I was all set to post my next blog entry, but after a restless night I can’t just ignore the shooting in Boulder. I know that I should be similarly disturbed by every shooting, whether it’s Asian sex workers in Atlanta, or the daily carnage on the streets of Philadelphia, but this one hit home. Maybe because I have good friends in Boulder. Maybe because it happened to people shopping in a grocery store, which is a regular part of my life. It doesn’t really matter why. This shook me.
I could go into a screed about guns or the NRA. I could compare our rate of mass shootings with other countries that have sensible gun control laws. I could decry our politicians who offer prayers and nothing else. But I won’t, because at this moment all of that seems futile.
The truth of the matter is that we are who we are in this country. We have a gun culture that we have indulged to the max, and there is no turning back from that. We have to face up to the fact that shootings like this are going to be part of our lives here in the US of A for a long time to come.
I am not saying that we shouldn’t enact gun control measures like banning private ownership of assault weapons, strengthening background checks, and eliminating check loopholes. I am saying that the proliferation of guns of increasing lethal power has already advanced to where these measures will only be a drop in the bucket. And let’s be honest, even these modest reforms are unlikely to come about in today’s political climate.
I am by nature an optimist. I like to think the best of people, and I like to think that we can work through many of the problems we face in this world. But on this topic, I am hard pressed to see a way forward that does not include a lot more of these atrocities. That, more than anything, is what has me staring at the ceiling at 2:30 in the morning.
I can make a lot of arguments that we have a right to bear arms, but I will limit it to the fact that gun control will not stop gun ownership as anyone can by a gun on the street. Totally off the record with no background check. I don’t believe that will change.
This is what I fear happens when State & Fed Gov’s defund education & social programs. When a persons value is judged by the monetary value they produce, where do they get to feel a part of society. What path the loser?
The two edged sword catch phrase to “Defund the Police” is correct. It’s not about less police; it’s about refund social services. Gun control is needed but it’s not the end-all-be-all. Crazies get guns and shoot people.
What it truly is is the fact that they cancelled Love Boat !
Accurate on every level (especially about Love Boat. Where’s Gopher when you need him).