Category: HUNTING & FISHING

Research Shows Rifles and Shotguns Used More Often in Youth and Rural Suicides

Newswise — The researchers say their findings, published Feb. 3 in

Injury Epidemiology

,

suggest that adopting safety measures for rifles or shotguns may prevent suicides, particularly among young people and rural-area residents.

“Our goal as clinicians at Johns Hopkins Medicine is to save lives, and it’s concerning to see that it’s not just handguns, but long guns that are used commonly in youth suicide,” says

Paul Nestadt, M.D.,

assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. “Many of the safety protections that we have in place around the country typically don’t apply to long guns, and the data suggest that our strategy needs to be modified.”

In many states, there is no minimum age for owning long guns, and federal background checks are only required if buying from a licensed gun dealer. Requirements for permits and safety courses for rifles vary from state to state.

The public has long thought that handguns are more responsible for human deaths, including suicides, than long guns such as rifles and shotguns, which have been believed to be more commonly used for hunting or protection from wild animals. But now, in an analysis of data from 16 years of gun suicides in Maryland, Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers found that long guns were used more often in suicides by kids and teens than by adults, and were more commonly used in suicide by people in rural counties.

The data analysis reviewed 3,931 gun suicides in Maryland from 2003 to 2018. About 45% of children and teens used long guns to die by suicide, compared to 20% of adults over age 65 who used long guns. The researchers found that 52% of rural firearm suicides were by long gun, compared to 17% in urban counties. Using rifles for suicide increased by 60% during hunting season, when researchers say rifles may be out and more available.

“In the midst of a suicidal impulse, a person will use what they have. Firearms are particularly lethal. If one is easily available, that will be the method of choice,” says Nestadt. “Holidays and hunting season are times when many young people receive hunting rifles as gifts, and I would advise family members to also provide gun locks or gun storage cabinets with their present. Just adding an extra protective step could be enough of a barrier to protect their family member from making an impulsive decision.”

Additional authors on the study are Kevin MacKrell, Alexander McCourt and Cassandra Crifasi of Johns Hopkins, and David Fowler, formerly Maryland’s chief medical examiner.

Support for the study came from the James Wah Fund for Mood Disorders.

The authors don’t declare any conflicts.

SEE ORIGINAL STUDY

PENN VET NEWS: Taking on wildlife disease

John Armstrong, a chronic wasting disease research specialist at Penn Vet, processes samples in the newly established laboratory to test deer samples for the deadly infection at the School’s New Bolton Center campus. Getting this lab accredited and operational was one of the first actions of the new Pennsylvania Wildlife Futures Program, a partnership with the Pennsylvania Game Commission.

When wildlife biologist Matthew Schnupp began his career, the emphasis was on conserving habitat.

“The paradigm of wildlife management for the last 20 years has been habitat management,” he says, aiming to conserve the land and ecosystems animals require to thrive.

And while protecting habitat in the face of an expanding human population remains a critical priority, he sees a new paradigm emerging as infections like chronic wasting disease, white-nose syndrome, and West Nile virus take a toll on animals and the people who value them.

“I would venture to say that, in the next 20 to 30 years, the new model for management will be ensuring the resiliency of wildlife populations through wildlife health issues,” says Schnupp, director of the

Pennsylvania Game Commission

’s (PGC) Wildlife Management Bureau.

That’s where Penn’s animal health expertise comes in.

In a new partnership, the

School of Veterinary Medicine

and the PGC have united to support a common cause: protecting the health of wildlife populations across the state. The

Pennsylvania Wildlife Futures Program

, established last year with $10 million in seed funding over five years from the PGC, charts a way forward for wildlife professionals who aim to safeguard animals from health threats—a goal that has knock-on benefits for humans and domestic animals as well. Co-led by Penn Vet’s

Julie Ellis

, an ecologist, and

Lisa Murphy

, a veterinarian and toxicologist, together with Schnupp, the program enables the School to hire new staff dedicated to wildlife health who will work with PGC employees to monitor disease threats, develop research projects, enhance communication and public engagement around wildlife health issues, and respond to challenges as they arise.

