2015: The Year in Fear
Criminals, terrorists, and madmen with guns-how fears of violence reshaped American politics
Violence
The Season of Peace Requires Action, Not Songs
Singing about peace and goodwill while cheering America's warrior state is a repulsive spectacle.
New Data Show Fatal Shootings of Police Fell During 'War on Cops'
The number of gun-related officer deaths was not unusually high this year or last.
On 'International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers,' Women Around the World Demand Rights, Not Rescue
The criminalization of prostitution is at the root of the risk sex workers face.
Please Don't Say Radical If You Mean Violent
Nothing about the word radical implies approval of aggression or terrorism.
Beware Simplistic Solutions to Mass Shootings
Tougher gun controls didn't help in California.
Why Authorities Are Still Careful About the Motives for the San Bernardino Shootings (UPDATED: With Latest Info)
Farook may be Muslim, but he doesn't seem to match the ISIS profile.
![Large image on homepages | [puamelia] / photo on flickr](https://d2eehagpk5cl65.cloudfront.net/img/c331x186-w331-q60/uploads/2015/12/14490857202037-331x186.jpg)
Breaking: 14 Dead in San Bernardino Shooting (UPDATED)
Two suspects dead after shootout with police.
Rough Porn, Rape, and James Deen: Why We Should Stop Connecting the Dots
Plenty of people enjoy rough sex and even "rape" porn without ever committing real-world sex crimes.
Stop Using the Mentally Ill to Advance Your Ideology
Fear of a small group of unpredictable people is used to attack political opponents.
Don't Let Headlines Mislead You: Murders, Assaults of Police Officers Actually Below Average
There is no evidence that police are being targeted more than they've been in the past.
Police Body Cameras Reduce Violence, Says Yet Another Study
Watched cops are polite cops, and citizens too.
Jury Says Gun Store Should Pay $5 Million for Selling Straw Buyer a Pistol
A teenager used the gun to shoot two police officers.
Link Between State Gun Laws and Fatal Shootings Not as Simple as It Seems
About that National Journal gun chart…
Washington Post Fact Checker Calls Obama's Statement About 'Gun Laws' and 'Gun Deaths' Misleading
Talking about mass shootings, the president cited data on suicides.
Ending Gun Violence: Common Sense Versus Magic
The only defender guaranteed to be present at any attack against you is you.
Several Deaths Reported at Community College Campus Shooting in Oregon (Updated: Obama Comments)
From seven to fifteen reported dead.
Did Marijuana Make Him Do It?
The Denver homicide that became a prohibitionist cautionary tale
When a Cannabis Consumer Kills, Should Marijuana Take the Rap?
Pot prohibitionists turn a Colorado homicide into a misleading cautionary tale.
Are Violent Video Games Digital Poison?
The American Psychological Association thinks so.
3 Important Caveats About That Study Showing Prostitution Clients Are More Prone to Violence
Research from group dedicated to "eradicating prostitution" gets presented as unbiased portrayal of men who've paid for sex.
NYPD Shooting of Unarmed Bystander During Gun Sting in Neighboring Town Won't Be Investigated by New York Attorney General
State AG just got the authority to investigate such shootings last month.
Do Strict Firearm Laws Give States Lower Gun Death Rates?
National Journal reads too much into a correlation.
The Roanoke Shooting and Forcible Psychiatric Treatment
A psychiatrist argues that "a vast majority of these tragedies" could be prevented by more aggressive mental health interventions.
Is It Really 'Unclear' Whether a Background Check Would Have Stopped a Killer Who Passed One?
The New York Times thinks so.
Stop Saying Women Are More Likely Than Men to Be Murdered at Work
Very few people are victims of workplace homicide-and the ones who are are mostly men.
Policy Responses to the Roanoke Shooting: 1) Mass Disarmament or 2) Mass Disarmament
"Stronger mental health screenings for prospective gun owners" would strip many harmless people of their Second Amendment rights.
Congressional Research Service Releases Study of Mass Shootings
One criminologist's reaction: "This report should calm the fears that many people have that these numbers are out of control."
Three Dead, Seven Injured in Louisiana Theater Shooting
The attack came on the same day a jury provisionally approved the death penalty for another theater shooter.
Dodd-Frank at 5: How Financial Reform Led to Bloodshed in the Congo
Everything you think you know about conflict minerals is wrong.
Defending Rihanna From the New Culture Police
Her "Bitch Better Have My Money" video is a slick, seven-minute slice of all of Rihanna's glorious pop toxicity-and that's "problematic."
Massacres and Magical Thinking
The urge to "do something" after the Charleston church attack inspires half-baked proposals.
Does Karl Rove Want to Repeal the Second Amendment?
Probably not: "I don't think it's an answer," says the former Bush adviser.
Obama Wonders If Dylann Roof, Who Passed a Background Check, Could Have Been Stopped by a Background Check
Why "common-sense gun safety reforms" would not have "prevented what happened in Charleston."
South Carolina Should Dump the Confederate Flag
In 2015, it's an expression of hostility, not only toward black people, but to broader ideals of how the nation should come to terms with the legacy of racism.
Charleston Shooter Dylann Roof's Racist Manifesto
On what appears to be his website: "We have no skinheads, no real KKK, no one doing anything but talking on the internet."
Hillary Clinton Blames Charleston Shooting on Free Speech
Particularly a speech by a political adversary, conveniently enough
No, Dylann Roof Didn't Arm Himself Through a 'Legal Loophole'
The absence of yet another law that somebody could have ignored just means that you have one legal violation instead of two.
Rand Paul: Mass Shootings Symbolize a 'Sickness' That Can't Be Fixed by More Government
Comments cater to religious conservatives without supporting a federal role in solutions.
A Frustrated President Wants But Doesn't Expect New Gun Controls
Why the Charleston church massacre isn't likely to lead to stricter gun laws
**Updated: Suspected Charleston Shooter Dylann Roof Arrested, Manhunt Over
Evidence mounts for hate crime designation
Another Right-Winger Complains About Violent Video Games. Oh Wait, It's a Feminist.
The only game that matters to the culture war is the zero-sum game.
Game of Thrones Meets Marguerite de Navarre
Historical views of sexual violence make modern television look remarkably moral and restrained.
From 'I Can't Breathe' to 'Fuck Your Breath': Tulsa Deputies Show Stunning Lack of Empathy in New Video of Eric Harris Shooting
Reserve Deputy Robert Bates said he thought he was holding a Taser, not a handgun, when he fired at Harris.
Watched Cops Are Polite Cops: San Diego Edition
Body-worn cameras encourage both police and citizens to behave better
