tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19305198.post5372512560809283475..comments2024-03-27T03:19:11.216-04:00Comments on Assistant Village Idiot: A Comfortable Place To SitAssistant Village Idiothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01978011985085795099noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19305198.post-60952555254044274662022-05-27T21:56:12.385-04:002022-05-27T21:56:12.385-04:00I don't know. If no one else here does I'l...I don't know. If no one else here does I'll have a look.Assistant Village Idiothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01978011985085795099noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19305198.post-41419607188884314402022-05-27T21:17:33.493-04:002022-05-27T21:17:33.493-04:00On a different topic (one that came up tonight), w...On a different topic (one that came up tonight), what effect has legalizing marijuana had on organized crime in those states? My prediction was that there'd not be much impact (tax avoidance, special additives). <br /><br />I haven't checked the overall crime rates yet, much less tried to parse out what component of that is organized crime.jameshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01792036361407527304noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19305198.post-25013517544221953042022-05-27T14:34:15.235-04:002022-05-27T14:34:15.235-04:00@ Douglas 2. I forgot to mention what an excellen...@ Douglas 2. I forgot to mention what an excellent comment that was. I have people with a remarkable range of experiences here.Assistant Village Idiothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01978011985085795099noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19305198.post-18286208237934103262022-05-27T14:32:44.040-04:002022-05-27T14:32:44.040-04:00Grim, the algorithms work in terms of selling us s...Grim, the algorithms work in terms of selling us stuff, so people assume they must be accurate about politics and culture as well.<br /><br />And then they believe those stereotypes.Assistant Village Idiothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01978011985085795099noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19305198.post-53025817468364617672022-05-27T14:06:22.990-04:002022-05-27T14:06:22.990-04:00I'm afraid to look at mine. I jump down the ra...I'm afraid to look at mine. I jump down the rabbit hole of woodworking videos all the time, with an occasional foray into movie clips and comedians, mostly Drybar videos.<br /><br />But truth be told, I do only have a HS education with some college in the mix.Mike Guentherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13760305520055214986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19305198.post-85873946076219444832022-05-27T12:08:43.102-04:002022-05-27T12:08:43.102-04:00A tangentially related comment: Reviewing my Googl...A tangentially related comment: Reviewing my Google stats the other day, I found that they estimate my education at the high-school level. Looking into why, I found that it was because of my YouTube video habits, which mimic those of people who have a high school education. I assume they mean my frequent habit of watching videos about how to repair motorcycles, Jeeps, and trucks, which is a task I undertake regularly. <br /><br />I think it would be a good discipline for highly-educated people to understand how the machinery that makes their life possible works, and to develop self-sufficiency in ordinary repairs. I think it would likewise be good to undertake responsibility for providing your own security, another technical matter that requires study and training. These things both increase your own understanding and personal responsibility while providing society with a resiliency against the troubles of the world. Both are, however, <i>déclassé</i>. Grimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07543082562999855432noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19305198.post-28101884693950141492022-05-27T11:36:09.379-04:002022-05-27T11:36:09.379-04:00The problem with the left and their "We have ...The problem with the left and their "We have to do something" canard, is that there are already a vast myriad of gun laws and regulations on the books. As is well known, criminals don't obey the law...and another law or regulation isn't going to change that, although it will hurt law abiding citizens and encroach on their rights.<br /><br />The progressive left doesn't enforce the laws we have now. DA's in several democrat controlled cities are releasing violent criminals with little to no bail all the time, only for them to go out and commit another crime of violence. <br /><br />It has always been about control. The progressive left wants the monopoly on use of force. The only way for them to get that is for citizens to be unarmed.Mike Guentherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13760305520055214986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19305198.post-23779622884362613032022-05-27T10:19:06.169-04:002022-05-27T10:19:06.169-04:00There's a book I stumbled upon via a review: R...There's a book I stumbled upon via a review: <i>Rampage: The Social Roots of School Shootings</i> that I think I should be getting due to my spending lots of time looking at data after such events. Its authors look to be very much academic left -- the lead author is now some sort of 'chancellor' in the MA state university system. Yet in the initial review that I saw (and a few other reviews I searched out), access to firearms isn't even mentioned in the analysis of the factors common to perpetrators of such events.<br /><br />I caution against analysis of differences between USA high-access and USA restricted-access jurisdictions, because - although Manhattan is an island, like Great Britain -- there are not customs checks of shipments and packages and people entering. As with authorities in Canada and Mexico complaining about guns crossing the border and being used in crime, the authorities own data shows that this problem is VASTLY exaggerated , but it is not non-existent.<br />I was living in the UK post-Dunblane as all the changes to UK firearms law took place, the initial result for the next few years was opposite of what one would expect. From my reading and memory gun crime statistics only started going down in the UK after the very expensive and extensive https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Trident_(Metropolitan_Police) had been in operation for several years. It really was looking at the relationships between criminals who used guns and how guns were accessed and transferred within that group that solved the problem -- and this in a country where they really could highly-effectively stop guns from coming across their international border.<br /><br />Douglas2Douglas2https://www.blogger.com/profile/11290012200563917585noreply@blogger.com