Maker of gun used in Sandy Hook tragedy up for sale
Some fast fallout in the business world from the Sandy Hook tragedy.
From CNNMoney: “Private equity firm Cerberus has put U.S. firearms maker Freedom Group up for sale following Friday’s killing of 20 children and six adults at the Sandy Hook school shooting in Connecticut.
“Freedom Group includes Bushmaster, maker of the rifle used in the shooting at the school in Newtown. Cerberus bought Bushmaster in 2006 before adding another 10 makers of firearms, ammunition and accessories to the group.”
In a statement, Cerberus said: “It is apparent that the Sandy Hook tragedy was a watershed event that has raised the national debate on gun control to an unprecedented level.”
For the full story at ajc.com.
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120 comments Add your comment
Hooty Goot
December 18th, 2012
12:20 pm
I’ve never owned an assault rifle and don’t want or feel a need for one. I wouldn’t have a problem at all with a ban on them as a matter of fact I think it’s a pretty good idea. Just leave my 12 guage pump shotgun alone.
Let's be realistic
December 18th, 2012
12:21 pm
2 things: ONE – there are 285 million guns in America; if a law was passed tomorrow that required that all 285 million be turned in….would they? of course not – only SOME of the good guys would turn in their guns TWO – the overwhelming majority of these “shooters” are on very strong anti-depressants – in other words they are drugged up – WE NEED TO DEAL WITH DEPRESSION AND AUTISM AND HOW TO PROPERLY TREAT THEM !!
Yes Me
December 18th, 2012
12:23 pm
Guns have been in this country forever. In the past they were way more common and accessible to kids (in the home). We can easily blame the changes in the media, society, etc but the fact is those are “hard” issues to solve. Gun control is a seemingly “easy” fix. Until it’s in place.
Yes Me
December 18th, 2012
12:24 pm
@Hooty Goot – Slippery slope.
Devil's Advocate
December 18th, 2012
12:25 pm
Machine Gun,
1 student dying is 1 too many. Are you really going to try to quantify the degree of tragedy?
Hooty Goot
December 18th, 2012
12:38 pm
Yes Me — I agree. Nobody wants to come right out and say it for fear of hurting feelings. But we can ask the question. How could this tragic incident have been avoided or at least postphoned?
Justineisu
December 18th, 2012
12:41 pm
It never ceases to amaze me how we have such nonsensical arguments over guns and their distriburtion to the civilian population. The fact a gun manufacturer is sold has not to do with whether or not guns will be sold. It merely means they will be sold by a different manufacturer and probably under a different name.
I cannot understand why people are expressing shock that a person walked into a public place and killed 26 people. We fail to acknowledge the news media had been keeping weekly counts on the number of people murdered with firearms in such cities as Los Angeles. Chicago and New York.
This is not the first school shooting of young children. Have we forgotten a man walked into a rural Amish school and killed students.
But here is one difference. In the past NRA and other supporters had said in certain situation if persons had been armed, they could have prevented such massacres. WELL .HERE IS THE FACT NANCY LANZ WAS A GUN EXPERT AND SHE WAS THE FIRST PERSON KILLED. HER LEGALLY PURCHASED GUNS WERE THEN USED TO KILL 26 PEOPLE. ONE OF THEM WAS THEN USED TO FACILITATE THE SUICIDE OF HER PERPETRATOR SON.
onlyinamerica
December 18th, 2012
12:48 pm
A tiny portion of the population own guns? Better re think that statement. You don’t hear about who has guns until the media runs rampant with stories like this. I still don’t think we have even heard an accurate account of what went on in that school. Why? Because every media ho’ has to be the first to report or get an exclusive that they end up reporting false information. It needs to be noted also, that when these “mass shootings” happen – they happen in places where the coward perp has a pretty good idea that no one is armed. Why don’t you go to a gun show and see how nice and respectful everyone is there – because everyone is packing. And to all of you against the “evil guns and the hunters, etc” let me tell you something. I wonder what the outcome of this shooting would have been if that a**hole was met with a bullet on the other side of that door? There would be 20 children who would be alive right now. That’s what. And, let me know how that baseball bat works when someone attacks you or your family.
