Injudicious. According to the Oxford Dictionary it is defined as “Showing very poor judgement; unwise.” It is the perfect adjective with which to describe Gun-Free South Africa’s latest, and very much recycled, campaign in which they demand the South African Police Service be disarmed of their Vektor R5 carbines.
This isn’t something new: GFSA called for the exact same thing back in January, and used the same inaccurate and emotionally worded arguments in their press-release. I debunked and slated them for it in a previous article “Irrational Campaign to Disarm the SAPS”, and I can safely say that their tactics have not changed.
They still refer to the R5 as a massacre rifle, a ridiculous term that took absolutely zero creativity to cook-up, and they still make the same preposterous claims about the rifle and ammunition as before. Since I have already dealt with the shortcomings of their argument in the previous article, I will rather not burden you with them again.
What they have now done is to create an online petition for the removal of the rifles, right on the anniversary of the Marikana incident in order to capitalise on maximum public emotion. The wording used in the petition is frankly unbelievable; “The R-5 is a massacre rifle. Because its bullets disintegrate on impact, police officers who use them to brutally gun down people in crowd control situations, can’t be held to account as bullets cannot be traced back to them.”
No, I didn’t make that up.
The campaign and its petition were posted by GFSA on Twitter, and has since drawn sharp criticism from numerous quarters.
Sign the campaign to stop police using R-5 massacre rifles which gave police license to kill at #marikana http://t.co/UnfIEh3Afd
— Gun Free SA1 (@GunFreeSA) August 18, 2015
Join the campaign to stop the R-5 massacre rifles which gave police license to kill at #marikana http://t.co/xjA5M7KBuG via @AmandlaMobi
— Gun Free SA1 (@GunFreeSA) August 17, 2015
Justice Project South Africa, an organisation with over 33 000 followers on Twitter, was especially unimpressed with the idea.
Congrats @GunFreeSA! You couldn't have picked a better time to show your mala fides than during a #CopKilling spree! https://t.co/1yCXGLz7HV
— Justice Project SA (@JPSAorg) August 18, 2015
The only thing that can stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun @GunFreeSA. Don't ABUSE #Marikana! https://t.co/1yCXGLz7HV
— Justice Project SA (@JPSAorg) August 18, 2015
You simply CAN'T be serious @GunFreeSA! What do you suggest @SAPoliceService takes to armed robberies? Peashooters? https://t.co/1yCXGLz7HV
— Justice Project SA (@JPSAorg) August 18, 2015
As where several others.
@GunFreeSA @AmandlaMobi those same miners killed policemen and security guards with pangas and knives. Why don't we fight to ban unions
— GUNSLINGER (@manharparshotam) August 18, 2015
@GunFreeSA @AmandlaMobi This is probably the dumbest thing I've ever read on the internet. @SAR_K9_Unit @JPSAorg @PigSpotter
— David de Beer (@DdBPhoto) August 18, 2015
@GunFreeSA A quick question? What ever happened to the families of the police officers butchered by those "innocent" miners.
— Mark (@MarkSpigg) August 19, 2015
@GunFreeSA @AmandlaMobi What do you suppose the police then use against criminals? Water pistols?! Especially criminals with AK's
— Mark (@MarkSpigg) August 17, 2015
Over 54 police officers have been murdered in 2015 thus far, and in response to this GFSA calls for them to have their R5 rifles removed. While we are in the midst of a “cop killing spree” they expect SAPS officers to face AK47-wielding criminals with nothing more than handguns. If even that. Are these people completely and utterly insane?
Perhaps they are. They are after all the same organisation that have on numerous occasions stated that SAPS officers shouldn’t be armed when off-duty, and that all police service weapons should be left at work. A policeman once told me that a cop doesn’t stop being a cop just because they are off-duty. The policeman who was heinously murdered on the N2 freeway earlier this year while on his way to work attests to that.
One thing has become crystal clear: GFSA hates the police as much as they hate legal firearm owners. They want to prescribe to the SAPS what equipment their members should be allowed to use in the performance of their duties, and when this equipment should be made available. They want to see SAPS officers disarmed the moment they leave work, and do not care one iota for the dangers faced by these officers while off-duty. Your lives mean nothing to them, and they will happily throw all of you under the bus in pursuit of their political goals.
Considering that GFSA and their board members subscribe to armed response, the hypocrisy is nothing short of incredible.
