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Praetorium Honoris

Friday, October 6, 2017

Giving Up the Gun

Springfield Model 1822 flintlock musket.(Source)
Alternative titles for this post could be:

That ship has sailed!
The genie is out of the bottle!
Which part of the 2nd Amendment confuses you?

Anyhoo...

Back when I was overseas in Asia (a long, long time ago), I picked up a copy of this book -

(Source)
At the time I thought the work somewhat unremarkable. That Japan could ban firearms so completely isn't all that remarkable in my mind. A highly structured society with a warrior caste so powerful that the Emperor was a figurehead. The Shogun ruled the country. Particularly after the Tokugawa took over in 1603. Seems though that the book may be a complete fraud! (See this reference for a discussion of that. As one swallow does not a summer make, nor does one source absolute truth make, especially on the Web of World Wideness.)

Now let's say, for argument's sake, that the book Giving Up the Gun, is the absolute God's honest truth. Again, I think that somewhat unremarkable. "Why?" you might ask.

Alright, here's my thoughts on the subject.

Tokugawa Ieyasu had just fought, and won, a bloody war to crush the clans that stood against him. The Emperor offers him the title of Shogun, which he accepts. (Surprise, surprise. Incidentally, the book of the same name as Tokugawa's title, Shogun, tracks the events of that time fairly well. In case you're confused, Toranaga in the book, represents Tokugawa in real life. Just though I'd mention that.)

Now the battle which capped Tokugawa's victory was Sekigahara, sources are somewhat confused as to the number of dead (5000 to over 32000) but as the samurai might say, "Many heads were taken." This battle wasn't all swords, bows, and spears. Due to the need to raise more men, many units were equipped with the ever so inefficient match lock musket. Unwieldy, slow to load, and not that handy in battle. But you can train some poor schlub to shoot the thing a lot faster than you can teach him to effectively wield a katana, shoot a bow, or the proper techniques for slaying somebody with a naginata.

Schmuckatelli-san can be an ichi-ban killer in no time at all with a gun.

But once the battle is over, the sword bearing class (only the samurai were allowed to carry swords) didn't like the idea that Schmuckatelli-san and his mates might start getting ideas in their heads. Stuff like, "Why should we bow to the samurai? We have guns!"

Well no. The Shogun thought that that was a really bad idea. The war was over, why do we need guns? The samurai are all on my side now, they can keep the peasants in line. Back to the rice paddies Schmuckatelli-san!

I'm sure that after a few heads were lopped off, think back to this post, the rabble gladly turned in their guns.

I've had a few conversations in the past few days, many of which start with, "Why can't we just ban that stuff, make it illegal?" When I point out that doing so is actually prohibited by law -

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

They will sometimes get flustered. Some will bark that the 2nd Amendment isn't meant to allow the people to have military grade weapons. Others will say, "Well, something needs to be done."

Well, you can't fix this. Not if you collected every single damned gun on the planet and melted them all down. (And that would provoke a massive bloodbath, something the progs don't seem to understand.) Once all the guns are gone, people will kill each other with arrows, knives, swords, rocks, explosives, etc., etc., etc. Then someone else will realize that making simple guns, and black powder, isn't that hard. Well documented in books, I know. So what are they going to do, burn all the books as well?

The genie is out of the bottle, that ship has sailed. For a fine example of all that gun banning not working, I need look no further than Rhody's neighbor Connecticut. That fine bastion of left-leaning idiocy is very strict when it comes to firearms. The two Senators from that state are barking for the need for gun control.

They must be right, neh? I mean, Connecticut is perfectly safe, no problems at all, Sandy Hook notwithstanding, right?

Nope. The tragedy at Sandy Hook showed that making something illegal doesn't prevent it. It does prevent someone from shooting back though, think on that.

Chicago, Baltimore, St. Louis, Detroit, all those murder capitals run by the Republicans...

Oh wait. All those cities are run by the progs. Very strict gun laws. Very high murder rates.

You can't fix this nonsense. Well, you can if the citizenry is well armed and trained in the use of firearms. But that's not what the progressives want. They want a cowed and compliant populace. Guess they should move somewhere else, right?

