Outrage of the Week: New App Targets Gun Owners

This week's outrage comes to us from a rather unlikely source: the Google Play app store. The new app is called the Gun Geo Marker, and encourages users to "geolocate dangerous guns and owners" in their communities.

According to Google Play, "Geolocation means marking dangerous sites on the App's map so that you and others can be aware of the risks in your neighborhood." Think about that for a minute. The purpose of the app--other than sensationalism and profit--is to encourage people to anonymously "flag" locations in their community they subjectively deem "dangerous" and to make that information as public as possible. The probability for abuse and the certainty of inaccurate "reporting" cannot be overstated. What's to keep people from marking any location for any reason at all? Nothing. The practice is not only a serious invasion of privacy, but would also be just as dangerous and irresponsible as publishing the names of concealed-carry permit holders in local papers.

The app could enable thieves to target and steal firearms from law-abiding gun owners, while conversely advertising that other residences are "gun free" and therefore easy targets for criminals.

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His Group Honored the Boston Bomber

"Fast & Furious" Remains Out of Sight and Therefore Out of Mind

With all of the scandals the Obama administration has been involved in of late, it's not surprising that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives' ill-fated "Operation Fast and Furious" would fade from the public's memory. Conceived as a secretive "gun-walking" scheme, "Fast and Furious" instead became a deadly debacle that came to light with the murder of U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry.

Numerous investigations and hearings culminated with the nation's top law enforcement officer, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, being found in contempt of Congress. That was more than a year ago, and Holder remains in contempt of Congress for his role in the operation and subsequent cover-up. That's likely to remain the case, as President Obama invoked executive privilege to protect Holder from providing requested, and potentially further incriminating, documents to Congress.

While "Fast and Furious" has been relegated to the back burner, reports of continuing carnage directly attributable to the failed operation continue.

So Much for Zero Tolerance

We've been reporting with great frequency on ridiculous cases involving over-zealous school officials misinterpreting and wrongly enforcing "zero-tolerance" rules.

In March, and again last month, we reported on one of the most outrageous cases--that of a seven-year-old Baltimore, Md. student who was suspended for two days for the nefarious act of shaping a breakfast pastry into what his teacher thought looked like a gun. Yes, his teacher thought a breakfast pastry was enough of a danger to take the little boy directly to the principal's office for immediate discipline, to include a suspension and a permanent record.

Last month we also reported on a remarkably severe "zero-tolerance" case in Calvert County, Md., where a 5-year-old brought a cowboy-style, orange-safety-tipped toy cap gun onto his school bus to show to his friend, who had allegedly brought a water gun on the bus a day earlier. As a result, the kindergartner was questioned by school officials for more than two hours before he wet his pants and his mother was called. How long does it take to ask a 5-year-old a few questions? His sister--a first-grader--was also questioned, and the little boy was threatened with a 10-day suspension--which would keep him out of classes the rest of the school year--and the prospect of the matter becoming a part of the his permanent school record.