"Taking aim at gunmakers"

JonJ

Moderator
NES Member
Joined
Feb 27, 2005
Messages
13,068
Likes
352
Location
Plymouth, MA
Feedback: 11 / 0 / 0
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2006/03/09/taking_aim_at_gunmakers/

ADRIAN WALKER
Taking aim at gunmakers

By Adrian Walker, Globe Columnist | March 9, 2006

Bob Ricker comes by his negative feelings about the gun lobby about as honestly as a person can. For years, he was one of their own, a top lawyer for the National Rifle Association and, later, a lobbyist for gun manufacturers. When he talks about their tactics, he's describing something he's seen firsthand.

So what's he doing now, criticizing the NRA at every turn and advising Mayor Thomas M. Menino on how the city can stop the flow of illegal firearms?

''I began to see how the industry could and wouldn't do more to keep guns safer and out of the wrong hands," Ricker said yesterday.

It isn't that he is opposed to gun ownership, he said. But he has soured on an industry that refuses to distinguish between hunting rifles and handguns. He began to believe that the NRA was more interested in increasing its political influence than in promoting responsibility.

''The gun rights extremists have created a situation where law enforcement is in jeopardy, urban areas have become shooting galleries," Ricker said. ''More needs to be done about illegal gun trafficking and keeping people safe."

Ricker's epiphany, he said, came after Springfield-based Smith & Wesson reached what was hailed as a landmark agreement with the Clinton administration in 2000. The company, facing multiple liability lawsuits, agreed to put safety locks on guns, improve technology to prevent unauthorized usage, and stop selling guns at gun shows where background checks weren't conducted.

In response, the NRA went ballistic. It called for a boycott of the company that eventually led to its sale, at far below what had been considered market value.

''I saw that as bad for America, bad for sportsmen, and decided it was time to speak out on the issue, " he said.

Ricker has received the treatment someone considered a turncoat might expect. A lot of his former colleagues no longer return his phone calls or meet with him, he said. ''It isn't in their best interest to be seen with me."

Ricker first met with Menino in January and will deliver the keynote speech at a conference on gun violence at Northeastern University tomorrow.

Menino and Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York are formulating plans for an eight-member task force that would hold hearings across the country on handguns. Menino said yesterday the two of them hope to make an announcement detailing their plan next month.

Stopping the flow of guns has vexed government for years. We've had gun buyback programs, gun donation programs, a lawsuit by the city against gun manufacturers, among other approaches.

Well-meaning efforts all, but no one would argue that they have taken the guns off the streets.

Because of pressure from the NRA, the federal government no longer devotes the resources it once did to tracing guns, Ricker said. That means that the onus is on local governments to figure out where the guns are coming from.

''They're going to have to work with each other," Rickers said. ''They're going to have to start to develop their own information."

Not that the gun manufacturers should be let off the hook.

''There needs to be more pressure put on the gun industry," he said. Referring to one of the ways convicted felons fraudulently get their hands on guns, he said, ''Clerks in gun stores need more training. If a 21-year-old woman comes in and wants to buy 10 .44-caliber Magnum handguns, a red flag should go up."

Ricker has become executive director of a new group based in Washington, the American Hunters and Shooters Organization, that he says wants to promote responsible gun regulation. He calls it ''the progressive alternative to the NRA."

A lot of factors contribute to gun violence, as Ricker acknowledges. But the industry has never taken its share of responsibility for the carnage, something Ricker hopes to change. ''We need to know that they aren't putting their personal financial interest above the public safety interest of the neighborhood."

Adrian Walker is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at [email protected].
 
"Ricker first met with Menino in January and will deliver the keynote speech at a conference on gun violence at Northeastern University tomorrow."

Anyone going?
 
Coyote33 said:
"Ricker first met with Menino in January and will deliver the keynote speech at a conference on gun violence at Northeastern University tomorrow."

Anyone going?

Somehow I don't think this is going to be a very fair and impartial conference... [thinking]

http://www.nupr.neu.edu/3-06/handgun.shtml

Northeastern to host Boston's Community Summit on Youth and Handgun Violence

Contact: Laura Shea at 617 373 5427

WHO:
The Honorable Thomas M. Menino, Mayor of Boston
Kathleen M. O'Toole, Commissioner, Boston Police Department
Richard M. Freeland, President, Northeastern University
Dr. Jack Greene, Dean, Northeastern University College of Criminal Justice
Robert A. Ricker, Former firearm industry lobbyist and current anti-violence advocate

WHAT:
"Know More; Do More: Boston's Community Summit on Youth and Handgun Violence" is a day long seminar focusing on the nature of handgun violence in Boston and other cities in the United States.

A series of keynote speakers and panel discussions will explore issues related to guns and violence in Boston and around the country, followed by a number of workshops designed to explore four critical aspects of youth handgun violence: the role of media, the influence of gangs, the need for support, and best practices in community re-entry for youth offenders.

