2y ago

Biden to create new office of gun violence prevention

www.washingtonpost.com

President Biden on Friday will announce the creation of a new office for gun violence prevention, an escalation of the administration’s efforts to tackle the issue amid stalled progress in Congress, according to four people briefed on the action who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss plans that were not yet public.

Biden and Vice President Harris are scheduled to announce the new office at an event in the White House Rose Garden on Friday afternoon, the people said.

Greg Jackson, a gun violence survivor who is the executive director of the Community Justice Action Fund, and Rob Wilcox, the senior director for federal government affairs at Everytown for Gun Safety, are expected to have key roles in the office, the people said.

23 comments

- and if you want better gun control you need to at least be familiar with the thing you’re talking about.
  I want universal healthcare. Should I go to medical school?
- Honestly a tall order. From the debate below it seems you are of the opinion that one's argument has no validity unless you're one of "us". Fine I get it, but as for the established community maybe they need to self govern a bit since there is quite the chunk that practically fetishize firearms.
  I used to be quite into the community but was nearly shouted out whenever I brought up responsible gun control and education. So yea maybe the community needs to do a better job of shaking out the crazy before asking those who don't understand or fear firearms to come join.
  
  The issue is that if you don't understand firearms, you really can't write effective legislation for them. You need to have some knowledge on the subject in order to know what needs to be done to prevent the issues they cause. It's not that you need to be in the community, it's just that you need knowledge. If you lack that knowledge you'll just look stupid when you discuss it with people who do have it, and they'll not listen.
... which the next Republican president will turn into the "Office of Investigating Blacks".
- Already exists. It's called the justice system.
  
  Yeah I suspect the republicans will make it the department of disarming the “mentally ill” [read: lgbt people]
Hopefully they'll look at what could have been done to resolve each shooting instead of dumb, knee jerk reactions that don't resolve the problems.
For example:
The Allen, Texas mall shooter:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/2023_Allen,_Texas_mall_shooting
"Garcia was then enlisted in the U.S. Army in June 2008, but he never completed basic training: he was terminated after three months due to mental health concerns.[38][39] Because this was an administrative separation, rather than a punitive discharge, Garcia's termination by the Army would not show up on the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.[40]"
If the Army can't have you because they think you're mentally unstable before you even finish basic training, maybe that's thr sort of thing that NEEDS to be in a background check. Ya think?
This wasn't a case of buying through a gun show loophole, or an illegal purchase. Guy had no crimimal record, passed the background check, and bought the gun.
The problem is "What goes into the background check?"
- "Mental health issues" != Violence issues
  
  "Mental health issues" == 12x more likely to be a victim of a violent crime than the perpetrator.
  
  Mental health issues are already a blocker on gun ownership, but only if it's adjudicated in court.
  Maybe that needs to change for people ejected from the military.
The Uvalde shooter walked into a gun store, and they let him walk out with an AR-15, which he immediately used to shoot up a school.
Unless we severely restrict who can and can’t legally purchase a firearm, nothing will change. There needs to be background checks, licensing for everyone wanting to buy with a requirement to renew every year (with a test), and mandatory waiting periods. Toss anyone not following these rules in jail for a bit, double if they’re selling firearms outside of the rules.
I’m not saying nobody should have guns. I’m saying people should have to prove they’re capable of safely using one, and that they’re of sound mind when they purchase one. That’s it.
- He had no criminal record, so passed the background check.
  That being said, there were MASSIVE red flags that COULD have been background check worthy:
  https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robb_Elementary_School_shooting
  "Ramos' social media acquaintances said he openly abused and killed animals such as cats and would livestream the abuse on Yubo.[128] Other social media acquaintances said that he would also livestream himself on Yubo threatening to kidnap and rape girls who used the app, as well as threatening to commit a school shooting.[126] Ramos' account was reported to Yubo, but no action was taken.[126][129] Up until a month before the shooting, Ramos worked at a local Wendy's and had been employed there for at least a year. According to the store's night manager, he went out of his way to keep to himself.[130] One of his coworkers said he was occasionally rude to his female coworkers, to whom he sent inappropriate text messages, and would intimidate coworkers at his job by asking them, "Do you know who I am?"[92] Ramos' coworkers referred to him by names including "school shooter" because he had long hair and frequently wore black clothing.[131]"
  So, if you want to block people like this from passing a background check, what do we do?
  Make social media platforms like Yubo mandatory reporters? "Hey, we have this user who may, in fact, be psychotic, just thought you should know!"
  Or mandatory reporting of the inappropriate texts? Do you hold Wendy's or the cell carrier responsible for that?
They'll do what they did last time, throw anyone they can in jail then pretend like they aren't the party of the cops, which is supposed to be the conservatives job
This is the best summary I could come up with:
President Biden on Friday will announce the creation of a new office for gun violence prevention, an escalation of the administration’s efforts to tackle the issue amid stalled progress in Congress, according to four people briefed on the action who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss plans that were not yet public.
The new office will report up through Stefanie Feldman, the White House staff secretary and a longtime Biden policy aide who has worked on the firearms issue for years, the people said.
Zeenat Yahya, director of policy at March for Our Lives, a student-led organization founded after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., said such an office would improve coordination between government agencies that have roles in combating gun violence.
He played a key role in passing the 1994 assault weapons ban, and he became President Barack Obama’s point person on guns after the 2012 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.
As a candidate, Biden promised to take action, citing the assault weapons ban, a 10-year measure that expired in 2004, as evidence of his ability to overcome the National Rifle Association’s opposition.
The bipartisan law expanded background checks for some gun buyers, barred a larger group of domestic violence offenders from purchasing firearms, and provided millions of dollars for mental health services and school security initiatives.
The original article contains 771 words, the summary contains 229 words. Saved 70%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!

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