Today marks seven years since the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Every time there is a mass shooting in the US, regardless of whether it happens on school grounds or not, we say “never again”, and yet, here we are, no closer to gun reform than we were after Sandy Hook. Or Virginia Tech. Or Columbine. Or any of these. As a nation, we have the most permissive gun laws in the entire world, and we are given lesson after lesson about how that doesn’t work, and yet we never learn. It breaks my heart, and more significantly than that, it destroys lives.
Before you get up on your soapbox and remind me of the existence of the 2nd Amendment to the US Constitution, please know that I am well-versed in the text:
A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a Free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed. (Emphasis added.)
The US Supreme Court has decided that those first words of the Amendment mean nothing; that our founding fathers wasted ink and parchment in writing those words, and only the words “the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed” matter. I disagree, but on a legal basis that doesn’t matter much, as I don’t sit on the Supreme Court. I recognize the real threat of tyranny and oppressive government and I do not deny that there is a need for a militia. What I reject is the notion that every Tom, Dick, and Harry needs ready access to firearms. Do you hunt? Okay. Apply for a permit. Do you shoot (at targets) for sport? Okay. Apply for a permit. Those who say that they need a gun for personal protection? Yeah, I call nonsense. If you’re safe and responsible with a firearm, and it’s locked away and not loaded, then it’s not at the ready should someone break into your home. Of course, if you’re not responsible with it, and it’s loaded and at arm’s length in the middle of the night, you run much, much deadlier risks than an encounter with someone who ultimately just wants to steal your television.
Is the loss of your stuff worth all that? Stuff can be replaced. People can not.
I don’t have simple solutions to the problem, but I believe with all my heart it’s well beyond time for a change.