Wednesday, February 21, 2018

I'm in!


24 comments:

  1. The principal March For Our Lives gofundme account is at 1.2 megabucks now, midnight California time. That ought to rent some buses!

    Alan

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    1. Sometimes kids restore your hope.

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    2. I chipped in. My but they've raised a lot of money in only two days.

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    1. This morning it occurred to me to wonder if Club Fed has a golf course...

      Alan

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    2. Evidently no golf courses; but
      Forbes (natch!) it helpful.[Click]

      Hmmm.....if Mr. Mueller had a sense of humor (he sure doesn't look like he does!) he could give each interviewee a copy of the book at the end of their meeting.

      --Alan

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    3. Hmmmm...the slideshow link in the Forbes article doesn't seem to work;
      here’s one that does.[Click]

      —Alan

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    1. Hmmm....interesting; I will have to read it carefully. But the reasoning seems at first glance preposterous; very certainly the 2nd Amendment applied to weapons of war; adult male citizens in several (many? most? all?) states were required to have military grade weapons of the day--muskets, because most of the weapons they would otherwise bring to militia musters would be fowling pieces (shotguns), which would be worse than useless. (Hmmm...I think that in some states the militia weapons were stored in armories.) But it wouldn't be the first time the courts have tied themselves in knots in trying to undo poor decisions that contradict the intent of the founders. Another case in point: requiring a search warrant if evidence is to be admitted to court. The original law did not mean that--it just meant that if law enforcement officials seized things without probably cause and without a warrant, they could be sued. Now we have such silliness as the decision that pressing a bag is not a search, but squeezing it is. Still, if the courts are trying to find a way out of the current mess, that is good.

      Alan

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    2. At very least it is a sign of change afoot.

      The Founders never intended weapons like these. I'm okay if today's NRA guys want to own a musket.

      The Founders didn't imagine a standing army either. Sheesh.

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    3. "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

      Operative word being Militia. Who died and made the NRA the Militia???

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    4. Yes indeed. "A well-ordered militia" at that. Several among my ancestors were members of the well-regulated militia that helped to defend Upper Canada from the Yankees. When there several years ago I readily found pay records, muster records, and accountings for damaged or lost weapons issued. My opinion is that establishment of a standing army should have made the second amendment inoperative. Not only did the Founders not envision a standing army--or more accurately, wish to prevent one--they did not envision the breech-loading rifle, which dramatically increased infantry firepower and necessitated big changes in tactics during the Civil War. The muzzle-loading rifle alone was a big advance in killing power, having a far greater effective range. Massed volley-firing muskets had barely enough effective range to deal with a spirited bayonet charge. If that first volley didn't stop the charge, it was hand-to-hand fighting. Oh, and effective volley fire does require good order.

      Alan

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    5. The Supreme Court has also ruled, and in a decision before the one cited, that the Second Amendment does not apply to "unusual weapons" such as assault rifles. That was in a case from a Chicago suburb. I supported the mayor of that city in her run for Congress in 2016 (she lost in the primary), and am currently supporting her in the Democratic primary for Attorney General.

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    6. Thanks for the head's up, Bill! Look what I found!

      The Supreme Court Ruling on the 2nd Amendment Did NOT Grant an Unlimited Right to Own Guns
      http://bigthink.com/risk-reason-and-reality/the-supreme-court-ruling-on-the-2nd-amendment-did-not-grant-an-unlimited-right-to-own-guns

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    7. "My opinion is that establishment of a standing army should have made the second amendment inoperative."

      Wil and I wholeheartedly concur!

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  4. Why The Trump/Russia ‘Skeptics’ Are Wrong[Click] By Josh Marshall
    Well, now that you put it that way, it IS pretty damning. Plenty there for Mr. Mueller to work on.

    —Alan

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  5. One line down. Repair on Saturday. As we talked, I realized she had no idea what *dialup* was. Asked her. She said her grandpa had told her. . . .

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  6. This amazing guy, Dennie Freehand, wrote "The Complete List Of Refutations To NRA Gun Control Myths" (the list includes 103 Myths!!!) on the 6th of July 2017

    Here is the first one, to see if anyone here can read it. I don't know whether it works if you don't have a Facebook account. Can someone test it and see?

    Myth 1) If we implement laws requiring gun controls then only criminals will have guns.
    https://www.facebook.com/notes/dennis-freeland/nra-gun-control-myth-1-if-we-implement-laws-requiring-gun-controls-then-only-cri/638871339597612

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    1. Oops! Sorry, the man's actual name is Dennis Freeland.

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    2. Meanwhile, if you ARE on Facebook...

      On your FB page, in the space at the top where you'd type in a name to search, place this:

      The Complete List Of Refutations To NRA Gun Control Myths

      Then scroll down (second item?) to see it. It contains ONE HUNDRED myths and the guy has refuted them handily! He even has statistics! It's AMAZING!!! What's more, if you go to his Facebook page, he has recently posted Myths #101, 102 and 103...!!!

      Somebody needs to get this into the hands of the Florida teenagers!!!

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    3. It seems to work just fine for me without Facebook, listener.

      Alan

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  7. Today, Wednesday, was the warmest February day in recorded Springfield history, with a high reaching 74 degrees. Thursday is forecast to have highs from 33 to 38 with snow. YIKES!

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    1. That is remarkable; maybe you need to get new weatherpersons!

      Alan

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