See You in Church

“When criminologist Dallas Drake and two interns first searched for church shootings in the United States, they found 137 instances between 1980 and 2005, the majority of them causing no deaths. More recently, Drake decided to update the database, and found a disturbing trend: There were more shootings in Christian churches between 2006 and 2016—147 of them—than in the 25 years prior.”

— “Church Shootings Are Becoming Much More Common,” Francie Diep, Pacific Standard

More:

“The other deadly church shooting in America on Sunday,” Cleve Wootson, Washington Post

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Image by Mike Licht. Download a copy here. Creative Commons license; credit Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com

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Gunshot Death. It’s the American Way.

There were 43 shootings in the USA on Sunday. One of them was in Orlando. The toll: 67 dead (including 5 children) and 94 injured.

More:

“We’re 164 days into 2016. We’ve had 133 mass shootings.” Sarah Frostenson and Sarah Kliff, Vox

“1,000 mass shootings in 1,260 days: this is what America’s gun crisis looks like,” The Guardian

“Gun Industry Describes Mass Shootings Like Orlando as a ‘Big Opportunity,’” Lee Fang, The Intercept

“A Brief History of America’s Massive Gun-Buying Spree,” Bryan and Dave Gilson, Mother Jones

 Gun Violence Archive website

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Shootings at 3 Gun Shows on ‘Gun Appreciation Day’

While firearms enthusiasts around the country rallied in support of their gun show loophole, gun owners at three gun shows managed to shoot each other:

“Police say a security guard and two others were wounded Saturday afternoon at the Dixie Gun & Knife Show after a shotgun went off as it was being checked in. The gun owner was planning to sell the weapon at the show, which attracts thousands of people to the fairgrounds in West Raleigh.”

 “As part of Saturday’s national Gun Appreciation Day, gun-rights supporters marched around the Legislative Building in downtown Raleigh. State Capitol Police estimated the crowd numbered around 200 people.”

— “Three wounded at shooting at Dixie Gun & Knife Show,” T . Keung Hui and Hayley Paytes, Charlotte Observer

Congress: Heed the Signs.

Written and animated by Zina Saunders (via Mother Jones.)

Related:

“How Many People Have Been Killed by Guns Since Newtown?” Chris Kirk and Dan Kois, Slate

“Gun violence, by the numbers,” Jennifer Kabat, Salon

“The Media Myth Of NRA Electoral Dominance Should End With 2012,” Timothy Johnson, Media Matters

“Five Things Every Elected Official Should Know About The NRA,” Ian Millhiser, Think Progress

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The NRA Explains It All To You

In memory of the victims of the Sandy Hook school shootings, many Americans observed a moment of silence this morning at 9:30 AM. At 11:00 AM there was talk; the National Rifle Association tried to deflect blame for the massacre from the military-style weapon and high-capacity magazines that enabled it, claiming that violent video games have somehow caused this catastrophe and the mass shootings that occur every two weeks somewhere in the USA. According to NRA CEO Wayne LaPierre:

“And here’s another dirty little truth that the media try their best to conceal: There exists in this country a callous, corrupt and corrupting shadow industry that sells, and sows, violence against its own people.

Through vicious, violent video games with names like Bulletstorm, Grand Theft Auto, Mortal Kombat and Splatterhouse. And here’s one: it’s called Kindergarten Killers. It’s been online for 10 years. How come my research department could find it and all of yours either couldn’t or didn’t want anyone to know you had found it?”