“Wildlife health is just so complex,” says Ellis, who directs the

Northeast Wildlife Disease Cooperative

, a network of institutions that provides diagnostics services and other expertise to fish and wildlife agencies in 10 states. “It involves, by necessity, multiple disciplines. You need modelers, you need epidemiologists, you need virologists, and on and on. State wildlife agencies generally don’t have those types of people on their staff. Through this program, we’re working with the Game Commission to identify its needs and help it get ahead of some of the problems wildlife diseases can bring.”

Murphy, who serves as director of the

New Bolton Center

lab that is part of the three-part

Pennsylvania Animal Diagnostic Laboratory System

(PADLS), says the program is enabling the School to create new areas of strength while leveraging what’s already in place at PADLS, Penn Vet, and the larger Penn community.

“It’s really been wonderful to be able to say that we have the basic resources, personnel, and capacity to establish this program,” she says, “but also to identify what we need to do the work even better. We’re building on established expertise here while bringing in new expertise with the support from PGC. That’s what is going to make this effort really special.”

Banding together

The foundation of the new program lies in the complementary backgrounds of its three leaders: Ellis, Murphy, and Schnupp.

Ellis joined Penn Vet in the fall of 2018. In her previous role at Tufts University’s Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, she established and ran the Northeast Wildlife Disease Cooperative (NWDC), which she continues to direct from Penn. Upon arriving in Philadelphia, she aimed “to bring wildlife health and disease opportunities, especially research opportunities, to the students and faculty.”

Complementary expertise—and a shared enthusiasm—characterize the program’s leaders: Penn Vet’s Lisa Murphy and Julie Ellis and the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s Matthew Schnupp. (Image: Hal Korber/Pennsylvania Game Commission)

Murphy, a Penn Vet alum who has served on the faculty since 2005, had worked with Ellis for years as part of the NWDC. With a long-standing interest in wildlife issues and expertise in toxicology, she also has worked closely with the PGC and other state agencies through the PADLS New Bolton Center’s diagnostics work.

Schnupp, like Ellis, is relatively new to Pennsylvania. He took the bureau director position in January 2018 after a lengthy tenure managing wildlife on a private ranch in Texas, where issues like chronic wasting disease took up the majority of his time. Upon getting to know the Game Commission’s operations and priorities, he quickly discovered that the agency’s lone wildlife veterinarian, even while acting in concert with wildlife biologists, lacked the bandwidth to effectively confront a mounting tally of health and disease issues. As Schnupp started to envision a broader program to address these needs, he and Ellis got in touch, looped in Murphy and and began developing a plan to work together.

Formidable foe

The first target of Wildlife Futures was a no-brainer; it has emerged as the priority demanding the lion’s share of Schnupp’s time and attention, not to mention the agency’s money. That’s chronic wasting disease (CWD). Spread by misfolded proteins called prions, CWD causes a contagious and fatal illness in deer. Though CWD has been a problem in states in the West and Midwest for a few decades, it’s a relatively new problem in Pennsylvania, where the first CWD-positive deer was found in 2012.

“CWD is such a hot topic in Pennsylvania,” says Ellis. “The disease’s spread has been difficult to control. It’s also a challenging disease politically because one of the preferred management techniques to control it is culling, and that’s a very unpopular thing to do in a state that sells the second most hunting licenses in America.”

First identified in Pennsylvania white-tailed deer just 8 years ago, chronic wasting disease has become a pressing concern for the Game Commission across the state. Offering diagnostics support as well as other science-backed guidance, Penn Vet aims to help the state get a handle on the spreading disease.

There’s also a lot of “confusion and misinformation and fear” surrounding the disease, notes Murphy. While no human cases have been documented, some scientists believe that such a leap from wildlife to human is possible. As a result, many hunters submit samples of the deer they kill for CWD testing before they consume the meat. The demand for testing had overwhelmed the PGC, and test results were taking weeks or even months to come back.

“It was clear from talking with hunters that expediting the time it took to provide them CWD test results was tremendously important,” Schnupp says. “That heightened its priority status for us. We addressed the delay head-on, finding more timely ways to test and notify successful deer hunters who submitted samples.”

