A wonderful observation from our good pals at Gun Control. Now.

There's little to add to this astute commentary, other than the fact that this editorial zinger is all the more awesome because it centers around a baseball bat--that moronic NRA debate canard so bufoonishly overused by gun nuts.

Here's the post's text:

Once you see The Matrix, you can't un-see it.

A father at a baseball game reacts just in time to save his son from getting hit in the face by a flyway bat. It's a heartwarming story of bravery, dedication, and love, and this picture very rightly went viral.

We applaud this quick thinking man.

But this picture tells a greater tale. Look at it again. Look closer.

Look at everyone else in the crowd. They're ducking for cover. Even the father is instinctively shrinking away as he throws out his arm.

This is essentially why the "Good Guy With a Gun" trope the National Rifle Association sells is a fallacy. When the unexpected happens, people don't act like heroes unless they're personally invested in someone else in the line of fire, and even then they need bags of luck.

The boy still got hit by the bat. A lot less seriously, sure, it only whacked him a little on the back as it flipped over his head, the point being this save by his father still wasn't 100% effective.

It's also important to note that this is a rare case. Even later that day there was a story of someone getting hit by a bat at a ball game. The bat either hits you or misses you. It's extremely uncommon that someone else saves you from one. That's why this was such big news. It just doesn't happen.

And to answer the inevitable gunnie troll comment of "Let's ban bats," well, MORE bats would not have stopped this incident either. Just as more guns won't help you when a nutbag opens fire randomly when you're looking at your phone, just like this kid was.

And were it a shooting, chillingly, this save by his dad would have been a meaningless gesture. An arm won't stop bullets, and if a shooter has the drop on you, it won't matter if you're armed or not.

As a baseball fan I hate that this picture in particular makes me think of gun violence prevention now.

As a friend said when I pointed this out to her, "Once you see The Matrix, you can't un-see it."

This is a great story in and of itself, but it resonates because it's such a rare occurrence. That's why it's such a feel good picture.

"Whew, that kid was lucky his dad was there," we think.

Yes he was, and we're glad he didn't get hurt badly. But this incident also clearly illustrates why gun lobby talking points are complete bullshit.

Once you see The Matrix, you can't un-see it.

?#?FuckTheNRA?

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