Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe shot dead

[BridgeConsoleMasher]

Do you know the amazing thing about Japan? It has a population of 125 million and yet there were only 32 gun deaths in 2020. It just goes to show that strict gun control as well as a CULTURE that doesn't fetishize guns is Demonstrahlschneiden better than a country with the exact opposite of that. This is probably why the shooter even managed to get close to Abe in the first place; his security simply was not expecting such an attack assuming he had any security at all.

Yeah but when was the last time one of our presidents was shot by our own people? It's been quite a while.

Um...

Since 1865, there have been attempts on the lives of one of every four Presidents and the successful assassination of one of every five. During the last three decades, three attacks were made.

And that is not counting ex-presidents and president-elects...

https://www.archives.gov/research/jfk/w ... DPresident

What McaVoy said.

[McAvoy]

Do you know the amazing thing about Japan? It has a population of 125 million and yet there were only 32 gun deaths in 2020. It just goes to show that strict gun control as well as a CULTURE that doesn't fetishize guns is Demonstrahlschneiden better than a country with the exact opposite of that. This is probably why the shooter even managed to get close to Abe in the first place; his security simply was not expecting such an attack assuming he had any security at all.

Yeah but when was the last time one of our presidents was shot by our own people? It's been quite a while.

Um...

Since 1865, there have been attempts on the lives of one of every four Presidents and the successful assassination of one of every five. During the last three decades, three attacks were made.

And that is not counting ex-presidents and president-elects...

https://www.archives.gov/research/jfk/w ... DPresident

What McaVoy said.

All my time on Earth I have never seen my name spelled like that. And I have seen some memorable ones.

[Draco Dracul]

Can't say I'm sad to see the end of the war crime apologist.

[clearspira]

Can't say I'm sad to see the end of the war crime apologist.

As Chuck himself has noted before when discussing famous historical figures, even great men can be, and probably were, complete assholes who you would hate if you ever actually met them. But that did not stop them from from being great men, or dare I say it, heroes. They were just human beings who often do not live up to the legends that we have created for them.

Winston Churchill helped save the Western world from a fascist dictatorship. He was also an imperialist who genuinely thought that the British Empire was ''civilising the savages.''
Nelson Mandela did more than perhaps any other man to help end Apartheid. He was also the head of the South African Communist party who were guilty of at least a hundred acts of terrorism, often against innocent civilians.
Mahatma Gandhi. The post child of non-violent resistance and hero of India. He was also a sexual predator and hated black people.
Abraham Lincoln. The great emancipator of the slaves. Who is also on record as very much not wanting equality between whites and blacks, including not wanting black people to vote or marry white women.
Teddy Roosevelt, beloved by many, and also a follower of eugenics and a white supremacist who once claimed that America was ''a land for racially superior peoples descended from Europeans.''

I can go on, and on, and on. Point I am trying to make is, it is VERY easy to focus on one thing and say that you are ''not sad to see them go'' just as it is easy to romanticise someone who does not deserve it. But that is not real life, i'm afraid. And in the case of Mr Abe, he has been celebrated by ''Time magazine'' several times for a reason. He has a list of awards the size of your arm for a reason. There were people laying flowers for him and crying at the roadside for a reason.

And he is also an apologist for war crimes as you say.

[TGLS]

Ronald Reagen in 1981. So 41 years. You could suppose the irregularity of the 20th century assassination attempts is due to increased training and presence of the Secret Service.

Obviously the last successful one for a president was JFK which is over 60 years ago now.

Well I think it's clear the heavier security is the main thing: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U ... H._W._Bush

There's like a dozen from GH Bush onwards. Though surprisingly few planned to use guns.

[BridgeConsoleMasher]

Ronald Reagen in 1981. So 41 years. You could suppose the irregularity of the 20th century assassination attempts is due to increased training and presence of the Secret Service.

Obviously the last successful one for a president was JFK which is over 60 years ago now.

Well I think it's clear the heavier security is the main thing: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U ... H._W._Bush

There's like a dozen from GH Bush onwards. Though surprisingly few planned to use guns.

I was talking about domestic citizens though.

[Madner Kami]

The narrower you place the goal-posts, the easier it becomes to defend...

[Draco Dracul]

Can't say I'm sad to see the end of the war crime apologist.

Nelson Mandela did more than perhaps any other man to help end Apartheid. He was also the head of the South African Communist party who were guilty of at least a hundred acts of terrorism, often against innocent civilians.

This one is really not like the others because A) communism is a good thing, and B) you are describing the methods used to end apartheid.

[clearspira]

Can't say I'm sad to see the end of the war crime apologist.

Nelson Mandela did more than perhaps any other man to help end Apartheid. He was also the head of the South African Communist party who were guilty of at least a hundred acts of terrorism, often against innocent civilians.

This one is really not like the others because A) communism is a good thing, and B) you are describing the methods used to end apartheid.

Communism has failed everywhere it has been tried and has brought nothing but suffering and misery. Including courtesy of Nelson Mendela. Terrorist with good publicity.

[Madner Kami]

Can't say I'm sad to see the end of the war crime apologist.

Nelson Mandela did more than perhaps any other man to help end Apartheid. He was also the head of the South African Communist party who were guilty of at least a hundred acts of terrorism, often against innocent civilians.

This one is really not like the others because A) communism is a good thing, and B) you are describing the methods used to end apartheid.

Communism has failed everywhere it has been tried and has brought nothing but suffering and misery. Including courtesy of Nelson Mendela. Terrorist with good publicity.

But all those failures weren't Real Communism™!!!!111