I’ve been watching the circus in the United States of America regarding gay marriage. Proponents are demanding equal rights and the opponents are demanding unequal rights.
It’s really that simple.
But even Canada is forced to listen to the noise and witness the posturing as homophobes across the Republic try to find words to describe why they feel compelled to deny basic rights to their fellow Americans. It’s a challenging task for the opponents of gay rights because they’re prevented from truly expressing themselves when they have to elaborate publically.
Those opponents to gay marriage need to be honest and say publically what they say privately. Slam a couple of Bourbons and let it all out in a C.N.N. or FOX aired meltdown. Make sure to use the words, sinners, faggots, queers, aids and sodomizers. I’ll go out on a predictive limb here and suggest the person that eventually melts might have a declared religious affiliation.
So, they try the God angle claiming that the union of a man and woman is sacred. That God invented marriage and therefore as the spokespersons for God they have the wisdom to judge morality on earth.
Fortunately the general public and the supreme court aren’t buying their bullshit. In fact, each and every time the morality keepers open their mouths, your average American is presented with an example of why religion and the religious need to be kept far from the halls of power. Maybe stow them away in a metaphorical backroom somewhere south of the Mason Dixon line.
Some of the opponents have stated that the moral fabric of American will unravel if these marriages are allowed. I’m not certain what the extent of the unravelling will be but I have a suggestion.
When Americans gather to replace their tattered moral fabric they should bring Kevlar. Weave that fibre into the vest, jacket, jeans or whatever they are constructing because guns are a fuck of a lot more dangerous to your average American than gay marriage.
Thirty thousand people a year more dangerous actually. But the gun culture in the United States is an amazing phenomena. Statistically and ironically, handgun and semi-automatic assault rifle sales increase after a mass shooting. The motivator for increased sales being the fear after each massacre that the government will enact laws to make acquiring certain weapons more difficult.
If your family is a Sandy Hook statistic it must hurt a little bit to see your neighbors rushing out to supplement their personal arsenal while you’re selecting a child size coffin.
I think that the evolution of gun culture in America has gotten to the point where the right to bear arms has mutated into a force that can no longer be controlled. Somehow the message has been received that freedom, handguns and assault rifles are indistinguishable. So, I think America should just stop arguing about guns. Arm everyone and embrace the lifestyle with some gusto.
For example, I think that the states should stop debating how to kill death row inmates. Once the appeals have been exhausted they should hold an auction. Gun clubs and regular individuals could purchase the rights to the condemned and then whack them in person. All proceeds to charity of course.
The auction scene would be like a major sport league draft day with television commentators discussing the relative desirability of each inmate that clears waivers and becomes draft eligible………..so to speak. Just like the N.B.A. and the N.F.L. black men will be well represented in this draft. Even though black people only make up fifteen percent of the American population there are almost as many black men on death row as there are white. I’m pretty sure that statistic says something about economics and something about the justice system but I’m not sure what exactly.
I think it says that if you are black and you kill a white person, your odds of making the death row draft are considerably higher.
Maybe they could make it part of the halftime show at the superbowl and the N.R.A. could open their annual conference with a draw and one lucky delegate can start the proceedings with a bang. Who knows, the draw winner might even get to off a terrorist.
People would watch too……………..the television ratings would be through the roof and there wouldn’t be any problem with sponsors because people getting shot is pretty entertaining shit. It might be stunningly brutal like watching a plane fly into an office tower, but you’re watching and you will watch it again because we find the macabre utterly fascinating.
Advertisers like it when viewers are transfixed.
In order for the embrace to be complete there are going to have to be a few structural changes to the justice system. A distinct branch, kind of like traffic court or family court will need to be established. This court will deal exclusively with the handgun deaths as a result of duels. Some basic rules will need to be applied. Both persons need to be armed. Both persons need to have holstered pistols and agree to a shoot out and then witnesses or video will determine if the fight was fair.
Sounds logical.
The only real problems are going to be bystanders, insurance riders and clean-up…………. and defining self defence. It could be tricky nailing down when a person feels threatened enough that they can defend with high powered projectiles. Remember, even the police find black males pretty threatening. So, the threat level needs some work.
Some rules are going to be needed but they’re relatively basic. For example, if a road rage incident is about to be settled with guns, the participants need to pull off the road and shoot at each other parallel to the roadway. You can’t hide behind your truck and use the traffic for cover.
That would be irresponsible.
Your average American doesn’t stand a chance though. Guns are everywhere. Not just in gun shops but firmly planted into the collective consciousness of every citizen. America celebrates violence and adores the entertainment it provides.
I’m trying to recall the last Hollywood movie I saw that didn’t involve lots of gun death. Probably Finding Nemo, because it sure as fuck wasn’t American Sniper, Platoon, Rambo, Goodfella’s, Saving Private Ryan, any zombie movie or any movie with Mark Wahlberg.
Video games are dominated by the first person shooter genre, Tom Clancy has made a buck or two offing characters and television is nothing but game shows and guns. So, it looks like America can’t complete a video game, write a book, or film a movie without guns being integral to the outcome and the entertainment value.
Sounds like gun culture is a viable term for describing life in America. I wonder if tourists can rent a gun while vacationing in the U.S. ? Maybe car rental companies can make a berretta an option just like the G.P.S.
speaking of cars………..
It’s too bad operating a motor vehicle wasn’t enshrined in the constitution, after all, Ford and Chevy are as American as Mossberg and Remington. If the same logic were used for vehicles that is currently accepted for guns, the roads would be…………well, they’d be interesting.
If semi-automatic weapons and extended clips are acceptable, then why does a person have to drive a speed limit? If all you need to buy a gun is citizenship then why are there testing requirements for driving? If the person working the trigger of an AR 15 is the problem and not the gun, then why can’t you drive a fully armed A1 Abrams battle tank or a Bradley fighting vehicle on your daily commute? The vehicle isn’t the problem…it’s the driver.
Americans need to give this some thought because I’m sure that someone, somewhere, is having their rights infringed upon.
Because cars don’t kill people, people kill people.
But America approaches logic in a unique way. For example, it’s correct to spend four trillion dollars and kill approximately 230,000 people to avenge the death of 3,000 people killed by terrorists.
But it’s un-American and unconstitutional to even debate any controls on 30,000 people killed annually in America by mostly Americans.
Let’s look at it another way. Thirty thousand is roughly the population of Walla Walla, Washington. If terrorists managed to kill each and every person in that town I think America would respond before it happened again the following year. But as I said, the gun culture in the United States is a phenomena that appears to defy any consensus or control. There are too many weapons and it’s too late to try and get them back. So much so that if I were relocating to the U.S. I would say fuck it……..and I would own guns and body armor. I wouldn’t want to be empty handed and bare chested in a room full of Remington carrying Jesse James wanna be’s. H��~����