Civil society requires that its citizens feel safe in public spaces; destroy that generalized sense of safety and you will radically warp public opinion to the right
Thank you Thom. I live just south of Highland Park in Evanston. I got the alert around 10:30 that there was an active shooter and that over 2 dozen people had been shot yesterday morning. The estimate now is that the shooter shot 50 rounds of ammunition in a few minutes time before dropping the weapon and escaping from the rooftop. Celebrations and public events were canceled throughout the North Shore. This should not happen anywhere. A further 57 people were shot in Chicago in separate incidents, with 9 dead as of Tuesday as reported by NBC. Meanwhile we get gutless, watered-down 'bipartisan' gun bill barely passing which will do nothing to stem the flow of weapons to bad people. The NRA has used the courts to get its way and create this nonsensical interpretation of the 2nd amendment to make civilian gun sales a multi-billion dollar industry.
Thom, thanks for another fascinating lesson about what really happened. Whether it's the 2nd Amendment and its real intent, the legal fictions that created corporate citizenship, or the original and continued purpose of filibusters, they all can trace their rotten roots to the powers of racism because it's always been a great way to grift the poorly educated.
Damn, history is hard! It's so much easier to just make things up than to read all those words. Then there is all that thinking needed to put them into the context of colonial life. What a bother!
If sarcasm could cure this, we would be living free and easy. There is a certain percentage of every population that wants a dog-eat-dog world and economy. Our percentage in America has brought its ugly little dream to fruition. The string-pullers and financiers could not have done any of this without them. Worst of all, the internet has brought them together to reinforce their thoughts and behavior and not just in the USA.
The journey to a solution should include understanding how their brains work---how our brains work too. Finding a way to get them to understand it is not ONE thing, it's many things. Of course, it is not just the guns, but it absolutely includes the guns. The proof is there all around the world.
The conservative brains involved do not do nuance. It's why they do not understand the amendment. They want it to be cut and dry and nothing this dire ever is. From the history Thom has taught and researched, there were so many ideas and compromises the framers agreed the door had to be left open to CHANGE.
They want binary choices? Well here it is: CHANGE or DIE. Our candidates must get that message out there to everyone. It's true with guns and with the climate crisis.
Unfortunately, the most powerful decisive motivation for someone using guns inappropriately is the emotional state of the operator and the attitude towards civic responsibility. America has unfortunately bred an unusually high percentage of people who favor pathways of violence rather than collaboration and discourse. We are in the middle of a culture that has allowed its presidents to conduct forever preventive wars against any country and any person for the last 50 years. We have a professional military and an Industrial-Military Complex that profits from perpetual conflict, and we are almost bankrupt financially, with debt levels at private, state, urban and national levels at unheard of levels in history. Simultaneously a Democratic president is appointing a person to the Social Security Board that advocates privatization of the only pension program left in the US for average people.
And in that context, perhaps we should consider how other people in other countries feel about
our drones and endless preemptive military attacks with lots of guns. We, the voters, have allowed our legislators to fund gun violence overseas, now, let's start to consider NEVER VOTING FOR AN INCUMBENT POLITICIAN. https://www.thoughtco.com/do-congressmen-ever-lose-re-election-3367511
Mr. Hartman's citation:
There are many solutions to our gun violence problem, most pioneered in other nations with great success.
But nothing is going to go forward as long as Americans — and our courts and politicians — falsely believe the Second Amendment was written to “prevent tyranny” or for self-protection. Both are complete fabrications promulgated over the last four decades by the NRA and the politicians it owns.
And until we can set the record straight and pass rational gun control legislation — which is popular now with the vast majority of Americans — our lack of safety in public spaces will continue to warp our civil society and damage our children, as they grow up filled with fear.
This is no way to live, to paraphrase President Eisenhower: It’s humanity hanging on a cross of iron build by the NRA and the GOP.
We need to talk. We MUST vote. Sometimes we need to protest. But all are fatal distractions if we don’t address the root causes NOW. Humanity needs a Plan B. We need a DEMOS Project.
Thank you Thom. I live just south of Highland Park in Evanston. I got the alert around 10:30 that there was an active shooter and that over 2 dozen people had been shot yesterday morning. The estimate now is that the shooter shot 50 rounds of ammunition in a few minutes time before dropping the weapon and escaping from the rooftop. Celebrations and public events were canceled throughout the North Shore. This should not happen anywhere. A further 57 people were shot in Chicago in separate incidents, with 9 dead as of Tuesday as reported by NBC. Meanwhile we get gutless, watered-down 'bipartisan' gun bill barely passing which will do nothing to stem the flow of weapons to bad people. The NRA has used the courts to get its way and create this nonsensical interpretation of the 2nd amendment to make civilian gun sales a multi-billion dollar industry.
