bullets13

What would happen if I went and parked my car on a busy street with the keys in the ignition and money on the seat, hid in the bushes, and then jumped out and shot the first person who tried to steal the car. Kinda feels the same here. Yes, they're stealing your property, but you're going out of your way to tempt them to do so. Kind of like sitting over a corn feeder, but for criminals.

  i agree that it's similar.  that being said: A) this guy is not the police  B) the police don't set up stings and then shoot people without warning when they're caught in them. 

[Hidden Content]   As most of you know, I'm big on gun rights, and our rights to protect ourselves, others, our property, etc. That being said, my first reaction here is this guy is going to be convicted, and probably rightfully so.   For those of you who haven't seen this, a man's garage had been broken into a couple of times, and he was pissed.  So for multiple nights in a row he set up a trap for a burglar.  He left his garage door cracked, with a purse visible inside the garage (not sure if you needed a flashlight to see it or not, but it was out in a way meant to draw in a possible thief).  He and his wife set up a baby monitor with a video feed and some sort of motion sensors.  After a couple of nights, a couple of teens took the bait, and after seeing them on the camera, the man ran around the house from the outside, and without any warning shot four times into the pitch-black garage, killing one of the teens.  He's now claiming he was "standing his ground".  I don't see that defense working in this case, but look forward to TVC's take on it.  It's also worth noting that at least one witness claims to have heard the man say he'd stayed up three nights in a row with his shotgun to "shoot a kid."

Why are teachers with guns a bad idea?  i mean, i can understand SOME teachers with guns being a bad idea, but that's what the extensive training is for.  I think it's safe to say many (or most) districts cant afford to hire officers and armed security for every school in their district.  For even medium-sized districts that would add millions in payroll per year. While I'd love for that to be possible, it's just simply not in many districts.   To me, let teachers take the training, and if they can qualify under the rigid guidelines, then let them bring a weapon to school.  you can set regs on the types and calibers of weapons, as well as the types of ammunition used, to ensure that teachers have the most effective defense options available, while protecting against the possibility of a child being hit through a wall or through the bad guy.  at least in younger "huggy" grades, it would be important that teachers keep their weapon locked up in their classroom.  It's not optimal, but it all but eliminates the possibility of an accident.  if you have a few teachers spread out around the school with access to weapons, no matter where an incident starts you should have somebody close that can get to and access a weapon, and step in and engage the suspect.  the principal/vice principals are other logical choices for this.

it's sleazy how it happened, but what it revealed isn't any less relevant or disturbing simply because it was surreptitiously taped.  if a man's wife receives a video of her husband cheating on her, does the fact that he didn't know he was taped somehow make the action less important to her?  i think not.  the same is true for African Americans in this case.  Him not knowing about it does not change the intent behind his words... in fact, it gave us a much clearer picture of who he is. 

as this applies to both sides of the aisle, i wholeheartedly agree with you.  I think this would not only reduce corruption, but it would also help politicians actually make an effort to bring about change, rather than just getting along to get along in order to maintain their office.

I have no way to verify the actual numbers this article claims, but it's common sense stuff.  The more responders you have, and the quicker their response, the less casualties you will take.  I wish that every school had at least an officer, and i wholeheartedly support schools having teachers who carry as well, assuming that they complete a training far more stringent than what it takes to obtain a CHL.  My mom is a teacher and has her CHL, and i wouldn't be particularly comfortable with her shooting at anything even remotely near my general direction (sorry mom).  but give teachers extensive training in shooting, target acquisition, situational training, etc., and i'm all for them being able to carry.

 I think this is the right result, but i'm curious to see the outcome of what's sure to be a long, well-funded legal campaign from Sterling.  Silver will have certainly won the respect of the league's players with this move, and the owners will respect him in a different way, knowing he's no pushover.   One funny thing about all of this:  if Silver is able to force a sale of the Clippers, Sterling's "punishment" will be having to sell a team for close to a Billion dollars that he paid about 15 Million for. 

That's a perfect example of the stuff y'all post from western journalism and similar sites. You always love those articles for some reason, however. Thanks for proving my point from a previous argument. EDIT: I posted this BEFORE I saw think links 77 provided below my previous comment. ;)

[Hidden Content]

if it has nothing to do with anything, why are republicans falling all over each other to distance theirselves from him?   personally, someone who claims to not "recognize the government's existence" should not be anyone's hero.  our government has plenty of problems, but we'll have a lot more if people just allowed to do what they want while ignoring the law.  and it's not like he's breaking a law that's just been put in place.  it's been decades. 

