Writing Good
George Orwell . . . Animal Farm . . . Politics. The Eton-honed author wrote some marvelously good books and essays, and if you enjoy reading but haven’t yet sampled any of his work, shame on you. Granted, his oeuvre (how’s that for a $5.00 word?) walks a rather dark path at times, but much...
Guns, A Continuing Discussion Pt. 9
I just read an April 18th article by Bill Keller of The New York Times. I think the two of us see fairly eye to eye when it comes to guns, and his article got me to thinking about the issue again. He quotes some politicians who have been digging their proverbial heels into...
Bootprints in the Sand
I had a dream. No doubt caused by a glass or two too much wine. Please . . . let that be the well-spring of my dream. I was at the beach. It was a beautiful, sunny day, and I was the only soul around as far as you could see. A gentle breeze...
Guns, A Continuing Discussion Pt. 8
One dictionary defines anecdote as: “a short amusing or interesting story about a real incident or person.” There’s a tendency to reduce the validity of anecdotes when they’re used within an argument or debate, which is unfortunate, because anecdotes are often told from a first-person perspective, and we all live life from a...
Guns, A Continuing Discussion Pt. 6
Got logic? “The only thing that will stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun,” Wayne LaPierre. While I grasp the initial attraction to LaPierre’s bad guy/good guy thing, the underlying logic runs down a twisty, dark rabbit hole. Human nature, unbound and unfettered by national boundaries, will...
Guns, A Continuing Discussion Pt. 5
President Obama gave a heart-wrenching speech at the vigil held for the shooting victims. One line from that speech staggers the mind: Are we prepared to say that such violence visited upon our children, year after year after year, is somehow the price of our freedom? The question is, of course, rhetorical, but the...
Guns, A Continuing Discussion Pt. 4
This article makes a number of interesting points, and I want to share them with you. As a preface, I need to correct, or at least modify a term the author (mistakenly?) uses: High caliber. Furthermore, of the weapons that proliferate amongst the armed public, an increasing number are high caliber weapons (the weapon...
Guns, A Continuing Discussion Pt. 3
The following post shares my comments from a correspondence with a dear friend regarding the horror that occurred at Sandy Hook Elementary School. I include it here because I think it’s relevant to our Village. My initial reply: I agree with you on almost everything you’ve written, and the part with which I...
Guns, A Continuing Discussion Pt. 2
We can’t just say, “Everybody does it”. No! Dammit! Everybody doesn’t do it. Sure, Iraq does it. Afghanistan does it. Somalia does it. Great company, those, or they, or them. S’wonderful to be included in any kind of statistic with those countries, right? But it’s especially heartwarming to have an “Access to Military-Style Weapons”...
Guns, A Continuing Discussion Pt. 1
It’s time to begin a conversation. I’m going to call it: Guns — A Continuing Discussion — (Append the part numbers here) Let me preface with this: I am not an anti-gun ownership guy. Neither am I an anti-automobile ownership guy. Or an anti-helicopter ownership guy. But please, it is not unreasonable to anticipate a...
