Four Pro-Gun Arguments

From Rolling Stone BY AMANDA MARCOTTE

Well, guys, I hate to break it to you, but we heard you the first time. And the second time. And the hundreds of times since that our country has grappled with an individual eager to take out as many lives as possible with a firearm. We can recite your arguments in our sleep, and they haven't grown better through repetition.

1. "Guns don't kill people. People kill people."
This is a fantastic argument for those who can't tell the difference between one death and a dozen. Absolutely, a murderer can often kill one person or two with a knife before being stopped. But to really rack up those mind-blowing death counts – to make sure that many lives are destroyed and families ruined in the space of five or 10 minutes – you need a gun. If all you care about is apportioning blame and declaring that someone does or does not have murderous intent, then by all means, claim a knife and a gun are equivalent weapons. For those of us who are more worried about preventing unnecessary deaths than merely acknowledging the hate that resides in some people's hearts, however, the sheer amount of damage a gun can do is reason to limit who can get their hands on one.

2. "The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun."
If you prefer pithy sayings to hard evidence, I can see why this would be convincing. But if you look at the real world, you'll find that far from being our only hope, good guys with guns are barely any help at all. No mass shootings in the past 30 years have been stopped by an armed civilian; in 1982, an armed civilian successfully killed a shooter, but it was only after he committed his crime.

It's not that there aren't enough guns, either. There are as many guns as people in this country, and fully a third of people are armed. Even when shootings happen in gun-happy places, where armed people are sure to be nearby, this vigilante scenario simply doesn't work. That's because pulling a gun out and shooting back in the chaos of a mass shooting just makes things worse, as was discovered when a would-be hero at the 2011 shooting of Gabby Giffords very nearly shot the wrong man. (The actual shooter was tackled by an elderly man.)


3. "But, mental health!"
Opponents of gun control love bringing up the problem of inadequate mental health care after a shooting. This is strictly for deflection purposes, as there is no indication that Republicans will ever work on meaningful reform for our mental health systems – which, it's true are woefully inadequate. It's an issue that only matters to them in the immediate aftermath of a shooting – then it's forgotten, until there's another shooting. Rinse, repeat.

Also, the "mental health" gambit, in this context, is always vague. What exactly is the plan? Round up everyone with a mental health issue and put them under lock and key? That amounts to 1 in 5 Americans, the vast majority of whom have no violent tendencies. Will we have some kind of extensive mental health registry? A lot of Americans who struggle with mental health are undiagnosed, though, and putting them on a government list that restricts their rights is not a great inducement to get a diagnosis. There are a lot of shooters in this country, so we have some pretty good data on mass shooters. And that data shows there's no reliable way to tell who is going to go off like this, and only 23 percent of shooters have a diagnosis. Even if all of those individuals got gold-star treatment, the system would only stop a few shooters.

4. "Second Amendment, baby."
Here's a good time to remind everyone that the Second Amendment was written by slaveholders before we had electricity, much less the kind of weaponry that would-be murderers can buy today. But sure, if you think it's that precious, we can compromise: If you love the Second Amendment that much, feel free to live in a powdered wig and shit in a chamberpot while trying to survive off what you can kill with an 18th century musket. In exchange, let those of us living in this century pass some laws so we can feel safe going to class, or the movies, or anywhere without worrying that some maladjusted man will try to get his revenge by raining death on random strangers.



Read more: http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/4-pro-gun-arguments-were-sick-of-hearing-20151001#ixzz3tD7MZMoX
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Monday Morning Smile

https://www.youtube.com/embed/-MoNd9PjvWE

If Not For You

Monday Morning Smile

I don't know about you, but "Uptown Funk" rocks, and so do these pieces of film showing the golden age of dancing and musicals in the 40's.

Enjoy

Thank You Allen Toussaint, RIP

A Smile for a Change

DAESH

For many months now, we have heard world leaders speak of the threat posed by ISIS , IS and ISIL.

But in the wake of the devastating terror attacks in Paris on Friday, we have seen another word being used with increasing frequency.

When French president Francois Hollande addressed a nation in mourning following the tragic events, he said they were "waged by a terrorist army, a jihadist army, by Daesh, against France."

Hacker group Anonymous also included the term 'Daesh' in a tweet published yesterday in which they vowed to 'wage war' on Islamic State.


Many of us might not have heard the term 'Daesh' before - but you'll probably be hearing it much more often from now on.

Read more: For all the latest developments in Paris follow our live blog

What does it mean?
Daesh is an acronym for the Arabic phrase al-Dawla al-Islamiya al-Iraq al-Sham (Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant).

