tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post290748642294657870..comments2024-03-18T17:09:55.964-07:00Comments on CONTRARY BRIN: Isaac Asimov & Human DestinyDavid Brinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comBlogger88125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-55064341406465870202011-01-10T13:48:38.309-08:002011-01-10T13:48:38.309-08:00Rob H. An entire political wing should not be hel...Rob H. An entire political wing should not be held into account for the crazies on its side that its leaders all disavow. The examples of lefty crazies are mostly kooks who dem media and officials openly and decisively disdain.<br /><br />The movement now owned and operated by Fox is run by the inmates.<br /><br />...onward...David Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-28019428465674380982011-01-10T12:21:28.657-08:002011-01-10T12:21:28.657-08:00Tacitus2:
Thanks for engaging in rational discuss...Tacitus2:<br /><br />Thanks for engaging in rational discussion.<br /><br /><i><br />I find offensive the premature attribution of political motives in this case.<br /></i><br /><br />I lay no claim to knowledge of the shooter's personal politics.<br /><br />What I do think is at work is that the climate of political discourse (maybe especially in Arizona) is that a Democratic congresswoman, one who ran and won against the Tea Party, is "fair game". Not that the shooter necessarily had a political grudge, but that if he wanted to make a scene by shooting someone, she was an acceptable target.<br /><br /><i><br />The anthrax case has too many loose ends for my money. I am not prone to conspiracy nonsense but there may be something there beyond the guy who took the fall for it. Not sure how TV stations and tabloids fit the narrative.<br /></i><br /><br />Its been a long time, but here's what I remember. This was in 2001, when the Senate was momentarily back in Democratic hands (51-49) thanks to Jim Jeffords's defection. It was also the immediate aftermath of 9/11, and the GOP was champing at the bit to rush the U.S.A.P.A.T.R.I.O.T. Act into law. Two prominent Democrats were in a position to slow or stop that process: then-Majority leader Tom Daschle and head of whatever committee it was, Pat Leahey.<br /><br />And guess which two senators got mailed anthrax. And guess what got passed.<br /><br />There are plenty of conservative figures in all three branches of government (and the media) who may be "hated" by liberals, who may be the targets of internet screeds against them. But I see no evidence that conservatives who piss off their political opponents do so in peril of life and limb, as IS the case with liberals.LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-22883878311306925712011-01-10T12:21:07.826-08:002011-01-10T12:21:07.826-08:00Oi! Let's not forget to try and keep things ci...Oi! Let's not forget to try and keep things civil here! While things aren't TOO heated at the moment, I sense things could head that way if we're not careful.<br /><br />Look. The Right may be more likely than the Left to do violence-rhetoric, but that doesn't mean that the Left should ignore the Right when they claim "you do this too!" In this case, maturity is called for. <br /><br />If someone said to me "well the Left is just as much to blame!" then I'd say "Then let's stop the violent rhetoric on BOTH sides of the political spectrum, starting right now."<br /><br />After all, if you refuse to argue and just state it's time to act like grownups then the violent-rhetoric individuals are left with two choices: stopping their violent rhetoric, or looking like hypocrites. <br /><br />Rob H.Acacia H.https://www.blogger.com/profile/07678539067303911329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-70211931223451802772011-01-10T12:09:17.847-08:002011-01-10T12:09:17.847-08:00rewinn said:
"...equally bad behavior from t...rewinn said:<br /><i><br />"...equally bad behavior from the extreme left..."<br /><br />But not from official candidates for federal office, except those of the Republican Party.<br /></i><br /><br />Also, the point isn't that the right's rhetoric is unmatched on the left. It's the results. Lefties may be prone to violent fantasies about ridding ourselves of troublesome righties, but no one on the left is actually transforming those fantasies into reality.<br /><br />As a liberal, I'm worried about being shot for my political views, and (more likely) worried that MY representatives in government will be intimidated by the implicit threat of violence. Do people on the other side have the same fear for the well-being of Palin and Limbaugh and Boehner? I just don't see anyone on the right being in actual danger.<br /><br />To me, THAT's the crucial difference that makes it something other than "both sides are just as bad."LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-15731087278323124532011-01-10T11:59:50.326-08:002011-01-10T11:59:50.326-08:00"If one looks one can find equally bad behavi..."If one looks one can find equally bad behavior from the extreme left."