Merry Christmas,
The internet is an interesting place. It is pretty common to see some folks grab onto bits of another's postings and type replies that assume that the original poster is up to some dark nefarious activity. And we see the opposite, that someone sees a negative post about a peer that they view as having views similar to their own and types a response that suggests that the party being criticized is next in line for sainthood and the critiquer must be an envious low life. In reality, neither position is even close to the truth. And the posts say a lot more about the poster than the subject of their post.
One observation that I would contribute is that it is not a winning strategy to say that the other side can be as misleading, devious, and fraudulent with facts and data as they want to be, but all of our "friends" must be perfect and never misplace a comma or period in what they write. Was it Pogo who said "We have met the enemy and it is us?" I am told that in the middle east they say "The enemy of my enemy is my friend." Given the state of current affairs, I will suggest that the latter sentiment is more effective. We can argue about who is more worthy of admiration after the big struggles are settled in our favor and the historians are writing up nice articles for Wikipedia. Energy today spent fighting amongst friends is energy not directed at the Bloombergs and Hudaks.
Its the Christmas season and next year is an election year. There will be no perfect candidates. But if you can decide that firearms rights are THE most important issue for you, and you look for the most electable and firearms friendly candidates in your area, and volunteer to work the phones, fold and mail brochures, etc., you might be happier next Christmas. So consider giving your friends and fellow travelers a pass for a while and aim your energy at the folks who want to take away and restrict your rights.
Merry Christmas,
Wes
The internet is an interesting place. It is pretty common to see some folks grab onto bits of another's postings and type replies that assume that the original poster is up to some dark nefarious activity. And we see the opposite, that someone sees a negative post about a peer that they view as having views similar to their own and types a response that suggests that the party being criticized is next in line for sainthood and the critiquer must be an envious low life. In reality, neither position is even close to the truth. And the posts say a lot more about the poster than the subject of their post.
One observation that I would contribute is that it is not a winning strategy to say that the other side can be as misleading, devious, and fraudulent with facts and data as they want to be, but all of our "friends" must be perfect and never misplace a comma or period in what they write. Was it Pogo who said "We have met the enemy and it is us?" I am told that in the middle east they say "The enemy of my enemy is my friend." Given the state of current affairs, I will suggest that the latter sentiment is more effective. We can argue about who is more worthy of admiration after the big struggles are settled in our favor and the historians are writing up nice articles for Wikipedia. Energy today spent fighting amongst friends is energy not directed at the Bloombergs and Hudaks.
Its the Christmas season and next year is an election year. There will be no perfect candidates. But if you can decide that firearms rights are THE most important issue for you, and you look for the most electable and firearms friendly candidates in your area, and volunteer to work the phones, fold and mail brochures, etc., you might be happier next Christmas. So consider giving your friends and fellow travelers a pass for a while and aim your energy at the folks who want to take away and restrict your rights.
Merry Christmas,
Wes