Posts Tagged ‘guns’
Sure… we know crime is everywhere. Still, we at USDemocrazy aren’t sure what to think about this following news article.
According to the Huffington Post, seven states are considering allowing guns on college campuses.
There are some students we know on campus who we wouldn’t trust with a sharp pencil, none-the-less a pistol. So somehow, this new trend makes us a little nervous.
Sure, there was the tragic massacre at Virginia Tech a few years ago… but are student vigilantes the answer?
Should campuses be gun-free zones? Take a shot at that question.
By now most folks are familiar with the controversial map closely linked to Sarah Palin targeting Democratic candidates in the 2010 election.
We found a map (see below) imitating the style of its notorious cousin with a twist. It is the cover of a Seattle weekly called The Stranger. The map does put into sharp focus America’s long history of gun violence and Public figures.
Another weekly, The Economist (above) has chosen to focus on America’s love affair with the gun on it’s cover. The magazine points out:
Around 30,000 people a year are killed by one of the almost 300m guns in America—almost one for every citizen.
Will this love affair ever end? Or is it “Till death do us part”?
Tee Shirt Available at BustedTees.com
Why would you want “bear arms.” Their hairy and in short supply! It just seems like a big waste of time to us…Oh, not “bear” arms. Ah, we get it. …read more.
There is something about the word “Killing” that gets the attention of us here at USDemocrazy. ( Particularly if the words “Las Vegas”, “USDemocrazy” and “Making a Killing” are in the same sentence.)
But when the words “Politically motivated” and “Killing” are used together it gets everyone’s attention.
Two recent politically motivated murders are raising eyebrows and raising questions.
Last Wednesday at the Holocaust museum (Washington DC) security guard Stephen T. Johns was murdered by white supremacist James von Brunn and last month a controversial late term abortion Doctor George Tiller was killed by anti-abortionist Scott Roeder.
Less prominent, was another politically motivated killing in April of three police officers by a 23-year old who feared that his guns would be taken away.
Good citizens in the US are asking questions…
Is politically motivated violence on the upswing?
Is the (left of center) Obama government in Washington acting as a catalyst for violent right wing extremists?
Or are these just unfortunate random acts of violence in desperate times?
A few months back, the Obama administration released a 9-page report by the Department of Homeland security outlining the possible new threats by posed by right wing extremists. Conservative commentators like Rush Limbaugh’s took great exception to the report . It was described as politically motivated and extreme in its analysis
The report cites triggers for potential Right wing violence and terrorism in the US. These include: a growing number of immigrants, the recent economic recession, the election of America’s first black president and the passage of recent gun control legislation.
There are no clear answers for the Good citizens questions but we can recommend this robust radio conversation on the subject here.
We at USDemocrazy don’t have the answers…( maybe you do?) but you can be sure when the answers are available you will find them here.
But MOM! China got a Porsche! Can’t I get one too?
My credit card took advantage of me! Don’t worry, Obama will fix it…
Stickin’ to their guns… Because guns don’t kill people, drug cartels kill people.
Weapons used by the cartel.
When President Obama headed to Mexico today, it wasn’t for a spring break in Cancun (which means US Democrazy can’t justify a fact-finding mission there).
Instead he is working to tackle, among other things, one of the most violent cities in the world. (And guess what, folks… it is not located in the Middle East.)
The Mexican city of Ciudad Juarez, just across the border from El Paso, Texas, has become a literal war zone. Two-hundred and ten people have been killed from January to March, and 1,605 total for the year of 2008.
Why is there so much violence?
The government of Mexico, under President Felipe Calderon, has been cracking down on the drug cartels in his country (a plan backed by the USA). Such restrictions are forcing drug gangs ino a bloody fight for survival.
With increasing violence and corruption (it is hard to fight crime when local police are paid more by gangs then by the government), the Mexican government has deployed federal police and the military to deal with the crisis. This has reduced the violence… a bit.
How does this involve us? Well, America is seen as the source of this drug violence by many Mexicans.
It seems the drugs flowing through Mexico being fought over by Mexican gangs are not being consumed by Mexicans. These drugs are going north to the good old USA.
To add insult to injury (literally) the guns being used in the deadly drug battles on Mexican soil are from… you guessed it… the USA.
So what have we (the United States) done to address this issue?
Well, Obama is promoting a treaty aimed at reducing cross border gun smuggling. A “Border Czar” has also been appointed by the White House to direct anti-drug and violence programs.
One suggestion is making it harder to get guns in the US by strengthening gun laws.
The lessons of the alcohol prohibition have been cited as a solution, promoting *gasp* legalizing drugs to cut off demand for smuggling.
So what should be done? Check out these ideas and post your own. We would love to know what you think (please post– when you don’t comment, we cry).
Hey amigo, where’d ya get that gun… From the US!
What’s the prognosis, doc? Some stocks with a side of t-bonds.
Ron Paul meets Sacha Baron Cohen.
I was expecting an interview on Austrian economics. So, that didn’t turn out that way. But, by the time he started pulling his pants down, I … What in (inaudible) is going on here? I ran out of the room.
