From the GREAT STATE OF MAINE...
Liberals + Second Amendment = RKBA
Kossack KVoimakas is the 27 year-old organizer of the RKBA (Right to Bear Arms) diary series. Born in Wisconsin and the proud owner of "a couple computer dork degrees," he currently lives with his wife in Michigan's Upper Peninsula and works at an ISP-support company. "I'm one of those people you call when your internet goes down, but I'm not in India," he says. "And yes, those long pauses are because I'm blogging on DKos. Maybe next time you'll be more understanding as to why it's taking so long," KVoimakas is also a firearms instructor, bookseller and Professor of Ursacyclicammology at Blogistan Polytechnic Institute. Oh, and he's owned by two cats.
Recently C&J offered up a shot at the spotlight in the fall Netroots Nation Auction. KVoimakas was the top bidder and we thank him for his generous donation. But that doesn't mean he gets off with a bunch of softball questions and free Twinkies. [Long pause.] Oh... I've just been informed that, yes, it in fact does mean he gets off with a bunch of softball questions and free Twinkies. In other words, our usual format will not be changing. So without further ado, the subject in the beanbag chair is ready to squirm uncomfortably in the latest edition of our C&J interview series, Yes, We're All Staring At YOU!
Cheers and Jeers: How long have you been blogging and what originally brought you to Daily Kos?
KVoimakas: Not very long at all. I didn't really do the blog 'thing' until I started on DKos. My first diary was written back in November of '08 and I've been here ever since. I really have to think Bill O for whining about it so much. I figured if he complained about something, I should probably check it out.
You're a founder of RKBA (Right to Keep and Bear Arms), which you describe as "a DKos group of second amendment supporters who also have progressive and liberal values. We don't think that being a liberal means one has to be anti-gun." How did that idea come about and what kinds of things do you discuss when you get together in the RKBA diaries?
My first diary was on firearms. It generated some interesting conversation and I decided to write a couple more and follow a few people who thought the same way. After finding a bunch of like minded individuals, we decided to organize and put on a weekly diary. That grew to include our Thursday 'open thread' diary (plug plug) and an offsite email list. We discuss anything and everything related to firearms and the Second Amendment. This can range from court cases, to defining words (militia, keep/bear, arms, etc), to defensive gun uses, or even how to fire an old fashioned black powder firearm.
I'm not against guns myself. My grandfather owned several, was a champion skeet shooter, and he taught me about gun safety. But I'm frustrated by the amount of gun violence in this country. Are we simply too hamstrung by the Second Amendment to do much about it?
The first thing I want to point out is that reducing violent acts perpetuated with firearms doesn't mean you need to reduce the number of firearms in responsible gun owners hands. I own around 15 firearms. None of them have ever caused property damage or taken a human life. Most firearms in this country fall into the same category. If you want to see the level of violence in general go down, then support and expand our social safety nets. Getting rid of the war on drugs---the legalization of marijuana for starters---would also have a great impact. In 2008, firearms were only involved in 7% of violent crime so the amount of firearm related violence in this country isn't as great as most people think. Firearm related violence does get massive play in the media though.
What is the biggest misconception about Second-Amendment rights among liberals...and among conservatives?
For liberals, I'd say it's a tossup between firearms cause crime and support for the second amendment = you're a Republican. We're trying to change both. On the flip side of that second item, Republicans think that all liberals support gun control and support for the second amendment = you're a Republican. This makes for fun-tastic conversation at the gun range when they realize the guy beating them is a liberal.
What kind of music makes you feel invincible to the GOP horde?
Rage Against the Machine.
What's the one book every Kossack must read?
The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins.
I was looking at a chart showing U.S. homicides by weapon type, and it made me wonder if we might not be better off as a country revising the Second Amendment to read: "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Blunt Objects, shall not be infringed." I haven’t had a single break-in since we put up the "WARNING: This House Protected By Marble Bust of Beethoven" sign in our window. I take it by your expression that I'm not convincing you.
But do you have a catapult for that bust? I've always preferred something with a bit of range myself. When you compare defensive firearm usage with the number of violent crimes perpetuated with firearms, I see civilian firearm ownership as a net positive. When other reasons you would own a firearm, like hunting or competition, are mentioned, the net positive just improves. For more reasons, see Angry Mouse's front page article here.
