My goal is to get people to think by presenting citable facts. Much of the content on this site is my opinion, but I strive to come about my opinions through the application of critical thinking, experience, and research.
The gun debate is filled with lies, but mostly what I see is ignorance. I hope to help people to understand the issues a little better, and if I can get one person to think instead of feel, then I will consider this site a success.
I consider the following my guidelines for the writing that I post on this site.
Name Calling
There is far too much name-calling in this debate. I aim to take the high road here, and will not resort to name-calling.
Ad Hominem
I will not partake in ad hominem (against the person) attacks. I will attempt to avoid all logical fallacies, but this one is so common on the Internet that I felt the need to point it out.
Appeal to Emotion
I will endeavor not to appeal to emotion in my articles because I consider the appeal to emotion to be the hallmark of the ignorant. It is also the main way in which politicians and the media work to get the people at large to do their bidding.
Citing questionable sources
I will do my best to cite only well-established sources such as well-known newspapers and TV stations. I may link to Wikipedia articles from time to time, but will endeavor not to use them as a primary source. I will not cite Infowars, Prison Planet, TheBlaze, AmmoLand, or other sites that aim to rile people up with little regard for fact checking.
I may quote similar liberal sites such as the Huffington Post since they are so commonly used by anti-gun people to further their cause. I will generally use such a site to make my point; for example in an article about how confiscation fears are dismissed as paranoia, I might quote a Huffington Post article about confiscation laws in California.
Where possibile, when writing about laws, I will link to a text of the law in question from the government’s original source. If that is not available, I may resort to the official webpage of the legislator in question.
There seems to be a rush to be the first to report on a topic, regardless of the veracity of the claim made by the reporter. I will not play that game. I am not here to report the news. Rather, I am here to get people to think about the gun debate and to stop repeating lies and statistics.
Using Statistics
As a general rule, I will not use statistics. The exception to this rule is if a well-known or acceptable source publishes a report with facts as a result of historical accounting. For example, the New York Times published a report regarding the percentage of shots fired that resulted in hits by police during gunfights over an 11-year period. This information came from surveys of the officers over that period after each shooting. I consider that information to be factual. Another example would be the numbers of NICS checks performed as recorded by the FBI and published on their website. This information is a matter of public record, cited from a trusted source.
Opinion Polls
I will never quote polls unless I am making a case regarding their inaccuracy.
Considering Outcomes
I may offer up questions such as, “I wonder what would happen if…” and leave you to decide the answer.
Quotations
I may use publicly available quotations from people that suit the article. I will make every attempt to make sure that the quote is genuine. I will not quote Hitler.
Why no Advertisements?
I detest ads of all shapes and sizes. I will not be beholden to advertisers, nor do I aim to make money from this debate. I simply wish to educate and to get people to think.
Why no Comments?
The comment section of every major website, from YouTube, to CNN, to FoxNews, to the Patch, is a cesspool of vitriol, name-calling, threats, and generally bad behavior. I see no benefit to hosting such a nightmare here. Feel free to link to these articles and argue about them on forums and other forms of social media to your heart’s content.
Licensing
All text on this site (level-headed.net) is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 License. That means you’re free to link to, copy, and share these pages, but you may not to sell them or make money from them. Please include an attribution such as a link back to the original article if you use any of the work on this site.