<br />True. And that is where one should expect to find such language and imagery.<br /><br />Unfortunately, when it comes to the Right, such language comes from elected members of Congress, vice-presidential candidates, and media pundits with audiences in the millions.<br /><br />Failing to acknowledge the differences is not only disingenous. It is right down vile and only contributes to fostering the climate of hate that brought about the shooting.<br /><br />Also, it is a further demonstration of how childish and immature the Right has become. What they should have said is: "We apologize for the extreme rhetoric. We will make sure such rhetoric won't be used again in the future."<br /><br />This is what Obama did after his "enemies" comment.<br /><br />Instead, the response has been "the left does it too!"<br /><br />A 5 year old response.<br /><br />A 5 year old with the power to incite heavily armed, deranged fanatics.Hypnoshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01409179274970587232noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-32485958576801123242011-01-10T11:20:24.861-08:002011-01-10T11:20:24.861-08:00"...equally bad behavior from the extreme lef...<i>"...equally bad behavior from the extreme left..."</i><br /><br />But not from official candidates for federal office, except those of the Republican Party.<br /><br />Conservatives cannot truthfully pretend there is any sort of equivalence here. If you look long enough on the internet, you can find anything, but you will not find a "liberal" running for Vice-President or for Senate talking about "2nd Amendment Solutions" a.k.a. making war on the the United States.<br /><br />Major conservative characters such as Glenn Beck muse about their desire to murder people in prime time. You don't find that anywhere in the core of liberalism.rewinnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14008105385364113371noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-87372097540282149272011-01-10T11:07:56.250-08:002011-01-10T11:07:56.250-08:00Larry
The basic template, mentally unstable perso...Larry<br /><br />The basic template, mentally unstable person with handgun, fits the Reagan attempt and the two attempts on Ford.<br />Reagan came near to dying, like the AZ congresswoman the difference was a nearby first class trauma center and a few millimeters of trajectory. The two Ford incidents blur in my recollection but I do recall a misfire in one instance and a heroic bystander in another. <br /><br />It must be acknowleged that in earlier times it may have been harder to lay hands on higher caliber, rapid fire weapons. Reagan was nearly killed with a .22for goodness sakes.<br /><br />The same pattern fits RFK.<br /><br />I find offensive the premature attribution of political motives in this case. If they exist they need to be brought forward. If there is crow to be eaten I will tuck in my napkin and pick up knife and fork.<br /><br />The anthrax case has too many loose ends for my money. I am not prone to conspiracy nonsense but there may be something there beyond the guy who took the fall for it. Not sure how TV stations and tabloids fit the narrative.<br /><br />I am all for a cleansing of our political discourse, all too military even when less contentious. And I want to see less use of guns and shootings as dramatic elements.<br /><br />You want reality lets see some creative types dare to show a young person in a wheelchair, complete with tubes, catheters, bedsores and destroyed future. <br /><br />TacitusTacitus2noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-55687693889884723402011-01-10T10:35:21.269-08:002011-01-10T10:35:21.269-08:00If one looks one can find equally bad behavior fro...If one looks one can find equally bad behavior from the extreme left. <br />See: <a href="http://michellemalkin.com/2011/01/10/the-progressive-climate-of-hate-an-illustrated-primer-2000-2010/" rel="nofollow">http://michellemalkin.com/2011/01/10/the-progressive-climate-of-hate-an-illustrated-primer-2000-2010/ </a><br />for a collection of:<br />" I. PALIN HATE<br />II. BUSH HATE<br />III. MISC. TEA PARTY/GOP/ANTI-TRADITIONAL MARRIAGE HATE<br />IV. ANTI-CONSERVATIVE FEMALE HATE<br />V. LEFT-WING MOB HATE — campus, anti-war radicals, ACORN, eco-extremists, & unions<br />VI. OPEN-BORDERS HATE<br />VII. ANTI-MILITARY HATE<br />VIII. HATE: CRIMES — the ever-growing Unhinged Mugshot Collection"<br /><br />This isn't a defense of what happened to Arizona, just an acknowledgment that neither side has a monopoly of angry/frustrated individuals.David Smelserhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08596446730839038592noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-84751611552136633412011-01-10T08:41:55.292-08:002011-01-10T08:41:55.292-08:00I think Larry's point is best expressed by not...I think Larry's point is best expressed by noting that things <a href="http://www.boingboing.net/200905051404.jpg" rel="nofollow">like this</a> are fairly common and popular 'jokes' from the conservative/Republican side of the aisle, but are never seen from the liberal/Democrat side of the aisle, and the conservative/Republican side screeches to high heaven if such 'jokes' are criticized.Ilithi Dragonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10300247936272572280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-42012939216535036052011-01-10T07:04:29.179-08:002011-01-10T07:04:29.179-08:00From Tim H's link two or so posts up:
I'...From Tim H's link two or so posts up:<br /><br /><i><br />I've called out the GOP here because violent, overblown, apocalyptic, and, most importantly, false rhetoric is a much bigger problem on the right. We are all afraid to say that and they squeal like teakettles if anyone even suggests it. If your first reaction is that "both sides" share equal blame, listen to or read some Coulter, Savage, Limbaugh, Beck, et al and ask yourself who you think you are kidding. Read The Eliminationists and get back to us with some equivalent examples of "leftists" trafficking in similar rhetoric.<br /></i>LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-61538932429921249222011-01-10T07:00:40.061-08:002011-01-10T07:00:40.061-08:00Tacitus2:
The closest match to the recent atrocit...Tacitus2:<br /><i><br />The closest match to the recent atrocity is the Reagan shooting. Prior to that the two attempts on Jerry Ford's life.<br /></i><br /><br />Ok, I'll give you Reagan, with the caveat that Republicans don't seem to have SUCCESSFUL domestic terrorist attacks against them, at least not since the 19th century. That's not exactly to Hinkley's credit, but it is what it is.<br /><br />Here, I'm sure my bias is showing, but neither Reagan's nor Ford's attackers seemed to be expressing hatred of right-wing politics. They were wanabee-celebrities who targeted the President specifically because doing so would generate publicity. Do you want to make a similar claim about Giffords? I'll listen, but I gotta tell you I'm predisposed to think there's a difference.<br /><br /><i><br />One might add Jonestown, the previous assasination of a congressperson. That was a Democrat if memory serves but one can hardly call Jim Jones a right winger despite "drink the Koolaid" regrettably entering the political lexicon.<br /></i><br /><br />That was an entirely different case. First of all, it took place on foreign soil in the killer's own stronghold. More to the point, the killing had nothing to do with Ryan's politics. He was killed specifically because he was coming to investigate Jonestown.<br /><br /><i><br />If Fox is the least temperate of the "news" organizations I think the entire entertainment industry (a crucial Democratic power base) needs some scrutiny too. Would Hinkley have acted as he did without Taxi Driver?<br /></i><br /><br />I have to admit here to never having seen "Taxi Driver", so I don't know what Hinkey was imitating. Did the movie incite violence against right-wingers in particular, or did it simply incite violence? If the latter, then I think the connection through "Democratic power base" is a bit weak. You seem to be accusing Democrats (via Hollywood) of being irresponsible about inspiring violence, which may well be the case, but that's not the same thing as Republicans <i>in their role as political leaders</i> inspiring violence as a way of ridding oneself of troublesome liberals.<br /><br />And I know I'm going off the rails here, but somehow, the acts of domestic terrorism against Democrats are so darn successful. JFK, MLK, RFK, Wallace (the most conservative of the list and also the one who survived), Mel Carnahagn AND Paul Wellstone going down in airplanes, anthrax sent to Tom Daschle and Pat Leahey, and that's just off the top of my head. To this, you throw back Reagan and Ford, both of whom survived, and the Jonestown congressman (Ryan) who was killed for a very specific reason? <br /><br />I still don't see parity. I see (not from you, but just out there in general) an attitude that says opposition to conservative politicians is treason, whereas opposition to liberal politicians is one's patriotic duty, both sides of which inspire and then excuse violence to intimidate one side of the political aisle. And with the Giffords shooting, I've become less likely to just let it lie.LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-59358100479377943032011-01-10T05:48:25.792-08:002011-01-10T05:48:25.792-08:00A blogger wonders "Why didn't anyone say ...A blogger wonders "Why didn't anyone say "What the hell is wrong with you?" to the shooter"<br />http://www.ginandtacos.com/2011/01/10/the-unasked-question/Tim H.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-20481324197114405252011-01-09T20:40:25.658-08:002011-01-09T20:40:25.658-08:00"..."A well regulated militia being nece...<i>"..."A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the People to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed" should be read as "Since the Fed must have a standing army, the people must have the means to defend themselves against such army."