gun control in general) continues to build in the wake of the Parkland school shooting and the subsequent teen-led movement. And that momentum reflects public opinion on the topic. From Politico: Gun control support surges in polls. It’s popular. It’s bipartisan. And it’s time for America to stop using its children as human shields against common sense.
+ “For decades the American military has trained its conventional troops to fire their M4s and M16s in the semiautomatic mode — one bullet per trigger pull — instead of on ‘burst’ or automatic in almost all shooting situations. The weapons are more accurate this way, and thus more lethal.” NYT: With AR-15s, Mass Shooters Attack With the Rifle Firepower Typically Used by Infantry Troops.
+ “The Consumer Product Safety Commission can order the recall and repair of thousands of things, from toasters to teddy bears. If a defective car needs fixing, the U.S. Department of Transportation can make it happen. The Food and Drug Administration deals with food, drugs, and cosmetics. Only one product is beyond the government’s reach when it comes to defects and safety.” This is how crazy things have gotten. From Bloomberg: How Defective Guns Became the Only Product That Can’t Be Recalled.