R. Daley - sharpest tool in the shed?

From the weekly newsletter of the Illinois State Rifle Association, written by Richard Pearson, ISRA Executive Director:

"Although a lot has happened in the past week, two very disturbing occurrences in Chicago caught my attention. The first of these events involved Mayor Daley uttering probably the most idiotic suggestion I've ever heard him utter - and that takes a lot. While addressing an international group of mayors, Daley demanded that the World Court hear his complaint that U.S. firearm manufacturers and retailers are responsible not only for crime in the United States, but responsible also for international cases of terrorism and genocide. Daley has called upon the World Court to levy sanctions against U.S. firearm manufacturers, retailers, and anyone who supports them.

"What's behind this latest dose of Daley demagoguery? To answer that question, let's turn back to 1998 when Daley filed a $433 million lawsuit against U.S. firearm manufacturers and suburban Chicago firearm retailers. Daley's claim at that time was that the manufacturers and retailers were willfully "flooding" Chicago streets with illegal guns thus encouraging violent crime which, in turn, caused Chicago and Cook County to incur expenses related to fighting these alleged crimes.

"In support of his complaint, Daley cited results of secret sting operations conducted by Chicago cops at suburban gun shops. In the months leading up to the lawsuit, undercover Chicago cops went "shopping" at these gun retailers while sporting tattoos, urban fashion clothing, piercings and shaved heads. The undercover cops approached store clerks and expressed an interest in buying one or more firearms. In each case, the undercover cops presented valid FOID cards and successfully passed FTIP background checks. Consequently, the retailers sold the undercover cops guns in full accordance with state and federal law. Nevertheless, Daley filed his lawsuit asserting that the retailers never should have sold guns to the undercover cops because the cops "looked" like gang members as they were wearing urban style clothing and uttering "street lingo." How nutty is that?

"Fast forwarding to November of 2004, we see Daley getting his feelings hurt by the Illinois Supreme Court as it overturns a lower-court ruling that had gone in Daley's favor. Ever since that time, Daley has been vigorously pursuing clampdowns on gun rights in the Illinois General Assembly. Fortunately for law-abiding citizens, Daley has had little success in convincing legislators that law-abiding citizens living in the suburbs are the cause of violent crime in his city. Shunned by both the courts and legislature here at home, Daley has desperately turned to freedom-hating foreign institutions like the World Court for help in his crusade against private firearm ownership.

"What does all this mean? Well, in short, by seeking intercession of the World Court, Daley is rejecting the authority placed in our courts by our Constitution. Instead, Daley is asserting that the World Court has supreme authority over domestic matters here in the United States. Although it took Daley 3 tries to pass the bar, he should at least have a working understanding of the hows and whys of the American legal system. To suggest that the United States cede the authority of its courts to the World Court borders on subversion and leaves me wondering whether Daley remains fit to serve as Mayor of our third largest city. An ISRA Press Release responding to Daley's troubling statements was issued late last week."