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USA Presidential Election 2016: Screams from My Father

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    JarsJars Registered User regular
    maybe this is all some kind of experiment

    to see how long until we turn into vengeful monsters

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    KwoaruKwoaru Confident Smirk Flawless Golden PecsRegistered User regular
    edited July 2016
    Cello wrote: »
    Kwoaru wrote: »
    Man I just don't understand the robo bomb thing, when I heard the police chief talking about it he first said explosive and I figured oh it was probably some kind of flash or smoke thing (something not designed just to kill) and it went wrong like maybe the guy shot it or something

    Then a line or two later he just says bomb and I'm just amazed that bomb carrying robot is a thing and I'm not sure what step robo-bomb is a logical progression from

    It was definitely not a robot made for that express purpose

    EOD bots typically have grip claws so they can grab/pull/drag objects, as well as cameras so the operators can see what's going on, and basically high powered water guns which're used to disable explosives

    Likely a bomb tech made an actual bomb on-site, since I doubt police have actual frag grenades or anything, and carried it in using the grip/activated it remotely

    Oh yeah no I don't think it was a pass the butter style robot built only to hold bombs, I imagine it's simple to put something like that together if you already have a bomb disposal bot and a way to make an explosive

    I guess I mean more the thinking involved

    Maybe I just don't know enough about what exactly was happening I'm just having a hard time imagining myself in a situation where "I need put together a bomb carrying robot and then send that robot into where that guy is and then press the button to blow it up" is a decision I would make

    Kwoaru on
    2x39jD4.jpg
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    PoorochondriacPoorochondriac Ah, man Ah, jeezRegistered User regular
    Jeez, the number of news orgs/journalists saying "Micah X. Johnson" is extremely, extremely gross.

    I don't know Chris Dorner's middle initial. Or Timothy McVeigh's, or Ted Kaczynski's, or Dylan Roof's, or basically any other domestic terrorist's.

    But as soon as there's this opportunity to draw an invisible line in peoples' heads from Malcolm X to a violent man, they fucking leap at the chance. So gross. So insidious.

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    TheStigTheStig Registered User regular
    Jars wrote: »
    maybe this is all some kind of experiment

    to see how long until we turn into vengeful monsters

    Somewhere a masked vigilante is having a fist fight with the mastermind behind it all and we will never know about it.

    bnet: TheStig#1787 Steam: TheStig
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    Romanian My EscutcheonRomanian My Escutcheon Two of Forks Registered User regular
    Kwoaru wrote: »
    Cello wrote: »
    Kwoaru wrote: »
    Man I just don't understand the robo bomb thing, when I heard the police chief talking about it he first said explosive and I figured oh it was probably some kind of flash or smoke thing (something not designed just to kill) and it went wrong like maybe the guy shot it or something

    Then a line or two later he just says bomb and I'm just amazed that bomb carrying robot is a thing and I'm not sure what step robo-bomb is a logical progression from

    It was definitely not a robot made for that express purpose

    EOD bots typically have grip claws so they can grab/pull/drag objects, as well as cameras so the operators can see what's going on, and basically high powered water guns which're used to disable explosives

    Likely a bomb tech made an actual bomb on-site, since I doubt police have actual frag grenades or anything, and carried it in using the grip/activated it remotely

    Oh yeah no I don't think it was a pass the butter style robot built only to hold bombs, I imagine it's simple to put something like that together if you already have a bomb disposal bot and a way to make an explosive

    I guess I mean more the thinking involved

    Maybe I just don't know enough about what exactly was happening I'm just having a hard time imagining myself in a situation where "I need put together a bomb carrying robot and then send that robot into where that guy is and then press the button to blow it up" is a decision I would make

    I just can't help but marvel at the fact that the Dallas PD decided that the best way to defuse the situation was to injure and potentially kill the suspect by turning a device that is designed to save lives into a mobile bomb.