To Schnupp, CWD was the low-hanging fruit for the fledgling Futures program. And Penn Vet wasted no time in responding. In less than six months, in an effort led by Michelle Lucey Gibison, a new, USDA-accredited lab space for CWD testing was established at New Bolton Center, opening in December. The increased testing capacity aims to offer the PGC and hunters results back in 7 to 10 days, with the ability to track test results online.

In addition, through Wildlife Futures, PGC, Penn Vet scientists, and others are working collaboratively to devise a science-backed response plan for CWD management that takes into account what is happening in other state agencies both within and outside Pennsylvania.

“Wildlife health issues don’t respect state boundaries,” Schnupp says. “Wildlife Futures is an opportunity to collaborate on research and surveillance. That’s important because we’re not an island.”

Poised to respond

While CWD spurred the program’s earliest actions, it’s far from the only challenge in its sights. White-nose syndrome, for one, has decimated the state’s bat populations since it was first detected in Pennsylvania in 2008. PGC bat biologist Greg Turner is renowned for his years of research into the fungal disease, and his attempts at control and intervention. The partnership with Penn may lend even more support to those efforts.

And for the state bird, the ground-nesting ruffed grouse, Schnupp is hopeful that Penn Vet can expand on the research of biologist Lisa Williams, whose studies have identified West Nile virus as a major threat to the popular game species.

“Typically biologists are trained to think, well, wild animals die and it’s a part of the natural cycle,” says Ellis. “But with things like white-nose syndrome, West Nile virus, and even chytrid fungus in amphibians, we’re realizing that these diseases are really serious, and have the ability to wipe out local populations and in some cases entire species.”

As the Wildlife Futures Program evolves, it will address additional wildlife disease challenges. As one example, state wildlife biologist Lisa Williams has underscored the threat that West Nile virus poses to the Pennsylvania state bird, the ruffed grouse.

(Image: Hal Korber/Pennsylvania Game Commission)

Other current disease threats, from mange in black bears, to lead poisoning in bald eagles, to rabies in raccoons, and beyond, may receive research attention and diagnostic support through the program in years to come.

The leadership team is planning for the challenges that belong to the future as well. First by hiring: In total a dozen employees across PGC and Penn will be dedicated to the Wildlife Futures Program. For its part, Penn Vet is in the process of bringing on a wildlife pathologist and a wildlife disease ecologist, who will be based at New Bolton Center, and a wildlife communications liaison, who will work at the PGC headquarters office in Harrisburg and act as “eyes and ears on the ground” to ensure Penn Vet’s work is supporting the needs of the agency, says Ellis, and communicating the outcomes of that work to different stakeholder groups, including the public.

“This is more than just providing a service or completing a project,” adds Murphy. “It’s a program that will be lasting. We’re assembling a team that will be excited to be on the front lines of what’s next—what are the emerging disease concerns for Pennsylvania and the region— and to put us in the best possible position to tackle them.”

In addition to recruiting new personnel, the Wildlife Futures Program will build a wildlife tissue bank to store blood, feather, fur, and other samples from wildlife of all kinds to ensure they are properly archived for later research and analysis.

“Let’s say we identify a disease that we haven’t seen previously,” says Murphy. “We could go to that tissue archive and see, was it present in samples we collected five, 10, 20 years ago?”

As the program progresses and builds, Ellis and Murphy hope to offer opportunities for student engagement. That might begin with a graduate or undergraduate student from Penn analyzing samples that the PGC has on hand from, say, ruffed grouse serum and feathers, but could morph as new Penn Vet faculty build their research programs in wildlife disease.

The program is adding staff and faculty with wildlife disease training, while leveraging expertise already in place at Penn Vet, including

at the PADLS New Bolton Center laboratory.

For now, Schnupp, Murphy, and Ellis aren’t putting a limit on their ambitions for the program. “I think we’re going to be setting the national stage for wildlife health issues,” Schnupp says. “I firmly believe that.”

Their hope is that all residents of the Commonwealth will reap the benefits.

“There are some real opportunities here in terms of preserving wildlife and the environment they live in as a resource that all people can appreciate and enjoy,” says Murphy. “Whether you hunt, enjoy having wildlife in your backyard, or just appreciate knowing that there are wild areas out there, this program is supporting the health of those animals and those wild places. It really is all tied together.”

