Moore Hypocrisy (updated: the guy is not Moore’s bodyguard)
Filmmaker Michael Moore’s bodyguard was arrested for carrying an unlicensed weapon in New York’s JFK airport Wednesday night.
Police took Patrick Burke, who says Moore employs him, into custody after he declared he was carrying a firearm at a ticket counter. Burke is licensed to carry a firearm in Florida and California, but not in New York. Burke was taken to Queens central booking and could potentially be charged with a felony for the incident.
Wasn’t Bowling for Columbine about America’s gun culture leading to the death of, well, everybody?
Update: The Geek details that NY laws are a bit silly.
And Confederate Yankee lists other gun hypocrites.
Update 2: Joe Gandelman says this does not make Moore a hypocrite noting that: his bodyguard’s arrest has nothing to do with what he has advocated. I disagree. Mr. Moore has advocated banning handguns for private citizens. Mr. Moore’s bodyguard is likely a private citizen engaged in the protection business. He has a carry permit valid in certain states (just like I do). He is likely not a duly sworn peace officer. A ban on handguns would disarm this guy.
Update 2: Apparently, the guy is not Moore’s bodyguard. More ammo for Moore against Fox, eh?
Update 3: The guy has in fact been Moore’s bodyguard in the past so it doesn’t excuse the hypocrisy.
January 20th, 2005 at 11:02 am
This is the greatest thing ever.
January 20th, 2005 at 11:23 am
I hope it gets appealed and this “gun license” crap gets thrown out as unconstitutional.
January 20th, 2005 at 11:46 am
I think the big question in Bolwing for Columbine was “Why do American’s kill each other more than other people?” Not, guns are completely evil. At least, that’s the way I took it.
Still, the irony isn’t completely lost on me.
January 20th, 2005 at 11:51 am
But there was the segment that did nothing but demonize guns and gun owners. I found it ironic that Moore spend so much time pointing out the silliness of blaming music, manson, games, etc. for the shooting and then proceeded to blame guns.
January 20th, 2005 at 12:03 pm
Gun Links #30
AK-Pattern Rifles EAA is no longer importing Baikals or Saigas. The (non-AK Baikal guns will be imported by Remington under the Spartan by Remington brand, and EAA suggests the prices will be higher. There’s apparently no distributor for the AK-based …
January 20th, 2005 at 12:03 pm
If guns are outlawed, only rich celebrities’ bodyguards will have guns.
January 20th, 2005 at 1:36 pm
What do you mean, “a bit silly”. How about, “astoundingly stupid”?
January 20th, 2005 at 3:18 pm
Understatement is absolutely, positively the best.
January 20th, 2005 at 3:32 pm
I’m struck by how many full-auto assault rifles and machine pistols, not to mention private bodyguards packing whatever they choose…are going to be standing around at the inauguration. What if one of these underpaid, heavily-armed folks is a nut or a mole? There he is, in a position overlooking half the fed politicians in America with a 30 round mag and a full auto weapon. It only take one nut, and 4 seconds to empty the mag into the crowd. Even if they are all neck-deep in body armor, its going to sting and clank a little bit!
January 21st, 2005 at 12:04 am
The update from Burk’s employer says the firearm was not “unlicensed,” but is “legally registered” to him. I presume this means Mr. Burk resides in a state that requires firearms to be “legally registered” or “licensed.” Anybody have that info?
For comparison, North Carolina does not register firearms, and you do not have to have a license to purchase or own one. You do have to get a “permit” to purchase a handgun, but it’s basically a coupon that shows you’ve paid the sheriff a fee and passed a background check. It in no way registers or “licenses” the gun itself.
January 21st, 2005 at 10:12 am
Burk’s employer rents bodyguards such as Burk out to people such as Moore – htey say Burk wasn’t working for Moore that day, but not whether Burk has worked for Moore.
More important, they say Burk had his handgun in luggage to be checked and was arrested by NYC cops when he declared it at the ticket counter. That is, Burk was in compliance with federal laws, and his arrest WAS AN INTERFERENCE WITH INTERSTATE COMMERCE. There are laws about that with rather harsh penalties. Oh, for an Attorney General with the balls to have NYC officials dragged out of their offices in handcuffs.
January 21st, 2005 at 1:12 pm
Markm, it’s not that simple. Many state laws interfere with interstate commerce; arguably, they all do. That doesn’t make them invalid. What does make them invalid is if they conflict with a valid federal law, e.g., the Firearm Owners’ Protection Act. I don’t know if FOPA applies to air travel, but if it does, NYC’s ordinance probably violates it. The only likely “penalty,” however, would be the invalidation of the ordinance.
You may have been thinking of the “dormant commerce clause,” a doctrine under which state laws are sometimes struck down if they discriminate against interstate commerce or otherwise impair it in a significant way without Congressional authorization. I can’t see a court stretching that doctrine far enough to reach a case like this, but again, even if it did, there probably wouldn’t be any penalty involved, just the invalidation of a crappy ordinance.