|
by Zsenicorpse 10/16/2006, 9:13pm PDT |
|
 |
|
 |
|
Mischief Maker wrote:
Jerry Whorebach wrote:
You know what the real message of Columbine was? Don't fuck with people who have nothing to lose. Submessage: don't reduce people to a state in which they have nothing to lose.
Either you were bullied mercilessly as a child and, outside of your fantasies, managed to resist murdering any other children -- or you're carrying so much guilt from your own misdeeds that you can accept the deaths of children as the inevitable consequences of your actions.
Soccer moms would much rather deal with the occasional gun-wielding wingnut as a vast social problem than they would with the persistent cruelty of their own children or the question of at whose cost they enjoy their comfortable soccer mom lifestyles.
Guns don't kill people, women who think they're better than you because they have husbands and children kill people.
I had a great post at OMM about this, but then Chet erased it in the great snotbubble holocaust and I we archive only seems to go as far as the post's link. :(
It was called "Sensitivity Training" and was written in response to a huge thread where hundreds of lurkers emerged and posted about how pissed they were about an article interviewing the Columbine jocks. (Yes, I signed it Houngan, I was taking away his identity priviledges at the time for being a prissy fag). According to the article, *GASP,* they weren't repentant about throwing ketchup packets at Harris and Kleibold they hadn't come to realize that those nutballs were really cool, and they didn't realize that all the blood shed was on their hands.
There wouldn't happen to be an alternative to archive.org that I could search, is there?
I'm not saying the Trenchcoat Mafia isn't guilty of Columbine and I'm not saying that the jocks and soccer moms are guilty of Columbine. But jocks and soccer moms are guilty of searching for ways to reinforce standing social inequalities and for concentrating on who's guilty of Columbine rather than personally acting in ways that make Columbines less frequent.
The argument made by the stupid cow is that the guns were the sum total of all that was wrong with Columbine, and that taking away guns will take away Columbines.
The Zseni argument is that taking away guns from people who are prone to senseless destruction just makes them get creative, meanwhile robbing their erstwhile victims of invaluable ways to defend themselves.
Which brings us to: in the meantime, standing social inequalities could use a little work - like the merciless dork-punishing that goes on in too many schools. It's something that was brought up to the school officials and it could have been addressed, but addressing it would have been a big hassle, man. Like, a huge hassle. Who wants to deal with social problems when it's easier to ignore them? Unless they become tragedies, of course. If it's not okay to use violence (shooting up a school), it shouldn't be okay to use violence (beating up a nerd, even if you're the star football player.) The difference is one of degree, not kind; this is one of the underlying problems with the current prison system as well.
In short: gun control may or may not be a good idea, but Columbine doesn't have much to do with it either way. The lesson of Columbine had nothing to do with deadly force and quite a lot more to do with death wishes - however, I meet but infrequently with people who find it horrible even in America, there are people who think they have nothing to live for. I meet a lot of people who seem to think that it's better to make sure those people can't do anything about it. And that seems to me to be a kind of policy development which tends to increase pressure rather than decrease it. Most people, including my two dear respondants, would much rather avoid the discussion and concentrate on the gory details.
In the end I guess this is one of those quality of life arguments - some people think that saving lives is more important than improving them, and others think it's more important to improve quality of life than preserve lives. Peoples' stances on gun control and Columbine, like their stances on abortion, health insurance, the war in Iraq, and loads of other policy issues, are telling of their innate feeling on this central issue. I'm more about quality of life, not the least because I think satisfied people do less harm to those around them, and it isn't obvious to me how keeping people alive by itself accomplishes the same effect.
It's not like we're short on jocks or anything. |
|
 |
|
 |
|
|
|
Gun Control is the only way to stop Columbine from happening again. by Zsenicorpse 10/16/2006, 5:26pm PDT 
On the disturbing tendency among forum geeks to blame the victims for Columbine. by Jerry Whorebach 10/16/2006, 7:40pm PDT 
Alas, Chet fucked SB and blamed Erik. by Mischief Maker 10/16/2006, 8:39pm PDT 
Dim-witted jock to murderous psychos: "You're sick and that's wrong." NT by From the mouths of babes! 10/16/2006, 8:52pm PDT 
Re: Alas, Chet fucked SB and blamed Erik. by Zsenicorpse 10/16/2006, 9:13pm PDT 
Zseni wishes she had shot up her highschool by Flavio 10/16/2006, 9:34pm PDT 
I'm actually willing to blame the victims of Columbine. by motherfuckerfoodeater 10/16/2006, 9:53pm PDT 
The mean upper middle class streets of Littleton. by Jhoh Cable o_O 10/16/2006, 10:44pm PDT 
Great post, Zseni. NT by Grogan 10/16/2006, 9:48pm PDT 
NF by Jerry Whorebach 10/17/2006, 1:43am PDT 
Holy shit! Jerry's post is even better! Now we're having fun. by Quentin Beck 10/17/2006, 2:43am PDT 
Nanaimo—Alberni NT by Google 10/17/2006, 5:14am PDT 
I googled my name and all I got was a pederastic filmography :( NT by Jerry Whorebach 10/17/2006, 6:06am PDT 
Re: NF by Zsenicorpse 10/17/2006, 7:42am PDT 
Even More NF by Jerry Whorebach 10/17/2006, 9:43am PDT 
So what's the problem? Besides you being a total sadist? by Zsenicorpse 10/17/2006, 12:17pm PDT 
Re: Even More NF by Worm 10/17/2006, 3:24pm PDT 
There are a lot of law school professors who don't know how good they have it by I need clarification 10/17/2006, 5:06pm PDT 
Counter: 5. And you're asking for a "Creexul And I Are Friends" barrage if you NT by ask Zsenicorpse 10/17/2006, 5:41pm PDT 
Haha yeah, she waits to be asked, usually. NT by I need clarification 10/17/2006, 5:54pm PDT 
I have beautiful handwriting too - another one of their immeasurable losses. by Zsenicorpse 10/17/2006, 6:28pm PDT 
We take our exams on laptops now. NT by Mischief Maker 11/07/2006, 9:16am PST 
Houngan reveals why he choose Qt3 over Caltrops. by Fussbett 11/06/2006, 11:54pm PST 
MWAHAHAHAHA!!! NT by Mischief Maker 11/07/2006, 9:15am PST 
|
|