Arming 12 Year Olds

In the news this past week was the story of a 12 year old girl that shot an intruder to her home in self defense.

A day off for fall break was anything but relaxing for a 12-year old Bryan County girl, when an intruder broke into her home on Michael Avenue.

Deputies say, the girl was home alone when a man she'd never seen before, rang the front doorbell. They say when no one answered the door, the man went around to the back of the house and kicked a door open. That's when authorities say, the girl grabbed a gun and hid in a bathroom closet.

The right person came out on top in this instance.  One should shudder at the possibilities after an grown man gets hold of an unarmed 12 year old girl.

While no one should wish for such a young girl to find herself in such a position, everyone should be glad that she was able to fend off her attacker.

[a day or so later]

Call this another one where a few moments of reflection would be wise.

I'm not suggesting that we arm 12 year olds.  I also wonder about parents that leave guns loose where 12 year olds can find them.  I believe the phrase "it just ain't right" was invented for such things.

However, we don't know....

• the girl
• her family (were they among the working poor?  did they spend the babysitting money on drugs?)
• the neighborhood where they live (leaving the home may not have been a good option)
• their access to decent childcare/supervision ($3 an hour for childcare is a killer if you only make $11 an hour.
• if something unusual happened where she was left alone (she expect to be met by an adult and wasn't)
• if she was taught firearms safety (that's good parenting)
• if she was taught firearms usage (also good parenting)
• if her folks were ordinary, law abiding citizens
• if her folks were drug dealers
• or anything else about the circumstances

My sole point is to indicate that guns are used for legitimate self defense purposes.  More frequently than the ideologues that want to curtail gun rights will admit.  Absent evidence that this little girl was a criminal, this was such a legitimate self defense use.

Infuriating Muslims

Recent news suggests that while terrorist jihadis are a problem, they are not the only problem.  Perhaps they are not the biggest problem.

While China remains a communist nation, that government does not practice the brutal form of communism used by Mao, Stalin, Pol Pot, Castro, and similarly "enlightened intellectuals".  Yet those government apparatchiks still cling to the notion that individual belief is a suitable subject for government interference and direction.

Muslims living in China's western provinces have long been brutalized by China's government despite being overwhelmingly peaceful.  While they cling to the idea of an independent state, they do not act on this belief in any meaningful way.

But Beijing insists that there can be but one thought on this subject; subservience and acceptance of China's rule.  Their way of dealing with peaceful Muslims?

They burn the Muslim's mosque to the ground.  As with the Buddhists of Tibet, the Muslims of the western reaches of China have an absolute right of conscience; to believe in their religion without interference from the state.  The reaction of those Muslims was predictable and justified.

While an American government indebted to the Chinese government may find it tough to criticize such savagery, I do not. Communism....a slightly less brutal form of communism....is still alive in the world and a threat to any who profess a love of individual liberty.

Changing The Game

Terrorism has long been funded by petro-dollars.  Ironically or otherwise, the oil barons of the Middle East have sold us oil and then funneled a portion of those profits into organizations like Al Qaida.

Now we find that the recent energy boom in the U.S. due to new technologies for recovering shale oil have caused us to increase production.  The increase is enough that we may surpass Saudi oil production before the decade is over.

It is possible that other nations with significant shale reserves may follow in our footsteps.

Which would leave the Saudis with far fewer oil consumers and far more oil exporting competitors.

Good.  Let 'em eat sand for a while.

Who Is Jerome Silberman?

Gene Wilder.

A great interview of Gene by Ernie Manouse.

Professionalize! Federalize?

I don't know much about this chap, Alex Jones.  But it appears as though he has poked the TSA one too many times.  As a result, he is harassed by TSA agents every time he flies.

I seem to recall that some Democrats were making the assertion that "when you federalize, you professionalize" during the debates over the formation of the TSA.

This is apparently what the TSA considers to be "professional" conduct.  They are doing it wrong.  Trust me.

Book Anti-Recommendation - Why We Suck

If you read about a book here, then you should assume that I found reading it to be reasonably enjoyable.  I read a lot of things that are not necessarily very satisfying to me.  I don't talk about those disappointing reads because someone else might find them to be very enjoyable.

There are good reasons for different literary genres.

I picked up Denis Leary's "Why We Suck" at a used book store.  I like Mr. Leary's comedy.  I enjoy most of his television and movie roles.  He tends to be fairly libertarian in his outlook, so I figured that there would be moments of intense enjoyment and perhaps some modest validation.

And there were a some of both inside.  There were other sections that came from a more challenging perspective.  None of us ever agrees on everything.  So onward I read.

Until he started taking potshots at kids with mental and developmental handicaps.  There are somethings I just can't do.  Cracking wise about kids with those kinds of challenges is one of them.

I understand the larger point he was trying to make.  There are some kids...hell, even some adults...that have never had to learn the sort of self control needed to successfully operate in a cooperative society.  Some folks have other social difficulties.  The "Revenge of the Nerds" franchise is a pretty good example of otherwise normal people that have some social issues.

But Mr. Leary distinctly does not differentiate the target of his criticism from kids with some more serious issues.  The word "retard" is frowned upon for school aged kids.  Adults should simply know better.

And so his book is due to presently join the rest of the refuse in my garbage can.  I can think of no more appropriate disposition for it.

At least I bought it used.

The Record

I try to keep the titles for each entry by turns entertaining, obscure, and tempting in case that is all someone gets before they visit.  By the time some folks are done, I image that some will think of "record" as in a "broken record" that skips will think of a "record" as in a "broken record" that skips will think of a "record" as in a "broken record" that skip.

Ahem.  Where was I?

My digital basket of interesting items includes some things from before the election.  With Mr. Obama's second inauguration barely a day a way, I thought this might be an interesting time to look at his justification for re-election.

An article from Investor's Business Daily lays it out pretty well.  In summary:

1) He claims that Bush era tax cuts and deregulation caused the 2008 recession.

The record would suggest otherwise.

2)  His policies stopped another Great Depression.

Again, the data suggests that the recovery started before his policies were enacted.  Heck, the worst of the damage occurred before he was sworn into office!

3)  His policies are working.

Except, they aren't.  The economy is still sluggish.  His policies discourage investment in the U.S. that is needed to get us going full tilt again.  I talk to business owners and managers all the time and hear how they could be doing more, but won't until the current tax and spend environment ends.

4)  A slow recovery was inevitable.

Except that historically, the deeper the recession, the quicker the recovery.  Given how deep the recession was....and it was very deep....we should have zoomed out of it by now.  It is hard to zoom when you have an anchor shackled to your ankles.

5)  Nobody could have done better.

See item 4.  Every President coming out of a recession has done better.

One hopes that Presidential hubris will not delay a strong recovery any further.  That would represent real change, and progress to move us....forward, Mr. President.