In 2018, the number of concealed handgun permits soared to over 17.25 million – a 273% increase since 2007. 7.14% of American adults have permits. Unlike surveys that may be affected by people’s unwillingness to answer some personal questions, concealed handgun permit data is the only really “hard data” that we have on gun ownership across the United States. Still, an even larger number of people carry because in 14 states people don’t need a permit to carry in all or virtually all those states.
…
Permits continued to grow much faster for women and minorities. Between 2012 and 2018, the percent of women with permits grew 111% faster for women and the percent of blacks with permits grew 20% faster than for whites. Permits for Asians grew 29% faster than for whites.

New Study: 17.25 million concealed handgun permits, biggest increases for women and minorities

It makes you wonder what in the heck are the some GOP candidates thinking about when they support Gun Control. The data keeps telling them that more and more people are discovering their Second Amendment rights and the idiots bet on more control. At this point I can only assume their brains are afflicted after generating heavy doses of stupidity.

I believe November is going to be very educational.

I just bumped into this headline:

Barricades? Is the little twerp thinking he is gonna grab a rifle and do battle against the evil armies of the NRA from behind a pile of rubble? At most, he will be driven around by armed bodyguards, prepper by expensive PR experts and dutifully adored by the Media.

Sorry, but this one pissed me off more than usual. This morning I bumped into a series of pictures from the Spanish Civil War and it is something my family lived through.

As a kid from my generation, I heard tales of the horrors of the Spanish Civil War from the people who fought it. Many shot and were shot manning barricades and trenches in cities and the country.  So that this asshole’s name gets associated with barricades, it is an insult to the people who actually knew what is to fight behind one.

The only thing about the BS around Hogg is that it will eventually be high enough to choke his ass.

I got a copy of the unedited version of the report as it was posted in the Sun Sentinel. There is a lot of legalese and bureau-speak in it, but some things make you wonder how inept the School system in Broward County can be.

This section of the report was, for lack of better and polite words, surprising as hell:

Review of discipline data reveals that September 2016 the student received a referral for fighting. He was assigned two days of AES. The parent was contacted, and a referral was made to the school social worker. Shortly thereafter, at the end of September 2016 the student was referred for the use of insulting or profane language, including carrying a backpack with an offensive symbol and profanity written on it. At this same time another student reported that he had spoken to her about depression and suicidal thoughts, and that he said he drank gasoline in an effort to hurt himself and had engaged in cutting behavior.

Broward County Public Schools implements a three-step threat assessment process that includes: (1) Initial Response; (2) Level 1 Screening; and (3) Level 2 In-Depth Assessment. The process is intended to “ensure timeliness of response, safety of all in the school environment, and deployment of the school’s resources in the most efficient manner, according to the facts of each individual case.)38In response to these reports of the potential for self-harm, a threat assessment was initiated.
The Level 1 screening process was conducted by a team that included an assistant principal, school social worker, one of the student’s teachers, and a school resource officer (SRO). In addition, written input was obtained from five of the student’s teachers and the student was interviewed. In analyzing the student’s instigating behaviors, which were focused on the potential for self-harm, the team completed the Assessing Level of Threat Checklist. The following items under the High Level of Threat category were checked:
-Threat is direct, specific, and plausible.
-Threat suggests concrete steps have been taken toward carrying it out. Examples include student statements indicating acquisition or practice with a weapon and/or having the victims under surveillance.
-Context of the threat suggests student has secured resources, has definite intent and motivation, and/or there is a strong history of conflict and previous high-risk behaviors. The recommendations checked on the form were: “Initiate Level 1 Screening process (for medium and high levels of threat)” and “Contact law enforcement.” Based on discussions with staff members, it is understood that the SRO’s participation on the team constituted contact with law enforcement, as the SRO was there in the capacity of a law enforcement official.

So basically, they knew that Cruz was a threat as early as late September 2016.  He had suicidal tendencies and was aggressive.  The actions taken were less than illustrious, but this one takes the cake IMHO:

During interviews with school staff it was reported that the Henderson YES team determined commitment under the Baker Act was not warranted and that the SRO did not pursue it under his law enforcement authority. Staff also reported that a daily monitoring meeting with a school resource officer was implemented, and the student was no longer allowed to bring a backpack to school. Instead, he maintained a folder in each classroom and used a single folder to transport from back and forth from school to home.

Here is one of those many moments that could have made the difference.  This is a kid with over a decade of mental issues and the last couple of years, it had degenerated into violence. One simple commitment under Baker Act and he would have become a Prohibited Person and thus, unable to buy the rifle at the gun store.

And the answer as to why nobody, specially in the Media is talking about this report is that this is an election year and the same Broward politicians that brought us this massacre are for re-election and the Local Media is hush about it less they mess with their campaigns.

Anyway, they will not be removed from office, they will probably be re-elected and dangerous students will not be removed from schools and their records will be bleached into beatific purity.

HIALEAH, FLA. (WSVN) – It’s back to school for Miami-Dade County and officials have stepped up security, putting an emphasis on the safety of hundreds of thousands of students.
Every Miami-Dade school will be opening their doors Monday with an armed School Resource Officer or SRO.
“We are committed to provide more than 100 Miami-Dade Police Department officers,” said Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez.

SRO to be present at every Miami-Dade County school as new year kicks off.

The School Board is bitching about money and how they had to scramble to get some more. And still, it seems that most of the schools will only be able to have just one School Resource Officer. If there was a cheaper way to add firepower in school, right? (end sarcasm)

And of course, the article so much as admits that before this year, there were schools without SROs. But we also knew that already, pretty much since Sandy Hook.

All in all, let’s hope that this helps future school shooters rethink and choose eating the gun rather than killing others.

How come if an AR-15 is owned by a police department, it is only a ‘semiautomatic rifle’ but the same rifle in civilian hands is an “assault weapon”?

This is not the first time I have seen this distinction made. But somehow when we call them liars and Fake News they act if we are some sort of Nazis about to put them in front of the firing squad.

Go over Lagniappe’s Lair and face the horror.

I cannot bring myself to post the pictures here.

Ugly Male Cheerleader.

It will sound politically incorrect and I may be branded as hateful, but he looks like the male meth Ho’s I saw in Miami Beach offering blowjobs for $10 or the equivalent in Publix coupons.

Listen, you want to add male cheerleaders? Fine, but get eye candy for the Female and Gay audience. This says “We wanted to SJW but he was the only who applied, so there.”

And also, this proves that there is a bias against Colin Kaepernick, another NFL job that he did not get.