Upon reflection about my last post regarding the ridiculous AP story about the Philadelphia teen and his “weapons cache” consisting mainly of airsoft guns, it occurred to me that I blew by the most egregious part of the story much too quickly.

The local news reported that the only actual firearm that the suspect had was a 9mm handgun.

But somehow, the AP “journalist” reported that the firearm was an “assault rifle”. I can almost understand jumping from “scary looking semi-automatic rifle” to “assault rifle.” I mean, journalists really should know better and, if they don’t, should do a little research before regurgitating propaganda; but it is ALMOST understandible.

But how does one innocently mistake a HANDGUN for an “assault rifle”…especially when the DA and local news identified it clearly and unambiguously?

That stretches credulity just a little bit. Nope, no agenda here.

Just to be clear…I’m not condoning the actions of the teen and I’m definitely not condoning the parents buying him a handgun…I’m not saying that the police did not avert a potential disaster in arresting the kid and/or his parents. I’m only saying that the APs inaccurate reporting on the incident just furthers the recent impression of a media agenda with regard to “assault weapons” and “assault rifles.” When even handguns are being so characterized, the propaganda effort is clearly in full swing.