America's Gun Violence #2

Halifax2TheMax

Good lord. You go Tejas. Just give the kids .38s, tell them to defend themselves and be done with it.

Winnie-the-Pooh book teaches kids to ‘run, hide, fight’ in a shooting

When Cindy Campos’s 5-year-old son came back from school, he eagerly pulled from his bag a book he’d been given at school. He wanted to read it right away.

Campos took the book and froze. On the bright red cover, next to an illustration of Winnie-the-Pooh, were the words “Run Hide Fight.”

She skimmed through the pages and found it was an instructional book intended to teach children — in rhyming lines rendered in curly font — what to do in a school shooting.

“Danger is scary, but our legendary friends Pooh and his crew are here to help us through,” reads one page.

“If danger finds us, don’t stay, run away,” reads another, accompanied by a drawing of the characters Kanga and Roo in boxing gloves. “If we can’t get away, we have to FIGHT with all our might.”

The distribution of the books around May 15, which was first reported by the Oak Cliff Advocate, sparked a wave of concern from parents in Campos’s Dallas school district, she told The Washington Post. Campos, whose children attend Leslie A. Stemmons Elementary School, found another copy of the book in her first-grade son’s bag and later learned from a teacher that the books had been issued by their school.

Campos criticized the decision to distribute the books without informing parents and questioned the school district’s “tone deaf” timing, just over a week before the anniversary of the school shooting that killed 19 schoolchildren and two teachers in Uvalde, Tex. More than anything, she said, the surreal image of Winnie-the-Pooh telling her children to hide and fight felt like an infuriating sign of acceptance in a country that has endured hundreds of school shootings.

“It’s kind of like a slap in the face,” Campos said. “‘Hey! It’s normal now. Have a book about it.’”

A spokesperson for the Dallas Independent School District wrote that the district faces a “reality … no different than any other school district in America” with regard to the risk of school shootings.

“Recently a booklet was sent home so parents could discuss with their children how to stay safe in such cases,” the spokesperson said. “Unfortunately, we did not provide parents any guide or context. We apologize for the confusion and are thankful to parents who reached out to assist us in being better partners.”

Campos said that she couldn’t avoid discussing the topic of shootings with her two sons, ages 5 and 7, after the mass killing at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde last year. But they’re still too young to fully grapple with the subject.

“They’re thinking, ‘Oh, it’s kind of like my Nerf gun,’” Campos said. “I’m trying to tell them, in a ‘cute, but it’s going to be okay’ way, that it’s not. And I don’t even know how to do that as a parent. It’s not in the parenting books.”

Campos’s youngest son, who’s now in prekindergarten, didn’t realize the subject of the book he handed to his mother, either. When Campos sat down with him to read it later that evening, she said he still hadn’t grasped the severity of the book’s warnings. That they were delivered by Winnie-the-Pooh didn’t seem to help.

“You can’t, like, hide in a honey pot,” Campos said. “It just felt very pretend. To him, he’s thinking, this isn’t about guns.”

The Winnie-the-Pooh book, titled “Stay Safe,” was published by Praetorian Consulting, a company that provides security training to businesses and schools. Its website advertises the book as part of a K-6 curriculum developed by police officers and teachers to teach safety during school intrusions in an “age-appropriate format.” It can use Winnie-the-Pooh and the rest of A.A. Milne’s cast of animal characters because they entered the public domain in 2022, the site adds.

“It is our belief that, as with other school safety strategies like fire-drills, pedestrian safety and stranger-danger, the concepts of Run, Hide, Fight must be discussed regularly with students of all ages,” Praetorian Consulting’s website reads.

Praetorian Consulting did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday evening.

Campos said she didn’t make a complaint to her school or the district but discussed the book with her prekindergarten son’s teacher, who told her that she’d been given the book as one of many the school routinely gives to students to read. After reading the book with her son, Campos shared her concerns in a community Facebook group and found several other parents and teachers who were also alarmed, she said, including those from other schools in the Dallas Independent School District.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D), who has disparaged gun laws in red states like Texas, joined the criticism on social media.

