80-Year-Olds in Prison? Why America's Prisons Are Filling Up With Grandpas and Grandmas

[merrily]

20. Have you one picked one up yet?

I have thought about this a lot. For one thing, picking up torches and pitchforks usually results in someone dying. Actually, a lot less than that. (Kent State.)

Things have to be pretty bad when death is a risk a civilian will take. Things had been very bad for that guy in Tunisia who self immolated over a few dollars that would have made the difference between his family eating that day or not, and not just very bad on that one day. That had been his life for a while and arbitrary and cruel police had made him give up all hope of improvement. Things have not been that bad in the US, at least not yet.

Besides, most of us believe we actually live in a democracy controlled by voting. As long as people cling to that illusion, they will not run out of hope that, if they only figure out how to do XYZ, things will get better. Either that, or they think "better" is impossible, anymore, no matter what. (New normal). So, what's the point?

The French court was in Versaille and the revolutionaries easily overcame the palace guard. Ditto the Tsar's security force. Wanna test what would happen if a mob tried to rush city hall, or a state house, or the White House? Or even David Koch's house?

Pitchforks don't do a lot against today's weapons--and we KNOW the militarized cops and the military will use today's weapons on us, if push comes to shove. We know that because they'ved used them on us, even if push wasn't within shouting distance of shove.

Russian revolutions failed until World War I convinced the Russian military to join the peasants. Notice any organized effort on the part of the left to win over cops and the military? And, with all the carefully cultivated and nurtured divisiveness between left and right, how do you think that effort would go, given that cops and military tend to lean right these days--firefighters, too. Their unions lean left, but the union members lean right.

The geography of the US is not conducive to organizing and massing across the nation. And, if we try, the NSA will make sure it's nipped it in the bud.


Etc.

Oh, and the only people unarmed and clueless about weapons will be most of the left, including me. That's okay for me because I would never try to hurt anyone anyway. Non violent bleeding heart liberal all the way. I couldn't live with myself.

My only equipment would be defensive. Then again, I keep talking about buying a bulletproof vest and I have not even done that yet.