I wonder if there are any panoramic shots of the crowd?
ht to NC Gun Blog
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Friday, December 3, 2010
Fighting fire with fire
Very old, well established meme. Classic saying in every sense, but merely saying it doesn’t express the underlying truth, nor the pit falls inherit to that particular strategy.
I spend more time reading blogs and commenting at the sites of those who oppose the 2A than those who support it, in order to understand the mentality. Some might say this is waste of time. I call it research.
I agree that feeding trolls is a lost cause, but what they teach us is invaluable.
The impasse we all face is that we try to fight emotionalism with logic. We fight anecdotes with statistics. We fight fallacies with endless corrections which must face the gauntlet of their moderation queues. I’ll be the first to state the obvious that most gun-control blogs are absolutely dominated by the pro-freedom crowd, but I can’t help but search for a better way. Antis are a lost cause, the true harvest lies with the neutrals who don’t scour the interweb tubes each and every day on this single issue or vote for political critters based on their stance on our pet issue.
How about we try something different. With the current winning streak we’re on, why not? Low risk and potential high rewards.
Let’s be funny.
Fear is an emotion and is the only arrow in their quiver, strung across a bow of lies, half-truths and deception.
Humor is also generated by an emotional response. And it is god-smack powerful at the base level. Fear is pure base and primitive. Once your reptilian brain is sparked, all rational flies out the window. Humor is no different, other than the fact that it reflects something, even a kernel of truth, to be true rather than something spoon fed by the MSM.
That’s the needle and thread we must all pierce. Have the logic, facts and statistics as your source and then find a way to make it ridiculously funny to the average Joe.
“Sad Panda” alerts won’t do much to sway the fence-sitters, but the underlying irony when presented in the proper context………………………..will.
They make them scared and rely upon that emotion.
Let’s make them laugh and see how the bones fall.
I spend more time reading blogs and commenting at the sites of those who oppose the 2A than those who support it, in order to understand the mentality. Some might say this is waste of time. I call it research.
I agree that feeding trolls is a lost cause, but what they teach us is invaluable.
The impasse we all face is that we try to fight emotionalism with logic. We fight anecdotes with statistics. We fight fallacies with endless corrections which must face the gauntlet of their moderation queues. I’ll be the first to state the obvious that most gun-control blogs are absolutely dominated by the pro-freedom crowd, but I can’t help but search for a better way. Antis are a lost cause, the true harvest lies with the neutrals who don’t scour the interweb tubes each and every day on this single issue or vote for political critters based on their stance on our pet issue.
How about we try something different. With the current winning streak we’re on, why not? Low risk and potential high rewards.
Let’s be funny.
Fear is an emotion and is the only arrow in their quiver, strung across a bow of lies, half-truths and deception.
Humor is also generated by an emotional response. And it is god-smack powerful at the base level. Fear is pure base and primitive. Once your reptilian brain is sparked, all rational flies out the window. Humor is no different, other than the fact that it reflects something, even a kernel of truth, to be true rather than something spoon fed by the MSM.
That’s the needle and thread we must all pierce. Have the logic, facts and statistics as your source and then find a way to make it ridiculously funny to the average Joe.
“Sad Panda” alerts won’t do much to sway the fence-sitters, but the underlying irony when presented in the proper context………………………..will.
They make them scared and rely upon that emotion.
Let’s make them laugh and see how the bones fall.
Thursday, December 2, 2010
A Little More Equality in Illinois
SB1716 passed both the IL House & Senate yesterday legalizing Civil Unions within the state. The Gov. is expected to sign it.
My only problem w/ this is that politicians should be focusing exclusively on the train wreck they call a budget but are instead throwing out contentious issues to try and distract from the fact that they are unable to fix the mess they created.
And it's working. The religious right are crapping themselves over condemning this as the end of the world putting what should be a non-issue in the 21st Century at the forefront.
My only problem w/ this is that politicians should be focusing exclusively on the train wreck they call a budget but are instead throwing out contentious issues to try and distract from the fact that they are unable to fix the mess they created.
And it's working. The religious right are crapping themselves over condemning this as the end of the world putting what should be a non-issue in the 21st Century at the forefront.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Sure Josh. Whatever You Say...
Josh Sugarmann of the VPC comes out w/ a new 'study' claiming CCW permit holders are more likely to commit suicide than the 'general population'.
Seriously how does the Joyce Foundation justify paying this idiot 145K a year?
Kurt Hoffman has more.
Seriously how does the Joyce Foundation justify paying this idiot 145K a year?
Kurt Hoffman has more.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Cook County Justice
Why does the county w/ 1/4 of the states population account for nearly 2/3rds the homicide? Maybe this has something to do w/ it:
So when gun controllers call for MORE laws to keep us 'safe', take a look at the type of person committing the crimes and how many laws they've already broken.
Because one more will stop them.
a 19-year-old parolee was arrested for killing a Chicago police technician and a housing authority officer...
