Gun Owners Most Likely to Die from Suicide

The recent shootings at a civic center in Binghamton, NY, the police killings in Pittsburgh, and the father that killed his five kids in Washington state got me to thinking that maybe the U.S. has too many guns. I went over to the Nation Rifle Association (NRA) website to get some consolation. I was shocked to find people advocating for less restrictive gun laws. That didn’t seem to make any sense. Are they crazy? It turns out that yes, they are in fact, crazy.

I was amazed to find that one of the arguments for less gun control by the NRA included a story about the recent mass murders in Australia (where there is tight gun control). Their point was that the Australian mass murderers didn’t use guns to kill lots of people, but fire. Because some crazy people set massive fires, the NRA crazy people thought that justified not imposing gun controls because murderers will still kill people. And who wouldn’t want to be shot to death rather than burned to death? You have to love their logic.

But what are the facts? The statistics below are from the Brady Campaign website.

Gun Deaths and Injury - The United States Leads the World in Firearm Violence

In 2005, 30,694 people in the United States died from firearm-related deaths – 12,352 were murdered; 17,002 killed themselves; 789 were accidents; 330 died by police intervention, and in 221, the intent was unknown.

An additional 71,417 people were shot and survived their injuries -- 52,748 people injured in an attack; 3,190 people injured in a suicide attempt; 14,678 people shot accidentally, and 801 people shot in a police intervention.

In 2004, firearms were used to murder 56 people in Australia (not including the 173 people that died in the bushfires who would have preferred to have been shot, according to the NRA), 184 people in Canada, 73 people in England and Wales, 5 people in New Zealand, and 37 people in Sweden. In comparison, firearms were used to murder 11,344 in the United States (the number of bushfire murders is not know at this time in the U.S.).

In 2006, there were only 154 justifiable homicides by private citizens using handguns in the United States.

We have this argument in my very own house regularly. Shane wants to have a gun for protection, and I know that one night when I can’t sleep and I’m wondering around the house in the dark, he will wake up and shoot me thinking I’m a prowler. We don’t have a gun and we will not be getting one.

If I had just a nickle for every dead body that resulted from guns each year in the U.S., in 2005 I would've had $1,534.70. That's a lot of nickles.

New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #188

Remember folks, it's a goldfish bar, so don't be koi.

This is the New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest cartoon for this week. Click on the link to enter. That's my entry under the cartoon. Let me know if you come up with any captions also.

The Beloved Sing the Sun Rising -- Another Great Running Song

Here's another one of my favorite songs to listen to while running.  The beat on this one is infectious. 

Style Invitational Week 811 -- Rock-Bottom Lines

This week's challenge at the Washington Post Style Invitational is to come up with a sign that would indicate that the economy couldn't get worse.

The example they came up with is this: McMansions still lie vacant, but crowds gather at the grand opening of HooverVillas on the Potomac.  (Get it?  I guess you have to be familiar with Hoovervilles from the Depression.)

Winner gets the Inker, the official Style Invitational trophy. Second place receives a Nunchuck, which is not one half of a pair of nunchucks but a junky little toy consisting of a trigger-activated thing that "catapults nuns up to 15 feet!" -- the nuns being four tiny nun-shaped objects with their hands in the air. Warning: The package specifies that it is "not suitable for children under 3 years"; presumably it's okay for children 3 and older to shoot toy nuns.

For more information on entering, click on the link above.

Here's one idea from me:

Suze Orman's new book is a how-to guide on suicide. 

Let me know if you have any ideas.

Life is Wonderful by Jason Mraz

You may have noticed I'm a big fan of Jason Mraz.  This is a great song to run with.  

Cherry Blossoms Galore! Dragging My Mom Around the DC Tidal Basin

My mom came down on the train for the weekend, so I dragged her down to the Tidal Basin to see the Cherry Blossoms.  It was a crazy windy day.  Also, my mom is 71 years old with bad knees and hips.  We walked all the way around the Tidal Basin, which is about a 2 mile walk in my estimation.  Here are a few photos and a short video from the trek taken with my new camera. 

Sweden Approves Same-Sex Marriage Legislation!