“Winnie the Pooh is now teaching Texas kids about active shooters because the elected officials do not have the courage to keep our kids safe and pass common sense gun safety laws,” he said in a tweet.

Daniel Campos, Campos’s brother, said the thought of his nephews confronting the reality of school shootings in a Winnie-the-Pooh book was frustrating — all the more so, he added, as the anniversary of the Uvalde shooting passes and in the absence of stricter gun laws.

“The best they can do is give a children’s book and hope for the best,” he said.

Roughly two weeks after Campos’s son first brought it home, the Winnie-the-Pooh book is still on her son’s shelf. Soon, she will have to continue grappling with the question of how to explain its message to her son.

“He wants to read it again,” Campos said. “I’m pretty sure because I cried. To them, it’s like, something made mommy cry. What’s going on?”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2023/05/26/winnie-pooh-school-shooting-book/

HughFreakingDillon

https://twitter.com/troywestwood/status/1662317642303041536?s=46

Jon Stewart for President

brianlux

The news related to shootings has, itself, become like a rapid fire automatic weapon,

And now for the news: shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting shooting......

mickeyrat

https://twitter.com/joncoopertweets/status/1662776577141141506?t=tYNanwgEM4OaCKQM4tTjyQ&s=19

mickeyrat

https://twitter.com/shannonrwatts/status/1663337777210195968?t=G_EZqPQiv20OJehjNEppQw&s=19

josevolution

Weekend full of gun violence throughout the nation of guns! Did we reach the 100 victims threshold? 

mickeyrat

https://twitter.com/davidhogg111/status/1662838341627174913?t=KknaK_nCGHHQvwszgS1MHw&s=19

Bentleyspop

https://twitter.com/JasonIsbell/status/1664689296912142342?t=shGhJW8KLfJ9rd9EykuREQ&s=19

Merkin Baller

Sobering stuff. 

https://www.propublica.org/article/ryan-busse-explains-roots-of-us-gun-violence

Former Gun Company Executive Explains Roots of America’s Gun Violence Epidemic

by Corey G. JohnsonJune 2, 10:10 a.m. EDT

Ryan Busse once worked for a major gun-maker. He now warns about the danger of growing radicalization in the industry.

“What caused the radicalization?

It was a combination of factors. After Columbine in 1999, the National Rifle Association in very well-publicized meetings now, thanks to sleuthing and digging by reporters at NPR, we now have tapes of the meetings where they literally said, are we going to be part of the solution here? Or maybe we can use these things to drum up hate and fear in our members? We might even be able to use them to drive membership. And they chose the latter. They perfected that system for about seven or eight years, getting their feet underneath them. They figured out it can drive politics. And then an explosion hit. That explosion was the future Black president leading in the polls in 2007. And then Barack Obama won in 2008. So you have this sort of uncapping of hate and conspiracy, much of it racially driven, that the NRA was tapping into. Prior to 2007, people in the United States never purchased more than 7 million guns in a single year. By the time Barack Obama left office, the United States was purchasing almost 17 million guns a year. And so I think it’s impossible to discount the degree to which Obama’s presidency lit this whole thing on fire.”

josevolution

😂😂 17 million in 2016 what’s it up to now? 

Merkin Baller

josevolution said:

😂😂 17 million in 2016 what’s it up to now? 

““When Trump was elected, there was what was called in the industry the “Trump Slump,” meaning since a Republican was elected, the fear of Obama was gone, and Hillary Clinton didn’t get elected. The sort of fear and conspiracy subsided, and sales stagnated for a little while because the industry and gun owners believed that the threat had passed. But with Trump, we experienced a whole new, never seen before level of fear, racism, hatred and conspiracy that culminated in 2020. In that year, you had George Floyd, COVID lockdowns, Black Lives Matter, Antifa protests and Kyle Rittenhouse. I mean, it’s the most tumultuous year any of us can remember with the most hatred and conspiracy and nastiness. None of us can remember a year like that. In that year, the United States consumers bought almost 23 million guns in a single year, more than three times as much as before Barack Obama took office.”

dudeman

Merkin Baller said:

josevolution said:

😂😂 17 million in 2016 what’s it up to now? 