In the 60s, the NRA supported gun control
when the Black Panthers had them.
Maybe we do have an answer.
Thom, thanks for another fascinating lesson about what really happened. Whether it's the 2nd Amendment and its real intent, the legal fictions that created corporate citizenship, or the original and continued purpose of filibusters, they all can trace their rotten roots to the powers of racism because it's always been a great way to grift the poorly educated.
Damn, history is hard! It's so much easier to just make things up than to read all those words. Then there is all that thinking needed to put them into the context of colonial life. What a bother!
If sarcasm could cure this, we would be living free and easy. There is a certain percentage of every population that wants a dog-eat-dog world and economy. Our percentage in America has brought its ugly little dream to fruition. The string-pullers and financiers could not have done any of this without them. Worst of all, the internet has brought them together to reinforce their thoughts and behavior and not just in the USA.
The journey to a solution should include understanding how their brains work---how our brains work too. Finding a way to get them to understand it is not ONE thing, it's many things. Of course, it is not just the guns, but it absolutely includes the guns. The proof is there all around the world.
The conservative brains involved do not do nuance. It's why they do not understand the amendment. They want it to be cut and dry and nothing this dire ever is. From the history Thom has taught and researched, there were so many ideas and compromises the framers agreed the door had to be left open to CHANGE.
They want binary choices? Well here it is: CHANGE or DIE. Our candidates must get that message out there to everyone. It's true with guns and with the climate crisis.
Most civilized countries have a very effective system to prevent people from accumulating inappropriate and unnecessary weapons. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firearms_regulation_in_Switzerland and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overview_of_gun_laws_by_nation
Unfortunately, the most powerful decisive motivation for someone using guns inappropriately is the emotional state of the operator and the attitude towards civic responsibility. America has unfortunately bred an unusually high percentage of people who favor pathways of violence rather than collaboration and discourse. We are in the middle of a culture that has allowed its presidents to conduct forever preventive wars against any country and any person for the last 50 years. We have a professional military and an Industrial-Military Complex that profits from perpetual conflict, and we are almost bankrupt financially, with debt levels at private, state, urban and national levels at unheard of levels in history. Simultaneously a Democratic president is appointing a person to the Social Security Board that advocates privatization of the only pension program left in the US for average people.
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2022/07/05/senate-urged-block-bidens-pro-privatization-nominee-social-security-board?utm_source=daily_newsletter&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=daily_newsletter_text
It is very difficult for voters of any kind to figure out who to trust anymore: Mr. Biden? The Democratic Party? The Republican party? The NRA? Mr. Sanders stands out as an inspiration https://crooksandliars.com/2021/11/senate-budget-chair-wonders-aloud-why
But, in all fairness to Mr. Hartman's eloquent discussion for gun control, it appears that a lot of voters
sense an increased level of federal control over too many areas, and they are covering their bets with
guns at home. Perhaps the best solution is to look to Switzerland, abandon the Covid regulatory invasion and adopt zero tolerance for people who use guns inappropriately. https://www.biblestudy.org/question/what-does-thou-shall-not-kill-mean.html
And in that context, perhaps we should consider how other people in other countries feel about
our drones and endless preemptive military attacks with lots of guns. We, the voters, have allowed our legislators to fund gun violence overseas, now, let's start to consider NEVER VOTING FOR AN INCUMBENT POLITICIAN. https://www.thoughtco.com/do-congressmen-ever-lose-re-election-3367511
Mr. Hartman's citation:
There are many solutions to our gun violence problem, most pioneered in other nations with great success.
But nothing is going to go forward as long as Americans — and our courts and politicians — falsely believe the Second Amendment was written to “prevent tyranny” or for self-protection. Both are complete fabrications promulgated over the last four decades by the NRA and the politicians it owns.
And until we can set the record straight and pass rational gun control legislation — which is popular now with the vast majority of Americans — our lack of safety in public spaces will continue to warp our civil society and damage our children, as they grow up filled with fear.
This is no way to live, to paraphrase President Eisenhower: It’s humanity hanging on a cross of iron build by the NRA and the GOP.
We need to talk. We MUST vote. Sometimes we need to protest. But all are fatal distractions if we don’t address the root causes NOW. Humanity needs a Plan B. We need a DEMOS Project.
https://www.boombigideas.com/p/do-you-think-the-world-needs-a-plan