The eyes of the world (or at least the part of the world that cared about this) were on the nation-state of Texas and the Karmelo Anthony trial. If you’ve been living under a rock (which may not be such a bad thing these days), Anthony was accused of murdering Austin Metcalf in April of last year. In a decision that took less time than a PBS pledge break, the jury convicted Anthony, with a sentence of 35 years in prison with the possibility of parole after 17.
Although this piece isn’t about the death penalty, let me make myself crystal clear: any time a murderer gets even a little amount of time at the Gray Bar Hotel, he or she beats the rap. Sure, prison isn’t exactly the Ritz Carlton, but every breath taken by the perp is an insult to the victim and his/her family.
One of the more interesting aspects to the trial was introducing the concept of self-defense as a legal argument. Typically Leftists treat self-defense like it’s a job application, but they occasionally toss it out there in the hopes they can convince a jury, legal or of public opinion, the alleged perp didn du nuthin. But, it’s still worth a gander.
Or a goose if you’d prefer.
self-defense
What the Left thinks it means – an unnecessary tool used by the right wing to justify killing people in cold blood
What it really means – one of the fundamental rights we have, and one the Left wants to remove
I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again: The Left is all about control over our lives. From their economic policies to their domestic policies, they want to have a say in whatever we do. We got a really good look at what that’s like during COVID by watching how Democrat Governors handled lockdowns.
Spoiler Alert: It fucking sucked.
But there was one positive that came out of it, namely we got to see what Leftists like Gavin “I Have the Hair of an 80s Movie Villain” Newsom, Gretchen “The Gretch Who Stole Christmas” Whitmer, and Andrew “I Didn’t Know Putting COVID Patients With Old People Would End So Badly” Cuomo let their masks (figurative and literal) slip to show what their endgame was. They were amongst the first to institute strict lockdown procedures and amongst the last to lessen those procedures when COVID started winding down.
Oh, and memo to Taylor Lorenz. You can take off the mask now. You look like an idiot, and this time not because of what you say or write.
The Left has the same fascination with control when it comes to self-defense. If they can’t force you to become victims, they will punish you through laws, regulations, and general dumbfuckery. Look at how they push for more gun laws when the existing ones aren’t stopping people from shooting others. It’s their standard MO, like “thoughts and prayers” but with more forms to fill out.
It should come as no surprise the blue states have the strictest gun laws in the country. Yet, these gun laws don’t result in lower gun-related death rates, with blue states recording some pretty high numbers. So, why would Leftists continue to push for more gun laws?
They’re dumbfucks.
Oh, and they want to control people’s lives.
But this goes beyond whether Jethro in Pigfuck, Arkansas or J’wan in New York City wants to pack heat. It can come down to whether Jethro or J’wan can protect himself/herself at a moment’s notice if the situation arises. And with the police being minutes away in most cases (if they even show up at all), that firearm may be the only thing saving Jethro and J’wan from getting robbed or worse.
To give a little grace, 911 can only respond so quickly, and they’re acting as a middle man to alert the police, but they don’t pass any savings onto you. Instead, it makes the possibility of the police showing up just in time to catch the robber smaller than the chances Hunter Biden starts a rehab clinic. Every second that goes by without law enforcement affects the likelihood of capturing the criminal. A lot of times the only thing working in the police’s favor is how fucking stupid the perps are. Not a sucker’s bet by any stretch of the imagination, but not something I’d be willing to risk a life on.
Aside from trying to pass more laws that criminals will ignore because they’re fucking criminals, what else do Leftists suggest? Let’s take a brief look.
– Shoot a shotgun through the door
– Call 911 and then hide or escape until the police show up. But they also say the police are racist and need to be defunded.
– If someone breaks into your house, offer to help them rebuild his/her life.
– Focus on prevention.
– Blame Republicans (naturally)
And these tactics work soooo well, Democrats are still victims of crime from carjackings to home invasions to murder, and many, many more. Being called soft on crime and having attorneys backed by our good friend Uncle George Soros decide not to prosecute actual criminals so they can, surprise surprise, commit more crimes doesn’t help them.
