American Men
Found this posting from “The Right is Wrong and the Left is Wronger” over at Brutally Honest
I am “Old School”. In a previous era I may have been considered macho. I prefer combat sports (boxing and mixed martial arts) to team sports (baseball and basketball). I prefer outdoor activities (rock climbing, whitewater rafting and camping) to video games. I prefer competition to cooperation, and may the best man win. All too often today, macho self-confidence is confused with “asshole”, “arrogant”, or “pig-headed” particularly when it entails any interface with the gentler gender. I believe that in this era of feminized, emasculated, gender-neutral, neutered, politically-correct, “my right to not be offended, trumps your freedom of speech” era, many men who would otherwise voice their opinions have chosen instead to be quiet and pine for a better yesterday. Yet, straight shooters who opt to solve problems rather than wring their hands over them, is exactly what we need.
Go, read, enjoy.
h/t Brutally Honest
March 3rd, 2009 at 12:50
Oh, for God’s sake. More white-guy-whining about how wonderful America USED to be. And who talks about the “gentler gender”??
I was just waiting for him to start talking about how he can’t wait to shoot somebody with his new shotgun named Bruce.
March 3rd, 2009 at 12:59
I’d invite you to go shooting with us Ratso, but I’m going to guess that the testosterone level would be too high for your sensibilities. Why don’t you go back to watching The View or whatever it is you do during the day.
March 3rd, 2009 at 13:14
Contrary to the Brady Bunch claims, gun owners are not just itching to shoot people. Most of us pray that we never need to use our guns against another human being. But I suppose that’s not Hopechangey enough for you to grasp.
And what do you know about masculinity anyway?
March 3rd, 2009 at 13:25
Oh please, jackasses. Why does everyone who disagrees on ANYTHING get labelled a “liberal”??
I carried a gun for 22 years, and the day I retired I was happy to stop having to carry it around (oh, and I had two LOD shootings). I never understand the gun-crazy people who think they need one for every trip to Publix – in 6 years off the job I’ve never felt the need for a gun, and I live in Miami. That said, the gun-banners are ridiculous too. Legal-gun owners rarely commit gun crimes.
The POINT is, clinging to some mythical American past is stupid. This was a fine country before, it’s a fine country now. If you think it sucks, go live in Canada. They love guns there, too.
March 3rd, 2009 at 13:35
I didn’t call you a liberal, you did that yourself.
My point is that this country ISN’t as good as it used to be, as demonstrated by our educational standards sliding us to the back of the pack for the industrialized world, the social environment being one that if you disagree you are labeled ‘racist’ at best and at worst physically attacked (yea, it happened to me)
Yes, America is the best country in the world. I have never said otherwise, but we are being dragged down the path to socialism and if you can’t see that then you have made yourself deaf, dumb and blind to the world.
You make some asshole comment about me wanting to shoot someone – a comment I never said – and then whip around with this BS comment? FUCK YOU, Ratso. My dad retired after 35+ years on the job and he STILL carries so don’t try to use the “I was a cop and I know better than you rubes line”
I won’t ban you from here, but I would appreciate you leaving and not letting the door hit you in the ass on the way out.
March 3rd, 2009 at 13:35
Oh, and dude; Nobody who is 5’8″ and 260 pounds should be talking about testosterone. Ever hear of a treadmill, brother?
Jennifer, on the other hand, sounds like she has a sweet little body.
March 3rd, 2009 at 13:36
My, my. I do upset you.
March 3rd, 2009 at 13:37
Yea, and I’ve lost 12 lbs so far, shithead. And at my fighting weight (yea, I fought) I was 195 and 15% body fat.
Once again, fuck you. I see that since you can’t win the argument you go for the personal attacks. You may not call yourself a liberal, but you sure act like one.
March 3rd, 2009 at 13:39
“I’d invite you to go shooting with us Ratso, but I’m going to guess that the testosterone level would be too high for your sensibilities. Why don’t you go back to watching The View or whatever it is you do during the day”
That’s not a personal attack?
And honestly, congratulations on the weight loss. Seriously, I know it’s hard. And thank you for trying not to be a future burden on my medicare taxes.
March 3rd, 2009 at 13:47
“Oh, for God’s sake. More white-guy-whining about how wonderful America USED to be.”
