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gunowners.jpg
It's a public record. The Journal News says neighbors have a right to know in case they feel insecure about living next to a gun owner. (Screen grab of the Journal News map)

Gun owners - outed in New York!

BY Dave Ross  on December 27, 2012 @ 7:36 am (Updated: 7:51 am - 12/27/12 )

There it is - on the website of the Journal News, which covers New York's Westchester, Putnam, and Rockland Counties. An interactive map with red dots, which you can click on to see the names of people with gun permits and where they live. Not the number and types of weapons, just that they have a permit.

It's a public record. The paper says neighbors have a right to know in case they feel insecure about living next to a gun owner.

I checked out a gun owner I know in Westchester, Sure enough - she has a permit. Which makes sense because I know her to be a law-abiding citizen.

That's the bottom line here - this is a map of law obeyers, not law breakers. Now - if I knew that a neighbor had guns, and saw there was NO red dot indicating a permit, that's what would worry me.

The newspaper's gotten flak from people worried that outing gun owners like this will just help bad guys steal guns. Maybe - if the bad guy could be sure the owner wasn't home. But it seems to me a crook would want to avoid the homes with the red dots, right?

As for how this might affect our current gun debate: When you look at the map of Westchester (where I grew up, by the way) and you see those 16,000 dots in just the one county - you realize gun confiscation is not going to happen. What you DO hope is that under the dot is a responsible gun owner who's been trained, who has a safe, and is in a good mood today.

Dave Ross, KIRO Radio Talk Show Host
Dave Ross is co-host of The Ross & Burbank Show on KIRO Radio (weekdays 9-Noon) and never too far from the spotlight.
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Comments (82)


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  • mpgunner wrote...
    According to LibTard logic the NRA is the problem
    December 27, 2012 11:48 pm
    Yep, they caused all of this killing. Yet, nothing to do with the sick kids/men, right? But, if Lib's get their mag limits the will "feel good" and be happy. Just like voting for Obama. Results don't matter, just feeling good.
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  • Ron_Spins wrote...
    LibTard logic is breathtaking hypocrisy
    December 28, 2012 1:12 am
    LibTard logic released that nut in New York from prison (after killing his own Grandmother with a hammer)to go on and set the neighborhood on fire and kill two firefighters.LibTard logic slaps the hand of a cold blooded killer like the one that savagely beat Tuba Man to death.LibTard logic has no ethical fiber and posts person info that can be used against someone (snatch their gun)does Liberals ever think about Unintended Consequences.?Answer: No.
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  • messiah101 wrote...
    Ron Spin
    December 28, 2012 6:18 am
    Actually the Parole Board released him.And publishing Public information has nothing to do with "snatching their gun".Yes the Libs do think about "Unintended Consequences" which is EXACTLY why we want to lessen the easy availability to weapons of MASS DESTRUCTION
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  • deltta wrote...
    "EXACTLY why we want to lessen the easy availability to weapons of MASS DESTRUCTION"
    December 28, 2012 7:57 am
    What are you hyperventilating about?
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  • JohnQEveryman wrote...
    ha!
    December 28, 2012 7:16 am
    What exactly do you think all this knee-jerk legislation does? It has never proffered substantive resolution to root-cause issues, only to make Americans feel better and *think* the issue is resolved. However... removing assault rifles from the equation is a start to tackling the root-cause issue. And yes, the NRA IS the problem... they represent 0.01% of the US population (4Mil members), yet have their hands in the legislation that is generally accepted as being counter to popular social opinion. Majority and popular social opinion create rule and law in this country, yet somehow gun laws, antithetical to the majority desires, are passed. How? The NRA. But you're right... they're just a group of friendly, philanthropic individuals. I be you think Halliburton is too, eh?
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  • mpgunner wrote...
    Funny how lib's love privacy...
    December 27, 2012 11:49 pm
    Except when to expose gun owners. Aren't they great?
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  • messiah101 wrote...
    mpgunner
    December 28, 2012 6:13 am
    But in this case the folks that published this gun permit info is a group of FAR Right 1st Amendment advocates.Don't you feel the FIRST Amendment is important to protect?Are you ANTI FIRST AMENDMENT? If so why?
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  • ron prevost wrote...
    OK, messiah, I've just got to know HOW you determined the Journal New is 'FAR Right'
    December 28, 2012 7:04 am
    Trying your hand at trolling ?

    But the 1st amendment is just as important as the 2nd, just not more so. Nor more or less so than any of the Bill of Rights. .. Spurious cases can be made against just about any of our rights and liberties from time to time, but that's why they are enshrined in a Constitution that's difficult to amend - not subject to a 50% + One vote.

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  • JohnQEveryman wrote...
    ...
    December 28, 2012 7:18 am
    And it's funny how the GOP decries invasions of privacy, unless it's useless legislation like the PATRIOT Act. BTW, most Libs DO NOT decry privacy violations... you're thinking of your GOP brethren. Most Libs want social cooperation and cohesion, with privacy as a freedom given up for safety.
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