Gun control is never far from any conversation these days. Everyone has an opinion concerning their right to bear arms. It seems we have become a country hell-bent on protecting our Second Amendment rights, even at the possible expense of infringing upon other equally important ones.
I’d admit I come from a gun slinging family. My father made no secret that he was packing heat. It was an old pistol from the Civil War my great-grandfather pulled off a dead soldier. My dad kept it in his underwear drawer. Psychologically he felt better pointing an unloaded relic at a robber than threatening a fistfight. Frankly, I thought we’d have a better chance loading his briefs like a slingshot than pointing that antique pistol at a crazed crook.
When I was a kid disputes were settled on the playground. Then after the dust settled, hard feelings were mostly dropped. But times have changed. Now differences can turn into deadly feuds as young men stockpile ammunition and semi-automatic rifles capable of firing 100 rounds per minute. With an outlandishly easy pull of an index finger, a tired, fed up lost soul can unleash devastating lethality from a disengaged distance. Blurring the line between real life and video games, they compete for the highest scores and a shot at notoriety.
To be sure our deteriorating social and moral fabric is being challenged. We are abandoning the simplicity of human interaction and losing a connection with ourselves…our kids…our planet…in the name of progress. Of course it is great to have all the newest gadgets to communicate with one another without being face-to-face, but at the end of the day our human instinctual side needs contact…physical, spiritual and mental. We are starting to see consequences of abandoning the soul-feeding personal touch…in favor of a tweet, a text, or an email. It’s no wonder there is a growing percentage of kids who feel rudderless and ostracized. The resulting alienation is being treated with an array of pharmaceuticals whose side effects often include the very problem they are prescribed to alleviate. Technology is leaving our human physical side in the dust, and the connectedness that was for thousands of years a staple of our existence is being pawned cheaply for glitz, internet speed, and firepower.
The ginned up fear of a massive government takeover prevents a practical dialogue from really getting started. Even with the unspeakable dismemberment of school children, a fog hovers over what a majority are in favor of.
If this is truly a democracy by and for the people, and is the model we hold up for the world to admire as we spread it peacefully, and otherwise…we’d better take a good look at where this little 200 year old experiment is heading. I’m not so sure that a nation driven by fear, divided by the powers that be, and semi-automatically armed to the teeth sounds like the one we hear so often touted as, “The greatest country in the history of the world.”
March 21, 2013 at 12:06 am
amen sister. fear is so powerful and it can stop people from doing the smallest things – like smiling at those we come in contact with. well said, my dear – you should be running your country.
Many of our fears are tissue-paper-thin, and a single courageous step would carry us clear through them. ~Brendan Francis
March 21, 2013 at 11:47 am
Thanks Bev,
It seems fear is driving a lot of people right now. There is a growing population who feel they need protection against the threat of government. Did our Founding Fathers see these weapons being misused when they created the Second Amendment? In my opinion…Hardly. Back then if they were “lucky” they could kill two people before someone could stop them. Now, fast forward to Sandy Hook. If law enforcement hadn’t arrived, he had enough ammunition to kill 600. The entire school. Why is it necessary to have those kind of assault rifles and quantities of ammunition? Would you pass out guns to a mental ward? Because with all the medication people are pumping in themselves “to cope,” we seem to be moving closer to a revolving psych ward.
One argument I read lately stated that the Founding Fathers believed in inventions and knew that guns would hardly become less dangerous in time, so it obviously means they would approve. Another felt that American settlers had the best weapons they could get at the time, therefore it translates to the best we can get our hands on today. So with that in mind, help me figure out how to play through. I would hate to buy an Uzi and have my neighbor pull up in a tank. This is ludicrous! Stop me…I’m on my soapbox!
March 21, 2013 at 12:30 am
That’s it Annie,
The whole thing is just too ridiculous for words; but unfortunately deadly serious.
Yes, of course we do need rights…but gun rights? I’m afraid there are serious wrongs here.
Cheers, ic
March 21, 2013 at 11:51 am
Yes, Ian. There are serious wrongs that need to be corrected. Over a million gun inflicted deaths since John Lennon. More gun fatalities than current war casualties…it’s got to stop.
March 21, 2013 at 3:04 am
An interesting post Annie. Over here this side of the pond we have many differences reference guns.