"But we must do something!" they cry. When there is nothing to be done, you do nothing, you don't do something ineffective.

Politicians have been doing that for centuries. Hasn't worked yet...



58 comments:

  1. Schmuckatelli-san. I like it. Better copyright it before it goes viral.

    Well spoken post, Sarge. Probably won't change any minds though. The people that understand what you said, won't need to. The people that don't/won't change their minds....Well, 'nuff said.

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    Replies
    1. Juvat beat me to it, but you got me with Schmuckatelli-san. I had a vision of all the Schmuckatellies I've encountered over the years, and there have been more than a few, being driven back to the rice paddies by guys in dresses swinging swords. That alone was worth the price of admission!

      Delete
  2. 100%. I couldn't add anything more of value, so I won't.

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  3. Hey AFSarge;

    The people that want to ban guns are the same ones that want to rule us.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I had a dream tonight, I hope you'll understand,
    A figure walking through the mist, with a flintlock in his hand.
    His clothes were torn and dirty, as he stood there by my bed.
    He took off his three cornered hat, and speaking low, he said

    "We fought a revolution to secure your liberty.
    We wrote the Constitution, as a shield from tyranny.
    For future generations, this legacy we gave.
    In this the land of the free and the Home of the Brave."

    "The freedom we secured for you, we hoped you’d always keep.
    But politicians have labored endlessly while your fellow citizens sleep.
    Your freedom gone, your courage lost, you’re no more than a slave.
    In this the Land of the Free and the home of the brave"

    "You have to pay to travel, and buy permits to own a gun,
    Permits to start a business, or to build a place for one.
    On the land you believe you own, you pay a yearly rent.
    You have no voice in choosing how the money is spent"

    "Your children must attend a school that doesn’t educate.
    Your Christian Values can’t be taught, according to the state.
    You read about the current news, in a regulated press.
    You pay a tax you do not owe to please the IRS"

    "Your money is no longer made of silver or of gold.
    You trade your wealth for paper so your life can be controlled.
    You pay for crimes that make our nation turn from God in shame.
    You’ve slowly lost your freedom as you’ve traded in your name."

    "You’ve given government control to those who do you harm.
    They're able to padlock churches and steal the family farm.
    And keep our country deep in debt, put men of God in jail.
    Harass your fellow countryman, while corrupted courts prevail."

    "The politicians don’t uphold the solemn oath they’ve sworn.
    Your daughters visit doctors so their children won’t be born.
    Your leaders ship artillery, and guns to foreign shores.
    And many of your sons are lost, fighting other people’s wars"

    "Can you regain the freedom for which we fought and died?
    Or don’t you have the courage, or the faith to stand with pride?
    Are there no more values for which you’ll fight to save?
    Or do you wish your children to live in fear and be a slave?"

    "People of the Republic, arise and take a stand!
    Defend the Constitution, the supreme law of the land!
    Preserve our great Republic, and our God given rights!
    And pray to God to keep the torch of freedom burning bright!"

    As I awoke he vanished into the mist from whence he came.
    His words are true, we are not free, we have ourselves to blame.
    For even now as politicians trample each God given right.
    We only watch and tremble, too afraid to stand and fight.

    If he stood by your bed side in a dream, while you’re asleep.
    And wonders what remains of our Rights he fought to keep.
    What would be your answer? If he called out from the grave.
    "Is this still the land of the free and the home of the Brave?""

    ReplyDelete
  5. I have no objection to regulations which made legal ownership prove the person to be qualified and responsible much like driving a car or flying a plane. It would not end gun violence, it would probably increase knife violence. I own no guns myself, they scare the crap outta me, I'd probably accidentally blow my foot off.

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    1. I like the idea of training people how to actually use the thing. But yeah, wouldn't prevent a nut-job from killing lots of people for no apparent reason.

      With training you'd be fine Joe. Hell, traveling into NYC scares the crap out of me, and you did it for how many years?

      Delete
    2. 40 years. Two weeks after I retired some nut stabbed a resident of my town as he exited my station. No reason, just a random nut with a knife and a problem. The man died leaving a wife and two young children. I suppose if the nut had a gun he might have ruined the lives of several more families, at least I'm sure that would be one sides argument.