What are the absolute, iron-clad rules of gun safety that everyone must adhere to, regardless of where they are on the political spectrum?
There are three basic rules: ALWAYS keep your firearm pointed in a safe direction. ALWAYS keep your finger off the trigger until you're ready to shoot. ALWAYS keep the firearm unloaded until you're ready to shoot. I would also add, "Don't point a firearm at anything you're not willing to destroy" to the list and then point ya to this diary for more firearm safety.
You say that a common belief in your RKBA group is that "more gun control equals more lost elections." Is this why gun control has become such a non-issue, relatively speaking, in elections these days?
I think that the president is a smart man and it's my belief that he realizes gun control is not worth the effort when there are more important things to worry about and that it would cost him during an election. Look at the new assault weapons ban (AWB; a grand misnomer by the way) that Holder proposed. It was quickly shot down by Democrats in the House. Whitehouse.gov hosted a proposal for a new AWB on the issues page once the President took office but it's been AWOL for at least a year now. My own House Representative was a pro-RKBA Democrat. The fact that he was pro-RKBA was extremely important in this mostly rural area, especially since it trends Republican.
Finish this sentence: In the kitchen I make a mean...
...wife. She gets angry---and mean!---when I'm in the kitchen. It's not my fault that the kitchen table---which we don't really use to eat on, by the way---is also the best place to clean my guns when I'm done shooting.
Why does President Obama want to go door to door and take all our guns? I read it in a tea party pamphlet. I also read in a tea party pamphlet that tea party pamphlets never lie.
Didn't that same pamphlet make note of the President's gay, Muslim, Fascist, Socialist, Communist, Marxist, Kenya-ist, Nazi background? I don't know if I'd call that lying...ok, yes, I'll call that lying.
You're also a motorcycle enthusiast. What's your machine of choice?
I love my Honda VTX 1800C. There's nothing quite like 110 cubic inches of water cooled power.
No waffling here: dogs or cats?
Cats. Camo made a cat lover of me forever.
I have one question left, but I'm late for the big Christine O'Donnell "The Future Is In Your Hand" rally. Please ask and answer the final question yourself...
Hmm. Do I think we're making an impact here on DKos with the RKBA series?
From the looks of things in our diaries, I'd answer that with a resounding yes.
Cheers and Jeers starts in There's Moreville... [Swoosh!!] RIGHTNOW! [Gong!!]
Cheers and Jeers for Monday, October 4, 2010
Note: Ask your doctor if C&J is right for you. She'll look at you like you're nuts and give you lots of happy fun pills. (You're welcome!)
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By the Numbers:
Days 'til the midterm elections: 29
Days `til the Chile Pepper Cross Country Festival in Fayetteville Arkansas: 12
Number of mentions of the One Nation rally---which drew a larger crowd than Glenn Beck's August 28 rally---between 5-6pm on CNN Saturday: 0
The last year during which an African-American Republican was elected to the House of Representatives: 2001
Average age of a Supreme Court justice in, respectively, 2005 and 2010: 76, 64
Number of days an adult bedbug can survive without food: 550
(Source: Time)
Number of days Sarah Palin can survive without media attention: 0
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Monday Mark Twain Moment
In anticipation of his autobiography next month, a few pearls from the master:
A person with a new idea is a crank until the idea succeeds.
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Go to Heaven for the climate, Hell for the company.
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All generalizations are false, including this one.
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Familiarity breeds contempt---and children.
Ooh...Christine O'Donnell won’t like that last one. Not one bit.
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Puppy Pic of the Day: Indy and the Temple of Awwww.....
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CHEERS to the first Monday in October. The Supreme Court is back in black and ready to rumble with 50 percent more hot female action, baby! On their plate: freedom of speech, immigration, and Team Roberts-Alito-Thomas-Scalia (aka the RATS) will no doubt have LOTS of opportunities to stick their heads up corporate America's ass. (And with that image in my mind I can appreciate why they don’t allow cameras in there.) Memo to Elena Kagan: check your robe for a KICK ME sign before you leave your office. Ginsburg's a merry prankster.
