Kelly Jones wrote:DHodges wrote:D: Hilarious!
I have to assume that the other 4% of deluded posts (and 0% wise posts) are from Canadians. (Probably Newfies.)
Why?
The people who all made 500+ posts each were included.
Why is it hilarious, or why do I assume the rest are Canadians?
It's hilarious because it was so incredibly spurious. That you can count something doesn't mean it has any meaningful relationship to the subject at hand.
I bring Canadians into it, of course, only to make fun of the whole thing. I'm making fun of it, not because it is a light topic, but because your arguments have been comically light. I don't actually have anything against Canadians.
Your argument so far has run something like:
Guns are icky.
Guns are dangerous.
I don't like guns.
Therefore, guns should be banned.
Also, Americans are not wise.
You seem to feel that what you are saying is so
obviously correct that you don't have to back it up with any sort of real data or logical argument. So your arguments have been unconvincing, and you don't seem to realize it.
Elizabeth Isabelle wrote:Hodges! I'm ashamed of you - I expect better from a statistician! You only covered half of this - if 79% of wise posts are by Australians, and 26% by Americans, that's 105% of wise posts. Do we have people here with dual citizenship?
You are right. I hang my head in shame. Obviously, -5% of wise posts are made by Newfies.
Man are they unwise.
So you don't agree that it is fear of the Absolute?
By "it", I take it you mean the apparent disparity of wise postings between Americans and Australians.
I don't think you can conclude anything about national characteristics based such a small and obviously biased sample. There is nothing that needs explaining, just like there is no need to explain the lack of posts from Nigerians.
The connection to guns is even more tenuous. Are you saying my posts would be less wise if I owned a gun? Would they become even less wise if it was a handgun instead of a rifle? What about
bows and arrows? Would they make me just
slightly more foolish?
What about martial arts in general? Would it be foolish to study a martial art, since you might hurt somebody? Does it matter if the martial art involves the potential use of deadly force, or teaches how to disarm someone with a gun?
I'm not equating Australia with wisdom, and America with evil, David. I'm just saying there are factors in each countrys' culture, that have a strong effect on the development of the citizens.
No doubt.
Maybe we should focus more on the Australian side of this equation. Why is it that Australians are so terrified of guns that you need a permit to buy a paintball gun?
Is it that Australians are not wise enough to responsibly handle guns? Is it possible that Americans actually view each other with more respect - that we expect each other of being capable of acting like adults?
Could it be that the current attitude in Australia is due to an irrational over-reaction to the Port Arthur massacre, or some similar event?
K: If fear is not a huge factor in America (symbolised by desire to own and use guns), then what?
D: I give up, what?
Playing insane riffs is seriously interesting, isn't it?
Is there any
evidence that fear is a bigger factor in America than it is elsewhere? All there really seems to be is your assumption - your
assertion - that there must be.
In my view, gun ownership is a
political issue - but it seems that this view is not shared in other countries. In the US, it is the recognised right and
responsibility of the citizens to overthrow the government when it gets too coercive. The "consent of the governed" means nothing without it - if the government holds all the guns, then true consent is impossible. That is why gun ownership is considered a basic right, like freedom of speech. It's what makes us free men rather than serfs. It's the basis for the very possibility of a legitimate "social contract".
Let's go take the fluffy dog for a walk, have some fun, eh?
Come on, let's leave
Scooter out of this. He has no opinion about guns, as far as I know, and he's probably about as wise as a Bichon-Pomeranian is going to get.
Scooter and I go out for a walk every night -
completely unarmed! It's pretty daring - you know, what with all the bullets flying around willy-nilly, we can barely see where we're going.