We don’t have a gun culture as such, the vast majority of youngsters would prefer to be armed with the latest smartphone rather than the latest gun.
Yes we have gun crime and for that matter knife crime but not in any great amount.
Generally our Police Force are not armed, some are at major points like Heathrow and forces all have armed response teams but generally the policeman on the street will be armed with nothing more than his radio and perhaps a Blackberry.
Here is the UK there is a widely held belief that if the Police were all armed then gun crime would actually go up, wether that’s true or nor I suppose depends on which side of the fence your sitting.
I agree with your comments that technology is taking away the ability of some to communicate face to face, that’s so true. Youngsters especially would rather communicate with their phone keyboard than their vocal chords. .These days many children especially those in their teens are looked on as strange and as you say they can end up rudderless and bitter & resentful. Many look on the answer to the problem as pills and potions, that solution opens a whole can of worms. I do think we owe our youth more than we are currently giving them.
The young are our future but I do think we are breeding a generation or two that will not be able to communicate face to face with their fellow humans, and that will be a shame and perhaps even a disaster.
March 21, 2013 at 12:14 pm
A lot of great points, Robert. I wonder if there is truth to the idea that if police are armed, crime would escalate. It’s an interesting thought.
There is a saying that fatigue tends to bring out the coward in all of us. Maybe we seek easier ways to resolve conflict when we are sick and tired of whatever modern life tosses at us. The kid who is bullied, the gawky middle school student who can’t find a niche, the broken home aimless ones who struggle to find their way. What an assault weapon with a mega clip does for this lost soul is enable them to take on larger than life powers while effectively making others feel their intense pain.
The art of communicating without a screen in front of our face is slipping away. I must say, I worry for the future of America. We are so divided right now.
March 21, 2013 at 12:42 pm
I have been thinking about your post on and off during the day Annie and I have come to the conclusion that these days youngsters are not encouraged to have pride in themselves or to respect themselves. The result is that if you can’t respect yourself then how can you respect others.
Youngsters are not encouraged to achieve, I read some months ago of a school in England where on their annual sports day there were no winners and all those taking part got the same prize irrespective of how well they did. They were not encouraged to win because the powers that be did not want the losers to be upset and perhaps feel they were a failure. The result was there were no losers, sadly there were no winners either, which to my way of thinking kind of defeats the object.
Youngsters are so desperate to be famous or even just noticed and to make a name for themselves, as to not do so is looked on as failure in their eyes so that quite often I think they think the only way to be famous is to commit a major crime so the world will watch them and know of their existence. Due to the actions of many young so called “Pop Stars” inconsiderate actions cane be looked on by their fans as being normal.
Youngsters and many old people have more in common than they think, both generations often feel lonely and they feel excluded by the generation in between them. Youngsters and old people are often looked on as a nuisance and as having nothing to contribute.
Communication verbally and face to face is the key, if we don’t communicate with people how can they feel wanted and safe? It’s that lack of feeling safe that makes many turn to having a gun. Holding that gun or having it within reach makes them feel safe, much like a baby feels safe with a bottle or a dummy. Failure to communicate and then try and take those things of safety away and you could have problems. The baby will scream to get noticed and perhaps the gun owner will turn to the gun, and they will do anything from polishing and holding it to shooting people who in their eyes are making them feel unsafe.
I am no expert in psychology and many might regard the above as total rubbish. But if we don’t communicate and ask how will we ever know?
March 21, 2013 at 1:27 pm
Glad this post stuck with you, Robert. You bring up many valid points. There is a lot of work to be done, but I believe the truth will prevail. We are a country that has always found sure footing with time. I have great hope that we will continue down that path. No doubt, we have much to do! Thank you for circling back and adding your view.
March 22, 2013 at 10:55 am
Robert,
I have been thinking about the annual sports day in England where there were no apparent winners and all the participants receive the same prize. To me that defeats the purpose. Where is the incentive to try harder and excel at something? The sense of pride one feels from accomplishing a goal? The adrenalin rush from beating the odds and pushing yourself to do better? I don’t know…I suppose it can go too far the other direction, but making everyone the same despite their efforts and differences seems wrong to me.
