grimes really went from calling herself a socialist to dating elon musk to posting pedo hentai on twitter. that is the hardest nosedive i’ve ever seen.
“The most searing indictment of male gynecology is the book by Dr. John M. Smith entitled Women and Doctors (The Atlantic Monthly Press, 1992). After spending nearly twenty-five years in gynecological training and clinical practice, Dr. Smith paints a dismal picture of the woman’s specialist. “Male gynecologists, like all men, go through the kind of ‘attitude setting’ that occurs in the proverbial locker rooms while they are growing into manhood.” Dr. Smith, whose practice was in Colorado Springs, says that “It is common and acceptable among practicing gynecologists to speak about their patients bodies, sexual behavior, or medical problems indiscriminately, in terms that are demeaning and reflect a lack of kindness and respect.” (p. 27) Becoming more explicit, he charges them with eroticizing the medical scene: “It is a rare male who is able to see women day in and day out, examine their bodies, hear details of their sex lives, and not only never have a lascivious thought or abuse that access but always remain clinical…” (p.29) He confesses that “I have had a colleague invite me to do an exam on one of his patients under the false guise of a consultation because ‘she has a body you won’t believe’.” “I have seen a physician walk out of an exam room and tell a hallway full of doctors and nurses about the disease his married patient had contracted as a result of an affair. I have seen more than one gynecologist walk into an operating room where another doctor’s patient was already asleep for surgery, lift up the sheet, admire the patient’s breasts, and continue his conversation without pause.” (p.27) Dr. Smith concludes dramatically: After twenty-four years of medical education and clinical gynecological experience, it is my opinion that males should not be gynecologists. The role properly belongs to women.” (p.29)
american politicians: sucks this country is so poor…how immoral…in order to fix that, let’s slap sanctions on them to limit their access to basic necessities. it’s. called. FREEDOM.
With the resurgence of fascism and right-wing violence against radicals, the topic of armed self-defense and gun ownership
has become much more popular in radical communities. Traditional “Know
Your Rights” trainings in radical and progressive circles have usually
focused on the rights people have to protest or when interacting with
law enforcement. It’s about time we start talking about exactly which
rights the Second Amendment entails as well.
The United States Supreme Court has said that the Second Amendment
enshrines the right of individuals to possess a firearm in their home
for self-defense. That sounds nice and expansive, but as radicals are
well aware, rights are seldom so absolute. So what are your rights with
respect to possessing, purchasing, carrying and using firearms? What are
some of the laws that restrict those rights?
Firearms laws are complicated, change often, and vary significantly
from state to state and even city to city. (Unfortunately, one of the
best resources for more information on state gun laws is the NRA
website). This is a short overview to some of the main federal laws and a
short discussion of some of the variability in state laws and issues
that radicals should be aware of and research further. In this white
supremacist, capitalist, hetero-patriarchy, people who don’t fit the
typical profile of “legal gun owner” (basically anyone who doesn’t
outwardly present as a middle-class white male) will likely encounter
particular suspicion, scrutiny, or hostility for exercising their gun
rights. Knowing the ins and outs what the law does or does not allow may
be helpful, but the police murders of John Crawford and Philando
Castille are painful reminders that legality and rights cannot always
protect you.
Caution: This essay is NOT
legal advice, or even a comprehensive guide to firearms laws across the
United States. You are responsible for knowing the particular
laws—federal, state, and local—that will apply to you. Specific
questions about which laws apply to a particular situations should be
directed to a competent attorney.
Possessing
Federal law (which covers everyone in every state) prohibits a number
of classes of people from ever possessing firearms or ammunition in any
circumstance, including:
anyone convicted of any felony;
anyone convicted of misdemeanor crimes of domestic violence or subject to a domestic violence restraining order;
anyone who uses or is addicted to any controlled substance (this
includes anyone who uses marijuana, even in states where it is legal);
anyone who has ever been committed to a mental institution;
unauthorized immigrants and immigrants in the U.S. on non-immigrant visas;
anyone dishonorably discharged from the military;
any US citizen who has renounced their citizenship. (18 U.S.C. § 922(g)).
Most states have their own laws with similar prohibitions.
