zapatos

Just looked it up and it seems to be poor proof reading by the author. I think it should have said "The maternal death rate for black women rose from 34 percent per 100,000 live births in 2007 to 42.8 percent per 100,000 live births in 2011. During the same time period the maternal death rate for white women only increased by 0.7 percentage points."

What is the source of your information? Maybe I'm being dense but the following from your quote seems to indicate that greater than 1 in 3 black women die in child birth. "The maternal death rate for black women rose from 34 percent in 2007 to 42.8 percent in 2011. During the same time period the maternal death rate for white women only increased by 0.7 percentage points."

Hee hee. Thanks. Sometimes I make myself laugh and wonder if maybe I'm losing it.

Good point. As you show it is even worse than I stated. People have a hard time keeping their emotions out of this issue and looking at it only intellectually. I imagine it is especially difficult for those who aren't regularly exposed to guns. For those of us who have been around guns all our lives, your reaction will probably seem totally out of proportion to the risk. Speaking for myself I have a visceral response to the sight of snakes. I'm sure that people who are regularly exposed to snakes find my response rather silly, and know when to be afraid and when not to.

It seems to me as if the people who are so baffled by why anyone would have a gun, are hung up with the statistics that tell us that over all, guns are a negative in a society. The statistics though are not telling us that guns are negative in all instances. Some gun owners are afraid of their own weapons and never fire them, while others train with them and treat them with due respect. In some cases, not having a weapon would be foolish. Similarly, Botox and radiation are a negative in society over all, but in some instances are considered positive. In these cases though it doesn't seem that difficult to understand why people would purposely seek them out.

I thought Schrodinger's cat was an example of thinking inside the box.

Yes. Unfortunately a large number of people are given inadequate or 'wrong' information and don't have the mental acuity or resources to arrive at a more accurate view of reality.

It is rational to deny that humans and apes share a common ancestor if that is what the information you have leads you to conclude. It was also rational to conclude the earth was the center of the universe.

Citation?

I know a number of people who regularly carry guns, meaning every time they leave the house. When I was working on obtaining my concealed carry license I had a number of discussions with people regarding when they might use their guns. The general consensus seemed to be that no one would use it to protect property or to keep from being robbed. No one seemed inclined to intervene in a situation as you cannot necessarily tell who is the good/bad guy. One guy summed it up by saying that the only time he'd be likely to pull it out would be if the bad guys were herding the good guys into a back room. He stated that he would not go into the back room without a fight. I'm not advocating carrying guns, but many people here seem to be very concerned about anyone who happens to be carrying a gun. Gun owners who are thoughtful and well prepared for the the responsibility that comes with gun ownership do not bother me in the least. Unfortunately, I believe these types of gun owners are in the minority.

My understanding is that public universities in Texas no longer have the ability to ban guns on campus, although they are allowed to regulate to some extent where the guns are allowed. No private university in Texas thus far has opted to allow guns on campus.

No, I think it is a negative. It just seems to me that the gun problem is so large that this will not even be noticed. It's like having a pimple on my gangrened leg.

I'd be surprised if it made much of a difference. People carry concealed weapons whether they are "allowed" in the buildings or not. And of course no one is out there saying "Ah, finally I get to bring a gun to school so I can shoot all my classmates." It is of course another layer of risk, but any additional shootings will just get lost in the background. Not a good trend, but it wouldn't stop me from sending my kids to a school in Texas. I wouldn't be surprised if people in Texas really liked this move.

Haha. Yes, I guess there is a reason I feel that way. 1958.

That may be the best rock album ever. Certainly on the short list.

I'm not sure I understand what you are saying here as the US did their best to bomb the British back into the sea.

Did my part to fix it for you...

