Portside

There is a long tradition in this country of children—primarily in rural areas—learning to shoot at a young age. But there is a point where all reasonable people need to admit that a kid is too young to own and/or shoot a real rifle that shoots real bullets. Four years old—the age the Kentucky boy who shot his 2-year-old sister apparently was when he received a Crickett rifle as a gift—is way, way too young.

Why an annual Lobby Day has resulted in a state of emergency and online calls for a civil war.

Conyers fought for gun control, anti-poverty programs and universal health care. He held hearings to spotlight police misconduct and also supported legislation urging a study of the possibility of offering reparations to the descendants of slaves.

Edward Snowden in Exile: ‘You Have to Be Ready to Stand for Something.’ Musicians Love Making Fun of Bob Dylan. Beto O'Rourke: 'We're going to take away your AR-15.' John Oliver: Filibuster. How Black Americans Were Robbed of Their Land.

We should apply science to the problem of mass shootings. The Senate should pass the House bill funding research on gun violence, and the country should stop scapegoating people who suffer from mental illness.

"We value Walmart and our fellow associates, but we are no longer willing to contribute our labor to a company that profits from the sale of deadly weapons."

The APA said that people with mental illness are being stigmatized.

Mueller dud; Reparations poll; Betocare; Power of the NRA; Trump, McCain and MIAs; Hudson Yards horrorshow; Sneak peek at Term 2