Sparta_Bubba
December 18th, 2012
12:49 pm
Oldman, guns are designed to kill people. Cars are not. Ted was not using the car for it’s intended purpose. Mass murders are using the guns for their intended purpose. Of course like most ‘backer chewing, two tooth gun nuts you probably can’t comprehend that.
Pilgrim
December 18th, 2012
12:52 pm
Why Kids Kill?
Tragedies attributed to People on Mind-Altering SSRI Drugs
(Drugs involved in the following incidents are indicated by parentheses.)
http://www.totalityofbeing.com/FramelessPages/Articles/violence.html
AR Owner
December 18th, 2012
12:55 pm
Sparta, first I own an AR 15.
Second, murderers are NOT using guns for their intended purpose.
Third, if you are defending Ted K, then you might want to reconsider who is the nut.
By the way, AR’s are good varmit guns – hogs, coyotes, etc…
AR Owner
December 18th, 2012
12:56 pm
Not to mention home-defense.
onlyinamerica
December 18th, 2012
12:59 pm
Actually Bubba, I comprehend that just fine. You might want to stop listening to CNN or FOX News or whomever you get your information from. Maybe you don’t comprehend two of the biggest catylsts of the reasons these incidents keep happening. The first is Moral Decay. Anything goes! Simulated sex on primetime television, violent video games, gangsta rap, etc. This is being fed to anyone that will take it – and they make sure you get it by the news crawls at the bottom of the screen and then repeat reels over and over. It’s mind control. Comprende? Second is the epidemic of mental illness and anti psychotic drugs that are being prescribed like candy. THESE are the real issues. When you decide you can handle the truth – which is that the media is designed to shock and terrify you. Think for yourself. Educate yourself on who are gun owners – LEGAL gun owners. And it may surprise you. In the meantime, I pity you, and hope you don’t ever look to my gun toting a** to save yours if you ever get in trouble! Good luck!
Sparta_Bubba
December 18th, 2012
1:01 pm
Hooty Goot that is the whole point. The Alaskans may have large caliber pistol strapped to their hip, not a 30 round automatic rifle. I’m not aware of anyone proposing control of pistols such as that. It’s the guns like what was used last Friday. You gun nuts go ballistic at the mere mention of any thing reasonable that involves restricting guns. You probably think it’s OK to park a tank or an anti aircraft gun in your driveway and is guaranteed by the 2nd amendment.
AR Owner
December 18th, 2012
1:03 pm
Bubba,
You simply are ignorant.
Buford Sowega
December 18th, 2012
1:03 pm
Oh, no–don’t let these ba’tards off the hook. Freedom Group was your dream conglomerate. These kings of the strip-and-flip tried to kill off Chrysler. Now they’ve ruined Marlin by closing the Connecticut plant and getting rid of “expensive” labor that actually knew how to build high quality traditional lever action rifles. They went for the big bucks and AR craze, so let them stew in the mess. Ba’tards.
Pilgrim
December 18th, 2012
1:15 pm
* Guns are used 2.5 million times a year in self-defense. Law-abiding citizens use guns to defend themselves against criminals as many as 2.5 million times every year — or about 6,850 times a day.1 This means that each year, firearms are used more than 80 times more often to protect the lives of honest citizens than to take lives.2
References:
1. Gary Kleck and Marc Gertz, “Armed Resistance to Crime: The Prevalence and Nature of Self-Defense With a Gun,” 86 The Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, Northwestern University School of Law, 1 (Fall 1995):164.
Dr. Kleck is a professor in the school of criminology and criminal justice at Florida State University in Tallahassee. He has researched extensively and published several essays on the gun control issue. His book, Point Blank: Guns and Violence in America, has become a widely cited source in the gun control debate. In fact, this book earned Dr. Kleck the prestigious American Society of Criminology Michael J. Hindelang award for 1993. This award is given for the book published in the past two to three years that makes the most outstanding contribution to criminology.
