Militarism at the Heart of US Gun Violence

[Correll]

From February 2018:

Militarism at the heart of a violent culture

"AS THE president continued smearing millions of immigrants as violent gang members to justify racist deportations and a border wall, it happened again. A young white man entered a school, not far from where I graduated, and unloaded a legally purchased weapon of war, killing 17 innocent people in three minutes...."

"WE NOW need to expand the demand beyond gun control, and connect the issue of mass murder at home to state-sanctioned mass murder abroad.

"At age 19, shooter Nikolas Cruz has not lived a year of his life when the U.S. was not actively bombing or occupying other countries, and exporting war through lucrative weapons contracts.

"A teen who can't yet legally buy beer or rent a car was able to purchase a weapon made for tactical combat--but then again, the same legislators who allow the AR-15 to be sold more easily than a Bud Light have supported every U.S. war and every bloated military budget presented to them.

"The U.S.-manufactured ammunition that kills abroad kills just the same in Parkland, Florida.

"The crisis we have before us is not about rap music or video games, as has been charged in previous mass shootings.

"It is a capitalist crisis."

A crisis groomed since 1945 during which the Exceptional US has exterminated millions of innocent human beings from Korea to Kandahar.

Only someone as dense as Trump would be surprised when these chickens come home to roost.

D E E R O P D E A D

The solution to gun violence is in the violence and hate in people's souls to pick up guns just to harm others in the first place. And that comes from TWO THINGS:

• Socialism (progressivism) and
• Statism (secularism).

Outlaw progressives and bring back morality to our dehumanized society.

The solution to gun violence is in the violence and hate in people's souls to pick up guns just to harm others in the first place. And that comes from TWO THINGS:

• Socialism (progressivism) and
• Statism (secularism).

Outlaw progressives and bring back morality to our dehumanized society.

Why didn't you mention white supremacy or corporations when it comes to "violence and hate in people's souls"?
.....

Here's the El Paso Shooter's Full Manifesto: Read it Before You Believe the News

So, you're quoting a deranged mass murderer and challenging your enemy as to why he did not address the concerns of the deranged mass murderer?


Are you implying that you agree with the deranged mass murderer?

 

[georgephillip]

One may snub their nose at famous authors such as Zizek, though if the El Paso shooter did write the propagandist manifesto that speaks of exclusions, Zizek comes intriguingly close to the socialist stance purported on this thread:

'It is precisely in order to emphasize this suspension of the social hierarchy that Christ (like Buddha before him) addresses in particular those who belong to the very bottom of the social hierarchy, the outcasts of the social order (beggars, prostitutes) as the privileged and exemplary members of his new community....In order to specify these communities further, one is tempted to risk the reference to Freud himself. In his Crowd Psychology he provides two examples of crowd formation: the Church and the Army. Usually, one takes them as equivalent, without considering the difference between the two.

What, however if this difference (is [italics]) crucial, along the lines of Laclau's opposition between the structure of differences and the antagonistic logic of equivalences? The Church is global: a structural institution, an encompassing network of hierarchically differentiated positions, basically ecumenical, tolerant, prone to compromise, all-inclusive, dividing its spoils among its subgroups; while in the Army the emphasis is on antagonism, on Us vs. Them, on egalitarian universalisms (we are ultimately equal when we are confronted with Them, the Enemy), so that the Army is ultimately exclusionary, prone to annihilate the Other. Of course, this is a notional opposition: empirically, the line can well be blurred, and we often have a militant Church, or, on the contrary, an Army that functions as a church-like corporate social institution.'
(Zizek, The Fragile Absolute, Or, Why is the Christian Legacy Worth Fighting For?, pp. 123-4)

One may snub their nose at famous authors such as Zizek, though if the El Paso shooter did write the propagandist manifesto that speaks of exclusions, Zizek comes intriguingly close to the socialist stance purported on this thread:

Thanks for the introduction:

"Žižek's idiosyncratic style, popular academic works, frequent magazine op-eds, and critical assimilation of high and low culture have gained him international influence, controversy, criticism and a substantial audience outside academe.[7][8][9][10][11]

"In 2012, Foreign Policy listed Žižek on its list of Top 100 Global Thinkers, calling him 'a celebrity philosopher'[12] while elsewhere he has been dubbed the 'Elvis of cultural theory'[13] and 'the most dangerous philosopher in the West'.[14]

"A 2005 documentary film entitled Zizek! chronicled Žižek's work.

"A journal, the International Journal of Žižek Studies, was founded[by whom?] to engage with his work."

Slavoj Žižek - Wikipedia

 

[georgephillip]

Blame who you'd like, we're killing each other faster than a jihadists wet dream....~S~

I suppose it might be worth asking who's getting rich from the killing?

