Interesting read, but I didn't make it all the way to the end. I like detail, nuance and so on, but this ran a little long...
Here are a few thoughts, in no particular order from someone who often disagrees with you, but also believes you are perhaps the fairest writer on many topics, especially race/racism in America.
Interesting read, but I didn't make it all the way to the end. I like detail, nuance and so on, but this ran a little long...
Here are a few thoughts, in no particular order from someone who often disagrees with you, but also believes you are perhaps the fairest writer on many topics, especially race/racism in America.
Guns aren't going away in this country, ever. Even if magically we could do that, the new 3D printing technology and ghost guns make it unlikely that we are ever going to be done with gun violence through laws.
Laws prohibiting stuff rarely work. Think prohibition, "war on drugs", etc. A lot of lives were destroyed by do-gooders, well-intentioned or not, determined to remake society in their image. It didn't work, and both crusades arguably aggravated the original "problem".
I grew up in rural NW NJ., Most houses had a shotgun or rifle. I lived in that town until I was 18. There were two incidences of gun violence in the town (25k population) during my youth: a murder/suicide of husband/wife and an incredibly stupid homeowner target shooting off his deck in a lake community who struck and killed a neighbor across the lake. Even though guns were readily available, it was absolutely unthinkable that they would ever be used to settle disputes, attack teachers you didn't like, and so on. We had both parents and police, and it worked just fine.
At 18, I joined the Marines, and spent 4 years in the infantry. Our government issued weapons were always kept in the armory, but many of us had personal handguns which we kept in the squad bays, which was illegal but common. Again, there was never, ever a single instance of even a threat of violence from guns in my unit. We fought with each other, and there were broken bones at times, and we fought with civilians off base, but it was completely unthinkable , not something that would ever even be discussed over large quantities of alcohol, to ever settle disputes with guns. We were young, crazy, testosterone driven men, but some things were simply off limits, by nature, by training, and by fear of consequences.
While stationed in NC, I had a girlfriend who was being relentlessly bullied by an ex boyfriend, a known drug dealer whose father was a prominent lawyer and very good friends with the local judiciary. The son was untouchable legally, and bullied and threatened anyone in his life who "disrespected" him in any way, especially women who had the temerity to leave his violent companionship. He would follow my girlfriend during the day and terrorize her wherever she went. One day I took her too a gun store, bought her a small handgun, gave her the basic lessons on loading, aiming and fire, and told her to kill him the next time he came to her house. The next time he came pounding on her door, she fired through the door, ddi not kill him, and he stayed away for a while. When he started following her car again, her brother followed his, and blew the back windshield out of the ex-boyfriend's car with a shotgun. That was the last she ever heard from him. She would most likely be dead today were the gun laws (and prosecutorial zeal) of today in force in NC in the 80s.
I live in Detroit. Virtually everyone owns, and carries a gun, almost always handguns. Some are legal, many are not. Some are legally acquired guns carried concealed without a permit. There are hundreds of killings per year here, almost all from driveby shootings or turf disputes among gangs or something as simple as a fender-bender n the Home Depot parking lot. It is completely tolerated, and accepted. There is no protest here, unless the shootings are done by the police, in which case every suburban activist dresses ups in BLM gear to descend on the City to (selectively) denounce gun violence. The amount of children shot in this city is out of control, and you will never, ever hear about it on the news, because it isn't news.
So what to do?
I am firmly on the side of responsible gun ownership, with the emphasis on responsible. I would, and do support some sort of mandatory training and (short) waiting period before purchasing guns. Obviously, this would only help matter out in instances where the guns were being purchased legally. Here in Detroit , such restrictions wouldn't have even a marginal effect, since the overwhelming percentage of gun crimes are being committed by felons who aren't supposed to be anywhere near firearms to begin with .
The spate of suburban teenage/young adult male mass shootings is a new phenomenon in my life. it seems to coincide with the rash of new drugs, prescription and others, that have flooded our country, whether under the guise of "anti-depressants" or other pretenses. Most of the shooters seem to have been prescribed, at some point , drugs with a frightening list of potential "side effects". I know coincidence doesn't prove causality, but there is something to look at here. This sort of shooting simple didn't exist when I grew up, and guns were, and are, readily available.
