U.S.S. New York Arrives in Namesake CIty

The U.S.S. New York, made with steel salvaged from the wreckage of the Twin Towers, arrived on Monday in New York City. A detail aboard the 684-foot, $1.2-billion amphibious assault vessel fired a 21-gun salute from the fantail of the ship as it paused for a moment in the waters off Ground Zero.

Families of 9/11 victims, first responders, as well as the general public gathered Monday at a waterfront viewing area. The vessel arrived in New York Harbor, right on time, Nov. 2nd.

The USS New York's bow is built from 7.5 tons of World Trade Center steel. The ship docked "at home" at 9:59 AM when it moored to Pier 88. An official commissioning ceremony is scheduled for Saturday.

The ship can carry as many as 800 Marines. Its flight deck can handle helicopters as well as the MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft.

The U.S.S. New York is the fifth in the line of San Antonio-class amphibious dock vessels. Four vessels in that class are already in service (the USS San Antonio, USS New Orleans, USS Mesa Verde and USS Green Bay). Four others are being built, of which two are also have been named in connection with the Sept. 11 attacks.

Those two are the USS Somerset, which is named after the county in Pennsylvania where United Airlines flight 93 crashed, and the USS Arlington, which is named to honor the Sept. 11 attack on the Pentagon.

After commissioning, the U.S.S. New York will be stationed at the Naval base in Norfolk, Virginia.

NYC Investigation Exposes Gun Show Loopholes, Illegal Sales

It's known as the "gun show loophole." Federal law requires criminal background checks only for guns sold through licensed firearm dealers. The "loophole" allows individuals "not engaged in the business” of selling firearms to sell guns without background checks.

However, even though they are not required to perform background checks, private dealers cannot sell a firearm to someone they believe could not pass a background check. New York City ran an undercover investigation on private gun sales at gun shows and found that was not the case for many "dealers."

NYC created a website around the investigation. As they noted, investigators tried to purchase guns at a gun show after telling private sellers that they probably could not pass a background check. The result was that 19 of 30 private sellers, or 63%, broke the law by completing a sale to a buyer who they thought could not pass a background check.

Watch four different videos on these illegal sales:








Meanwhile, licensed dealers cannot allow a "straw sale," which is when someone acts as an intermediary in a purchase, filling out the paperwork and having their background checked, but in reality buying the weapon for someone else. This “straw sale” is a federal felony. 16 of 17, or 94%, of licensed dealers approached by investigators at gun shows were willing to sell to someone who appeared to be a straw purchaser.

Watch two videos showing examples of those felonies:




Additionally, these are not supposed to be people involved in the "business of selling guns." In fact, one private seller bragged of selling 348 guns in less than a year. That sounds like a business. It also sounds like the IRS would be interested in that activity and that, if he was reporting it as income, it would therefore necessarily be a business.

The report also notes that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms has identified gun shows as the source of more than 30% of all illegally trafficked guns in the country. It would seem there needs to be some legislation, although you know it won't happen if the NRA has anything to say about it, in the area of guns shows, at the very least.

DJ AM Found Dead in His Apartment

Another case of the "lifestyle of the rich and famous" leading to substance addiction, and later death. Celebrity disc jockey "DJ AM," AKA Adam Goldstein has been found dead in his New York apartment Friday evening. Reports indicated that drug paraphernalia was found near his body.

Goldstein, 36, or DJ AM, was a (what else) disc jockey who performed at Hollywood's most exclusive parties. Not only did he live a glamorous lifestyle and high-profile romances, he became famous for some high-profile romances, including the likes of Nicole Richie and Mandy Moore.

A rep for DJ AM issued the following statement: "Adam "DJ AM" Goldstein was found deceased this afternoon in his New York City apartment. The circumstances surrounding his death are unclear. Out of respect for his family and loved ones, please respect their privacy at this time."

Paramedics broke down the door to DJ AM's Manhattan apartment and found his body at about 5:20 PM EDT. Apparently, friends had not seen Goldstein for a few days.

In a sort of "Final Destination" moment, DJ AM was found dead nearly a year after escaping, along with Travis Barker, from a South Carolina plane crash that killed four others.

Fox News reported that DJ AM had become addicted since the crash, in which both he and Barker were burned.

"About 7 years ago he went through major drug addictions, and he worked so hard, and successfully kicked the habit. He was terrified to take any of the meds the doctors prescribed him after the crash, but the pain was so bad. Adam took them, and the need for the drugs grew, and now here we are. It's terrible that no one was able to stop him soon enough, but it just happened so fast."

Bryan in the East Village, NYC.

(www.BrunoRand.blogspot.com)

A little fashion by Bruno Rand, NYC.

More shots by Bruno Rand.