Month: October 2019

First of all, no one should ever have to die from a mass shooter just as no one should have to die from a drunk driver, EEE, or a plane crash. Specific to the issue with mass shooters, we typically respond to them in a disproportionate way compared to the presented threat. You are far more likely to die on your drive to work than to be killed by a gunman but we accept the risk of being behind the wheel because we don’t feel the danger.

We should look at the numbers. Though there are a significant number of gun deaths in the US, as per the PEW Research Center, about 60% of them are suicides with 37% being homicide and another 3% classified as “Other” which includes such things as hunting accidents.

Communism is just an extreme form of socialism. They are both collectivist and anti-capitalistic with the government owning property and deciding your worth. When you look at a lot of pro-socialist protests, you’ll inevitably see Soviet banners so it’s easy to conflate the two. It’s so easy in fact that many that yearn for socialism are actually looking for communism. Both are a slope slipping in the same downward direction.

Capitalism has its shortcomings but it just happens to be the best available option. The biggest flaw with capitalism is that it doesn’t account for those that can’t produce for society. That’s where safety net programs come into play.

Personally knowing someone who is trans, I have had no problem using a female pronoun for someone born genetically male. With that said, I do take issue when governments and institutions compel people to say things with which they fundamentally disagree.

Just as hypothetical Jim doesn’t have the right to be hypothetical Jane’s friend, Jim also doesn’t have the right to assault Jane. By the same token, Jim also can’t demand as a right that Jane be forced to use Jim’s preferred pronouns.