Yesterday, the Swedish parliament approved legislation that will make that country the seventh in the world to grant full marriage equality rights to all citizens, including same-sex couples. The other six countries that have same-sex marriage are South Africa, Canada, Spain, the Netherlands, Norway, and Belgium. The new legislation is to take effect as of May 1, and replaces the legislation approved in 1995 that allows same-sex couples to form a union in Sweden via registered partnership.

At least there are some countries in the world enlightened enough to do what the United States cannot -- provide equal rights to all their citizens. It is ironic that one of the reasons this country was founded was for religious freedom and now religion is the main reason a large population are denied basic civil rights.

Shane and I went to Stockholm a few years back and in reading up on the country we found it very interesting that they don't really have that many bars just for the gays. There's a crazy concept. The gays and the straights go to the same bars and nobody cares. It isn't a big deal. Can you imagine? Try that concept in Buttcrack, Alabama.

We Haven't Given Up On Florida

We are still looking for a bargain deal to buy a house in Florida.
For instance, I found this one on-line that includes this pool. It is
a 3-bedroom, 2 bath home in Port Charlotte that is listed for
$109,000. I'm not sure I want a house with a pool though. I would
imagine it would be a pain to keep up, especially if we aren't there
that much. On the other hand, it would be nice to have a private
pool. It might be worth a look. $109K seems crazy low.

Doing My Part to Help the Economy

I did my taxes on Sunday, and we are getting some money back, so I decided since my digital camera died that I would buy a new one. I got a Sony Cyber-shot S950. It has is a 10.1 Mega pixel 4X zoom camera with face detection and SteadyShot (whatever that is). It also shoots video. I actually bought it yesterday. It was on sale at Best Buy for $129, not including tax and the 8 Gig memory stick I had to buy ($40). I've taken a few shots of stuff around the house, but haven't uploaded anything yet. I plan on getting some shots of the cherry blossoms this weekend. Stay tuned for some flowering tree shots up the wazoo.

Style Invitational Week 810 -- Homosexual Horse Breeding

This week's Washington Post Style Invitational is their annual contest to take two of the names of 100 of the horses eligible for the Triple Crown and come up with the name of their offspring. As in real life, the names cannot be longer than 18 characters, including spaces. Most of these horses are boys, but that is beside the point. It doesn't have to be a boy and a girl horse for the contest's sake. This is a progressive newspaper after all.

Here's the example they give: Giant Oak x Gluteus Maximus = Heck of a Trunk

Below is the list of the 100 Horse names. Click on the link above to enter. They ask that you limit your entries to 25 and double space. Please feel free to share any ideas you have here. Below are a few of my ideas -- Notice a pattern on most of these?

* Fast Draw x El Rapido = Premature Finisher
* Boyhood Dream x Mr. Fantasy = Dateline Special
* Gluteus Maximus x More than Willing = Bent Over
* Gluteus Maximus x Oil Man = Packing the Lube
* Gluteus Maximus x Stayonit = Saddle Sore
* Antitrust x Lyin Heart = Madoff with My Doe
* Old Fashioned x Red Wine = Bad Hangover
* Sullenburger x Empire State = Happy Landings

Abound
Action in May
Advice
Affirmatif
All the Bases
Andiron
Antitrust
Baryshnikov
Beethoven
Big Drama
Boyhood Dream
Bridging
Bunker Hill
Buzzin and Dreamin
Century Gold
Charitable Man
Checklist
Chocolate Candy
Clicker
Coffee Bar
Cribnote
Danger to Society
Desert Party
Dream Now
Driving Snow
Dunkirk
El Rapido
Empire State
Everyday Heroes
Fast Draw
Flat Out
Giant Oak
Gluteus Maximus
Gone Astray
Hello Broadway
Hold Me Back
I Want Revenge
Ice Road
Il Postino
In the Juice
Jack Spratt
Just Ben
Life Goes On
Logic
Lookn Mighty Fast
Lyin' Heart
Map of the World
Marquee Event
More Than Willing
Mr. Fantasy
National Monument
New York Baby
Nowhere to Hide
Oil Man
Old Fashioned
Omniscient
Parade Clown
Party Hard
Pauper's Prize
Pedestal
Pitched Perfectly
Platinum Van
Poltergeist
Precious Package
Presto Change O
Quarter Given
Red Spider
Red Wine
Remember Mike
Rendezvous
Retap
Right One
Right of Way
Rocket to the Moon
Rue
Sea Level
Shafted
Silver City
Sir Phenomenal
Skipadate
Sneak Peek
Snowmaster
Stayonit
Street Car
Sullenberger
Sumo
Sunday Sunrise
Sweat Shop
The Big Dunkin
They're Late
Tiz True
Tone It Down
Total Gentleman
Unionize
Wall Street Wonder
Wat
West Side Bernie
Wild Entry
Wise Kid
Zither Song