...Timothy Herring Jr. He was out on parole after serving half of a six-year prison sentence for armed robbery.
So when gun controllers call for MORE laws to keep us 'safe', take a look at the type of person committing the crimes and how many laws they've already broken.
Because one more will stop them.
Checkmate
I have great respect for archeologists. Trying to decipher how a people lived thousands or millions of years ago based on a few bone fragments and pottery shards is some seriously cool stuff.
Why did the physically superior Neanderthal succumb to Homo Habilus?
Pattern recognition…
Archeologists determined that 25 year old Homo Habilus had less wear-n-tear on their muscles, bones and tendons than Neanderthals did.
Hmmmm………….
Using pure logic, Neanderthals must have spent more energy hunting and gathering than Habilus did. Same result, same food allotment, just more energy expended to reach that goal of feeding the community.
What archeologists determined was that Habilus was able to predict future events that the Neanderthal could not.
Habilus and Neanderthal happen upon a herd of bison feeding on grass. Good BBQ follows and all is good. When the BBQ runs out, the Neanderthal returns to where the bison last were and pursues them. The Homo Habilus make a bee-line to where the bison should be based on their habit of eating the available grass and moving on to uneaten fields. Basic geometry lesson inserted here.
Habilus could predict future scenarios. Neanderthals could not.
That is why they died out.
Physical superiority can be a valuable factor; but it will never win against applied logic, backed up by the best self defense tool ever devised.
Whether you are confronting prey on the open plains or engaging an opponent in a political battle, logic and critical thinking will win out against doing the only thing you know…even harder, if that castle is built upon a foundation of sand.
Looking at history, those who fight for any expanded freedom never enjoy quick victories. But, the victories we eventually secure, are so much sweeter for the simple fact that those who opposed us just lost a chess piece.
I hate to describe our struggle as a game, but as our pieces advance and their pieces fall, an alternative analogy currently escapes me.
Why did the physically superior Neanderthal succumb to Homo Habilus?
Pattern recognition…
Archeologists determined that 25 year old Homo Habilus had less wear-n-tear on their muscles, bones and tendons than Neanderthals did.
Hmmmm………….
Using pure logic, Neanderthals must have spent more energy hunting and gathering than Habilus did. Same result, same food allotment, just more energy expended to reach that goal of feeding the community.
What archeologists determined was that Habilus was able to predict future events that the Neanderthal could not.
Habilus and Neanderthal happen upon a herd of bison feeding on grass. Good BBQ follows and all is good. When the BBQ runs out, the Neanderthal returns to where the bison last were and pursues them. The Homo Habilus make a bee-line to where the bison should be based on their habit of eating the available grass and moving on to uneaten fields. Basic geometry lesson inserted here.
Habilus could predict future scenarios. Neanderthals could not.
That is why they died out.
Physical superiority can be a valuable factor; but it will never win against applied logic, backed up by the best self defense tool ever devised.
Whether you are confronting prey on the open plains or engaging an opponent in a political battle, logic and critical thinking will win out against doing the only thing you know…even harder, if that castle is built upon a foundation of sand.
Looking at history, those who fight for any expanded freedom never enjoy quick victories. But, the victories we eventually secure, are so much sweeter for the simple fact that those who opposed us just lost a chess piece.
I hate to describe our struggle as a game, but as our pieces advance and their pieces fall, an alternative analogy currently escapes me.
Monday, November 29, 2010
Mmmm. Fresh Bacon..
From my buddy in TX.
Much more efficient and cheaper than hiring professional marksmen to shoot them w/ birth control.
Much more efficient and cheaper than hiring professional marksmen to shoot them w/ birth control.
Double Standards.
TO continue on the let's pile on Brady/Goddard Campaign leadership, another bit from Japete, AKA Joan Peterson, board member:
Well that's perfectly reasonable, right? Sure, until she also said this:
So she, as a leader of a group, can express her opinion freely and it should not be regarded as part of her organization but any and every statement made by individual members of the NRA (about 4 million) should be considered representative of the goals and beliefs of the NRA as a whole.
Ya know, I really don't think that's the way it works.
The views expressed by me in this blog do not represent any group with which I am associated but are rather my own personal opinions.
Well that's perfectly reasonable, right? Sure, until she also said this:
If any elected leader wants to know why they should not believe what they hear from the NRA, Mike is a prime example of the type of hyperbolic rhetoric that should not be considered valid in this "discussion".
So she, as a leader of a group, can express her opinion freely and it should not be regarded as part of her organization but any and every statement made by individual members of the NRA (about 4 million) should be considered representative of the goals and beliefs of the NRA as a whole.
Ya know, I really don't think that's the way it works.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Weekend Wildlife
Only a few shots this time. Not sure why. We've certainly been hearing alot out in the woods the last week. A few good bucks and a few shots of me driving away and up to the camera.
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