Vancouver’s port commissioner just said the following:
“In terms of who commits terrorist attacks on American soil, it’s not Syrians or Muslims. It’s white guys with semi-automatic weapons, and they’re already here in droves whether we let refugees in or not.”
Well according to the National Rifle Association (NRA), over 50% of firearms sold are semi-automatic. And Clark County has a few ‘white guys’. So it appears LaBrant has cast thousands of local citizens as potential terrorists. And just for the record, there are ‘white gals’ and Americans of other colors who own many more such weapons. So the list of citizens he’s insulted is actually considerably larger.
Stunning Poor Judgment
Even if someone had this sort of fringe point of view, how could they have such poor judgment to publically spew this condemnation about salt-of-the-earth regular citizens? Further, why would they do this after just being elected to a position in which public confidence in your judgment is important? Why would someone who will be involved with making decisions related to our port operations make this inflammatory statement in spite of the actual facts? No rational person would have this point of view, much less say it in public.
There was a time when stupid thoughts stayed in people’s heads-as there was a price to pay for overt stupidity. If, by chance, such poorly conceived thoughts escaped, there usually enough sensible people around that the thought was quickly squashed, and the person who let it out chastised and reminded that such broken, and inflammatory, thoughts should stay where they formed and not be let free to roam the world. Usually, if this happened several times, the culprit would think twice before popping off with such idiocy as a rational family member or friend would strongly tell them they were wrong, and worse were upsetting others.
Then Facebook and twitter came along, and not only were people free to let out their stupid thoughts, but found kindred spirits who also harbored similar fringe thoughts. In today’s world of participation trophies, everyone gets rewarded for thinking. It doesn’t matter if you’re lazy and think only stupid thoughts, or if you actually take the time to examine facts, quantify trends, identify patterns and analyze risk. Hey, at least you’re thinking, right? Gold star for you!
Now back to Mr. LaBrant. It seems pretty conclusive that his verbal flatulence here is bereft of thought, generated more from a meme-driven ideological agenda than any actual consideration or factual basis. It’s arrogant, wildly off base and poorly advised. It is in fact, a stupid idea, and should have stayed in his head instead of being presented to the world. Such a public declaration demonstrates a level of incompetence that suggests a difficult time for anyone working with LaBrant in the future. He’s a liberal. Nearly all liberals are about ideology first – and facts are only considered if they don’t conflict with the ideology. This is a terrible background to have in a role in which complex commerce opportunities need to be carefully vetted, planned, and pursued.
The question we have to ask ourselves is, what is a buffoon like this doing as Port Commissioner, and how did he get there? We at ClarkCounty.info will be watching him closely. Further, after this stunning statement by LaBrant, we’re resolved to work toward his early removal from office; not necessarily through a formal recall process, but through highlighting his idiocy and anti-business attitude on a regular basis. Such people hate to have their incompetence and strident ideology exposed, and this pressure can have them resign or decided to not run for office again. ClarkCounty.info will be watching and writing.