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Zsofia McMullin and Sam (courtesy blog.stenhouse.com)

“As a parent, I struggle with finding the balance between ‘he’s a boy, boys play with cowboys and knights,’ and ‘oh my god, if he plays with these toy guns, will he turn into a violent person?’ I know the line may not be that fine, but with regular school shootings in the news, I wonder if the standards for these sorts of things have changed..” Zsofia McMullin, My 4-year-old loves toy guns and I don’t know how to parent that [via washingtonpost.com]

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100 COMMENTS

  1. Someone wise once said: “You can take the boy out of the fight, but you can’t take the fight out of the boy.”

    It’s kinda how we’re wired…

  2. Oh the horror, my child is interested in something I don’t like. Maybe he won’t get invited to play with other kids. Maybe he’ll grow up to be a murderer. Why if this goes on, he might even become.. an… uh… an ENGINEER

    • As an engineer myself, I approve this message. {thumbs up}

      Now to get back to calculating the appropriate angle to file my M&P’s sear down to for a 553.7 gram reduction in pull weight.

    • The etymology of the word “engineer” takes us back to people who thought individual weapons were for weenies.

      The word “engineer” comes from the Old French word, engigneor, which came about to describe men who were invested in the invention and operation of siege engines. Wonderful toys like a trebuchet, for example.

      In Ye Olde Days, siege engines were used to overcome physical barriers and ramparts of castles. One of my favorite techniques I’ve read of was to take diseased cattle (eg, anthrax or FMD) and lob them over the castle walls.

      Good times, good times…

  3. Just kick the kid out of school for eating a pop tart into the shape of a gun, then let him learn everything he knows about guns from TV and Hollywood movies. He’ll be fine.

  4. I hate it when parents try to mold their children into being what they want them to be.
    Let the kid play with whatever he wants, dolls or cowboys or whatever.
    You arent the first person to birth a child and you wont be the last.

    Popping out a kid is like an instant flip of the full retard switch for some people.

    QotD, Root of my fears edition:

    I know that much of my discomfort around guns – the topic and the actual weapon – comes from not knowing much about them.

    • Gotta wonder why he doesn’t take the easy way out, and learn something about them, possibly with the son along.

      • If she actually got off her ass and learned something about guns, then she wouldn’t have her irrational fears to cling to as justification for disliking them and she wouldn’t have her ignorance to hide behind anymore. It would create something of an identity crisis for her.

        • That, plus if you prohibit something, it becomes more exotic and interesting. Give a child a sip of beer or wine when they’re really young (and ask for it). It will eliminate the mystery, and likely being draw to it in secret later.

        • Haha, yup!

          Ok Timmy, you want to try some beer? Here is a Belgian Quadrupel, this is some of the best in the world.

          They will never want to touch the stuff again.

        • The parents of my friend did it differently. He wanted one tiny sip of some strong stuff ( moonshine) and they obliged him except they tipped the glass and made him drink the entire glass (a small kid + a shot of moonshine). He puked afterwards and is one of my friends who doesn’t drink.

      • Guns are the least of her ignorance.

        She needs to first learn something about boys and the raising of same.

        There are some little boys who will try to self-destruct at every turn. They’re boys. They’re going to do dangerous things. They’re going to grow up with some scars on them.

        The educrats and pshink frauds have tried to “resolve” these behavioral patterns of little boys with drugs, and they dope up little boys with all manner of drugs to try to make them into acting like controllable little zombies.

    • For some having a child is the first time they haven’t slept for 12 hours in a day. A lack of sleep is comparable to being intoxicated. Mix in complete ignorance and many waking hours with either the fear-mongering news on (exacerbated by the presence of non-sleeping children) or stay-at-home mom groups that have no real-world experiences and you have a recipe for stupidity.

      Toy guns will turn her son into a violent person at the same rate a tiara will turn him into a princess.

      • And if he plays with a toy gun while wearing a tiara, he’ll be a violent princess! Toys. They are magic and come to life while you sleep. Just like in Toy Story.

    • LMFAO @ popping out a kid flips the full retard switch in some people.

