Grames Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 Ayn Rand wrote an article describing what anti-concepts are, how they work and gave numerous examples. The article "Extremism" or The Art of Smearing is available in full text at the link provided (reproduced by permission, an endnote claims). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harrison Danneskjold Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 (edited) And that's why I'm gonna have my children play with toy guns, and train, hunt and defend themselves and their country with real ones when they grow up. Nerf guns are one thing. But if you mean actual realistic looking toy guns then I think that fits my definition of gun culture: an irrational societal normalisation of portable death machines. "Irrational societal normalization" my, what an imaginative description of Society Nicky! Let's examine its rationality. To be rational is to draw logical conclusions from the facts of reality. Nicky's reasoning, if expressed as a syllogism, would look something like this: P: Guns can be used to defend yourself p: It is moral to defend yourself C: Guns can be used morally So, if this is irrational, that must mean one of three things: 1- Guns cannot be used to defend yourself 2- It is immoral to defend yourself 3- These true premises reached a false conclusion through bad logic Now let's examine the difference between playing Cops and Robbers with nerf guns and doing so with cap guns; this vast difference which allows one to be moral while the other isn't. Is it the superficial appearance of the toy, completely removed from function or use? Methinks you should check your premises. Edited July 31, 2013 by Harrison Danneskjold Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicky Posted August 7, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 7, 2013 Nerf guns are one thing. But if you mean actual realistic looking toy guns then I think that fits my definition of gun culture: an irrational societal normalisation of portable death machines.The word normalisation doesn't mean what you think it means. Harrison Danneskjold 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spiral Architect Posted August 7, 2013 Report Share Posted August 7, 2013 I honestly don't get why some people fear random inanimate objects, as if they intrinsically had bad values as living objects themselves. Then the next logical step is to have the Bushes or Obama’s of the world pretend they are Emilio Estevez and protect us all from the angry machines. Just doesn't make any sense to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kate87 Posted August 7, 2013 Report Share Posted August 7, 2013 I honestly don't get why some people fear random inanimate objects, as if they intrinsically had bad values as living objects themselves. Then the next logical step is to have the Bushes or Obama’s of the world pretend they are Emilio Estevez and protect us all from the angry machines. Just doesn't make any sense to me. Random objects? No I fear specific death machine objects. For example a kitchen knife is not a death machine even though it can kill. A handgun however is a death machine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spiral Architect Posted August 8, 2013 Report Share Posted August 8, 2013 Why does a gun choose to be a death machine? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harrison Danneskjold Posted August 8, 2013 Report Share Posted August 8, 2013 For example a kitchen knife is not a death machine even though it can kill. A handgun however is a death machine. Por que? We find ourselves, once again, back at the transcendental properties of guns. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.