Steven Zorn had put the pen gun to his head and clicked before, apparently thinking it was jammed and would not work. But on the third try, the tiny silver pistol went off as the 22-year-old budding rap artist was drinking to celebrate an impending record deal. He died at a hospital.But as sad as that is, here's the worst part of this story:
"Steven had a career and his dreams all ahead of him," said Zorn's mother, Lisa McCoy-Horn. She said she wants lawmakers to outlaw pen guns, which are small-caliber, single-shot weapons that resemble pens.Excuse me, Ms. McCoy-Horn: Your son shot himself in the head, and this must be very hard for you. But let me explain something to you. Your son did not shoot himself in the head because pen guns are legal. He shot himself in the head because he was stupid enough to point the gun at his own head and press the trigger. Worse, he pressed it not once; not twice; but THREE times. Clearly, he didn't listen when you taught him not to play with guns.
Assuming, kindly, that you did.
Technorati tags: Gun, Pen, Zorn.
But as sad as that is, here's the worst part of this story:
ReplyDeleteHuh? The worst part of the story is that the mother was moved to advocate a ban on a particular type of gun? What about the fact that her son died?!?
Anyway, the idea of a gun made to resemble a pen does not seem to smart, frankly.
It doesn't resemble a pen. It's a tiny gun...
ReplyDeleteI specifically wrote the "worst part of the story" - that this is part of the story. Is that not clear? I'm not sure of a better way of writing it...
Essentially, the fact that she's turning this into a referendum on guns is terrible. Much like Cindy Sheehan, this is a rightfully grief-stricken mother politicizing her son's death. It's pathetic.
The gene pool has gotten a bit better because of him...
ReplyDeleteLOL! See, I almost titled it "Darwin Award Winner Shoots Self", but I didn't think anybody would get it...
ReplyDeleteIt doesn't resemble a pen. It's a tiny gun...
ReplyDeleteFrom the sotry:
She said she wants lawmakers to outlaw pen guns, which are small-caliber, single-shot weapons that resemble pens.
I specifically wrote the "worst part of the story" - that this is part of the story. Is that not clear? I'm not sure of a better way of writing it...
I don't understand. My point is that you are saying that the fact that she engaged on an anti-pen gun campaign is worse than the fact that her son died. Both are part of the story and I am critizicing your judgment as to which part is "worse."
Essentially, the fact that she's turning this into a referendum on guns is terrible. Much like Cindy Sheehan, this is a rightfully grief-stricken mother politicizing her son's death. It's pathetic.
I disagree. Would you say that the parents of Megan Kanka politicized the death of their child by advocating for the passage of Megan's Law? Or what about Carolyn McCarthy's advocacy of gun control? Or the advocacy of any cause by politicians arising from persoanl tragedies?
More about penguns (from and Orange County police org.):
ReplyDeleteOfficers should be aware of the proliferation of small, easy-to-disguise guns that appear to be large writing pens, and the ease and inexpensive means of manufacturing the guns.
The guns fire a .22 cal. short round, are easily concealed and if painted, resemble a pen.
Burbank, Calif. police recently followed up on a tip of a cache of more than 100 pen guns (see picture) stored by a small-time manufacturer-seller. The pens were easy to make - they were produced by the son of a machine shop owner. The small guns, shaped just like regular ink pens, were slightly larger than a large fountain pen.
Police raided the machine shop near San Fernando Valley and recovered several guns and about a pound of meth. Many of the guns had apparently already been sold and were on streets.
Sounds like a reasonable subject for a ban to me.
I don't understand. My point is that you are saying that the fact that she engaged on an anti-pen gun campaign is worse than the fact that her son died. Both are part of the story and I am critizicing your judgment as to which part is "worse."
ReplyDeleteSorry, still unclear: I'm criticizing that this is such an integral part of the story.
I do feel that there is sometimes a good reason to politicize a child's death; but sometimes, it's misguided. This is one of those cases: It's not as if Zorn didn't know he was holding a gun - he knew perfectly well.
I actually misunderstood "pen guns" - the ones you described ARE more dangerous. I thought it was referring to a tiny gun, which is clearly a gun, but somewhat resembles a pen. It's tiny size got it the nickname "pen gun" - and I thought originally that this is what the article was referring to.
I will note, however, that I feel gun bans in general are both foolish and against the rights set forth in the Constitution. I'm still waiting to see what will happen regarding SF crime in a few months.
"Sorry, still unclear: I'm criticizing that this is such an integral part of the story."
ReplyDeleteFair point.