Two “whys” . . .

Two interesting short reads, each a welcome break from the relentlessly depressing political news:

Richard Gilbert, “Why I Hate My Dog,” Longreads (July 2016) [link] is a well-written analysis of the (animal and human) psychology of one man and his rescue dog.

At 22 pounds, she’s too heavy for a lapdog. She’s ambivalent about cuddling anyway. We’re seldom inclined to offer much physical affection, given her peculiar odor, an intermittent acidic stink, especially pungent when she’s hot from running.

Jon Stokes, “Why I ‘Need’ an AR-15,” Medium (June 14) [link] explains something of the point of the style of gun used in more than a few domestic shootings.  As Stokes concedes, it may not change any minds, but if you want to understand the thought process behind the ownership of such weapons by normal people, this is a good start:

[T]his article is for the genuinely curious — those who assume that 5 million of their fellow Americans are not inhuman or insane, and who want to understand what set of rationales, no matter how flawed and confused they may ultimately turn out to be, could make an otherwise normal person walk out of a gun store with an “assault weapon.”