Julie Ellis is an adjunct associate professor in pathobiology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine.

Lisa Murphy is an associate professor of toxicology and director of the Pennsylvania Animal Diagnostic Laboratory System-New Bolton Center at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine.

Matthew Schnupp is director of the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s Bureau of Wildlife Management.

GOV. WOLF CALLS FOR BAN ON ALL GHOST GUNS

By Dave Fidlin |

The Center Square

HARRISBURG PA–A Pennsylvania policy less than a month old pertaining to the background requirements needed in the sale of so-called ghost guns remains on ice following a state judge’s recent ruling.

Judge Kevin Brobson of the Commonwealth Court issued a preliminary injunction Jan. 31 to state police on selling partially manufactured gun frames after reviewing a case filed by four petitioners: Firearms Policy Coalition, Landmark Firearms, Polymer80 and U.S. Rifle.

“The crux of this case is a perceived change in the Pennsylvania State Police’s interpretation of the term ‘firearm’ within the context of the Uniform Firearms Act,” Brobson wrote in

a memorandum opinion

.

Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf, meanwhile, called for an outright ban on ghost guns in his budget proposal unveiled this week, along with a host of

other gun control measures

.

“I know there is no law that can eliminate every act of gun violence,” Wolf said during his budget address. “But the steps I\’m proposing are supported by the evidence and supported by the vast majority of Pennsylvanians. We can pass them tomorrow.\”

Brobson, throughout his 17-page analysis, expressed concern with the state police’s policy around the partially manufactured gun frames, which have been used to make actual rifles and pistols.

The injunction came weeks after state policy issued guidance to gun dealers on how background checks should be performed when sales of ghost guns are transacted. The devices are also referred to at times as 80-percent receivers because they are near, but not at, completion.

Brobson in his opinion said he agreed with the petitioners’ assertions the state police policy, as written, is ambiguous.

“Petitioners have taken the stance that their unfinished receivers do not meet the (Uniform Firearms Act’s) definition of firearm,” Brobson wrote. “Some level of additional effort – e.g. drilling, filing, sawing, etc. – is required for these unfinished receivers to become fully functioning receivers.”

In rendering his decision, Brobson in his opinion also said he looked at the state police’s interpretation of the term “firearm” against the backdrop of the UFA.

“In general, the UFA defines a firearm as ‘any weapon, which is designed to or may readily be converted to expel any projectile by the action of an explosive or the frame or receiver of any such weapon,’” Brobson wrote.

He added, “While, at first blush, this may appear straightforward, the UFA does not contain definitions of the terms ‘frame or receiver,’ ‘designed to’ or ‘may readily be converted to.’”

Brobson’s injunction is the latest in a series of legal maneuvers that have tested the definition of what constitutes a firearm.

In December, Attorney Gen. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, gave his own legal opinion on the ghost guns policy, giving state police the authority to develop a policy for background checks.

In his opinion, Shapiro stated in his legal guidance ghost guns could be viewed as firearms because the unassembled frames could eventually lead to the outcome of an actual firearm through such actions as expelling a projectile.

With Shapiro’s guidance in play, state police adopted their policy, which called for the gun dealers to use the state’s gun-purchase background check system for the ghost gun sales, in lieu of an alternate online system.

published by The Gloucestercitynews.net with permission of

The Center Square

Delaware Offering Enhanced Online Electronic Recreational Fishing License Sales

DOVER (Feb. ,2020) – Anglers who have purchased recreational fishing licenses and freshwater trout stamps, or exempt anglers who obtained free Fisherman Information Network (FIN) numbers directly from DNREC’s website in the past will now benefit from an updated, more user-friendly version of the electronic fishing license sales system, DNREC’s Division of Fish & Wildlife announced today. The enhanced fishing license sales system can be accessed online at

Recreational Fishing Licenses

.

The recreational fishing license sales system is part of DNREC’s new ePermitting system, which involves customers establishing a user profile usable for a variety of DNREC licensing and permitting opportunities. Online fishing license sales system enhancements include a more modern look and feel using an improved customer interface and a familiar shopping cart approach, along with full compatibility for a variety of mobile devices to include smartphones and tablets in addition to personal computers, including Apple products.