““When Trump was elected, there was what was called in the industry the “Trump Slump,” meaning since a Republican was elected, the fear of Obama was gone, and Hillary Clinton didn’t get elected. The sort of fear and conspiracy subsided, and sales stagnated for a little while because the industry and gun owners believed that the threat had passed. But with Trump, we experienced a whole new, never seen before level of fear, racism, hatred and conspiracy that culminated in 2020. In that year, you had George Floyd, COVID lockdowns, Black Lives Matter, Antifa protests and Kyle Rittenhouse. I mean, it’s the most tumultuous year any of us can remember with the most hatred and conspiracy and nastiness. None of us can remember a year like that. In that year, the United States consumers bought almost 23 million guns in a single year, more than three times as much as before Barack Obama took office.”

Also worth noting is that women and non-whites purchased record numbers of firearms during that time. 

The article above kind of hints that racist white people are the ones buying all these guns but it wasn't just them, it was nearly everyone, regardless of race or gender.

Merkin Baller

dudeman said:

Merkin Baller said:

josevolution said:

😂😂 17 million in 2016 what’s it up to now? 

““When Trump was elected, there was what was called in the industry the “Trump Slump,” meaning since a Republican was elected, the fear of Obama was gone, and Hillary Clinton didn’t get elected. The sort of fear and conspiracy subsided, and sales stagnated for a little while because the industry and gun owners believed that the threat had passed. But with Trump, we experienced a whole new, never seen before level of fear, racism, hatred and conspiracy that culminated in 2020. In that year, you had George Floyd, COVID lockdowns, Black Lives Matter, Antifa protests and Kyle Rittenhouse. I mean, it’s the most tumultuous year any of us can remember with the most hatred and conspiracy and nastiness. None of us can remember a year like that. In that year, the United States consumers bought almost 23 million guns in a single year, more than three times as much as before Barack Obama took office.”

Also worth noting is that women and non-whites purchased record numbers of firearms during that time. 

The article above kind of hints that racist white people are the ones buying all these guns but it wasn't just them, it was nearly everyone, regardless of race or gender.

Does it though? 

I don’t recall where they discussed the demographics of who was buying guns. 

mickeyrat

Merkin Baller said:

dudeman said:

Merkin Baller said:

josevolution said:

😂😂 17 million in 2016 what’s it up to now? 

““When Trump was elected, there was what was called in the industry the “Trump Slump,” meaning since a Republican was elected, the fear of Obama was gone, and Hillary Clinton didn’t get elected. The sort of fear and conspiracy subsided, and sales stagnated for a little while because the industry and gun owners believed that the threat had passed. But with Trump, we experienced a whole new, never seen before level of fear, racism, hatred and conspiracy that culminated in 2020. In that year, you had George Floyd, COVID lockdowns, Black Lives Matter, Antifa protests and Kyle Rittenhouse. I mean, it’s the most tumultuous year any of us can remember with the most hatred and conspiracy and nastiness. None of us can remember a year like that. In that year, the United States consumers bought almost 23 million guns in a single year, more than three times as much as before Barack Obama took office.”

Also worth noting is that women and non-whites purchased record numbers of firearms during that time. 

The article above kind of hints that racist white people are the ones buying all these guns but it wasn't just them, it was nearly everyone, regardless of race or gender.

Does it though? 

I don’t recall where they discussed the demographics of who was buying guns. 

easily implied with all the white people openly carrying we see now.

Merkin Baller

mickeyrat said:

Merkin Baller said:

dudeman said:

Merkin Baller said:

josevolution said:

😂😂 17 million in 2016 what’s it up to now? 