</i><br /><br />No. This is directly contrary to the purpose of the militia as specified in Article 1:<br /><br /><i>"To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions. ..."</i><br /><br />The literal text of the Constitution defines the purpose of the militia NOT to fight the federal army, but to supplement it. And in fact that's what happened, e.g. in the Whiskey Rebellion.<br /><br />Our Founders didn't really want to have much of a standing army. Kings with standing armies do bad things to free peoples, if only to pay for the armies. Their vision was to have a nonagressive nation that might have to fight off invasion from time-to-time. For that purpose, the smallest possible standing army plus a militia would suffice, and therefore we have the 2nd Amendment (plus the "letters of marque" bit in Article 1 - clear indication that the Navy wasn't going to be large enough to engage in offensive operations and might need to rely on legalized piracy to defend the Nation.)<br /><br />I appreciate that our current Supreme Corporate may have issued a different view (5-4) but it's an extremely activist Court; as with any final referee, we have to accept its rulings without denying the evidence of our own senses.rewinnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14008105385364113371noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-26485626014561368432011-01-09T20:34:33.637-08:002011-01-09T20:34:33.637-08:00Olbermann told his audience that "we need to ...Olbermann told his audience that "we need to put the guns down. Just as importantly we need to put the gun metaphors away and permanently."<br /><br />http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/08/keith-olbermann-arizona-shooting_n_806311.html<br /><br />Look, I am about to be on Colbert, albeit eviscerated by remote. Just look at Stewart & Colbert and compare them to Beck & Limbaugh.<br /><br /> Stewart & Colbert have GUESTS! Moreover, at least 25% of them are conservatives, pushing their books. They have arguments. The guest gets his say.<br /><br />Beck & Limbaugh and Hannity NEVER have guests who challenge them. Ever. They are worse than liars, they are rank cowards.<br /><br />O'Reilly does. Sometimes. If O'Reilly were the EXTREME end of the radical right machine, then we would be in an era when reason and negotiation were possible. <br /><br />I'd hate him. But I'd tune in. And his side would not be (as it is today) stark jibbering and treasonously insane.David Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-79839649001071376362011-01-09T19:20:59.792-08:002011-01-09T19:20:59.792-08:00LarryHart
A fair question.
The closest match to th...LarryHart<br />A fair question.<br />The closest match to the recent atrocity is the Reagan shooting. Prior to that the two attempts on Jerry Ford's life.<br />One might add Jonestown, the previous assasination of a congressperson. That was a Democrat if memory serves but one can hardly call Jim Jones a right winger despite "drink the Koolaid" regrettably entering the political lexicon. <br />If Fox is the least temperate of the "news" organizations I think the entire entertainment industry (a crucial Democratic power base) needs some scrutiny too. Would Hinkley have acted as he did without Taxi Driver?<br />Maybe.<br />But I would like to see gun violence get the abhorrence it deserves. Even when well done, like the recent True Grit, it is dehumanizing.<br />Tacitus2Tacitus2noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-22806874845629908502011-01-09T17:39:51.979-08:002011-01-09T17:39:51.979-08:00Larry said: "So maybe for every Limgaugh-Beck...Larry said: "So maybe for every Limgaugh-Beck-Palin incitement to violence, you can come up with an example of lefties behaving badly too. But as far as RESULTS go, the playing field seems to me to be one-sided to the point of ludicrousness."<br /><br />It is simpler. Both right and left contain nasty loons. The chief difference is only this: that the loons on the right own and operate an entire political party, which is in turn puppetted by a Goebbels-level propaganda machine owned and run by foreign trillionaires. And when that political party ran the country, they harmed it with absolutely every action that they took.<br /><br />The loons on the left run some blogs and some university dingbat-studies departments. Sometimes they propose a stupid bill... and most get quietly put aside. BFD<br /><br />Paul, you clearly have NOT read my own super-wise gun control article, cited above! ;-)David Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-15836888729254405252011-01-09T17:21:29.312-08:002011-01-09T17:21:29.312-08:00Tacitus2:
On shift in two hours. Hope nobody gets...Tacitus2:<br /><i><br />On shift in two hours. Hope nobody gets shot tonight.<br /></i><br /><br />Oh, right. I forgot you're right there on the front lines of that sort of thing.<br /><br />I know what you mean. Several years ago, my wife had a gall-bladder problem that almost killed her. She was scheduled for surgery on a Monday, but was bumped from the OR for a street shooting case. Didn't have the surgery until Wednesday, and she could barely eat a thing in the intervening two days.LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-51153467948199808622011-01-09T17:18:19.335-08:002011-01-09T17:18:19.335-08:00Tacitus2:
