Geeze, the Bufflo News is one fucked up newspaper!
At least this fucking moron got it right when he states that it is like a witch hunt!
[url]http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial/20010416/1008404.asp[/url]
Shooting from the lip
CHARLES LEWIS/Buffalo News
Lancaster Town Board Member Richard Zarbo has come under criticism for advertising high-powered weapons over the Internet.
4/16/01
This page has long been a proponent for stronger gun-control laws. But recent actions by Lancaster town leaders seem more like a witch hunt than a reasoned drive for gun control. Making the situation even more bizarre is that the target of the witch hunt is one of their own Town Board members.
In addition to being a member of the Town Board, Richard Zarbo is a firefighter and the proprietor of a home gun shop he opened five years ago with the town's approval. He has all the necessary permits to deal in guns, and has been checked out by the FBI on several occasions.
The problem started, however, when Zarbo started advertising his wares over the Internet about a year ago. Residents have been thrown into an uproar as anonymous fliers announcing that assault weapons were for sale in town started showing up in mailboxes.
Politicians have quickly thrown themselves into the fray, also. Supervisor Robert Giza and Councilman Mark A. Montour have gone so far as to say that they are examining the legality of Zarbo's business. They claim that they thought the permit was for a repair shop, which is how they said Zarbo presented it. They told News reporter Deidre Williams that they became aware of Zarbo's gun dealing a few months ago, through fliers and word-of-mouth on the street.
We're hardly shocked that politicians would shoot from the lip - so to speak - before finding out the facts. But it still seems ludicrous when an elected official admits he took a stand based on a piece of paper that crossed his path.
Aside from Giza's and Mountour's claim of ignorance, more disturbing is their willingness to bend the law. Both men said they are checking into the possibility of revoking Zarbo's permit, even though he has broken no laws.
Giza said he's not against responsible gun ownership or hunting. He's just concerned about the sale of assault weapons. Zarbo was advertising, for example, the Daewoo TR-2000, which was banned in the United States. But it is not illegal to sell any of the 12,000 that remain in this country.
We're not ready to nominate Zarbo as man of the year for selling weapons that basically have one primary function - to kill people. And, as an elected official, Zarbo might wonder about what kind of example he sets by selling those kinds of weapons. But we believe in the law. And Zarbo is legally permitted to sell firearms. He applied for and received a special-use permit from the town in March 1996.
Zarbo said he is federally licensed to buy, sell and trade rifles and shotguns. That's backed up by James McNally, a spokesman for the Buffalo office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, who said Zarbo is one of about 2,000 federally licensed gun dealers in the entire upstate region.
Zarbo emphasized that his Web site is merely an advertisement, and that he doesn't sell guns directly over the Internet. Potential purchasers must either show up in person at his business, where they will have to fill out paperwork, go through a background check and cooling off period mandated by federal law. Or, purchasers can have the fi