I was just waiting for him to start talking about how he can’t wait to shoot somebody with his new shotgun named Bruce.
Gee, Rats, who started with the personal attacks here? In case you don’t remember, I never invited you to this party. Don’t like it then just click the little button at the top left of your screen and leave.
Jennifer, on the other hand, sounds like she has a sweet little body.
Nice way to show what a real no-class jackass you are too with that comment.
March 3rd, 2009 at 13:54
Do you own a fire extinguisher Ratso? Are you just itching for your house to catch on fire so you can use it? Does having one mean you live with an irrational fear of fire?
No, they don’t love guns in Canada.
The United States is still the greatest country in the world, but it has it’s problems. Many of which are new or at least far greater than they ever were in the past. One of those problems being the feminization of men. There is no benefit to being neutral.
March 3rd, 2009 at 13:56
Jen does have a sweet body – I enjoy her mind and her heart quite a bit as well. I might be interested to see why you are trying to make an enemy out of me with your comment, though.
March 3rd, 2009 at 14:09
No offense to you, Michael. Or to Jennifer (member of the “gentler gender” that she is). But she DID call my masculinity into question, you’ll recall. I’m like Israel; Attack me with a rock and I come back with an F-14.
Anyways, back to the point. Jennifer, Canadians DO love guns. Yeah, not as much as we do, but more than most countries. Yes, he’s about to insert a table into a blog comment:
Rates of homicide, suicide and household gun ownership in 14 countries.
=========================================================================
Rate per 100,000
_______________________________________
Homicide Suicide % of
with a with a households
Country Overall Gun Overall Gun with guns
_______________________________________________________________________
Australia 1.95 .66 11.58 3.42 1.96
Belgium 1.85 .87 23.15 2.45 1.66
Canada 2.60 .84 13.94 4.44 2.91
England/
Wales .67 .08 8.61 .38 .47
Finland 2.96 .74 25.35 5.43 2.32
France 1.25 .55 22.30 4.93 2.26
Holland 1.18 .27 11.72 .28 .19
N. Ireland 4.66 3.55 8.27 1.18 .84
Norway 1.21 .36 14.27 3.87 3.20
Scotland 1.63 .11 10.51 .69 .47
Spain 1.37 .38 6.45 .45 1.31
Switzerland 1.17 .46 24.45 5.74 2.72
USA 7.59 4.46 12.40 7.28 4.80
West Germany 1.21 .20 20.37 1.38 .89
March 3rd, 2009 at 14:10
And…inserting that table didn’t work. point is, Canada is third or fourth in the group. Granted, they’re WAY below us (go USA!).
March 3rd, 2009 at 14:15
Gee, I would hate to see what happens if you get into an argument with your wife Ratso.
March 3rd, 2009 at 14:21
That’s an F-14? Wow, guess I missed the incredibly effective counter attack.
In 1995 Canada passed the Firearms act requiring all firearms owners to apply for licensing. They also require all handguns be registered and heavily limit the rights to carry them. No, they do not love guns.
March 3rd, 2009 at 14:30
Yeah, I guess you’re right. Saying you have a sweet little body isn’t much of an insult.
22% of Canadian households own at least one gun. if that’s not love, it’s sure a strong crush. Among non-US countries, I’m pretty sure only Switzerland is higher (and that’s because of their wacky militia thing).
Instinct, my wife and I almost never argue. She tells me what to think and I think it.
March 3rd, 2009 at 14:41
Yeah, not so much. I’d generally put that in the compliment column.
The people may like guns, but the government certainly does not. Nor does it support freedom. Besides, I’d still have to cross the border back to the US for decent healthcare.
March 3rd, 2009 at 14:45
But you’d get very cheap prescription drugs, since the drug companies dump all their R&D costs on us because the Canadian government protects their people from profiteering by Pfeizer et al. And Maple Syrup. And pretty good beer.
And, to roll back to the original topic, their men are manly men with plaid shirts and beards and axes. So why are they so leftist??
March 3rd, 2009 at 14:46
Socialist healthcare, gun control, etc., etc., etc… Why are people trying to turn the U. S. into Canada, anyway? There’s already a Canada. If they think it’s better, why don’t THEY go there and let us have the U. S.?