Chris Hedges published this explanation almost two years ago:

The End of Empire

"Empires in decay embrace an almost willful suicide. Blinded by their hubris and unable to face the reality of their diminishing power, they retreat into a fantasy world where hard and unpleasant facts no longer intrude. They replace diplomacy, multilateralism and politics with unilateral threats and the blunt instrument of war."

 

[Correll]

Blame who you'd like, we're killing each other faster than a jihadists wet dream....~S~

I suppose it might be worth asking who's getting rich from the killing?

Chris Hedges published this explanation almost two years ago:

The End of Empire

"Empires in decay embrace an almost willful suicide. Blinded by their hubris and unable to face the reality of their diminishing power, they retreat into a fantasy world where hard and unpleasant facts no longer intrude. They replace diplomacy, multilateralism and politics with unilateral threats and the blunt instrument of war."

You mean like Hillary and McCain demanding war with Russia?

I agree that is a problem. I certainly want to scale BACK our commitments.


Do you?

 

[georgephillip]

From February 2018:

Militarism at the heart of a violent culture

"AS THE president continued smearing millions of immigrants as violent gang members to justify racist deportations and a border wall, it happened again. A young white man entered a school, not far from where I graduated, and unloaded a legally purchased weapon of war, killing 17 innocent people in three minutes...."

"WE NOW need to expand the demand beyond gun control, and connect the issue of mass murder at home to state-sanctioned mass murder abroad.

"At age 19, shooter Nikolas Cruz has not lived a year of his life when the U.S. was not actively bombing or occupying other countries, and exporting war through lucrative weapons contracts.

"A teen who can't yet legally buy beer or rent a car was able to purchase a weapon made for tactical combat--but then again, the same legislators who allow the AR-15 to be sold more easily than a Bud Light have supported every U.S. war and every bloated military budget presented to them.

"The U.S.-manufactured ammunition that kills abroad kills just the same in Parkland, Florida.

"The crisis we have before us is not about rap music or video games, as has been charged in previous mass shootings.

"It is a capitalist crisis."

A crisis groomed since 1945 during which the Exceptional US has exterminated millions of innocent human beings from Korea to Kandahar.

Only someone as dense as Trump would be surprised when these chickens come home to roost.

A site called Socialist Worker. Try again.

A site called Socialist Worker. Try again.

Try to find any errors in the following:

Militarism at the heart of a violent culture

"Years of gearing up the military-industrial complex has further enriched the ultra-wealthy barons of war and death who profit from increased weapons sales.

"The most recent boom in domestic gun buying came during the Obama years, after a racialized 'they're coming for my guns' scare, which, of course, never happened.

"U.S. corporations like Raytheon, Boeing and Lockheed Martin are the largest global exporters of weapons.

"In 2015, U.S. companies accounted for about half of worldwide weapons sales that totaled more than $80 billion overall."

White Supremacism in the U.S. Military, Explained

I am trying to find factual evidence to support it, and I can't find it.

I am trying to find factual evidence to support it, and I can't find it.

Can't find factual evidence to support what, US hegemony in global arms sales?

Militarism at the heart of a violent culture

"U.S. corporations like Raytheon, Boeing and Lockheed Martin are the largest global exporters of weapons. In 2015, U.S. companies accounted for about half of worldwide weapons sales that totaled more than $80 billion overall."

 

[georgephillip]

Blame who you'd like, we're killing each other faster than a jihadists wet dream....~S~

I suppose it might be worth asking who's getting rich from the killing?

Chris Hedges published this explanation almost two years ago:

The End of Empire

"Empires in decay embrace an almost willful suicide. Blinded by their hubris and unable to face the reality of their diminishing power, they retreat into a fantasy world where hard and unpleasant facts no longer intrude. They replace diplomacy, multilateralism and politics with unilateral threats and the blunt instrument of war."

You mean like Hillary and McCain demanding war with Russia?

I agree that is a problem. I certainly want to scale BACK our commitments.


Do you?

You mean like Hillary and McCain demanding war with Russia?

I agree that is a problem. I certainly want to scale BACK our commitments.


Do you?

Among the many reasons why I would never cast a vote for Hillary or McCain was their foreign policy positions; although, I'm not sure war with Iran or Venezuela represents any improvement? Personally, I would turn over the Green New Deal to the Pentagon in exchange for all future revenues from solar, wind, and tidal sources funding US defense spending.

 

[georgephillip]

TF is nuts. Morality is the disease of the dogmatic image of thought, what Hitler used to get the Germans sexually excited and desiring their own repression in their strive for pure form.

Do you see any morality in capitalism?

