Good to see that some politicians get it.

[Darkwind]

Very powerful and correct argument against the current wave of idiots who are yet again trying to make criminals safer by making us weaker.

 

[usmbguest5318]

The speaker draws a parallel between feline predators and human ones and equates a contest between a leopard and an antelope with that of one human vs. another, one being the prey. It's nice rhetoric for him to do so, but it doesn't hold water, if for no other reason than that the contest between a leopard and its meal is not a civilized interaction.

• The fact of the matter is that the cat is a predator because it must be in order to eat. That just isn't the case for humans, especially American ones. And one cannot legitimately complain about all the welfare programs and at the same time say that human killers who use guns do so to forcibly secure a meal, shelter, clothing, or even breeding opportunities. Yet those are the things that move a predatory feline to engage in combat.
• Housecats are also predators. What do we do to abate its predatory effectiveness? We remove it's key weapons, it's claws, and in some instances, such as with large cats that perform in circuses, we file their canines. Additionally, we deny them the primary source of the hormone that inspires their violence -- we spay and neuter them.
• Owners of house cats will notice too that while their pets retain the instinct to catch things, they often don't have the knowhow to deliver killing bites. That's because they don't get taught to do so. I for one have had to remove many a critter -- snakes, frogs and birds especially -- from my home because the cat doesn't know to kill it.
• A more fitting comparison would be between one leopard and another competing for a given resource such as territory or perhaps a mate. In such instances, what do the cats do? They size each other up and only when its clear to each that they are evenly matched do they actually engage in a fight. Even when they do actually engage, do they fight to the death? Most often, no, but at times they will, particularly males. In any case, neither picks up a weapon to use it against its foe.
• Most importantly, perhaps, the contest between one human and another is that of predator vs. predator, not that of predator vs. prey.

Lastly, nobody expects a leopard or antelope to subordinate its instincts and natural urges; however, that is precisely what is expected of humans. It's part of what distinguishes from all other creatures. So if, the speaker wants to equate humans to other beasts as he has, then what makes sense is to force predatory humans to take sate their nefarious urges using only their wits, arms and legs, as must a leopard. Were humans so constrained, I wonder how many of them would dare to undertake direct rather than ranged engagement to secure resources that aren't at the time rightly theirs.

 

[Timmy]

End thread !