Recreational fishing licenses can also be purchased at the licensing office in DNREC’s Richardson & Robbins Building, 89 Kings Highway, Dover, and at license agents statewide, where the previous license sales system will be used until the transition to the new electronic fishing license sales system is completed during the upcoming months.

For additional information and questions regarding Delaware fishing licenses, call 302-739-9918 Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

CNB Hunting/Fishing MD: Winter Turkey Season Harvest Increases

Maryland Hunters Bagged Birds

in 22 Counties

Photo by Lori Bramble

Hunters reported taking 82 wild turkeys during Maryland’s 2020 winter turkey season, which was open statewide Jan. 23-25.

The

Maryland Department of Natural Resources

reports turkeys were harvested in 22 of the state’s 23 counties, with St. Mary’s and Garrett counties reporting the highest numbers.

The harvest was higher than the 73 turkeys taken last year. Adult males, or gobblers, comprised 42% of the harvest with the remainder being adult females and juveniles. Seventy-three percent were taken with a shotgun, but some hunters harvested their bird with a crossbow or vertical bow.

The winter turkey season was established in 2015 to provide hunters an additional hunting opportunity while minimizing conflicts with other hunting seasons. Turkey populations

at one time were limited in Maryland

. In the 1980s and 1990s, an extensive program to trap and relocate wild flocks successfully established populations in every county.

Midwinter Waterfowl Survey in Maryland Shows Rise in Bird Count

February 6, 2020

Annual Survey Estimates Number of Wintering Duck, Geese, and Swans

Photo by Orietta Estrada

In early January, aerial survey teams of pilots and biologists from the

Maryland Department of Natural Resources

made visual estimates of the ducks, geese, and swans along most of the state’s Chesapeake Bay, Potomac River, and Atlantic coast shorelines. This year, the teams counted about 627,000 waterfowl, which was higher than the 566,300 birds observed during 2019, but lower than the five-year average of 738,440 birds.

“The abundance and distribution of wintering waterfowl is influenced not only by the annual changes in population size, but also the weather conditions during migration and throughout the winter,” said Wildlife and Heritage Director Paul Peditto. “Moderate winter weather up and down the east coast has allowed most waterfowl species to remain spread out across Maryland and our surrounding states.”

Overall, the number of dabbling ducks was higher (93,000) than last winter (64,400).  However, fewer diving ducks (149,700) were observed than in the 2019 survey (182,000). Biologists also counted more Canada geese this year (327,200) than last year (250,200). Following 2018’s record low hatch, Atlantic Population Canada geese benefited from normal spring weather conditions on their nesting grounds in 2019, leading to average gosling production.

The Midwinter Waterfowl Survey has been conducted annually since the early 1950s and covers most of the tidal shoreline and near-shore waterfowl habitat in Maryland.

Delaware Fish & Wildlife Police Blotter: Feb. 3-9

Reminder for the week: Spring ahead of Spring Aboard boating safety campaign

DOVER (Feb. 14, 2020) – DNREC’s Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police conserve Delaware’s fish and wildlife resources, promote boating safety, and protect the public through outreach, education, and law enforcement. To help achieve public compliance with laws and regulations, officers from Feb. 3-9 made 869 public contacts and

responded to 22 complaints regarding possible violations of laws and regulations or requests to assist the public.

Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police in the Community

On Feb. 9, Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police officers discussed their role and reviewed safe hunting practices, hunting laws, and what to expect when checked by an officer in the field with attendees of a Hunter Education Class held at the Little Creek Hunter Education Training Center.

Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police Actions

Officers issued a total of 16 citations for the following listed violations related to:

Wildlife Conservation:

Failure to tag traps, hunting license forgery, and hunting migratory waterfowl without required federal waterfowl stamp.

Fisheries Conservation:

Harvesting oysters without a commercial shellfish license.

Public Safety:

Possession of marijuana – civil and reckless endangering.

Other:

Trespassing after hours on a state wildlife area* and operating a motor vehicle off an established roadway on a state wildlife area*.

