432
A Coup Is In Progress In America (www.techdirt.com)
submitted 2 days ago by ooli2@lemm.ee to c/usa@midwest.social
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[-] chiliedogg@lemmy.world 33 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

I hate that I'm typing this...

People need to start buying weapons right now. It's not that I think we're at the "take up arms" phase. It's that I think we should be ready before they keep us from being able to.

With all the shit they're pulling with federal databases, I expect people are going to start being added to NICS (background check database) for political reasons.

When you get a NICS denial, there's no explanation of why it's was denied, but you can't buy a gun.

And it will alert the FBI that you tried.

[-] SoftestSapphic@lemmy.world 10 points 1 day ago

Yeah they will absolutely try to deny gun ownership based on political affiliation

[-] piccolo@sh.itjust.works 8 points 1 day ago

If that happens. Theres going to be a huge influx of gun shows.

[-] chiliedogg@lemmy.world 5 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

FYI, the "Gun Show Loophole" isn't a real thing. Dealers still have to fill out a 4473 and run a background check at gun shows. There's even a checkbox for it on the 4473.

What there is is a private sales loophole, where individuals can sell a gun on the secondary market.

That doesn't require a gun show.

[-] Corkyskog@sh.itjust.works 4 points 1 day ago

Stop being pedantic. The only reason there is so many dealers at them is because of all the private sales in the first place.

[-] chiliedogg@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago

They are a common meet-up place for private sellers, but it does nothing for dealers. The secondary market is bad for dealers.

You really don't seem to know what you're talking about.

[-] piccolo@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 day ago

Private sellers are not required to do background checks according to federal law. States are free to require private sellers to do background checks, but half of the states do not require them.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_show_loophole

[-] chiliedogg@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago

That's what I said. Prialvate sellers are not dealers, and private sales don't have to be performed at gun shows.

And there are still legal requirements. For instance, it's illegal to sell or gift a person a pistol if they live in a different state.withput going to a dealer and transferring it through them with a background check. You also cannot sell or give away a firearm that isn't legal in the state in which the transfer is taking place or in the state of legal residence of the person taking ownership of the firearm.

When I was in firearm sales, we had spreadsheets for every gun in our inventory listing the states of residence in which it could be legally sold.

Additionally, you have to follow the transfer regulations of both states. So if someone from New Jersey wanted to buy a hunting rifle from the store where I worked, we had to run a New Jersey background check, fill out New Jersey paperwork, and review their New Jersey firearms license. If there was a waiting period in their state, we had to honor it.

If private sales are banned (NICS check requirements are private sales bans because civilians don't have access to NICS) in someone's home state, buying it privately in a different state is a crime.

Fun additional fact: In Texas we also had to report to the feds anytime someone purchased more than one semi-auto centerfire rifle of 22 caliber or greater in a 5-day period, or more than 1 handgun in a 5-day period. That's a regulation only in effect in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California.

[-] SolidShake@lemmy.world 6 points 1 day ago

Lmao no conservative in this country would be for a gun ban. Ever. They might suck the orange balls but they suck their gun muzzles even harder while saying the 2nd amendment out loud. This scenerio would never happen.

[-] chiliedogg@lemmy.world 12 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Conservatives aren't the ones that will be banned. They'll target liberals and the conservatives will joke that the dems should be happy for finally getting gun control for themselves.

[-] andxz@lemmy.world 6 points 1 day ago

That won't happen as long as they make sure you can buy all the guns you'd ever want as long as you stay on the RIGHT side of anything political.

[-] NigelFrobisher@aussie.zone 13 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

From Trump’s POV it’s actually a heist. He’s going to take everything that’s not bolted down.

[-] djsoren19 32 points 2 days ago

The coup happened decades ago. They're now comfortable enough in their power that the mask can come off.

[-] Hegar@fedia.io 116 points 2 days ago

Part of the issue is that elites have already bought into the coup. You don't eviscerate the US government without making sure the rich are on side first.