We need, desperately, the PARENTS of this country to parent, and to raise responsible, compassionate, and discerning children. We need the parents back. If we don t parent, we will need to police ever more, and that is no substitute. We, as a culture, need to go back to what worked, what worked, imperfectly, but much better than what we have in 2022. It isn't difficult. It has nothing to do with race or poverty or anything else but a spectacular decline in personal responsibility, and a lack of appreciation for what we do have, which has been replaced with a unrelenting drumbeat of complaints, victimization and overall whining about what is wrong.
Will some laws restricting gun ownership, in some instances, reduce some typos of crimes? I would guess yes, but we aren't going to legislate our way out of this problem. We need responsible, mature, adult citizens and strong neighborhoods and communities to collectively address the problem of gun violence, and so many other problems, not more laws.
Joe, I posted these links right before I read your comment. If you have the time and inclination to watch (less than 10 minutes), I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts.
Maybe I have Apple Knocker bias, but I think this man sorts out this gun control issue really, really well.
As the man in these videos says, “Right now, there’s a whole bunch of people out there, that are pro-gun, that are like, oh yeah, hillbilly about to school these liberals on guns.”
Beau of the fifth column, Let's talk about guns, gun control, school shootings, and the "law abiding gun owner" parts 1, 2 and 3
I watched all but the last one because of time issues, and I largely agree with what he is saying.
I disagree with the age limit thing....I think conditioning federal transportation money win all the states adopting a 21 year old drinking age minimum was and is a disaster and encourages all sorts of lawbreaking and general disrespect for all laws, and does absolutely nothing to control the drinking/driving problem.
I agree with the spirit of his questioning the sending of young men and women off to war at 18 years old, but would dig a bit deeper here....not all wars are wrong, although 90% of what America does overseas is evil and serves the interests of the arms merchants and moneyed elites. The Problem isn't 18 year olds being trained as soldiers; it is, rather, I believe, the casualness with which these young people are sent to meddle in other countries' affairs and the mind fuck that inevitably happens when you are conditioned over and over to view another people, who has done absolutely nothing to you, as sub-human, allowing you to justify, internally, killing, torturing or whatever. I am the strongest person you will ever meet on legitimate self defense and defense of America, but I am 100% for closing down every overseas military base, withdrawing from NATO, etc. Trump was right on this one.
I greatly appreciated our former police chief here in Detroit who encouraged Detroiters to get training and arm themselves, because there was no way the police could protect everyone, (even if they were so inclined).
I think his distinction between Second Amendment people and gun nuts is generally valid, as his his characterization of suburban kids getting guns from Walmart and Dad's gun closets and then shooting up schools. That's the type of event that gets the press, but it doesn't address the problem we have here in Detroit, or most cities, though there are things in common,. Guns are definitely a way to prove manhood, to become significant and important for your peer groups, but that doesn't stop at the county line in Alabama or Georgia. We have the same shit here in Detroit, with wannabe rappers putting their junk up on FB with photos of guns in one hand, wads of $100 bills in the other, a sexy chick in a micro mini skirt caressing them and a bottle of Chivas Regal on the night table. So yes, American culture glorifies violence, over and over and over again, and this glorification runs from the school house to the White House, and doesn't pause at the rural or urban boundaries, but has swept through this country.
I firmly believe that almost every problem is solvable, and best able to be solved, at the local level, and that that is where the process must begin. We need real leadership from, well, leaders, and that is going to look and sound differently in Detroit than it will in the Louisiana bayou. There isn't a one size fits all solution here, and I have found in my middle age that while passing laws and invoking the government sounds good, and feels good, these made for TV actions often don't ever address the real roots of the problem or lead to any long term solution. Government is excellent, excellent, at partially solving problems they are largely responsible for creating and nurturing in the first place.