““When Trump was elected, there was what was called in the industry the “Trump Slump,” meaning since a Republican was elected, the fear of Obama was gone, and Hillary Clinton didn’t get elected. The sort of fear and conspiracy subsided, and sales stagnated for a little while because the industry and gun owners believed that the threat had passed. But with Trump, we experienced a whole new, never seen before level of fear, racism, hatred and conspiracy that culminated in 2020. In that year, you had George Floyd, COVID lockdowns, Black Lives Matter, Antifa protests and Kyle Rittenhouse. I mean, it’s the most tumultuous year any of us can remember with the most hatred and conspiracy and nastiness. None of us can remember a year like that. In that year, the United States consumers bought almost 23 million guns in a single year, more than three times as much as before Barack Obama took office.”

Also worth noting is that women and non-whites purchased record numbers of firearms during that time. 

The article above kind of hints that racist white people are the ones buying all these guns but it wasn't just them, it was nearly everyone, regardless of race or gender.

Does it though? 

I don’t recall where they discussed the demographics of who was buying guns. 

easily implied with all the white people openly carrying we see now.

Yeah, I saw where racial unrest / animosity were mentioned as societal factors impacting gun sales over the last 20 years, I just didn’t see where the article dove into or even casually discussed the demographics of who was buying & owning the guns. 

It does touch on the young male demo as related to online advertising, but I don’t recall any other demographic being discussed much at all, let alone in the context of ownership or purchases. 

dudeman

Merkin Baller said:

mickeyrat said:

Merkin Baller said:

dudeman said:

Merkin Baller said:

josevolution said:

😂😂 17 million in 2016 what’s it up to now? 

““When Trump was elected, there was what was called in the industry the “Trump Slump,” meaning since a Republican was elected, the fear of Obama was gone, and Hillary Clinton didn’t get elected. The sort of fear and conspiracy subsided, and sales stagnated for a little while because the industry and gun owners believed that the threat had passed. But with Trump, we experienced a whole new, never seen before level of fear, racism, hatred and conspiracy that culminated in 2020. In that year, you had George Floyd, COVID lockdowns, Black Lives Matter, Antifa protests and Kyle Rittenhouse. I mean, it’s the most tumultuous year any of us can remember with the most hatred and conspiracy and nastiness. None of us can remember a year like that. In that year, the United States consumers bought almost 23 million guns in a single year, more than three times as much as before Barack Obama took office.”

Also worth noting is that women and non-whites purchased record numbers of firearms during that time. 

The article above kind of hints that racist white people are the ones buying all these guns but it wasn't just them, it was nearly everyone, regardless of race or gender.

Does it though? 

I don’t recall where they discussed the demographics of who was buying guns. 

easily implied with all the white people openly carrying we see now.

Yeah, I saw where racial unrest / animosity were mentioned as societal factors impacting gun sales over the last 20 years, I just didn’t see where the article dove into or even casually discussed the demographics of who was buying & owning the guns. 

It does touch on the young male demo as related to online advertising, but I don’t recall any other demographic being discussed much at all, let alone in the context of ownership or purchases. 

It doesn't discuss demographics, that's why I said it implied. 

Merkin Baller

dudeman said:

Merkin Baller said:

mickeyrat said:

Merkin Baller said:

dudeman said:

Merkin Baller said:

josevolution said:

😂😂 17 million in 2016 what’s it up to now? 

““When Trump was elected, there was what was called in the industry the “Trump Slump,” meaning since a Republican was elected, the fear of Obama was gone, and Hillary Clinton didn’t get elected. The sort of fear and conspiracy subsided, and sales stagnated for a little while because the industry and gun owners believed that the threat had passed. But with Trump, we experienced a whole new, never seen before level of fear, racism, hatred and conspiracy that culminated in 2020. In that year, you had George Floyd, COVID lockdowns, Black Lives Matter, Antifa protests and Kyle Rittenhouse. I mean, it’s the most tumultuous year any of us can remember with the most hatred and conspiracy and nastiness. None of us can remember a year like that. In that year, the United States consumers bought almost 23 million guns in a single year, more than three times as much as before Barack Obama took office.”

