Companies Of The United States

"Gunmaker Smith & Wesson Holding Corp. yesterday stood by board member and former chairman James J. Minder despite revelations that the 74-year-old executive spent more than a decade in prison for using a sawed-off shotgun to commit holdups in the 1950s. The company said yesterday that Minder, who stepped down as chairman earlier in the week, will remain on the board of directors."

"The future of the chairman of handgun maker Smith & Wesson was in question on Thursday night after it turned out he knew more about guns than the company might have liked: he once carried out a string of armed robberies holding a sawn-off shotgun. James Joseph Minder's criminal past emerged this month in newspapers in Detroit and Arizona, which reported he spent 15 years in prison in the 1950s and 1960s for the robberies and an attempted prison escape. Mr Minder was quoted by a Massachusetts newspaper on Thursday as saying he had voluntarily resigned at a directors' meeting on Monday as he felt it was "the best thing, given the circumstances"."

"When he picked up the phone at his Scottsdale, Ariz., home last month, James Joseph Minder realized it was the call he'd been dreading for the past 20 years. A reporter with the Arizona Republic had an urgent question for the 74-year-old chairman of Smith & Wesson Holding Corp.: Was he the notorious felon known as the "Shotgun Bandit" in Michigan decades ago? Mr. Minder felt a flash of fear. At first he insisted the reporter had a case of mistaken identity. "I told him, 'I'm not that person,'" he recalls. He confirmed his name and date of birth. Then, they hung up. But after talking to his wife of 28 years, Mr. Minder says he decided that "I had better tell the truth." Mr. Minder quickly informed the other members of the company's board and, at the next meeting, tendered his resignation as chairman."

"In 1989, rather late in the computer revolution, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) was finally able to say which gun manufacturers turned up most often in trace requests. The company whose handguns were traced most often from January of 1990 to December of 1991 was the giant Smith & Wesson."

"The Smith & Wesson Holding Corporation, the nation's oldest maker of handguns, named Dennis Bingham chairman after the departure of James Minder, whom a newspaper reported served prison time in the 1950's and 1960's. Mr. Minder offered to resign this month after telling the board he spent 15 years in prison in the 1950's and 1960's for armed robberies and an attempted escape from prison, The Arizona Republic reported."

"The head of America's oldest gun maker, Smith & Wesson, has resigned after a local newspaper exposed his past as a convicted armed robber. It emerged that James Joseph Minder, 74, appointed as chairman just a month ago, spent more than a decade in prison in the 1950s and 1960s and had even attempted a jailbreak. As a convicted felon, he is not allowed to carry a firearm. Mr Minder's convictions came to light in the Arizona Republic newspaper. According to the report, he used a sawn-off shotgun to commit eight hold-ups wearing a trademark hat, white scarf and trench coat. The robberies were at a bank, several drugstores, and a jewellery shop in the Detroit area. He was not very successful, and was arrested several times, as well as serving time for his attempted escape from prison."

"While recognizing the very serious mistakes in his early life, the board believes that Mr. Minder has led an exemplary life for 35 years and has provided tremendous services to the community. Based on this, and other successful business experience, the board believes he should and can continue to provide invaluable input to Smith & Wesson within both strategic planning and the ongoing drive toward operational excellence."

"Smith & Wesson Holding Corp. agreed to pay about $2 million to settle U.S. regulatory claims that it bribed officials in Pakistan, Turkey and other countries to win firearms contracts."

"Beginning Thursday, a group of students will march westward a quarter of the way across Massachusetts in the latest act of a national, youth-led campaign to save lives and change the conversation about gun violence.... The activists have two main goals. The first is to get Smith & Wesson to agree to stop manufacturing military-style weapons like the M&P 15, an AR-15-style rifle that has been used in a number of recent high-profile shootings, including in Parkland, Florida, in February, in San Bernardino, California, in 2015, and in Aurora, Colorado, in 2012. The second is for Smith & Wesson to donate $5 million to study gun violence and other crimes involving the company’s firearms."

"What do James Holmes, Adam Lanza, and Omar Mateen have in common? Besides being the perpetrators of three of the deadliest mass shootings in U.S. history, they all share a preference for the AR-15 assault rifle. The AR-15 assault rifle was used at the Aurora, Colo. shooting, the Newtown, Conn. shooting, and now the mass shooting in Orlando, Fla. that killed 50 and is officially the deadliest such massacre in U.S. history...While Colt alone makes the official AR-15, variants and knock-offs are made by a huge number of gun manufactures, including Bushmaster, Les Baer, Remington, Smith & Wesson (swhc, +0.00%), and Sturm & Ruger (rgr, -2.04%), just to name a few. TacticalRetailer claims that from 2000 to 2015 the AR manufacturing sector expanded from 29 AR makers to about 500, “a stunning 1,700% increase.”"

