Thought for the Day

[Stavros]

Stumbled onto this little gem in today's Hartford Courant. It's the absolutely true story of a young lady who survived the Sandy Hook Massacre and is finally breaking her long silence to talk about - wait for it - gun control:

How many people would Adam Lanza have been able to kill had he arrived at the school with a bow and arrow? There is a reason why gun control is a consequence of the crimes that result in multiple murders, but no explanation from the 'gun lobby' why any American citizen needs an AR-15. If a law was passed making it illegal to own an AR-15 it would not violate the 2d Amendment, but it might save lives. And it would hurt the fragile egos of grown men, and some women, who cling to their 'weapon of choice' as if it were the only thing saving them from drowning. Instead of ridiculing a suvivor from Sandy Hook, Nick, I suggest you justify the ownership of a range of weapons that in most countries are the ordnance of the armed forces, not citizens.

[Stavros]

I'm so disappointed about what has happened in Myanmar with Aung San Suu Kuy.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/aung-sa...ed-11612542400

Aung Sang Suu Kyi may have charisma and thus be leadership material, but too much was expected of her in a country as corrupt as Myanmar. She has argued that the 'communal violence' in Rakhine State is part of an historic claim to the Kingdom of Arakan and that the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army has been pivotal in the inter-communal violence that has displaced so many Muslims and Hindus in Rakhine State, indeed, it was the basis of the speech she gave in The Hague rejecting the claim of Genocide.

That Rakhine/Arakan has been multi-ethnic and multi-religious, including in the heyday of the Kingdom between the 15th and 18th centures, is now complicated by the brutal suppression of Muslim and Hindu people in Rakhine by the military, the claims that the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army is an Islamist outfit, and the more obvious fact that Aung Sang Suu Kyi is in reality powerless, as her detention has shown. For the military, she was a political showgirl, and if she failed to please the West too by not condemning her country's military response to a crisis which has erupted at varous times since 1948 and never been resolved (as is also the case with the Shan and the Karen rebellions), then it suggests she has been caught between two aspirations, unable to deal with either of them.

In the end, it is quite simple -the military owns the county, as it does in Egypt and Syria, and they and their familes and friends are not about to sell their inheritance to outsiders, unless it is in foreign investment deals in gas, real estate and natural resources from which the main beneficiaries are themselves.

Aung Sang Suu Kyi's speech to The Hague in December 2019 is here-
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/...he-icj-in-full

An American academic looks at the ARSA here-
https://www.lawfareblog.com/arakan-r...u-might-expect

An Amnesty International report highlights attacks by the ARSA on Hindus-
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/ne...rakhine-state/

[filghy2]

On the other hand, when you get to that point, you have to rely strictly on your own powers of reason and discernment to seek the truth.

I do. That's why if I know someone has a history of bullshitting I'm inclined to take everything they say with a large grain of salt.

If you are telling the truth it's interesting that you are prepared to reveal so many personal details to complete strangers on the internet. I'm guessing love of transsexuals is not an approved conversation topic at the workshop in St George. The chances of someone you know stumbling across this are probably very small, but most people would think "why take the risk?"

[Laphroaig]

I haven't hired you yet. Why the hell do you keep repeating that you're a mechanic like it has some weird significance we don't know about?

Is a mechanic a special person who can see into the souls of other men? Your mechanic knows the truth! Want to know where the illuminati put your spark plugs? Ask your mechanic. Totally confused here.

Also do you really prefer it when your customers call you their "mechanic"? That's off. If my mechanic Andy told me he preferred to be called "my mechanic" I'd take my car to Steve down the road who doesn't have a fucking screw loose.

Hey Nick Danger I prefer it if you call me your future customer who overpays for shit and rolls his eyes at your loony tunes ideas. Now shut the fuck up.

He fancies himself as Jason Statham.



Crank might be more appropriate though...

[Laphroaig]

How many people would Adam Lanza have been able to kill had he arrived at the school with a bow and arrow? There is a reason why gun control is a consequence of the crimes that result in multiple murders, but no explanation from the 'gun lobby' why any American citizen needs an AR-15. If a law was passed making it illegal to own an AR-15 it would not violate the 2d Amendment, but it might save lives. And it would hurt the fragile egos of grown men, and some women, who cling to their 'weapon of choice' as if it were the only thing saving them from drowning. Instead of ridiculing a suvivor from Sandy Hook, Nick, I suggest you justify the ownership of a range of weapons that in most countries are the ordnance of the armed forces, not citizens.

Had an argument with a gun nut recently where I said they should ban AR-15's. His counter argument (and I kid you not) was why ban AR-15's when other gun types contribute to far more deaths.

[Nick Danger]

I do. That's why if I know someone has a history of bullshitting I'm inclined to take everything they say with a large grain of salt.

If you are telling the truth it's interesting that you are prepared to reveal so many personal details to complete strangers on the internet. I'm guessing love of transsexuals is not an approved conversation topic at the workshop in St George. The chances of someone you know stumbling across this are probably very small, but most people would think "why take the risk?"

What risk? What would anyone do to me if they knew exactly who I was and exactly where to find me? What would the Mormons all around me do if they knew t-girls were a thing for me? Kick me out of the LDS Church? Someone going to hack into my bank account? Nope.

