I have no idea what, but
WE HAVE TO DO SOMETHING!™©®
He’s no more ‘On the Mark’ than most two year olds are in the bathroom.
On the Mark: Gun violence can no longer be ignored
Team 12 Anchor Mark Curtis discusses gun control after recent shootings in San Jose.
The comments are always predictable.
“Bad guys will always find a way to get their guns.”
“The only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a bigger gun.”
In the wake of the latest mass shooting in San Jose, this pandemic of gun violence can no longer be ignored.
Now, let me be clear, I believe in the Second Amendment. I believe in the rights of Americans to own a gun. But not if they are violent, or mentally ill, or have been convicted of a violent crime.
I wish I had the answer…but I don’t.
All I know is, doing nothing can no longer be acceptable.
Today’s Logical Fallacy is… “We Have to Do Something!”
A very dangerous contemporary fallacy, this one arises when tragedies and crises triggers the response: “We have to do something!” – regardless of whether or not that “something” is an overreaction, ineffective, or even makes things works. The logic, or lack thereof, usually flows like this:
1. We must do something.
2. This is something.
3. Therefore, we must do this.
Humans are empathetic, and when a tragedy strikes, our emotional response pushes us to do anything we can do prevent it from happening again. However, just because we can do something doesn’t mean we should, and just because the situation seems to warrant an immediate response doesn’t mean it actually needs one.
Sometimes the situation does call for action, but action should be carefully considered before it is undertaken. Doing something because it is “better than nothing” will often result in unintended consequences that often do more harm than good.