Horrific things happen all the time. I watched part of the CNN coverage of the shooting on October 1, 2015 and felt immediate catharsis that I'm not in college. But knew the flurry of speculative questions were soon to follow in the wake of determining the identity of the shooter. Who was it? What caused them to do this? Will gun legislature again be brought to the forefront? Will pro gun and pro security square off again?
I look at one portion of my Facebook feed quoting statistics regarding guns per capita, mass shootings since Newtown, acts of terror or racism, mental health awareness. Another part of my feed is pro-gun and less restrictions that on days like today use epithets of "If you don't want a gun, don't own one. If you want to go where people have them, enter at your own risk or hang with those that do." And my response to the latter is, "you mean...go outside, right?" Because outside your own home, whether you have one or not, you risk being in a space with people with guns. Let's just face facts and not be semantically ignorant.
Obviously, I'm pro-regulation. I, just like any good control freak, want to know where the damn things are. But I also am not an idiot, I realize getting that information is like asking "Is there a criminal or terriorist?" publicly when I turn every corner. After reading through the President's speech, I agree that something should be done to tighten things up, maybe a better examination of the countries who have less gun violence? Oh wait...that's most everyone else except the middle east...where we spend most of our time with our military.
*cough* Sometimes invading/investigating the wrong places like after 9/11. *cough*
Is this a call to or against arms? No. Is this a call to remind people to become open-minded about legislature and how we can build something safer for our kids...maybe.
You see...it was pointed out that the kid, and others that have been these shooters, come from troubling backgrounds. Lives that weren't opulent or by any means easy. We live in glass houses and throw stones everyday because we want our lives to have meaning and be better than those around us. In some ways, we are all a bit classist...depending on the time of day and if our inner narcissist has decided to take her turn on the catwalk. They come from lives that are on a fragile and broken edge and can easily slip and they FIND NO OTHER recourse. Why is that important?
Why rob a bank or local food store if you have the money to buy the bread or drinks in the first place.
Why worry that you're not going to be able to make it to your rent payment at the end of the month when you have the money to cover the rent.
Why worry that you can't afford dinner for the rest of the family when you just bought all your groceries.
And there are groups all around our cities that help supply these things all the time. Churches, homeless shelters, non-profits who support families in need...and they don't always get the press they need or the mobility through our streets. Why? Because we're afraid of failure. Afraid to admit we need help. To proud to beg. And sometimes we're so absorbed in wondering if our own spoons are enough to handle the day that we don't realize...our kids may not. It's not their problem...but like pets, they sense when mommy and daddy can't handle things. They can read the worry in our brows, they can feel the trembling in the hugs at night. And it effects them...and you can't stop that.
The world could use more gun safety and legislature. But how about help for your fellow woman or man? If any one who reads this blog can find an agency to help a friend...and then branch out and find more for others...maybe...we can help each other out and find ourselves no longer near those broken edges wherein the only recourse is to violently react. This isn't socialist propaganda....this is "stop being a voluntarily blind part of the problem".
EDIT: After reading more on the shooter in the recent shooting, it would be unfair to say that he came from a "troubled" or "financially unstable" background. His disdain for religion does point out that he had a problem with those of faith...and maybe a faith-based solution wasn't one he needed. There are plenty of others in the world and the fact that people cannot find them immediately is a testament to how much of a priority "finding help" for people who "have issues with the world" is.
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