October 2, 2017

While waiting for the last press conference of the evening on the Las Vegas shooting, Sean Hannity allowed himself a moment of indulgence in his favorite testosterone-laden rescue scenario.

In Hannity's toxic masculinity scenario, he's in the room with his (licensed, registered and permitted) gun at the ready.

He waits for an opportunity, poised to take out the shooter with his (licensed, registered, concealed and permitted) gun. Preferably a moment where the bad guy has to change his clip.

And then he will take him out!

This is the scenario he laid out for Laura Ingraham, asking her whether she'd want Sean Hannity in the room with his (licensed, registered, concealed, permitted, gigantic) gun.

Her answer: "No. It wouldn't have mattered in the Mandalay shooting."

Watch the ego deflate in real time.

Sarcasm aside, go read Joan Walsh's analysis of the dangerous mix of toxic masculinity, Donald Trump, and unfettered gun ownership.

There is something deeply wrong with the American male identification of guns as a symbol of freedom. We need to translate that correctly: By this definition, it is the capacity for brutal violence that is also a symbol, maybe even a prerequisite, of freedom. Of almost strictly male freedom, we must emphasize. This set of values wasn’t invented by the madman in the White House; he is just a symptom of a country and an electorate that value guns over children’s lives.

And then pay a visit to Charlie Pierce, whose column today made me double over and suppress bloodcurdling screams:

The Constitution is not a pact with the devil, nor is it a suicide pact. It is a formalized, legalistic ritual of blood sacrifice. There are some things that we as a society, alas, must tolerate in order to stay true to our founding beliefs and to remain free. Schoolchildren shot to pieces is one of those things. The massacre of country music fans is another one of those things, the 273rd blood sacrifice to that one provision of the Constitution this year.

That short clip above of Sean Hannity is a living breathing demonstration of everything that's wrong with this country right now. Everything, including our utterly fcked up dysfunction when it comes to guns.

(h/t Angelo Carusone)

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