Finding Scapegoats

Jeff points to a NYT article drumming up support for anti-gun blogs.

Of note was this bit:

Ms. Robinson said she is frustrated that Democrats see gun-control as a losing issue and have dropped it as a topic. So she has helped organize a campaign called Where Did the Gun Come From?, which is trying to re-frame the issue, not in terms of "control" or "rights" but in terms of gun trafficking.

"We want the media to ask where the gun used in a crime came from, to follow it back to the people who sell arms to criminals for profit," she said.

Um. Are we still planning to punish the criminal who used the gun?

Because all this "re-framing" bullshit just shifts the focus from the criminal to the tool used by the criminal. It may make the anti-gunners feel better but it won't do diddly in stopping crime.

If there were a sudden spike in knife crimes, Ms. Robinson would likely organize another campaign called Where Did the Knife Come From?

Once again, instead of pinning responsibility on the doer, we pin responsibility on the object.

Like saying a drunk driver didn't kill a family of four hitting their sedan head-on, it was his car. Or the alcohol.