ICHV exploits 'Hutaree' hysteria to gin up support for 'assault weapon' ban

March 31, 9:49 AMSt. Louis Gun Rights ExaminerKurt Hofmann

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The arrest and indictment of nine members of the "Hutaree" (which, supposedly, means "Christian Warrior") group has focused a lot of
national attention on militias and "right-wing hate" groups. This,
despite the fact that when the Hutaree group asked the Southeast
Michigan Volunteer Militia for help, they were brusquely rebuffed:

It wasn’t clear what prompted the raids, but Michael Lackomar, a spokesman for the Southeast Michigan Volunteer Militia, said one of his team
leaders got a frantic phone call Saturday evening from members of
Hutaree, a Christian militia group. They said their property in
southeast Michigan was being raided by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,
Firearms and Explosives, according to Lackomar.

“They said they were under attack by the ATF and wanted a place to hide,”
Lackomar said. “My team leader said, ’no thanks.’”

The SWVM is, indeed, cooperating with the FBI. The Hutaree folks, actually, seem less accurately characterized by "right-wing hate," than
by "wrong wing stupidity." Regardless of the dubious nature of any
supposition of shared ideology between the Hutaree and the various
Constitutional militias across the country, the corporate media, and
groups like the Southern Poverty Law Center, are busily tarring every militia with the Hutaree brush.

The Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence (ICHV), on the other hand, has a more specific, narrower, target: so-called "assault weapons." From their executive director, Thom Mannard:

It is disturbing to read today that a Christian cult and militia sought to arm themselves with deadly weapons and to train its members to kill
other people, including law enforcement officials, based on a sick and
twisted interpretation of the Christian faith. This FBI raid is yet
more proof that hate groups, cults and militias in our nation can
easily arm themselves with some of the most deadly weapons available,
such as military-style assault weapons, powerful handguns and other
dangerous weapons of mass destruction.

Congress and the Obama administration must act to address the terrorism threat enabled by America's weak gun laws. America's safety and security
continues to be at grave risk until we ban the sale of all
military-style assault weapons, such as AK-47s and .50 caliber sniper
rifles, and require criminal background checks on every firearm sold.
Ultimately, comprehensive federal legislation must be enacted to
address this danger and improve homeland security.

Never mind that the climax of the "plan," such as it was, calculated to cause the bulk of the casualties, involved bombs--and explosives are
already quite heavily regulated. The ICHV, though, wants to focus on
so-called "assault weapons," including the AR-15 platform--the biggest
selling centerfire rifles in the U.S.; and .50 caliber rifles, which
have not, to my knowledge, ever been used to kill anyone in the U.S., despite having been on the civilian market for over a quarter century.

Mannard then goes on to urge passage of two Illinois "assault weapon" (and .50 caliber, and "high capacity" magazine) ban bills--HB 3036 and HB 5751. As I recently mentioned, neither of those bills (or any other Illinois gun bill) is likely to see any action this year, but the ICHV is clearly hoping to exploit the Hutaree arrests to change that.

I have remarked before on the forcible citizen disarmament lobby's contemptible habit of exploiting tragedy--"dancing in the blood" of the victims, as it were.
Now, though, with tragedies becoming inconveniently more difficult to come by, the ICHV has been reduced to attempting to exploit alleged atrocities that never happened..