Today a lone gunman walked into a midnight showing of "The Dark Knight" and opened fire. He shot 71 people, killing 12. The youngest murdered victim was only 12 years old.
This is not the first tragedy of this kind in this country and, sadly, it is not likely to be the last either.
Amidst the news stories showing the terror those people experienced and the profile of the killer and the logistics of how it all went down, there was no end to the heated debate over gun control in the US once again. It's an argument I'm so damned sick of I could puke.
As with each previous time this debate arose, the arguing has always fallen into the pit of "well, if you believe that you're just stupid!" Debate that results in name calling will never produce thoughtful response to any issue. Of course, the conservatives who want to interpret their "right to bear arms" as "we all have the right to own a gun and use it for our own protection" were out in full force. They tend to do that when someone, like the shooter in this case, shines a bad light on their cause. And this shooter certainly did that. It's easy for the conservative corp to believe that only bad people would do something like this therefore they are an exception to the rule and we should all just nod and agree. But in this case, this shooter (I won't use his name because that would dishonor his victims, in my opinion) was not a bad man. He was troubled, yes. But he passed every single background check with flying colors. His one discretion being a parking ticket he received some years before. At first glance, he seemed perfectly "normal". So, he was able to walk into three different sporting good stores and purchase his weapons including an assault rifle. I have to ask....why do they sell assault rifles at sporting goods store? Don't tell me because there are "collectors" out there and they have a right to purchase whatever they like. Bullshit! No one needs to "collect" assault rifles as a hobby. For gods sake, collect stamps, coins, baseball cards but not assault rifles. Why this country cannot ban the sale of assault weapons, exploding bullets, and other accouterments whose sole purpose is to kill another human being is beyond me.
Where does a gun man's right begin and my right end? Do I not have the right to attend a movie without fear of being killed? Do you want an ambulance with your popcorn? It's ridiculous. It's maddening. And, above all, it's stupid.
At least once a year someone strolls into a public place and starts shooting. And each time we act shocked and scared and pray for the victims and their families and hold our heads in disbelief and say things like "those poor people" and "he must have been crazy!" and that feeling lasts for a couple of weeks as we watch news coverage on the shooter, the event and the eventual funerals of those who were slain. What we don't do is get mad. And right now, I gotta tell you, I am pissed. When will we ever get to the core of what's happening in the US and realize that our government, no matter which political side you're on, has mastered the fine art of pitting us against one another - destroying our socio-economic system and instilling within us a deep fear that someone is out there trying to get us. Then we are inundated with pop culture on a minute by minute basis and what we are given is crap that shows that no one can resolve any issue without coming to blows and beating down someone else. Technology has brought us closer but also allowed us to remain anonymous if we choose so that we can speak in the most horrendous way to anyone from any place at all. We have become a land of fearful beasts. Afraid that someone will take what we have as we strive to have more and more. All of this leads to the disenfranchising of us. We lose our empathy. We lose our humanity. And when both those traits are eaten away and replaced with fear and a gun, we lose that part of us that would never think to harm another human being. We've lost our ability to listen to one another, our ability to care. We live in a society where it is possible for some to become so disillusioned that the only way they can see a solution to their turmoil is to enter a theatre and open fire.
As I said, I'm really pissed off about this. I'm angry that this has happened again. I'm angry that anyone at any time can go and purchase weapons that are only made for killing people. I'm angry that we live in a time in our society where we have lost our ability to care about each other. I'm angry that we have allowed our politicians and news media to instill a fear of our neighbors, at home and abroad, in us. I'm angry that 71 people got shot today. I'm angry that 12 people are dead.
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