      They act like having a baby is like walking on the moon or something… something only a few brave souls are able to accomplish but rats and cats and bats do it. (Wait, do bats give live birth?) Anyway, a LOT of stuff in the animal kingdom does it, and I just wanted to rhyme things. Squirting out a baby isn’t a rare accomplishment.

    • Well I’m molding, and expect, my sons to be men. Intelligent. physically and morally strong, Constitutional conservatives MEN. Difficult times are coming.

    • +1

      I got depressed a few years back when I realized all the incredibly stupid customers I had to deal with on a daily basis were all breeding.

      • Harvey Danger had a song that went: “only stupid people are breeding… the cretins cloning and feeding, and I don’t even own a TV.”

        My bet is that his lack of TV was part of what made him smart enough not to breed.

        • Paranoia, paranoia, everybody’s out to get me…

          It’s Flag Pole Sitta? Right? I love that song.

    • Let’s not go too hard on her. 1) She is from Europe; 2) She married a man comfortable around guns who grew up on a farm; 3) She is not even trying to prohibit toy weapons for her kid; 4) If she ever does, the boy has a 95% chance of showing up on TTAG. I’ve seen it.

      • Being from Europe is suddenly bad? You do know that the US has had a Nazi Party (even during WW2)?

        Laws and what really happens are two different things.

        • We sure did and before WWII started my Dad’s older brother and his hoodlum buddies used to go to Columbus Park in Chicago and the bate them. The usual result was a lot of Nazi heads being bashed. They didn’t play favorites either. When the Nazis and the Commies got together they went and bashed commie heads too.

        • What you Europeans never seem to “grok” is that for many of us Americans, we’re the people you Europeans didn’t like and hazed or forced out of your countries. We’re the people who left Europe because, well, you treated us like scum.

          So we packed our bags and left. In some cases (eg, the Highland Clearances, the Irish Famine), our bags were packed for us by the “nobles” and their chattering classes and we were marched down to the shores and put on boats that had been thoughtfully chartered for us.

          And now, all these years later, you clowns in Europe still expect us to see you as our “betters.”

          Well, I have some choice words for y’all, but TTAG tries to be a family-friendly blog.

        • Lolinski- I dont think the writer was inferring that Europe was bad, per se.
          More like, the woman is from Europe and doesnt entirely understand US gun culture, and why its no big deal for boys to grow up playing “army man” and cowboys and indians, etc.

          Speaking of “Europe” thats a pretty broad generalization- I reserve my scorn for subsets- the cheese eating surrender monkeys, whose police cant even go to banlieu’s – think Watts riots every night…

          or the squareheads, who are so politically correct they cant speak to the truth, which puts their own women at risk, for example- http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/145161

          Sorry if you find that offensive. My 1A right, you know.

          Where did you say you were from again?

      • Lolinski, Europeans aren’t bad at all, but they are under heavy anti-gun indoctrination, both from their leaders and the EU (this despite most Europeans (92% polled) opposing further restrictions). So Ms. McMullin’s hoplophobia is quite understandable. She herself gives her origin as a reason why she doesn’t understand guns.

  5. I read the article and my main takeaway was this statement:

    We bake, build towers and castles, feed his baby doll,

    That last bit is likely caused by the absense of guns… LOL. The only thing dolls were good for as a yound kid was torturing it to further torture my sister…..period.

    Let the boy alone. When he’s matured enough teach him right, in the mean time get off your high horse and educate yourself. Yiu don’t have to like them or even own them, but that is no excuse to remain ignorant.

  6. You teach your kid about guns by teaching your kid about guns. It isn’t rocket surgery.

    Teach them the Four Rules and later the Ten Commandments. Teach them responsibility in all things, and teach them never to take someone else’s property without their permission.

    Of course, none of that will be possible until you get educated about guns. I’ll do it. Free of charge. Click my name and send me a message, or email [email protected].

