And what floor of the nursing home would that be?
Good one Slap. You can find me in the geriatric ward.
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And what floor of the nursing home would that be?
What strange quirk causes you to think of this as a "mature" democracy? By my observation it is anything but. They cant eve pass a budget.
Your invite to HardRock is still on the table, just let me know when you want to show up. Or if you don't want to do it during a match, I know a guy that will set us some targets for just a one on one if you prefer that.And what floor of the nursing home would that be?
Connecticut halts plans to round up firearms after finding most cops in the state are on the list | Call the Cops
Connecticut halts plans to round up firearms after finding most cops in the state are on the list
knowing when to act might in most cases be more important than the act itself
I agree with that statement totally. If you are familiar with the battles at Concord that is exactly what the militia did. Had they stood and fought without the retreat to discuss what the better options were and wait for further enforcements, things could have ended much differently and our fate would have been drastically different that what it has been.
It is a little impossible to have a plan or timeline of action for a situation based on pure speculation. Without the act you simply can not devise an appropriate reactionary plan. An event is required that invokes the emotions of those that witness it and gives them a justifiable cause to react.
If it was not for Revere's intelligence and his ability to reach Lexington and inform the Colonials the British were dispatched to confiscate/destroy their supplies (gunpowder) the chain of events that followed would never have happened. It was that single act Revere is responsible for that "lit the fuse."
Fast forward to today, if the jack boots show up on your doorstep to confiscate your supplies, I don't see surrender as the best outcome. If that law abiding gun owner gives them his supplies bullets first, that will be the flashpoint. That will ignite an overwhelming emotional response among like-minded individuals. Then you will see a consolidation of those like-minded individuals and a quorum able come up with a plan to act and when to act.
You already see the formation of small 2A groups in different states that do discuss what their plan will be if confiscation happens in CT. Some of these groups are so bold, they publish their show of support on the Internet. I recently saw a video published by some 2A organization in Texas. These guys are basically ready to travel from Texas to CT in support of gun owners if things get out of control.
The history of what led to the events of April 19th, 1775, and what is being discussed today share a lot of similarities. There is a lot of truth to the statement that history has a tendency of repeating itself.
The war for our Independence ultimately began with the British wanting to disarm the Colonials. They were our government at the time. The Colonials rejected the laws and rules being enforced on them by the British the same way many of us are rejecting the exact same laws our government today is trying to enforce on us.
I bet you money the conversations the Colonials were having exactly this month and exactly this day 239 years ago are very similar to the ones we are having today as well. In 43 days we will have the 240th anniversary of the events that lead to our war for independence.
Wouldn't it be ironic if come the week of April 13th the government of Connecticut decided to begin a forced confiscation plan. By Saturday, April 19th, you would have more Militia converged on Connecticut in protest than that state's government could deal with. We no longer need to rely on an individual traveling on horseback and by row boat to give us information. Within hours of an event every 2A group around the country will know what is going on and can respond within days.
It will certainly be interesting to see how the coming events in Connecticut play out. I personally do not think the government of Connecticut has the balls to do anything and those laws will ultimately get invalidated by a constitutional challenge in court.
As far as I am concerned, those who are already advocating violent domestic resistance are the enemy. They are not, of course, my enemy, but the enemy of democracy.
If we refuse to admit that to ourselves, and instead are too quick to jump on the 'cold dead fingers' bandwagon, then we are abandoning the values that we claim to stand for because we are not really committed to what democracy means.
In which case we have revealed ourselves as nothing more than selfish actors, like children trying to sway their parents by claiming to occupy the moral high ground.
The danger on both sides of this argument is to assume the ultimate value of the thing you claim to defend, at the exclusion and denunciation of the other. The result will be either impasse or absurdity.
I am not saying that we should give up our guns. But I am saying that the fight has progressed beyond repeating a bumper sticker mantra. I am also saying that, as in all fights, the ignorant and the foolish are guaranteed to be its first victims.
Democracy requires tolerance, especially at first.Go along to get along is NOT my philosophy.
As far as I am concerned, those who are already advocating violent domestic resistance are the enemy. They are not, of course, my enemy, but the enemy of democracy.
If we refuse to admit that to ourselves, and instead are too quick to jump on the 'cold dead fingers' bandwagon, then we are abandoning the values that we claim to stand for because we are not really committed to what democracy means.
The problem we face now, in my opinion, is we are simply outnumbered at the polls when it comes to change. If there are two of them for every one of us, we will always lose at the polls.
This has nothing to do with Red or Blue, it is all about control of the people and control of the wealth in this country.QUOTE]
Exactly the point I was making in my thread on "Follow the $$$."
I am concerned that the American dream may be sickening at the margins, this new happening in CT being an example, which creates new opportunity for self-destruction, not through dialogue and acceptance of the other person but through total self-belief and self-righteousness on both sides.
I passed something this morning it was apparent what was in it and what it was all about.
Yes it is, and is about to go over the cliff, all because good men stood by and did nothing.Problem is Graham, our democracy is failing.
We, as Americans, can't escape history. Most people would rather live on their knees. And, generally speaking, it's a viable alternative to dying for the sake of property that you can't keep if you are deceased.
I am concerned that the American dream may be sickening at the margins, this new happening in CT being an example, which creates new opportunity for self-destruction, not through dialogue and acceptance of the other person but through total self-belief and self-righteousness on both sides.
