Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - If Guns Kill, Then Spoons Make People Fat!

the question is not whether the majority of americans have a favorable
view of the nra or not, it is whether the majority support more gun control
i would bet, what is you you lost on that election, abdul, a camel? i
bet 2 camels the majority favor the ban on assault weapons; and i bet
the majority favor similar controls on semi-automatic weapons and their
multiple bullet clips.

but even if 99.9% of the americans favored arming everyone, it would
still be wrong.
evenif 99.9% favored torture, it would still be wrong. or if they
favored slavery, or any other insane policy, it would not make it right.
there is a simple truth that sits there before our eyes--all of us. we
can deny it, or accept it. if we deny it, we share the blame for the
deaths caused by those weapons.
ken


On 12/29/12 1:21 PM, Femi Kolapo wrote:
> the important does not cancel out the urgent, though. it makes sense as is the practice to restrict access of the mentally unstable to guns and knives so they don't hurt others as well as themselves, as Ken has argued. what is probably happening is that many are naturally resistant to a view that characterizes society, and themselves, as 'insane' and needful of help by way of curtailing access to guns and gun ownership.
> the Chicken Solution may be partial but it is urgent. it could be the start of the mammoth solution and i don't get why it has to be opposed to the more comprehensive solution which over a lifetime would include many elements anyway. i also think that the gun and spoon analogy is misleading. bullets and food sure don't sound alike.
>
> ------------------------F. J. Kolapo, (Associate Professor of African History)
> History Department * University of Guelph * Guelph * Ontario * Canada* N1G 2W1
> Phone:519/824.4120 ex.53212 Fax: 519.766.9516
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Abdul Bangura <theai@earthlink.net>
> To: USAAfricaDialogue@googlegroups.com
> Cc: leonenet <leonenet@lists.umbc.edu>
> Sent: Sat, 29 Dec 2012 07:05:03 -0500 (EST)
> Subject: USA Africa Dialogue Series - If Guns Kill, Then Spoons Make People Fat!
> If Guns Kill, then Spoons Make People Fat!
> Abdul Karim Bangura
> Just for the record, I want to make it abundantly clear that I am not a supporter of guns. In fact, as far as I am concerned, all guns and Obama's drones and other weapons of mass destruction should disappear from the face of our God blessed Mother Earth. I do, however, believe that the prescription that making guns less accessible will cure gun violence is a Chicken Solution. Just as we in the field of Peace and Conflict Resolution have a mantra that says "Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defences of peace must begin," I also believe that since gun violence begins in people's minds, it is people's minds that the cure for gun violence must begin.
> As the following article shows, a majority of our American sisters and brothers support the National Rifle Association's position in the gun debate. Thus, until we can change most of our fellow Americans' attitudes toward guns, we are in for a very long struggle. Guns don't kill; it is people that kill. Thus, the most difficult and inconvenient medicine for gun violence must focus greatly on changing attitudes.
> Gallup: Majority of Americans Hold Favorable View of NRA
> Thursday, 27 Dec 2012 04:35 PM
> By Stephen FellerShare:
> A majority of Americans have a favorable view of the National Rifle Association, according to a new Gallup poll.
> The poll also found that views of the gun advocacy group were more positive among gun owners, although owners said the NRA did not always reflect their views.
> Fifty-four percent of respondents to the Gallup survey said they held a mostly favorable or very favorable view of the NRA, while 38 percent said they had a mostly unfavorable or very unfavorable view of the organization.
> That is down from a high of 60 percent favorability in 2005, but still far above the low of 42 percent recorded in 1995.
> Eighty-three percent of Republicans, and 71 percent of gun owners, also had a favorable view of the group, while 36 percent of Democrats and 40 percent of non-gun owners saw the NRA in a favorable light.
> At least half the respondents in the poll said that the NRA "only sometimes" or "never" reflected their views on guns, whether or not a member of the household owns a firearm. Among gun owners, however, 50 percent of those participating in the poll said the group sometimes reflects their opinions.
> Gallup conducted the poll of 1,038 people between Dec. 19 to 22, after the school shooting in Newtown, Conn., which left 26 people dead, but before the ambush killing of firefighters near Rochester, N.Y. The margin of error is 4 points.
> © 2012 Newsmax. All rights reserved.
> Read Latest Breaking News from Newsmax.com http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/NRA-Gallup-favorable-poll/2012/12/27/id/469243#ixzz2GRP3JEyy
> Urgent: Should Obamacare Be Repealed? Vote Here Now!

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kenneth w. harrow
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distinguished professor of english
michigan state university
department of english
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room C-614 wells hall
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ph. 517 803 8839
harrow@msu.edu

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