For reals, folks. Assault weapons do not contribute to mass shootings. Pistols do not contribute to mass shootings. Video games do not contribute to mass shootings. Heavy metal does not create spree killers. Lack of Jesus doesn’t make spree killers happen. Background checks will not stop spree killers.

You know what contributes to spree shooters? Human Beings. Some people are just twisted and angry and violent. You will never be able to legislate this fact out of existence. Life is dangerous. Laws don’t change that – they just change who you can sue after shit happens.

I’d like to take a moment to address a trend that’s been occurring in the comments:

This website is not your soapbox. It’s mine.

I work this comic thing as a second full time job. I don’t get to play video games, or watch a ton of movies and TV – because I am making entertainment here, and yes, I do get profit from it. But this also means that I get to preach to you from time to time, here in these updates. You don’t get to preach to me in the comments section that we have to pay for. I don’t care if you’re an anti-gun freak who thinks you have a holy mission to tell us all about HOW SCARY AND EVIL GUNS ARE. I don’t care if you’re an anti-choice screamer who JUST CAN’T HELP BUT TRY TO BABBLE ABOUT THE FETUS HOLOCAUST. I don’t care if you’re a hardcore Libertarian who wants to SCREAM THAT WELFARE IS EVIL, AND GOVERNMENT IS TYRANNY, BY DEFAULT. I don’t care if you think BITCOIN IS THE ONLY WAY, AND ONLY RON PAUL CAN SAVE US NOW. This isn’t your soapbox. It’s mine, and I work hard to maintain it.

If you come in here with a chip on your shoulder, I’ll shut you down. I may just ask you what, exactly, it is that you fucking want, or if you push me, I may just delete your comments and ban you. And I won’t even feel bad doing it.

Don’t like it? Then you go create a blog or a website or a comic strip of your own. It’ll be your little soapbox. You’ll get all the audience you deserve, depending on how interesting you are. But our readers are not your audience to spew bullshit to. Doing so makes you the equivalent of those annoying Mega-Christian cunts who walk down Bourbon street trying to preach that everyone there is going to hell, with big banners and a bullhorn.

So I guess what I’m saying is: Stop being dickheads. I know, saying this to the internet is a fool’s mission, but I just wanted to get that off my chest.

Also, yes, I’ve been closing comments on strips that are more than 2 weeks old or so – mostly due to spammers. This site was getting over 400 spam messages a day for a while there, which was a tedious thing to clean up. I noticed most of the spam hit posts that were more than a month old. If there’s a post that still has activity after two weeks, I’ll leave it open for a bit, but that honestly hasn’t happened yet.

I feel pretty good, now that we’ve had this chat. Now, some light music:

http://youtu.be/Mr7EBuz-2xI