*

Includes citation(s) issued at the C&D Canal Conservation Area.

DNREC’s Division of Fish & Wildlife recognizes and thanks the majority of anglers, hunters, and boaters who comply with Delaware’s fishing, hunting, and boating laws and regulations. The public can report fish, wildlife, and boating violations to the Delaware Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police by calling 302-739-4580 or using the free smartphone DENRP Tip app downloaded from the Google Play Store or iTunes App Store. Wildlife violations can be reported anonymously to Operation Game Theft by calling 800-292-3030, going online to

http://de.gov/ogt

, or using the DENRP Tip app; Verizon customers can connect to Operation Game Theft directly by dialing #OGT.

Are you AWARE?

This year’s Spring Aboard campaign will take place from March 17-23; however, courses are being offered now. These courses cover the rules and regulations of Delaware’s waterways, including appropriate speed limits, responsible boating skills and awareness, how to distinguish navigational aids and water depths, weather tips, information about basic engine mechanics, required and recommended safety equipment, what to do if a Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police officer stops your vessel, and the dangers of boating under the influence. Upon completing the course, boaters receive a boating safety certificate, which is required to operate motorized boats in Delaware for boaters born on or after Jan. 1, 1978.

For more information, including Delaware’s boating safety course schedule, access to the online Delaware Boating Handbook, and other boating information, please visit

Delaware Boating Safety

.

Hunters! Please Remove Temporary Deer Stands from State Wildlife Areas

DOVER (Feb. 12, 2020) – With Delaware’s 2019/20 deer hunting seasons having ended earlier this month, hunters are reminded to remove their portable deer stands from state wildlife areas by Saturday, Feb. 15. Any stands found on wildlife areas after that date will become the property of the Delaware Division of Fish & Wildlife.

Hunters may temporarily set up portable stands starting Aug. 1 each year and remove them at the end of the season – doing so with the knowledge that placement of a deer stand on a public wildlife area does not provide exclusive rights to hunting from their stand. Under state wildlife area rules, no parts of portable deer stands can be nailed or bolted to a tree. Hunters are also prohibited from cutting any vegetation or branches to hang a stand or to clear shooting paths on a wildlife area.

For more information, please contact the Division of Fish & Wildlife’s Wildlife Section at 302-739-9912.

Warren County Freeholders Support 2nd Amendment

(WHITE TOWNSHIP, NJ – February 11, 2020) – Expressing their intent to uphold the Second Amendment rights of the citizens of Warren County, the Board of Chosen Freeholders unanimously passed a resolution declaring Warren a “Second Amendment / Lawful Gun Owner County.”

Gloucestercitynews.net graphic file

The freeholder board “desires to express its deep commitment to the rights of citizens of Warren County to keep and bear Arms,” the resolution stated, and opposes “any efforts to unconstitutionally restrict such rights.”

A standing-room-only crowd offered comments both for and against the resolution for more than an hour before all three freeholders explained their support for the measure and voted.

“We’ve had some really great back and forth,” Freeholder Jason J. Sarnoski said of the discussion, adding that, “From the bottom of my heart, I really do want to thank everyone for their decorum. The level of discourse that we rise to here, in my opinion goes far above what we’ve seen in other locations.” Sarnoski said he had the utmost respect for all who expressed their views, no matter what side of the issue they took. However, Sarnoski said he is seeing greater restrictions being placed on gun ownership and added that the resolution “reflects my feelings on the rights of legal gun owners.”

Noting that his father was in law enforcement for 35 years, Sarnoski explained, “I’m the son of a police officer. He taught me how to handle a gun, and he taught me a gun owner has great responsibilities, but they also have rights, and that’s what makes this country great.”

The Freeholders heard from a full house as speakers offered their views on a proposed resolution declaring the County of Warren a “Second Amendment / Lawful Gun Owner County.” Citizens in the United States have the right to own firearms, but in many countries, “people don’t have that right,” Sarnoski said. Some of those who spoke questioned why the freeholder board wanted to pass such a resolution, but Sarnoski explained, “This is the process we have in this country when we disagree with our leadership. We don’t say we’re not going to follow the law, we don’t say we’re going to break the law, we say we’re going to address the laws we don’t agree with through petition. I don’t believe this board is wasting time or money by petitioning our government on our beliefs.”

