Ornery, Scandalous And Evil. Most Definitely!
I am so very tired of self-righteous people assuring me that my support of second amendment rights means I personally favor the mass murder of children. It's similar to how my support for the fourth amendment and hatred of TSA molestation policies means I personally favor terrorist attacks (the more casualties, the better!). And, of course, my firm belief in freedom of speech and religion means I heart Fred Phelps and the Dingleberries (plus it's my fault they plan to harass the grieving parents of Newtown), and I'm glad Prohibition was repealed because I want alcoholism to tear families apart. Know what else is awesome? Life insurance: an entire industry dedicated to providing economic incentives for evil people to murder their parents or spouses and get rich as a result!
It must be very comforting to believe "MY side has a monopoly on virtue." Almost as comforting as the belief "The world can be a place of perfect safety if only we pass the right laws, which is why we need to abolish any rights and freedoms which a suicidal criminal with a wide murderous streak could use to do harm."
It must be very comforting to believe "MY side has a monopoly on virtue." Almost as comforting as the belief "The world can be a place of perfect safety if only we pass the right laws, which is why we need to abolish any rights and freedoms which a suicidal criminal with a wide murderous streak could use to do harm."
posted by Jennifer Abel at 10:14 AM
5 Comments:
I happened to watch the President's speech during the memorial service for the victims of the Sandy Hook massacre Sunday Night. Aside from the fact that he was obviously having a pretty tough time emotionally (as many of us have,) a sudden realization dawned on me of what he must have personally been feeling - and one could tell he was taking it personally: It must be just plain hell to realize that even though one is arguably the most powerful man in the world, still - there was nothing he could have done to prevent such a trajedy. How does one prevent or deter a perpetrator who is so determined to kill people that he is willing to die? I don't think one does - at least, not everytime. How hard that must be for someone who wanted power so badly that he was willing to go through all it takes to win the presidency. Got to be really tough for someone whose motto is yes, I can to realize or be told uh - no, you can't, not this time anyway. Control freaks don't take failure very well.
I have to disagree with you on this. I would like to point out two things that are never said about guns. First, those who argue for the right to own guns say it is about freedom, that without guns the government can turn into a tyranny. Sorry, but that is too late. The government has been taking away our rights for years and this accelerated with the passage of the Patriot Act. I did not see any gun owners taking to the streets over that. The NDAA bill that President Obama signed last New Year's Eve gave him the legal right to kill any American he wants, on his say so. Our right to due process was eliminated years before that. Where were the gun owners and their precious desire to stop tyranny? Nowhere to be found, so let's top pretending that this is a a valid argument for gun ownership.
Secondly, while there are many normal people who own guns in this country, and I count myself as one of that group, there is a massive culture of "gun nuts" who make a fetish of guns and are more interested in guns that anything else in life. Go to a gun range or gun show and you will see dozens of these would-be alpha males trying to make up for their sexual inadequacies. These are the guys that drive big pickups in suburbia, and worship the military even though most of them did not join because deep inside they know they are pussies who couldn't make it through basic training, and couldn't get laid if they drove up t a hooker's convention in a Ferrari wearing an Armani suit with pocketfuls of $1000 bills. I have been to gun ranges and dealt with these people, worked with the people, and these are the gun nuts who are the face of the NRA. These are the crazies that are preventing any reasonable discussion of gun control. Disturbed individuals, and this country seems to be swarming with them, should not be allowed to obtain guns.
Secondly, while there are many normal people who own guns in this country, and I count myself as one of that group, there is a massive culture of "gun nuts" who make a fetish of guns and are more interested in guns that anything else in life.
David, pretty much everything in the world has some people who are assholes about it. Free speech is great, despite assholes like Fred Phelps and the Klan.
Disturbed individuals, and this country seems to be swarming with them, should not be allowed to obtain guns.
Adam Lanza wasn't "allowed" to obtain a gun. He stole it. Stealing is already against the law.
I happened to watch the President's speech during the memorial service for the victims of the Sandy Hook massacre Sunday Night. Aside from the fact that he was obviously having a pretty tough time emotionally (as many of us have,)
I'm just enough of a cynic to have thought "He should've pretended the dead kids were Pakistanis, killed by a 20-year-old drone operator rather than a 20-year-old civilian. That way, instead of being sad, he could've given an uplifting speech about freedom."
"David, pretty much everything in the world has some people who are assholes about it. Free speech is great, despite assholes like Fred Phelps and the Klan."
True, but the difference is that the "gun nuts" I mentioned are the most vocal by far of gun owners. Almost all gun owners I have talked to (and I live in an urban area that admittedly colors the discussion since no one is hunting game for food) are the crazy over-the-top variety, the people who would gladly vote for a politician who promised to leave their guns alone, even if he promised to send their jobs overseas, poison their water supply, and personally rape their daughters and piss in their beer.
Having said that, I am not trying to blame Sandy Hook only on our lack of sufficient gun control. There is plenty of blame to be placed on our society that worships militarism and our endless wars that are held up as the epitome of virtue. But overall, I think gun control should be a states rights issue, just like abortion and gay marriage. People would naturally gravitate to where they feel most comfortable.
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