August 27, 2015

  • Two Reporters Murdered on Live TV

    The Death of two reporters at the hands of a former colleague who apparently held a grudge for a real or imagined slight two years ago is the latest in a string of tragic shootings. We all feel sorry for the victims and their families. And I suppose we should also feel some sorrow for the shooter, who has suffered some form of mental illness for so long. We feel sorry for society as a whole as well.

    Society's pain will inevitably lead to renewed calls for more and stricter gun control. The proposed controls are almost always centered around taking guns out of the hands of the public. But everyone knows that is impossible. They are born of frustration. What people really want is to believe they can control the cause of crime.

    But the gun is not the cause of crime; the cause is the tendency for humans to be violant and the inability of some people to control that tendency in themselves. Nevertheless, the "Get the Guns" people still believe that violating the rights of millions of citizens because of the crimes of a few will accomplish something.

    I am 73 years old. I have been handling and shooting handguns, rifles, and shotguns recreationally since I was 12, and from my late teens to my mid twenties I was a competition shooter. In the 63 years since I picked up my first gun, I have never had an accident, and I certainly have not shot anyone or committed any crimes. Will someone please tell me how taking my gun will prevent crime?!

    Of course many will say they don't want my gun (unless it's on their list of what they think I don't need), but simply want to ensure that the mentally ill won't be able to get a gun. That too is impossible. Why? Because just because I haven't gone crazy yet, there is no way to predict if or when I may go nuts, or even a way to prevent me from lying on the background check application when asked if I have ever been treated for any mental defect. So we're back to confiscation.

    People, confiscation of guns isn't the answer. It's just a feel-good attempt to control the uncontrolable.