The workshops will also serve as a forum to elicit ideas from conference participants that may enhance community-based partnerships and law enforcement strategies.

WHEN: Friday, March 10, 2006 8:30 AM - 3:30 PM

WHERE: Northeastern University Ballroom, Curry Student Center 346 Huntington Ave. Boston, MA

WHY: Boston is facing a surge in homicides attributed to cuts in federal funding for police on the beat, a rise in illegal gun trafficking and a fast-growing inner-city youth population. In 2005, homicides reached a 10-year high, rising 17 percent to 75, and January 2006 saw gun murders doubling in Boston and non-fatal shootings leaping 189 percent. It is critical that law enforcement and the community work together to quell this problem before it escalates further.
 
(2) comments:

1) I didn't even have to open the post to know it was a Globe article.

2) The following quote:
''I began to see how the industry could and wouldn't do more to keep guns safer and out of the wrong hands," Ricker said yesterday.

Can, and likely should, be read as:
"Someone else is now paying the bills"
 
http://www.wmsa.net/organizations/ASSC/ricker_cnnchat_990505.htm

A partial quote:

Chat Participant: What can we do to educate the U.S. public about guns? Much of the anti-gun hysteria seems to be based upon an absolute lack of knowledge of guns by that crowd.

Robert Ricker: That is true. There is a lot of misinformation about firearms. And we need to not only educate people about guns, but more importantly about the safe use of firearms. And once people understand basic firearm safety, they will clearly see that firearm ownership and use can and is one of the safest sports we have in America.

Yes Mr. Ricker, there is a lot of misinformation about firearms. And it looks like a lot of it is now coming from you!
 
Funny how Ricker had a minor position and, as far as anyone knew, no negative views regarding guns until he was fired. Then he suddenly discovered a lot of negative views about guns, gun manufacturers, and the NRA. He also "discovered" that he hadn't just been a grunt, but one of the primary spokesperson for the industry. Something about "hell hath no fury like a woman scorned" comes to mind.

Ken
 
JonJ said:
Sounds like a vindictive little prick, huh?

Appropriate maybe?

Funny story (and true also!):

One time during my second marriage someone called me a big prick. I was rather mad about it until my wife set me straight.

"At least they didn't call you a little prick."
 
It isn't that he is opposed to gun ownership, he said.

Even notice how gun control activists seem to always be careful to either say they aren't opposed to gun ownership or are a gun owner at some point in thier tirade these days?
 
RIP Robert Ricker

Statement Of Paul Helmke On The Passing Of Bob Ricker
Dec 7, 2009


Washington, DC – Paul Helmke, President of the Brady Campaign, issued the following statement on the death of Robert Ricker on December 4, 2009:

"We are deeply saddened to hear of Bob Ricker’s passing. During the years Bob worked for the gun industry, he was an insistent voice for reform within the industry, urging gun makers to take voluntary action to reduce the risks of gun death and injury.

"Eight years ago, out of frustration with the gun industry’s failure to recognize its responsibilities, Bob courageously spoke out, revealing the industry’s collective and conscious refusal to take action to protect against the massive flow of guns from licensed dealers into the illegal market. In sworn testimony, he spoke of the gun industry’s 'see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil approach' that encouraged 'a culture of evasion of firearms laws.' His testimony in one court led a federal judge to find that the industry's irresponsible distribution of guns constituted a public nuisance.

"We salute Bob Ricker as a historic figure in the ongoing struggle to save lives by bringing some sanity to our nation's gun policies."

http://www.bradycampaign.org/media/press/view/1206/
 
''The gun rights extremists have created a situation where law enforcement is in jeopardy, urban areas have become shooting galleries,"

See.....it's always OUR fault for the violence not the criminals. WE created the problems and taking away our freedoms will solve everything for sure.[rolleyes]
 
All I can say is.... good riddance, and I hope he is tortured in hell by the souls of the people disarmed by gun control.

-Mike
 
All I can say is.... good riddance, and I hope he is tortured in hell by the souls of the people disarmed by gun control.

-Mike

ditto. Did his damage and now gone. Too bad he didn't do good, another sell out for money/power (almost like talking about most of congress)
 
He began to believe that the NRA was more interested in increasing its political influence than in promoting responsibility

I personally believe that the NRA is more passionate about increasing their political influence than they are about securing gun rights, and not a slapdash system that reeks of "Juden verboten."

I'm an NRA member by the way.

To bad it wasn't worded differently...



[wink]

[rofl]

All I can say is.... good riddance, and I hope he is tortured in hell by the souls of the people disarmed by gun control.

No Mike, he'll be tortured in hell by all those armed robbers who got there before him, you know, the ones who have never been disarmed by the kind of legislation that he supported. [wink]
 
Back
Top Bottom