Also worth noting is that women and non-whites purchased record numbers of firearms during that time. 

The article above kind of hints that racist white people are the ones buying all these guns but it wasn't just them, it was nearly everyone, regardless of race or gender.

Does it though? 

I don’t recall where they discussed the demographics of who was buying guns. 

easily implied with all the white people openly carrying we see now.

Yeah, I saw where racial unrest / animosity were mentioned as societal factors impacting gun sales over the last 20 years, I just didn’t see where the article dove into or even casually discussed the demographics of who was buying & owning the guns. 

It does touch on the young male demo as related to online advertising, but I don’t recall any other demographic being discussed much at all, let alone in the context of ownership or purchases. 

It doesn't discuss demographics, that's why I said it implied. 

The didn’t make any claims at all about who was purchasing or owning guns… they talked about what factors were fueling the gun violence epidemic. Any inference you drew about who was buying the guns is just that… an inference. 

dudeman

Merkin Baller said:

dudeman said:

Merkin Baller said:

mickeyrat said:

Merkin Baller said:

dudeman said:

Merkin Baller said:

josevolution said:

😂😂 17 million in 2016 what’s it up to now? 

““When Trump was elected, there was what was called in the industry the “Trump Slump,” meaning since a Republican was elected, the fear of Obama was gone, and Hillary Clinton didn’t get elected. The sort of fear and conspiracy subsided, and sales stagnated for a little while because the industry and gun owners believed that the threat had passed. But with Trump, we experienced a whole new, never seen before level of fear, racism, hatred and conspiracy that culminated in 2020. In that year, you had George Floyd, COVID lockdowns, Black Lives Matter, Antifa protests and Kyle Rittenhouse. I mean, it’s the most tumultuous year any of us can remember with the most hatred and conspiracy and nastiness. None of us can remember a year like that. In that year, the United States consumers bought almost 23 million guns in a single year, more than three times as much as before Barack Obama took office.”

Also worth noting is that women and non-whites purchased record numbers of firearms during that time. 

The article above kind of hints that racist white people are the ones buying all these guns but it wasn't just them, it was nearly everyone, regardless of race or gender.

Does it though? 

I don’t recall where they discussed the demographics of who was buying guns. 

easily implied with all the white people openly carrying we see now.

Yeah, I saw where racial unrest / animosity were mentioned as societal factors impacting gun sales over the last 20 years, I just didn’t see where the article dove into or even casually discussed the demographics of who was buying & owning the guns. 

It does touch on the young male demo as related to online advertising, but I don’t recall any other demographic being discussed much at all, let alone in the context of ownership or purchases. 

It doesn't discuss demographics, that's why I said it implied. 

The didn’t make any claims at all about who was purchasing or owning guns… they talked about what factors were fueling the gun violence epidemic. Any inference you drew about who was buying the guns is just that… an inference. 

That part about Obama being elected fueling massive amounts of gun sales, the proliferation of fear and hatred, much of it racially driven. What demographic do you think would be motivated to buy guns to counter a black president?

That is the implication that I am talking about. It suggests a narrative without coming out and saying "racist white guys are buying all the guns".

gimmesometruth27

dudeman said:

Merkin Baller said:

dudeman said:

Merkin Baller said:

mickeyrat said:

Merkin Baller said:

dudeman said:

Merkin Baller said:

josevolution said:

😂😂 17 million in 2016 what’s it up to now? 

““When Trump was elected, there was what was called in the industry the “Trump Slump,” meaning since a Republican was elected, the fear of Obama was gone, and Hillary Clinton didn’t get elected. The sort of fear and conspiracy subsided, and sales stagnated for a little while because the industry and gun owners believed that the threat had passed. But with Trump, we experienced a whole new, never seen before level of fear, racism, hatred and conspiracy that culminated in 2020. In that year, you had George Floyd, COVID lockdowns, Black Lives Matter, Antifa protests and Kyle Rittenhouse. I mean, it’s the most tumultuous year any of us can remember with the most hatred and conspiracy and nastiness. None of us can remember a year like that. In that year, the United States consumers bought almost 23 million guns in a single year, more than three times as much as before Barack Obama took office.”