    [IMG][/img]
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    Fleur de AlysFleur de Alys Biohacker Registered User regular
    edited July 2016
    Kwoaru wrote: »
    Cello wrote: »
    Kwoaru wrote: »
    Man I just don't understand the robo bomb thing, when I heard the police chief talking about it he first said explosive and I figured oh it was probably some kind of flash or smoke thing (something not designed just to kill) and it went wrong like maybe the guy shot it or something

    Then a line or two later he just says bomb and I'm just amazed that bomb carrying robot is a thing and I'm not sure what step robo-bomb is a logical progression from

    It was definitely not a robot made for that express purpose

    EOD bots typically have grip claws so they can grab/pull/drag objects, as well as cameras so the operators can see what's going on, and basically high powered water guns which're used to disable explosives

    Likely a bomb tech made an actual bomb on-site, since I doubt police have actual frag grenades or anything, and carried it in using the grip/activated it remotely

    Oh yeah no I don't think it was a pass the butter style robot built only to hold bombs, I imagine it's simple to put something like that together if you already have a bomb disposal bot and a way to make an explosive

    I guess I mean more the thinking involved

    Maybe I just don't know enough about what exactly was happening I'm just having a hard time imagining myself in a situation where "I need put together a bomb carrying robot and then send that robot into where that guy is and then press the button to blow it up" is a decision I would make

    I just can't help but marvel at the fact that the Dallas PD decided that the best way to defuse the situation was to injure and potentially kill the suspect by turning a device that is designed to save lives into a mobile bomb.
    I think I'm more amazed that it worked

    Could have gone so horribly wrong

    Fleur de Alys on
    Triptycho: A card-and-dice tabletop indie RPG currently in development and playtesting
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    JarsJars Registered User regular
    better than having a shootout with them if this guy made the decision he wasn't going quietly

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    Captain MarcusCaptain Marcus now arrives the hour of actionRegistered User regular
    Jars wrote: »
    better than having a shootout with them if this guy made the decision he wasn't going quietly
    According to the police chief, he was having a shootout with them when they sent in the robomb

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    FawstFawst The road to awe.Registered User regular
    I guess this is technically the first time a drone was used by police? I mean, is that not what this is? Is a drone strictly just a UAV?

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    A Dabble Of TheloniusA Dabble Of Thelonius It has been a doozy of a dayRegistered User regular
    I vote for Boomba as the name btw

    vm8gvf5p7gqi.jpg
    Steam - Talon Valdez :Blizz - Talonious#1860 : Xbox Live & LoL - Talonious Monk @TaloniousMonk Hail Satan
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    DecomposeyDecomposey Registered User regular
    edited July 2016
    Jeez, the number of news orgs/journalists saying "Micah X. Johnson" is extremely, extremely gross.

    I don't know Chris Dorner's middle initial. Or Timothy McVeigh's, or Ted Kaczynski's, or Dylan Roof's, or basically any other domestic terrorist's.

    But as soon as there's this opportunity to draw an invisible line in peoples' heads from Malcolm X to a violent man, they fucking leap at the chance. So gross. So insidious.

    Well the name Micah Johnson was already used in the media belonging to a guy who plays second base for the Dodgers, so Micah X Johnson has to differentiated somehow.

    Decomposey on
    Before following any advice, opinions, or thoughts I may have expressed in the above post, be warned: I found Keven Costners "Waterworld" to be a very entertaining film.
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    PoorochondriacPoorochondriac Ah, man Ah, jeezRegistered User regular
    AP is reporting that the one confirmed shooter thus far is an Army veteran who served in Afghanistan.

    Curious if/how that'll get slotted into the narrative folks are building.

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    DaMoonRulzDaMoonRulz Mare ImbriumRegistered User regular
    The Non-Micah X Johnson Micah Johnsons probably appreciate it

    3basnids3lf9.jpg




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    rhylithrhylith Death Rabbits HoustonRegistered User regular
    I really wish the DPD would take down the tweet about the guy on the ground who was open carrying for the protest and had nothing to do with the shooting.

    It uses the word suspect which is dangerous for his safety at this point.

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    Gilbert0Gilbert0 North of SeattleRegistered User regular
    The Sauce wrote: »
    Kwoaru wrote: »
    Cello wrote: »
    Kwoaru wrote: »
    Man I just don't understand the robo bomb thing, when I heard the police chief talking about it he first said explosive and I figured oh it was probably some kind of flash or smoke thing (something not designed just to kill) and it went wrong like maybe the guy shot it or something

    Then a line or two later he just says bomb and I'm just amazed that bomb carrying robot is a thing and I'm not sure what step robo-bomb is a logical progression from

    It was definitely not a robot made for that express purpose

    EOD bots typically have grip claws so they can grab/pull/drag objects, as well as cameras so the operators can see what's going on, and basically high powered water guns which're used to disable explosives

    Likely a bomb tech made an actual bomb on-site, since I doubt police have actual frag grenades or anything, and carried it in using the grip/activated it remotely

    Oh yeah no I don't think it was a pass the butter style robot built only to hold bombs, I imagine it's simple to put something like that together if you already have a bomb disposal bot and a way to make an explosive

