The Right-Cheek Ass Clown for March, 2017

There are a lot of really stupid people out there, which is one of the factors which complicates the selection and presentation of my Ass Clown awards. Sometimes, the actions which merit an Ass Clown award are politically motivated; sometimes they reflect innocent stupidity based on a dumb mistake. And sometimes they demonstrate an abysmal level of stupidity and ignorance based on an overblown sense of one's rights, as our present designees amply demonstrate.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Readers, today we go back to last month to present

The Right-Cheek Ass Clown Award for March, 2017

to

James Craig Baker

and

Brandon Brent Vreeland

In a singularly inept and stupid attempt to demonstrate their upholding of their Second Amendment rights, Mr Baker and Mr Vreeland - dressed in tactical vests, body armor, and wearing face masks - walked into a police station in Dearborn, Michigan, to complain that they had been illegally stopped by a police officer ... while wearing masks, tactical vests, and body armor and openly carrying multiple weapons. They were released without charge by that officer after "a brief preliminary investigation," but then decided to go to the police station to complain about the indignity ... where the sudden appearance of two heavily armed and masked men had the expected result. Baker and Vreeland were dramatically taken down by anxious police officers, charged with a number of misdemeanor offenses, and released on $1500 bond pending a future court date.

Dearborn police chief Ronald Haddad later said, "I find this behavior totally unacceptable and irresponsible. This is not a Second Amendment issue for me ... we had members of the public in our lobby that fled in fear for their safety as these men entered our building."

Even Second Amendment rights advocates agreed that the men's stunt was stupid. A statement from President Tom Lambert of a gun rights advocacy group called Michigan Open Carry noted that, "There is a clear difference between the everyday protection we advocate for and the attention seeking actions of these individuals. Wearing a mask, dark glasses, visible body armor, and a rifle slung across your chest instills a very specific image that cannot be ignored." He went on to say that, "Like it or not, exercising your rights is not black and white. How you act and portray yourself is a big part of advocacy. I believe these gentlemen failed in this regard." 

For their utter stupidity and cluelessness in choosing the worst possible way to demonstrate that their rights were far more important than public safety, James Craig Baker and Brandon Brent Vreeland are presented with the Right-Cheek Ass Clown Award for March, 2017. The best that can be said of their stunt was that no one was hurt.

Have a good day. Come back tomorrow for Cartoon Saturday. More thoughts then.

Bilbo