Cortese's Corner - formerly Beefy's Corner, the off topic chat thread

I'd like to hear those people explain why then, if that's the case, American people are more violent than those of other countries.

 

Just finished watching "12 Years a Slave"...very powerful and moving with some great performances. It took me right back to my adolescence when "Roots" affected me so deeply.

 

There is one piece of evidence people could point to, which is that Switzerland has so many guns per person [not a Jeremy Clarkson myth] that they make Americans look a little half-hearted about it. It could be said that the USA lives in a culture of violence, but I reckon they live in a movie. The culture of the USA is one of Hollywood film violence, born out of the gun culture that gave the film makers the stories. Generations have grown up with it, and it shouldn't really be surprising when those generations begin to act like the daring fictional movie counterparts.

 

Didn't realise it was in the cinemas yet..? Might go myself.

 

I'm sure the main difference with Switzerland is that they're all trained. I'm sure if America had some compulsory military service they'd be more responsible with their guns, but I can't say I'm a supporter of that either.

 

They say that people will kill anyway, but giving them easy access to guns is very helpful in helping someone to kill and may give them the feeling of power to go and kill someone. If America is a violent society, should they be given easy access to guns? There's another one which amuses me: The belief that gun control leads to genocide because people can't protect themselves from the government.

 

i suppose their strongest argument would be that it democratises violence.

 

Neither am I a supporter of that, Joe.

I'm aware that the reason Americans so vehemently oppose the move to take guns away is so they can defend themselves against their own government. It isn't a realistic thought, even though some of them could put up stiff resistance. And it's not exactly the thought of a mature society to keep within its means the ability to raise arms against the institution it democratically votes in every so often.

No doubt we'll have this conversation again when yet another American shoots a load of other people for no apparent reason.

 

It is little wonder that that violence is so endemic in the USA, they take their kids to watch adults supposedly beat each other with all manner of objects in the name of "sports entertainment" in a kind of modern day gladitorial contest with the crowd almost baying for blood. These "Superstars" seem to have no redeeming qualities but are held up as role models and hero worshipped. Before anybody says it is all fake and nobody really gets hurt, I say that it can't be good for young, impressionable minds to idolise such seemingly hateful behaviour.

 

Switzerland also puts heavy restrictions on carrying weapons in public, whereas many states require you to take a brief safety course (and in a couple, none at all), after which you're free to carry a gun with you in most public spaces.

 

I used to think this was a joke. But then I met Americans who actually believe it.

 

Some Americans really buy into their wild frontier past. There was little law available in most of the land, so the law was put into individual hands out of necessity and then enshrined into their constitution. They have given the latter all the authority of a god as it doesn't occur to them that times change. I do understand on one level...the founders of America were trying to protect the people against unjust governments. The survivalists (and related nutters) should be viewed as cults, sadly damaging their children with the idea that everyone is their enemy (especially their own government). The rednecks had this confirmed for them when a black man became president...rednecks tending to be racist. The Americans have an insoluble problem caused by their history.

 

Spot on. The country was founded on killing Indians with guns, then it was civil war, then parts of the country still like a cowboy movie well into the 1900s. Prohibition made gangsters out of bar owners. They also gave the world gangsta rap. It's no exageration to call it a violent country.

 

And massive restrictions on ammunition ownership too.

 

I think this is one of the few days where this thread has been neglected even by the regulars on here.

 

I'm coming in for shelter. Anyone see celebrity bake-off? I've always liked Kirsty Young .... and she can bake too

 

I like it when Kirsty Young presents HIGNFY.

 

Nice accent.

 

In other news, a relative rang last evening to ask me to test out a 5 year old 19" Widescreen HD TV/DVD player, that has been used about 6 times. It has turned up and I have taken it out of the box to test. There are a couple of problems I've spotted straight away as far as I can see. 1] It is supposed to have a remote power supply and there isn't one in the box, and 2] the remote control is missing.

So, there's not a lot of testing to be going on. On a day where nothing appears to be going too well, I think perhaps I'll indulge myself in a game of Pro Evo, where I will allow my Saints team to go two or three goals behind before coming back to thrash the opposition, just cause I'm in the mood to hit something for six.

 

I miss the octagonal player graph thing. Why the hell did they do away with that. Fifa should steal it.