    I guess I mean more the thinking involved

    Maybe I just don't know enough about what exactly was happening I'm just having a hard time imagining myself in a situation where "I need put together a bomb carrying robot and then send that robot into where that guy is and then press the button to blow it up" is a decision I would make

    I just can't help but marvel at the fact that the Dallas PD decided that the best way to defuse the situation was to injure and potentially kill the suspect by turning a device that is designed to save lives into a mobile bomb.
    I think I'm more amazed that it worked

    Could have gone so horribly wrong

    It could have but that's what that robot is designed to do. It's the bomb squad robot that has a designed charge on it. It's meant to go to a bigger bomb and blow it up before it goes off. That's what you hear about "controlled explosion" for a bomb threat. They just did it against someone instead.

    And apparently they've been doing it in Iraq before too against people with the military. Just not in the US.

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    PoorochondriacPoorochondriac Ah, man Ah, jeezRegistered User regular
    DaMoonRulz wrote: »
    The Non-Micah X Johnson Micah Johnsons probably appreciate it

    Eh, Eric Harris is the most generic/common name possible, and his middle initial never got trotted out

    Disambiguation is not even remotely the goal here, unfortunately.

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    Dongs GaloreDongs Galore Registered User regular
    edited July 2016
    I'm curious how one man in a parking garage was too well-barricaded to be taken by storm in a more conventional fashion, and also why they chose a bomb (which I assume was improvised from a breaching charge if not the shaped charge already on some robots) instead of a flashbang or something

    I assume the threat of explosives elsewhere was what made it time sensitive but its still a really weird choice

    Dongs Galore on
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    rhylithrhylith Death Rabbits HoustonRegistered User regular
    edited July 2016
    I'm curious how one man in a parking garage was too well-barricaded to be taken by storm in a more conventional fashion, and also why they chose a bomb (which I assume was improvised from a breaching charge if not the shaped charge already on some robots) instead of a flashbang or something

    I assume the threat of explosives elsewhere was what made it time sensitive but its still a really weird choice

    From what I've read he was threatening to use explosives and was it was impossible to reach him by any other means safely.

    Like, it's an awful tactic and I hope it's rarely if ever used again but it honestly sounds like knowing what they knew about the situation there may not have been a safer way to do it with the knowledge they had at the time.

    rhylith on
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    KadithKadith Registered User regular
    I think it is terrifying to be in a place where cops can justify using explosives against someone.

    zkHcp.jpg
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    PoorochondriacPoorochondriac Ah, man Ah, jeezRegistered User regular
    edited July 2016
    Decomposey wrote: »
    Jeez, the number of news orgs/journalists saying "Micah X. Johnson" is extremely, extremely gross.

    I don't know Chris Dorner's middle initial. Or Timothy McVeigh's, or Ted Kaczynski's, or Dylan Roof's, or basically any other domestic terrorist's.

    But as soon as there's this opportunity to draw an invisible line in peoples' heads from Malcolm X to a violent man, they fucking leap at the chance. So gross. So insidious.

    Well the name Micah Johnson was already used in the media belonging to a guy who plays second base for the Dodgers, so Micah X Johnson has to differentiated somehow.

    Saying Micah Xavier Johnson would be fine, in that case.

    The initialization is deliberate.

    Poorochondriac on
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    Dongs GaloreDongs Galore Registered User regular
    I mean I'm not judging the police for doing it I'm just curious what exactly the situation was

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    Lindsay LohanLindsay Lohan Registered User regular
    It bothers me quite a bit that the police force has the ability to remotely bomb someone. I have such a struggle with the militarization of local police.

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    Centipede DamascusCentipede Damascus Registered User regular
    Jeez, the number of news orgs/journalists saying "Micah X. Johnson" is extremely, extremely gross.

    I don't know Chris Dorner's middle initial. Or Timothy McVeigh's, or Ted Kaczynski's, or Dylan Roof's, or basically any other domestic terrorist's.

    But as soon as there's this opportunity to draw an invisible line in peoples' heads from Malcolm X to a violent man, they fucking leap at the chance. So gross. So insidious.

