Activist John Lott discussed gun control and the many varying viewpoints throughout the country. Lott began with warnings about the treatment of Patricia and Mark McCloskey, the St. Louis couple who were recently charged with unlawful use of a weapon. He lamented that the protesters in their neighborhood were not charged with trespassing or any other crimes, but that the "St. Louis DA doesn't believe that people should be able to defend themselves." He also spoke about what he said was a dangerous trend of defunding police departments, commenting, "if you want to deter crime, you make it costly and risky for criminals to engage in that kind of behavior."

Lott said that there are many myths about guns that he tries to counter with his own statistics, such as his contention that on a per capita basis both the UK and Canada have a 50% higher rate of violent crime than the US, and that some countries, such as France and Russia, have a much worse record of mass shootings than America. He also added that these shootings occur in countries where gun laws are much more restrictive, and that if the media would report on shootings that were prevented by those with concealed carry permits, attitudes, and restrictive gun laws would change. Lott said that his group had found "dozens of cases over that last few years" where shootings were prevented.

Lott pointed out what he sees as the complicated and expensive nature of background checks for gun purchases, saying that they are "a mess." and tend to tie people with similar names and birthdays with criminals rather than people with actual criminal records. He added that the permits and paperwork hit hardest against the disadvantaged who need the weapons to protect themselves in the worst neighborhoods. Lott sees a reckoning for gun ownership in the US in the next election, where he believes that the "entire future of people being able to own guns is at stake."

MOJAVE MYSTERIES

In the last hour, expert on all things in the Mojave Desert, author M.L. Behrman recounted true tales of unknown creatures, UFOs, ghosts, disappearances, and paranormal happenings. Behrman referred to the desert as "a hostile environment" where "there are places you can go and disappear or be disappeared." He recounted the strange story of the 1904 discovery of scores of men found dead in the desert between Los Angeles and Las Vegas-- they had no clothes and there was no evidence of foul play. He also shared eerie tales of the "demon flyer" which seemed like a desert version of the famous "Mothman."

News segment guests: Howard Bloom, Michael Shedlock