Do you actually believe this is about personal property?
Might be the view in your circle, not that way in others I can assure you. A man who won't fight or die for his beliefs, has none. Freedom is not, nor never has been free, someone has had to pay for it all along. To roll over and quit means you could care less about how others sacrificed their time, body parts or lives, so we could have what little we have left. When your back is against the wall like this nation is now, you have but two options,...
We've probably lost a shared sense of justice. To recover it we each need to rediscover empathy for the position of the other side.
As Adam Smith wrote (worth a re-read: Theory of Moral sentiments, 1759), until each side approaches the democratic process with presumption that the other side is worth listening to, no amount of laws or prohibitions will fix the problem.
We, as Americans, can't escape history. Most people would rather live on their knees. And, generally speaking, it's a viable alternative to dying for the sake of property that you can't keep if you are deceased.
Democracy requires tolerance, especially at first.
Tolerance only for what benefits you isn't tolerance at all.
Everyone is so fond of invoking the memory of our forefathers and the blood of our soldiers. Did they fight and die for a democratic ideal, or didn't they?!
I am not saying capitulate, but I am saying to put your money where your mouth is and be consistent with your arguments.
And, no, I don't believe in dying for the sake of property. For people, yes, but to keep things, no.
Compare what I say to the opposite: To the extremist tendencies we see in the Middle East, where it has become acceptable to kill each other over such stupid shit, and at such a rate, that entire countries remain under de facto dictatorships.
Darkside,
Fair enough, but do we get to decide, as individuals, for which rights we have shed blood and for which rights we happened not to have been fighting at the time?
[A question; not an attack].
In that case you are doomed to hope that the determined minority to which you refer sees things your way.Which history are you reading? The critical conclusion I get from history is that, for better or worse, "most people" never turn the tide of history. Determined and principled minorities do. They certainly did in the 1770s, and may again.
Darkside,
Fair enough, but do we get to decide, as individuals, for which rights we have shed blood and for which rights we happened not to have been fighting at the time?
[A question; not an attack].
In that case you are doomed to hope that the determined minority to which you refer sees things your way.
But if you actually do get yourself killed to avoid giving up possession of a tool, then you're either misled or you're a fool.
That's the theory, but make no mistake: If you're dead, your rights have been revoked.Remember our rights as citizens are not granted by the government and subject to revocation.
The fight might be, but dying surely isn't.You think this is about "stuff" or "tools"?
Are you kidding?
What is it that our soldiers died for over the years? Land...stuff....tools?
This fight is about preserving our God-given and Constitutional-guaranteed right.
Graham,
Ive followed your posts. I think Im disagreeing with an intellect greater than my own. This post is a great give and take. Neither you or I as far as I know will have impact on the events that seem to be swirling about us. We are acting like adults yet have little impact.
Compare/contrast with the Cummings/Issa exchange on the floor of Congress. How can one not be discouraged. I salute your optimism.
Edit - Regards the contentious debate and intractibility I guess things have been worse, Congress still bans sticks on its floor since a Congressman/Senator from Massachusetts had his ass whooped by a fellow servant from the South in the run up to the Civil War. Ominously they settled that debate without finding civility.
pm,Don't put down your intellect, pm. Graham is a bright guy, but his strong point is argumentation rather than wisdom. Please don't take that as an insult, Graham, and Im not calling you name when I use smoke and mirrors. Its more a reflection on your method of argumentation as an end in itself rather than for getting to the core truth. That's exactly why I chose not to pursue a law degree after finishing philosophy at The University. A buddy who had gone through the program made the remark, "the first thing they teach you is how to lie." Ive seen too often in courts (and politics) that the goal is to put forth the winning argument rather than get to the truth. To get "my way" rather than the way which is really best for all. That I could not abide by. Consider my original statement..."Knowledge may be power but power without wisdom is folly."
On a separate note, Graham, I enjoyed your references to Ranciere. I have not read his works as I was more attracted to the ancient Greeks as they were further away in time and culture and I enjoyed the different culture they were coming from. And that they were the first to make these deep examinations. Unfortunately, after taking 3 upper level philosophy classes, a seminar open only to 4th year phil. majors, and a graduate course, in my last year I just cant read philosophy...
That's the theory, but make no mistake: If you're dead, your rights have been revoked.
The fight might be, but dying surely isn't.
You know, reading this I can't help but wonder aloud how many of you who express an opinion on this thread have a) experienced gun confiscation, and b) have surrendered a piece property under penalty of death.
pm,
I concede: Maggot's dick must be bigger than mine. Don't take that as an insult to Maggott, because a big dick is - so I am told- good to have, it's just that I can't help myself talking about his dick.
Well, that, and I can't help talking in other people's threads about my favorite topic: Me.
pm,
I concede: Maggot's dick must be bigger than mine. Don't take that as an insult to Maggott, because a big dick is - so I am told- good to have, it's just that I can't help myself talking about his dick.
Well, that, and I can't help talking in other people's threads about my favorite topic: Me.
Maggot with one 't', only you have the gumption to agree with me while at the same time expounding on and degrading a degree that you never earned.
Hello pot, this is kettle, over....
While men of such conscience that they would sacrifice their well-being for the common good are rare, they still exist, and so serve as a balance to those in the majority whose base nature allows them no significant concern for others. Look no further than the signatures at the foot of our Declaration of Independence if you lack ready examples.