I'm sorry Sean. I've found I'm pretty bad at telling when you've abandoned your starting point for another tack.

It's okay, I'm pretty bad about being able to tell when you're arguing for fun and silly debate, or when you're getting serious about the argument.

As for how to tell when I've abandoned my starting point, that usually happens between zero and five minutes after I've made the statement. I'm mercurial like that.

I maintain, and you disagreed (at least initially -- I still don't know if you now agree) that the knife is a better grab than a hammer.

I should point out that I really started this all in a spirit of silliness which I tried to maintain through the whole thing, but let me be clear on something -- if there's an attacker in my house, and for some reason there's a ball-peen hammer and a large, sharp kitchen knife lying side by side, just within my reach, I'm grabbing the knife.

I just felt somebody needed to stand up for the hammer, as I don't feel it's as useless as all that. I mean - choice between knife and hammer? Knife. Choice between hammer and something else that doesn't have a blade or a bullet, probably the hammer. Depending.

What bugs me, defensively, is that you called ita's argument crazy, and that she is also a whackaloon, despite the fact that she's, well, right.

You should see my last post, Allyson. I started the argument in a spirit of silliness which colors many debates around the board.

I kinda figured the specific use of the word "WHACKALOON" would have clued everybody in to that fact.

Actually, to be very clear, the whole thing started when I complained about not being able to get into verbal sparring with ita over a silly subject, and she obliged. I never once took this argument very seriously, I certainly hope no one else did, though I'm starting to suspect that perhaps they did.

Ahem. To all y'all freaks:

Baseball. Bat.

Barring someone with a gun who is willing to shoot me, I can fuck someone UP with a baseball bat.

Well, if we get to pick any weapon, I may very well just go for the gun. And some lessons. Or a sword. Or a staff.

But if it's down to a knife or a hammer, the hammer anti-defamation league can go take a long walk off a short pier. This is my ass on the line.

Well, if we get to pick any weapon, I may very well just go for the gun. And some lessons.

I'm almost positive that, even if I had a gun and knew how to use it, I wouldn't shoot someone. If my life were at risk, or if someone else's life were at risk -- *maybe* I'd shoot.

Granted, I can't really know that unless it would ever happen.

Or a staff.

I'm a redneck -- the baseball bat IS my staff.

I'm a redneck -- the baseball bat IS my staff.

I keep a personalized Reds baseball bat from the Louisville Slugger museum in my living room. For the coolness.

I'm a redneck -- the baseball bat IS my staff

What I like about a staff of long or short length (as used/designed by the Japanese) is the ambidexterity of them. You can grip either end equally. You miss out on the momentum gained by something like a bat or a staff with a knob, but I'm okay with that.

I mentioned it earlier in the debate, but again one should not underestimate the usefulness of the Sizable Rock.

It was the weapon of choice for thousands of years! It's ubiquitous, it can be used as a missle weapon or hand to hand. Sure, it (usually) has no edge, but it requires no manufacturing and no tools to maintain.

Plus, you never run out of ammo.

Unless you're standing in grassy plain. Or a boat on the water.

Plus, you never run out of ammo.

Tales from your kitchen suddenly make a lot more sense.

There is neither a rock nor a baseball bat in my kitchen. And I'm sticking to the my kitchen scenario, since that's where I am. Well, I'm not in the kitchen right now, but anywhere else in my apartment, I'm out the door or window asap. I only live on the second floor, and the window in my bedroom leads to the fire escape, so really it's just from the living room if the front door is blocked that I'd actually have to jump.