billsfan1959

It is difficult to get any legislation passed on major issues, such as gun violence, violence in general, immigration, etc. Polling data suggests the majority of people in this country are open to reasonable approaches. Unfortunately, IMO, social media has created majorities where they don't actually exist. The extreme views tend to be the loudest and most persistent, and they dominate social media (and much of main stream media as well), intimidate reasonable people, and, unfortunately, shape far too much of national party platforms. Democrats block any Republican initiatives because they "don't go far enough," and Republicans block any Democrat initiatives because they "go too far." In the end, nothing ever gets done. Polarization at the national level only serves to worsen existing problems. Again, JMO

Klebold and Harris produced hours of video leading up to the shootings. I was part of a group that reviewed the tapes to provide a recommendation regarding whether the tapes should be released or destroyed - and if released, what impact they might have on others. Our recommendation was to destroy the tapes and to release as little as possible of the information that portrayed them in the ways in which you describe. Unfortunately, much of the information did get out and you are right about much of the portrayal. Columbine happened right at the beginning of the internet becoming affordable and accessible - and it wasn't long before those with thoughts "outside the norm", isolated in their rooms, could immerse themselves in information that normalized whatever distorted thoughts and desires they might be experiencing. One of the inherent byproducts of normalizing deviant desires is that it inherently reduces barriers to acting on those desires. This has been at the core of the drastic increase in sexual offenses against children. The web is at once, one of the best and one of the worst things to ever come along. I agree with you about Klebold and Harris and media coverage in general with these types of events. Is it THE reason for the increase in deviant types of violence such, as mass shootings? No. But it is a real issue and variable in a very complicated problem..

I have no idea why anyone, puts any level of faith in any of the reports coming out. Maybe we could take a novel approach and wait until all the facts are sorted out before placing blame or exonerating?

Unfortunately, the extreme views on both sides tend to somehow dominate…

Loved Ray Liotta as an actor. Thoughts and prayers to his family andfriends.

The entire Oline performed well in that game. And as well as Bates and Brown did in pass blocking in that game, they were equally as bad in the KC game. Brown was worse than Bates, but they were both bad in that game. I like Bates. He played pretty well the last four games of the season (better at pass blocking than run blocking) and in the playoff game against the ***Pats. I am a big fan of Kromer and think he can really help Bates elevate his game. The same with Brown, Doyle and the other young Olinemen - well, maybe not Ford . Actually, while Kromer isn't a miracle worker, he's pretty damn good. So, I will wait to see if he can find and maximize whatever talent is within Ford. I am really looking forward to seeing how this Oline performs this year. It is the one area I feel they haven't adequately addressed, in terms of proportion to the value they are protecting (Allen). But, the team did the next best thing in hiring someone like Kromer to get the best out of what they do have.

I actually think time in the military is not a bad thing for young men. Certainly not for everyone; however, it can provide guidance and structure, and help instill/strengthen good traits.

I think the deeper problems are much more complex than that: The lack of ability to adequately help many of the mentally ill, instantaneous internet and social media access to anything one might need to fuel distorted perceptions and views, access to weapons, villainization and hindering of law enforcement, doing nothing to actually help socioeconomocally depressed communities, the breakdown of family units, the normalization of maladaptive behaviors... Just to name a few issues

Right. I'm guessing you missed the whole part of the drug trade where entire communities have been devastated and turned into war zones, tens of thousands of people have been murdered, and hundreds of thousands of lives have been lost in prison. Yep just a health care issue.

I am actually one who wouldn't oppose restricting assault rifles. However, it wouldn't even scratch the surface of a much deeper problem...

No, they are not. Conceptually, in the criminal world, they are exactly the same thing: a commodity for which people will pay good money. But, hey, I'm sure that cartels, who see both drug trafficking and illegal weapons trafficking in exactly that same way, wouldn't see the banning of all semi automatic handguns as an opportunity to make even more money...Nope, not at all... And if they did, I'm sure we'll do as competent of a job stopping it as we do everything else they illegally send here.

Yep, a concept that worked so well with prohibition, except for the part where it didn't. It has also worked remarkably well with Heroin, Cocaine, Meth, etc... if you ignore the 90,000+ overdose deaths, thousands of drug related murders and assaults, and millions of drug addictions. But I'm sure we'll do a much better job of stopping the possession and use of illegal weapons....

Well, since 80% + crimes involving handguns (to include murders) are comitted by people who do not legally own the handgun, I am assuming you have an easy fix for that as well? I'm curious as to what that would be...

An added physiological bonus of putting him on ignore is that you will begin to regenerate those brain cells destroyed by reading his posts

You are right, there is no easy solution. It is a problem involving a lot of different variables requiring a multifaceted, nationally consistent approach. Unfortunately, any reasonable national dialogue toward that end is completely drowned out by people shouting each other down from platforms of blame and extreme stances.

You didn’t hurt my feelings. I would imagine, as I said, that every sane, rational person in this country is as upset and frustrated as you. It is not that people don’t care. It is that solutions to violent crime are not simple because human behavior is not simple. It is not as if there have been no efforts or that there has been no progress. We just need to continue to try to find answers without accusing each other of not caring about lives lost to violence.

If you want to intellectually argue your solutions have at it. But don’t be so arrogant to believe that anyone who might differ with your opinions is somehow less enlightened or less compassionate than you.

I would venture to guess that there isn't a sane rational person in this country that is ok with what happened in Uvalde today...whether or not they agree with your position.

And bell bottom pants. They were all the rage in the 70s and then disgarded onto the fashion compost pile - only to, once again, be fashionable. I wonder what thoughts Pete Davidson might have about this.

His actions were absolutely planned and calculated and my educated guess is that he will not be successful with any kind of insanity / diminished capacity / mental health defense. With the limited knowledge I have of the evidence in this case, I believe he fully understood what he was doing and the consequences of his actions - and should be held fully responsible for his actions. However, don't think for a minute his cognitive functioning isn't severely impaired. It is. He's just not insane.

What's even more interesting is that it didn't bother you or other Democrats until now...

By the end of the week, I am sure there will be some story that has Musk, in the words of an esteemed former Democratic governor of Louisiana, in bed with either a dead girl or a live boy....

Now, if he was literally being roasted, then....

Johnny Depp is, without a doubt, a strange dude. Amber Heard is a toxic human being...

Patrick Mahomes has played 30 games at home and 33 on the road. On the road, he has: 1) A higher win % 2) A higher completion % (over 3% higher) 3) A better TD to INT ratio (with 23 more TDs on the road) 4) A higher QB rating (10 pts higher) 5) A higher avg yard per attempt 6) A higher avg yards gained per attempt 7) A higher avg yards per game WTF is wrong with him?