Even those who don’t like the conclusions Dr. Kleck reaches, cannot argue with his impeccable research and methodology. In “A Tribute to a View I Have Opposed,” Marvin E. Wolfgang writes that, “What troubles me is the article by Gary Kleck and Marc Gertz. The reason I am troubled is that they have provided an almost clear-cut case of methodologically sound research in support of something I have theoretically opposed for years, namely, the use of a gun in defense against a criminal perpetrator…. I have to admit my admiration for the care and caution expressed in this article and this research. Can it be true that about two million instances occur each year in which a gun was used as a defensive measure against crime? It is hard to believe. Yet, it is hard to challenge the data collected. We do not have contrary evidence.” Wolfgang, “A Tribute to a View I Have Opposed,” The Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, at 188.
Wolfgang says there is no “contrary evidence.” Indeed, there are more than a dozen national polls — one of which was conducted by The Los Angeles Times — that have found figures comparable to the Kleck-Gertz study. Even the Clinton Justice Department (through the National Institute of Justice) found there were as many as 1.5 million defensive users of firearms every year. See National Institute of Justice, “Guns in America: National Survey on Private Ownership and Use of Firearms,” Research in Brief (May 1997).
As for Dr. Kleck, readers of his materials may be interested to know that he is a member of the ACLU, Amnesty International USA, and Common Cause. He is not and has never been a member of or contributor to any advocacy group on either side of the gun control debate.
2. According to the National Safety Council, the total number of gun deaths (by accidents, suicides and homicides) account for less than 30,000 deaths per year. See Injury Facts, published yearly by the National Safety Council, Itasca, Illinois.
Devil's Food Cake
December 18th, 2012
1:21 pm
1 child dying from obesity is 1 too many. Are you really going to try to quantify the degree of tragedy? Cmon, let them eat cake!
George
December 18th, 2012
1:31 pm
Well,Lets see how long this holds up,And for Mrs.Bush power and money rules this country.
That is not the only incident so please leave her alone thats happened a million times.Their is no criminal Justice system in this Country.Sad thing that happened in CT but it will not be the last.You can ban any weapon you but mass killings will continue it has be that way since the mass killing of the Indians.
Grumps
December 18th, 2012
1:34 pm
Will you people think!!!
Define “assault rifle”. If you mean the kind of weapon the military carries, a civilian can’t own most of them. They have a fully automatic mode, which means they shoot as long as you squeeze the trigger. Most civilians can’t own fully automatic weapons. You have to have a federal firearms license and that ain’t easy to get. The civilain version of the military weapons are single shot only. You have to pull the trigger once for each shot. They just look like military weapons.
“Lock your guns away”. Come on, man. An intruder is in your house and you have to say, “Will you please wait a minute. I need to get my gun from my gunsafe. Oh, and I need to get ammunition and load the gun, because I never keep a loaded gun in the house.” Get real. If you have a gun for home protection, you need it right there beside you. I prefer a shotgun for home defense,preferably a pump — the distinctive sound of a pump shotgun will run a lot of intruders off. Also, with an appropriately loaded shotgun, I have to worry less about my shot goint through a wall and killing an innocent by-sitter. But a handgun is certainly more portable. It’s not easy to carry a shotgun when you go for a walk. And carrying the shotgun might raise a few eyebrows. But a pocket pistol.. or a glock under your jacket in the small of your back? Nobody will know except the bad guys. And they will find out the hard way.
Devil's Food Cake
December 18th, 2012
1:34 pm
No assault riffles were used in the tragedy that occured on September 11, 2001
Grumps
December 18th, 2012
1:36 pm
going, not goint… typo
Devil's Food Cake
December 18th, 2012
1:39 pm
I am all for an assault riffle ban IF we can ban the millions of Illegal Aliens that are destroying our country. Sounds like an fair compromise to me!
Tag
December 18th, 2012
1:40 pm
Should we ban newspapers if they print things we don’t like?
Should we ban free speech if people say they don’t approve of the government?
Should we ban religions if they don’t conform?
Should we ban protest if they are unpopular?
Should we ban guns if madmen do mad things?
Machine Gun
December 18th, 2012
1:41 pm
Devils Advocate.
