Hey, You Liberals, the Power of Government Must be Limited

[bobevenson]

I couldn't give a flying fuck if I'm not allowed to own an assaut rifle. I do give a flying fuck if my emails, bank accounts etc. are being spied on.

Unfortunately, the day may come when you will need an assault rifle to keep your emails and bank accounts from being spied on, but alas, you didn't care if you were allowed to own one.

[Blaggard]

One day I might have to own a bazooka and a shed load of tow missiles and perhaps an Abraham's tank, and mayne a Raptor, and perhaps an Apache gunship, and maybe a light assualt mp5, and maybe an armoury to keep all the AK-47s I own in and perhaps a shed load of frag grenades, and perhaps a load of claymore mines. Meh do you listen to what you say sometimes bob, or is it and no offence all just some stream of consciousness?

Bob no ofenc mate but you do talk a hell of a lot of ass.

[vegetariantaxidermy]

One day I might have to own a bazooka and a shed load of tow missiles and perhaps an Abraham's tank, and mayne a Raptor, and perhaps an Apache gunship, and maybe a light assualt mp5, and maybe an armoury to keep all the AK-47s I own in and perhaps a shed load of frag grenades, and perhaps a load of claymore mines. Meh do you listen to what you say sometimes bob, or is it and no offence all just some stream of consciousness?

Bob no ofenc mate but you do talk a hell of a lot of ass.

Don't forget a nuclear bomb. Everyone needs one of those, just in case.

[bobevenson]

One day I might have to own a bazooka and a shed load of tow missiles and perhaps an Abraham's tank, and mayne a Raptor, and perhaps an Apache gunship, and maybe a light assualt mp5, and maybe an armoury to keep all the AK-47s I own in and perhaps a shed load of frag grenades, and perhaps a load of claymore mines. Meh do you listen to what you say sometimes bob, or is it and no offence all just some stream of consciousness?

Bob no ofenc mate but you do talk a hell of a lot of ass.

Just get your stupid government to allow you to own any kind of gun so you weasels don't always have to come running to Uncle Sam.

[vegetariantaxidermy]

One day I might have to own a bazooka and a shed load of tow missiles and perhaps an Abraham's tank, and mayne a Raptor, and perhaps an Apache gunship, and maybe a light assualt mp5, and maybe an armoury to keep all the AK-47s I own in and perhaps a shed load of frag grenades, and perhaps a load of claymore mines. Meh do you listen to what you say sometimes bob, or is it and no offence all just some stream of consciousness?

Bob no ofenc mate but you do talk a hell of a lot of ass.

Just get your stupid government to allow you to own any kind of gun so you weasels don't always have to come running to Uncle Sam.

Sputter, choke.....

[bobevenson]

One day I might have to own a bazooka and a shed load of tow missiles and perhaps an Abraham's tank, and mayne a Raptor, and perhaps an Apache gunship, and maybe a light assualt mp5, and maybe an armoury to keep all the AK-47s I own in and perhaps a shed load of frag grenades, and perhaps a load of claymore mines. Meh do you listen to what you say sometimes bob, or is it and no offence all just some stream of consciousness?

Bob no ofenc mate but you do talk a hell of a lot of ass.

Just get your stupid government to allow you to own any kind of gun so you weasels don't always have to come running to Uncle Sam.

Sputter, choke.....

Yeah, and then you bastards conk out like a jalopy.

[Kuznetzova]

This thread began with a fascinating, well-written collection of paragraphs on the history of totalitarianism in the 20th century. It even attributed those ideas to the original author by name.

However, about three replies in, all parties involved in this thread were trolling, attacking, and insulting each other.

How sad...

[uwot]

This thread began with a fascinating, well-written collection of paragraphs on the history of totalitarianism in the 20th century. It even attributed those ideas to the original author by name.

However, about three replies in, all parties involved in this thread were trolling, attacking, and insulting each other.

How sad...

It began with Reverend Bob quoting Walter Williams and 'the Military History channel', the father, son and holy ghost of reason. With such credentials, only a fool would challenge it.

[bobevenson]

This thread began with a fascinating, well-written collection of paragraphs on the history of totalitarianism in the 20th century. It even attributed those ideas to the original author by name.

However, about three replies in, all parties involved in this thread were trolling, attacking, and insulting each other.

How sad...

It began with Reverend Bob quoting Walter Williams and 'the Military History channel', the father, son and holy ghost of reason. With such credentials, only a fool would challenge it.

