Saturday, March 10, 2018

My Letter Gun is Empty

So, I saw this letter in the PS this morning. I don't know if I would have responded to it, but it's terrible to see something like it and realize you've used up your quota of submissions for the month (two). Starting at the end.

We need to use logic, not emotions, when responding to problems.

Well yeah, I can't disagree with that. The only thing is that it was the most illogical letter I've read in some time. 

Some people want to ban all AR-15s because of this. Some want to ban all rifles. Some want to ban all guns. 

What percentage of people want to ban all guns? .0003? So, that's pretty much a straw man. 

Suppose a very troubled teen boy drove a big black Ford F-150 with a fast engine and big tires into a crowd of school kids on the sidewalk, killing some and injuring others. (Terrorists in Europe have done this.)

I'm going to call that a red herring leading into a second straw man. 

Would the same critics want to ban scary Ford F-150s? How about all Ford trucks? Would they ban any truck with a powerful engine and big tires? How about banning all vehicles?


I'd dare say there wasn't a spot of logic in the whole letter. How do you get that F-150 into a school, church, movie theater, concert, etc. Unfortunately, his thesis was tested by a sociopath in Charlottesville with the killing of Heather Heyer. 

When it becomes an issue of mass casualties due to homicide by auto then I believe we will discuss that. In the meantime, guns are the issue. 

2 comments:

  1. Also, the purpose of a car is transportation. The purpose of an AR-15 is to kill. You can live your life without a gun, but try living your life without a car, unless you live in a city with excellent public transportation, but even then how would you get around in rural areas or the suburbs and exurbs? Cars are a necessity; AR=15s, not at all.

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  2. Actually, I went without owning a car for 4 years and a bit. Like you say, Glens Falls has a nice bus service and I rented from Enterprise going out of town. Walked a lot, too. And that's all irrelevant to the point.

    What was the point? Oh yeah. God, I hate stupid arguments against common sense on gun control. There's really no arguing with people that present this nonsense.

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