Palin comes in for plenty of grief for ...Tacitus2:<br /><i><br />Palin comes in for plenty of grief for her map with targets on it. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee quickly scrubs a similar map that had been around even longer.<br /></i><br /><br />So maybe for every Limgaugh-Beck-Palin incitement to violence, you can come up with an example of lefties behaving badly too. But as far as RESULTS go, the playing field seems to me to be one-sided to the point of ludicrousness. How many Republica politicians have been shot since McKinley? How many have had antrax sent to their Senate offices? How many have gone down in mysterious plane crashes, for that matter?<br /><br />Ok, that last one makes me sound like a loonie, so I'll withdraw it if it obfuscates my point.<br /><br />And as self-righeously indignant as I may sound here, I'm legitimately asking the question. Personally, it seems that liberals have been on the receiving end of shootings and domestic terrorism to the point that it's ridiculous to assert that both sides do it. But if you can show me where I'm wrong...it might even help me sleep better at night.LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-66094270949130213322011-01-09T17:12:34.181-08:002011-01-09T17:12:34.181-08:00Tacitus2:
The second amendment is tough. It makes...Tacitus2:<br /><i><br />The second amendment is tough. It makes me uncomfortable. With the memory of revolution here and abroad so fresh they may well have intended it as a last ditch option for citizens against oppresive government. <br /></i><br /><br />I'm thinking they specifically did NOT want future governments to foreclose future Lexington-and-Concord actions.<br /><br />I'm also guessing that what they had in mind with that "militia" bit is something like Switzerland, where instead of an institutional standing army, every citizen IS the army.LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-53803860545040084482011-01-09T17:02:14.120-08:002011-01-09T17:02:14.120-08:00Robert:
Or to put it another way, Prohibition rev...Robert:<br /><i><br />Or to put it another way, Prohibition revealed what happens when you try to force Americans to abandon something they don't want to. This time around, I doubt it would be nearly as benign as the birth of organized crime and speakeasies. <br /></i><br /><br />You don't really think we're headed for anything close to outright prohibition on gun possession, do you? The furthest that gun control has ever been taken is to restrict WHERE you're allowed to have your guns. Except for some big cities (including my own Chicago), your right to a gun in your own home will not be in danger, and your right to a gun on an airplane (for example) has been gone for a long time now.<br /><br />The most I see (if anything) coming out of the Giffords shooting is a proliferation of security checks around public events, and that's a slope we've been sliding down for a long time now, not a brand new thing.LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-18492802971976888612011-01-09T16:51:26.334-08:002011-01-09T16:51:26.334-08:00The US do seem to obsess about firearms.
Reading ...The US do seem to obsess about firearms.<br /><br />Reading Flannery's comments on 'discounting the future' and its link with high risk activity, one might suggest rephrasing the line from Bobby McGee:<br /><br />'Murder's just another name for nothing left to lose'Tony Fiskhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14578160528746657971noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-63357064939086124872011-01-09T15:47:56.889-08:002011-01-09T15:47:56.889-08:00David,re:Earth and Gaia
"Um indulgent benign ...David,re:<i>Earth</i> and Gaia<br /><i>"Um indulgent benign neglect? Enhancing everybody's wealth and health, accelerating progress, reducing parasitism. Greening and prospering the places that engage with her. Patience. Reveling in and enjoying the diversity of her "thoughts." "</i><br /><br />Perhaps, but I'll need you to "show your work". Perhaps in book form. Hint hint.Paulnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-43061185022471911642011-01-09T15:41:34.326-08:002011-01-09T15:41:34.326-08:00Robert,
