I think a 10% reduction is pessimistic, 90% like newtboy mentioned is likely optimistic.

One person being killed would have been tragic. A quick search says most recent count is 58 dead, 515 injured. Tragic has been surpassed by some orders of magnitude, and I while see what you're saying, I think it would have been meaningfully "less tragic" if he had only had access to traditional semi-automatic.

He had a bunch of weapons and a bunch of ammo. Reload time was partially mitigated by the number of guns. But finger fatigue like newtboy mentioned would have made it hard to keep firing over a prolonged time (~10 minutes of active shooting time?), and the increased time between shots plus potential for fatigue would have let people make a break for cover or to get out of line of sight.

It may well have still been the deadliest mass shooting even if he only had semi-auto. Banning bump stocks (and other full-auto conversions) won't prevent the next one, but any mitigation at all is better than nothing. And I think it would have been rather more significant than that.


Is access to full-auto or generally equivalent to full-auto the main problem? No. I fully understand your reluctance here, because I agree that GOP legislators and the NRA are likely to hold up opposition to bump stocks as a more significant badge than it deserves to be. "SEE?! I did something about it! Pat me on the back!"

...But, on the other hand, it really is a step in the right direction. And there are no real downsides, aside from that concern about giving those parties a sort of political card to play. The public will just have to make it clear that this, while good, isn't enough by itself.

While the editing does set things off, sadly, Bakker, Pat "what's this mac and cheese, is that a black person thing" Robertson, Jack Graham, and all their ilk are far from Poe's Law, and well into they truly believe this stuff. And so do the people who watch it, and remember they are FAR more reliable voters than any other group, and their numbers are legion. There's a reason why near 46% of American's believe the Earth to be 6,000 years old in accordance with the Bible, and among the white evangelicals that this ilk appeal to, it's 60%.

Now Mark Biltz (the guy who said he knew what day Adam opened his eyes in the Garden of Eden) is generally rejected even in most evangelical circles, so not sure why Bakker is giving him space to spread his message... though if it scares enough people into buying buckets....

What's scary is that Bakker still has a huge audience that trusts his teachings, even though we were just hours or days from a collapse whereby you wouldn't be able to buy food for six to twelve months way back in 2015... The things Bakker and Robertson have said to defend Trump and blast Obama over the years...

Oh Bob....what drivel you post.....

Memes of violence against someone you (the president) have called an enemy of the American people, posted shortly after a congressman violently attacks one of them and tries to lie about it (thank goodness for audio) are absolutely intended to be inciting violence.

Releasing the name of a person who has been creating such memes is not doxing, especially by a reporter, it's what they do....and CNN didn't try to intimidate anyone, he acted on his own without prompting. He even released a statement denying that CNN had attempted to threaten or harass him.

Ending your video by calling someone/a group an enemy of Americans is exponentially worse than CNN NOT releasing the name of the person creating memes depicting violence against them...even though they've also been labeled enemies of America by the president, who retweeted the meme.

I just hope reporters start carrying guns, and the next macho douchbag representative that physically attacks one gets 3 to the dome instead of a little public shaming (and pats on the back by his party). (Edit: Ok, not really, but one in the foot maybe?)

God has perfect will, perfect knowledge of all that was and all that is to be, and a perfect plan... but, if you pray, you might change it. I mean, if the end result of your prayer was his original plan, then prayer does nothing, so obviously if prayer works, then it must change his perfect plan... which sort of begs the question of how perfect was it in the first place? Of course the evangelical would say, was to end up where prayer took it, but it took prayer to get it there, otherwise God would have let his plan fall to the side. Anyhow, obliviously what we can gather from Bakker and Pat Robbertson and their ilk, is while Trump is God's perfect candidate and God's plan for our Nation, he won't help Trump without lots of prayer. And don't forget to pray to smite Trump's enemies...

Another thing you can do to cheap steak is to use coarse sea/kosher salt and coat it really well, then let it sit an hour per inch of thickness. After that, rinse it off and pat it dry. You can also use kiwi, pineapple, or papaya to tenderize it instead, it is quicker but some people don't want the flavor marinading the steak.

I continue to be amused by the long lines of "inventors" of new gadgets, gizmos and things that go bing that are very simply re-discovering items that already exist. Case in point, the button hook, the button loop, the fastener loop or other names as it was known being rediscovered here. The original button hook, serving the same purpose as this device, was patented in 1851, with many variants following. Give yourself a pat on the back kids, and don't forget to pick up your trophy.