Essentially, it's another word for ISIS - but apparently one that ISIS militants do not favour.

Why? Because it is similar to the Arabic words 'Daes', 'one who crushes something underfoot' and 'Dahes', translated as 'one who sows discord'.

ISIS FAKES

One Muslim TV host's segment on ISIS is going viral for exposing the Islamic State's deadliest weapon: Haterade. That's right—Waleed Aly, host of the Australian talk show The Project, demonstrated that the key to ISIS's success is haters sippin' on that nasty-ass haterade. After watching it, you'll put down the bottle for life.


In a segment from the show's first episode since the attacks, he starts off by discussing how ISIS appears much stronger than it actually is by "[taking] credit for any act of terrorism on Western soil," whether or not they were actually ordered by the organization. This is something ISIS has admitted to in its monthly magazine, Dabi, which actually encouraged supporters to take credit for DIY terrorist attacks so they don't appear to be "random killings."

The Project's clip is rapidly going viral on Facebook, with more than 210,000 likes and more than 260,000 shares. That's great news, because every person who sees the video makes ISIS's tactic less effective.


Aly discusses how ISIS, like a weird doomsday cult, wants to split the world into two camps—those who have "faith" and those who are in "disbelief"—in preparation for a "great war." They want Westerners to act hostile towards Muslims, and in turn, have those Muslims turn to ISIS in retaliation. Aly notes that it's a crazy, outlandish idea, but drives home the point that within this framework, being Islamophobic is actually a way of helping ISIS achieve their goal, however ridiculous that goal is.
So next time you wanna take a big gulp of that haterade, remember, you're taking a gulp for ISIS.
Sources: The Project/Facebook

Monday Morning Smile

Sorry for the late post. The weekend events kept me from thinking of smiling. Enjoy these deleted pieces of Monty Python & The Holy Grail - one of my favorite movies. Enjoy and smile.

Grief Knows no Native Tongue

Thoughts of a Paris Survivor

Isobel Bowdery
University of Cape Town · 27,743 followers · 11 hrs ·


you never think it will happen to you. It was just a friday night at a rock show. the atmosphere was so happy and everyone was dancing and smiling. and then when the men came through the front entrance and began the shooting, we naiively believed it was all part of the show. It wasn't just a terrorist attack, it was a massacre. Dozens of people were shot right infront of me. Pools of blood filled the floor. Cries of grown men who held their girlfriends dead bodies pierced the small music venue. Futures demolished, families heartbroken. in an instant. Shocked and alone, I pretended to be dead for over an hour, lying among people who could see their loved ones motionless.. Holding my breath, trying to not move, not cry - not giving those men the fear they longed to see. I was incredibly lucky to survive. But so many didn't. The people who had been there for the exact same reasons as I - to have a fun friday night were innocent. This world is cruel. And acts like this are suppose to highlight the depravity of humans and the images of those men circuling us like vultures will haunt me for the rest of my life. The way they meticoulsy aimed at shot people around the standing area i was in the centre of without any consideration for human life. It didn't feel real. i expected any moment for someone to say it was just a nightmare. But being a survivor of this horror lets me able to shed light on the heroes. To the man who reassured me and put his life on line to try and cover my brain whilst i whimpered, to the couple whose last words of love kept me believing the good in the world, to the police who succeded in rescuing hundreds of people, to the complete strangers who picked me up from the road and consoled me during the 45 minutes I truly believed the boy i loved was dead, to the injured man who i had mistaken for him and then on my recognition that he was not Amaury, held me and told me everything was going to be fine despite being all alone and scared himself, to the woman who opened her doors to the survivors, to the friend who offered me shelter and went out to buy new clothes so i wouldnt have to wear this blood stained top, to all of you who have sent caring messages of support - you make me believe this world has the potential to be better. to never let this happen again. but most of this is to the 80 people who were murdered inside that venue, who weren't as lucky, who didnt get to wake up today and to all the pain that their friends and families are going through. I am so sorry. There's nothing that will fix the pain. I feel priviledged to be there for their last breaths. And truly beliving that I would join them, I promise that their last thoughts were not on the animals who caused all this. It was thinking of the people they loved. As i lay down in the blood of strangers and waiting for my bullet to end my mere 22 years, I envisioned every face that I have ever loved and whispered I love you. over and over again. reflecting on the highlights of my life. Wishing that those i love knew just how much, wishing that they knew that no matter what happened to me, to keep belieivng in the good in people. to not let those men win. Last night, the lives of many were forever changed and it is up to us to be better people. to live lives that the innocent victims of this tragedy dreamt about but sadly will now never be able to fulfil. RIP angels. You will never be forgotten.