Thanks, Stu News Laguna, for publishing the following article today. If you already have signed the online petition, thanks. Be sure to ask your grown kids or book club friends, for example, to sign it as well. If you haven’t signed the petition, why not? No one wants to take away your lawfully purchased guns. Instead, we just want President Biden to invite people to Camp David who, typically, talk AT each other instead of WITH each other. As always, your support for the FreidomReport is much appreciated.
Fair Game
By TOM JOHNSON, PUBLISHER
Cook’s Corner is another sad reminder of why the effort by 50+ locals reaching out to President Biden is important
On Wednesday morning (Aug. 22), I visited Zinc Café to enjoy a tasty latte and then to make myself available to hear from residents in a casual setting to discuss anything Laguna Beach related. It was fun.
I realized I need to do this more often, so before I discuss other things, please note that next Wednesday (Aug. 30) you can join me and the other members of the Stu News Laguna team at the Sawdust Festival from 11 a.m.-3 p.m.
So come by and say, “Hi,” and tell us what’s on your mind.
One of the outcomes this week was when Laguna resident Denny Freidenrich, a prolific Stu News letter writer and frequent commenter on all issues, arrived to discuss something he’s been involved with that has tentacles reaching back to virtually every community in America.
It’s the gun problem. There, I said it. It’s one of those issues that often at the mention brings divisiveness. Now, don’t get me wrong, I support U.S. citizens’ rights to own a gun. But, it’s hard to argue that there isn’t a problem when most any day of any week has some type of gun violence occurring in our country.
Turns out, Wednesday evening (Aug. 23), in fact, was no different. Within hours of Denny and I talking, a shooting occurred at Cook’s Corner, a noted and beloved biker bar by many, that is located in Trabuco Canyon. Reports have four people reported dead, including the shooter, with another six hospitalized, with several in critical condition.
The Orange County District Attorney’s office has since pointed to a potential domestic dispute involving retired Ventura Police Department officer John Snowling, who has been identified as the shooter. Unfortunately, this story, too, will play out as yet another senseless shooting that has left multiple people dead in its wake.
So, back to Denny, and a group of other folks, our neighbors, here in Laguna Beach.
Click on photo for a larger image
Courtesy of Denny Freidenrich
Some of the more than 50 Laguna Beach locals urging President Biden to convene a Camp David gun summit – (L-R): Wayne Baglin, Cort Kloke, Patricia Twitty, Bob Mister, Susan Hough, Bob Jacob, Faye Baglin, Bob Borthwick, Al Oligino and Denny Freidenrich
Denny began by asking and answering the following question: “Why are more than 50 Laguna Beach residents, and 700 people coast to coast, urging President Biden to convene a gun summit at Camp David? Because they worry about the growing number of mass shootings taking place nearly every day in America.”
His next line was somewhat chilling, saying “even though nothing like this has happened here yet, they know it could” (not knowing that just hours later the violence would hit closeby at Cook’s).
He continued, “Just ask those living in Buffalo, where 10 were gunned down while grocery shopping last year. Or residents of Highland Park, Ill., where seven were massacred during their annual Fourth of July parade a year ago. If that wasn’t enough, what about the countless number of parents in Sandy Hook, Parkland or Uvalde, who sent their children off to school in the morning, never to see them alive again at the end of the day.”
Freidenrich, a proven community organizer, has decided to take action, directly contacting the President (Biden), saying, “We are a nation awash with guns. Thoughts and prayers haven’t prevented mass shootings from happening. I’m thankful so many friends here in town agree it’s time to rethink America’s strategy when it comes to ending what many are calling a gun violence pandemic.”
Denny said that one of the first to step up locally and help was Bob Mister, a former Army officer who served in Germany back in the ‘60s.
Mister added, “The cruel irony is that while the NRA and 2nd Amendment proponents have successfully lobbied federal lawmakers to take a hands-off approach to many gun safety measures, gunshots continue to ring out from military-style weapons like AR-15 rifles. I’m worried the same thing will happen when youngsters get their hands on the new JR-15 weapons.”
Another supporter joining Freidenrich is Faye Baglin, who is actively involved with Laguna’s Community Art Project. She added, “It’s clear to me more and more shootings are going to continue to occur. I am in complete agreement with our proposed Camp David solution. The President needs to convene a summit on guns.”
So who does the group of 50-plus locals suggest attend the summit?
According to the open letter they all signed, they urge President Biden to invite representatives from the National Rifle Assn., 2nd Amendment proponents, law enforcement officials and grieving family members to stay at Camp David for as long as it takes to find common ground on new, commonsense gun laws.
Freidenrich points out that this method should sound familiar. “This is exactly what Jimmy Carter did in 1978, when he invited Egypt’s Anwar Sadat and Israel’s Menachem Begin to Camp David. Yes, their discussions were long and difficult; but, in the end the peace agreement they reached is still in effect today.”
Another local co-signer is Susan Hough, who directs the local Walking for Water project at Laguna Beach High School. She offers, “Fixing the complex problem of gun violence in America may not be simple but taking this first, essential step is. On behalf of everyone who supports this effort, we simply cannot remain silent any longer.”
If you are interested in the group’s next steps, including joining more than 700 people who have signed their new, online petition, click on this link www.bit.ly/3OcFpqm.
In the meantime, we can only pray for those impacted just over the hill in Trabuco Canyon.
Great that you got Tom Johnson to pipe in.