Now reported, his laptop set off the explosives sensor. If you don't want people that trip that sensor checked again for <2 minutes, you're naive. (also reported the remaining 43 minutes was spent dealing with the mother, with the two officers coming over and holding them because she was irate and making a scene at the checkpoint, harassing the tsa worker. They also rescanned their bags during the pat down).
All this over a 2 minute patdown after they ignored instructions AND set off alarms. WTF people...please don't support this.

Side note, it's totally inappropriate that he was flying barefoot too, they should have been refused entry to the airport for that alone, it's a liability issue.

You are not a special unique snowflake. Had you listened to instructions and removed the computer from the bag, you wouldn't have been flagged for further inspection, probably. If normal pat downs cause your child trauma....don't make them fly because it's likely they'll have one, and don't complain about it when they do. I would bet that 30/45 minutes was spent dealing with the irate mother, because we just saw the patdown take around 2 minutes.
I did this this morning, I was "selected" for extra screening (like every time I fly, maybe because I'm bald), it took 2 minutes because I didn't make a fuss about it and interfere with them performing their duties.
Flying is a privilege, not a right, and there are rules and procedures you must follow. They didn't.

Ok, let me start by saying I have a pretty low opinion of the whole "security theatre" at airports, etc.

That said, I've always thought that "pat-downs" are friggin' pointless unless you're going to do the whole body.

I've had the occasional search myself while travelling and it's almost always completely perfunctory. If I was actually carrying a weapon or some mythical "dangerous liquid", I could easily have stashed it in my crotch or my shoes.

Basically, either you actually do a body search (including genital area), or just admit the whole thing is fucking bullshit and let us on our way.

Uhoh ... guess who's on the Teacher's PAT-sy list now

dat's a gud boi. *pat pat squish* um... bai.

Few points...

We have no options for serious load shifting to utilise all that solar power in the evenings when it would make a difference. And power companies refuse to trust it for baseload power, so they still generate what they estimate they need for base load,and pay for rapid generation to handle spikes. Most electricity generated from home solar in Aus is wasted.

Without battery backups, the best production of the day goes to the energy company for 8 cents, and we buy back power from them (generated by coal of course) at night for 36 cents. Our energy companies aren't going to pay a premium for power they really don't give a crap about.

Most panels in Aus face north/east, to generate the largest amount of energy. When most people aren't home to use it. Instead, panels should face north/west to generate the most power in the afternoon when we come home from work/fire up air conditioners/start cooking etc. And even then, the power than is generated is but a fraction of what is consumed during peak periods due to the setting sun.

Annnnd most people in Australia do not even check their systems to see if they're still doing anything... It's estimated 14% of all home solar systems are currently non-functional due to faulty panels, inverter or both.

Until the point in time comes when energy companies can create a way to load shift solar production to ensure continuity of power, or household power storage units pricing comes down enough to be viable, non industrial solar in Australia is mostly feel good propaganda.

And while a number of coal plants have closed recently, it's not due to lack of demand as solar take up reduces requirement for coal fired power... It's because the plants are not viable any more to run and owners do not want to run at a loss. Each one that closes represents a significant portion of our overall generation being lost, with no core plan for continuity (wind and solar are not being considered as a core strategy currently).

I'm all for saving the planet, but the science/facts on solar outweigh the feel goods. Perhaps instead of patting ourselves on the back, we should be thinking about a better plan.

@bcglorf
i have no issue with disagreement.
i have read many of hedges books,and to see his evolution over the years really should not surprise anyone.

we all have an evolution of sorts when we continue to investigate,and challenge our own preconceptions.the intelligent man or woman,will accept this new information,and change their conclusions accordingly.the hyper-partisan and/or rigid fundamentalist,will dismiss this new information because it conflicts with their dearly held preconceptions.

some people struggle with a changing landscape,and prefer to reside in their own comfort zones.

i like hedges because he challenges and criticizes power,but he also tends to speak in apocalyptic verbiage.

i also respect hedges because he does back up his opinions with actual sources.now we can disagree with his conclusions,but how he came to those conclusions,he is quite clear.

on a side note:i cannot watch or read hedges for extended periods due to the fact that what he is pointing out is so damn depressing.

but he is incredibly consistent in regards to criticizing power.

which,in my opinion,is so very vital in these times,because we see the majority of corporate media revealing a reverence and fealty to corporate power.

chris hedges has earned my respect.
but i do not demand that everyone read or listen to him.

and speaking only for myself,i refuse to dismiss a viewpoint simply because it may be on a venue of questionable intent.
i read the american conservative,though this is a website funded by pat buchanon.i do so because the american conservative produces some damn fine content,with journalists who source their material.

i may disagree with their conclusions,but i cannot ignore the quality of their work.

