Are you looking for a quick way to make some money in this tough economic climate? Cory Booker, the Mayor of Newark New Jersey, has instituted a new city program that can pay people cash for simply making a phone call.
Under their “No More Guns” promotion, the city of Newark is offering $1,000 in cash for anonymous tips to anyone who gives information about who is carrying an “illegal” gun provided that they retrieve the weapon. They don’t even need to arrest anyone. They only need to locate a gun that doesn’t conform to their local gun laws.
The following video straight from the city website has the Mayor himself explaining the details of the program. As Booker himself exclaims, “This is the best program in the country! A quick thousand dollars! If you know someone carrying an illegal gun, give us the information and get the money.”
This is a new twist on an old favorite of the “anti-gun” crowd gun buy-back programs. Politicians all across the country love to throw money around like they earned it especially when it looks like they’re doing something to combat gun violence. The Los Angeles Times reports that government officials “will destroy 16,000 guns confiscated from criminals and collected from numerous gun buy-back programs across L.A. County.” In Connecticut, the New Haven gun buyback had to be suspended due to the “overwhelming response.” In Buffalo, New York, the city will be holding another gun buy-back program for the third year in a row with “no questions asked.” Sadly, despite the feel-good rhetoric surrounding such events, research has shown that they have little impact and, like most government programs, are a complete waste of money. Will the addition of offering $1,000 to discover “illegal” weapons be just as ineffective?