U.S. Financial System Rests on 5 Mega Banks; and They Tanked Yesterday

 

[georgephillip]

From February 2018:

Militarism at the heart of a violent culture

"AS THE president continued smearing millions of immigrants as violent gang members to justify racist deportations and a border wall, it happened again. A young white man entered a school, not far from where I graduated, and unloaded a legally purchased weapon of war, killing 17 innocent people in three minutes...."

"WE NOW need to expand the demand beyond gun control, and connect the issue of mass murder at home to state-sanctioned mass murder abroad.

"At age 19, shooter Nikolas Cruz has not lived a year of his life when the U.S. was not actively bombing or occupying other countries, and exporting war through lucrative weapons contracts.

"A teen who can't yet legally buy beer or rent a car was able to purchase a weapon made for tactical combat--but then again, the same legislators who allow the AR-15 to be sold more easily than a Bud Light have supported every U.S. war and every bloated military budget presented to them.

"The U.S.-manufactured ammunition that kills abroad kills just the same in Parkland, Florida.

"The crisis we have before us is not about rap music or video games, as has been charged in previous mass shootings.

"It is a capitalist crisis."

A crisis groomed since 1945 during which the Exceptional US has exterminated millions of innocent human beings from Korea to Kandahar.

Only someone as dense as Trump would be surprised when these chickens come home to roost.

That is some weak ass shit. I'm against the interventionism that we have embraced, but to try to gin up a connection between that and a whack a doodle mass shooter, is

like I said, weak ass shit.

That is some weak ass shit. I'm against the interventionism that we have embraced, but to try to gin up a connection between that and a whack a doodle mass shooter, is

like I said, weak ass shit.

Or maybe you're not smart enough to connect the dots?

White Supremacism in the U.S. Military, Explained

"The United States military is one of the most ethnically diverse and integrated institutions in the nation, and has long promoted racial equality.

"Yet in a string of cases in recent years, Americans bent on racist extremism have been current or former members of the armed forces.

"The arrest of a Coast Guard lieutenant whom federal prosecutors accused last week of stockpiling weapons and planning to start a race war raised the question of whether the military, for all its efforts to fight discrimination, has a continuing problem with white supremacists in the ranks."

Millions of men serving, and you present a "string" of cases as evidence of some massive problem that supposedly means something about America as a whole?


To make the case you are trying to make,

you would need to


1. Demonstrate a real problem with white supremacy in the US military. At least, thousands of cases of white refusing to take orders from or work with blacks, AT LEAST. Better would be a culture of interracial white on black violence with the white attackers consistently getting a pass. YOu cannot do this, because it is not even close to true.


2. THEN you would have to show that systemic white supremacy there, was sticking with massive numbers of former military, and they were doing something. Such as reinvigorating the KKK so that instead of being an organization with 5k members and completely toothless, it was suddenly in the hundreds of thousands, and regularly committing violence,perhaps with white cops refusing to stop them.



YOu cannot do that, because NONE of the elements you would need to make your case, actually exist in the real world.



Put away the crack, before the crack puts you away.

Millions of men serving, and you present a "string" of cases as evidence of some massive problem that supposedly means something about America as a whole?

Millions of dead civilians from Korea, to Laos, to Cambodia to Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq and how many had white skins? Only racists celebrate those responsible for those murders. Maybe that explains your slave-like support for white supremacy?

See that bit, where I make a serious response to your post, and instead of making a counter point, of some kind,


you jump to another issue completely, with only the slightest hint of connection, but not actually explicitly stating what the connection you are claiming IS?


That is bullshit deflection, not a real supporting argument.


YOu are just arguing in circles, to avoid, defending your position.


Because you can't. Or at least you have not yet.


You were making the case that a "string" of vets going bad, is somehow connected to our military culture.


Well, you were claiming it. NOw, try to support that idea, please. Don't just throw emotional sounding shit against a wall, and hope something will stick.

See that bit, where I make a serious response to your post, and instead of making a counter point, of some kind,


you jump to another issue completely, with only the slightest hint of connection, but not actually explicitly stating what the connection you are claiming IS?

I see your point.
I did conflate internal problems in the US military with white nationalism with the international actions of the US military since the end of WWII.

That doesn't alter the long term historical connections between far right nationalism and members of the US military.

Opinion | Enemies foreign and domestic: Inside the U.S. military's white supremacy problem

"So how does this connect with the military? For one thing, there is a strong historical connection between the rise of far-right nationalism and the American military community.

"The Ku Klux Klan, founded in 1866 by a group of Confederate war veterans, offers perhaps the best example of the symbiosis that can and has existed between extremists and members of the military.

"The strength of far-right groups waned in the aftermath of World War II, but it did not disappear.

"Klan members paraded on an American base in Vietnam following the 1968 murder of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Marines held Klan meetings in 1976 at Camp Pendleton.

