Here’s a really meaty and interesting essay in the new and relaunched TNR about gun ownership and what gun owners want. What Gun Owners Really Want by Walter Kirn.

There’s a lot there. But one point resonated with me because it’s a flip side of something I was trying to capture in my ‘non-gun tribe’ piece from a couple weeks ago. And that is that there’s a division between gun and non-gun people that is deeper than and not even necessarily aligned with the politics. And it has to do with people who have a basically familiarity and intimacy with them and those who don’t. Read More

Gayle Trotter, of the Independent Women’s Forum, who may actually be new to the whole gun issue, explains how young woman are speaking up about AR-15 rifles …

“Young women are speaking out as to why AR-15 weapons are their weapon of choice. The guns are accurate. They have good handling. They’re light. They’re easy for women to hold. And most importantly, their appearance. An assault weapon in the hands of a young woman defending her babies in her home becomes a defense weapon. And the peace of mind that a woman has as she’s facing three, four, five violent attackers, intruders in her home, with her children screaming in the background, the peace of mind that she has knowing that she has a scary-looking gun gives her more courage when she’s fighting hardened, violent criminals. If we ban these types of assault weapons, you are putting women at a great disadvantage, more so than men, because they do not have the same type of physical strength and opportunity to defend themselves.”

Gayle Trotter opposed renewal of the Violence Against Women Act before testifying today about how moms need “scary-looking guns” to defend themselves.

Alabama “survivalist” shoots school bus driver dead, takes 6 year old child hostage and heads to the personal bunker he’d constructed on his property. The standoff continues.

Menendez spokesperson responding to last night’s FBI raid: “Senator Menendez has traveled on Dr. Melgen’s plane on three occasions, all of which have been paid for and reported appropriately. Any allegations of engaging with prostitutes are manufactured by a politically motivated right-wing blog and are false.”

Giffords’ husband Mark Kelly breaks news of yet another workplace shooting during Senate hearing on gun violence. Watch.

David Vitter says Macro Rubio is “amazingly naive” in his support for immigration reform.

We’re monitoring reports out of Phoenix of a new workplace shooting. Local news reports describing a workplace shooting with multiple victims. Latest reports are of three wounded and no fatalities.

Gun rights law Prof struggles to answer Sen. Durbin’s question about why we shouldn’t just let people own machine guns. Watch.

The gist of the NRA argument about background checks is that because we’re not prosecuting everyone who tries to purchase a gun and fails a background check we should simply dispense with or not expand the background checks at all. So if we’re not prosecuting everyone who tries to purchase a gun we should stop preventing them from purchasing the gun. That’s completely crazy. Not to mention wildly disingenuous. Read More