Can you believe anything any more?

[January]

No, not rehashing same old.

Just found the attempt to do so amusing.

 

[Rakaia]

I suggest that if you disagree with something someone has posted, that you feel free to challenge it.

Your assertion that suicide is a mental health issue and not a gun is wrong. It's a mental health issues AND a gun issue.

 

[oslooskar]

No, not rehashing same old. Just found the attempt to do so amusing.

So you're comfortable tossing out a snide remark about the OP, but not enough conviction to actually engage with the topic? Classic case of cold feet, if you ask me. Oh well, I guess it's easier to mock than debate.

 

[oslooskar]

Your assertion that suicide is a mental health issue and not a gun is wrong. It's a mental health issues AND a gun issue.

Oh, I see, so it’s not just a mental health issue, it’s also a gun issue. Got it. By that logic, it’s also a bridge issue, a rope issue, a tall building issue and let’s not forget belts and plastic bags. The constant in suicide is mental distress, not the method. Blaming the tool instead of the cause is just lazy thinking. Bottom line, you’re responsible for your own actions.

 

[Rakaia]

Oh, I see, so it’s not just a mental health issue, it’s also a gun issue. Got it. By that logic, it’s also a bridge issue, a rope issue, a tall building issue and let’s not forget belts and plastic bags. The constant in suicide is mental distress, not the method. Blaming the tool instead of the cause is just lazy thinking. Bottom line, you’re responsible for your own actions.

I'm not assigning any blame as you seem to think am, I'm pointing out thast you're manipulating the rhetoric by passing off your opinion as a fact.

The constant in suicide is mental distress, not the method. Blaming the tool instead of the cause is just lazy thinking. Bottom line, you’re responsible for your own actions.

I would hazard a guess that I know a bit more about suicide and suicidality than you do.
Anecdotal evidence suggests that suicidal people are not fully responsible for their actions as they may be so distressed that they're not functioning properly.
Having said that I'd like to say how impressed with the sensitivity of your remarks, but I'd probably be lying if I did...

 

[Rakaia]

@GP44
There is not much I can believe in anymore but there is and will always be and that's the finality of death, particularly suicidal death.

 

[MarkD]

Can you believe anything any more?​

Sure. Just about anything based on what I see on the internet.

 

[oslooskar]

I'm not assigning any blame as you seem to think am, I'm pointing out thast you're manipulating the rhetoric by passing off your opinion as a fact. I would hazard a guess that I know a bit more about suicide and suicidality than you do. Anecdotal evidence suggests that suicidal people are not fully responsible for their actions as they may be so distressed that they're not functioning properly. Having said that I'd like to say how impressed with the sensitivity of your remarks, but I'd probably be lying if I did...

Oh, I see, you want to play the moral superiority card while tossing out passive-aggressive jabs. Your sarcasm is noted and just as misplaced as your assumption that disagreeing with you means I lack understanding. You claim I'm "manipulating rhetoric" while asserting, without evidence, that suicidal individuals aren’t responsible for their actions. That’s your opinion, not the gospel truth.

Yes, suicidal people are often in distress, that’s the whole point. But distress doesn’t magically turn inanimate objects into causes. Guns don’t whisper suggestions. The method isn’t the root, it’s the means. And the moment we pretend otherwise, we’re just shifting the focus away from mental health and pretending that removing tools will fix the pain.

If you genuinely care about the issue, maybe stop aiming condescension at people who offer a different perspective and start advocating for better mental health care instead of playing hall monitor for tone.

 

[911]

As a former state police trooper, I was lied to so many times that I expected whatever people told me was a lie. Sometimes, I would have to ask the same question 4 or 5 different ways to get the possible truth.