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    3. What stopped him from stabbing more people? A lot of terrorism lately involves the perp driving a vehicle into a crowd of people, thn jumping out and stabbing more.

      And yeah, that's one of the reasons cities scare me, higher concentrations of nut-jobs.

      Delete
    4. I don't think that most people fear new stricter, fair, gun regulations, the issue is the gun opposition will never give up the ultimate goal of gun registration and eventually confiscation of all guns. I don't think that confiscation is a reasonable fear, not because it would not be tried, but because...well it just would not be tolerated, and that is why I favor stricter regulations. I do understand the fear of giving in even an inch, I just don't share it.

      Delete
    5. I think you make a fine point there Joe, an excellent synopsis of the problem.

      Confiscation is actually a reasonable fear, they did it in Australia.

      Delete
    6. Reasonable if the left is unchecked, I just think it is a little early to draw the line in the sand. Regulations will not stop atrocities, that is for sure. Guns don't kill people, people kill people...guns do make people killing people very efficient.

      Delete
  6. One voice of sanity from the "swamp".
    ttps://townhall.com/tipsheet/katiepavlich/2017/10/05/trey-gowdy-responds-to-new-calls-for-gun-control-n2390792

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gowdy has his stuff together. One of the few on the Hill who actually thinks.

      Thanks for the link WSF.

      Delete
  7. Seems to be the day for intelligent, well written posts. Thank you.

    Paul L. Quandt

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Paul.

      (Yes, Shaun's post today is excellent.)

      Delete
  8. Gun CONTROL is not about guns.

    You may not like guns, and choose not to own one. That is your right. You might not believe in God. That is your choice. However, if someone breaks into your home, the first thing you are going to do is call for someone with a badge and a GUN. The next thing you will do is pray they get there in time.

    There are no atheists in foxholes.

    My own commentary on today's society--Full bellies and dry feet for too long (OK, I take that back for the hurricane survivors).

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    Replies
    1. And it's RHT447 for the win.

      Nailed it you did.

      Delete
    2. Thanks for the kind words. While I'm on a roll, here is my favorite Jeff Cooper quote--

      "Individually, we do not bear arms because we are afraid. We bear arms
      as a declaration of capacity. An armed man can cope - either in the city
      or in the wilderness - and because he is armed, he is not afraid.

      The hoplophobe fears and, yes, hates us, because we are not afraid. We
      are overwhelmingly "other" than he, and in a way that emphasizes his
      afflictions."

      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoplophobia

      Archives for those interested.

      http://myweb.cebridge.net/mkeithr/Jeff/

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    3. Nice!

      (Beware that 2nd link, my corporate nanny-ware says it's an "attack site." Bad ju-ju or something.)

      Delete
    4. Hmm. Internet Gods and all that. If you like, here are some alternative links you can try. They are on Fr. Frog's blog, so anything nefarious will have to go through him to get to you. Click the link, then scroll down to "Cooper's "Commentaries".

      http://www.frfrogspad.com/cooperma.htm

      Delete
    5. Yeah RHT447, that worked. Good stuff.

      Delete
  9. I live in Moonbeam's People's Socialist Welfare Republik of Kalifornijuanastan..... They are constantly using insidious means to subvert the Constitution.
    I rue the day that my old No.3, Mk.III Lee Enfield becomes an "assault rifle" because the box magazine can be removed, which is a feature used when stripping and cleaning the rifle.

    ReplyDelete
  10. The bad part is that there's no end to what they want, and what they think will matter. Incremental gun control efforts over the years? Still have murders. Gun free zones? Still have Chicago murders. Confederate flags gone? Still have racists. Statues? Same thing. (although they make racism much bigger than it really is). They need to FEEEEL they are doing this stuff to save us from ourselves, but it does nothing of the sort.

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    Replies
    1. That's probably what the rank and file progs think they're doing, their masters have a different agenda altogether.

      It's the money people behind these boors that scare me.