Also worth noting is that women and non-whites purchased record numbers of firearms during that time. 

The article above kind of hints that racist white people are the ones buying all these guns but it wasn't just them, it was nearly everyone, regardless of race or gender.

Does it though? 

I don’t recall where they discussed the demographics of who was buying guns. 

easily implied with all the white people openly carrying we see now.

Yeah, I saw where racial unrest / animosity were mentioned as societal factors impacting gun sales over the last 20 years, I just didn’t see where the article dove into or even casually discussed the demographics of who was buying & owning the guns. 

It does touch on the young male demo as related to online advertising, but I don’t recall any other demographic being discussed much at all, let alone in the context of ownership or purchases. 

It doesn't discuss demographics, that's why I said it implied. 

The didn’t make any claims at all about who was purchasing or owning guns… they talked about what factors were fueling the gun violence epidemic. Any inference you drew about who was buying the guns is just that… an inference. 

That part about Obama being elected fueling massive amounts of gun sales, the proliferation of fear and hatred, much of it racially driven. What demographic do you think would be motivated to buy guns to counter a black president?

That is the implication that I am talking about. It suggests a narrative without coming out and saying "racist white guys are buying all the guns".

i agree.

i was alive when obama was elected and i do not recall a single prominent african american all over social media or real media saying "ObAmA iS gOnNa TaKe MuH gUnS sO i BeTteR gEt AlL tHe GuNs AnD aMmO i CaN!!!"

that was ALL conservative white men on conservative talk radio and fox news.

Merkin Baller

dudeman said:

Merkin Baller said:

dudeman said:

Merkin Baller said:

mickeyrat said:

Merkin Baller said:

dudeman said:

Merkin Baller said:

josevolution said:

😂😂 17 million in 2016 what’s it up to now? 

““When Trump was elected, there was what was called in the industry the “Trump Slump,” meaning since a Republican was elected, the fear of Obama was gone, and Hillary Clinton didn’t get elected. The sort of fear and conspiracy subsided, and sales stagnated for a little while because the industry and gun owners believed that the threat had passed. But with Trump, we experienced a whole new, never seen before level of fear, racism, hatred and conspiracy that culminated in 2020. In that year, you had George Floyd, COVID lockdowns, Black Lives Matter, Antifa protests and Kyle Rittenhouse. I mean, it’s the most tumultuous year any of us can remember with the most hatred and conspiracy and nastiness. None of us can remember a year like that. In that year, the United States consumers bought almost 23 million guns in a single year, more than three times as much as before Barack Obama took office.”

Also worth noting is that women and non-whites purchased record numbers of firearms during that time. 

The article above kind of hints that racist white people are the ones buying all these guns but it wasn't just them, it was nearly everyone, regardless of race or gender.

Does it though? 

I don’t recall where they discussed the demographics of who was buying guns. 

easily implied with all the white people openly carrying we see now.

Yeah, I saw where racial unrest / animosity were mentioned as societal factors impacting gun sales over the last 20 years, I just didn’t see where the article dove into or even casually discussed the demographics of who was buying & owning the guns. 

It does touch on the young male demo as related to online advertising, but I don’t recall any other demographic being discussed much at all, let alone in the context of ownership or purchases. 

It doesn't discuss demographics, that's why I said it implied. 

The didn’t make any claims at all about who was purchasing or owning guns… they talked about what factors were fueling the gun violence epidemic. Any inference you drew about who was buying the guns is just that… an inference. 

That part about Obama being elected fueling massive amounts of gun sales, the proliferation of fear and hatred, much of it racially driven. What demographic do you think would be motivated to buy guns to counter a black president?

That is the implication that I am talking about. It suggests a narrative without coming out and saying "racist white guys are buying all the guns".

Do you think what they said is inaccurate? 

I mean… there has been racial unrest coinciding w/ a massive spike in gun sales.