March 22, 2013 at 12:55 pm
I agree Annie, over here we have political correctness gone mad.
Nobody is encouraged to succeed, we have courses for the unemployed where they get a certificate for just turning up!
We have youngsters who leave school who can’t string a sentence together, who can barely write, who in some cases can’t read even children’s books. I know youngsters who are unemployed, what they don’t realise is that it’s because they are unemployable.
They wander the streets bored out of their minds, to get benefits they must go on courses, many of those courses lead to nothing at the end not even a worthless piece of paper. I have people contacting me looking for work, when I ask them what they want to do they say anything, and the depressing thing is they are so desperate they mean it.
The UK governments as have many other countries governments over the last 25 years have failed a generation and I can’t see it getting better to be honest. Children who want to succeed are not encouraged they are looked on as weird. No wonder this country makes nothing now all our skills are long gone, we were an industrial nation now we are a nation of young failures with no hope, no will and no future.
It is so sad when a youngsters status amongst their peers is judged not by how well they have done in life but by the quality of their mobile phone and other gadgets.
March 23, 2013 at 3:59 am
Love this conversation between you too, so many great points. I think maybe England who prides themselves in having no fear, needs a little and we, the US, who are driven by it, need less. Love the last line, Annie! You nailed it!
Jodi
March 23, 2013 at 9:38 am
Thank you, Jodi. It’s always good to get another perspective.
March 21, 2013 at 5:55 am
as a Canadian, I find the gun control squabble ridiculous- the guns they want to control are the ones used mainly by criminals
March 21, 2013 at 12:44 pm
Yes, they are used by criminals, but they are also purchased by those who believe guns of this magnitude are part of our rights as American citizens. To protect ourselves…in our own homes against drones and cruise missiles…and presidents and government institutions who mismanaging our freedom. It’s fear mongering at its finest. The only thing I am quite sure is that those AR-15′s are not used on ducks and rabbits because hunters would be picking fur out of their camouflage gear. (But, if they are…could we at least give the animal a full metal jacket and night vision goggles so they have a miniscule chance at survival.)
March 21, 2013 at 6:33 am
An excellent blog, Annie. Much like Robert above, I’m one of those guys on the outside looking in. We have our fair share of gun crime in Canada, but not to the level of the Americans, thank God.
I grew up with a house with several shotguns on the wall and was taught how to not only shoot a gun, but to be respectful of it. It wasn’t a status symbol or a fundamental right to own one. We owned guns like others owned a camping gear or a backyard pool.
I think what bothers me about America right now is, though your tagline is E pluribus unum, you no longer follow it. From many, one. Or, out of many, one.
Instead, from my vantage point here to the north, I see a nation divided along the Democrat/Republican line, the pro-gay/anti-gay line, the 99%/1% line, the abortion/death penalty/choose your cause line. And yes, along the right to bear arms line.
When I watch a video of a kid sentenced after killing three of his classmates, and his statement is, “The hand that pulls the trigger that killed your sons now masturbates to the memory. Fuck all of you,” I’m terrified about the future of an armed America.
March 21, 2013 at 1:05 pm
Hey Tobin, you are spot on with your observations.
How do we respect all those who share different views and values? Once you say you want to protect freedoms, who puts the restriction on that? Once you are an advocate for personal freedoms and rights, you can’t pull the reins in. Besides, who could pull them in? How hard? Is freedom…”except for this and that?”
Society is going to evolve. We are not going to be able to put clamps on evolution. You can try, but it’s in people’s evolutionary nature to move forward. When you start to have issues with gay marriage and civil rights, those are all forward moving evolutionary points. Just as you could no longer change a species growing taller or living longer. No law or movement…or right wing liberal show could put a halt to the process. The frustration is that some want things to stay the same. They would rather go back to the 50′s and stand still. They see everything as going down the tubes. I don’t know how much you can control it in the end. People who don’t like change will always oppose where this land is going.
I have to say, that young boy who killed three classmates haunts me. I don’t think I will forget his statement to the victim’s families. Thanks for your thoughtful comment, Tobin.
