Tastelessness Personified

Dr. Jerry Pournelle, one of Science Fiction's more notable names, died just over a week ago. His politics were somewhere to the right of Stalin, so naturally, character assassination is already going on.
The author of this screed, in addition to having the poor taste to post it so soon after the death, can't figure out that author's are not their characters, and considers the fairly libertarian Pournelle to be the grandfather of the Alt-Right. I can't say I'm particularly surprised by that, since jackasses like this managed to portray Heinlein as a fascist, and David Drake as glorifying war. This is so horrendously over the line that I don't really know what to do, other than to wish that they end up inhabiting a gutter so foul that even the fleas don't want to latch on to them.

Because 9/11 Truthers are Retarded

Cross posted from the book of Faces:

A 9/11 Truther just told me that the planes slamming into the towers wouldn't have had much effect, because the planes are primarily thin aluminum, just like a beer can. He even helpfully provided weights (fully loaded 747: 395,000, fuel load: 120,000lbs). My response, with names redacted to protect the retarded (my response incidentally also ignores the structural framework of the aircraft):
At approximately 22 miles an hour, the plane would have the same energy as approximately 6.3 pounds of TNT (note that I used the Truther's figures, and subtracted fuel from the equation).
At the estimated 402 miles per hour that the Twin towers were hit at, (an eminently reasonable estimate, because that's the usual fight speed of such an aircraft), it would have about same energy as just over a ton of TNT. Assuming a 45% loss of energy as per the Truther's figures again, we still have approximately 1167.46 pounds of TNT.
If I throw a f*cking beer can at your head at 400 miles an hour, it doesn't matter that it's a f*cking beer can. In fact, it's beer canness makes it worse for your head, because it's going to come apart and dump all of that energy into your witless dome. And even the skull of a 911 truther isn't thick enough to survive that. The same principle applies to the twin towers and the aircraft.

Add fuel to the mix, and the kinetic energy equation gets worse. Then the fuel catches fire and burns at a temperature that robs the steel of it's structural strength.

Texas takes a step in the right direction

They've legalized the carry of large knives and swords. Of course, there are a few restrictions:

So although Texans will be allowed to walk down the street carrying a katana, it's illegal to take blades exceeding 5.5 inches to the following places:
• Bars and restaurants that derive 51% or more of their income from the sale or service of alcoholic beverages for on-premise consumption.
• Schools and universities.
• Polling places.
• Secure areas of airports.
• Racetracks.
• High school, collegiate or professional sporting events (unless the person is a participant in the event and a location-restricted knife is used in the event).
• Correctional facilities.
• Hospitals, nursing homes and mental hospitals (unless written authorization is given).
• Amusement parks.
• Churches, synagogues or other established places of religious worship. Also, people under age 18 will not be allowed to carry such blades if not directly supervised by a parent or guardian.
Violating the law could result in a third-degree felony charge, punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a maximum $10,000 fine.

That wording is because of a stabbing earlier this year. Because people who are going to engage in stabbings make sure to follow the law in all its particulars, and will of course never conceal a knife over 5.5 inches, despite the fact that it's not particularly hard to conceal even a large knife, and even swords can be concealed with a little prior planning. And of course they'll never just use a baseball bat or a half-brick in a sock, should the law actually work in preventing knives from getting in. And no one has ever died of getting punched.