Reports on various news programs this morning show people stampeding in Times Square when a motorcycle backfires. Is this further evidence of the pussification of America? Looked like a flock of panic stricken sheep. GD

reading that made me think of this story

At one time I lived in Mobile, AL - and they celebrate Mardi Gras there , granted at a lower key than New Orleans but they still have parades, etc

So my wife and I decide we are going to go to a parade downtown. What I didn't realize at the time was that white people didn't go to the downtown parades, so we get there and we are literally the only white people that I can see in this mass of people for about 4 square blocks and its packed with families with kids.

So the parade is going on, floats going by throwing moon pies, beads, candy, whatever and everyone is having a good time. On the next block someone lights up a pack of fire crackers, and I'm not exaggerating when I say this - *EVERYONE* except me and my wife dropped to the ground because they thought it was gun shots. And we were looking around at them like what is going on. Its not that we knew it was fireworks, it was that the thought of it being gunshots were so foreign to us, it never entered our mind. But for the blacks, it was a conditioned response to that sound. A few seconds later when most people knew it was ok, everyone got back up and they were laughing at us for being so white or whatever - it wasn't mean spirited, just them noting the differences in our lives.

Well, you know like when an office space gets shot up, the one black guy in there is always the living eye witness. Cause dat brother run fo his life!!

White people be like, stand up pull their pants up to their armpits and go "hmmmm, what the heck is going on up front"

I talk to truck drivers occasionally. They come from all over the globe. A fella from the Congo who lives in Omaha told me that he heard a gunshot recently and got scared. And then he realized it was the first gunshot he had heard in years and marveled at how much safer living in Omaha was and how he had forgotten about hearing gunbattles every night. Made me feel bad about how bad some peoples of the would have things.

Someone had some powerful farts.

Wonder what New Yorkers would do if someone threw our a bunch of firecrackers.

Day one of my first deer season after returning from Vietnam found me flat on the ground when the sound of the first shot echoed through the forest. Gotten over that now, but the first full auto fire I encountered in civilian life about 12 years back found me in the same position. Called something like a conditioned response I think.

And of course the MSM loves to continue the incessant drumbeat to continue to portray all guns as evil and deadly and horrible and frightening. And of course; anyone with a gun is automatically somewhat deranged and dangerous. Not surprising that it happened in NYC; with all those sheeple; I'm surprised nobody had a heart attack.

I'll bet that would be an illegal act in NYC and the perp would go to jail.