I'm not scared of the internet Flighty. Just like Popeye, I am what I am. Everything I have, I built for myself, and no one can take it away. There's no shame in my game. If any of you are seriously interested in a professionally-installed after-market turbo for your American-made vehicle, I'll be more than happy to PM you how to get in touch with me. No foreign cars though.

[broncofan]

There's no shame in my game. If any of you are seriously interested in a professionally-installed after-market turbo for your American-made vehicle, I'll be more than happy to PM you how to get in touch with me. No foreign cars though.

I appreciate the hustle Nick. I'm driving a Volvo these days and it's been really reliable and drives smoothly. I do of course worry about giving the upper hand to the Swedes who might invest the money in a lingonberry based missile system. Or more likely, use the tax revenue to take care of their citizens. Disappointed by their covid response compared to Norway for instance but still the Volvo has worked out.

[Nick Danger]

How many people would Adam Lanza have been able to kill had he arrived at the school with a bow and arrow? There is a reason why gun control is a consequence of the crimes that result in multiple murders, but no explanation from the 'gun lobby' why any American citizen needs an AR-15. If a law was passed making it illegal to own an AR-15 it would not violate the 2d Amendment, but it might save lives. And it would hurt the fragile egos of grown men, and some women, who cling to their 'weapon of choice' as if it were the only thing saving them from drowning. Instead of ridiculing a suvivor from Sandy Hook, Nick, I suggest you justify the ownership of a range of weapons that in most countries are the ordnance of the armed forces, not citizens.

The essential logical fallacy of the pro-gun control argument has not suddenly become logical because there have been a lot of mass shootings, Stavros. If guns are criminalized only criminals will have guns.

Let me ask you something - are you even peripherally aware of a criminal activity in which street gangs like the Crips and Bloods are grooming young men to keep their criminal records clean so they can eventually join the police or military and supply guns, ammo, and information to the gangs?

Anything the military or police have, the street gangs can get. So basically what gun control advocates are espousing is a society in which the gangsters are armed and you are not.

You live in England, Stavros. I realize there are gangs there, but they are laughably small and quiet compared to American gangs, which have now infiltrated all of American society. The government wanted a War on Drugs. They lost.

And even this is pretty much beside the point of why Americans are actually allowed to own guns. Our founding fathers envisioned a society in which the citizens were in control, not the government. "You have guns, we have guns. Now, let's talk about the structure of society in a non-violent manner."

I am personally against all forms of armament control. I.E., I think properly vetted citizens of the USA should be allowed to own tanks, fighter jets, aircraft carriers, or any other tool of violence they desire. Anything the government has, the citizens should be allowed to have.

Interesting thing about England - all the mass knifings. Instead of mass shootings over there, you've got crazy people going out into the streets and hacking people up with machetes. Nothing stops crazy people from doing crazy things.

Let's imagine for a moment that the Sandy Hook Massacre actually happened. It's a stretch, but I can go there. Adam Lanza approaches the school with an AR-15. The ARMED SECURITY OFFICER at the door says, "Hey, tiny human, you can't come into this school with that high-powered rifle and kill a bunch of children!" Little Adam levels his AR-15 at the officer but the officer's superior training wins out, and young, fictional Adam Lanza is shot and killed. Poor little guy.

Later that day, the students learn about what happened at their own front door and are utterly horrified. Then they go home for dinner.

Gun control advocates always wonder why they can't seem to make their point to gun enthusiasts. But it's no mystery to me. Nothing they say makes a bit of sense. The government would love to see the citizens disarmed - then their reliance on the government would be total.

Luckily we have a lot of people in this country who understand logic and common sense, and aren't going to let that happen. God bless the NRA!

[Nick Danger]

I appreciate the hustle Nick. I'm driving a Volvo these days and it's been really reliable and drives smoothly. I do of course worry about giving the upper hand to the Swedes who might invest the money in a lingonberry based missile system. Or more likely, use the tax revenue to take care of their citizens. Disappointed by their covid response compared to Norway for instance but still the Volvo has worked out.

I actually have no issue with foreign cars, Bronco, I own a couple myself. My reason for not working on them is basically that there's a lot to learn and I'm too lazy to learn it. I can build and install a turbocharger on a Volvo fairly easily, as long as it's a recent model with an up-to-date computer. But retrofitting a carbureted engine can get complicated and usually results in a lot of turbo lag, which kinda defeats the purpose of the turbocharger in the first place. To sidestep that awkward conversation in which I have to tell my customer that I can do the job but can't provide a guarantee against lag, I simply advertise American Cars Only.

[broncofan]

Interesting thing about England - all the mass knifings. Instead of mass shootings over there, you've got crazy people going out into the streets and hacking people up with machetes. Nothing stops crazy people from doing crazy things.

There's nothing we can do about the virus you said except just get infected. Then you look at countries that have many fewer deaths per capita so what do you say? That you can't trust numbers.

Here is a list of countries and homicide rate. The US has a homicide rate that is more than 4 times as great as the UK. You can't stop crazy people from doing crazy things? More like you cannot stop every crazy person from killing but if you make it harder you do end up stopping some crazy people from killing. The primary logical fallacy for Republicans is that no effort to protect the public is at all useful if it's not 100% effective. It's also the primary logical fallacy of 8 year olds.

Of course your entire argument begins with a strawman argument which is that all gun ownership should be illegal and not that certain kinds of weapons are dangerous in the hands of civilians, particularly those who have committed felonies or have psychoses.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o..._homicide_rate