Freeholder James R. Kern, III echoed Sarnoski’s praise for the way the speakers participated in the discussion, and continued that Warren County, with its comparatively low crime rate, “is a very safe place to live.” New Jersey has some of the strictest gun laws in America, Kern said, but added he thinks some politicians are trying to pass laws just for the headlines and not because they have any positive effect. “This is our way of symbolically telling Trenton, (and) our legislators, how we feel as a county,” Kern said. Freeholder Director Richard D. Gardner also said he supports the resolution to make a statement, saying that firearms restrictions considered at the state level mean “the law-abiding citizen in this state is now forfeiting his rights. That’s not acceptable.”

Pointing to areas that have tough gun laws but high crime, Gardner said politicians should “stop putting forth feel-good measures that do not accomplish anything for society.” Gardner added that he feels the governor and some members of the legislature “are wrongheaded on this matter” and wasting time instead of addressing core issues that contribute to gun violence, like mental illness. Gardner said at least 75 percent of those who spoke were in favor of the board taking this stance.

NRA Guest Opinion: Michael Bloomberg Spends Big to Lie to America

Earlier this month, Michael Bloomberg added to the

quarter billion dollar tally he has spent

pursuing the Democrat presidential nomination with an

$11 million ad

that aired during the Super Bowl. It was his highest-profile effort to date in a relentless media blitz meant to familiarize Americans with his name and a “life story” that is more PR ad copy than actual biography. But the ad was perhaps more revealing than Bloomberg intended, showing him to be long on dishonesty and emotional manipulation and short on facts and substance.

Bloomberg himself barely appears in the 60 second commercial. Most of the airtime features the mother of an aspiring football player whose son was killed.

There is no question that a grieving mother has compelling emotional impact, and no one can blame the woman for wanting to tell her son’s story or to try to make a difference that will spare others a similar experience.

What is blameworthy, however, is Bloomberg’s exploitation of the woman’s personal tragedy to intentionally mislead the public.

While the woman described her loss, a graphic then appeared on the screen, stating, “2,900 CHILDREN DIE FROM GUN VIOLENCE EVERY YEAR.”

There is nothing in the commercial that explains what policies Michael Bloomberg is promoting that would have prevented the family’s tragedy or that would prevent similar tragedies in the future. The ad gives no information on the circumstances of the son’s death, other than that someone shot him.

But the obvious takeaway is that children like this young athlete are at a high risk of being killed, and only Michael Bloomberg has the moxie and know-how to stop it.

It’s clear that Michael Bloomberg himself

knows next to nothing about firearms

. In fact, when he began his political career with a run for New York City Mayor in 2001, Bloomberg didn’t know how to answer a question about the Second Amendment because

he didn’t know what it was

.

But even Michael Bloomberg knows that adults are not the same thing as children. And according to

multiple

media stories

debunking

his Super Bowl ad, his figure about “children” dying from “gun violence” inflates the number nearly 100% by including the high-risk category of 18- and 19-year-old

adults

.

An

article by FactCheck.org.

, for example, claims the misleading statistic is based on information from Everytown for Gun Safety, a gun control group that is funded primarily by the billionaire Michael Bloomberg. Bloomberg’s “source,” in other words, is actually propaganda that he himself paid to generate.

But even Everytown was more honest than the ad itself, claiming in a 2019 fact sheet, “Annually, nearly 2,900 children and teens (ages 0 to 19) are shot and killed … .” That figure that comes from averaging Centers for Disease Control Data from 2013 to 2017.

FactCheck.org explains that when 18- and 19-year-old adults are omitted from the data, the figure drops to 1,499. So the Bloomberg ad nearly doubles the number of

minors

who succumb annually to gunshot injuries to come up with a figure for “children.”

Again, these deaths are lamentable, but they are not what Bloomberg claims. What the ad did establish is that Michael Bloomberg cannot be trusted to tell the truth even on his own signature policy issue and that he will in fact spend huge sums of money to lie to the American public for his own political benefit.

source:

https://www.nraila.org/