FOR MOST of my life, I've been pretty much a "make love, not war" type of North Jersey woman. The very thought of owning, much less firing, a gun was as far from my mind-set as voting for a Republican or rooting for the Boston Red Sox.So why did I enroll in a National Rifle Association basic pistol class?
I was pretty disgusted with all of the vitriol spewed last summer by the more extreme right-wing politicians, some of whom urged their supporters to become "armed and dangerous." With all of the shouts from the Tea Party crowd about "taking our country back," I thought, "It's my country, too, and I like it just fine the way it is."
Democrats, especially liberal ones, have always had a reputation for being weak. To add to this insult, I found myself (well, my car, anyway) becoming a target of Tea Party sympathizers because of my Obama/Biden bumper sticker. After emerging from the Stop & Shop in Dumont several months ago, I found a flyer tucked beneath the windshield wiper of my car declaring: "The owner of this car owes everyone an apology for supporting the Marxist Obama."
Enough of this already, I thought. It was time for this liberal to become "armed and dangerous," too.
Lesson in toleranceIn addition to my newfound sense of empowerment by keeping cool and steady as shell casings flew around my head and the acrid stench of gun powder invaded my nostrils, I learned (or more accurately, relearned) another valuable lesson about stereotyping people, whether they are liberal Democrats or NRA members. The group of NRA instructors who taught our class were the nicest, most patient and professional people one could hope to meet under any circumstances. They taught me to respect the power of a gun and the importance of using it wisely.
But just in case I run into any more flier-wielding right-wingers at the Stop & Shop, I am prepared. I now have an NRA bumper sticker right next to Obama/Biden.
I guess that's a cute story with some interesting ideas, but the comments were what I enjoyed the most. Here's the first one.
Saturday June 12, 2010, 9:04 AM - JGrace says:
what a pin head , what a constitutional dunce.What a Liberal hypocrite !!!! How can you support the infringers of the right to keep and carry arms Hussain and Bozo the Clown Biden?
Doesn't it often seem that liberals are nice and conservatives are mean? The cuteness of the story and its almost fairy-tale sense leads me to ask that kind of overly-simplified question.
What do you think? Please leave a comment.
”The group of NRA instructors who taught our class were the nicest, most patient and professional people one could hope to meet under any circumstances. They taught me to respect the power of a gun and the importance of using it wisely”
ReplyDeleteApparently she did not attend the same class that Jadegold attended.
MikeB: “Doesn't it often seem that liberals are nice and conservatives are mean?”
ReplyDeleteNa, I don’t think there is a correlation. I’ll leave you with this quote from Jadegold earlier today:
“One of Linoge's many, many problems is that someone once told him he was a good writer.
I suspect it was his mom who home-schooled him. Not saying home-schooling is bad; some kids really benefit from it if done correctly. This, unfortunately, was not the case with Linoge.
Linoge suffers from that malady common to bad writers everywhere: thinking that 600 words is better than 50. As a result, Linoge will bore a reader into numbness simply because he is unwilling to concisely express a thought.
Of course, lack of brevity isn't his only failing. He simply isn't very bright. And I suspect he knows it--that's why he is unwilling to discuss the issues with anyone except those who agree with him.
--JadeGold”
Actually, this story brings into sharp relief points I've made all along.
ReplyDeleteApparently, this "liberal" was so exercised by someone leaving a note on his car that he had to get him some guns. To my mind, this "liberal" is so insecure that he really believes violence is an acceptable way to respond to slights.
This indicates that this "liberal" probably shouldn't be allowed in the same zip code as a firearm.
WRT TS' criticisms; I merely pointed out Linoge's failings as a writer. He is, as one of my academy profs would have said--a windbag. Someone who believes more words and sentences represent a better way of communication.
If you're referring to the home-schooling--Linoge was home-schooled by his mom until HS. Seems the little dear needed that evangelical fundamentalism to avoid the godless, commie teachings of the public schools. His grades in college, in a very easy major, were nothing to be excited about--indicating he was a rather indifferent student or was on the varsity bong team.
--JadeGold
Well, TS, in the interest of fairness to liberals, I don't know how many would be interested in claiming JadeGold among their number--and who could blame them for balking at that horrid prospect?
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of bad writers--it's Kurt Hoffmmann. But being neurologically-impaired, Kurt has an excuse.
ReplyDeleteHoffmmann suffers from the same malady as Linoge--more words are always better than fewer. Kurt is also prone to hysteric hyperbole but that's mainly a manifestation of his mounting paranoia.
It's rather amusing that Hoffmmann would offer up his understanding of liberals given the fact his writings typically inveigh his desire to do them violence.
--JadeGold
MikeB asks: Doesn't it often seem that liberals are nice and conservatives are mean?
ReplyDeleteThen JadeGold writes: Speaking of bad writers--it's Kurt Hoffmmann. But being neurologically-impaired, Kurt has an excuse.
Uh, really? Can you really ask that question with a straight face Mike? Come on. If the "liberals" on your blog are a representative sample, then the answer to your question is a resounding no.
Generally, conservatives are willing to debate a point, while liberals believe in diversity--as long as it isn't diversity of opinion. There are exceptions, but that's pretty much the norm.
ReplyDeleteRuffRidr, Believe it or not, I had a completely straight face.
ReplyDeleteJadeGold sometimes gets a little more colorful than I do myself. But his offending remarks make up a small percentage of what he has to say. And I happen to like what he has to say. Compare that to Mike W., for example. His typical comment contains nothing but name calling and personal attacking. The best he seems to do anymore is a negative critical remark about a previous commenter or the main post, you know those sarcastic one-liners.
You'd have to go back a month or so if you want to check that out, because I don't humor him anymore.