      Delete
    2. So what's the answer? Just let everybody have a gun without any regulation? We've got gun violence rates far in excess of those in ANY other industrialized nation, so the current method sure isn't making us any safer. What's the independent variable causing those violence rates if not the number of guns in circulation? Can you explain those thousands of deaths we have that those other countries don't? If so, please do so.

      Straw-man arguments that "there will still be gun murders" don't hack the mission. We have laws against murder, yet we still have murders. Is it your contention that if we got rid of those laws that the murder rate would stay the same? Sounds like you'd think that. If so, I've got a bridge or two to sell you. Real cheap, too.

      And I don't understand why it's such an article of faith among so many that there's somebody hiding behind every tree just waiting to take your gun away when you're not looking. I don't know anybody who feels that way, and I doubt you know very many, either. The whole point of view sounds paranoid.

      Few people want to ban guns. MOST want common-sense gun laws. As of 2015, 74% of NRA members backed universal background checks for guns. Why not do that? Because we want to make it easier for a criminal to get a gun? Yeah, MAYBE criminals could find a way to get a weapon that could hurt or kill somebody, but do we REALLY want to make it easy for them? Personally, I'd rather not.

      Shouldn't you be required to report a lost or stolen gun? Wouldn't that cut down on the number of guns making it into the illegal market due to unscrupulous people "losing" a pistol that just happened to be found by a criminal? You have to do so for dynamite:
      ' A holder of a license or permit who knows that explosive materials have been stolen from that licensee or
      permittee, shall report the theft to the Attorney General not later than 24 hours after the discovery of the theft. '
      - ATF Federal Explosives Law and Regulations [2012]


      Even FERTILIZER with nitrates is subject to that rules? Why not do the same for guns?

      What about tracking gun violence? Did you know that the CDC is prohibited from looking into gun violence? Whenever they even try, NRA-backed politicians threaten to cut their funding. We're talking about a health problem that results in 100,000 American victims a year, including 33,000 dead, yet they can't study it? If it was a deadly chemical or drug that was killing and injuring that many of us, we'd be all over that like white on rice, but because the NRA leadership thinks the data would look bad, any studies are verboten.

      You know, I wish we could get past all the politicization of this. We have restraint on our First Amendment rights, yet the last time I looked we still had plenty of free speech. This claim that any restraint on Second Amendment rights would lead to a ban on guns is pretty silly, if not ingenuous.

      Not only that, in the long run this intransigence could backfire on gun enthusiasts. The longer you oppose ANY kind of reasonable gun control the more you will convince some that you have no moral or ethical basis for your stand, so when it does come it could be much more restrictive than if you had given a bit when it made sense.

      Delete
    3. I'm all for mandatory training in order to possess a firearm.

      Define reasonable gun "control." Most of the gun control laws in the United States are unconstitutional and, worse, ineffective.

      Are you kidding with the "few people want to ban guns"? Every anti-gunner I know wants them banned, just like Australia.

      There are no simple answers. There is no way you'll ever get past the politicization on this issue.

      You have to get rid of all of them, and they'll come back. Enforce the laws we already have, making new ones won't change a thing.

      And just where do we have restraint on the First Amendment?

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    4. The answer is that violence and mayhem are symptoms of the problem. Treating the symptoms may make you feel better, but it doesn't cure the disease. Want to fix the problem? Well, here's a good place to start--

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3Az0okaHig

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    5. I have just tried to Epic Rant to Bruce (see above) and your system ate both responses.

      Basically, don't like the 2nd? Okay, repeal all of the first 10 Amendments.
      No free speech. (1st)
      No weapons of any type. (2nd)
      BigGov can shove anyone they want into your house. (3rd)
      BigGov can come in any time it wants, for whatever reason it wants. (4th)
      BigGov can accuse, try, convict and punish you whenever it wants, however it wants, punish you however it wants, and doesn't even have to tell you about it. (5th, 6th, 7th and 8th)
      You have no other rights (9th)
      BigGov has all the rights (10th)

      This is a complete flip-flop of the original Bill of Rights. Does this sound like some liberal states that you know about? California, New York (mostly the City therein of), Massachusetts, etc.?