  7. I’m a GIRL, and I can’t remember the first time I played with toy guns. We had cap guns but I honestly thought it was more fun to explode the caps by smashing them with rocks (more visual). But, since my Daddy taught me right, I started shooting real guns when I was 7, and never in my 49 year life have I had an unintended discharge. This is a fun sport my family has shared & we’re also active in several types of shooting competitions. My elder brother, who was really into blowing things up as a kid, ended up getting his Ph.D. in Chemistry and is a world-renowned polymer coatings specialist. If he had grown up in the 2000s, rather than the 1960s, he’d have been jailed before he was 17. My advice: take away the mystique and when he’s 5, get him a rifle coach. He could be an Olympiad someday!!!

  8. His child loves toy guns and he does not know “how to parent that”? If he can’t figure that out he really should give the kid up for adoption before he does some serious psychological and emotional damage to the kid.

    • Everyone keeps calling Zsofia a “he.” She’s a mom. Who has a blog. That somehow gets published in the Post when she has no credentials and nothing new to say.

      • Because she lives in Connecticut. There’s a strong association with Sandy Hook there, so the WaPo couldn’t resist.

      • Hey, now, she’s got her PhD in Procreation!

        I think I’m more qualified to write posts because I got my Doctorate in MarioKart.

  9. I have to commend her for writing that. She recognizes her own concerns — largely arising from her own unfamiliarity with firearms or violence — and yet allows her child to be a normal little boy, doesn’t seek to keep guns or violent toys from him, and presents alternatives to violence as a way to resolve conflict. And, equally important, she recognizes the reality in which she (and we live): she is and will have to teach her child how to deal with things that she personally doesn’t like and fears simply because this is the world, and we all do that every day. Quite frankly, that’s EXACTLY what a good parent does.

    Anyone taking shots at her or bashing ought to learn from her: recognize the reality that we live in a world where people like her — those who don’t like guns but are open minded — are vastly outnumbered by those who don’t like guns and are not open minded and who will do everything they can to control them. We ought to be commending her and working with people like her because she’s smart enough to recognize and confront her own fears and prejudices.

    • The issue here is the implication that any given object has magical properties to mold children, a message that has been propagated by the anti-gun movement. This is a message that takes the parent out of parenting. When I was young my dad bought the first sword for my collection and one for my brother. At the time we played Diablo 2 together, a game that involved hacking and slashing for hours. Over the next 10 years we never had a sword fight or injury related to our collection of 40+ pieces. We had crossbows and all kinds of dangerous tools around and never had a major injury (outside of normal scrapes). That’s because the consequences were very clear, we had actual parenting.

      Asserting that anything has power on it’s own over a child removes the parent’s responsibility, establishing that if we simply surround our children with the right kinds of stuff they’ll be smart, morally upright, and successful. Parenting and proper education makes children smart, morally upright, and successful. I do not support separating the parent from parenting and replacing that with the state, as they continually try to do.

      • Unfortunately, many people have indeed been brainwashed to think that guns are more-or-less magical evil creatures that impart bad behavior on their owners. That is not her fault as much as it is the fault of control-freak politicians and complicit voices in the media that promote disinformation and hysteria about anything regarding guns.

        The fact that this lady admits that she is ignorant about guns is a good thing … if she then takes corrective steps to become non-ignorant – to obtain the knowledge that she doesn’t have. Hopefully, she’ll take a basic class that educates her both on what guns are and what they aren’t. Hopefully, she’ll take her kid to an Eddie Eagle class (or similar class) so that he can be educated about guns as well. These would both be great, even if she and her family never obtain a gun themselves.

        And hopefully, others like her will do the same thing.

        As a general comment (not directed at you, Fred) … When some folks make comments and gleefully bash people like this for their ignorance, it does nothing but hurt the cause of gun rights. People who have been brainwashed by the politicians and the media do not need derision. They need to be shown how the propaganda they have been fed is wrong.

  10. Interestingly, a lot of the comments on the article itself are well thought and rational. With one or two exceptions, there isn’t a lot of the usual vitriolic pissing match from either side. I’m actually impressed.

  11. The comments section of that pathetic article are comedy gold. I cannot believe how naïve some people are.

    • I looked at some of them after your post, strongly suspect Italian Rose is joking, trying to ruffle some feathers, pretty funny stuff.