This can present some tricky situations for folks living or
organizing in collective spaces, since many people come from a variety
of backgrounds. A shotgun in the front closet of a collective house
could be said to be legally possessed by everyone who is living in the
house, even temporarily. A pistol locked in a drawer or a safe could
still be legally possessed by anyone who has the key or combination to
the lock. Possession of a firearm by those prohibited from possessing
them can carry a 10-year federal prison sentence. People in our
communities and spaces must be informed of and agree to the possible
risks they might face.
There is no federal ban or restriction for semi-automatic “assault
weapons,” but a handful of states either regulate or completely prohibit
them. Amongst these states, the definition of “assault weapon” varies,
and often turns on very minute technical details of the firearm.
Fully automatic firearms are strictly regulated by federal law and
require extensive background checks and licensing to own. The same goes
for rifles and shotguns with short barrels (less than 16” for rifles and
less than 18.5” for shotguns), as well as suppressors/”silencers.”
Modifying a semi-automatic firearm to be fully automatic is almost
always illegal. It is also illegal to possess a firearm that has the
serial number destroyed or obscured.
Some states and cities (New York City is one easy example) have so
many regulations and restrictions and permitting requirements that legal
firearm ownership might simply not be a realistic possibility for
radicals.
Purchasing
The process for legally buying a firearm varies by state. A few
states require buyers to get a background check or license before they
go to purchase a firearm, but most do not. Under federal law and many
state laws, you are required to undergo a background check through the
FBI at the time of purchase if you are buying a firearm from a dealer
with a Federal Firearms License (FFL)—usually any sort of commercial
retail store, firearm dealer, or pawn shop whether it is a big box store
or mom and pop shop; a new or used firearm; or at the physical store,
at their gun show table, or over the internet. Background checks are
also required if you are buying or receiving the gun from anyone out of
state.
However, under federal law and many state laws, you do not need to
undergo a background check if you are buying a firearm from another
private individual in your state. In these states, it is perfectly legal
to respond to an ad in the newspaper, meet in a grocery store parking
lot, exchange the cash and the firearm, and be on your way. But make
sure you know your state laws before engaging in such a transaction.
It is illegal to purchase a firearm for another person—what is called
a “straw purchase.” Federal background check paperwork asks whether the
person filling out the paperwork is the end user or final transferee of
the gun, and answering falsely is a crime. However, purchasing a
firearm with the intent to later give or sell it to another person is
not necessarily illegal provided that you are not buying the firearm at
the request or direction of the person you plan you give or sell it to.
The feds love sting operations in which an undercover requests that
someone buy them a firearm because they don’t want the transaction to be
“on paper.” This is a trap because such a purchase is illegal.
It is illegal to sell, give, or loan a firearm to someone that you
know to be legally ineligible to possess one. So loaning your Glock to
your friend who you know is a convicted felon can get you both in a lot
of trouble.
There is no nation-wide registration of firearms. This means that
when you purchase a firearm, information about you and the firearm you
purchased does not go in some national database for easy, automated
access. However, if a background check was conducted when you bought the
firearm, the FBI has a record that the check was conducted, who
requested it (the store, dealer, etc.), and what the result was. The
store or dealer you bought it from will also retain a record of the sale
which will include information about the specific firearm that was
purchased (make, model, caliber, and serial number). In this way, the
feds are able to laboriously trace gun purchases.
Private sales that are done in states that don’t require background
checks for such sales might or might not have such paperwork. Some
people want buyers to provide ID and a bill of sale to cover their
asses. Others don’t care, but might still have phone or email records
from the communications to arrange the sale.
Some states, however, do have statewide databases for who owns what guns.
You must be at least 18 years old to purchase a rifle or shotgun in most situations, and at least 21 years old to buy a handgun.
Carrying
Laws for carrying or transporting firearms vary significantly by
state, and often don’t make much sense. In some states, it may be legal
to openly carry a handgun on your hip without a permit as long as it is
visible, but the second you put a jacket on over the handgun, you must
have a permit. Similarly, in some states it is legal to carry a loaded
handgun in the passenger compartment of a vehicle without a permit, but
rifles and shotguns must be unloaded and in the trunk. You are always
responsible for knowing the laws of the state that you are in—New Jersey
cops love to arrest absent-minded Pennsylvanians who cross over the
Delaware river with a gun that was legal to carry in Pennsylvania but
isn’t legal in New Jersey. Sometimes even going from city to city in the
same state can subject you to different gun laws.