Nor does it help us.
Although the Left is eager to buy the concept of self-defense when it comes to Karmelo Anthony, they aren’t so quick to adopt it when it’s someone they don’t like using it. Just ask Kyle Rittenhouse, who had a legitimate self-defense claim. Even the much-maligned (and justifiably so) George Zimmerman had one. That doesn’t mean the Left has to accept it as legitimate, however. In fact, I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say they would reject most self-defense claims out of hand, except if they see political gain from it or…now this is the weird part, they’re the victims.
I know! I was as shocked as you are.
The point is the Left isn’t going to be a consistent defender of self-defense. Of course you could always self-identify as an oppressed group and watch their heads fucking explode, but there is another way.
Fuck ’em.
Not literally, of course. Never stick your dick in crazy, kids. That goes double for Dylan Mulvaney.
What I mean is you don’t need the Left’s sanction to protect yourself from those who would do you physical, mental, emotional, or fiscal harm. And given how relying on the government to move faster than molasses on a glacier is like relying on Hunter Biden to not do all the crack in a crack den, you’re better off doing it yourself. Take self-defense courses, arm yourself (legally, of course), install cameras, do what you need.
One additional thing I can suggest having lived on the mean streets of a moderately sized Midwestern city, be aware of your surroundings. Know where you are, who is around you, and have at least 2 different means of escaping a bad situation. That alone will help you as much as being strapped.
There is one caveat to any self-defense option you take. You cannot live your life in fear, and yes there is a difference between being afraid and being prepared. Fear is a great motivator, but it motivates you to do the wrong things. Being prepared means you can act calmly and decisively. Most people out there don’t give two fucks about you, or even enough fucks to want to fuck up your life. They’re dealing with the same societal shit you are and may be just as frustrated as you.
This is where you need to show a little humanity if only to spread some light in these dark times. This may seem counterintuitive when dealing with self-defense, but it’s a lot better way to go through life. Being prepared and humane makes you John Wick. Being prepared and anti-social makes you the Punisher. There’s a huge difference, namely in choice of work clothes and vehicles.
In the Karmelo Anthony case, it was a lack of humanity that caused Austin Metcalf’s death and, appropriately enough, negated his self-defense defense. See, the thing about self-defense is you can’t initiate conflict and use it. Call it the “Talk Shit, Get Hit” Principle. Self-defense is always reactionary, which is weird Leftists don’t like it because they’re usually in favor of reactionaries.
Regardless, you don’t have to play by the Left’s rules on this matter. They need you to be victims so they can swoop in and “protect” you via ineffective and illogical laws and enforcement. You don’t have to be one, though. You have the ability to defend yourselves and your loved ones and, even in the bluest of blue states, you’re better off taking a chance on getting arrested than getting killed.
Consider it the ultimate DIY project.
Tag: self-defense
Leftist Lexicon Word of the Week
In case you’ve been living under a rock recently (and given housing prices these days, I wouldn’t blame you if you did), there was a little trial in Kenosha, Wisconsin, where Kyle Rittenhouse faced some serious charges and was ultimately acquitted. At the heart of the trial and the situation that came before it is the concept of self-defense. Others have hashed out the various details of the case itself, so I won’t go too far into it because a) they’ve done a better job than your humble correspondent could, and b) you’ve probably heard as much, if not more, about it than I have.
With the Rittenhouse case, people on all sides have been focusing on whether what he did constitutes self-defense from a legal standpoint, but not too many have looked into the political aspect of it. That’s where I come in!
self-defense
What the Left thinks it means – an antiquated and unnecessary idea used to drive gun sales to paranoid right-wingers and gun nuts
What it really means – a principle essential to personal freedom
To put it mildly, things have gotten a little weird out there in the past couple of decades. Between Leftists LARPing as World War II vets and Trump supporters acting like, well, Trump supporters, you’re likely to find yourself in the middle of a conflict that can go pear-shaped before you can say, “Hey, isn’t that a pear?” Throw in all sorts of racial, sexual, and sociological contexts and you have a melting pot on the verge of melting down.
