A Differing Viewpoint
Feb. 16th, 2018 04:20 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
penpusherWhen I'm not here, I do make appearances on other parts of the internet. I like to keep a finger on the pulse of what conservatives are thinking and saying to each other so I have a place I visit. Of course, I'm not going to Breitbart. That would be truly asking for abuse. Though I do occasionally see an epic Don Quixote type attempting to take on that massive element there. That's truly yeoman's work.
The most I can muster is Scott Adams' Blog.
Scott Adams, the creator of the comic strip "Dilbert" (one of my all-time least favorite comics) got a boost during the 2016 election as he started talking about Donald Trump as the best candidate to be the next president, and went into descriptions about why that was the case. The media picked it up and Adams, who proclaims himself an expert in persuasion and a trained hypnotist, became a bit more of a celeb because of his posts.
Of course, when Trump won, Adams had gloating rights and conservatives praised him for being a visionary. I go there to get a taste of what people are discussing and to contribute some thoughts.
Obviously, the talk these past couple of days has been about the latest massacre in our country where a gunman went in and killed seventeen high school students and faculty, wounding more in Parkland, Florida. Conversations about possible changes in laws or the extreme resistance to such changes sparks a lot of comments.
I remember when I first wrote a piece about gun control. It was an opinion piece after John Hinckley shot President Reagan in 1981. At the time, I suggested that guns were too pervasive in our country and that we need to figure out a better approach to keep everyone safer. 1981 was thirty-seven years ago. How many people have been shot and killed since Reagan caught that bullet?
So after the commentary about how there is continual lip service being paid to the victims and their families, the typical thoughts and prayers, I suggested that something has to change because this continues to happen.
But one guy gave me an answer like no other, and I have to share it here. The guy's handle is Richardwicks and I'm pretty certain that's not his real name. Here's his quote back to me:
I'm pointing out that this government is ENTIRELY corrupt and the very idea of giving those assholes exclusive access to weaponry is absolutely off the table.
You have a government that just spent 18 months trying to get Trump thrown out of office based on a complete scam of an investigation over Russian collusion. You think you can trust them?
We're teetering on being Nazi Germany NOW. You think this is just outrageous. But - we have a complete propaganda press, a government that does stuff like invade Iraq to "liberate it" (remember when Nazi Germany invaded Poland to liberate them?), we have a government that uses tax payer funds to give to certain favored businesses that just happen to have a ton of cross over of employees that moved from that business to government in the banking system.
We're fascists NOW. You stupid shit.
Oh, and they are doing everything and anything to try to divide the population. Black lives matter! All Lives Matter is racist!
Fuck you stupid ignorant dumbshits who know NOTHING of history.
Why do you think that for 16 years, even after it's OBVIOUS that Bush Jr. lied this nation into a war, we're still at fucking war? Why has ever goddamned candidate, with the exception of Trump who the government is trying to bake up some cockamamie excuse to remove, on board for more war on the campaign trail?
Why do you think that is?
You don't realize, there's an absolute position with regard to gun rights. Absolute, no compromise and there is going to be no "reasonable discussion" about this at all. Talk is over.
My response back to him:
Okay!
*slowly backs away*
Yes, sir. You... keep fighting the good fight!
The most I can muster is Scott Adams' Blog.
Scott Adams, the creator of the comic strip "Dilbert" (one of my all-time least favorite comics) got a boost during the 2016 election as he started talking about Donald Trump as the best candidate to be the next president, and went into descriptions about why that was the case. The media picked it up and Adams, who proclaims himself an expert in persuasion and a trained hypnotist, became a bit more of a celeb because of his posts.
Of course, when Trump won, Adams had gloating rights and conservatives praised him for being a visionary. I go there to get a taste of what people are discussing and to contribute some thoughts.
Obviously, the talk these past couple of days has been about the latest massacre in our country where a gunman went in and killed seventeen high school students and faculty, wounding more in Parkland, Florida. Conversations about possible changes in laws or the extreme resistance to such changes sparks a lot of comments.
I remember when I first wrote a piece about gun control. It was an opinion piece after John Hinckley shot President Reagan in 1981. At the time, I suggested that guns were too pervasive in our country and that we need to figure out a better approach to keep everyone safer. 1981 was thirty-seven years ago. How many people have been shot and killed since Reagan caught that bullet?
So after the commentary about how there is continual lip service being paid to the victims and their families, the typical thoughts and prayers, I suggested that something has to change because this continues to happen.
But one guy gave me an answer like no other, and I have to share it here. The guy's handle is Richardwicks and I'm pretty certain that's not his real name. Here's his quote back to me:
I'm pointing out that this government is ENTIRELY corrupt and the very idea of giving those assholes exclusive access to weaponry is absolutely off the table.
You have a government that just spent 18 months trying to get Trump thrown out of office based on a complete scam of an investigation over Russian collusion. You think you can trust them?
We're teetering on being Nazi Germany NOW. You think this is just outrageous. But - we have a complete propaganda press, a government that does stuff like invade Iraq to "liberate it" (remember when Nazi Germany invaded Poland to liberate them?), we have a government that uses tax payer funds to give to certain favored businesses that just happen to have a ton of cross over of employees that moved from that business to government in the banking system.
We're fascists NOW. You stupid shit.
Oh, and they are doing everything and anything to try to divide the population. Black lives matter! All Lives Matter is racist!
Fuck you stupid ignorant dumbshits who know NOTHING of history.
Why do you think that for 16 years, even after it's OBVIOUS that Bush Jr. lied this nation into a war, we're still at fucking war? Why has ever goddamned candidate, with the exception of Trump who the government is trying to bake up some cockamamie excuse to remove, on board for more war on the campaign trail?
Why do you think that is?
You don't realize, there's an absolute position with regard to gun rights. Absolute, no compromise and there is going to be no "reasonable discussion" about this at all. Talk is over.
My response back to him:
Okay!
*slowly backs away*
Yes, sir. You... keep fighting the good fight!
no subject
Date: 2018-02-17 02:31 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2018-02-17 11:29 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2018-02-23 12:42 am (UTC)There was an essay online a couple of years back about why arguments that "all guns all the time" means we can fight back against the government, if we have to. This isn't the American Revolution, or even the Civil War. The government has tanks, helicopters, bombers, and super-bombs that your AK-47 is no match for. Owning assault rifles won't allow anyone to overthrow a corrupt government.
And then there's the problem of which half of the government is corrupt, here. The one that supported the investigation into Trump? Or the unqualified candidate who was all-too-cozy with Russia throughout, and might yet get us all killed?
no subject
Date: 2018-02-24 03:12 pm (UTC)That's the other part of the argument, really if YOU believe the government is corrupt, then you get to take them out? I once asked one of those 2nd Amendment enthusiasts (for lack of a better way of phrasing it) when would he know that it was time to form that militia and storm DC. I got the internet equivalent of a blank stare.
I don't know. There's so much anger and hate currently and it's all rooted in the anger and hate of the past.