I've written my Congressman and my Senators, urging them to support a ban on assault weapons. I've thanked Dianne Feinstein, who has promised to introduce such legislation on the first day of the new Congress.
Anything I begin to write here sounds shallow, and I can immediately come up with a comeback. But this I know:
- I know now is the time to speak up about the issue of gun control. We as a country should never have allowed the ban on assault weapons to expire in 2004. Ah, but we as a country don't have the influence of the NRA.
- I know the NRA doesn't have a leg to stand on, and they – by their silence since Friday's massacre – must know it, as well. They've deactivated their Facebook and Twitter accounts. They haven't even so much as expressed their condolences.
- I know the families who lost children and loved ones at Sandy Hook Elementary School will never recover completely from the horror they've experienced. Never.
- And I know there's nothing – no action, no sentiment, no petition, no meme, no prayer, even – that will help.
I hate that tragedies get turned into political issues. There should be absolutely NO ARGUMENT about semi-automatic and automatic weapons being removed from the hands of non-military citizens. There should be NO ARGUMENT about thorough background checks. There should be NO ARGUMENT about the sanctity of human life.
I also know it's not about taking God out of schools. That one makes me ill. Who in their right mind thinks 20 first-graders were slaughtered because we've systematically removed God and prayer from classrooms? Oh. Right. Mike Huckabee.
What a sorry excuse for a Christian he is (she said, judgmentally).
One of these days, sooner rather than later I hope, we will come to a place as a nation where mental health services are affordable and accessible, where early intervention offers hope and help, where prisons are not the last resort for treatment. If you haven't read this yet, you must. Be forewarned: It's not easy to read.
Read it anyway.
3 comments:
It all makes sense ... until the fearmongers start spinning their spin. Then we'll start hearing about how the "liberals" are trying to take away people's right to defend themselves and want to outlaw hunting etc. etc. etc. and it will all go round and round again.
Personally, I can't imagine why any hunter who's truly a hunter would need an automatic (or semi-automatic) weapon to legally hunt. It's not like you can mow down a meadow full of deer - there are limits on the number you can get. And if you need to spray bullets around to kill one, then you're not much of a hunter at all IMHO.
And, it's not like hunting is an "emergency" activity - where you wake up one morning need need a gun right away to go out and hunt. You should know in advance that you plan to hunt and be able to go through a waiting period and background check.
Of course, there will be the "I need a gun because "they" have guns" argument. But no one will bring up the "If I have a gun and it can be used against me" argument...and ironically that's exactly what happened in CT.
I've had on my "to do one day" list for years and years the idea of going to a gun range and learning how to use a gun. But I have no plans to actually own one. As was pointed out to me years ago, if you own a gun, you must be ready, willing and able to use it - and to use in as a deadly weapon - because otherwise, it can and likely will be used against you. So anyone who breaks into my house with ill intent will simply have to bring their own weapon. Because push come to shove, I'm not completely sure I could pull the trigger on someone else.
Anyway, I'm sure the NRA will find their voice again soon enough. I suspect they are already communicating with some of their member/supporters "off line" and mounting their defense and the fearmongering will begin...sadly.
Totally agree with all your points. I am also wish these good "Christians" would just pray for peace, and for comfort and not use these horrors for their platform.
I agree with all of your points completely. I have little use for the so called "good Christians" who are probably more warped than anyone. I admit there are some kind hearted good souls that attend church, but there are far more of the pretenders that are there for a so called free ticket to heaven no matter how awful they behave. I don't anyone needs to have guns except the military and the police. There should be strict laws governing exactly who owns weapons. As far as the "Hunters" of this world that do it for sport, why own your own? Go to a place that allows you to use them to hunt. There should be mandatory background checks and psychiatric evaluations. There should be major user fee taxes to pay. The bullets should cost a fortune. I am not sure what should be done, but getting on your soap box and proclaiming like some politicians that there should be prayer in the school is not it. I don't have the answers, but I think that this is a major problem and needs top priority. It needs more than prayer. It needs action!!
Kathy
http://gigglingtruckerswife.blogspot.com
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