"Official attitudes started to change in the mid-1980’s, notes New York Times reporter Dave Phillips, after pictures emerged of uniformed soldiers and a sign: 'KKK rally, no Jews allowed.

"Still, in 1995, members of the elite 82nd Airborne Division formed a neo-Nazi group at the urging of Robert Hunt, a National Alliance recruiter. In December of that year, two members of the group murdered a black couple.

"The killers received life imprisonment and 19 soldiers were dishonorably discharged.

"This, finally, sparked congressional hearings on extremism in the military."

 

[ThunderKiss1965]

From February 2018:

Militarism at the heart of a violent culture

"AS THE president continued smearing millions of immigrants as violent gang members to justify racist deportations and a border wall, it happened again. A young white man entered a school, not far from where I graduated, and unloaded a legally purchased weapon of war, killing 17 innocent people in three minutes...."

"WE NOW need to expand the demand beyond gun control, and connect the issue of mass murder at home to state-sanctioned mass murder abroad.

"At age 19, shooter Nikolas Cruz has not lived a year of his life when the U.S. was not actively bombing or occupying other countries, and exporting war through lucrative weapons contracts.

"A teen who can't yet legally buy beer or rent a car was able to purchase a weapon made for tactical combat--but then again, the same legislators who allow the AR-15 to be sold more easily than a Bud Light have supported every U.S. war and every bloated military budget presented to them.

"The U.S.-manufactured ammunition that kills abroad kills just the same in Parkland, Florida.

"The crisis we have before us is not about rap music or video games, as has been charged in previous mass shootings.

"It is a capitalist crisis."

A crisis groomed since 1945 during which the Exceptional US has exterminated millions of innocent human beings from Korea to Kandahar.

Only someone as dense as Trump would be surprised when these chickens come home to roost.

You don't seem to know what the fuck a weapon of war is. I can not purchase any of the weapons I fired in the military legally. M16-A4, M249 Squad Automatic Weapon, M2 .50 cal. Heavy Machine Gun none of those are available at my local gun shop.

 

[Dick Foster]

From February 2018:

Militarism at the heart of a violent culture

"AS THE president continued smearing millions of immigrants as violent gang members to justify racist deportations and a border wall, it happened again. A young white man entered a school, not far from where I graduated, and unloaded a legally purchased weapon of war, killing 17 innocent people in three minutes...."

"WE NOW need to expand the demand beyond gun control, and connect the issue of mass murder at home to state-sanctioned mass murder abroad.

"At age 19, shooter Nikolas Cruz has not lived a year of his life when the U.S. was not actively bombing or occupying other countries, and exporting war through lucrative weapons contracts.

"A teen who can't yet legally buy beer or rent a car was able to purchase a weapon made for tactical combat--but then again, the same legislators who allow the AR-15 to be sold more easily than a Bud Light have supported every U.S. war and every bloated military budget presented to them.

"The U.S.-manufactured ammunition that kills abroad kills just the same in Parkland, Florida.

"The crisis we have before us is not about rap music or video games, as has been charged in previous mass shootings.

"It is a capitalist crisis."

A crisis groomed since 1945 during which the Exceptional US has exterminated millions of innocent human beings from Korea to Kandahar.

Only someone as dense as Trump would be surprised when these chickens come home to roost.

Let me guess. You've never served in the military, haven't been anywhere (abroad) or seen anything or done anything for anyone else in your entire miserable, sanctimonious, sheltered existence.

 

[georgephillip]

From February 2018:

Militarism at the heart of a violent culture

"AS THE president continued smearing millions of immigrants as violent gang members to justify racist deportations and a border wall, it happened again. A young white man entered a school, not far from where I graduated, and unloaded a legally purchased weapon of war, killing 17 innocent people in three minutes...."

"WE NOW need to expand the demand beyond gun control, and connect the issue of mass murder at home to state-sanctioned mass murder abroad.

"At age 19, shooter Nikolas Cruz has not lived a year of his life when the U.S. was not actively bombing or occupying other countries, and exporting war through lucrative weapons contracts.

"A teen who can't yet legally buy beer or rent a car was able to purchase a weapon made for tactical combat--but then again, the same legislators who allow the AR-15 to be sold more easily than a Bud Light have supported every U.S. war and every bloated military budget presented to them.

"The U.S.-manufactured ammunition that kills abroad kills just the same in Parkland, Florida.

"The crisis we have before us is not about rap music or video games, as has been charged in previous mass shootings.

"It is a capitalist crisis."

A crisis groomed since 1945 during which the Exceptional US has exterminated millions of innocent human beings from Korea to Kandahar.

Only someone as dense as Trump would be surprised when these chickens come home to roost.

The SocialistWorker.org....... Now there's an unbiased group......

