I didn’t just have more to say about a story in this week’s issue, I have a suggestion on how to fix it.
Guns
Review Spam: a Deadly Online Weapon
This week’s newsletter has two items that prompted deeper commentary, starting with the Headline of the Week, but ending with something astounding:
Florida Man On Wheels: Marco Mazzetta Sets
Bar, Michael Popper Accepts Challenge
Florida Man Marco Mazzetta is an absolute obliviot, so why would anyone want to follow his example? Well keep reading, because Florida Man Michael Popper followed Mazetta like he was a recipe. [Jump to that 2022 Update]
Your Task: Decide Which is Illegal
I’m Sure You are Dying to Know the story behind this week’s extra-weird Headline of the Week (Issue #1310, 21 July 2019):
Man Bites Weiner (or Vice Versa)
Very Often, Readers Submit Stories that are most definitely, without a doubt, weird. But sometimes I still can’t use them because despite being weird (one definition: unusual), they’re …well… not unusual.
Shooters Grill
A reader seemed a bit dubious about the lead story last week (6 July 2014, Issue 1047). So let’s start with the story, and then the comment by John in the U.K.:
Why People Die in Gun Free Zones
I Think Alexander Went Too Easy on the schools in a story this week. First, let’s start with the story, from True’s 23 February 2014 issue:
“At Some Point Doesn’t Common Sense Prevail?”
Another story that really needs the photo to be complete. First, the story, by contributor Alexander Cohen from True’s 15 December 2013 issue:
Asking the Right Questions
After my previous blog post, the response from readers was fantastic — the clarity, the different ideas, the stating the problem without blaming or exonerating guns. But Rob in Sydney Australia didn’t seem to “get” what I was saying that in the national “debate” about mass shootings, we’re asking the wrong questions. It came to a head after this comment, by Tyler in Massachusetts:
Hiding Places
There were two wonderful stories in this week’s issue that really go nicely together. And one has a photo that has to be seen to be believed. Let’s start with the stories, from True’s 15 January 2012 issue:
Patrick Timoney’s “Gun”
The “zero tolerance” stories just don’t stop, despite court decisions and legislators demanding “common sense.” A 2-inch hunk of plastic isn’t a gun, unless you’re a hysterical grade school principal who demands that 9-year-olds in your care sign confessions when they bring a toy to school.
On Stage with Penn & Teller
This is the sordid tale of my having been exposed to Teller’s bodily fluids.
Paul Clarke and British Zero Tolerance
Often when I include an article about “zero tolerance” in True, I hear from people outside the United States who claim some variation of “only in America!”
Bambi Get Your Gun
Another story that begs to be illustrated by the photo mentioned. From True’s 13 September 2009 issue:
Weird News Video #39 — In the Line of Doody
Episode #39: “In the Line of Doody”, from True’s 1 March 2009 issue.
Guns in America: Why?
Anytime I run a “gun story” I get a lot of comment from both hugely polarized Americans, who want to rant for or against guns, and foreign readers, who don’t understand the American “obsession” with arms. I’m going to take a stab at helping foreign readers understand it a bit better. So first, the “gun story” that prompted this essay, from True’s 15 February 2009 issue:
Weird News Video #26 — Black Friday
Episode #26: “Black Friday”, from True’s 30 November 2008 issue.
Tattooed & Screwed
Each month, Premium subscribers get an extra story without a tagline, which they’re invited to supply — otherwise known as the monthly Tagline Challenge.
Guns: Smoke Gets In Your Eyes
The way some people reacted, you’d think this publication was called Guns Digest. Truth is, True hasn’t run a real “gun story” since the bit on John Lott almost five years ago!
ZT Madness is Spreading!
You might think “Zero Tolerance” is a playground issue — just a way for school administrators to deal with violent kids. If you did, you would be wrong.