There’s more than one way to disarm the people in America. Lawmakers pass unconstitutional gun bans and limit the places they can carry a firearm. Governments can “buy back” guns they never owned. And now, there’s a new and even more insidious way to take guns out of circulation: render them inoperable inside gun owners’ homes.
Police in Bloomington, Illinois gave away 312 “gun safes” to local residents this past weekend. People lined up early to get their “free” ~100-pound safes at the Farmer’s Market downtown. So many turned out, in fact, that police started handing out vouchers a half-hour early because the line was so long.
Here’s the problem: the safes aren’t made for securing firearms. In fact, Sentry specifically warns customers not to use the safes for storing guns prominently in bold letters on page two of the user’s manual. Why? Because moisture accumulation inside will cause firearms to rust. And just like anti-gun politicians, rust is relentless.
Here is the announcement ahead of the event from the Bloomington PD . . .
The Bloomington Police Department (BPD) is giving away combination safes to residents to promote firearm safety. In partnership with the Be Smart Organization, and made possible by grant funds awarded by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, the BPD is offering a free safe to city of Bloomington residents. According to Chief Simington, “The Bloomington Police Department is happy to work in partnership with the community members of our city to enhance gun safety. This is one step in the right direction to not only educate responsible gun owners about gun security, but also provide a resource for them to safely secure their weapons. This will reduce gun access to kids and others who should not possess a gun, as well as reduce the amount of stolen guns taken in burglaries.”
Vouchers will be provided at the Farmers Market Downtown Bloomington on Saturday, 6/10/23, from 7:30am-12pm. Read below for the terms and conditions of the giveaway.
Qualifications: To qualify for a free gun safe you must present a FOID card. Additionally, if the FOID card does not indicate you are a resident of Bloomington, IL, you must present government-issued identification that does. Only one gun safe per household. Upon meeting the above requirements, a resident will be given gun safety information and a voucher to redeem for a free gun safe. Quantities are limited and vouchers will be given on a first come, first served basis.
Here’s the Bloomington Police Department announcement after the giveaway . . .
BPD Gun Safe Giveaway was an ENORMOUS success! All 312 safes were given away in 45 minutes! We started 30 minutes early because the line had backed up on Main Street from Jefferson to around Washington. We got to spend the rest of the time meeting with wonderful patrons of the Farmers Market.
A special thanks to Be Smart members Sheri Strohl and Jenny MacPherson for there help at the event. They were instrumental from the very beginning to getting this event to even happen and they continue to be fantastic partners in keeping our community safe.
Sgt. Nowers and Ofc. Monahan also want to thank BFD EMSP Supervisor Derick Riordan for helping us connect with all of the families, but especially the children who got to take pictures in BPD and BFD squad cars.
You can see in one of the photos as he tried to convince an adorable girl that being a firefighter is better. He was heartbroken when she told him she wanted to be a police officer (See how much happier she is in the photos with Ofc. Monahan and Sgt. Nowers?)
Chief Simington added, “The Bloomington Police Department is proud to work with our community to enhance safety. The safe giveaway is just one more way to increase the security of weapons in homes. Locked weapons and continuous, responsible storage is paramount to saving lives. The overwhelming response solidifies the need & thank our BPD teammates & many stakeholders who were instrumental in this concept.”
Would they have had similar response if they had more accurately advertised the event as one giving away gun-rusting boxes for local residents?
BPD Chief Jamal Simington is mentioned in the Facebook posts. Who is he? In short, he’s no friend of the right of the little people to have guns for personal defense. Appointed by the local hard-left, “woke” mayor, Simington does hold a “a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Workplace Certificate from the University of South Florida.”
Here he is at an anti-gun event just a week or two earlier with the anti-gun “wearing orange” crowd.
Doing a little more research, the City of Bloomington paid $190.35 for each of the safes when they ordered them in bulk. What they apparently didn’t know was they could have picked them up at the local Walmart for $172 each.
Once again, your tax dollars at work. Government is neither efficient nor competent. Unless the goal is destroying your personal property, in which case money is no object.