Transporting firearms from one state to another in a car is generally
legal provided that (1) it is legal for you to possess the firearm in
the first place, (2) the firearm is being transported for lawful
reasons, (3) the firearm is legal to own in both the origin state and
the destination state, and (4) the firearm is unloaded and secured in a
non-passenger part of the vehicle. There is a federal law (18 U.S.C. §
926A) that may protect you from local prosecution if, in the course of
such transport, you are stopped in a jurisdiction where your firearm is
not legal, provided you are only passing through.
Using
People have a right to self-defense, but the specific laws around the
use of force in self-defense are more limited and nuanced than the
basic principle implies, and again can vary significantly by state.
In general, a person may use force against another person if they
reasonably believe that force is immediately necessary to prevent the
imminent use of unlawful force by the other person. The force you use to
defend yourself must be proportionate with the force you are defending
against, so deadly force (any use of a firearm is deadly force) is only
permitted if you reasonably believe it is necessary to protect against
death or serious bodily injury.
This short description is a minefield of legal questions that, should
you ever shoot someone in self-defense, attorneys will fight over and
ultimately a jury or judge will decide. Was your belief that you were
about to be attacked reasonable, or were you just paranoid? What about
your belief about the lawfulness of attack against you? Were you an
initial aggressor who cannot later assert self-defense? How imminent was
the attack against you? Were you actually threatened with death or
serious bodily injury, or just some lesser injury?
Also, there may be a question of whether your use of force was
immediately necessary or whether you had other available options. Some
states still require people to try to retreat or run away before they
can legally use force in self-defense. “Castle Doctrine” and “Stand Your
Ground” laws in many states limit or even eliminate the duty to retreat
before engaging in self-defense.
Generally, deadly force may not be used only to protect property.
However, some states blur the line with “Castle Doctrine” laws that will
presume that a person unlawfully in your house intends to harm the
occupants, thus opening the door to a much broader use of force for
self-defense. But “Castle Doctrine” laws also vary by state.
Because of the many legal questions involved, and the way that
different people might view the facts and circumstances differently, a
lot of people who feel very justified in using force in self-defense
still end up doing prison time. A 10-year plea deal can look very
appealing when facing life without parole, and it comes down to a jury
to decide some subjective question about the reasonableness of your
belief about the threat against you.
Additionally, the murders of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown and so
many others illustrate just how much the race and status of the people
involved can impact these questions: police officers get tremendous
deference, and Black people are perceived as more violent and
threatening than others due to racist stereotypes.
Many crimes (state and federal) are subject to sentencing
aggravators/enhancers if a firearm is involved or even present. Will
prosecutors seek sentencing enhancements on a radical arrested for some
protest activity at an anti-fascist protest if that person was carrying a
firearm? When the cops raid a collective house, will gram of weed found
in a drawer go from a misdemeanor to a felony because there was also a
rifle in the house?
Laws about where you can target shoot vary a lot by state and even
county. It is almost always illegal to discharge a firearm in any urban
area, unless you are at a designated shooting range. Private land in the
country is usually legal to shoot on if you have the landowner’s
permission. Regulations on public land vary depending on whether it is
federal, state, or county land, and which agency manages it. Calling
that agency is always a good way to find out whether you can shoot on it
and what restrictions there might be (such as being a certain distance
from the road, or not shooting across a stream or pond). But also make
sure you are on the land that you think you are on!
Remember that you are legally responsible for every bullet that you fire, so always always practice
good firearm safety (Always treat every gun as if it is loaded; keep
your finger off the trigger until you are ready to fire; never point the
muzzle at anything you are not willing to destroy; know your target and
what is around and beyond it). Most bullets can travel well over a
mile, so just because something is out of sight does not mean it is out
of range. A solid dirt backstop and good muzzle discipline are
imperative.