"Feb. 14, 2018 Seventeen people were killed when Nikolas Cruz, 19, opened fire at his former high school in Parkland, Fla., with a Smith & Wesson M&P semiautomatic rifle.... Dec. 2, 2015 Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik, husband and wife, killed 14 people at a holiday office party in San Bernardino, Calif. Four guns were recovered: a Smith & Wesson M&P assault rifle, a DPMS Panther Arms assault rifle, a Smith & Wesson handgun and a Llama handgun.... Oct. 1, 2015 Christopher Harper-Mercer, 26, killed nine people at Umpqua Community College in Oregon, where he was a student. He was armed with six guns, including a Glock pistol, a Smith & Wesson pistol, a Taurus pistol and a Del-Ton assault rifle, according to The Associated Press.... April 2, 2014 Specialist Ivan Antonio Lopez opened fire at Fort Hood with a Smith & Wesson semiautomatic pistol, killing three people and wounding 16 others.... July 20, 2012 James E. Holmes, 24, killed 12 people and wounded 70 at a theater in Aurora, Colo., using a Smith & Wesson semiautomatic rifle, a Remington shotgun and a Glock .40-caliber semiautomatic pistol."

"Stocks were up Thursday for American Outdoor Brands, the company that makes the AR-15 rifle used in the Florida school shooting that claimed 17 lives. The company’s shares closed up 1.49%, netting the company an additional $8.8 million on the day. The Associated Press reported that accused gunman Nikolas Cruz used a Smith & Wesson M&P15 rifle – a variant of the AR-15 – during his allegedly shooting spree at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, on Wednesday. Smith & Wesson, which was founded in 1852, is a Springfield, Mass.-based holding of American Outdoor Brands.... Shares of American Outdoor Brands closed 5.6% higher on Wednesday, the day of the shooting. It’s not uncommon for gun maker shares to rise following a mass shooting as people are likely to stock up fearing potential gun control measures. This is the third time an M&P15 has been used in a mass shooting in the United States. James E. Holmes, who was convicted of killing 12 and wounding 70 in the 2012 Aurora, Colorado movie theater shooting, used a Smith & Wesson M&P15 rifle. An illegally modified Smith & Wesson M&P15 Sport rifle was recovered by law enforcement officials after the 2015 San Bernardino shooting, where 14 people were killed."

"There was some fear-based buying that would take place from time to time. There is no fear-based buying right now."

"The suspects arrived at the Inland Regional Center at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, armed with the four guns and wearing masks. Chief Burguan said the suspects were wearing “tactical vests,” with pockets for spare magazines and other equipment. The two handguns that were recovered were bought by Mr. Farook, and all four weapons were bought legally, Chief Burguan said. A senior federal law enforcement official said the assault rifles were bought by a third person who is not considered a suspect. Officials said the two assault rifles were variants of the AR-15, the semiautomatic version of the military M-16 rifle; one was made by DPMS Panther Arms, and the other was a Smith & Wesson M&P model, a designation meaning military and police. The senior law enforcement official said one handgun was made by Llama, and the other by Smith & Wesson."

"The suspects in the San Bernardino holiday party shooting were armed with four guns, an explosive device and several magazines of ammunition in a “well-planned” attack, police and federal officials said. Syed Rizwan Farook, 28, a U.S.-born health inspector for San Bernardino County, and Tashfeen Malik, 27, were carrying two .223-caliber assault rifles and two semi-automatic handguns... San Bernardino Police Chief Jarrod Burguan said the two .223-caliber assault rifles were a DPMS model and a Smith & Wesson M&P 15 model, while the two semi-automatic hand guns were manufactured by Llama and Smith & Wesson."

"A quick Google search shows that P. James Debney is the CEO and president of American Outdoor Brands, which until last year was named Smith & Wesson. By whatever name, the company Debney heads manufactured the AR-15 assault rifle that Cruz used to kill 14 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School students and three staff members.... Debney kept selling assault rifles as if he were just selling more plastic after a madman with a Smith & Wesson assault rifle murdered 12 people in an Aurora, Colorado, movie theater....The company’s profits came to include the sale of the M&P15 that was used in the 2015 terror attack in San Bernardino. Fifteen were murdered.... Smith & Wesson did experience a modest bump after a madman used one of its M&P15s to murder 14 students and three staff members at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High on Valentine’s Day."