You continue to misunderstand me. Where exactly did I clearly express that personal safety isn't all that important to me? Perhaps you equate owning a shotgun with personal safety but I do not. You seem to be projecting your perspective of shotguns and lusting after pretty girls on to me. The contribution of my shotgun to my personal safety is minimal, somewhere on the order of having jumper cables readily available. I expect that I have significantly less than a 1% chance of being injured or dying if I don't have jumper cables or a shotgun. I have clearly stated several times now that the shotgun is not important to my safety. I don't know how else to say it. Personal safety isn't "comparable to a pursuit inspired by a "cute girl working at the counter"". I never made such a comparison. What I did say though was that not having my shotgun was about as important to me as not seeing the cute girl at the counter. Believe me or not as you wish, but please stop insinuating that I'm not being truthful.

Ah, but therein lies the risk of making assumptions. I'm all for gun control. I'd give up all my guns if that's what it took, although I'd prefer rules that allowed me to keep hunting and sport weapons. Just because something is a 'prime factor' in a decision doesn't mean it is necessarily all that important. The prime factor is me choosing my petrol station over another is the cute girl working at the counter. But I wouldn't be bothered in the least if I had to buy my petrol elsewhere. I feel like we are pretty much in agreement. I might say it differently but I don't disagree with you. Caution certainly. As I said though, I'm not afraid. That's about how much I worry about it. Or maybe as much as I worry about a major earthquake in the Midwestern United States. Agreed. I'm somewhat more at risk than you and take somewhat more precautions.

Yes. At least in any sense that could be reasonably measured. I've never picked up a gun because I was defending myself. I've never even been in a serious enough situation that I wished for a gun at that moment. I also keep extra food and water in my house in case of emergency. Been doing that for decades. The chances of me needing that food and water is IMO really slim, and I'd feel just fine if it wasn't there, because I'm unlikely to be cut off from a food supply for any period of time. But... It costs me very little to have extra food and water in the house, and it costs me very little to have a shotgun in the house, and if the need comes up I am set. So I do it. I do have other interests for my guns (skeet shooting for example), but let's focus on self defense. I have the gun for self defense, but I don't need the gun for self defense. I'm unlikely to ever use it, and I also have baseball bats and table lamps I can use to defend myself. But under some circumstances, the shotgun would serve me better. So I have it. Yes, but I don't see why it becomes an irrational choice just because it is a more dangerous tool. I regularly use my table saw instead of a safer tool because it is the better choice. Basically you are saying there is more risk using a gun than some other choices. I agree. But that is true with everything in life. I would have been safer staying at home than taking a vacation in Rome, but I went to Rome last year anyway. Guns are a risk, and like anything else risky, you should mitigate and be prepared for the possible consequences.

That is certainly one of the factors, yes. But I'd likely have one even if they were relatively rare as its usefulness remains even if others do not have guns.

Neither. I felt confident and secure prior to owning a shotgun, and I feel confident and secure now. I just feel like I'm prepared for a wider range of situations now. Next time I go hiking I may bring a LifeStraw with me. Then I'll feel like I'm prepared for a wider range of situations. Do you carry jumper cables in your car? Would you be fearful without them? Do you feel more prepared with them? This is similar to how I feel about my shotgun.

Yes, and again I might be making too big a deal of this, but I have a shotgun for personal safety, and am neither fearful, worried, or concerned. I hike a lot, as do many of my friends. When we do so, we always carry things like a whistle, knife, lighter, and emergency poncho. These items are for personal safety, as getting lost in the woods can be a serious situation. So I suppose 'concern' might cover my reason for bringing these items, although I really don't have any negative feelings when I head into the woods. Getting lost is just a risk I'm aware of and have taken preparations in case that situation occurs. Similarly I have a gun in my house for the same sort of reason. It's just a tool that may come in handy under certain circumstances. I know this is all just anecdotal but it is the same sort of feeling I get from others I know who own guns.

I may be overly picky with this, but I don't think "fear" is the right word. Perhaps "preparedness". I know a lot of people who own guns, and I wouldn't say that any of them are afraid. Certainly the blowhard gun nuts don't seem afraid. I also imagine that a large number of the gun sales are related to hunting and sport, and so don't even fit in with the "preparedness" crowd. I'm quite sure there are people who buy guns because they are genuinely afraid, but I'd guess that percentage is relatively small.