"will [...] result in only criminals ...Robert,<br /><i>"will [...] result in only criminals possessing guns, while law-abiding citizens are rendered powerless to defend their lives and property. And the mass shootings will continue. There are so many guns in America now [...] those warned in advance who would hide their guns"</i><br /><br />People said those exact same things in Australia. (Hell, some even talked about the govt taking away their "constitutional rights", except we don't have a "right to bear arms".)<br /><br />But the crime rate didn't soar, or drop. Neither did the murder rate. It didn't help or hinder gang crime. Gun control only affects crazy bastard mass shootings.<br /><br />Tyler August,<br /><i>"I still don't see how gun control takes away your second amendment rights. You can join a well-regulated militia at any time, Rob."</i><br /><br />Err, Tyler, even I know that's not what it means.<br /><br /><i>"A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the People to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed"</i> should be read as "Since the Fed must have a standing army, the people must have the means to defend themselves against such army."<br /><br />Therefore the 2nd amendment should be read not as "the right to defend my home from criminals", but "the right to defend against the army." Since the US military is supreme in anything accept asymmetrical warfare, the only weapons the 2nd amendment protects are full-auto assault rifles, sniper rifles, RPGs, and explosives for IEDs. (I look forward to <i>that</i> case reaching the Supreme Court :)<br /><br />As Robert, Sociotard and David implied, it's not about hunting rifles and handguns. It's about being able to create an apple-pie Al Qaeda.Paulnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-25906016152197745482011-01-09T15:36:22.316-08:002011-01-09T15:36:22.316-08:00The Arizona shooting is already yesterday's ne...The Arizona shooting is already yesterday's news. We react with horror, then a collective shrug. Relief I guess. We are not yet to the point of political hits and God help us may we never get there. But a shrug of, well, resignation. Because there are deep resevoirs of crazy people and of deadly firearms and this is going to happen again. And again.<br />Our best leaders have sounded the right notes. I though Obama and Boehner were both eloquent and sincere. But even the best of them have some things to be sheepish about. Obama quoting the Untouchables about bringing a knife to a gun fight. Ryan and collegues and their unoffical designation as Young Guns.<br />Palin comes in for plenty of grief for her map with targets on it. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee quickly scrubs a similar map that had been around even longer.<br />I have had experiences not commonplace. My family, with one month old baby in tow, was once robbed at gunpoint. And I can tell you that looking down the barrel of a gun is a surreal experience that does not really shake you til later. (The criminals involved later murdered a guy in a similar hold up).<br />Fast forward 23 years and that now 6 foot 1 baby has a brief encounter with a grizzly bear fishing in Alaska, and that night in the backwoods cafe we noticed all the men were packing sidearms.<br /><br />The framers of the constitution got so many things just right--seperation of church and state for instance. And a number of things as close as could be expected for the times, leaving a mechanism for equality of women and minorities.<br /><br />The second amendment is tough. It makes me uncomfortable. With the memory of revolution here and abroad so fresh they may well have intended it as a last ditch option for citizens against oppresive government. <br /><br />I have no solutions for you. Don't talk to me about some well regulated militia drilling on the village green. You want some serious bad things done its a well regulated, or at least well organized militia you turn to. Janjaweed, Hezbollah, TonTon Macoutes, Green Police, its a Hall of Shame by and large.<br /><br />Maybe as a start we can change our "diet". After 9/11 we had a few years where phallic appearing guns vanished from movie ads. Even now I wholehearted consume Mythbusters which has a fair amount of gun related material.<br /><br />On shift in two hours. Hope nobody gets shot tonight.<br /><br />Tacitus2Tacitus2noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-74730954207206989222011-01-09T15:21:17.103-08:002011-01-09T15:21:17.103-08:00Ilithi Dragon,
"Not just a bystander, but one...Ilithi Dragon,<br /><i>"Not just a bystander, but one of the women he SHOT. Whomever this woman is, she definitely deserves a medal.</i><br /><br />True. (Although others helped, apparently.)<br /><br />I don't know the your system of civilian awards, but I wonder if it would help offset the "bystander effect" if there was a standard series of "Citizen Responder" awards. Whether it's "helped an old man who collapsed in the street" through "organised a fire-line to defend houses until the fire-department arrived" up to "ran <i>towards</i> the gunman".<br /><br />Not saying people will chase the medals, but hearing about what other people did will normalise and reinforce the behaviour.<br /><br />I don't just mean the occasional bravery award for going above-and-beyond, I mean thousands of low-level awards every year, in every state, for seemingly routine things, like assisting at an accident. So if you don't have a drawer full by the time you die, you haven't been trying.<br /><br />(Throw in guaranteed government assistance if sued by those you tried to help. Restricting the right of others to bring lawsuits is more dangerous, IMO.)Paulnoreply@blogger.com