By Tim Inwood

Recently in the Cincinnatus Standard I wrote about "teachable moments with the media."

Sadly the lesson must continue as we talk about how the media looks at issues with bias and distortion. One must conclude they are quite lazy, as they don't do their homework and seem quite willing to accept anything spoon-fed to them that fits their liberal mental template without critical thought. In the process they miss the facts, pass on the fabricated material, and thus do the public a great general disservice.

October was a hot month of media activity and there is much I can comment on, however I will focus on the publicity stunt pulled by Mayor Bloomberg of New York and his so-called undercover gun show stings, as this is an article unto itself. The issue of guns is
poorly handled by the press, and frequently they don't let the facts get in the way of their bias.

So it was on that cool October morning we awoke to lurid hidden camera video of so-called illegal gun sales taking place at gun shows in Nevada, Tennessee and Ohio, the bulk of the video coming from three locations in Ohio.

NEWTOWN, Conn -- "For more than 200 years a unique industry in America has made products that have been part of our country's great tradition of freedom, self-reliance and enjoyment of the outdoors." So begins a new video produced by the National Shooting Sports Foundation called "Lock, Stock and Barrel: Understanding the Firearms Industry" and that is now available as a DVD free of charge or to view online at www.nssf.org.

Designed to educate anyone who wants to know more about the history, operation and regulation of the firearms industry, the video is particularly helpful to those who hold misconceptions about the industry. By illustrating how the manufacture and sale of firearms are regulated by the federal government and how a mandatory FBI background check must be conducted for each retail purchaser of a firearm, "Lock, Stock and Barrel" corrects common misconceptions about the industry.