What I am trying to illustrate is that we are never going to be able to prevent a crazed person from getting a gun and shooting folks (sort of like –how do you stop a suicide bomber); however, it we make it harder for these CRAZED folks from obtaining Assault Weapons – then maybe just maybe their violent outburst will not have as much devisation as we have seen in Sandyhook.
I mean – this guys mother was able to buy a gun like this from Dicks sporting goods for god sake…….
We need to have some restrictions …that’s what I was trying to say..you’re right 1 child killed is 1 too many.
SUPPORT THE BAN ON ASSUALT WEAPONS NOW………
joet
December 18th, 2012
1:43 pm
Nerve gas. Thats the answer. Every one should be allowed to ARM themselves with nerve gas or a similar chemical weapon. You can’t miss that way. I’m sure that will fall under the 2nd amendment. teach all the good people to use and carry gas masks.
g
December 18th, 2012
1:49 pm
I know this will come off as a crazy statement, but one thing that is true of all of these school shootings is that the killer or killers eventually commit suicide. They are unable to face the world because they know what they are in the process of doing is wrong. I encourage anyone that is thinking of committing an atrocity like this to please just kill yourself now. I don’t feel sorry for you. I don’t want to attempt to heal your sick mind. I don’t care what your excuse is. I don’t care if you have parent issues. I don’t care if you have any number of mental problems that would “cause” this behavior. I want you and your sick mind gone from this world forever. But you are a coward that believes committing such acts will leave your sick mark on the world. You are wrong. Please just kill yourself ASAP.
Hooty Goot
December 18th, 2012
1:52 pm
Justineisu@12:41 — Nancy Lanz was a gun expert –
I beg to differ sir. If she was a gun expert she would have had her guns locked away where her mentally ill son could’nt have gotten to them.
Unintended Consequences .... Duh!!!
December 18th, 2012
1:58 pm
The real irony in the proposed gun control measures is the frenzied buying it has and will create. Is that what Barbara Feinstein intended when she proposed to reinstate the assault weapons ban? Well there you go. Good intentions gone bad. 30 million more assault weapons on the street.
Pandora’s box is open and each time one of the talking heads mentions gun control it feeds the frenzy. I promise you that you will be reading in the paper in February about record gun and ammunition sales in December and January. It’s inevitable.
southern hope
December 18th, 2012
1:59 pm
“just wondering” at 12;19. Thank you for (inadvertently) summing up why folks think they need guns.
Some people own guns because they are delusional (sorry for the harshness but I can’t think of another way to word it).
They imagine some moment when they can play the white knight, and rescue themselves or others from some bogeyman who will never appear, or at least appear in ideal circumstances.
And we endure all of the gun violence around us just for this: so someone can fantasize about being a hero.
beerad
December 18th, 2012
2:01 pm
That evil gun I can’t believe it did that. I’m so thankful my guns know better than to act like that.
Just Wondering
December 18th, 2012
2:01 pm
Sorry but they are already talking about the record numbers of guns being sold and that has been sold since last Friday.
dude
December 18th, 2012
2:09 pm
As someone working in Law enforcement for over 20 years, the laws banning high capacity magazines and assault rifles should be reinstated. I don’t belong to the NRA, and find the organization too right wing.
When I started as a cop in 1991, I was issued a S&W 9 mm, that was it. 20 something years later, I have to carry a 40 caliber sidearm on my belt, a backup gun on my ankle, Shotgun in the front seat, and a AR-15 in the trunk. plus I carry 2 boxes of extra ammo for each weapon. The streets have got more crazy and violent. I still worry about being ‘outgunned” when I am on the streets, as people in general are more violent and have less respect for authority. let’s hope we can move forward as a country and prevent anymore Sandy Hooks!
G19
December 18th, 2012
2:18 pm
I think there should be a national database for crimes like this and the perpetrators. In this data base all medical issues, all medications (for ADD, depression, psychotropic drugs, DUI, etc) video game use, music like violent rap music, family history, sexual abuse or child molestation, bullying can all be down loaded to show us the common link between all these murders. The link is NOT the gun, the link is in their mentally disturbed heads.
Guns are a tool and did not cause the murder. I think there is more of a link between the items noted above and these issues that should be analyzed and a common link found.
