"The Bush administration's implosion clearly represents a setback for the Christian right's strategy of infiltration. But it would be wildly premature to declare the danger over. This is a movement that has shown great resilience over the years. It will surely find new champions.
Next week Rudy Giuliani will be speaking at Regent's Executive Leadership Series."
* james pinkerton:
"In wartime politics, it's risky to go against the wisdom of the warriors. And yet, that's exactly what the Democrats are doing. That is, many Americans who oppose the Iraq war are nonetheless inclined to see something squirrelly about congressional attempts to "micromanage" the fighting.
So here's the bottom line: In politics, popularity is relative. The parties are judged not by themselves, but in relation to each other. The president doesn't look so good. But if the Congress doesn't look so good either - then the president isn't in such bad shape."
hmmm - 'congress' isn't a 'party'
* john:
"Guns don't kill people, evil-doers kill people. That's the theory a lot of Republicans are now promoting about the violence at Virginia Tech. If only those now-dead students had all been armed, the story goes, they'd have been able to start a mass circle of gunfire in the middle of their classroom and kill the shooter (and sure, they'd kill everyone else in the classroom too, but they'd be dead AND exercising their 2nd Amendment rights, so it'd be okay). Anyway, I say the Republicans put their money where their mouths are and establish a 2nd Amendment Marshall Plan (we can call it the LaPierre plan), and ship as many guns and other weapons as possible into the hands of every single Iraqi in order to help them defend themselves (and we could hire Paul Wolfowitz's girlfriend to run it - a two-fer!). First off, we'd be guaranteeing the 2nd Amendment rights of every Iraqi, and after all, that's way more important than winning (or even living). And second, if everyone had more weapons, they'd all be able to join in on keeping the peace that much better. While we're at it, why not give em all WMD? Nothing stops a tuhrerist from driving a chlorine truck into a market like knowing that every grandma in that market has her own chlorine truck ready and waiting to drive back into YOUR market.
Yes, weapons for all. The lessons of Virginia Tech live on."
4 comments:
Mr. Aravosis almost makes the comment that our right to own a gun ends with these deaths. I don't know if he's kidding or not. There are a few good reasons for second amendment rights, which like all the other civil liberties, shouldn't be revoked because a calamity happens. I don't need to talk to the dead students' families or friends to fail to get my mind changed. Hoo boy, I sure hope a big argument doesn't get started--mainly because I probably won't be able to keep out of it, and I have a million better things to do.
I'm sorry, I wrote that wrong. He made the comment, he didn't almost make it.
i must say - i'm generally of the 'fewer guns' mentality
The problem is, when Washington begins to tamper with so-called "irrevocable" liberties set forth in the Bill of Rights, it invariably screws up and defeats the intention of the amendments' authors. Therefore, I get my handgun application held up because I'm on social security. Of course, you hear about oldies busting into restaurants and theaters constantly, shooting up the place. I could write miles of column space about the first amendment. We had a chat friend who hung himself a few weeks ago because he was facing 17.5 years in a federal prison for sending two pictures over the internet. Freedom of speech and the press means you can think it, say it, read it, write it--copy it and share it, whatever it is. That means you must defend the most questionable material and hold it to this standard, or you get a situation where almost anything can get you arrested. The first amendment says you have the right to assemble. But, our hick town has an ordinance which says two or more people assembling in public is prohibited. Really? If you go to dinner with your spouse, you can both be arrested! The second amendment seems a little tricky, but it isn't. You have the right to bear arms. That includes anything, and as many as you want. Right now, you can purchase a .50 caliber sniper rifle, an AK assault rifle or a new Smith & Wesson .50 caliber handgun. You can legally buy a machine gun with the proper permits. I don't know who thinks they need such weapons, but you can buy them. You should be able to own a bazooka or howitzer if you want, and it should be completely legal, according to the second amendment, but you can't. The alternative is, the government collects all the weapons. That might never be a problem, but what if it is? Cars kill far more people than guns, yet there is no talk about controlling or outlawing them.
Look at what happened to abortion yesterday. Roe v. Wade established abortion as a fundamental right of women. "Conservatives" have adopted the strategy of chipping away at those rights until it is once again illegal. Putting a lot of people in prison isn't going to stop some women from ending their pregnancy. I well remember a time when abortion was illegal in America, and it wasn't pretty. If conservatives had the native intelligence, and actually cared, their push would be for women to make informed, reasoned choices in family planning. But, they attack the law to assure themselves they have control.
If something must be done, my suggestion is the same for gun owners as it is for drivers: require continuing education covering technique, safety and the law.
Thank goodness for guns. If it weren't for them, we'd have something far more dangerous. It's possible to make a very effective, lightweight weapon from high voltage, pulsed xenon, for crying out loud, which can fire several times per second and is almost silent. We are at the theshold of a new generation of weapons employing electromagnetism, microwave and sound energy which will make guns archaic and obsolete. People will always find ways to make new and more powerful weapons. This expansion doesn't worry me. The decay of education, knowledge and good judgment we've seen since the 1970s, however, is completely troubling.
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