 

[VaughanJB]

I just answered the question someone asked about do you own a gun.
I told about trying to figure out how people defend themselves in countries where guns are banned.
One thing I know from searching for facts on the internet is that there are a lot of people who want to act like they are an authority on about anything that you can find on the internet.
For example I bought a used Ford diesel truck in 2007 that was a 2000 model.
Those older diesels and maybe the ones now too have to have an engine heater plugged in if left outside when the temperature gets below a certain temperature.
I searched for information about using the engine heater on a Ford diesel truck.
There were a lot of people who sounded like experts who claimed that you should only leave them plugged in for a limited amount of time.
OH YEAH! If you leave it plugged in too long it will ruin the engine heater and all kinds of expert advice.
I KEPT LOOKING.
Then I found one guy who said when he was in the air force in Alaska that they kept them plugged in 24/7.
BINGO! I could tell that advice was real and was from someone who actually knew what he was talking about.
Sometimes you can tell what is real and what isn’t but sometimes you have to look a little further to find the truth.
And sometimes you have to look A LOT FURTHER IF YOU CAN FIND IT AT ALL.

I get it.

However, this whole area has gotten very very complicated. For example, back in ye olde days you'd have a circle of friends. Those friends would be a trusted resource. You knew, roughly, what they knew about, and information is freely shared. This is a community of knowledge, a community of trusted sources.

Move forward to 2025 - and now we have social media. "Communities" are tenuous, but convincing. I mean, what do we really know about the people we exchange messages with? Thing is, we treat these social media group as though they are trusted sources too. Yet, you're better off taking everything with a grain of salt.

But of course, you simply don't do that the whole time. We might wish we did, but we don't. So, Social Media leads to group think, siloed beliefs, and hurts how much we actually learn from those with opposing views, who are most often thought and treated as though they're the enemy.

When it comes to media - there is no difference in my view between so called Mainstream Media, and Alternative Media. The driving force behind them both is the same (money and exposure). Most often, Alternative Media is simply picking up what the Mainstream Media did the leg work on, they're not doing any actual work themselves. Yet, MM is apparently evil, they're liars, they're not to be trusted. As though AM doesn't lie and exploit their subscribers.

See, there used to be a bar of credibility. Hate on, say, the BBC all you want - but the fact is, they have real journalists doing real work. They trade in their reputation. Sometimes they get things wrong, and will have to apologize - because that's what it means when there are real checks and balances. Sometimes their editorial is suspect, because they're human after all. But what do we know about most of the AM? Where's their credibility? Too few people care.

Can you believe what you see on the internet? Well, you can believe some of it. Some of it is nonsense. Perhaps even the majority of it is nonsense. But we each have a brain, and the key is in figuring out what's real and what is not. You have to curate.

 

[officerripley]

Lots of tools can be used for more than killing or injuring somebody. For instance, an ax can also be used to chop wood to heat one's house. A knife can be used to chop vegetables. A razor can be used to shave. A machete or sword can be used to cut back brush. A window, other than to push somebody out of, can also be used to let fresh air in. A gun, however? Hmmm, let's see. Murder or injuring somebody or destroying something (like a road sign or target or a car)? Check. Any good productive use? Hmmmm.

 

[GoodEnuff]

Lots of tools can be used for more than killing or injuring somebody. For instance, an ax can also be used to chop wood to heat one's house. A knife can be used to chop vegetables. A razor can be used to shave. A machete or sword can be used to cut back brush. A window, other than to push somebody out of, can also be used to let fresh air in. A gun, however? Hmmm, let's see. Murder or injuring somebody or destroying something (like a road sign or target or a car)? Check. Any good productive use? Hmmmm.

Yes, I can think of several good productive uses. If you live rurally, you must protect your livestock and yourself from predators. A neighbor has lost a number of chickens, two turkeys, and two roosters to a bobcat who could actually open the door to their pen at night. We had a bear try to break into the house. Ever tromped around in an area that is home to venomous snakes? I have. We had a cottonmouth in our house. My mother, when four months pregnant, was bitten by a coral snake while gardening. I had one crawl under my chair while sitting outside.

Many people hunt to provide food for their families. There was one winter when I hunted and caught a large deer. Had I not done that, my two young children would have gone hungry. I know a few who donate the meat they catch to non-profits who feed those who need help.

And there is the time when I came home from work, around midnight, when a man came up behind me as I got out of my car. He beat the crap out of me, strangled me into unconsciousness. Know how I survived? Another man heard me screaming and came out with his gun! Scared the bad guy away real quick. No shots were fired.