I like your analogy about rape. Let's take it one step further. I'll 'transfer' this from gorlitsa to a hypothetical "Sally". I'm thinkning it might get offensive, and I certainly do NOT want to offend gorlitsa.
And FAIR WARNING: This will be ugly.
Sally is being raped. She's not threatened with rape, she's not about to be raped, the rape is in full progress. Her lip is split, her eyes are blacked, and he's got his way. He's on top, and he's inside, and he's pumping. Fair analog to our situation with gun rights? They are not ABOUT to infringe on our rights - they've taken many (most) of them away already.
But he hasn't killed her yet. That's next.
So the way I see it, any millimeter that she can force him off of her, or out of her, any bit of freedom that she can gain for her hands, is a good thing, a thing to be desired. If she can scratch an eye, if she can bite a nose - any harm she can do to him is good. The eventual goal, of course, is to get him off, and kill him. But she can't do that just by wishing it so. And the fact is, like it or not, he's stronger than she is. She can't just throw him off and break his neck by brute force.
You could argue that he has no right to do what he's doing. You'd be right.
And irrelevant.
You could argue that she should spend all her energy on the core issue: his penis in her vagina.
You'd be stupid.
The objective is to win. The NRA's appeasment doesn't win us anything. It's just slowing down the losses, somewhat, while giving away the high ground. I don't recommend them or their methods.
But taking the ground back one millimeter at a time is still taking the ground back. Yes, it's our ground. We shouldn't have to take it back. But we lost it. If we want it back we have to take it. One millimeter at at time.
In a battle like this, you take take some hits. Like voting for an 80% good candidate so that a 0% candidate doesn't get elected. Like supporting a decent CCW law instead of folding your hands over your chest and self-righteously proclaiming that such laws only recognize that the state has a right to regulate guns.
We didn't get here overnight, and we won't get back overnight. We won't get back ever if we adopt the NRA's tactics. But neither will we get back if we insist on all or nothing.
I'm not suggesting we give up ANYTHING. I'm not suggesting that we allow ANY further infringments of our rights. I won't support trading an infringment in one area for a reduction of infringment in another. That's playing the enemy's game on the enemy's turf.
I am suggesting that we take every bit we can get, every time we can, rather than saying we want all or we want nothing.
And FAIR WARNING: This will be ugly.
Sally is being raped. She's not threatened with rape, she's not about to be raped, the rape is in full progress. Her lip is split, her eyes are blacked, and he's got his way. He's on top, and he's inside, and he's pumping. Fair analog to our situation with gun rights? They are not ABOUT to infringe on our rights - they've taken many (most) of them away already.
But he hasn't killed her yet. That's next.
So the way I see it, any millimeter that she can force him off of her, or out of her, any bit of freedom that she can gain for her hands, is a good thing, a thing to be desired. If she can scratch an eye, if she can bite a nose - any harm she can do to him is good. The eventual goal, of course, is to get him off, and kill him. But she can't do that just by wishing it so. And the fact is, like it or not, he's stronger than she is. She can't just throw him off and break his neck by brute force.
You could argue that he has no right to do what he's doing. You'd be right.
And irrelevant.
You could argue that she should spend all her energy on the core issue: his penis in her vagina.
You'd be stupid.
The objective is to win. The NRA's appeasment doesn't win us anything. It's just slowing down the losses, somewhat, while giving away the high ground. I don't recommend them or their methods.
But taking the ground back one millimeter at a time is still taking the ground back. Yes, it's our ground. We shouldn't have to take it back. But we lost it. If we want it back we have to take it. One millimeter at at time.
In a battle like this, you take take some hits. Like voting for an 80% good candidate so that a 0% candidate doesn't get elected. Like supporting a decent CCW law instead of folding your hands over your chest and self-righteously proclaiming that such laws only recognize that the state has a right to regulate guns.
We didn't get here overnight, and we won't get back overnight. We won't get back ever if we adopt the NRA's tactics. But neither will we get back if we insist on all or nothing.
I'm not suggesting we give up ANYTHING. I'm not suggesting that we allow ANY further infringments of our rights. I won't support trading an infringment in one area for a reduction of infringment in another. That's playing the enemy's game on the enemy's turf.
I am suggesting that we take every bit we can get, every time we can, rather than saying we want all or we want nothing.
