the Bronx. Sid (my father) would admonish me.
“Jeffie! Don’t play in the street. But if you do watch out for the buses.”
Or.
“Jeffie! Drink your milk. It’ll make you taller.”
Or.
“Jeffie! Don’t get into fights. You’re small. You’ll get beat up.”
Sid never had to say to me.
“Jeffie! When at active shooter breaks into Ms. Pagano’s class, jump out the window. A few broken bones and stitches are better than taking a round.”
Or.
“Jeffie! Make sure you always wear your bulletproof backpack when you walk between classes.”
Or.
“Jeffie! When the shooter starts firing, smear yourself with the blood of your classmates and pretend to be dead.”
So what changed?
Second Amendment advocates claim the home grown terrorists have mental health issues.as to the “why” the shootings routinely occur. Bullshit! There are emotionally unstable people all over the world. We don’t own a monopoly on off-kilter citizens. Yet, America is the only country where kids and other innocents are fair game when the nut jobs go about their brutal business.
Others claim the E-mosey Services (instead of the Emergency Services) response by the Uvalde, TX Police Department led to the carnage. Yes. It was tepid and lame at best. There’s no excuse for it.
My analogy would be a rookie firefighter arriving on scene to his/her first structure fire and exclaiming. “Woe! Woe! Woe! You mean we actually go into burning buildings. I didn’t sign up for this.”
Cops are hired to go after the bad guys, even if it means taking a bullet. That’s what they signed on for.
Both of these notions ignore the obvious. It’s the freakin’ guns that’s the common denominator to the mass murders.
Merica is awash in weaponry. In some states it’s harder to vote than it is to procure an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle. My responsible gun owning buddy Steve M. explained the major faults behind the murder and mayhem this way.
“Wrong age, wrong weapon, wrong clip, wrong reason.”
Will we ever get back to the days when we allowed kids to be kids and play “Ring around the Rosie” without looking over their shoulders?
I doubt it.
Until we change the mindset of the “right to bear arms” there will be other Uvalde, Buffalo, Newtown. El Paso, Boulder, Aurora, Parkland, Las Vegas, Orlando, Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh,San Ysidro …..and on and on mass murders occurring.
A well armed society is not a polite society. It’s a sick, dangerous and broken one.
If you think I’m upset about this. You’re right.
I still don’t/won’t own a gun.
A very sad and crazy gun USA situation and well articulate Jeffie. Will it change? No because everyone has guns but we don’t just bear and wasp 🐝 spray. Wishing and praying for positive change because it is nuts where fear has gone 🌍
ReplyDeleteThey keep blaming mental illness, fine if it is mental illness why can mentally ill young men get guns? It would seem the answer to their claim would be more background checks and rigorous licensing of guns. And if you need an automatic riffle to hunt, you have no business hunting as you are either too blind or a terrible shot.
ReplyDeleteAmen, Jeff. The second amendment doesn't say we should have an arsenal of military weapons in every home. It provides for a well-regulated militia - that is, the National Guard. I wish these "lawmakers" would read the Constitution and then pass universal background checks, ban the sale of military weapons, bump stocks, and extended magazines, increase the minimum age for purchase of ANY gun to 21, require safe storage and trigger locks, and mandate immediate reports of stolen guns. AR-15s have no business being used anywhere except on a battlefield or a shooting range. Second Amendment whining is not allowed.
ReplyDeleteThanks Jeff! I totally agree. Everything but guns is highly regulated in our society. A grandmother can be charged with neglect for falling asleep while babysitting her grandchild, you can get a citation for road rage by flipping someone off or not having the appropriate car seat for your toddler but change the laws to protect children from mass murder by a barely 18 year old using an assault weapon? Really…? I ache for change and for the hearts and souls of all victims and their families.
ReplyDelete