Ahhh someone who knows it is called a lectern and not a podium.

It was positively Doucy..

It was reported that one of the parents said she wished she had the bravery that Emmett Till's mother had.

@SeaGreenEyez I had no idea they were in so many households! No wonder our Country is so fucked up with a populace that clearly has no idea what the common good is anymore, we are heading for the sewer as a Country.

@SeaGreenEyez I have no words.

A total ban is, unfortunately, off the table. It shouldn't be. It should BE the fucking table. But if we can't have that, maybe we can at least raise the age of legal purchase. It ain't enough by a long shot. But it's something.

@Flyingsaucesir Unfortunately you are right. The politicians that are in the pockets of the NRA will never vote to ban these weapons. I agree with MyTVC15 that we need to ban them, but the politicians stopped doing the peoples bidding a long time ago.

@misstuffy Let's be clear, it's REPUBLICAN politicians who are obstructing progress.

@Flyingsaucesir I agree with you. They may as well have the NRA logo stamped on their foreheads.

Do tell. What is this latest abomination?

Yes, I would like to know about this as well. There was a time I considered going into teaching and so glad I didn't now.

@Flyingsaucesir @misstuffy I have little knowledge in this area, but heard about it from Beau of the Fifth Column podcast. I assume one or both of the weapons noted below were what he was referencing.

[defense.gov]

I am a rural Democrat and I want to see these weapons banned. But you are right, the politicians are bought and paid for, including the rural Dems.

I hope you're right, but that is what we said after Sandy Hook.

@SeaGreenEyez I agree. I just gave in to my often repressed hopeful impulses.

@MyTVC15 exactly. When nothing was some after 20 tiny 6 year olds were the victims, I just knew nothing would ever be done

@SeaGreenEyez The South never accepted their defeat in the Civil War. And the North acquiesced in Jim Crow. And here we are. We need a critical mass of culturally dextrous white people who accept diversity and want to see American multiculturalism work. How close are we to having that critical mass? That's the big question.

@Flyingsaucesir I think Saturn is closer.

@Flyingsaucesir The idea that most white people are against this is overplayed. Politicians and media love drama, they love to stir up the divide and yes it is there. But at the same time there are even more people who really just want to live in peace with their neighbors, regardless of their race or background. As long as you're not a thug, I don't care if you are a little green man from Mars. I believe the majority of white folk feel the same, At least the ones I know. The racist crap whites exist, and the same can be said for racist crap in other races.

@misstuffy I agree. I think we are close to critical mass now. And that's probably why we see white nationalism raising its ugly head. It's not that there are more of them than before. It's that they perceive their growing marginalization, and are lashing out. Of course social media and dog-whistling Done Cheato brought disparate groups together.

Unfortunately, I fear you are right. Makes me ill to think this is the direction we are headed.

@misstuffy I don't think our fate is sealed. I think things can get better. But the left will have to unite. We too often form circular firing squads.

@SeaGreenEyez I vote but this country is broken . And it's on rapid decline. Think Mexico and Brazil. That's where we are headed . Hell, worse than them.

For my mental health, I just focus on me and my family. I vote every time. But between the gerrymandering and the bullshit two senators for each non populated rural state, a couple of thousand dollars buys you enough leverage to stop anything.

@SeaGreenEyez Never thought I'd ever consider such a thing as leaving.
I always thought I'd stay and fight for improvement.

Not anymore. I'm completely exhausted.
Now, I'm just trying to decide where to go.

It was "Newsmax reporter James Rosen asked “Were you grandstanding just now, sir?” Newsmax is a right-wing cable news channel and website known for its close support of former president Donald Trump, and it’s consistent with their track record that its journalists would resist any so-called politicization of a mass shooting tragedy." [indiewire.com]

@MyTVC15 I figured it was Fox News, they are just as bad with Inane questions! Thanks for correcting my assumption.

@MyTVC15 Thank you. I figured it was fox, oann or newsmax - my twin sister's go to sources for "news".
Guess none of those outlets will have anything to say about a recent article in Forbes.
[forbes.com]

@SeaGreenEyez Have you seen the recent Forbes article? It's a good one.
[forbes.com]

@silverotter11 This is an amazing article. I had no idea about the death rates in republican Counties. We all know that the numb nuts would say it’s propaganda.

@Redheadedgammy It only makes sense. When the ACA was passed most red states did not want to sign on it or expand Medicare. The republicans here in red eastern Washington State benefit greatly by the Dems running things in Olympia. They don't always get it right but we are much better off than Idaho. The University of Washington in Seattle was one of the leaders inn trying to figure COVID out.

@silverotter11 repubs are the worst! I remember how many of them touted the stimulus money AFTER they voted against it! Democrats better start calling them on that kind of shit is all I can say.

@SeaGreenEyez Which makes the argument for why no one needs them for hunting, since they would leave a torn up animal corpse that would be useless for meat or the hide, or any sort of trophy.

@SeaGreenEyez Yes. They are brutal.

@SeaGreenEyez, @TomMcGiverin Their only purpose, other than killing large numbers of people very efficiently, is on a target range.
And if people want to have fun with them there, the weapon should be locked up in that controlled environment.
Of course, there are those who say people should be armed enough to overthrow the government. I'm sorry, we have seen and heard the people who tried to overthrow our Constitution. I don't want those shits in charge of anything.

You are so right, sir. You can bet the house on it that nothing real and effective will be done about it. Too many people in congress, including some Dems, are too corrupt and soulless to value human life as they should and restrict guns the ways that are necessary.

As Lily Tomlin used to say, " You can never be too cynical. I try, but it seems like I can never keep up"....

It is just that really, I thought we were going to take action after Sandy Hook.