this is the same reason why i no longer do work for crooks and liars and the young turks and good god..SLATE.does this mean that everything they produce is utter shit?

no..of course not,but they all have taken a book out of the FOX model, and became hyper-partisan,faux outrage machines.

now let us take this video,which so happens to be on RT.
what is it that hedges is saying that is WRONG? or false? or a lie?

i have no issue with disagreement,nor skepticism,but is anything he is saying really that controversial?
what is he saying that should be dismissed?
should his words simply be dismissed due to him being on RT?

if we refuse to accept the words,or conclusions from any public personality,simply because of the media that they happen to be on,then..in my opinion..we relegate ourselves to a handful of outlets,and it diminishes the conversation.

is it any wonder or surprise that those academics that are critical of power are NEVER seen on corporate media?
that those brave and courageous journalists and academics are forced to the fringes in order to get their messages out.

we can disagree with their messages and conclusions,but for us to even have the OPTION to disagree.they need a media outlet in order to even put the word out.

do you see what i am saying?

i am probably wording this wrong,and producing more confusion than clarity,but when the corporate media controls who and what gets to be discussed,debated and argued.then THEY are the ones who set the agenda.they are the ones who set the lines of discussion and the parameters of that discussion.

and people like hedges have not been invited to the table for decades.

it appears that any journalist,or academic that is critical of power are relegated to the fringes.

you will never see noam chomsky on FOX,or MSNBC,or CNN.

but you will see them on independent media.
such as democracy now,or the real news and yes...venues like RT and aljazeera english.

i probably totally messed my point up,but it is in there somewhere.
i am just gonna stop right here,because now i am just rambling.

Ok, I'll play.

I have two boys, 19 months and three years old. I'm in my late thirties, wife in mid thirties. We waited until we were in a decent position financially before having kids. I saw my brother bring up my nephew who is now six so I knew what babies are like and toddlers are like before we had kids ourselves. I took a year and a half off to be a stay at home dad for our first child.

But there's this massive taboo in the UK, and I'm going to guess in America too. Having kids is good, and you're not allowed to say otherwise. I knew that there would be sleepless nights, that on occasion I'd be covered in vomit, or poo, or both. I knew that kids could be annoying.

But I didn't really understand what all that meant. To hear anyone talk about having kids it makes it seem like these things are just background noise for all the wonderful, giggly happy times.

No one told me how relentless it would be. While you can know that you'll be tired if you have a kid that wakes at night you don't really understand it until you haven't had a full night's sleep for three years. Not a single one.

Yes, somehow I should have fully understood everything before actually experiencing it. And of course I shouldn't say anything bad about it, it's all good.

But that's bullshit.

Having kids can be amazing, and getting to know my children's personalities as they've grown has been one of the most incredible experiences of my life. If I had my time again I would do it again.

But seeing some sanctimonious arse bitching about other people's experiences, which could be very different to their own, just makes my skin crawl. You're saying that because you made a decision you're not ever allowed to moan about it? Even if your whole life leading up to it was full of misleading misinformation? Even if the experience you chose turned out to not be typical through no fault of your own?

Pretty much any path a person takes in life can be framed as a result of a decision somewhere along the line. It's like saying that no one can complain about anything, anytime.

Despite what you say having kids is different to what just about anyone expects. If it wasn't for you then well done, you're in the tiny minority. You probably deserve some kind of prize for being so amazing. Here, I've got a little cup around here somewhere. Wait, I'll find it. Here it is. It's engraved. It reads 'Fuck you, you sanctimonious prick'.

Life is full of ups and downs. For me having kids has made the highs higher and the lows lower. I've never felt as amazing as I have when my kids do something brilliant. But I've never felt as down as I did about three months into my second child who was very colicky and just cried almost constantly and at night slept for an hour or so then was awake and screaming for an hour then slept and so on. For three months solid.

No one told me about that. No one made it clear that this was to be expected. My first was a reasonable, average baby. He had his moments but we thought we really understood what we were getting into.

But there's the rub. All kids are different. Even two boys, close in age to the same parents are like chalk ad cheese. To think you understand someone else's situation enough to bitch about them like you have is just stupid. So your child is good and you've enjoyed being a dad? Good for you. You were lucky. Others aren't so lucky and arses like you bitching about them doesn't help. Stop patting yourself on the back and realise that a large part of you having a good experience is nothing more than luck.

So, there you go. I'm sure I fit into your bad parent category. But at least I don't belittle the experiences of others and don't assume that I fully understand their experience.

Yes, some parents can be annoying, but the vast majority who are moaning are genuinely stressed and down. A little empathy can go a long way. Or you could just be an arse hole and bitch about them.