Again
The latest paper to publish a database of handgun carry permit holders: The Memphis Commercial Appeal. Perhaps someone should publish a list of their reporters names and home addresses. Then someone could compare them to, say, unpaid tax records, crime databases, bankruptcy, DUI registries, or some such?
Another reason we need the privacy bill that Kent Williams said he’d help pass.
Update & bump: Michael Silence notes the peculiar classification of handgun carry permit data at the Commercial Appeal’s website:
Well, I wouldn’t lump law-abiding permit holders in with felons, hate crimes and FBI crime reports under the heading, Public Safety. Funny, I don’t see a category for Individual Rights.
What bias?
Update 2: In comments, whitebread reports a response to the problem (though not much of one):
I appreciate your concern and please know I do not take it lightly. Balancing the public’s right to know with privacy concerns is always very difficult. Because of the concerns you raised, and those raised by others, we have removed the street address from the database.
Louis Graham
Asst. Managing Editor
Update: Turnabout being fairplay and all.
February 10th, 2009 at 11:00 am
You know, that’s not a half bad idea. Here’s a full list of their staff:
http://www.commercialappeal.com/staff/
I bet it wouldn’t take long at all to get the address and possibly phone numbers for many of these. At least the less common names would be pretty easy.
February 10th, 2009 at 11:11 am
I say let’s do it. I could help in trying to find some of the information. I will post it on my site. Then, we can send the list to bloggers that want to do the same.
February 10th, 2009 at 11:57 am
I realize it’s covered by current campaign finance law, but I find publishing who contributed money to be nearly as offensive. If a candidate wants to publish big dollar doners for transparency, that’s fine. But if the average Joe gives $10, why should he be published?
February 10th, 2009 at 1:04 pm
Frankly, if my family were harmed because some local newspaper published such info. And a criminal decided to break into all such homes to attempt to steal firearms.
Rest assured…those involved in the media would pay dearly.
February 10th, 2009 at 1:12 pm
I got this response to my comment:
[Whitebread]:
I appreciate your concern and please know I do not take it lightly. Balancing the public’s right to know with privacy concerns is always very difficult. Because of the concerns you raised, and those raised by others, we have removed the street address from the database.
Louis Graham
Asst. Managing Editor
February 10th, 2009 at 1:20 pm
http://shotsacrossthebow.com/archives/003287.html#003287
Here’s a good start.
February 10th, 2009 at 2:02 pm
we have removed the street address from the database
Yep, because as we all know that completely mitigates the invasion of privacy. After all, it’s not as if they could find the street addresses in the White Pages or anything.
February 10th, 2009 at 2:07 pm
I think if the Commercial Appeal reporters, editors, etc. were required to obtain a state permit to exercise their First Amendment rights, they would be hollering “civil rights” violations!! Furhtermore if they had to do that and ahve all the personal info required for teh gun permits NOT PROTECTED by the state, they would be hollering for their 4th Amendment rights….and rightly so. So why do they want the rights of others violated?? I guess it’s liek the quote from Nazi Germany…when they came for the Jews, I wans’t Jewish so I said nothing…”
February 10th, 2009 at 2:22 pm
So why do they want the rights of others violated?
Because some rights, in their world, are more equal than others. I am quite glad the CHL records are closed to the media here in Texas.
February 10th, 2009 at 2:39 pm
I’d bet spending a few bucks searching through PACER could be enlightening. Whatever Tennessee’s equivalent of FOIA is, too.
February 10th, 2009 at 2:47 pm
What they don’t know – ironically – is that they put themselves at risk by publishing that information.
If they are on the list, then thieves could burglarize their home when they aren’t there to get the (likely) accessories.
If they are not on the list, then thugs could target them for mugging because the thugs *know* the person is not carrying.
Bad move, either way. And they make a lot of other people not happy. Triple bad.
February 10th, 2009 at 2:59 pm
[…] Freedom of Information in the New Democracy […]
February 10th, 2009 at 3:18 pm
I spent a few minutes of my lunch hour and checked their names in the database. None of them have carry permits. So, it would seem that while out on the streets, and probably at home as well, they are helpless as kittens.
February 10th, 2009 at 3:26 pm
Why is it that these reporters/editors never seem to learn from their counterparts in other locations?
They always say it is for public safety, but it seems permit holders are not considered members of the public.
When the government looks at cuting off access to the list, the media always says: Oh we will be responsible and not publish sensitive info… we need it to make sure that prohibited people do not get licenses. They simply want the data to make sure the Gov is issueing licenses to non-prohibited people. If you restrict the data then they cant do that vital check.
Then you get some fool who thinks publishing all the names and addresses is responsible.
I am not sure if it is incompetence for not knowing the other situations or lazyness for not doing the legwork yourself of crosschecking against convictions and simply publishing the statistics.