The SocialistWorker.org....... Now there's an unbiased group

Point out any errors:

"The case of Nikolas Cruz also raises another issue: the U.S. military's heavy recruitment presence in schools across the country, particularly through the JROTC program that targets low-income children as early as 6th grade.

"This includes teaching students how to shoot guns in preparation for future deployment to wars yet to be launched. In fact,

"Cruz was not only a member of ROTC, but he was part of his school rifle team, which received a $10,000 grant from the National Rifle Association before Cruz was expelled."

What is wrong with JROTC targeting low income children? Do you want to be like the old UK with rich people getting all the officer slots?


ANd if so, why?

What is wrong with JROTC targeting low income children? Do you want to be like the old UK with rich people getting all the officer slots?

Are you capable of arguing without resorting to logical fallacies?

Ok, fine it was a false choice.


You still didn't answer the question, what was wrong with it.


Soooooo,?

Ok, fine it was a false choice.


You still didn't answer the question, what was wrong with it.


Soooooo,?

I believe the US Empire is coming to an end, and empires of the past who have experienced that fate often resort to replacing rational responses to their problems with "magical thinking" which includes placing unrealistic expectations on their military forces.

Recruiting children in middle school for future military service only compounds the problem, especially if some of those recruits are susceptible to arguments from far-right (white) nationalists.

The End of Empire

"Empires in decay embrace an almost willful suicide. Blinded by their hubris and unable to face the reality of their diminishing power, they retreat into a fantasy world where hard and unpleasant facts no longer intrude.

"They replace diplomacy, multilateralism and politics with unilateral threats and the blunt instrument of war...."

"The brutality abroad is matched by a growing brutality at home.

"Militarized police gun down mostly unarmed, poor people of color and fill a system of penitentiaries and jails that hold a staggering 25 percent of the world’s prisoners although Americans represent only 5 percent of global population.

"Many of our cities are in ruins.

"Our public transportation system is a shambles.

"Our educational system is in steep decline and being privatized.

"Opioid addiction, suicide, mass shootings, depression and morbid obesity plague a population that has fallen into profound despair."

 

[georgephillip]

From February 2018:

Militarism at the heart of a violent culture

"AS THE president continued smearing millions of immigrants as violent gang members to justify racist deportations and a border wall, it happened again. A young white man entered a school, not far from where I graduated, and unloaded a legally purchased weapon of war, killing 17 innocent people in three minutes...."

"WE NOW need to expand the demand beyond gun control, and connect the issue of mass murder at home to state-sanctioned mass murder abroad.

"At age 19, shooter Nikolas Cruz has not lived a year of his life when the U.S. was not actively bombing or occupying other countries, and exporting war through lucrative weapons contracts.

"A teen who can't yet legally buy beer or rent a car was able to purchase a weapon made for tactical combat--but then again, the same legislators who allow the AR-15 to be sold more easily than a Bud Light have supported every U.S. war and every bloated military budget presented to them.

"The U.S.-manufactured ammunition that kills abroad kills just the same in Parkland, Florida.

"The crisis we have before us is not about rap music or video games, as has been charged in previous mass shootings.

"It is a capitalist crisis."

A crisis groomed since 1945 during which the Exceptional US has exterminated millions of innocent human beings from Korea to Kandahar.

Only someone as dense as Trump would be surprised when these chickens come home to roost.

600 million guns in private hands, 17.25 million people have permits to carry guns, so the number is actually much higher than that......

and in 2018, 12 people used their guns illegally in mass shootings......in a country of over 320 million people....


Because you are irrational, this is why we don't trust you with power.

600 million guns in private hands, 17.25 million people have permits to carry guns, so the number is actually much higher than that......

Do you have any evidence for those numbers?

 

[Correll]

Blame who you'd like, we're killing each other faster than a jihadists wet dream....~S~

I suppose it might be worth asking who's getting rich from the killing?

Chris Hedges published this explanation almost two years ago:

The End of Empire

"Empires in decay embrace an almost willful suicide. Blinded by their hubris and unable to face the reality of their diminishing power, they retreat into a fantasy world where hard and unpleasant facts no longer intrude. They replace diplomacy, multilateralism and politics with unilateral threats and the blunt instrument of war."

You mean like Hillary and McCain demanding war with Russia?

I agree that is a problem. I certainly want to scale BACK our commitments.


Do you?

You mean like Hillary and McCain demanding war with Russia?

I agree that is a problem. I certainly want to scale BACK our commitments.


Do you?

Among the many reasons why I would never cast a vote for Hillary or McCain was their foreign policy positions; although, I'm not sure war with Iran or Venezuela represents any improvement? Personally, I would turn over the Green New Deal to the Pentagon in exchange for all future revenues from solar, wind, and tidal sources funding US defense spending.