"The AR-15 is the model of gun used in several recent mass shootings in America, including the massacres at an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut, in 2012 and the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, in June this year. It is not unusual that gun sales rise at election time in the US. The more dramatic surges usually come in the immediate aftermath of mass shootings, however, as buyers both feel greater concern about their own safety and fear a US government response to crack down sales. In the year that followed Newton, Sturm Ruger, Remington Outdoor, and Smith & Wesson - the three most important gun manufacturers in the US - saw a windfall of over $390 million in profits on record sales. Shares in publicly traded Sturm Ruger and Smith & Wesson jumped more than 70 percent in the same year."

"Smith & Wesson, the US firearms manufacturer, has paid more than $2m to the Securities and Exchange Commission for allegedly bribing foreign officials to win contracts to supply arms to overseas police and military forces, the SEC said on Monday."

"Gun stocks are surging, even as America mourns another mass shooting and Hillary Clinton vows to restrict sales. Popular gun companies Smith & Wesson (SWHC) and Sturm Ruger (RGR) are among the best stocks in America in 2015. It's a reminder of just how profitable these businesses are. Smith & Wesson has skyrocketed over 80% this year. To put that in perspective, if the stock were in the S&P 500, it would be the second best performer this year, behind only Netflix (NFLX).... This stellar performance comes in a year when many stocks have tanked.... The reason investors like gun stocks is simple: people are buying a lot of guns. Sales hit a record for Smith & Wesson in 2014 and for Sturm Ruger in 2013."

"In the years since Obama took office, gun makers have had some of their most profitable years. Last year, Smith & Wesson sales hit a record high of $626m, up 6.7% from $587.5m in 2013."

"Police officials said that two suspects, Syed Farook and Tashfeen Malik, were armed with two semiautomatic rifles and two semiautomatic handguns. The semiautomatic rifles were a .223-caliber DPMS Model A15 and a Smith & Wesson M&P15. One of the handguns was manufactured by Llama, and the other by Smith & Wesson."

"Smith & Wesson was in the midst of getting new leadership, having been further shaken when its chairman, James Minder, proved to have served time in prison for a string of armed robberies while a journalism student at the University of Michigan. The young Minder had started with one of his future company's revolvers but had then opted for a sawed-off shotgun."

"We at Dick's Sporting Goods are deeply disturbed and saddened by the tragic events in Parkland. Our thoughts and prayers are with all of the victims and their loved ones. But thoughts and prayers are not enough...We believe it's time to do something about it. Beginning today, Dick's Sporting Goods is committed to the following: We will no longer sell assault-style rifles, also referred to as modern sporting rifles. We had already removed them from all Dick's stores after the Sandy Hook massacre, but we will now remove them from sale at all 35 Field & Stream stores. We will no longer sell firearms to anyone under 21 years of age. We will no longer sell high capacity magazines. We never have and never will sell bump stocks that allow semi-automatic weapons to fire more rapidly. At the same time, we implore our elected officials to enact common sense gun reform and pass the following regulations: Ban assault-style firearms Raise the minimum age to purchase firearms to 21 Ban high capacity magazines and bump stocks Require universal background checks that include relevant mental health information and previous interactions with the law Ensure a complete universal database of those banned from buying firearms Close the private sale and gun show loophole that waives the necessity of background checks"

"ExxonMobil is the world's most profitable corporation. Its sales now amount to more than $1bn a day. It makes most of this money from oil, and has more to lose than any other company from efforts to tackle climate change. To safeguard its profits, ExxonMobil needs to sow doubt about whether serious action needs to be taken on climate change."

"Exxon made more money than God this year and, by the way, nothing has changed."

"As the most powerful state, the U.S. makes its own laws, using force and conducting economic warfare at will. It also threatens sanctions against countries that do not abide by its conveniently flexible notions of "free trade." In one important case, Washington has employed such threats with great effectiveness (and GATT approval) to force open Asian markets for U.S. tobacco exports and advertising, aimed primarily at the growing markets of women and children. The U.S. Agriculture Department has provided grants to tobacco firms to promote smoking overseas. Asian countries have attempted to conduct educational anti-smoking campaigns, but they are overwhelmed by the miracles of the market, reinforced by U.S. state power through the sanctions threat. Philip Morris, with an advertising and promotion budget of close to $9 billion in 1992, became China's largest advertiser. The effect of Reaganite sanction threats was to increase advertising and promotion of cigarette smoking (particularly U.S. brands) quite sharply in Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea, along with the use of these lethal substances. In South Korea, for example, the rate of growth in smoking more than tripled when markets for U.S. lethal drugs were opened in 1988. The Bush Administration extended the threats to Thailand, at exactly the same time that the "war on drugs" was declared; the media were kind enough to overlook the coincidence, even suppressing the outraged denunciations by the very conservative Surgeon-General. Oxford University epidemiologist Richard Peto estimates that among Chinese children under 20 today, 50 million will die of cigarette-related diseases..."

