Guns DO Kill People

The noise, the noise, the noise! It's too much- all this fighting without saying a word! Because there are no easy answers, we've resorted to name-calling and vitriol. It is neither helpful nor becoming.

A conversation has to be had though, so let's get out a few facts--

1. Saying that more laws isn't the answer because criminals don't follow laws is circular logic at best. Criminals don't follow the law with regard to anything, but that doesn't stop us from making rules against rape, murder, speeding, etc. What those laws do is provide us with remedies, sometimes preventatively and sometimes punitively, for stopping crime.
2. Don't quote me statistics about gun ownership or gun control in other countries. NO ONE has more gun ownership, with so little regulation, than the U.S.! And there's no "close second"! The attack in China on the same day as the Connecticut attack, with eerily similar circumstances- except for the weaponry available to the attacker- has an ending quite different than ours- EVERY SINGLE one of those children returned to their parents arms alive...
3. Now, let's tackle this idea that your right to bear arms is somehow "sacred", as a Constitutionally- protected right. Within 2 years of adopting the Constitution and its protections, the formers and writers introduced  12 amendments to additionally protect it's citizens, excluding the black ones, the female ones, and the ones we took this land from. After adopting that Bill of Rights, within 5 years actually, the process continued, first with the 11th Amendment regarding states' rights, and continuing, at least until 1992, when the 27th Amendment was passed regarding Congressional salaries. It seems, therefore, that the Founding Fathers, with intent and precedent, meant for this Constitution to be a dynamic and fluid document. So, it negates any idea that your right to bear arms is a holy and permanent one.
4. Arming teachers or administrators isn't the answer. Period. As someone who has worked in a classroom, and someone who has entrusted my children into others' care every day, I know it won't help! It would, at best, provide a false sense of security, and, at worst, provide another mortal weapon in the wrong circumstances.
5. Perceived safety vs. actual safety. You're not actually safer in a car than a plane- or because we're willing to be burdened with removing our shoes at airports because of ONE failed shoe bomb incident! You can tell me you feel safer with a gun in the house, but facts- and statistics don't lie- show that you are at least 400% more likely to be injured or killed by a gun. Scream it's not true, but facts aren't behind you, so admit it's about emotion for you. And speaking about emotion.....
6. Why don't we care that innocent little babies were taken away from a place that we, and they, were convinced was a safe haven? Why aren't we PISSED as hell that even those who survived have had their innocence violated and their sense of security irretrievably lost! Why aren't we figuratively gathering our torches and doing whatever it takes to keep this from happening again? Why have we become hardened  to this gravest evidence that something is wrong with our society that we could let this happen? 
7. Lastly, don't tell me how this has anything to do with God's will, or Him feeling unwelcome, or otherwise snippy at being snubbed.  Remember the school massacre in Lancaster, PA?

 Well, there you have it- a few points that I find particularly relevant to wading through the muckish BS, to even begin to find a common ground. I'd LOVE to have a real dialogue about this, and I welcome anyone who wants to, but it won't include any straw men or name-calling. This is our children's world we're leaving them, and it's too important to get wrong.

What a Place to Start

    With such a tragedy as the shootings in Connecticut, especially because it involves children, I've taken in the coverage in bits and pieces. It's too overwhelming to do otherwise. As a parent, the idea that it's possible to send your child off to school only to lose them to senseless violence is unspeakable.
    I've heard the attempts to find meaning from this loss, from the explanation that God, being a proper fan of modern etiquette, never goes where he's not wanted; to near-manic cries for more gun control or better mental healthcare.
    But this time, I'm not investing myself in these particular arguments. Of course, no one who knows me would be surprised to hear that I believe we need more of both gun control and mental healthcare, but I'm weary of  fighting against a mindset that says we should hold our guns more dear than our well-being.
   So, if I'm not going to fight.. what then? Well, I'm going to Love. Not the "hug my kids a little longer and more often" kind of Love, although there's plenty of that too. No, I'm talking about  Love as a way of being in this world- the verb kind of Love.
     I think that helping each other be more connected in this world is our best defense against the hopelessness and isolation these human beings must have felt before they did things that made it easy to label them as "other".  I believe the more invested we are in our community, the more accountability there is between the community and the citizens, and the more emotionally bonded we are to others, the saner we are as a society and the more psychologically grounded we are as individuals.
     So, I'm going to listen more, and "see" people more, and take an extra moment to let people, especially young people, know that they can make a difference, that they have a chance to change there corner of the planet, and that they matter, maybe not to the people that should care, but at least, to me.