    • Every time I click on the womments of a WaPo gun story, there is user “Italian Rose” flooding the comments section with some of the most insane, paranoid rantings you could imagine.

      That is you, I know my father played with toy guns and grew up to join the Marine Corps. Although he has never committed a crime to my knowledge he has amassed a collection of real guns, and is an NRA member and a republican. Although my fears are unfounded, I fear for my mother and sister living in a home with guns and I limit my visits because of the guns in the home because statistics do show that a gun in the home is more likely to be used against someone that belongs in the home.

      You’d almost think this is a troll.

  12. Maybe it is the lack of exposure to real firearms that prevents children from distinguishing the subtle and not so subtle differences between firearms and toy guns.

    If they were educated on both, we wouldn’t have as many children that stare at loaded guns and pull the trigger not knowing what will happen.

    Blunt, yes. True? Likely.

    • You are partially right. My kids will know the 4 rules of gun safety (already teaching the oldest), and they will get exposure to Daddy’s guns when they have demonstrated they are ready. However, the problem isnt just lack of exposure to real guns to know the distinction between real and fake.

      When I was a kid, and this was less than 2 decades ago mind you, guns were rarely even colored like real guns, or even if they were they were so obviously fake and had enormous orange plugs on the tip that even if you took a sharpie to, still looked wrong. Imagine a Glock 19 with a Noveske KX3 mounted to it, that’s what your would be left with (ok maybe Im exaggerating, but the line was by no means even close to blurry). Even early airsoft guns looked fake. But then someone realized (not really a genius discovery at all) that the more realistic the gun looked, the more it sold. This features became more realistic and orange tips became smaller. What we have now are Toys that look, feel, and function 95% like real guns. They recoil, the slide blows back, they even shoot pellets with enough force to cause injury. I kid you not, when that kid in LA got shot by the police officer for carrying around a toy AK, I thought the real AK they had for comparison was the toy until I clicked on the fullsize image.

      So now I have a 3 year old, he loves airplanes, trucks, army men, guns, etc. HE has made a few guns out of legos, he has a pop gun, and with both he knows not to go around the house pointing them at people. He knows when I have my guns out that he can look and not touch, and I try and get as many 4 rules talks in as I can while he is curious. However, at some point the discussion will come up when he is old enough about getting toy guns. Right now, I will probably say no, the same reason my parents say no, guns are not toys. I think that’s important. Because when his toy XDM looks and feels almost identical to my real XDM in the nightstand, that’s too close. When I was growing up, my “toy” guns never came anywhere close to looking like real guns, and my dad (ex millitary) never missed an opportunity to teach me safety. When I was old enough I got an air rifle, when I demonstrated responsibility with that I got a deer rifle. Both of which I kept in my room (Dad did lock the ammo up though for the deer rifle).

      At some point we need to practice what we preach, and giving your kid a 1:2 scale replica of an M4 that can shoot pellets hard enough to break skin, or a Berreta 92 that from 10 feet away is completely indistinguishable from the real deal, is probably way over the line if you are trying to teach your kids to distinguish between real and play. I remember to this day, one of my teamates when I played footbal in high-school brought a brand new airsoft Uzi to school, he was showing it off in the locker room and muzzled our strength coach. Coach politely said, “dont point that at me”, but the kid kind of snickered and continued to point it at others. The muzzle crossed coach again, and Coach snatched the gun out of his hands faster than a rattlesnake striking and with that terrifying booming voice yelled, “I dont care if its a F##%%# toy, if you point that at anyone in here again you are running for the rest of the week at practice!”. He was right to be mad, you cant teach two different lessons to kids, either its ok to point a gun at someone or it isn’t, because you dont get to chose for them when they are in a real situation and you arent around. That’s my opinion at least.

  13. From what I’ve recently been told, “Boys will be boys” is bullsh*t made up to protect and excuse potentially dangerous people.

    If he’s playing with guns at this tender age she should definitely have her 4 year year old committed as he is clearly a future serial killer or something.

