NOTE TO READERS: It turns out that the story about Michael Moore’s bodyguard being arrested on gun charges IS NOT TRUE. The source story came from Fox, which took it off their site.
Remember what we constantly remind readers and bloggers on our posts: most blog posts are based on the assumption that the source material is true; this one wasn’t.
However, there were many readers who were interested in raising various issues surrounding gun control in the comments boxes. They spent a lot of time and thought on their comments (we’re talking about varying views). So we’re leaving the post as is and the comments as is — in deference to the fact that they wanted to comment on the gun issue and put in their time writing comments.(We thank Slant Point for the tip).
Folks making a big deal over Michael Moore’s bodyguard being arrested on gun charges at an airport are mixing apples and oranges:
- Moore’s campaign was never to eliminate every gun off the face of the earth, including those carried by bodyguards. When has anyone heard or seen him decry the Secret Service for carrying guns?
- Gun control advocates aren’t urging the removal of guns from bodyguards.
- It is therefore irrelevant to point to this story in part of the debate (for and against) gun law.
- His movie Bowling For Columbine had absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with banning all guns — guns of policemen, guns of the military, guns of bodyguards. I am not arguing in favor of this film that it turns out allegedly had highly manipulative editing. But people who make a connection been this movie and bodyguards carrying guns have likely not seen the movie, not read about the movie or really don’t care because they see the possibility of making a political a point (that doesn’t hold up).
- From this story (read link) they took him into custody after he DECLARED he was carrying a gun.
According to the story, the bodyguard was licensed to carry a gun in Florida but not in New York. A somewhat — but not completely comparable — case occurrer in April when Rep. John Hostettler said he "forgot" that he had a gun in his bag at the airport.:
WASHINGTON (CNN) — A U.S. congressman was briefly detained at a Kentucky airport Tuesday after authorities found a loaded gun in his bag at a screening checkpoint, authorities said.
Rep. John Hostettler, R-Indiana, "completely forgot" he had the gun in his bag as he prepared to take a US Airways flight to Washington for the first day of work after a two-week recess, a spokesman for the congressman said.
A Homeland Security Department official said Hostettler had a loaded 9 mm Glock pistol in his bag at Louisville International Airport .
The congressman said he did not know the gun was in his bag and apologized, the official said.
Hostettler’s spokesman, Michael Jahr, said Transportation Security Administration officials detained but did not arrest the congressman.
"He was pulled aside and questioned," and then was allowed to take a different flight, Jahr said, adding that he didn’t know if the gun was confiscated.
It appears licensing wasn’t the issue in that case, though. But the bottom line is this:
I never thought I’d see the day when I’d defend Michael Moore strongly..but in the interest of ACCURACY: his bodyguard’s arrest has nothing to do with what he has advocated.
Geeze, you’d think it’s a slow news day given the attention to this story but that’s no excuse on this one: there is Presidential inauguration today.
UPDATE: A good, extensive and documented case against Michael Moore is made by John Hawkins here.
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.