Two Major League Baseball teams announced a collaboration on Thursday to use their social media accounts to post facts about gun violence instead of posting updates from their game. The New York Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays cited recent mass shootings in Buffalo and Uvalde.
“In lieu of game coverage and in collaboration with the Tampa Bay Rays, we will be using our channels to offer facts about the impacts of gun violence,” the Yankees tweeted Thursday evening. “The devastating events that have taken place in Uvalde, Buffalo and countless other communities across our nation are tragedies that are intolerable.”
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) May 26, 2022
The Tampa Bay Rays donated $50,000 to Everytown for Gun Safety, billionaire Michael Bloomberg’s pet project promoting gun control.
The Rays tweeted: “This cannot become normal. We cannot become numb. We cannot look the other way. We all know, if nothing changes, nothing changes.”
The Florida team said it donated $50,000 to Everytown for Gun Safety’s support fund, adding that it partnered with the organization to “amplify facts about gun violence in America” on its Twitter account.
‘We understand that no single organization can solve this crisis alone, but working together, we can make an impact,” the Rays said. “We invite you to join us and do what you can, when you can, where you can – because our lives depend on it.”
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) May 26, 2022
The teams shared gun violence statistics on their Twitter and Instagram accounts. Sorry, legit baseball fans looking to catch the score. You’re being lectured by baseball teams on the evils of gun ownership.
Every three hours, a young Black man dies by gun homicide.
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) May 26, 2022
Hmm. Like the black-on-black gun violence in Chicago which, last I looked, has very strict gun laws?
The Tampa Bay Rays apparently think veterans don’t deserve Second Amendment rights. That’s quite a hot take.
An average of 4,500 veterans die by firearm suicide every year – about 12 veterans each day.
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) May 26, 2022
Suicide is a mental health issue. Mental health issues are responsible for these tragic mass shootings, not the guns. The people lawfully buying guns can be background checked but if there isn’t anything in the database, the person is cleared to purchase a firearm. Contemplating suicide somewhere down the line doesn’t show up on a background check.
These facts are verified with links to Everytown for Gun Safety. Just think if Michael Bloomberg put so many millions of his personal fortune into mental health programs and facilities instead of lobbying for restricting gun sales.
Have the teams forgotten the messages fans sent when these spoiled athletes decided to spout woke social justice messages on their uniforms and put Black Lives Matter messages at their ballparks? Sports fans don’t want politics shoved in their faces. Sports are a diversion, a distraction from daily life and a chance to relax.
Steve Kerr, head coach of the Golden State Warriors in the NBA weighed in after the Uvalde mass shooting. He praised the Miami Heat for using their scoreboard for getting their message out. Kerr is well-known for his views on gun control.
“I have lots of friends who are Democrats and lots of friends who are Republicans,” Kerr said before Game 5 of the Western Conference finals against the Mavericks.
“All I know is they all want gun violence to go away, so we just need to get our public servants to respond to what we all want. I don’t know how to do that but we’re going to try”
A longtime advocate for gun control, Kerr said he had numerous people contact him after his “enough is enough” comments before Game 4 on Tuesday in the wake of the shooting at Robb Elementary School. Nineteen students and two teachers were killed along with the shooter.
“Most ask what they can do. I think that’s a real good question,” Kerr said. “So many people want to help and want to make an impact. I think what Miami did last [Wednesday] night was great on the scoreboard.”
After a moment of silence in the Eastern Conference finals against Boston, the Heat put a number on the main scoreboard urging fans to contact their senators “demanding their support for common-sense gun laws.”
He knows it’s a polarizing issue but he justifies speaking out because it’s a public health issue. Gun grabbers, though, usually don’t focus on mental health issues, they just want to restrict sales of guns, even for law-abiding citizens. Senator Marco Rubio responded with a blast of truth.
The @NBA doesn’t like to talk about the billions they make from a China that enslaves Uyghur Muslims and harvests their organs
But they have no problem politicizing a horrific tragedy in America pic.twitter.com/VUXpOBbw7j
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) May 26, 2022
Since @NBA @MiamiHeat is so committed to social justice and has pledged to “speak the truth” when can we expect you to condemn the genocide of Uyghur Muslims being committed by your business partners in China? pic.twitter.com/KisEdAdxJD
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) May 26, 2022
After every mass shooting, we hear the same things. The left wants to restrict gun sales. The right wants to talk about mental health issues. The left wants stricter background checks and the right wants red flag laws to remain at the state level. Lunatics want to repeal the Second Amendment, which they say is hopelessly outdated. Former Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens said Heller should be overturned by a constitutional amendment to get rid of the Second Amendment.
Here is how that would work according to the National Archives.
A proposed amendment to the Constitution must first be passed by Congress with two-thirds majorities in both the House and the Senate.
Then, three-fourths of the states must ratify the amendment. That’s done either through getting the state legislatures to approve of it or by ratifying conventions. Three-fourths is a high bar–if as few as 13 states refuse to approve the change, the amendment stalls. Considering how many states are considered gun-friendly in this new Zippia survey, it’s unlikely that the amendment would survive.
The other option for repealing the Second Amendment is more radical: Calling for a Constitutional Convention under Article V of the Constitution (a.k.a. an “Article V convention“). If two-thirds of the state legislatures call for a new convention, they could convene delegations and start drafting new amendments. It’s understandably a controversial idea, but arguably could be a way to repeal the Second Amendment.
Yeah, that’s not going to happen. Even if it could happen, it would take years and would not be the instant gratification the gun-grabbers want on this issue.
The vast majority of gun owners are law-abiding people who want to be able to protect themselves and their homes from bad people. It’s a fundamental American right. And, our Founding Fathers knew that an armed citizenry could stop tyranny, if necessary. We’ll see if this time is any different than the other times. Is there an appetite now for any kind of reforms to gun laws, especially in an election year? It’s not likely. In the meantime, it’d be nice if we could just watch a game without any political statements.
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