    • “boys will be boys” IS bullshit when it’s used to justify behaving like a misogynistic asshole to women. Given the stuff you said about your son and daughter further down thread, I find it non-credible that you would be okay with men talking about your daughter like the men in the topless protest thread spoke about those ladies. If you think the solution is “teach your daughter not to be a slut” you’re part of the problem. Because there are plenty of men who will objectify and mistreat women no matter how they dress or act merely because they are entitled assholes and we live in a society that thinks that behavior is “no big deal” and “boys will be boys” as if testosterone is some kind of toxic substance that turns you into assholes.

      Playing with toy guns is not the same thing at ALL. And why is playing with toy guns “just for boys”. If it’s not just for boys how can it be “boys will be boys”. If people didn’t shove stupid toy vacuum cleaners and dolls in little girls’ hands and start brainwashing them about how someday they’ll have a husband and lots of babies, maybe more girls would be playing with toy guns. As a kid I played with toy guns and played make believe spy and cops and robbers games with my brother. I only played with Barbie dolls to decapitate her. Do I get an honorary penis for this?

  14. Oh lady, get a grip! The vast majority of adult males played with guns as children and the vast majority have never committed a gun crime. If you live in that much fear you really should seek professional help.

  15. This poor child obviously has a beta male father. Dad’s going to have his hands full when his son’s more of a man than him at 4 years old.

  16. I’m just hoping I’m dead and gone when her kids are old enough to run things. It’s bad enough as it is, give it another 30 years there’s going to be no men left among the male population.

    And I don’t want to come back out of retirement as 63 year-old DisThunder Returns and try and set it right. I’d rather be worm food.

  17. To TheBear: if you are of normal intelligence (and you seem at least that if not more), take a look around the store you are in, the football game you are in, the mall you are in. . . . . . . .1/2 of the people you are looking at are not as smart as you.

    That’s why Darwinism (which I don’t completely agree with) takes so long.

    This is why people look down the barrel of a gun and pull the trigger to see if it’s loaded, why some light a match to see inside the empty gas can to see if there’s any gasoline inside, some guys rely on only one scissor jack to slide underneath a car to work on the muffler, . . . . . . .blah, blah, blah, etc forever.

  18. Typical liberal sentiment. “I don’t know how to parent that.” Why would you, you expect the state to do everything for you, including raise your children.

    • I went to her blog and urged her to get the “Eddie the Eagle” safety program from the NRA to help her teach her boy what to do around firearms. At the age of 4, it is an appropiate program that will also help with her own fears. And she does not have to join the NRA to get this information.

  19. As a parent of three (12, 10, and 5) and an educator (social studies), I offer the following: Are you raising kids who see empathy and caring? Do they understand pretend versus real? My 12-year-old is infatuated with horror and action and digs medical shows about bizarre illnesses and injuries. He loves to go shooting. School shooter in 3 years? Serial killer by his 20s? He is the first to pick up my 5-year-old if he is hurt, he helps at church, excels at Boy Scouts, and wants to work in neurology. We eat family meals together. My kids know their parents, and we know them. Be careful when the adolescents push you away, step back but don’t get shut out. Talk to their teachers. Play cowboys or cops with them. Teach the realities of guns. They are dangerous if misused. They can be deadly. They are marvels of design and craftsmanship (with some exceptions). They are fun. You can say the same about cars. If your son pretends to race NASCAR or Formula 1, do you fret over the expense of professional driving schools and the trouble of signing sponsors? Is malpractice a concern if they bandage a teddy bear? Because you ARE concerned and involved, you ARE a good parent. Calm down and enjoy the roller coaster.

  20. So she’s sad because we’re having a hard time creating gender-less automatons out of our boys?

    Why not teach him the nature of his strength, the consequences for using it, and to what causes it is proper versus just getting frustrated he’s not acting like a girl?

    Start small, teach him “you only point your toy guns at bad guys” and pretty much everyone drawing breath is a good guy and it’s not OK to point weapons at them.

  21. “My 4-year-old loves toy guns and I don’t know how to parent that ”

    2 words…
    FOUR RULES

    Soon as my kid started playing bang bang shoot ’em up I started teaching him the four rules amongst other proper gun handling skills. I even do it with my power tools. He carries daddy’s drills with his trigger finger indexed.