      I have reached the 'screw you' stage. Was at the veterinarian today and there were 3 Bernie Crones. I called them out. And made my displeasure that Socialists, who have caused most of the world's ills in the last century, were trying to take over my beloved country. Most of the young people observing just gave me that 'oh, look, crazy man talking' look. I give up. Civility doesn't work. You (the idiots out there) have now just activated 'Asshole mode.'

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    6. And, Bruce,

      If you take out all the white guys who commit suicide by guns, you pretty much end up with a very small number of actual 'gun violence' which is usually committed by one minority group against itself. Without that one minority group shooting other members of that same minority group, These United States would be one of the safest nations on the planet. Not a lot of Amish doing buggy-ride-by shootings. Not a lot of harvest-using-a-Combine shootings either. One group, in four of the major cities, is responsible for most of the 'illegal' violence you are so against.

      So, we ban guns, like Australia did. Do you realize that some criminal gangs now make money not selling drugs, but by making and selling fully automatic weapons to other criminals? And if a responsible homeowner used one of his legal guns to defend himself against the criminal with the full auto illegally made weapon, it is the homeowner who will suffer more legally and financially than the criminal?

      What part of 'illegal' gun use don't you understand? I know someone who owns a functional Flak 36 (88mm German Anti-Aircraft cannon.) He hasn't ever gone on a shooting spree with it. Nor have my friends with legal full auto weapons ever done anything wrong with them (okay, the constant threat to respond to looters by setting up a sand-bag pillbox in the garage, load up the Maschinengewehr 08, and don a pickelhaube may, I repeat may not be in jest... oh, and that would be legal, because home defense, so there.)

      No more. We've bent and bent and bent to Federal, State and Local laws (which are many, and bad) and regulations (which are legion, and down-right illegal and bad) for far too long.

      Heck, if I had my way, the BATFE would come to my house and check to see if anyone is giving me any gruff for owning and operating my guns, not the other way around.

      Back off my rights, dude. Or someday someone will take yours.

      Delete
    7. Hear, hear!

      (I have no idea why Blogger occasionally eats comments. Most irksome. And you're not even anonymous! Strange stuff.)

      Delete
    8. Blogger ate one of mine as well yesterday. I always copy my comment before I click on 'publish' so I can just paste it back on a re-try. After the third fail, I opened a new tab and pasted in there, which worked that time (Win 7, IE 11.0). It has been my habit to plod along one or two OS's behind. I have yet to receive a check from Microsoft for helping de-bug their latest stuff.

      Delete
    9. IE might be the culprit. I've used it, at work it's our standard PC browser, and itr acts squirrely at times, especially with non-Microsoft products, which Blogger is. I have very few problems with Chrome (Blogger and Chrome are both Google products) and I also use Firefox, which is hinky at times (as is Chrome) but still better than IE.

      Yeah, ya gotta love the way Microsoft throws the products out there to let the customers debug it. But in reality, a lot of software houses do that. DAMHIK

      Delete
    10. Nobody's trying to take away your rights, Andrew. If you would bother to read what I wrote while avoiding your knee jerking up into your face, you'd have seen that I mentioned that NONE of our rights are unlimited. Maybe you should find a way to avoid going into "Asshole Mode" as you call it and try to reactivate "Thinking Human Being Mode." Just a thought.

      Sarge, I'm surprised that you're unaware of the limits we have to freedom of speech, but since you said so, here are a few references:

      Freedom of speech does not include the right:

      To incite actions that would harm others (e.g., “[S]hout[ing] ‘fire’ in a crowded theater.”).
      Schenck v. United States, 249 U.S. 47 (1919).
      To make or distribute obscene materials.
      Roth v. United States, 354 U.S. 476 (1957).
      To burn draft cards as an anti-war protest.
      United States v. O’Brien, 391 U.S. 367 (1968).
      To permit students to print articles in a school newspaper over the objections of the school administration.
      Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier, 484 U.S. 260 (1988).
      Of students to make an obscene speech at a school-sponsored event.
      Bethel School District #43 v. Fraser, 478 U.S. 675 (1986).
      Of students to advocate illegal drug use at a school-sponsored event.
      Morse v. Frederick, __ U.S. __ (2007).

