The United States has a crisis on its hands. And blood. So much blood. Common sense gun control laws are needed desperately, but instead the US Constitution is being used to harm the most vulnerable of its citizens. It has been crumpled and twisted and tied like a blindfold over the eyes of those who’d rather be blind and believe in the fantasy of blind justice than face the truth that their country is in crisis.
There have been 18 school shootings in the US this year. It is February.
It’s not even the end of February. We are smack dab in the middle of the shortest month.
An AR-15 assault rifle. (Please put aside the argument that AR does not stand for assault rifle. That it refers to a manufacturer. It is an assault weapon. Period.)
How many more CHILDREN have to die?! How many more politicians have to stand up and say “something” has to change only to DO nothing? How many more families have to be fractured, traumatized, and permanently damaged? What will it take?
When Sandy Hook happened we all thought; this is it. This is the straw breaking the camel’s back. Finally something will be done; but nothing was done. Nothing. So many people lost any hope they had after that. I am a firm believer in hope. Hope is sometimes the only thing we have (and indeed in that case it was). Did all those babies die for nothing? How can no one care enough to stop it?
I am sure Trump will have something encouraging to say.
Wait. No. No he won’t.
17 children are dead. On Valentine’s Day, no less. Countless people are forever changed by this “incident”. Violence affects everyone and trauma lasts a lifetime.
There are terrorists in America alright. They are homegrown and funded heavily by the NRA.
You can not get on a damn plane with a bottle of water! There is NO freedom in this world anymore. Freedoms have been pecked away bit by bit by bit since the early 2000s.
Yet the idea of arming as many people as possible with whatever weapon they happen to choose seems like a good idea? Why on earth is this the freedom that gets all the attention? Quick fact: more Americans have been killed by guns since 1968 than in all US wars – combined. Think about that. Yet, a person can still buy, own, and walk into a school with an AR-15 and murder 17 children.
Americans are free because of their gun laws, they are inextricably chained to a horrific truth; that guns mean more than their children’s lives. True freedom will come when America unchains itself from the greedy NRA and the politicians that accept money from them.
STOP defending the right to kill each other. Figure this out. Please.
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It is so saddening that this is what our world is like at the moment. I truly agree with you, America NEEDS restraints on gun use. It breaks my heart that so many children, CHILDREN have died this year because of a government that thinks “guns lead to freedom”. Yes, it’s true that guns lead to freedom from the British, but that was more than 200 years ago! We need change and fast. Laureen thank you for writing this article, it is very enlightening and eye opening.
Well said! It’s hard to think about these horrific events but we can’t bury our heads in the sand. I like your voice here.
Thank you for reading and commenting. I appreciate it greatly.
We can do so much better. The time to do something is right now. I hope the politicians in the USA are listening.
Thanks again for your excellent comment.
Thank you! I appreciate your reading and commenting.
Absolutely. There is a very fine line to tread lately and as much as I am supportive of a person’s need for self-preservation and taking care of one’s mental health, I cannot abide by hiding from the truth. What is that famous quote about neutrality helping the oppressor?
This -> “We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere. When human lives are endangered, when human dignity is in jeopardy, national borders and sensitivities become irrelevant. Wherever men and women are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political views, that place must – at that moment – become the center of the universe.” -Elie Wiesel
I do not like Guns, I do not see the point of guns unless you are hunting for food. I have a lot of strong feelings on this and it’s hard when the people you love also have strong feelings.
In Canada Background Checks are done every 24hours, something as simple as that right there could have stopped a majority of these events from happening.. Guns though seem to be a culture for the USA. I never think about whether the person next to me is holding a gun when I vacation in Canada. That is the only thing that goes though my mind when we are in the USA? oh look what I just found out…
“It may interest you to know we have a strict policy regarding firearms. Our policy is that no guns are permitted in our theme Parks or Resorts. … Only on-duty law enforcement officers whose agency has jurisdiction at the Walt Disney World Resort may carry any weapon.May 1, 2008”
now if they can enforce that in Disney why can’t they enforce that in the rest of the USA?
BAM! Isn’t that the million dollar question?
Excellent point.
I loved all your articles about the Caribbean, but then this article pops up which leads me to believe you’re a liberal democrat. So you claim the whole problem is guns and the NRA. There is a common denominator with all these shootings. They were all gun free zones.
But I have another argument. Your words, “How many more CHILDREN have to die?”
I bet you support abortion. You support killing babies. How many more CHILDREN have to die?
Rather ironic isn’t it?
Why not address the real issue? Mental health, bullying, video games, etc. . . I will agree we need better background checks, but the only other solution would be to seize everybody’s gun. But do you think the gangs and criminals are going to give up their guns? Just look at the crime rate in Chicago. That’s a classic example. And they have the toughest gun laws in the nation.
In essence, there’s always another side to the story. I encourage you to look at it from a 360 degree view.
The NRA is no more terrorist than Planned Parenthood.