  22. “I explain to him as best as I can the complexity of conflicts and the finality of death, and hope that all of this will come flooding back to him when it matters.”

    That’s the problem right there. A four year-old will not understand the nuances of conflict resolution. One problem I see in a lot of parents these days is the tendency to over-explain things to their kids. That doesn’t work, and may cause disciplinary problems.

    • With my six year old it’s simply cause/effect explanations. How would/do you like to be treated, what effect does someone else’s treatment of you really have?

      With my two year old it’s; every time you punch/kick/bite your sister it’s unpleasant and/or painful for you.

      Social and psychological abstractions are too much for young kids, lay the foundation and work your way up as they mature. Very much like the handling and application of firearms. Go fig…

  23. WIllie knows the answer.

    Mamas, don’t let your babies grow up to be cowboys
    They’ll never stay home and they’re always alone
    Even with someone they love

    Mamas, don’t let your babies grow up to be cowboys
    Don’t let ’em pick guitars and drive them old trucks
    Make ’em be doctors and lawyers and such

    Mamas, don’t let your babies grow up to be cowboys

  24. “…I don’t know how to parent that.”

    Figure it out, Buttercup, just like all other parents in the history of the world have done. Plenty of kids have turned out just fine. Take some personal responsibility for the life you and your partner (or whatever) have brought into the world and rear that child into what they can be. Be a parent rather than a “buddy”. Let them make mistakes (consequences for action life lesson), let them succeed, let them get bruised (life is not forgiving), let them struggle to earn their rewards,and let them learn. Your job is to guide them, not turn them into genderless creatures that cower in a corner. So what if your child ends up having opinions or preferences different than yours. Maybe that’s what Buttercup is afraid of.

  25. When I was a kid I had toy Colt SAA, Winchester 73, a Davey Crockett muzzleoader, a Tommy Gun and an M-14. How did I turn out…oh, never mind.

  26. Oh my god! My 9 year old son loves to shoot his REAL gun ( rascal .22 ) and is safer with it than many adults! Learn to parent by teaching not commanding and maybe your yuppie larvae will turn out just fine.

  27. We used to play war with toy guns, bb guns, and slingshots. It’s a wonder we didn’t put anybody’s eye out…

  28. Obviously, this woman isn’t my kind of gal. Still, I’ve read through some of her blog this morning and it appears that she’s sincere. Not in that smug, self-satisfied typical liberal manner, but more in an exposed, self-aware way.

    Throughout her posts, you’ll find that she’s often uncertain, ill at ease and frequently feels “silly.” Whether it’s how she’s raising her boy, how others are raising theirs, how satisfied she is with the sale of their home, or how she addresses her son’s crush on a teacher, she feels overwhelmed and seems overwrought.

    That’s all standard liberal fare, of course, to feel fearful and powerless: less the Captain of her soul, and more like a stowaway on it. What I’m not reading from her, though, is any anger or resentment. That is peculiarly atypical for a liberal. She’s at least open to allowing her son to develop more or less naturally, mindful that her input on that process trends more toward influence, than control. That’s pretty rare among liberals.

    If you’re looking for that mythical fencesitter which some hopeful 2A supporters still claim is out there, this may be the closest you’re going to find. This is the type of person you might be able to inform and enlighten about firearms and their underlying philosophy. Granted, perhaps not to the point of membership in the POTG (or maybe?), but at least to accord and peaceful coexistence with us and our rights. Give it a shot.

    • Hmmm… Definitely sounds like typical liberal personal issues – Seeking reassurance, validation, and approval but only from those that have the same issues which is actually codependency.

      But then, it might just be praddle to get readership on a blog.

  29. I think this is the lady all those gun-control campaigns the moms and the space cadets put on are aimed at: ignorant about firearms and gullible or uncritical enough to believe that “regular school shootings” biz. And that’s why they keep failing.

  30. Figure it out. When I was a kid in the 50’s & 60’s we all played war. Nobody I know became a serial killer. Deal with it and try not to turn him into a girl.

