Actress Jessica Chastain took to Twitter on Tuesday night to complain about the current state of affairs in the United States. Chastain expressed frustration that in the United States, a person has to wait six months for an X-ray, but is easily able to purchase a rifle.
"Welcome to America," Chastain tweeted, "where you'll wait 6 months for an X-Ray but hey, you can buy an AR-15 in 5 minutes flat." Chastain then tagged her 2016 film Miss Sloane.
Welcome to America, where you'll wait 6 months for an X-ray but hey, you can buy an AR-15 in 5 minutes flat.
— Jessica Chastain (@jes_chastain) October 4, 2017
- @MissSloaneMovie
Just...what? Has Chastain been to a hospital or tried to purchase a firearm...ever?
Nine states, plus the District of Columbia, have a waiting period between 24 hours and a week before a gun can be purchased. As far as I'm aware of, no state has a mandatory waiting period before going in for an X-ray.
For instance, New Jersey has a complicated, bungling firearm permit system that has resulted in the death of at least one person, but a person in NJ with a broken bone has to wait an average of an hour before being given some sort of medication.
Many people criticized Chastain for her just plain wrong take on the situation and pointed out that it's a bit obtuse to use a tragedy to promote a film.
You can get an X-Ray at a 24-hour Urgent Care in 20 minutes.
— ????GayPatriot???? (@GayPatriot) October 4, 2017
Also, fuck your movie.
Who waits 6 months for an x-ray? And where does one legally buy an AR-15 in 5 minutes?
— Patchouli Jim (@PatchouliJim) October 4, 2017
Mom in law on Medicare..xray was 15 mins after requested by doctor, 10 mins later she was done...
— ????Thomas-S Fla???? (@thomassfl) October 4, 2017
Hey @jes_chastain my 8yo went for an x-ray this morning. They scheduled it less than an hour beforehand.
— Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) October 4, 2017
1) it doesn't take 6 mo for an X-ray
— Sean Agnew (@seanagnew) October 4, 2017
2) you can't buy an AR-15 in 15 min
3) mass casualties, watch my movie
3 strikes. You're out.
I can go CareNow and get an X-ray within 15 min without undergoing a full background check by the FBI.
— Jacque Benson (@RealWomenVoters) October 4, 2017
I mean, if someone is actually waiting six months for an X-ray, that's more of a statement about how terrible the Affordable Care Act has been for the United States than anything to do with guns.
We should be glad that it's easier to get an X-ray than to purchase a firearm in the United States. There's no need to lie about things to score cheap political points.