Little League Baseball Nixes Team Sponsorship for Gun Store Owner

[onehandle]

Matthew Carmel's son played in the South Orange-Maplewood Baseball League last year and he wanted to sponsor a team in the coming season. A sponsorship costs $300.

The league committee rejected his offer, and Carmel thinks that it is because his business happens to be a gun store called Constitution Arms. "It is fairly clear that someone has a problem with firearms," he told MyFoxNY.com.

Carmel started the sponsorship process in October. He says after months of correspondence and delays he finally received a rejection from the league secretary via a short e-mail.

The e-mail read: "The committee asked me to thank you for Constitution Arms' offer to sponsor a team in the South Orange Maplewood youth baseball league. The Executive Committee of the league voted not to accept Constitution Arms as a sponsor. The committee did not give a reason for its decision."

http://www.foxnews.com/sports/2010/03/05/little-league-baseball-nixes-team-sponsorship-gun-store-owner/?test=latestnews

[GreenStormCloud]

1. FOX news for a link?

In another thread, today, you complained about the poster linking to a story in the Washington Times, and now you link to FOX?

[cowman]

2. Kinda hypocritical

isn't he. If it doesn't fit his agenda, he rejects it, if it does, he accepts it no matter the source. In the words of Faux News, nice fair and balanced views

[spin]

4. For those who don't like the Fox News link, here's another source with more detail...

N.J. kids baseball league rejects Maplewood gun dealer's sponsorship

MAPLEWOOD -- Matt Carmel is a card-carrying member of the National Rifle Association who lives here, a left-leaning suburban basin with annual "Be About Peace" days.

He has had polite differences of opinion over the years, evidenced by signs on his front lawn reading "I’m the NRA and I Vote."

But now he’s really miffed. Carmel, a licensed gun dealer, applied to sponsor a team in the local Babe Ruth/Cal Ripken baseball league, using the name of his business — Constitution Arms.

He was rebuffed.

"Arbitrary, capricious and unfair," Carmel said of the perceived slight. "I don’t like being pigeonholed."

It all started in October, when Carmel, an NRA certified pistol instructor and licensed firearm dealer, sent a letter to the South Orange-Maplewood Baseball Committee, which oversees 120 softball and baseball teams with 1,250 children ages 5 to 15.

Since his 10-year-old son, Kalman, had played the season before, Carmel wanted to put up the $300 fee to sponsor a team himself.

But in an 8-1 vote, the volunteer committee said thanks, but no thanks.

"I voted against it," said Craig Gruber, secretary of the committee. "Personally ... given the nature of that business, I’m certain there’d be quite a bit of contention. We don’t need the headache. ... We have our hands full with deciding whether infield fly rules should be in effect for 9-year-olds."

***snip***

To Carmel, the rejection flies in the face of the perception South Orange-Maplewood, which share a school system, is a proverbial big tent open to all ideas.

"Only if you agree with them," he said. "But if you don’t, the tent is not that big."

To Carmel, the "shooting sports" are as American as apple pie. The YMCA, for one, sponsors summer camps with rifle ranges, and the National Collegiate Athletic Association has a long tradition of collegiate-level shooting sports, such as riflery, he said.

Kate Schmidt, deputy director of The Baird, South Orange’s recreation agency, said the rule book for the Trenton-based Babe Ruth/Cal Ripken league "strongly advises meticulous care" in the selection of sponsors for the "welfare of youth."

"It’s pretty broad," she said.
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010/03/nj_kids_baseball_league_reject.html

Personally, I see no problems with allowing a gun store to sponsor a youth baseball team.


However New Jersey is a very interesting state.

44 Charged by U.S. in New Jersey Corruption Sweep


A two-year corruption and international money-laundering investigation stretching from the Jersey Shore to Brooklyn to Israel and Switzerland culminated in charges against 44 people on Thursday, including three New Jersey mayors, two state assemblymen and five rabbis, the authorities said.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/24/nyregion/24jersey.html

The odd thing to me is that states like New Jersey and cities like Chicago that have a reputation for corrupt government often oppose honest citizens owning firearms and create draconain regulations which discourage people from buying firearms.

I wonder if there is a correlation.

edited for title change

[onehandle]

7. A rare occasion for me.

In the gungeon, right-wing media and right-wing gun fan sites are linked over and over and over and over...

I wonder why?

[Callisto32]

9. Becaus the liberal-leaning media is out of touch with society on the issue of firearms?

[-..__...]

3. New Joisey?

Why am I not surprised at this?

[spin]

5. Check my comments on post #4. (n/t)

[X_Digger]

6. Ehn, private org, their business.

Might make me give a few :eyes: :eyes: :eyes: but that's about it.

[Callisto32]

10. Agreed, It is their choice.

If he doesn't like it, he should take his sponsorship elsewhere and give THAT group 3 THOUSAND dollars, or something.

However, just taking a chance to relate a personal anecdote about sports authorities against firearms. When I was in college, I wanted to start a small-bore rifle team, not necessarily for the purpose of competing but just as an opportunity for the students that may be interested. I was told that the school would not support this because it was "too dangerous" blah blah blah. One of that school's athletic pride and joys was their lacrosse team. Go figure. My argument of "but the shooting sports have a sterling record of safety, especially when compared to football and lacrosse" fell, of course, on deaf ears.

[proteus_lives]

8. What a bunch of bastards.

I hope he continues to raise a stink and cause trouble for them.