    • Because a girl is the absolute worst thing somebody can be. Right?

      Ugh. Okay I’m done here. You can congratulate yourself Former Water Walker and throw a party. All the misogynistic douches on this board can throw a ticker tape parade. I am done with all of you.

      I don’t hate all men but just being here simmering in all the testosterone poisoning and casual misogyny that happens day after day and post after post here is all I need to see to reinforce my views that most men just have no interest in outgrowing their casual misogyny. They have no interest in respecting any woman who isn’t “obeying them” in some form or fashion or agreeing with all their ideas and never challenging their egos.

      I will never fight with any of you assholes. For anything. I will not march with you. I will not protest with you. I will not vote in favor of anything you support. If we lose our 2A, then you can almost guarantee it was because all you stupid assholes couldn’t manage to stop being shitheads to and about women. You’ve alienated the shit out of me. I’m sure you’re happy. But I’m a pro-gun woman. Now think about women who aren’t pro-gun and who will never be progun because you stupid idiots can’t manage to shut your pie-holes about how terrible women are.

      This is my official flounce. Hope you have some champagne. I refuse to spend my time around assholes who have barely veiled contempt for women. This is the hill you guys want to die on? So be it.

      You’ve lost a supporter. You’ve lost a reader. You’ve lost a commenter. Most of you won’t care, a few of you will. Most women who leave here will just silently ease away. You’ll think you’ve won because you get to keep your boys club… meanwhile more and more women will feel completely alienated by your behaviors and will silently remove themselves and question their support of your causes. Why should ANY woman support any cause with so many misogynistic douche canoes running their stupid mouths?

      2A is too important for this, and I feel completely betrayed by all the dudes who can’t manage to pull their heads out of sniffing their own ass crack long enough to see the damage treating/talking about women like they are shit does to your movement. Get it together, men. Weed out your misogynists or you will lose.

      You’ve already lost me. God knows how many other women. I won’t fight with you. Keep dwindling your support by not dealing with this, assholes.

      Also, Former Water Walker, try not to be TOO smug. Your tiny little remark was just death by a thousand papercuts. It was just the final straw. I have too much respect for myself to even be around men who behave this way.

      You can reply if it makes you feel better… if you have some “one off shot” you’d like to get in, however, be aware you’re only speaking to your peers because I won’t return to this site to read it.

      Ladies here, good luck. You have my sympathies. Maybe someday you’ll gather the self respect to not allow men to behave this way in front of you and to remove yourself from their presence and social company if they can’t manage to be civilized toward you.

      • Nothing smug here. Should I have said don’t turn him into a sissy? I like girls too. It’s nice you don’t HATE all men. FWIW I was offended with your support of baby murder. But this is a pro 2A site so that trumps left or rightwing to ME. I am not so self-important to think my contributions matter much. Finger wagging doesn’t accomplish much of anything either. We’re all such Neanderthal men. MamaLiberty gets it.(Really a death by a thousand cuts?). If you never read this have fun and please don’t take yourself so seriously.

      • Enjoy your Tumblr time with all the other angry fembots trying to make everything about yourselves. Door, ass, etc.

      • Jeez, cowgirl- seems a bit much. Are you sure you are really a cowgirl? Girls raised in the West around conservative men know that boys will be boys and some guys can be real jerks- but that doesnt make ALL men jerks. And anyone who has spent ANY time on the innertubz knows that the idiots post more than the rest- so theres ALWAYS a slant.

        You are coming across much more like a wannabe cowgirl, to be frank, maybe an immature suburban princess who takes things WAYYYY too seriously, enjoys her drama, and feels justifed in the toxic bombs that are your sacred right. You know, “Real Cowgilrls of Orange County” or something.

        Or maybe a troll- you havent really been posting here that long- and MDA probably is nursing some serious grudges, given how badly TTAG has exposed their deceptions and incompetence. Pretty big flip flop actually, in tone- I hope someone hasnt stolen your screen name here and pretended to be you- wouldnt be first time on the innertubz on that either.

