Boston Bombing Doesn't Somehow Negate Gun Concerns

Yep. Special kind of moron.

Bad analogies make me crazy. Oh, I know, I'm sure I've made a few, not every attempt at cleverness is a success. And in a world that is now ruled by social media memes, it seems even the most horrific happening is (quickly) turned into them. Some are truly clever, thought provoking and memorable. Others strain so hard to make their point, they hit you over the head like an anvil. And the conservative attempts at "humor?" Well, they're often better left unsaid.

Several days ago when there was a mass stabbing, there were goofy memes playing off of "knife control," entirely missing the point that nobody died in that unfortunate event.  And now, with the Boston Marathon bombing, the pressure cookers used to make the bombs have become the new "isn't this clever" item to mock gun control. First, let me say that conservative attempts at humor are often  groan-worthy. But it is often difficult to articulate what it is that bugs you about it, the weak attempt at humor, the bad analogy, the poor execution. . . Mostly, it's the actual sentiment behind the "joke," the lame argument that is being made, that is actually believed by a whole group of people.

So, it is wonderful when you find the perfect encapsulation of what bugs you about one of these things. And here it is.

[Excerpt]

If you think Boston is a reason to abandon gun safety laws, you're a special kind of moron

. . .Let's imagine a scenario in which roughly 4,000 Americans have been killed by weaponized pressure cookers between last December and now. I'm willing to bet Campfield would be fairly beside himself demanding we stop bad people from getting pressure cookers, and the idea of letting people who have already have a history of assaulting people with pressure cookers buy more pressure cookers, due only to our own unwillingness to check up on those things, would sound so stupid that nobody would even propose such a thing. Let's imagine a world in which, whenever a child finds a pressure cooker under his parents' bed, there's a good chance that child dies. We'd damn well be figuring out what to do about parents who leave goddamn pressure cookers under their beds. Yes, you can kill someone with a pressure cooker, or a spoon, or a piece of stout twine—but there's nothing better for killing people than an actual weapon. . .

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