Cherry Blossoms Starting to Blossom in DC

This photo is from Saturday night when we were driving over to see
Archer and the Boyfriend. It was a misty, foggy evening, but the
cherry blossoms were starting to bloom on the Tidal Basin. They
should be out in full force this weekend, and the weather is supposed
to be nice by then. My mom and sister are coming for a visit to see
the flower spectacular this weekend. I'm sure there will be more
photos then. Stay tuned!

The Trent Austin Quintet -- LIVE -- Plays Freddie Hubbard

Last Friday night, we had quite a jazzy night. Shane's step-brother is the amazing trumpter, Trent Austin. He had a live show that was broadcast on Maine Public Radio, which we listened to via the computer. Trent took his quintet (tenor saxophone, guitar, bass and drums) to the Bangor, Maine, studio for a live tribute to the late, great Freddie Hubbard. Between songs, Trent was interviewed by the show's host. It was pretty cool. If you like good music, you'll love this. You can listen to the recording of the broadcast here (look for the March 27, 2009 link).

The New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #187 -- Any Ideas?

?????

This is the New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest cartoon for this week. Click on the link above to enter. I haven't thought of a caption for this one yet. Everything I have thought of so far involves the angel not wearing underwear, and I'm not sure that is the best way to go. Let me know if you come up with any captions and if its good, maybe I'll steal it. I wouldn't do that, really.

Our First Home

On our way home from getting our taxes done today, we drove by our
first house, in Kensington, MD. It doesn't look like the new owners
are keeping it up too well. The shutters and doors are still the same
color we painted them more than 10 years ago.

Taxing Sunday

Shane and I went to H&R Block to get our taxes done today. We were
worried about capital gains because we sold our vacation condo in
Florida last year. It didn't turn out too bad, thankfully. What did
turn into a problem was my taxes from last year. I had them done at
another H&R Block office, and they may have screwed them
up. They are still looking them over to make sure they get them right
this time.

Another Game Night with Archer and the Boyfriend

Saturday night was another game night with Archer (right) and the Boyfriend. The Boyfriend cooked a delicious chicken fettuccine Alfredo for dinner. Shane and I brought a chocolate cream pie for dessert. Of course, the wine flowed freely all evening. After dinner, we played Password and Trivial Pursuit. Archer and the B won the first game of Password, but Shane and I came back like gangbusters and won the next game and the Trivial Pursuit. Before we knew it, it was after midnight and time to go.

Funny Video of Dog Sleepwalking, Running, and Waking

Announcing a Death Can Be Funny on TV

I was reading the I Should Be Laughing blog this morning where Bob posted some of his fiction, and the story contained a scene where the characters were calling people and announcing a death. The subject made me think of a scene from the old Roseanne show that was one of the funniest scenes ever on a sitcom, which is the last 30 seconds of the clip above. I love Laurie Metcalf as Roseanne's sister. Also, check out Bob's blog and read his stuff. He's a great writer.

"Double Window" by Lou Messa

One of the few original works of art Shane and I have purchased is this piece we bought several years back. It is a watercolor by a Virginia artist named Lou Messa. I'm a huge fan of Andrew Wyeth, and this piece reminds me of his work. We bought it at an Annapolis gallery after visiting with it several times. There are few pieces Shane and I agree on, but this was one. Sorry the photo isn't the best quality, but it was taken with my iPhone. You can see the iPhone in the reflection of the glass in the photo.

Florida House Update

Earlier this week, I posted about a forclosed house we looked at in
Florida. I guess we weren't the only ones that thought that was a
good deal, because someone already has a contract on it. It is just
as well, as that house was very remote, and we need to save more money
before we buy a house. I have a feeling there will be other bargains
to be had in Florida down the road.