    To be fair,

    James Earl Ray
    Lee Harvey Oswald
    John Wayne Gacy
    John Wilkes Booth
    Mark David Chapman

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    Dongs GaloreDongs Galore Registered User regular
    edited July 2016
    those guys actually have middle names though

    e. oh, his name actually is Xavier, I misunderstood Pooro's post

    Dongs Galore on
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    masterofmetroidmasterofmetroid Have you ever looked at a world and seen it as a kind of challenge?Registered User regular
    It bothers me quite a bit that the police force has the ability to remotely bomb someone. I have such a struggle with the militarization of local police.
    The usage of the device for controlled detonation is pretty necessary

    I don't like the idea of it being used as a weapon at all though

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    chocoboliciouschocobolicious Registered User regular
    DaMoonRulz wrote: »
    The Non-Micah X Johnson Micah Johnsons probably appreciate it

    Eh, Eric Harris is the most generic/common name possible, and his middle initial never got trotted out

    Disambiguation is not even remotely the goal here, unfortunately.

    There are other Eric Harris in popular media?

    I'd never heard of em.

    Also skimming some news sites, the ones using X also use his full name in the body of text and are many such as CBS, NBC, AP and whatever, while some shitty sites like daily beast and breitbart don't bother to use the X at all and often just use his full name.

    It's weird that the racist sites don't bother being racist. Low hanging fruit and all.

    Maybe the MLB just owns the name.

    steam_sig.png
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    TossrockTossrock too weird to live too rare to dieRegistered User regular
    AP is reporting that the one confirmed shooter thus far is an Army veteran who served in Afghanistan.

    Curious if/how that'll get slotted into the narrative folks are building.

    Welp, called that.

    sig.png
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    GundiGundi Serious Bismuth Registered User regular
    @Speed Racer

    To reiterate, youse good people.

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    Romanian My EscutcheonRomanian My Escutcheon Two of Forks Registered User regular
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    CelloCello Registered User regular
    It bothers me quite a bit that the police force has the ability to remotely bomb someone. I have such a struggle with the militarization of local police.
    The usage of the device for controlled detonation is pretty necessary

    I don't like the idea of it being used as a weapon at all though

    It makes me tremendously uncomfortable, specifically because I moralized working on these robots with the understanding that they were built to be used defensively and save lives, not take them

    And now this particular choice might lend towards others deciding to use them in a similar application

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    LabelLabel Registered User regular
    AP is reporting that the one confirmed shooter thus far is an Army veteran who served in Afghanistan.

    Curious if/how that'll get slotted into the narrative folks are building.

    It is, unfortunately, exactly what I personally expected.

    As I understand it, the military's two main recruitment demographics are idealogues who romanticize the military, and poor minorities.


    As to the news, I have to think the "willing to sacrifice for his country" aspect will probably just get left out.

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    Rorshach KringleRorshach Kringle that crustache life Registered User regular
    Jeez, the number of news orgs/journalists saying "Micah X. Johnson" is extremely, extremely gross.

    I don't know Chris Dorner's middle initial. Or Timothy McVeigh's, or Ted Kaczynski's, or Dylan Roof's, or basically any other domestic terrorist's.

    But as soon as there's this opportunity to draw an invisible line in peoples' heads from Malcolm X to a violent man, they fucking leap at the chance. So gross. So insidious.

    To be fair,

    James Earl Ray
    Lee Harvey Oswald
    John Wayne Gacy
    John Wilkes Booth
    Mark David Chapman

    to be fair, this completely misses the point

    6vjsgrerts6r.png

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    chocoboliciouschocobolicious Registered User regular
    Jeez, the number of news orgs/journalists saying "Micah X. Johnson" is extremely, extremely gross.

    I don't know Chris Dorner's middle initial. Or Timothy McVeigh's, or Ted Kaczynski's, or Dylan Roof's, or basically any other domestic terrorist's.

    But as soon as there's this opportunity to draw an invisible line in peoples' heads from Malcolm X to a violent man, they fucking leap at the chance. So gross. So insidious.

    To be fair,

    James Earl Ray
    Lee Harvey Oswald
    John Wayne Gacy
    John Wilkes Booth
    Mark David Chapman

    to be fair, this completely misses the point

    That as early as '92 a majority of people didn't even remember who Malcolm X was and that I doubt that's improved since then?

    I don't even think I ever heard him mentioned in any history classes all through college, even.

    Feels real tenuous.

    steam_sig.png
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    PaladinPaladin Registered User regular
    This is so subliminal that I feel unsafe attributing any intent to it

    Marty: The future, it's where you're going?
    Doc: That's right, twenty five years into the future. I've always dreamed on seeing the future, looking beyond my years, seeing the progress of mankind. I'll also be able to see who wins the next twenty-five world series.
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    HermanoHermano Registered User regular
    edited July 2016
    People converting to Islam can use an X. as a middle initial or surname, there's no way this is a coincidence

    Hermano on

    PSN- AHermano
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    JarsJars Registered User regular
    people know who malcom X is, but it isn't a connection I would make

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    BroloBrolo Broseidon Lord of the BroceanRegistered User regular
    Jeez, the number of news orgs/journalists saying "Micah X. Johnson" is extremely, extremely gross.