Nice graph. It is clear that military spending is a small and decreasing portion of the US budget and society.

NOt even 14%. Pathetic.

 

[Deplorable Yankee]

ah yes its all capitalism fault

 

[2aguy]

From February 2018:

Militarism at the heart of a violent culture

"AS THE president continued smearing millions of immigrants as violent gang members to justify racist deportations and a border wall, it happened again. A young white man entered a school, not far from where I graduated, and unloaded a legally purchased weapon of war, killing 17 innocent people in three minutes...."

"WE NOW need to expand the demand beyond gun control, and connect the issue of mass murder at home to state-sanctioned mass murder abroad.

"At age 19, shooter Nikolas Cruz has not lived a year of his life when the U.S. was not actively bombing or occupying other countries, and exporting war through lucrative weapons contracts.

"A teen who can't yet legally buy beer or rent a car was able to purchase a weapon made for tactical combat--but then again, the same legislators who allow the AR-15 to be sold more easily than a Bud Light have supported every U.S. war and every bloated military budget presented to them.

"The U.S.-manufactured ammunition that kills abroad kills just the same in Parkland, Florida.

"The crisis we have before us is not about rap music or video games, as has been charged in previous mass shootings.

"It is a capitalist crisis."

A crisis groomed since 1945 during which the Exceptional US has exterminated millions of innocent human beings from Korea to Kandahar.

Only someone as dense as Trump would be surprised when these chickens come home to roost.

600 million guns in private hands, 17.25 million people have permits to carry guns, so the number is actually much higher than that......

and in 2018, 12 people used their guns illegally in mass shootings......in a country of over 320 million people....


Because you are irrational, this is why we don't trust you with power.

600 million guns in private hands, 17.25 million people have permits to carry guns, so the number is actually much higher than that......

Do you have any evidence for those numbers?

Close to, if not over 600 million guns....

How Many Guns Are There in the US? A Lot More Than You Think - The Truth About Guns

But what if that “300 million” estimate is wrong?


According to these calculations, it is.

We believe that the correct number is much higher — somewhere between 412 and 660 million. You may wonder how we came to that number, so buckle up (and cringe, if you’re a math-phobe, although it never gets too theoretical): unlike most of the academics and reporters we linked above, we’re going to use publicly available data, and show our work.

What if we told you that one ATF computer system logged, by serial number, 252,000,000 unique firearms, and represented only those firearms manufactured, imported or sold by a relatively small number of the nation’s tens of thousands of Federal Firearms Licensees?

Absent a better idea, we can say that the US inventory of firearms is almost certainly between 412 and 660 million, not the lower numbers recently trumpeted in the media.

Weapons Man goes into great detail to explain the logic behind the calculation and after reviewing his work (particularly the numbers from the FFL on NICS checks), I’m convinced we own upwards of 600 million guns in America – which is more than double than what is being reported by the media.

Over 17.25 million concealed carry permit holders......well over because those counted are only the ones where a permit is necessary.....many states have Constitutional Carry, where no permit is required...

New Study: 17.25 million concealed handgun permits, biggest increases for women and minorities - Crime Prevention Research Center

 

[toobfreak]

Why didn't you mention white supremacy or corporations when it comes to "violence and hate in people's souls"?

Frankly I don't see White Supremacy as a big problem in our country. We have far bigger issues. If there is any rot in our souls it is clearly tied to the avalanche of soul-sucking demoralization of the Leftist agenda as promulgated via the public school system to turn our children into rule-following automatons that are now routinely given a criminal record for a Pop Tart, followed closely by the soul-sucking of Leftist-driven social media attacking all and demoralizing lives with no grasp on the real world any more.

Step by step, the white majority of this country has tried to peel away barriers to help minorities better access equality in living and opportunity too, yet each step of the way, the Leftist agenda has been to turn that into a political tool to make people feel isolated, divided, angry and driven, so that as each minority is given greater freedom to be equal, they in turn try to parley that into some power trip to lord OVER Whites instead!~~~ the new Inequality!

Everything from BLM to Obama, to demands for reparations and rioting and burning cities to where now a guy can't even compliment a woman on her hair, looks or dress without fearing losing his job and being labeled a sexual predator! Now the promotion of illegal immigration as if it were too some "right."

All of this has just made some feel that we wouldn't have these issues in the first place if we simply didn't have Leftists and Minorities IN THE FIRST PLACE. If there is a movement toward White Supremacy it certainly didn't start just two years ago under Trump; it has been fueled by years and years of many people simply getting sick and tired of being attacked, put down, their hand bitten for trying to be fair and told they are to blame for things they have no connection with!