That's why so many CEOs publicly made gestures of support for trump just before and after the election.

The only way to stop the fascists who already have control of the courts, the government and the rich would be mass mobilization of a significant % of the population, or a military counter-coup.

[-] Tja@programming.dev 22 points 1 day ago

People voted for the coup. People were warned, they were told it would happen, it was all documented in writing, they had a fucking website with the "we are going to do a coup" plan. People had a beta version 4 years ago. People still voted for the coup. And if you look at the world outside of lemmy, people don't care about the coup.

[-] Hegar@fedia.io 10 points 1 day ago

Less than 35% of the country voted for republicans in an election where PACs alone spent 5.6 billion dollars to lie and buy votes, and that doesn't include the amount spent on election interference by us and foreign oligarchs.

[-] Tja@programming.dev 6 points 1 day ago

The 30% who didn't vote made a conscious decision, so I don't buy the 35% argument. You could also say that less than 33% of the country expressed their disagreement when asked.

[-] FolknForage@lemm.ee 3 points 1 day ago

“Democracy…If you can keep it”

[-] MothmanDelorian@lemmy.world 6 points 2 days ago

it has been a fairly dry winter around all those golf course communities.

[-] RagnarokOnline@programming.dev 68 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

Top comment from Mike Brock’s blog (where this diatribe came from):

Right now it feels we have a growing chorus of people raising alarm, but very few people proposing any specific actions that are commensurate with the scale of the crisis? I appreciate your work and I don’t mean this flippantly, but do you have any proposals more specific than “resist” or “do something”?

This comment is my thought exactly. Brock isn’t wrong, but he’s just blowing real hard and hoping the house falls down.

All this blog did was piss me of, but it didn’t point me in a direction.

(But thanks for posting, OP.)

[-] Sanctus@lemmy.world 5 points 1 day ago

Its because its against TOS everywhere to say what must be done, and people are too afraid/divided/poor to do it.

[-] MothmanDelorian@lemmy.world 15 points 2 days ago

The founding fathers would have you join a mass of people outside the homes of the legislators demanding they take action or suffer consequences.

[-] andyburke@fedia.io 20 points 2 days ago

Because there is still time for people in power to stop being cowed. That is what this is calling for: do something before it is too late to avoid it becoming an illegitimate government, with all that brings.

[-] LesserAbe@lemmy.world 12 points 2 days ago

Is your interpretation that this post is intended for politicians to read and take action? If so what do you think they should do?

Like the commenter above us I'm at a loss. Short of resorting to force, there doesn't seem like an action the average person can take that would accomplish anything. Our politicians don't seem to be acting in proportion to the threat. And even if they were, Republicans have a (slim) majority. Even if you were to say we've reached the point where force is called for, against who?

[-] JackbyDev@programming.dev 1 points 1 day ago

I'm reading it as urging people in any sort of federal job (from politicians to things like IT workers) to do anything they can to slow this down and/or stop it.

[-] endeavor@sopuli.xyz 5 points 2 days ago

Write to your elected representatives, organize protests, mutinies, unions and shut down the country. Read the constitution and look for parts that are meant as a safeguard against tyranny. Little bit of discomfort now beats a lifetime of oppression. Unless you wanna fuck around and find out what it was like living in a totalitarian regime. You're probs already on the death camp list for being on lemmy.

[-] jjjalljs@ttrpg.network 3 points 2 days ago

The 14th amendment prohibits people who did insurrection, but none of it counts if people don't enforce it.

Even if we did have an uprising, and won, there'd be maga hats for decades whining about how they did nothing wrong. The roots of this problem are deep.

[-] JackbyDev@programming.dev 1 points 1 day ago

My understanding is that the 14th amendment only triggers if Congress votes to exercise it. I wrote my reps and senator before the election. I'm heading my understanding of it on my understanding of that lawsuit from one state trying to take Trump off the ballot.

this post was submitted on 04 Feb 2025
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