Such was the case in Kenosha, where protestors decided to do what the Property Brothers do, just in reverse. As you might expect, property owners (some of whom could be brothers, I suppose) didn’t like the impromptu Burning Man/Woodstock 99/any weekend with Lindsey Lohan vibe in the city. And the Kenosha police? Well, they were trying to maintain order by letting the protestors run around unopposed. Put another way, Barney Fife was Rambo next to these clowns.
Enter 17 year old Kyle Rittenhouse, a young man who lived in Illinois, but worked in Kenosha. If the stories we’ve heard are true, he was asked to help protect a business in Kenosha, but he also wanted to tend to any wounded people there if needed. (Maybe it’s me, but that doesn’t sound like a bloodthirsty killer.) It wasn’t until he felt threatened by the riot…I mean protestors that he fired his rifle. And with one guy pointing a gun at him and another smacking him with a skateboard, it’s clear his life was in danger. Regardless of whether you feel he should have been there, the fact he was attacked and didn’t fire first shows he wasn’t there to get his jollies by killing people. He felt there was no other option than to shoot and he acted accordingly to protect himself in the absence of police.
And that’s why the Left lost their shit.
To the Left, anyone who isn’t one of them is a dullard and needs to have Leftists run his or her life. The minute you show even an iota of initiative to do something yourself is the minute you become dangerous to the Left. After all, if you don’t need government to do everything for you, you won’t need…them.
Thus, the Left has taken up the cause to make bureaucracy as expansive and essential as necessary so more and more of us become wards of the state. And they’ll make it happen by any means necessary, including convincing/coercing people to comply. Whether it’s an additional charge to make a payment with a credit card over the phone or demanding people jump through flaming hoops only to have the state reject a gun permit, the Left’s goal with all of that is to make sure they have their noses in our business for no legitimate reason. Just ask Glenn Beck about the hassles he endured just trying to put up a fence on his property in the Northeast.
So, when someone decides to cut out the middle-man and pass the savings directly on to, well, himself/herself, the Left loses money and power, which makes them more than a little cranky. You see, the Left believes in self-determination so long as you abide by whatever they deem appropriate. Kyle Rittenhouse didn’t, and as a result is being held up as what’s wrong with the Right, an enemy that needs no courtesy or even an obligation to get even basic facts right. He’s an “other” just as anyone else who defies the Left.
And, as a result, Rittenhouse may get Nick Sandmann rich soon. But that’s a blog post for another time.
Self-defense is the ultimate fuck-you to the Left. After all, the Left think only the police and military should have firearms. You know, the same police that are racist and the same military that is a tool of the elites? Mind-blowing hypocrisy aside, this is to a) make it harder for people to defend themselves, and b) creating a need that only government can fulfill. The only problem with that is time. Anyone who has spent any amount of time at the DMV knows the speed of government is usually inert. No matter how quickly your need is, the police will get there when they get there and not a second sooner.
Provided they come at all or aren’t hamstrung by politicians. Anyone want to turn your community into San Francisco East? I’m gonna go out on a limb and say you don’t, but it’s the way the Left wants us to live: where the law-abiding are always the victims of the lawless. If you take up arms to protect yourself from being a victim, the Left can’t take it.
And that’s why you should do it, if you want to.
Really, it’s not a good reason why, but it’s certainly attractive. The best reason is because you have a right to be secure in your person, and if the government or its agents can’t or won’t respect that right, you shouldn’t be shamed into submission. If we take nothing else from the Kyle Rittenhouse situation, it’s that the best way to not be a victim is to understand what power you have and to never let anyone take it from you.
Oh, and that Leftists suck at keeping track of the facts of a criminal case before spewing ignorance.