17 May 2015
Wild West 2015
In Waco TX at least nine people are dead and twice that number hospitalized in the latest outbreak of mass gun violence in America. This time, however, things were a little different from the norm. It wasn't one angry little nut and a bunch of innocent victims this time. It was three rival biker gangs opening fire on one another outside a restaurant. That may be why we're not getting continuous live coverage of the atrocity -- although the fact that today is Sunday may also have something to do with it, given the news networks' relatively limited resources and schedules of pre-recorded programs. Going into the week, it'll be interesting to see if this story grows legs. Will it be another rallying point for the gun-control movement, or are they so entranced by the angry-nut paradigm that this crossfire battle will seem to matter less? Since it's most likely that we're not dealing with black perpetrators this time -- to my knowledge the casualties haven't been identified yet -- will we have a separate round of national soul-searching to ask what's wrong with whoever these people prove to be? Yet if these prove to be the archetypal white bikers -- for some it may suffice that they're archetypal Texans -- won't this violence reflect as badly on their communities and their ethnic culture as black violence supposedly reflects on those perpetrators' communities and ethnic culture? Right now it's too soon to tell, but what we hear and don't hear about this incident may tell us a lot about how the media, the opinionators, and the people in general really think about violence in America. Stay tuned.
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2 comments:
3 biker gangs rumble with guns. Not the same as a deranged lone wolf. Not even close.
"...won't this violence reflect as badly on their communities and their ethnic culture as black violence supposedly reflects on those perpetrators' communities and ethnic culture?"
I don't believe "outlaw bikers" really care what their community thinks, just as I suppose that street gangs don't really care what anyone else thinks. Just as people who hold "draw Mohammed day" contests probably don't really care what anyone else thinks.
From what I've heard/read, I think most gun nuts actually WANT this type of thing, it's their wet dream. Of course, in their fantasy, they always draw faster, aim truer and walk away. It'd be interesting to see how they react when that doesn't end up being the reality...assuming they survive to care.
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