BTW, he did not get these guns legally. His mother should be blamed for his access to them. Lastly, the mall shooter last week killed himself when he saw a 22 year old with a concealed carrier license pull. The guy with the legal gun had the shooter in his sights and was assesing the surrounding to make sure he had a clear shot. This may not have been the reason he killed himself, but I’ll bet he knew he was about to go down one way or another.
G19????
December 18th, 2012
2:27 pm
What are your sources for the 22 year old with the CCW? I have not read that.
Just Wondering
December 18th, 2012
2:28 pm
@Southern Hope, Yes, I think you used the correct word for yourself (delusional) to think that these things will not happen to you. Just answer the question I asked and stop beating around the bush. Would you hate or Thank? Do you think I own and carry because I am looking to be a hero? If I protect my family from someone trying to harm them, then I do not consider myself a hero. I consider my self as being a FATHER, protecting his family. If by some reason I jump in to help my neighbor or someone else, do I consider myself to be a hero, no, I consider myself as being a FRIEND and a concerned citizen.
Does the bogeyman exist? Yes, he does. How do I know? I saw him first hand and you know what, when he saw my gun, what did he do? He pissed and crapped his pants, dropped his gun while running away and there was never a shot fired.
Keep believing this is a safe free world but I would gladly love to pick out a neighborhood for you to walk down, by yourself, at 2 AM and see just how many of the “residents” will come out to shake your hand and offer you a cup of coffee. If you last 5 minutes, I would gladly hand you a $100 bill. Let’s see if the bogeyman is real! Oh yea, don’t call on anyone, except the police, for help.
My guns protect and feed my family, friends and neighbors. I am no hero but rather I am a FATHER and a MAN that will not run, be a coward while someone else is trying to harm my Family,
Don'tLetMediaGuideYourThinking
December 18th, 2012
2:30 pm
Where’s there a ‘crazy’ will, there’s a way…
The Happy Land fire was an arson fire that killed 87 people trapped in an unlicensed social club called “Happy Land” (at 1959 Southern Boulevard) in the West Farms section of The Bronx, New York, on March 25, 1990. Most of the victims were young ethnic Hondurans celebrating Carnival.[1] Unemployed Cuban refugee Julio González, whose former girlfriend was employed at the club, was arrested shortly after and ultimately convicted of arson and murder.
Quake
December 18th, 2012
2:32 pm
I have a question for everyone, pro and not so pro gun. I understand owning a gun for protection of ones property and person. Totally get it. What I don’t get is what and why on earth anyone would need a gun with the capacity to fire 30 or 100 or however many rounds in 30 or 60 seconds. (Please forgive my obvious lack of specifics.) What is the purpose? Don’t flame me folks, it’s an honest question asking for an honest answer. Thanks.
G19
December 18th, 2012
2:36 pm
Clackamas mall shooter faced man with concealed weapon @ http://www.kgw.com/news/Clackamas-man-armed-confronts-mall-shooter-183593571.html
by: Molṑn Labé
seaann
December 18th, 2012
2:43 pm
After reading your comments. It is very clear that people are concerned about the terrible things that are happening because of this attachment to guns.
The bottom line is this, guns kill, animals, and people. No matter the circumstances. They were designed for that purpose.
You cannot legislate laws, into people’s heart. Proverbs 4:23 “safe guard the heart for out of it are the sources of life.” What is in a persons heart is what comes out. Jeremiah 17: 9 “the heart is treacherous and desperate.”
The world we live in is wicked.
1 John 5:19: the whole world is lying in the power of the wicked one.” This evil force does not care how many people are killed; see what He did to Job’s children in Job 1:13-20. All 10 children were killed. Job had no idea why this was happening to him. Read the account Job Chapters 1& 2. That same force that caused that mess is the same one responsible for the untold violence today.
Does it really matter what laws are passed and what man tries to do, many are very sincere. Whatever they do is limited.
This evil force is behind the woes of the entire earth. The only one to correct this matter is the Maker of The Universe. “Jehovah God” Psalms 83:18. He is going to cut all of this off soon. Psalms 37: 10.