"Last year we witnessed the launch of the Foundation for a Smoke-Free World... It is funded by the tobacco industry itself... We call on governments and the public health community to have nothing to do with this foundation... Even internal Philip Morris documents indicate that these efforts were designed to normalize the company and its deadly products. It shows they are doing this for themselves, not for the poor people suffering from tobacco."

"All of us at Philip Morris, no matter where we work, are extremely sorry for this. No one benefits from the very real, serious and significant diseases caused by smoking."

"I see kids who are complete cynics. They're not dreaming. They're out there with high-powered weapons, smoking crack behind the 7-Eleven. They've seen it all. These kids are going to take us into 2000 and beyond. That's scary, man. I wouldn't say I'm pessimistic or optimistic. I'm more realistic, I guess. But not cynical. I look. I watch."

"Slurpees and 7-Eleven helped me live the American dream."

"I've had a great relationship. In Delaware, the largest growth in population is Indian-Americans moving from India. You cannot go to a 7-Eleven or a Dunkin' Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent. I'm not joking."

"Although the company was taken private by Japanese investors in 2005, the company, headquartered outside of Dallas, still embodies everything that’s great about the American entrepreneurial spirit and capitalism at its best. 7-Eleven stores introduced convenience-revolutionizing innovations... Still 7-Eleven, on balance, is a great American company that deserves its prominent place in American culture. Its commitment to the marketplace is the reason it has survived."

"A million fucking message boards, email, Twitter, any number of free tools, being limited only by time and your imagination? If I’d had the internet in 1988 I WOULD OWN AN ENTIRE COUNTRY BY NOW AND WOULD PUT HUNDREDS OF YOU TO DEATH EACH DAY JUST FOR FUN AND IT WOULD BE THE LAW."

"That is the central tenet of twenty- first-century Western philosophy: ‘I tweet, therefore I am.’"

"They [Twitter] are not principled in this. They have so much garbage and filth on that platform all the time. They did not censor people when they are using those platforms or the rioting that occurred over the summer."

"I Don't Look at Twitter Because It Doesn't Tell Me Anything."

"Twitter hates comedy. It hates truth. It hates free speech. And it hates the American People, because they refuse to be docile sheep."

"Running an ad-free website where millions of people gather every day to discuss facts and update scores of pages is a monumental task. It’s incredible that Wikipedia doesn’t often go down and has few technical problems. Most of the time, Wikipedia works without issue. The same is not true for X (formerly known as Twitter)."

"We are deeply sorry about the pain these statements, and the attention they are drawing, are causing the family, we've been working to expand existing product features and policies so we can more effectively address things like this going forward, and we hope to have those changes in place shortly."

"Twitter is the people’s tool, the tool of the ordinary people, people who have no other resources."

"If you’ve ever been to the monkey house in one of those awful downscale zoos, you know what monkeys — these particular monkeys — are like: They jerk off and fling poo all day, generally using the same hand for both, and they don’t do a hell of a lot else, unless there’s McDonald’s. All day: jerk off, fling poo, jerk off, fling poo, jerk, fling, jerk, fling. Twitter, basically."

"HB20 would compel platforms to disseminate all sorts of objectionable viewpoints, such as Russia’s propaganda claiming that its invasion of Ukraine is justified, ISIS propaganda claiming that extremism is warranted, neo-Nazi or KKK screeds denying or supporting the Holocaust, and encouraging children to engage in risky or unhealthy behavior like eating disorders."

"People are always criticizing Twitter. "Twitter is crazy!" they say. I think that's misguided. Twitter is simply an avenue -- there are many -- by which people reveal who they are."

"I complained to Twitter about the man who, pretending to be me, commended the Charleston racist murderer. Twitter responded: “We have determined that it’s not in violation of Twitter’s impersonation policy.” I felt a flash of rage. Every time an online shaming occurred Twitter and Google made money. Whereas those of us doing the actual shaming? We got nothing. Twitter suddenly felt uncaring, intimidating, even dangerous. We were unpaid shaming interns for a company that didn’t care about us. I quit Twitter. The world outside Twitter was great. I read books. I reconnected with people I knew from real life and met them for drinks in person. Then I drifted back on to Twitter."

"After close review of recent Tweets from the @realDonaldTrump account and the context around them — specifically how they are being received and interpreted on and off Twitter — we have permanently suspended the account due to the risk of further incitement of violence"

"Elon’s appointment to the board was to become officially effective on 4/9, but Elon shared that same morning that he would not be joining the board. I believe this is for the best."

"I don’t have confidence in management."

"If Shakespeare were alive today, he might be writing on Twitter."

"There’s no way that this is just happening randomly."

"I do think it was not correct to ban Donald Trump"