Ladies and gentlemen, my friend Richard Dickson…

If You Declare War, Don’t Be Surprised When Someone Shoots

from Some Damn Fool Idealistic Crusade by Richard Dickson

For years, we’ve been bombarded with claims that violent films and violent video games lead to violent behavior.  We’ve been urged to tone things down, slap ratings on them, think of the children, and plenty of other admonishments designed to prevent another Columbine.

Meanwhile, the political rhetoric has been ratcheted up to the point where it’s perfectly acceptable to talk about “Second Amendment solutions” to laws and lawmakers we don’t like.  Or to post a picture of targeted political districts with gun sights over them.  Or to talk fondly about the period of time when half the country violently opposed the other and got more US soldiers killed than any other war in history.  Or cavalierly hoist up signs with guns, or worse, hoist up actual guns, at political rallies.

Where were all the concerned admonishments then?  Where were the responsible voices asking that the consequences of such actions be considered?  “Oh, it’s just politics,” we were told.

Well, “just politics” got twenty people shot yesterday.  Six of them are dead.

Read the rest. It’s worth a few minutes of your time.