2 Timothy 3:1-5 fore told the times we are seeing. What we are seeing is the fulfillment of the prophecies written long ago. Very soon we will see and end to the violence that exists.
Genesis 6:11 shows the earth was filled with violence, just as today. The flood cleared up that mess and very soon Psalms 37:34 will be fulfilled.
All of this is out of man’s hands, they are only human, and cannot get to the root of the problem, only the Creator can.
You may not want to hear this, but that is the truth.” The whole truth and nothing but the truth”
G19
December 18th, 2012
2:46 pm
To G19???? You have not read it because it has not been widely reported. That is the problem. I personally know two people in ATL who shot intruders. One was in the storeroom of the vics business and the 2nd and totally seperate victim / incident was a home invasion. If i am not mistaken both intruders are no longer intruding.
That is enough reason for me to have CC.
kevrock
December 18th, 2012
2:48 pm
If guns kill people how do all those people that attend gun shows get out of there alive?
Dickie
December 18th, 2012
2:51 pm
You can’t ban assault weapons because the Justice Dept & the Attorney General won’t have anything to sell to the Mexican Drug Cartels.
Just Wondering
December 18th, 2012
2:53 pm
Quake, I did not buy my guns and ask for a large clip to go with the gun. It was already part of the package. There are a lot of people that may order larger clips and if so, that is fine with me.
Do I see a need for high capacity magazine’s, no, I do not see a reason for them except for Law Enforcement and the Military. Do I use my 30 rd clips, sure I do because first, that is all I have and second, when I target practice, I can shoot three times longer than I could with a 10 rd clip.
My guns are in a gun safe with locks on the triggers and if you would like to try to get into my safe, find it first and if you do, I will watch you try to open it. My ammo is in the open but what good is that going to do me? What am I going to do, throw a bullet at you?
Halftrack
December 18th, 2012
2:54 pm
People do not understand about evil. When 2 States legalize marijuana and vehicles began to kill innocents including families & children; what then? Our own government is complicit in gun violence. Look at the fast and furious program that it ran. Our own Attorney General is responsible for Border Agent deaths. How can we trust the Government with new laws when they are at fault for creating more evil by poor judgement.
rightwingextreme
December 18th, 2012
2:54 pm
Donald
December 18th, 2012
11:48 am
I don’t think guns should be banned but assault rifles and large capacity magazines should be banned for use and purchase by the general public.
You just banned them!
The Obamites are defining a large capacity magazine as anything over 10 rounds. Hope you don’t have any of these.
rightwingextreme
December 18th, 2012
2:56 pm
seaann
December 18th, 2012
2:43 pm
your post: AMEN!
Quake
December 18th, 2012
2:57 pm
Thanks, Just Wondering. I appreciate your taking the time to answer my question.
rightwingextreme
December 18th, 2012
3:00 pm
Quake
December 18th, 2012
2:32 pm
I have a question for everyone, pro and not so pro gun. I understand owning a gun for protection of ones property and person. Totally get it. What I don’t get is what and why on earth anyone would need a gun with the capacity to fire 30 or 100 or however many rounds in 30 or 60 seconds. (Please forgive my obvious lack of specifics.) What is the purpose? Don’t flame me folks, it’s an honest question asking for an honest answer. Thanks.
It’s three o’clock in the am…you hear your door being kicked in. You’re a whole lot scared and your nerves are shaking. You reach for your weapon. How many shots will it take to stop the bad guy? One? two? Are you good enough to stop with just a few or do you want the most you can get aimed at the bad guy?
debulker
December 18th, 2012
3:02 pm
Let’s be like Japan and ban all guns, so nothing will ever happen to their kids in school:
–
The Osaka School Massacre took place on June 8, 2001, at Ikeda Elementary School, an elite primary school affiliated with Osaka Kyoiku University in Osaka Prefecture, Japan.
At 10:15 that morning, 37-year-old former janitor Mamoru Takuma entered the school armed with a kitchen knife and began stabbing numerous school children and teachers. He killed eight children, mostly between the ages of seven and eight, and seriously wounded thirteen other children and two teachers.
–
Oops, I meant ban ALL GUNS AND Kitchen Knives.