More Astroturfing?

Jeff Soyer finds another article, this one in the Roanoke Times, that follows the same pattern I’ve been mentioning here before. As I mentioned in Jeff’s comments:

I have a theory that all these editorials and letters to the editor are part of a coordinated campaign of astroturfing on the part of our opponents. I don’t have much evidence for this, but it seems to me that all of these have been following the same pattern. It’s like someone took a template and played it out over and over with only slight variations. I just happen to feel that real people have different ways of approaching an argument. I have no doubt there are gunnies out there who believe this stuff, but every one of their letters follows the same template? Color me skeptical.

Here’s another thing that raises my level of suspicion. I think they might have screwed up with this one by trying too hard:

High-capacity magazine ban. I own a Super Nine, or high-capacity 9mm. It can carry 16 rounds, plus one. It never seemed inappropriate, until now. Even for personal defense, a simple eight-round magazine would be fine. Also, a high-capacity magazine ban for all weapons would negate the need for a gun ban.

I have never heard of any 9mm pistol called the “Super Nine”. Has anyone else? There’s a Super 90, but that’s a tactical shotgun. Saying he carries a gun that doesn’t exist [See SayUncle’s comments below] is more evidence that either a lot of these people are lying sacks of shit, or this is, in fact, a coordinated astroturfing campaign by our opponents. What say you all? I won’t feel offended if you tell me it’s time to put away the tin foil hat.

11 thoughts on “More Astroturfing?”

  1. “I have never heard of any 9mm pistol called the “Super Nine”. Has anyone else? ”

    Yes. In the late 80s & early 90s, the higher capacity nines (berettas and glocks) were often referred to as super nines and wonder nines.

  2. I think they’re written by the grabbers; they have a definite pattern. Have you noticed that they are almost all military veterans, are NRA members, and propose most of the same restrictions? I agree that there may be a template being used.

  3. Yeah, exactly. That just seems like too much to be a coincidence. Like I said in my later post, it could just be the papers like this type of thing, and just preferentially print them, but it’s just awful fishy.

  4. Wonder 9 I’ve heard, but I’m with Sebastian – I’ve not heard the term “Super 9” before.

    I thought for a moment that the author was carrying a hotel chain with him; then I remembered it was Super 8. Too bad, it makes for a funnier mental image.

  5. Super 8 was also a type of film used in old home movie cameras. I’m old enough to have Super 8 footage of me as a kid in the closet somewhere.

    No longer is society threatened by the danger of high capacity film reels.

  6. Given the perceived impotence of the 9 mm, a seventeen round magazine may seem “barely adequate”.

  7. That’s only true of ball ammo, which is why the 9mm is a poor choice for the military, where the Geneva conventions have you stuck with ball. If you use proper ammunition, the 9mm is effective enough to make being able to carry eighteen rounds in the gun quite an asset.

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