      Delete
    11. Those, with the exception of the shouting fire thing, are all pretty obscure cases.

      And if you really believe that no one is trying to take away our rights...

      Well, let's just say you need to open your eyes.

      Delete
  11. Remind me, Sarge. When Cain slew Abel, did his weapon have a pistol grip, bayonet lug, flash suppressor, bumpstock or bipod? Scoped?? Semi-automatic???

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    1. I do believe he used the Mk 1 Mod 0 Tactical Anti-Personnel Rock (TAPR, or "Tapper") to do the deed. Deadly at close range and absolutely silent. Even comes in black.

      Yes, I know. This is a mental health issue more than anything else.

      Delete
  12. Gun control leads to knife control, propane tank control, tannerite control, cleaning chemical control.

    We have had 83 years of gun control on the federal level, the NFA (1934), GCA (1968), FPA (1984), AWB (1994) and BHO's social security purge (since rescinded by President Trump.) All these federal attacks have taken a little bit here, a little bit there, a little bit more, a little bit more, a lot more, some more and we have a 2nd Amendment that would never allow us to truly defend ourselves against enemies foreign and domestic. No cannon, no rockets, no rapid fire weapons, no privately run anti-pirate vessels. That is just using weapons that are equal to the tech of the signing date of the Constitution and Bill of Rights.

    Please, please, please give me a Letter of Marque for my van and I'll share the proceeds from shutting down all the drug dealers and drug labs near me. Give a Letter of Marque to my brother and he can quit his construction business (at the age of 57, and do counter-drug and counter-piracy (while fishing, of course.)

    We have lost so much of our personal freedom. And now they want to take just a little bit more, and a lot more, and then everything.

    To paraphrase:

    First they came for my grandfather's machine gun (brought back from WWI.)
    Then they came for his short barrel shotgun, used to protect himself while driving.
    Then they came for my father's war prizes.
    Then they made us register or list our weapons.
    Then they made us take a background check to buy them.
    Then they banned a bunch of weapons because of how they looked.
    Then they banned us buying automatic weapons made after a certain point.
    Then they banned us buying cheap guns from overseas.
    Then they tried to ban my father from owning guns because I manage his money.
    Then they tried to ban more features.
    Then they made us turn our guns in, first the autos,
    Then the semi-autos,
    Then the repeaters,
    Then the single shot modern guns,
    Then the blackpowder guns (which they said were just like the ones the writers of the Constitution used.
    Then they came for me.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. But Andrew...

      Sigh, everything you say is correct. You'll never convince the anti-gunners otherwise.

      And it's the pro-gunners who have to compromise. All politics sucks, leftist politics sucks worse.

      Delete
    2. I am getting too old and too grumpy for this fewmet. And the BATFE gerks have made it really hard to have an explosive therapy session.

      Gee, if I could, I'd disguise myself as a hood-rat and go to Rahm's Paradise and shoot all I want with no repercussions.

      But I won't, because I am a responsible person, darnd'it.

      Delete
    3. On someone else's blog, the blogger asked for submissions for the LA Times rewrite of the big 2A.

      I did a version that even the dumbest socialist might understand. "Four guns good, no guns bad."

      Now I think it should have been "All guns good, no guns bad" except that there are some really crappy guns out there.

      Delete
  13. meanwhile all America's enemies are ashamed that Americans themselves are stealing their jobs and killing othe Americans in vast numbers...
    sadly I concur with complete impossibility of making US into another Japan, from the culture of the nation to the porous borders versus islands...
    but this will mean enormous bloodletting that far exceeds 9/11 and losses in foreign wars

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    Replies
    1. Pawel,

      Our media doesn't report it, but actual murder-murders, spree-shootings and mass-shootings are mostly committed by our black population (particularly black males between 13 and 30) upon other black males (roughly same age) and, unfortunately, other blacks who get caught in the cross-fire. Most of these thug-on-thug shootings occur in our major cities, and tend not to affect the rest of the population, much.

      I worked for the local police where I live (as a civilian, not as an officer.) People who get murdered usually (like 95% of the time) were involved in, shall we say, less than legal lifestyle choices. You really have to work hard to find an actual innocent, a truly innocent person, who gets murdered. I am not saying it doesn't happen, but, well, it boils down to just being unlucky for that 5% that get killed.

