NEWSWEEK WRITER: ONLY AR-15 OWNERS I KNOW ARE MASS MURDERERS

10:58 AM 11/19/2018 | MEDIAAmber Athey | Media and Breaking News Editor 25

Newsweek writer Nina Burleigh claimed Saturday that almost every person she has heard of who owns an AR-15 rifle “has been a mass murderer.”

And “based on Twitter sample the rest of them are scarily paranoid,” Burleigh tweeted.

“Get on the right side of history,” she urged, tagging NRA spokeswoman Dana Loesch and right-wing personality Joe Biggs, who are both outspoken supporters of the Second Amendment.

Compare and contrast. Hyperbole may have its uses, but not in something purporting to be a news story. I have owned two or three AR-15’s over the years. I have known dozens of people in and out of law enforcement that own AR-15’s. None of them are mass murderers.  

The statement says more about the person who uttered such nonsense then the target of her ire. It is right up there with,”I don’t know how he got elected, nobody I know voted for him.” Both statements bring to mind two possibilities. One, Ms. Burleigh has surrounded herself with liars. Secondly, she needs to get out more. 

Ms. Burleigh is entitled to her opinion. She is also entitled to all the contempt directed at her for such a stupid statement. Mark Twain said it best.

It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt. 

Mark Twain