        If it is you, just some honest feedback – you sure didnt do yourself any favors with this diatribe, and even if you had some valid points to make, you pretty much discredited them the way you went about it. A real woman would already know that.

        But hey, free speech and all, and dont let the barn door hit you in the a$$ on the way out.

      • “Because a girl is the worst thing someone can be”? Well, no, it’s the best thing a girl can be. It’s not really a good thing for a boy to be, they aren’t equipped for it. That was an incredibly stupid screed.

      • Cowgirlup…You came in, picked a fight, then ran away crying when your challenge was answered.

        Congratulations you have achieved the feminist ideal. Men treating you as an equal… Unfortunately you have chosen to perpetuate the unjust stereotype of a weak woman who cries and runs away anytime someone challenges their emotional appeals, and hurts their tender feelings by disagreeing with them.

        I’d suggest you cowboy up, but you’d probably accuse me of misogyny for expecting a woman to be as emotionally fortified as men expect each other to be.

  31. I played with toy guns growing up. I had rules I had to follow especially with cap guns. I then found my dad’s bow. I made a string for it and found some target arrows in a ditch. I used an old kiddie pool as my target. I was given a old BB gun pistol by my great grandmother. My friends and I shot at a piece of steel about 30 feet away. Guess what happened growing up? I didn’t shoot at people or animals because I knew the consequences. My parents taught me about safety and consequences. All of these objects were dangerous if used incorrectly, but of little danger when used correctly.

  32. Wow ric2…I was going to say most of that. She did seem to have way too much time on her hands. If she ever reads this I’d let her know my wife fell in love with me after she saw me holding sick babies as a hospital volunteer. REALLY. I DO believe cowgirl is female though. The whole shrill finger-wagging “you crass evil males” thing. BTW I used diatribe to describe her 80(!) or so posts the other day. I guess THAT’S when she started hating me…

  33. As long as the kid is taught firearms saftey and is taught that real guns atent toys, that they are tools, kids these days need to be taught or reminded how valuable, no, sacred, human life really is

  34. Perhaps a better use of her concern might be the role of women in the cycle of violence, particularly where it affects boys. That would be far more relevant than cowboys and indians and would be something within her direct sphere of influence.

  35. Cowgirlup… congratulations you have achieved the feminist ideal. Men treating you as an equal… Unfortunately you have chosen to perpetuate the unjust stereotype of a weak woman who cries and runs away anytime someone challenges their emotional apeals, and hurts there tender feelings by disagreeing with them.

    I’d suggest you cowboy up, but you’d probably accuse me of mysogony for expecting a woman to be as emotionally fortified as men expect each other to be.

    • In the movie Oklahoma Crude Faye Dunaway plays a turn of the century feminist in the Oklahoma oil fields. Jack Palance plays an enforcer for Standard Oil. He shows up trying to intimidate her and her character says “You wouldn’t treat me like this if I were a man.” Palence gets a twinkle in his eyes and says “you’re right” and halls off and slugs her.

      • I heard Jack actually hit her. After the cut she was very angry and Jack said something to the effect of. “what? you wanted it to look real didn’t you.” True, not true? Who can say.

        I don’t advocate hitting people unless it is necessary to preserve ones safety.

        I find the notion that men shouldn’t hit women to be archaic and sexist. I’d prefer to not hit anyone, but should a person choose to make it my only option I will not hesitate. I see no reason to create a special exclusion to this rule based on gender. Many will interpret this statement as advocating woman beating, they are stupid and I don’t have tine to entertain the stupid.

        This is not the kind of equality people like Cowgirlup are interested. They want all of the special privileges traditionally offered to their sex, with none of the consequence or responsibilities men have always been expected to accept.

        It’s time we respect all people as fundamentally equal (not in character but in kind), warts and all.

        Cowgirlup reminded me of the scene from “Secondhand Lions,” where in the indignant and money grubbing female retaliative insists that “I will not have my children around all this gun nonsense,” to which Robert Duvall masterfully answers, “Then leave!”

  36. I’m just amazed that any adult would write a city newspaper asking for parenting advise. What made her think the answer would be worth anything?

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