JEERS to burstin' our bubble. John McCain visited New Hampshire over the weekend to deliver an important announcement about his political future. He said he's officially launching his campaign to not run for president again. Which would explain his new slogan: "Country Buffet First."
CHEERS to little whoopsies. In the California governor's race, Democrats are saying out loud: "Oh, Meg Whitman...thank you for the early Christmas present":
At issue is whether Whitman knew about a 2003 letter from the Social Security Administration that raised discrepancies about her housekeeper's documents---a possible tip-off that she could be in the U.S. illegally. ... "When news headlines are saying 'Whitman hired an illegal alien,' you have a problem," said Jack Pitney, a political scientist at Claremont-McKenna College in Claremont, Calif. . "A Republican in California has a tough sell among Latinos to begin with. This makes it tougher for her."
And Saturday night Jerry Brown helped her dig a deeper hole at a debate sponsored by Univision. Y'know, they say undocumented workers are here to do jobs no one else wants to do. But helping a richer-than-god Republican sink her own self-funded $120 million campaign proves there are exceptions.
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Gong! Gong!! BuddaBuddaBudda... GONG!!!
This is another edition of The One Word Answer Man. Over at TPM Josh Marshall notes that it's been 20 years since the reunification of Germany and asks: Wanna feel old?
Nein.
Now back to Cheers and Jeers.
Gong! Gong!! BuddaBuddaBudda... GONG!!!
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CHEERS to a pleasant day at the mall. Saturday's One Nation Working Together rally is now but a memory. As usual, the "liberal media" gave the liberal rally less coverage than the recent conservative one, but it was nevertheless a reminder to everyone that our side is plenty energized, outspoken, grounded in reality, and ready to kick some teabagger ass in 29 days. Oh, and the Park Service thanks everyone for heeding their sign: "We don't celebrate the meaning of America and her principles and ideals in your toilet, so please don't pee in our reflecting pool."
WHATEVER to the new guy. It's official: last Friday frank Yank Bob Dudley replaced twit Brit Tony Hayward as the new CEO of BP. Dudley has a big job ahead of him as he tries to create a situation in which the company's reputation is restored. He says he hopes to complete his time machine by Thanksgiving.
JEERS to life the way it never was. On this date in 1957, `Leave It to Beaver' premiered on ABC. June Cleaver did housework in pearls, frilly dresses, and high heels. And I thought I was the only one.
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Five years ago in C&J: October 4, 2005
JEERS to five more condolence visits to five more families. In Iraq, four U.S. soldiers and a marine were killed in action Monday. Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld asks that we put a positive spin on it: nearly 147,000 continued to live. Cold comfort? Gosh, yes.
JEERS to conservation...GOP-style. How do you convince America to conserve energy? Why, of course, you grab fistfuls of Americans' tax money and create the stupidest web site ever. On second thought, it's probably the only way they could get Bush to pay attention.
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And just one more...
CHEERS to freedom feasting. Saturday afternoon a dozen Kossacks gathered like vultures at the Portsmouth Brewery to collectively peck the eyes out of the carcass of tyranny...and then go shopping. Attending the annual fall New England meetup were KPTlaurie, Fennster, Sardonyx, DtheO, Simple, Mayim, AnneElizabeth, Brillig, Mik, Ed Tracey, Common Sense Mainer and me. During the revelry (but before the pie fight), we showed off two of SaraR's quilts (Simple had won a drawing for the star quilt and yours truly won the Red to Blue quilt) to gasps and at least one fainting. So this would be a good time to mention that Sara's got another drawing up and running---the prize is the multi-autographed quilt from the 2007 Yearly Kos convention in Chicago. Proceeds benefit Jerry Brown's campaign in California. So click on the link and get your name in! Oh, and to the table of New Yorkers who never got their food while we were there: that was me---I put a secret hold on your order. Just to be a prick. It's a little trick I picked up from watching the Senate.
As I understand it, Monday is a day that cannot be entirely trusted, so...[Clap clap clap!]...vigilance, people! Floor's open---what are you cheering and jeering about today?
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Today's Shameless C&J Testimonial:
"You send another goon to Bill in Portland Maine's house and I'll take you out, buddy!"
---NY GOP gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino
9/29/10
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