SAPS members: your lives matter. In this difficult and trying time you do not need some irrelevant NGO who knows nothing of policing, and even less about firearms, attempt to prescribe to you how to do your jobs. Please do not leave the matter here, but take it further.
Every legal gun owner in this country has your back. We are fighting the same battle.
Molon Labe.
susan900
•9 years ago
It’s interesting that organisations like GFSA, that don’t actually do anything but spread propaganda campaigns, have no qualms about prominently asking for donations (see GFSA website). They don’t actually say what specifically they need all that money for, though. That alone should give some insight into their motives.
Contrast that with the many pro-firearm organisations that put forward well reasoned arguments, and do not follow the strategy of drumming up emotional reactions from the uninformed general public before asking for money. It seems obvious to me who genuinely believes in the validity of their cause and who has a self-serving hidden agenda…
Keep up the good work, Gunservant!
gunservant85
•9 years ago
Thank you Susan! Spot-on post, too.
Brittius
•9 years ago
Reblogged this on Brittius.
Kowie Jacobs
•9 years ago
I think GunFreeSA is a criminal organization because all their posts are trying to empower criminals and make law abiding citizens defenseless in a country where firearm related crimes carry very light penalties. The solution is to increase the penalty for firearm related crimes to a minimum sentence of 20 years without parole and reinstate the death penalty for firearm related crimes.
Dewald Steyn
•9 years ago
I agree. This is however a circular argument where 1 half argues that if there are no guns that criminals won’t be able to steal or buy guns – the other half, of which I form part, argues that as long as there is firearm related crime, I will not give up my firearm. There is a simple solution though. I will quite willingly hand in my firearm ( for self protection – not my sporting rifles) if for 365 consecutive days there is absolutely no firearm related crime incident and if the police deem it safe to enforce the county’s laws without carrying any arms.
The again I know that this will not happen for generations to come so stuff it. I keep my guns and shoot any bastard who violates my human rights. The constitution needs a clause that states that any person who violates another persons human right waves his own similar right. So you point me you fall – you steal my stuff i can’t steal your stuff but I can blixem you so you can feel the pain I had to go throug to work hard and save up and buy my stuff and have the frustration of jailing myself into my house to keep the thugs out! I rest my case!
Braam Pretorius
•9 years ago
How Stupid do GFSA want to be. Its not the Guns that Kill People, but Criminal People using Guns. GFSA have you ever done a servey to determine how many Criminals will hand in their Guns? For F#ck sacks just wake up before joining or beginning a organasation.
Dave Kruger
•9 years ago
I really thought that GFSA had better informed indoctrination mongerers than that comment shows. Its not really worth a serious comment in retaliation. The only issue is that the unenlightened anti-gun lobbyists & their equally ignorant followers are slowly going inroads… We have to stop the rot before its too late… History shows that after every gun banning.. Follows genocide & mass murder.. It will happen here also..
Jaco Prinsloo
•9 years ago
I completely agree with you Dave and here it will be worse because crime is already rampant and out of control due to a clear lack of political will. I feel sorry for the honest members in SAPS as they clearly also have to contend with a political uphill battle and not only on the streets.
Steven
•9 years ago
While they at it why not fight for a spoon free South Africa cause obesity is killing more people than guns. Have you seen the size of some of our cops.
timvictor
•9 years ago
I’d like a move toward licensing people to own firearms rather than licensing firearms to people. Make us a free gun society instead!
Heath
•9 years ago
I am so grateful to people like you good sir who can lead the fight against ignorance and apathy in SA. No one can dispute that crime and lawlessness in SA is on the rise and we, the law abiding citizens of our beloved coutry need to uphold the laws and defend our rights to live in peace
Peter Moss
•9 years ago
The only reason GFSA don’t like the police is because they are not acting fact enough to remove YOUR guns. This is a show of power to government and the police that they need to take GFSA seriously.
GFSA does not shoot itself in the foot it has so many qualified advisers that will work out the impact of what is said. Look at the target of GFSA’s action. Now figure out why because this is no mistake.
Women, Gun Ownership, and the SAPS – gunservant.com
•9 years ago
[…] of ever-loving-fuck does GFSA know about Public Order Policing? This is an organisation that has repeatedly called for the SAPS to be disarmed, a demand so extraordinarily stupid that even a person of […]