Pingback: 7 AWARDS ! and a Humble Thank-you from a GRATEFUL Procrastinator | motherofnine9
March 21, 2013 at 3:44 pm
Like others who have commented here, I am a Canadian and we don’t have the same level of gun violence that the U.S. has. That being said, I live in a city that experienced two gun massacres at two different colleges. I don’t understand the argument made by gun advocates about their right to bear arms. I think the father of one of the Sandy Hook victims said it best:
“The liberty of any person to own a military-style assault weapon and a high-capacity magazine and keep them in their home is second to the right of my son to his life. His life. To the right to live for all of those children and those teachers. To the right to the lives of your children, of you, of all of us–all of our lives. It is second. Let’s honor the founding documents, and get our priorities straight.”
Whether the founding fathers could imagine stronger, deadlier weapons in the future, I don’t know. But I can’t believe that they, in their wildest imaginations, thought that their words would be used to justify owning weapons during a time when children were being slaughtered.
Does this mean no civilian should own a gun? In an age where we do not NEED to hunt to survive and where we are not at war on home turf, then – and please excuse my bluntness – but why the fuck not?
March 21, 2013 at 3:49 pm
Nicky,
That’s a gem. Brilliantly put!
March 21, 2013 at 4:23 pm
That is terrific, Nicky. Whatever kind of cheese produced that brilliant outburst…let me know! I hadn’t heard what the Sandy Hook parent said, but it is absolutely correct. The right to life outweighs any argument on freedom and the right to bear arms. I can’t believe that 5 million NRA members can hold the country hostage. Harry Reid should be ashamed of himself. Thanks for your insights, Nicky.
March 21, 2013 at 4:32 pm
It does seem as if we are de-evolving as human beings at the same pace we are “evolving” with regard to technological advancement. Great piece, Annie!
March 21, 2013 at 4:44 pm
That’s a great way to put it, John. It seems like we are giving up one thing to get another…but our humanity is a tough sellout. Thanks for the visit!
March 22, 2013 at 11:54 pm
Annie, thank you, well said! I appreciate your candid and well-reasoned analysis of where our country is headed. Great post title, too. (btw, that photo of a gun pointed straight at the reader is rather startling but definitely makes the point!) I agree with you on all of it.
Your line: “Even with the unspeakable dismemberment of school children, a fog hovers over what a majority are in favor of,” exactly sums up my thoughts on this too. That the gut reaction by some people to the unspeakable massacre of 20 children was to immediately rally around gun rights and stockpile more guns was appalling to me. Nobody needs assault rifles in their home. Enough with the gun violence. Excellent post!
March 23, 2013 at 9:44 am
Thank you so much, JerseyLil. Check out Huffington Post today and they show a pretty graphic map of the U.S. showing the murders that have gone on since Sandy Hook. Only 98 days and 2,243 gun deaths. It’s unthinkable.
I appreciate your kind words so much. This is a different kind of post for me.
March 23, 2013 at 1:42 pm
Excellent, thought-provoking piece, Annie. In order to have a civilized society there must be a balance between community rights and individual rights. Unfortunately, what we see from the right-wing gun nuts is, “I want mine and the rest of you be damned.” A sad state of affairs. Senator Diane Feinstein said it best when fighting for reinstatement of the assault weapons ban last week: “Do we need bazookas?” The odd thing is there was an assaunt weapons ban in effect, signed by President Clinton, for 10 years and I don’t recall any outcry from anyone about a loss of their Second Amendment rights.
March 24, 2013 at 4:32 pm
I also scratch my head on the previous assault weapon ban. Wonder what is all the hoopla now, but I fear I know the answer. We are still a young country and old habits die hard. Thanks for your comment, Jayne!
March 24, 2013 at 2:48 pm
Fantastic post, Annie. You’ve covered all the bases here, yet you’ve managed to do it in a way that isn’t inflammatory. I especially agree with your observation about how alienation is being medicated, only to produce more alienation. Well done!
March 24, 2013 at 4:34 pm
Thank you, Helena. Although I am passionate about the subject, I have to remind myself that there are always two sides. I appreciate your comment and look forward to reading more of your wonderful writing.
March 27, 2013 at 8:54 am
Wonderfully said, Annie. I completely agree. Well done!
March 28, 2013 at 3:21 pm
Thank you so much, Janene. Good to see you. Appreciate you reading and leaving a comment.