could someone please tell me how this list by the NRA proves anything?  I mean, does 77 saying it's factual, and the NRA saying it's factual actually make it so?  The NRA is a huge political machine.  You can trust them to give you "facts" about as much as you can trust Obama.  Speaking of, what would have happened on this website had someone posted a list of "facts" about the NRA according to Obama?   I'm not arguing the seriousness of the scandal itself, merely pointing out that the NRA could put anything it wanted on a list, say it's a fact, and there are people who will immediately take it at face value. 

not much, which makes the support he got from the GOP pretty ironic (at least until he started spewing nonsense about "Negroes" being happier when they were slaves).  I guess you could argue that he works to steal taxpayers and government money and resources, but the result is much the same.

by my judgement, that's still racist.  anyone with any common sense would agree.  i especially thought the use of the word "Negro" was a nice touch.

the cowboys don't need any more distractions.  i say we trade our 2nd round pick for a general manager.

It's always tough sorting through the needy and the lazy.  My line of work brings me in contact with both on a regular basis.  I see poor families who receive a little help and then  pull themselves up by their bootstraps, and i see poor families who choose to stay poor in order to continue getting benefits.  We need A system, but THIS system is broken.  The benefits received should not be so lucrative that staying on them seems to be a good career move when stacked up next to getting a minimum wage job.  Why go work full time flipping burgers when you can get several hundred dollars a month, free housing, food stamps, WIC, free healthcare, free healthcare for your kids, a free cellphone with a few hundred minutes, and many more "perks" without the inconvenience of working?  And the system actually rewards single mothers with more money for having extra kids, and punishes mothers by providing less money if the dad sticks around.

And you and NOTB rest easy knowing that I've never and will never discuss my world views in front of the kids!!!

But it sure would've been nice to have one, and I bet it would've helped. As for teaching middle school, the thing I would say is that there are a lot less supplies needed than in the younger grades. You guys have to worry about the standardized tests, and it's a lot of bookwork and worksheets. For younger grades, a lot more learning is done through play, art, centers, field trips, etc. which require infinitely greater amounts of supplies and funding. At the beginning of the year, we got a small box of supplies that temporarily addressed SOME of our needs. After that anything we needed we could put in a request for, that MIGHT be granted. And then after the freeze, it was up to the teacher to decide if they wanted to spend out of pocket or do without. If lessons are not as good because teachers can't afford the things they need to make them good, the students ARE suffering. When fieldtrips are cancelled because funding is frozen, students are suffering. So the teachers have been hurt, and the students have been hurt. And maybe it's because I am one, but to me, after the students, the teachers are the lifeblood of the school district.

Well, backpacks are important because they help kids make it back and forth to school without losing books and homework. Snacks fill bellies and help concentration. Sanitizer is important because it helps kill germs and keep the kids from getting sick and missing school. You're right that it's not a requirement for teachers to buy these things, but those things ARE important for kids to learn. Some of these are extras we choose to provide but lately many teachers are having to choose between purchasing necessities for the kids or doing without. Out of curiosity, what grade are you subbing for? And sorry if I came off as uppity, because while you riled me a bit, subbing can be as tough as full time teaching.

and he clearly got us mixed up, because there's no reason for him to think I'm a sub.

selfish reasons?  I'd say so!  between lost bonuses and insurance payments, i've taken about a $1500 a year paycut, and my wife (also a certified BISD teacher) has taken about a $2500 a year paycut.  and that's before "expenses", like the hand sanitizer i had to buy this weekend, and the t-shirts i bought last week, the snacks my wife takes to work for her students, and the laminator we got since ours at school were always broken and couldn't afford to be fixed, and the soap, and paper towels, and paper for the kids, and the backpacks we buy when the kids' families can't afford them, etc. etc. etc. etc.  So tell that BS to someone else (probably another sub who gets to come in and work the day like you do without the "take-home" responsibilities. 

you quoted the wrong person.  i'm certified to teach PK-4, and have a degree that would've allowed me to become certified through 8th out of college, but i did not want to teach middle school.

I hear this argument all the time.  I guess if I'd grown up during the time of the hippies, where half the country was high and the other half was busy discriminating against African Americans I could look back to when our country had a straighter moral compass.  Or maybe a couple of decades later when gang violence ruled every major city.  or maybe a half century before that when the mob did.  Or back at the turn of the century when murders almost as common as the whorehouses.  So when were things so great again?  Every generation and time has it's various struggles and improvements.  I think it's a good thing that our biggest problem of this generation (according to so many loving Christians) is homosexuals getting a little equal treatment and personal rights. 

What doesn't make sense to me is that on multiple occasions you've used the argument that "God wouldn't do that" as a justification for your beliefs.  But i mean, i guess maybe you have some sort of direct connection that i don't know about that lets you in on these things. 

but you asked MY opinion.  also, i think the majority of people would find the hate group tats MUCH more offensive, although there are some in SETX who would probably not.