    I don't know Chris Dorner's middle initial. Or Timothy McVeigh's, or Ted Kaczynski's, or Dylan Roof's, or basically any other domestic terrorist's.

    But as soon as there's this opportunity to draw an invisible line in peoples' heads from Malcolm X to a violent man, they fucking leap at the chance. So gross. So insidious.

    To be fair,

    James Earl Ray
    Lee Harvey Oswald
    John Wayne Gacy
    John Wilkes Booth
    Mark David Chapman

    to be fair, this completely misses the point

    That as early as '92 a majority of people didn't even remember who Malcolm X was and that I doubt that's improved since then?

    I don't even think I ever heard him mentioned in any history classes all through college, even.

    Feels real tenuous.

    I... really?

    No american history classes even mentioned the leaders of the Civil Rights movement? It's both pretty recent and incredibly important in the context of today's modern political landscape.


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    Centipede DamascusCentipede Damascus Registered User regular
    Jeez, the number of news orgs/journalists saying "Micah X. Johnson" is extremely, extremely gross.

    I don't know Chris Dorner's middle initial. Or Timothy McVeigh's, or Ted Kaczynski's, or Dylan Roof's, or basically any other domestic terrorist's.

    But as soon as there's this opportunity to draw an invisible line in peoples' heads from Malcolm X to a violent man, they fucking leap at the chance. So gross. So insidious.

    To be fair,

    James Earl Ray
    Lee Harvey Oswald
    John Wayne Gacy
    John Wilkes Booth
    Mark David Chapman

    to be fair, this completely misses the point

    I completely get the point about the X, I was just responding to the argument that he didn't know the middle names of "basically any other domestic terrorists".

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    jgeisjgeis Registered User regular
    Brolo wrote: »
    Jeez, the number of news orgs/journalists saying "Micah X. Johnson" is extremely, extremely gross.

    I don't know Chris Dorner's middle initial. Or Timothy McVeigh's, or Ted Kaczynski's, or Dylan Roof's, or basically any other domestic terrorist's.

    But as soon as there's this opportunity to draw an invisible line in peoples' heads from Malcolm X to a violent man, they fucking leap at the chance. So gross. So insidious.

    To be fair,

    James Earl Ray
    Lee Harvey Oswald
    John Wayne Gacy
    John Wilkes Booth
    Mark David Chapman

    to be fair, this completely misses the point

    That as early as '92 a majority of people didn't even remember who Malcolm X was and that I doubt that's improved since then?

    I don't even think I ever heard him mentioned in any history classes all through college, even.

    Feels real tenuous.

    I... really?

    No american history classes even mentioned the leaders of the Civil Rights movement? It's both pretty recent and incredibly important in the context of today's modern political landscape.


    My high school history classes (graduated in 2008) pretty much stopped at WW2, and the one history class I took in college focused mainly on antiquity.

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    Fleur de AlysFleur de Alys Biohacker Registered User regular
    Brolo wrote: »
    Jeez, the number of news orgs/journalists saying "Micah X. Johnson" is extremely, extremely gross.

    I don't know Chris Dorner's middle initial. Or Timothy McVeigh's, or Ted Kaczynski's, or Dylan Roof's, or basically any other domestic terrorist's.

    But as soon as there's this opportunity to draw an invisible line in peoples' heads from Malcolm X to a violent man, they fucking leap at the chance. So gross. So insidious.

    To be fair,

    James Earl Ray
    Lee Harvey Oswald
    John Wayne Gacy
    John Wilkes Booth
    Mark David Chapman

    to be fair, this completely misses the point

    That as early as '92 a majority of people didn't even remember who Malcolm X was and that I doubt that's improved since then?

    I don't even think I ever heard him mentioned in any history classes all through college, even.

    Feels real tenuous.

    I... really?

    No american history classes even mentioned the leaders of the Civil Rights movement? It's both pretty recent and incredibly important in the context of today's modern political landscape.

    I never had an American history class go past WW2

    But I had a pretty mediocre general education

    Triptycho: A card-and-dice tabletop indie RPG currently in development and playtesting
This discussion has been closed.