We’ve heard your peace on big government and it’s socialist programs, gun control – apparently, and abortion. As far as you getting called a liberal is concerned, the balance of your views seems to support the accusation. If it looks like a duck, waddles like a duck, and quacks like a duck – you know the rest.
You have said to this group on multiple occasions that you aren’t so different from any of us. I beg to differ. I don’t go onto other people’s websites, attack them in the implication that they are trigger-happy fools, and tell them to move to another country if they don’t like the motion of politics in their home. Maybe when I was younger, but I wouldn’t do that now.
Have you ever thought that maybe it was the massive preponderance of firearms here that makes them so very useless? No sane person wants to need their gun. The fact that such a high percentage of individuals are armed is a direct deterrent to criminals.
If you don’t want to carry, I wouldn’t make you even if I could. The fact remains that in a society, you reap protective and preventative benefit from those around you that are armed. That’s my kind of common-sense gun control.
March 3rd, 2009 at 14:53
Seriously, I only attack when attacked. I’d prefer a dispassionate debate on the facts. Well, opinions, too.
Michael, I just can’t get my arms around this statement:
“The fact that such a high percentage of individuals are armed is a direct deterrent to criminals.”
Intuitively, I get it …BUT, we have horrific crime rates, way higher than anywhere else. We also have many more guns than anyone else. Aren’t those two contradictory facts? By any logical measure, guns are NOT deterring criminals.
Guns for sport, guns for hunting, guns because you like guns – I’m okay with all that. But guns as a crime preventer? It just doesn’t work.
March 3rd, 2009 at 14:54
In my house my wife tells me what she thinks, I tell her what I think and we discuss it. Guess us gun toting rednecks are doing it wrong, huh?
And the chart that you tried to post isn’t exactly accurate since it compares countries that have uniform gun laws to the United States where gun laws are controlled by the states.
http://www.infoplease.com/us/statistics/crime-rate-state.html
If you look at the breakdown here you’ll see who’s at the top of the list – DC with 30 murders per 100,000. And who has the most restrictive guns laws?? Why DC again!
Let’s look at Oklahoma, which is a shooting gallery according to the Brady Bunch – 6.1 per 100,000. Well, that’s a lot lower than the overall homicide rate that you have on your chart for every country there.
In fact, most every state has a lower murder rate than what you have listed on your chart to show how terrible we are. Wonder why that is?
March 3rd, 2009 at 14:57
Yes, D. C., Chicago, L. A. Need I go on?
March 3rd, 2009 at 15:00
Dude, you don’t wanna go there. Let’s see; DC has the highest violent crime rate. Vermont has the lowest. How could that be? Is it gun control legislation…climate…syrup production….?
Looking at numbers like that in a vacuum is ridiculous. DC is a crack-infested swamp. Vermont is….Vermont. Gun laws have little or nothing to do with their crime rates, and you know it.
March 3rd, 2009 at 15:02
Michael, what about New York – very tight gun laws, greatly reduced crime.
March 3rd, 2009 at 15:06
Let me think… Oh, wait, I know the answer to that. Because in New York they may have strict gun laws but a law abiding citizen can still get a concealed carry permit and can own a weapon and have it loaded in his home – unlike what DC was doing.
March 3rd, 2009 at 15:07
As for guns not reducing crime, maybe you should read this
http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/493636.html
March 3rd, 2009 at 15:12
Your information may be a little old – in New York City, NOBODY gets a CCW permit anymore, unless you regularly carry diamonds or cash or things like that. remember, state laws are different from NYC laws. Bloomberg would outlaw guns altogether, if he could.
No, the reduced crime rates in NY are due to COMPSTAT and Broken-Window theory and the aging population and more cops on the street. Lots of things, but not more guns. Nobody makes that argument.
March 3rd, 2009 at 15:18
The AEI study in your link (and I never trust them OR Brookings) talks about a 3% annual reduction in homicides in states with carry-permits. So, over 30 years, there wouldn’t be any murders? I think he’s playing loose with his facts.
March 3rd, 2009 at 15:20
Well, then you go and listen to whatever make you happy.
