For Immediate Release: 5/16/2005
BELLEVUE, WA - More than 115 dead or injured, and now a lame "apology" from
Newsweek; maybe it is time for the press to accept waiting periods before
exercising its First Amendment rights in the same way the press has backed
waiting periods on law-abiding Americans before exercising their Second
Amendment rights.
That's the observation from the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) now that
Newsweek has acknowledged its report about the desecration of the Koran by
soldiers at Guantanamo Bay was bogus.
"I wonder if Newsweek, or its owner, the Washington Post, would submit all
of their stories for FBI clearance before they publish," said SAF founder
Alan Gottlieb. "This irresponsible exercise of the First Amendment freedom
of the press has killed and injured more people than Charles Whitman or the
Beltway Snipers.
"How many times," Gottlieb wondered, "have Newsweek and The Washington Post
advocated waiting periods for law-abiding citizens, who have hurt nobody,
before they can buy a firearm? A waiting period amounts to prior restraint
by the government. How loud would reporters scream if they faced prior
restraint before printing their version of the news? Their double standard
is hypocritical.
"The Second Amendment is the only civil right in this country that Americans
can't exercise unless they get government permission," he noted. "A Newsweek
story just killed or injured more than 115 people, but they don't have to
face government scrutiny before turning on the press.
"Newsweek reporters and editors should be subject to the same kind of
'cooling-off' period they advocate for gun buyers," Gottlieb observed. "In
their heated rush to print a sensational story to discredit American
soldiers and the Bush Administration, they started a chain reaction that
ended in worldwide acts of violence.
"The blood is on Newsweek's hands," Gottlieb stated. "Their report killed
and injured scores of people, yet it is the American gun owner who must
endure waiting periods because of an irrational fear that they might commit
a crime. Crimes were committed because of Newsweek's story. People have
died."
The Second Amendment Foundation is the nation's oldest and largest
tax-exempt education, research, publishing and legal action group focusing
on the Constitutional right and heritage to privately own and possess
firearms. Founded in 1974, The Foundation has grown to more than 600,000
members and supporters and conducts many programs designed to better inform
the public about the consequences of gun control. SAF has previously funded
successful firearms-related suits against the cities of Los Angeles; New
Haven, CT; and San Francisco on behalf of American gun owners, a lawsuit
against the cities suing gun makers & an amicus brief & fund for the Emerson
case holding the Second Amendment as an individual right.
The Second Amendment Foundation is the nation's oldest and largest
tax-exempt education, research, publishing and legal action group focusing
on the Constitutional right and heritage to privately own and possess
firearms. Founded in 1974, The Foundation has grown to more than 600,000
members and supporters and conducts many programs designed to better inform
the public about the consequences of gun control. SAF has previously funded
successful firearms-related suits against the cities of Los Angeles; New
Haven, CT; and San Francisco on behalf of American gun owners, a lawsuit
against the cities suing gun makers & an amicus brief & fund for the Emerson
case holding the Second Amendment as an individual right.
-END-
BELLEVUE, WA - More than 115 dead or injured, and now a lame "apology" from
Newsweek; maybe it is time for the press to accept waiting periods before
exercising its First Amendment rights in the same way the press has backed
waiting periods on law-abiding Americans before exercising their Second
Amendment rights.
That's the observation from the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) now that
Newsweek has acknowledged its report about the desecration of the Koran by
soldiers at Guantanamo Bay was bogus.
"I wonder if Newsweek, or its owner, the Washington Post, would submit all
of their stories for FBI clearance before they publish," said SAF founder
Alan Gottlieb. "This irresponsible exercise of the First Amendment freedom
of the press has killed and injured more people than Charles Whitman or the
Beltway Snipers.
"How many times," Gottlieb wondered, "have Newsweek and The Washington Post
advocated waiting periods for law-abiding citizens, who have hurt nobody,
before they can buy a firearm? A waiting period amounts to prior restraint
by the government. How loud would reporters scream if they faced prior
restraint before printing their version of the news? Their double standard
is hypocritical.
"The Second Amendment is the only civil right in this country that Americans
can't exercise unless they get government permission," he noted. "A Newsweek
story just killed or injured more than 115 people, but they don't have to
face government scrutiny before turning on the press.
"Newsweek reporters and editors should be subject to the same kind of
'cooling-off' period they advocate for gun buyers," Gottlieb observed. "In
their heated rush to print a sensational story to discredit American
soldiers and the Bush Administration, they started a chain reaction that
ended in worldwide acts of violence.
"The blood is on Newsweek's hands," Gottlieb stated. "Their report killed
and injured scores of people, yet it is the American gun owner who must
endure waiting periods because of an irrational fear that they might commit
a crime. Crimes were committed because of Newsweek's story. People have
died."
The Second Amendment Foundation is the nation's oldest and largest
tax-exempt education, research, publishing and legal action group focusing
on the Constitutional right and heritage to privately own and possess
firearms. Founded in 1974, The Foundation has grown to more than 600,000
members and supporters and conducts many programs designed to better inform
the public about the consequences of gun control. SAF has previously funded
successful firearms-related suits against the cities of Los Angeles; New
Haven, CT; and San Francisco on behalf of American gun owners, a lawsuit
against the cities suing gun makers & an amicus brief & fund for the Emerson
case holding the Second Amendment as an individual right.
The Second Amendment Foundation is the nation's oldest and largest
tax-exempt education, research, publishing and legal action group focusing
on the Constitutional right and heritage to privately own and possess
firearms. Founded in 1974, The Foundation has grown to more than 600,000
members and supporters and conducts many programs designed to better inform
the public about the consequences of gun control. SAF has previously funded
successful firearms-related suits against the cities of Los Angeles; New
Haven, CT; and San Francisco on behalf of American gun owners, a lawsuit
against the cities suing gun makers & an amicus brief & fund for the Emerson
case holding the Second Amendment as an individual right.
-END-