      The rest of the 95%? Saying that they deserved it (drug dealing, theft, robbery, sexual abuse, etc.,) but those victims often contributed directly to their demise. One of the un-nice things about the real story of Crime.

      And, really sorry to say this, but it is true, the part of society that is engaged in all the thuggery and murder is also majorly made up of people who are drains upon society. Uneducated, uncooperative, demanding more of public services than any other segment of society. And instead of helping the police, they attack the police. They teach their children to lie, cheat, and fight, all the while videoing any encounter because, quite frankly, videos of the 'meanness' of the cops makes them money. Look at what happened in Ferguson, Baltimore and other places where these people, in the complete wrong, made money off the cities that they are tearing apart.

      This population actively attacks any one of theirs that tries to escape, to be educated, to become something other than yet another carbon copy of the thugs that are killing them.

      Yes, we as Americans are ashamed of this.

      But...

      Is England ashamed of the 'Asians' that are destroying their capital city? What about the French and their 'Guest Workers' or Germany and their 'Guest Workers?' What about Sweden and their minority problems? Hell, look at Brazil, shining Brazil of the 2016 Olympics. Or Spain? Or Italy? Greece? Turkey? Russia (who, yeah, solved a lot of their issues by killing most of them in the 20's, 30's and 40's.

      All countries have warts. We Americans just let everyone see them, rather than hide them like most places.

      We have too many cultures and sub-cultures that haven't integrated into our national culture, especially since the 60's. And it only got worse starting in 2008. Things actually seem to be somewhat better, because at least our internal enemies are mostly coming out in the open. Sigh. Wish we had no-one tearing us apart (I mean you, Hillary, and you, Barack, and Nancy, and John McCain and a host of others....)

      Ahhh, enough hair-tearing ranting.

      And, again, subtract white guys slabbing themselves with their own guns, and gun violence is actually quite a bit smaller than you would think. Now if we could just make murder illegal...

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    2. Thanks Andrew. Europeans have no idea, while their media isn't as bad as ours, they do like to point out the flaws in the system that saved them from Nazism and Communism. (Simplistic I know. Yes, the Russians killed more Nazis than we did, but without Lend-Lease the eastern German border would be on the Volga. We fed and motorized the Russians. Yeah, they did the fighting but without all those trucks from Detroit they'd still be sitting on the Vistula, watching the Germans slaughter the Poles.)

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    3. You are welcome. I hate the way the Media hides the truth behind their statistics. Twain was right when he said that there were three types of lies. Lies, damned lies, and Statistics.

      As to Lend Lease, well, Mr. Putin, now that you've terrorized Europe with your gas and oil, how about ponying up the money you owe, with interest, hmmmm?

      (Then there's the horribly plausible rumor that in totality, that under Hitler, Russians were safer than under Stalin. Again, statistics lie, but, man, this one lies with too much truth behind it.)(Just ask the Ukraine...)

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    4. In fact, well, I live in a city in the south, with huge economic disparities between the rich and poor, with a large black population on government services, did I mention in the 'racist' south, right on a major drug transport corridor between Miami and the rest of the nation, and...

      Blacks make up about the national average, 18.5%, but they also make up over 70% of the serious crime, including most of the murders. Those murders, yes, indeed, involve unsavory black people doing unsavory things to mostly unsavory black people, or to 'savory' black people. The apartment complex I live in had a murder a while back where an unsavory man shot his nice ex-girlfriend. Survey says... black.

      Mrs. Andrew and I watch various reality cop programs, shake our heads, and say to each other, "They eat their own."

      Very sad, makes me unhappy that we, arguably the greatest nation in the world, has a cureable cancer in it's midst, and we're not allowed, by the cancer itself, to fix things. Everyone shouts "Save the Boobies," but no one is shouting "Save the Boob-heads (from themselves.)"

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  14. Heh. Found this over at Wirecutter's place. Here's the Youtube link.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChdOmIb2_Us

    I'm good, but not that good. I could NOT do that and keep a straight face.

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