Words fail me.
Done, arguably, by the smallest man ever to hold the office. I hate living in historic times.
Games that make you kill
Now that so much gaming has moved from our PC’s to our phones, I find my ravenous urge to kill and maim is no longer slaked by trivial entertainments such as Call of Duty, BioShock and World of Tanks; nay, I’ve found something better!
Angry Birds!
Yes, nothing satisfies my urge to chuck chickens at grinning evil green pigs like Angry Birds. If I wasn’t able to sublimate my burning desire for collapsing structures and porcine rolling heads, there is just. no. telling. what I might be capable of…
So heed not my guns and first person shooters- fear my flaming bluebirds!
(side note- did someone put something in the water of my country?)
Random thoughts from the ‘net
Top 5 Gun Massacres– note only one in the U.S.- and it’s not the one you think.
Each one was terrible- but terrible things happen and evildoers do evil. That is not a reason to start sacrificing what is left of our rights. I have just written to all my state and federal representatives- I suggest you do the same. The NRA-ILA provides a handy way to get all their addresses, snail-and-email.
The Blogfather speaks
…and it would be easy to call it snark, but instead it’s truth (quoted in full):
SO IF WE’RE GOING TO HAVE A “NATIONAL CONVERSATION ON GUNS,” HERE ARE SOME OPENERS:
Why do people who favor gun-control call people who disagree with them murderers or accomplices to murder? Is that constructive?
Would any of the various proposals have actually prevented the tragedy that is the supposed reason for them?
When you say you hope that this event will finally change the debate, do you really mean that you hope you can use emotionalism and blood-libel-bullying to get your way on political issues that were losers in the past?
If you’re a media member or politician, do you have armed security? Do you have a permit for a gun yourself? (I’m asking you Dianne Feinstein!) If so, what makes your life more valuable than other people’s?
Do you know the difference between an automatic weapon and a semi-automatic weapon? Do your public statements reflect that difference?
If guns cause murder, why have murder rates fallen as gun sales have skyrocketed?
Have you talked about “Fast and Furious?” Do you even know what it is? Do you care less when brown people die?
When you say that “we” need to change, how are you planning to change? Does your change involve any actual sacrifice on your part?
Let me know when you’re ready to talk about these things. We’ll have a conversation.
UPDATE: John Lucas emails:
Joe Scarborough, who claims to be a “proud NRA member” just said there is no reason to allow someone to have an “assault weapon” that shoots “30 rounds a second.”
The ignorance is appalling.
Well, yes. It’s MSNBC. But it is interesting that Scarborough — like Mark Shields and Rupert Murdoch — seems entirely ignorant of actual gun law. But to be fair, the National Firearms Act has only been around since 1934.
These are the opinion-makers and the lawmakers. Ignore their ignorance and disregard for the constitution at your own peril. But then again, a lot of you helped elect these clowns, so, I guess I know where you stand.
Just so we’re clear.
Awful, awful times
I do not like this world we have made for ourselves. I do not like the media and its taste for blood after a terrible tragedy. I do not like politicians who cannot wait a decent time before trying to capitalize on a terrible tragedy. Hence, I do not like this world we- all of us– have made for ourselves.
Bob Owens thinks he sees what a facet of the problem is. I don’t know- I just know the news Friday had me crying like a baby as I tried to drive down Schillinger Road.
I am glad I’m going to ground.
Sometimes there is cool, and sometimes there is utterly badass
To wit- a really nicely done Chevy 350 V8 with bells’n’whistles. Niiiiice…
Then, there is a good ol’ All-American (ahem) FORD (thankyou) 1100 cubic inch dual overhead cam Sherman Tank V8.
I do believe I’ll take the Ford, kind sir. Wow!
Honor between men
A different time, but Honor between men has never changed.
Here it came, just a few miles out, this American bomber that dropped no bombs. Then, suddenly, it was over them and gone. No one said a word. The crew unhooked the hoses, Franz flicked away his cigarette, saluted his sergeant and was gone, off in pursuit of the American plane.
If he could down this one, Stigler would have his 23rd victory, and he’d be awarded the Knight’s Cross, the highest honor for a German soldier in World War II and one that symbolized exceptional bravery.
Within minutes, Stigler, alone, was on the B-17’s tail. He had his finger on the trigger, one eye closed and the other squinting through his gunsight. He took aim and was about to fire when he realized what he wasn’t seeing: This plane had no tail guns blinking. This plane had no left stabilizer. This plane had no tail-gun compartment left, and as he got closer, Stigler saw the terrified tail gunner himself, his fleece collar soaked red, the guns themselves streaked with it, icicles of blood hanging from the barrels.
—-
Stigler, too, was panicked. This plane was going down, and its crew was paralyzed. Stigler pointed to the ground, and, finally, a reaction: The Americans shook their heads. They’d rather die in flames than be taken prisoner by the Nazis.
Stigler was exasperated. As it was, he was risking his own life: Everyone knew the story of the German woman who, just one year before, had been gunned down by the Nazis for telling a joke against the Third Reich. If Stigler’s plane were to be spotted by a civilian alongside a B-17, and if that civilian wrote down the number on his tail and reported him, he was as good as dead.
Then Stigler remembered what Roedel had told him, that to shoot the enemy when vulnerable went against the code of chivalry and honor. Stigler felt he had to do what was right.
What kind of man would risk his own safety for that of a helpless enemy? I guess none of us will know until we face it ourselves. Honor can be a hard taskmaster, but I’ll bet Herr Stigler had no problem looking himself in the eye in the mirror.
tweeted by Doug Ross (@directorblue)