I'm getting tired of hearing that people need guns to protect themselves. ANOTHER story where someone does and there was no 'bad guy". Boyfriend Accidentally Shoots Boyfriend. In The Face.

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Updated On: 6/21/15 at 12:14 PM

President Hilary Clinton just delivered an incredible speech about racism in the United States. 

It sure as hell didn't sound like she was reading from a script. It sounded like she was PISSED. 

http://mic.com/articles/121068/in-one-quote-hillary-clinton-just-took-a-bold-stance-on-race-in-america

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I think you covered most of the messy contradictions.  At this point is be happy if the gun lobby to shut their mouths rather than say things like "if everybody brought a gun to church" there would be nomore problems. 

"Put away your swords," said Jesus Christ, Superstar. "Why are you obsessed with fighting?"

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Guilty of the charges of rambling...

The Pew Research Center report gets right to the point.  It ain't pretty.  Details at Gun Violence in America

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We can't repeal the second amendment PJ, there are too many citizens who will be freaked out by this.  The only path for Dems is to come out strong for tougher restrictions, and to appeal to the middle, this is important.  I fear this will not be an issue in the next election as both candidates will be for stricter gun laws.  Or even the primaries, the GOP candidates who are pro NRA will melt away.

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The repeal of the Second Amendment is necessary, but it's going to happen in our lifetime, and it will require a Second Civil War more bloody than the first.

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It goes against my politics to focus on the killer, but it's consistent with my curiosity about human beings and their too often perverse trajectories to want to know telling details.  To me, it's this young man's room.  A textbook example of middle class white male privilege, the same plaid spread-covered bed he likely slept in since childhood, the cozy, comfortable trappings we see in films, even cartoons (Andy's in Toy Story 3 just before he heads to college).  He is a privileged, preserved child entering adulthood, treated as he always has been: with possessions and distracting playthings. Rock band posters have switched out for framed mirrored liquor ads seen in Bennigans.  When he had no discernible ambition, not even a fast food job, when he was a dropout adrift with two arrests, at least one a felony, his parents gave him seven hundred dollars for a gun.  A new plaything.  The mindset that led them to that decision, coupled with these innocuous shots of him inhabiting his child cave masquerading now as a man cave should give us all pause.  And make us shudder.  An unaccomplished, vicious miscreant, still with a 12 year-old's haircut, was awarded the ultimate toy, and the story is ours.  We do need to know who he is and the appalling context for his behavior. The Trayvon Martin case pushed his buttons? A case in which a white zealot-murder walked free after cold blooded murder of an African-American man? Attention should be paid.  This boy is everywhere. 

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Updated On: 6/21/15 at 06:58 AM

Uncageg, of course it's about racism, first and foremost.  What can we do as citizens to combat racism, aside from disassociating with them or condemning them.  We can't pass laws that make it harder to be a racist, but the other thing is treatable.

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"What can we do as citizens to combat racism, aside from disassociating with them or condemning them."

I've posted about this many times and in many threads on here over the years and the first step is a difficult one: White people have to take a fierce moral inventory of our own racism and examine the small and huge ways we benefit from institutionslized racism. It's not easy and it's just the first step.

But every single time I've mentioned it, some white people get apoplectic. That is how deep the denial is in our DNA. The folks who have their work cut out hoe them are the ones who relexively post "I'm not racist," "I don't see race," or "People should be judged by the content of their character."

We don't have to take it personally that white people have thrived in this oppression of systemic racism for over 200 years. But if we're really wondering "what can we do?" examining ourselves is the first step.

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Then we see how we can apply what we know in our real lives. I posted not too long ago something I do in my work life that I took from Sarah Schulman's suggestion. About 12 hours after I posted it That Troll made fun of me for it. If I'm asked to present on a panel regarding my work I tell them I made a choice years ago not to present on all-white panels. Small step, makes a difference. Also, I pinch myself so I don't mansplain or talk over others. If people of color are silent during a panel discussion I ask open ended questions to clear some space for them to speak if they want to. That's one way I can use my white privilege to clear some space and hand it over. 

I have a commitment to assembling diverse teams when I hire people.

I try (TRY) to challenge people's subtly racist actions, but as we've seen, people get very defensive. 

 

 

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