So whatever the case is or shall be with White Supremacy, be sure that folks like you caused it and the whole Black Power, Female Liberation, White-Guilt trip. If Whites are rallying to a "supremacist" movement, be sure we are the last to arrive at the table just in lime to fight back for our own survival.

 

[2aguy]

Why didn't you mention white supremacy or corporations when it comes to "violence and hate in people's souls"?

Frankly I don't see White Supremacy as a big problem in our country. We have far bigger issues. If there is any rot in our souls it is clearly tied to the avalanche of soul-sucking demoralization of the Leftist agenda as promulgated via the public school system to turn our children into rule-following automatons that are now routinely given a criminal record for a Pop Tart, followed closely by the soul-sucking of Leftist-driven social media attacking all and demoralizing lives with no grasp on the real world any more.

Step by step, the white majority of this country has tried to peel away barriers to help minorities better access equality in living and opportunity too, yet each step of the way, the Leftist agenda has been to turn that into a political tool to make people feel isolated, divided, angry and driven, so that as each minority is given greater freedom to be equal, they in turn try to parley that into some power trip to lord OVER Whites instead!~~~ the new Inequality!

Everything from BLM to Obama, to demands for reparations and rioting and burning cities to where now a guy can't even compliment a woman on her hair, looks or dress without fearing losing his job and being labeled a sexual predator! Now the promotion of illegal immigration as if it were too some "right."

All of this has just made some feel that we wouldn't have these issues in the first place if we simply didn't have Leftists and Minorities IN THE FIRST PLACE. If there is a movement toward White Supremacy it certainly didn't start just two years ago under Trump; it has been fueled by years and years of many people simply getting sick and tired of being attacked, put down, their hand bitten for trying to be fair and told they are to blame for things they have no connection with!

So whatever the case is or shall be with White Supremacy, be sure that folks like you caused it and the whole Black Power, Female Liberation, White-Guilt trip. If Whites are rallying to a "supremacist" movement, be sure we are the last to arrive at the table just in lime to fight back for our own survival.

There is no White Surpemacy issue in the U.S.......the few actual White Surpemacists have no support from anyone, no political power, and are so few in numbers you can fit them in a small closet........

But....by pretending we have a problem....the left can use it to beat down anyone who disagrees with them and stampede uninformed Americans into giving them more power.....which is the point.......

We don't have a racism problem, we don't have a gun problem....

 

[georgephillip]

Why didn't you mention white supremacy or corporations when it comes to "violence and hate in people's souls"?

Frankly I don't see White Supremacy as a big problem in our country. We have far bigger issues. If there is any rot in our souls it is clearly tied to the avalanche of soul-sucking demoralization of the Leftist agenda as promulgated via the public school system to turn our children into rule-following automatons that are now routinely given a criminal record for a Pop Tart, followed closely by the soul-sucking of Leftist-driven social media attacking all and demoralizing lives with no grasp on the real world any more.

Step by step, the white majority of this country has tried to peel away barriers to help minorities better access equality in living and opportunity too, yet each step of the way, the Leftist agenda has been to turn that into a political tool to make people feel isolated, divided, angry and driven, so that as each minority is given greater freedom to be equal, they in turn try to parley that into some power trip to lord OVER Whites instead!~~~ the new Inequality!

Everything from BLM to Obama, to demands for reparations and rioting and burning cities to where now a guy can't even compliment a woman on her hair, looks or dress without fearing losing his job and being labeled a sexual predator! Now the promotion of illegal immigration as if it were too some "right."

All of this has just made some feel that we wouldn't have these issues in the first place if we simply didn't have Leftists and Minorities IN THE FIRST PLACE. If there is a movement toward White Supremacy it certainly didn't start just two years ago under Trump; it has been fueled by years and years of many people simply getting sick and tired of being attacked, put down, their hand bitten for trying to be fair and told they are to blame for things they have no connection with!

So whatever the case is or shall be with White Supremacy, be sure that folks like you caused it and the whole Black Power, Female Liberation, White-Guilt trip. If Whites are rallying to a "supremacist" movement, be sure we are the last to arrive at the table just in lime to fight back for our own survival.

There is no White Surpemacy issue in the U.S.......the few actual White Surpemacists have no support from anyone, no political power, and are so few in numbers you can fit them in a small closet........

But....by pretending we have a problem....the left can use it to beat down anyone who disagrees with them and stampede uninformed Americans into giving them more power.....which is the point.......

We don't have a racism problem, we don't have a gun problem....

There is no White Surpemacy issue in the U.S.......the few actual White Surpemacists have no support from anyone, no political power, and are so few in numbers you can fit them in a small closet........

Tucker Carlson tells his viewers that the country's white supremacy problem 'is a hoax' - CNN
White supremacy is not a hoax.
It is a founding principle of this country.
US racism has existed since colonial times when white males were given legally or socially sanctioned privileges and rights while those same rights were denied to other races and minorities.

