We all know that things get weird in Harrisburg. This is weirder than usual.
Mary McFate was the kind of volunteer the gun-control movement in Pennsylvania prized. By all accounts, she was dedicated and diligent, humble enough to stuff envelopes yet bold enough to lobby U.S. senators.Mother Jones reported that McFate was in fact Mary Lou Sapone, who made headlines in the 1990 when it was revealed that she had been hired by a surgical-equipment company to infiltrate the animal-rights movement.
As McFate, the magazine reported, Sapone covertly infiltrated gun-control groups for more than a decade and received payment from private security firms and the NRA.
During that time, she inserted herself into some of the most important gun-control organizations in the country and was part of discussions on national strategy and policy.
She lived in Grove City, Pa. – between Pittsburgh and Erie – and apparently moved to Florida several years ago.
As evidence of Sapone’s role, the magazine cited a 2003 deposition by Tim Ward, former president of the Maryland-based security firm Beckett Brown International. Ward testified that he hired Sapone to gather intelligence for the NRA, according to the article.
How did the magazine connect McFate to Sapone? It called McFate’s home phone number and asked for Sapone. The woman who answered acknowledged that she was Sapone, the magazine said. Phone listings show both names at that number.
Good for the NRA. Leftists
Good for the NRA. Leftists routinely infiltrate every group there is. Bella Dodd (google free her amazing book Heart of Darkness) the former Communist, testified that “there’s never been a teacher’s union meeting that wasn’t controlled by the Communist Party”.
No one on the left ever criticized “progressive” infiltration.
NRA
The NRA continually feeds their members anti-gun propaganda, and considering the majority of their members are paranoid, uneducated, right-wing, rednecks, that makes them dangerous. Most of their members aren’t smart enough to know the NRA thrives on their ignorance and hard earned money, yet they all seemed well versed in constitutional law (well the 2nd amendment anyway). They’re so damn stupid, they can’t understand that nobody wants their guns, they just want responsible ownership. I’m sure this Mcfate/Sopone lady is a real piece of work. Surely she considers herself doing important work. What people won’t do never ceases to amaze me.
lets cut down on negativity...
While what you say is mostly true I suggest dispensing with the name calling and sifting to the basic message..“they can’t understand that nobody wants their guns, they just want responsible ownership” I think this would be more productive for gun control
Thank you for your kind
Thank you for your kind words. They’re a hallmark of leftists who can’t make reasonable arguments, and therefore, revert to name-calling.
The real hysteria comes from those who want a disarmed and docile populace that can be taxed and regulated mercilessly.
To such people, freedom to do anything is always a danger.
Kind Words
That’s not name calling, that’s factual discription.
This talk of Communists, a
This talk of Communists, a disarmed and docile populace, rednecks etc etc is missing the big picture and the big picture is big money. The NRA is all about big money from gun manufacturers and it collects millions if not billions in support from them every year. It is nothing more than a gun lobbyist and very a effective one at that. The individual gun owner is protected by the NRA because he is a GUN BUYER. The 2nd Ammendment means nothing to the NRA. Its really not important to them if you don’t keep the gun you buy as long as you BUY IT. Its all about money and infiltrating a gun control group is peanuts when it comes to big money. Look what ENRON and TYCO did for big money. Destroyed peoples pensions and futures and really didn’t care and still don’t care. What makes this all comical is the right wing establishment ( this includes you middle class workers that can hardly support a family in todays skyrocketing prices )will support the right to buy guns until they have to pry it from your cold dead hands making corporate profits even higher. The fat cats love you guys. While the corporate CEO is hunting in Africa with his custom Weatherby, you can hardly scrape enough money to buy a box of shells for your Remington pump. But you keep on supporting the NRA...write ‘em another check!
Here, here!
I do support the right to bear arms and for quite a few years was an NRA member. While I will always support the right to bear arms and the principles backing the 2nd amendment, I won’t give the NRA another dime (and haven’t in at least 3 years). Any guns I purchase in the future will be bought second-hand from private sellers.
Screw the NRA. Who needs them?
You’re a smart man.
You’re a smart man.
NRA-Money
Well said. The real shame is that the NRA is supposed to be an educational organization. There was a time when their objective was gun safety. I guess big money trumps all.
gun responsibility
The ability to own a gun was really not economically feasible in colonial times because they were so expensive. But the people who did have them did know how to use them responsibly. Not so today as cheap weapons either are made in the USA or imported from abroad. Every gun owner should pass a test such as every driver must pass a test so that the public is safe from abuse of the weapon (like shooting at the target successfully) Penna has a hunter safety course for first time hunters use it for all gun owners to pass before weapons can be purchased legally. Surely the NRA should support that idea in the interests of the public good? The outlawing of the production of bullets in our country and the importation of bullets would turn the guns into clubs. Manufactures can advertise their best new clubs instead of guns.
Just a hint of gun control
Just a hint of gun control will spark the same arguments we have had for years and nothing seems to change. Not unlike the school tax, corruption in Harrisburg, the Turnpike, Ed Rendell is a crook and so on. Nothing seems to change. But the story here is about a persom hired to infiltrate an organization and carry out the wishes of her employer. It would appear that Ms. Sapone is a professional infiltrator and goes where the money is. Would she infiltrate the NRA or one of the big oil companies or perhaps a political party and do what ever damage she can? I would have to say yes…if the money is there. I don’t believe she carried on these clandestine operations because of some deep conviction that cancer cells should be injected into animals to see how long they suffer before they die or that she really cares who buys a gun or is shot by one. She did it because the pay was good. She obviously is good at what she does (the moral issue aside) and will be used again. You would think a person that is so adept at infiltration and blending into the background would go to work for the Pentagon and do some real good. But maybe she can’t…maybe she is already working for the Israelis!
JP
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