When the list is finally made private, permit holders and honest reporters (there are a few still left) can “thank” the Memphis Commercial Appeal.
February 10th, 2009 at 3:37 pm
Gun Owners have no rights that the media is bound to respect.
February 10th, 2009 at 4:02 pm
Whitebread: I appreciate your concern and please know I do not take it lightly. Balancing the public’s right to know with privacy concerns is always very difficult.
The public does NOT have a RIGHT to know. We, however, do have a right to a free press. This justification of a right to know is a straw argument brought out every time the press does something wrong. Screw the “public’s right to know.” From national secrets to this, it’s only an excuse to sell papers.
February 10th, 2009 at 4:12 pm
A coworker told me about this yesterday. I’m glad to see that they at least got rid of the home address, but they also need to get rid of the DOB. And, of course, they’ve got no justification for publishing it in the first place…
February 10th, 2009 at 4:23 pm
I fail to see why any one should be told or even be aware of the fact I own 1 or 100 guns. If I want to register them or gain a CHL should not make any difference. I’ve got some that are gray and with crap like this going on they will stay that way.
read your german history. We have another painter trying to gain power. So far it looks like he is losing his following. We can only hope.
February 10th, 2009 at 6:19 pm
http://shotsacrossthebow.com/archives/003287.html#003287
How about renting some local billboard space and putting a sign up with that info?
Fight fire with fire. They obviously have zero respect and consideration for those permit holders. They don’t deserve any in return.
February 10th, 2009 at 8:57 pm
Kent Williams wasn’t listed.
Just a random observation.
February 10th, 2009 at 9:03 pm
Well, I just spammed the bejesus out of most of the staff of the newspaper with my letter (though I forgot to change their title a few times), in addition to contacting my state house representative and requesting his support on HB0053.
I guess we will see what comes of this.
February 10th, 2009 at 10:22 pm
Markie Marxist sez: “We Marxists are highly principled people. When it comes to protecting our fellow Marxists, ‘privacy’ is the most important principle. When it comes to punishing our adversaries, ‘the public’s right to know’ is the most important principle. And we Marxists aren’t hypocrites either! We’re just perfectly consistent in the application of our double standard, that’s all.”
February 10th, 2009 at 11:28 pm
You know I carried a handgun for many years without a permit.
Only got the permit because I usually try to do the ‘right’ thing whatever that is these days.
I can do without the damned permit if need be and go back to just carrying.
G. Gordon Liddy had a great saying: “I’d rather be tried by 12 than carried by 6.”
Got a few unregistered firearms tucked away too, ‘just in case’.
February 10th, 2009 at 11:40 pm
I like the billboard idea with the inclusion of the fact none of the editors or managers have CCW’s. After all, “the public has the right to know”. Can’t tell, may actually save lives. Of housebreakers and hot burglars.
If it saves just one life, isn’t it worth it? And the public will “know”.
February 11th, 2009 at 9:56 am
If a person knows what hes doing,he can find out everything about another person by investing a small sum of money and going to a certain website. I would imagine someone who was named in the above list of newspaper employees would be unpleasantly surprise to see name,address,dob,telephone mumber,type of car,license number,with whom he has a car loan,how much is owed,who owns the mortgage on the house,where the children go to school,if the person has a criminal history,etc etc. All this information (and more) is available for inquiring minds. Keep this in mind reporterholes.
February 11th, 2009 at 9:59 am
Considering how HIPAA works this doesn’t make any sense. Every other part of American life has HIPAA like security except this.
This is just a liberal media trying to force people not to have carry permits.
This should not be a public record any more than a person’s medical records or insurance records.
February 11th, 2009 at 11:15 am
Funny… I’m not in their database. Have Permit, Will Travel.
February 11th, 2009 at 1:28 pm
Sites like http://www.123people.com will pull up info about them (and others with matching names, of course). With the world today it doesn’t take very long to pull up all sorts of info about someone once you’ve got a start.
February 11th, 2009 at 6:18 pm
In response to “Say Uncle’s comment” “The latest paper to publish a database of handgun carry permit holders: The Memphis Commercial Appeal. Perhaps someone should publish a list of their reporters names and home addresses. Then someone could compare them to, say, unpaid tax records, crime databases, bankruptcy, DUI registries, or some such?” Here’s something for you to start with:
The Commercial Appeal
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Memphis, TN, 38103
901-529-2345
800-444-6397
Circulation – 529-2666 (Subscriber Services)
Advertising – 529-2251
Classified Advertising – 529-2700
Online Advertising – 529-5299 (Online Media Kit)
News Tips – 529-2322
Online Department (commercialappeal.com) – 529-2464
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February 15th, 2009 at 9:08 pm
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