You must be thinking of the Holy Trinity of Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ and Ouzo Cross (see "The Ouzo Prophecy" at http://church-of-ouzo.com/pdf/ouzo-prophecy.pdf).

[mickthinks]

You disagreed with Williams' contention that the 20th century is mankind's most barbaric. Following is what he said. What is it, exactly, that you disagree with???

"The 20th century turned out to be mankind's most barbaric. Roughly 50 million to 60 million people died in international and civil wars. As tragic as that number is, it pales in comparison with the number of people who were killed at the hands of their own government. Recently deceased Rudolph J. Rummel, professor of political science at the University of Hawaii and author of "Death by Government," estimated that since the beginning of the 20th century, governments have killed 170 million of their own citizens. Top government killers were the Soviet Union, which, between 1917 and 1987, killed 62 million of its own citizens, and the People's Republic of China, which, between 1949 and 1987, was responsible for the deaths of 35 million to 40 million of its citizens. In a distant third place were the Nazis, who murdered about 16 million Jews, Slavs, Serbs, Czechs, Poles, Ukrainians and others deemed misfits, such as homosexuals and the mentally ill."

I think you are mistaking the catalogue of factoids that follow Williams's "The 20th century turned out to be mankind's most barbaric" contention as some kind of proof. Let's see if I can explain your error...

Those stats are all from the 20th century—there are no corresponding stats from earlier centuries with which to compare them. So drawing any comparison, any comparison at all, from that paragraph (even if the data were reliable, which it may not be), is something a smart guy like you should know is impossible.

And Williams should know that too, which raises a question over his intellectual honesty.

[bobevenson]

You disagreed with Williams' contention that the 20th century is mankind's most barbaric. Following is what he said. What is it, exactly, that you disagree with???

"The 20th century turned out to be mankind's most barbaric. Roughly 50 million to 60 million people died in international and civil wars. As tragic as that number is, it pales in comparison with the number of people who were killed at the hands of their own government. Recently deceased Rudolph J. Rummel, professor of political science at the University of Hawaii and author of "Death by Government," estimated that since the beginning of the 20th century, governments have killed 170 million of their own citizens. Top government killers were the Soviet Union, which, between 1917 and 1987, killed 62 million of its own citizens, and the People's Republic of China, which, between 1949 and 1987, was responsible for the deaths of 35 million to 40 million of its citizens. In a distant third place were the Nazis, who murdered about 16 million Jews, Slavs, Serbs, Czechs, Poles, Ukrainians and others deemed misfits, such as homosexuals and the mentally ill."

I think you are mistaking the catalogue of factoids that follow Williams's "The 20th century turned out to be mankind's most barbaric" contention as some kind of proof. Let's see if I can explain your error...

Those stats are all from the 20th century—there are no corresponding stats from earlier centuries with which to compare them. So drawing any comparison, any comparison at all, from that paragraph (even if the data were reliable, which it may not be), is something a smart guy like you should know is impossible.

And Williams should know that too, which raises a question over his intellectual honesty.

You might also point out that Williams didn't even consider the atrocities from 50,000 years ago. Please, get serious.

[mickthinks]

Please, get serious.

I am, you aren't.

[bobevenson]

Please, get serious.

I am, you aren't.

I think the following excerpt from the Williams' article should answer the question you raised:
"We might ask why the 20th century was so barbaric. Surely, there were barbarians during earlier ages. Part of the answer is that during earlier times, there wasn't the kind of concentration of power that emerged during the 20th century. Had Josef Stalin, Mao Zedong and Hitler been around in earlier times, they could not have engineered the slaughter of tens of millions of people. They wouldn't have had the authority. There was considerable dispersion of jealously guarded political power in the forms of heads of provincial governments and principalities and nobility and church leaders whose political power within their spheres was often just as strong as the monarch's."

[mickthinks]

"We might ask why the 20th century was so barbaric. ...

That doesn't answer the question, Bob—it begs it*. Williams's belief that the 20th century was mankind's most barbaric is mistaken, and your faith in him is touching, and blind.

* A philosopher would know this without having to be told—but of course, you are a "prophet".

[bobevenson]

"We might ask why the 20th century was so barbaric. ...

That doesn't answer the question, Bob—it begs it*. Williams's belief that the 20th century was mankind's most barbaric is mistaken, and your faith in him is touching, and blind.

* A philosopher would know this without having to be told—but of course, you are a "prophet".

Hey, get your head out of your ass! Williams explains why the barbarism of the 20th century couldn't exist in earlier centuries.