March 3rd, 2009 at 15:21
I will admit that NYC is an anomaly in the argument. It does seem to be the exception to the rule though, doesn’t it? The reason D. C. is a crack infested swamp is because the populace has no legal defense. Criminals, like water and electricity are drawn to the path of least resistance. As I’m sure you are aware from personal experience, the LEO’s can only do so much. They are the great historians of our society. They show up and record the details after the fact. The fact of the matter is that crime does happen. There are victims. If you don’t want to carry the tools to put yourself far less at risk to be the victim, I tip my hat to you. I don’t want to be in that risk group, and I don’t want my wife to be in that risk group. That’s why we train, practice, and carry. I wouldn’t live in a crack infested swamp of a town where it’s illegal for a person to fight for their own survival. That’s just jacked up.
March 3rd, 2009 at 15:25
RR, I would think that 3% is per the antecedent year’s figure – not the thirty-year previous rate. I don’t know, as I didn’t read that particular report.
March 3rd, 2009 at 15:28
I now live in a town where it’s legal for almost anybody to carry a gun – hell, in Miami it’s practically a birthright. But back home in New York, when I grew up, it was much the same as DC today – monsters roamed the city and my mom wouldn’t let us walk to school by ourselves. And over time, with the techniques I listed above (and fine POs like…me), it got better. And now? New York is like Disney World. It can work.
New York IS the exception. But it should be the rule.
March 3rd, 2009 at 15:37
Gee, no one in New York gets a CCP, huh? That must be why Bloomberg is trying to reduce the number of permits there, because there are too many for his taste.
http://www.nypost.com/seven/11012006/news/regionalnews/mike_to_gun_permit_holders__pack_it_in_regionalnews_kenneth_lovett.htm
March 3rd, 2009 at 16:04
Sorry I got here so late – so, straight to the points:
1) Loved that article – especially this part:
It is interesting to note the difference between Ronald Reagan’s first inaugural address and Barak Obama’s.
Both inherited an America on the ropes. In each case unemployment was high and getting higher. Arguably in Reagan’s case the scenario was worse, interest rates were MUCH higher, and inflation was higher.
I don’t know for sure, but I suspect in Reagan’s first thirty days he never claimed that they were in the worst economy since the Great Depression and I suspect he never used the terms “catastrophic”, “crisis” or any other similar panty-waste, hand-wringing, pussy whipped, “I feel your pain”, BS for what he saw as a job that needed doing with an outcome measured in the quality of people’s lives, NOT in how many poll percentage points a certain stance was worth.
What we need in America today is more Patton’s and fewer Powell’s, more Apple‘s and fewer Lehman Brothers, more leadership and fewer focus groups.
That’s a lot of truth & observation packed into a small space.
2) Ratzo – saw the #1 comment – you came off like an asshole & followed that up with a leering, drooling comment about Jennifer.
Your first, reflexive response was to be a fuckwad – There’s really no coming back from that.
– MuscleDaddy
March 3rd, 2009 at 18:57
Yikes, bud, that’s painful. Especially coming from someone who has Ronald Reagan porn on his website. Really, dude, Ronal Reagan? Good president and all, but let’s move on.
March 3rd, 2009 at 18:59
Instinct, that article is from 2006 (and the POST, for God’s sake). A lot happens in New York in 3 years. Concealed Carries are a dead issue in NYC. Next?
March 3rd, 2009 at 21:10
Like I said…
– MD
March 3rd, 2009 at 21:25
Ratso–you’ve made no secret that you’re a Noo Yawker through and through. Why, then, do you refer to Publix–a Florida-based supermarket chain that operates only in 5 states–all in the southeast?!?
Sounds like another damned Yankee got in his big, black, Buick and headed to the land of newlyweds and nearly-deads.
My daddy always said that “Yankees are like hemorrhoids: those that come down and go back up are tolerable, but those that come down and stay down are a real pain in the ass!”
No, I’m not worried about offending Instinct. He knows where I’m coming from. He, Jen, Michael and I fly a pretty tight formation. We use F-15′s so that we can accelerate while flying vertically while your Tomcat (only used today by–guess who? Iran!) stalls out and goes into a flat spin.
March 4th, 2009 at 09:04
You got me – I don’t know crap about planes.
And your guess is correct – I’m a New Yorker transplanted to Mee-ami after I retired at the ripe old age of 43. That’s what I get for marrying a Cubana – they always want to come back to La Familia. But I do love me some rice and beans….
Oh, and not a Buick – no way I’d buy a tin can like that. A silver BMW 740i. Which, in Miami, is the car they give to the servants.