New Shooters, Old Issues

I'm going to do my little bit to dispell media dis-information in regards to the two recent shootings in the US.

1) The El-Paso shooting was instigated by Trump's...well Trump.

False.

If you read the manifesto you'll see that he specifically mentioned Trump. He said that his particular view of the "invasion" of Texas (and America) predated Trump. In fact he had pointed words for both parties on that subject. So if the shooter is to be believed then all commentary that Trump's words were the reason for this guy's criminal act is dis-information.

2) The Dayton Shooter was Antifa.

True

These two issues are an indication of how much blood the media has on its hands. One the one hand it has "delegitimized" and suppressed discussion of absolutely valid issues and concerns of broad swaths of the citizenry by labeling them "white nationalists". It has legitimized absolutely ridiculous claims such as concentration camps. It has, depending on the political winds claimed there was no border crisis or that there is a border crisis. It has openly endorsed a group of people who wear masks in public who assault people it claims are "Nazis". Due to these two phenomenons: The delegitimization of valid issues of one group and the amplification of fake assertions of another has, in my opinion, fed the recent shootings.

After all, if we're going to say Trump's rhetoric caused El-Paso, then since the Dayton shooter followed Warren, should she be held accountable?

What about the guy who shot Rep. Scalise? He was a Bernie supporter. Should Sanders be held responsible for him?

Why haven't the so-called journalists asked this question of each candidate who has made the claim that Trump is responsible? Because we are living in a time of dis-information. Let's see how many times we hear about the Antifa connection of the Dayton shooter.

3) Guns are the problem.

False.

As I've said many many times. Guns are inanimate objects. If you sit one down and nobody touches it, nobody gets shot. People shoot people. Not guns. There is no such thing as "gun violence" or "gun crime". There are people who shoot and/or kill people with guns. It is also the case that guns have been a part of American life for its entire existence, yet mass shootings of the type we are seeing is a very recent phenomenon. I've already shown that young people used to learn how to handle gun at school.

What we have is a cultural problem. It is highly likely that the cultural problem is being fed by the increased media dis-information that may be pushing mentally unstable people over lines they would not have crossed. This is pure speculation on my part. A lot of people talk about how Europe has less "gun crime". Europe also, until very recently, also has a very different culture, informed largely by a homogeneous demographic.

4) White Men are the biggest danger:

Patently false.

The FBI defines a mass shooting as one where 3 or more people have been shot in a single event. The "news" media puts white shooters front and center often for political purposes. However; when it comes to shootings period, non-whites, specifically black males, far outrank anyone else in America for shootings. This includes public places. See GunViolence.org. Ask yourself a question: If there have been so many mass shootings in America this year alone, how come you've only heard of 5?

The answer is, that most of them don't make it past the local news. Most of them do not fit the national dis-information narrative. This is not to minimize the events of this weekend. This is to not deal in dis-information.

5) No conceal carry present in Texas? Lastly, one of the things I was surprised by was that no one in the area was a concealed or open carry. Texas is a "shall issue" state. That means that anyone who is of age and is not a felon can purchase a firearm and receive a permit/license. Furthermore; it is legal in Texas to openly carry a firearm so long as it is holstered. I'm not entirely clear as to the policy Walmart has in regards to carrying in their stores.

The reason I bring this up is that the first interview I heard was of a woman who saw the shooter in the parking lot. I don't know how many people were in the parking lot but she indicated at least one other person was there. Had she or the other person been carrying it is likely that the incident would have been ended there. Criminals tend to pick places and people where they are unlikely to meet resistance. It is often said in self-defense circles that no one can help you except you. No disrespect for the police, but many people were killed in both incidences because there was no one in the immediate environment who could resist the shooter with deadly force. Armed citizens do not in any way, shape or form guarantee that no one will be shot and killed. However, the presence of armed (and trained) citizens can absolutely drop the potential body count because shooters often end their crimes once resistance is met. If you think I'm lying here's video evidence:

And because I'm honest, the other side:

Perhaps a CC was present but decided it was best to not intervene.

So closing this out I just want to say that these are dangerous times, relatively speaking. What is making this dangerous is the censoring of legitimate issues by state and corporate actors. The reason we have free speech is in part because those who feel they can communicate will often NOT resort to violence. The most dangerous people are those who believe they have nothing to lose (and now media fame to gain). The second reason we have free speech is that we cannot be absolutely sure of the rightness or correctness of our beliefs. Therefore; the ability of those to challenge our beliefs via their speech, is how we become better thinkers ourselves. Name-calling and ad-hominem attacks are not arguments. Resorting to them doesn't prove your case. Living in echo chambers does nothing for critical thinking because echo chambers by definition have no critiques to offer.

Beware the dis-information.