Interesting read, but I didn't make it all the way to the end. I like detail, nuance and so on, but this ran a little long...
Here are a few thoughts, in no particular order from someone who often disagrees with you, but also believes you are perhaps the fairest writer on many topics, especially race/racism in America.
Guns aren't going away in this country, ever. Even if magically we could do that, the new 3D printing technology and ghost guns make it unlikely that we are ever going to be done with gun violence through laws.
Laws prohibiting stuff rarely work. Think prohibition, "war on drugs", etc. A lot of lives were destroyed by do-gooders, well-intentioned or not, determined to remake society in their image. It didn't work, and both crusades arguably aggravated the original "problem".
I grew up in rural NW NJ., Most houses had a shotgun or rifle. I lived in that town until I was 18. There were two incidences of gun violence in the town (25k population) during my youth: a murder/suicide of husband/wife and an incredibly stupid homeowner target shooting off his deck in a lake community who struck and killed a neighbor across the lake. Even though guns were readily available, it was absolutely unthinkable that they would ever be used to settle disputes, attack teachers you didn't like, and so on. We had both parents and police, and it worked just fine.
At 18, I joined the Marines, and spent 4 years in the infantry. Our government issued weapons were always kept in the armory, but many of us had personal handguns which we kept in the squad bays, which was illegal but common. Again, there was never, ever a single instance of even a threat of violence from guns in my unit. We fought with each other, and there were broken bones at times, and we fought with civilians off base, but it was completely unthinkable , not something that would ever even be discussed over large quantities of alcohol, to ever settle disputes with guns. We were young, crazy, testosterone driven men, but some things were simply off limits, by nature, by training, and by fear of consequences.
While stationed in NC, I had a girlfriend who was being relentlessly bullied by an ex boyfriend, a known drug dealer whose father was a prominent lawyer and very good friends with the local judiciary. The son was untouchable legally, and bullied and threatened anyone in his life who "disrespected" him in any way, especially women who had the temerity to leave his violent companionship. He would follow my girlfriend during the day and terrorize her wherever she went. One day I took her too a gun store, bought her a small handgun, gave her the basic lessons on loading, aiming and fire, and told her to kill him the next time he came to her house. The next time he came pounding on her door, she fired through the door, ddi not kill him, and he stayed away for a while. When he started following her car again, her brother followed his, and blew the back windshield out of the ex-boyfriend's car with a shotgun. That was the last she ever heard from him. She would most likely be dead today were the gun laws (and prosecutorial zeal) of today in force in NC in the 80s.
I live in Detroit. Virtually everyone owns, and carries a gun, almost always handguns. Some are legal, many are not. Some are legally acquired guns carried concealed without a permit. There are hundreds of killings per year here, almost all from driveby shootings or turf disputes among gangs or something as simple as a fender-bender n the Home Depot parking lot. It is completely tolerated, and accepted. There is no protest here, unless the shootings are done by the police, in which case every suburban activist dresses ups in BLM gear to descend on the City to (selectively) denounce gun violence. The amount of children shot in this city is out of control, and you will never, ever hear about it on the news, because it isn't news.
So what to do?
I am firmly on the side of responsible gun ownership, with the emphasis on responsible. I would, and do support some sort of mandatory training and (short) waiting period before purchasing guns. Obviously, this would only help matter out in instances where the guns were being purchased legally. Here in Detroit , such restrictions wouldn't have even a marginal effect, since the overwhelming percentage of gun crimes are being committed by felons who aren't supposed to be anywhere near firearms to begin with .
The spate of suburban teenage/young adult male mass shootings is a new phenomenon in my life. it seems to coincide with the rash of new drugs, prescription and others, that have flooded our country, whether under the guise of "anti-depressants" or other pretenses. Most of the shooters seem to have been prescribed, at some point , drugs with a frightening list of potential "side effects". I know coincidence doesn't prove causality, but there is something to look at here. This sort of shooting simple didn't exist when I grew up, and guns were, and are, readily available.