In particular white Anglo-Saxon Protestants enjoyed exclusive privileges in matters of education, immigration, voting rights, citizenship, land acquisition, and criminal procedure throughout American history and continuing in the present day.

The living proof is in the Oval Office today.

Racism in the United States - Wikipedia

 

[2aguy]

Why didn't you mention white supremacy or corporations when it comes to "violence and hate in people's souls"?

Frankly I don't see White Supremacy as a big problem in our country. We have far bigger issues. If there is any rot in our souls it is clearly tied to the avalanche of soul-sucking demoralization of the Leftist agenda as promulgated via the public school system to turn our children into rule-following automatons that are now routinely given a criminal record for a Pop Tart, followed closely by the soul-sucking of Leftist-driven social media attacking all and demoralizing lives with no grasp on the real world any more.

Step by step, the white majority of this country has tried to peel away barriers to help minorities better access equality in living and opportunity too, yet each step of the way, the Leftist agenda has been to turn that into a political tool to make people feel isolated, divided, angry and driven, so that as each minority is given greater freedom to be equal, they in turn try to parley that into some power trip to lord OVER Whites instead!~~~ the new Inequality!

Everything from BLM to Obama, to demands for reparations and rioting and burning cities to where now a guy can't even compliment a woman on her hair, looks or dress without fearing losing his job and being labeled a sexual predator! Now the promotion of illegal immigration as if it were too some "right."

All of this has just made some feel that we wouldn't have these issues in the first place if we simply didn't have Leftists and Minorities IN THE FIRST PLACE. If there is a movement toward White Supremacy it certainly didn't start just two years ago under Trump; it has been fueled by years and years of many people simply getting sick and tired of being attacked, put down, their hand bitten for trying to be fair and told they are to blame for things they have no connection with!

So whatever the case is or shall be with White Supremacy, be sure that folks like you caused it and the whole Black Power, Female Liberation, White-Guilt trip. If Whites are rallying to a "supremacist" movement, be sure we are the last to arrive at the table just in lime to fight back for our own survival.

There is no White Surpemacy issue in the U.S.......the few actual White Surpemacists have no support from anyone, no political power, and are so few in numbers you can fit them in a small closet........

But....by pretending we have a problem....the left can use it to beat down anyone who disagrees with them and stampede uninformed Americans into giving them more power.....which is the point.......

We don't have a racism problem, we don't have a gun problem....

There is no White Surpemacy issue in the U.S.......the few actual White Surpemacists have no support from anyone, no political power, and are so few in numbers you can fit them in a small closet........

Tucker Carlson tells his viewers that the country's white supremacy problem 'is a hoax' - CNN
White supremacy is not a hoax.
It is a founding principle of this country.
US racism has existed since colonial times when white males were given legally or socially sanctioned privileges and rights while those same rights were denied to other races and minorities.

In particular white Anglo-Saxon Protestants enjoyed exclusive privileges in matters of education, immigration, voting rights, citizenship, land acquisition, and criminal procedure throughout American history and continuing in the present day.

The living proof is in the Oval Office today.

Racism in the United States - Wikipedia

Yes...all 6 white supremacists talk online to each other...blah, blah, blah......meanwhile, the party of actual racism.....the democrat party with its core groups of openly and proudly racist members......uses the hoax of white supremacy to lie to American voters.

 

[mudwhistle]

From February 2018:

Militarism at the heart of a violent culture

"AS THE president continued smearing millions of immigrants as violent gang members to justify racist deportations and a border wall, it happened again. A young white man entered a school, not far from where I graduated, and unloaded a legally purchased weapon of war, killing 17 innocent people in three minutes...."

"WE NOW need to expand the demand beyond gun control, and connect the issue of mass murder at home to state-sanctioned mass murder abroad.

"At age 19, shooter Nikolas Cruz has not lived a year of his life when the U.S. was not actively bombing or occupying other countries, and exporting war through lucrative weapons contracts.

"A teen who can't yet legally buy beer or rent a car was able to purchase a weapon made for tactical combat--but then again, the same legislators who allow the AR-15 to be sold more easily than a Bud Light have supported every U.S. war and every bloated military budget presented to them.

"The U.S.-manufactured ammunition that kills abroad kills just the same in Parkland, Florida.

"The crisis we have before us is not about rap music or video games, as has been charged in previous mass shootings.

"It is a capitalist crisis."

A crisis groomed since 1945 during which the Exceptional US has exterminated millions of innocent human beings from Korea to Kandahar.

Only someone as dense as Trump would be surprised when these chickens come home to roost.

Any combat veteran will tell you that you are full of excrement.