We need, desperately, the PARENTS of this country to parent, and to raise responsible, compassionate, and discerning children. We need the parents back. If we don t parent, we will need to police ever more, and that is no substitute. We, as a culture, need to go back to what worked, what worked, imperfectly, but much better than what we have in 2022. It isn't difficult. It has nothing to do with race or poverty or anything else but a spectacular decline in personal responsibility, and a lack of appreciation for what we do have, which has been replaced with a unrelenting drumbeat of complaints, victimization and overall whining about what is wrong.
Will some laws restricting gun ownership, in some instances, reduce some typos of crimes? I would guess yes, but we aren't going to legislate our way out of this problem. We need responsible, mature, adult citizens and strong neighborhoods and communities to collectively address the problem of gun violence, and so many other problems, not more laws.
Joe, I posted these links right before I read your comment. If you have the time and inclination to watch (less than 10 minutes), I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts.
Maybe I have Apple Knocker bias, but I think this man sorts out this gun control issue really, really well.
As the man in these videos says, “Right now, there’s a whole bunch of people out there, that are pro-gun, that are like, oh yeah, hillbilly about to school these liberals on guns.”
Beau of the fifth column, Let's talk about guns, gun control, school shootings, and the "law abiding gun owner" parts 1, 2 and 3
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxvxbZGjlv4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNtxtuQxUz8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbXTDuwSVkk
And just because I think it matters, I recommend these 2 short videos as well
Let's talk about being armed and black
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zL_IX8yX_JU
Let's talk about what it's like to be a black person in the US
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WD8mWq0Hdcw
Hi Raffey
I watched all but the last one because of time issues, and I largely agree with what he is saying.
I disagree with the age limit thing....I think conditioning federal transportation money win all the states adopting a 21 year old drinking age minimum was and is a disaster and encourages all sorts of lawbreaking and general disrespect for all laws, and does absolutely nothing to control the drinking/driving problem.
I agree with the spirit of his questioning the sending of young men and women off to war at 18 years old, but would dig a bit deeper here....not all wars are wrong, although 90% of what America does overseas is evil and serves the interests of the arms merchants and moneyed elites. The Problem isn't 18 year olds being trained as soldiers; it is, rather, I believe, the casualness with which these young people are sent to meddle in other countries' affairs and the mind fuck that inevitably happens when you are conditioned over and over to view another people, who has done absolutely nothing to you, as sub-human, allowing you to justify, internally, killing, torturing or whatever. I am the strongest person you will ever meet on legitimate self defense and defense of America, but I am 100% for closing down every overseas military base, withdrawing from NATO, etc. Trump was right on this one.
I greatly appreciated our former police chief here in Detroit who encouraged Detroiters to get training and arm themselves, because there was no way the police could protect everyone, (even if they were so inclined).
I think his distinction between Second Amendment people and gun nuts is generally valid, as his his characterization of suburban kids getting guns from Walmart and Dad's gun closets and then shooting up schools. That's the type of event that gets the press, but it doesn't address the problem we have here in Detroit, or most cities, though there are things in common,. Guns are definitely a way to prove manhood, to become significant and important for your peer groups, but that doesn't stop at the county line in Alabama or Georgia. We have the same shit here in Detroit, with wannabe rappers putting their junk up on FB with photos of guns in one hand, wads of $100 bills in the other, a sexy chick in a micro mini skirt caressing them and a bottle of Chivas Regal on the night table. So yes, American culture glorifies violence, over and over and over again, and this glorification runs from the school house to the White House, and doesn't pause at the rural or urban boundaries, but has swept through this country.
I firmly believe that almost every problem is solvable, and best able to be solved, at the local level, and that that is where the process must begin. We need real leadership from, well, leaders, and that is going to look and sound differently in Detroit than it will in the Louisiana bayou. There isn't a one size fits all solution here, and I have found in my middle age that while passing laws and invoking the government sounds good, and feels good, these made for TV actions often don't ever address the real roots of the problem or lead to any long term solution. Government is excellent, excellent, at partially solving problems they are largely responsible for creating and nurturing in the first place.