I have been trying, very hard, to avoid any kind of truly controversial or political post...I just can't do it, anymore.
Am I the only one who has noticed the increase of firearm legislation, across the US?
Not really a big deal, in my opinion. So, I have 3 less rounds in my magazine...who cares?
Something else I've noticed is that there are a lot of "Mass Shootings" going around, lately.
***Now, I want to go on record saying that I am NOT belittling the tragedy of the deaths of children and innocent people.*** I'm not a complete asshole.
The Telegraph has an article up that details the number of Mass Shootings in the past 12 months, (I'll post a link to that story, below) starting with Sandy Hook Elementary, in December of 2012, and ending with a shooting in Topeka, KS, on December 1st, 2013. Not all of the Mass Shootings made headlines, which is tragic in itself. The media only covers the high-profile shootings, because Ratings!
Aurora Theater was a Mass Shooting.
LAX was not, yet the media still used the phrase...
M.S.'s are described as FOUR OR MORE people being killed in a single incident.
We've had 23, in 12 months, resulting in over 100 deaths.
The problem is not the guns. The problem is lack of training and education. The problem is the people.
I own a firearm. I've been shooting since I was 6-years-old. My first gun was a little air-powered pellet rifle. My father and my brother made sure that it was never within my reach unless they were around, and they were never more than a foot away from me, while it was in my hands. That's Responsible Gun Ownership.
I fired my first "real" gun, a .22 caliber rifle, at the age of eight (8). It took four more years before I had anything more powerful than that in my hands. Why? My father wanted to make sure that I understood every working detail about guns, and how powerful they are, and that they are not to be used on another person, unless my life is truly in danger.
I was taught to never, ever touch the trigger until I was locked onto a target, and to never, ever target anything I didn't intend to kill. I was taught that I held another being's life in my hands, whether a squirrel or a person, as soon as I aimed the gun at it. I learned how big that responsibility is.
I learned how to clean and care for a weapon...and I learned what the word "weapon" means. I was taught to never fear guns, but to respect their power. Dad told me that when a firearm was in my hand, I could be the most powerful person in the room, or the most cowardly, and it was up to me to decide who I was. My father didn't raise a coward.
These people who decide to settle an argument by killing the other person are cowards.
These people who decide to open fire on a group of unarmed citizens are cowards.
There is no reason to ever kill another human being, ever, especially a coward. You know what you get when you shoot a coward in this country? A medal. (Whaaaa?)
My father taught me that, even if I'm angry, (or maybe especially if I'm angry), a firearm is not to be drawn unless the intent is the death of the other party. I have never fired upon another human. I have drawn my weapon, ONCE, in the 20 plus years I've been handling them. The situation never escalated to the point of pulling the trigger, because I had the power, and I didn't take the cowardly way out. It was that simple. Once the situation de-escalated, the gun went away, and so did the other person.
There are some cases where the gunman in these mass shootings had PTSD or other psychological issues. That speaks to the level of mental care in this country, not to the lack of gun safety. The Naval Yard Shooting might have been prevented with proper care.
The problem with the lack of firearm education and training is fueling all kinds of political agendas. Politicians, across the country, are promising that if we give up our guns, our children will be safe in their beds, and at school, and the movie theater. I don't agree.
You know why there were fewer shootings, like the 23 we had this year, in the 1950-60s?
Firearm safety was taught in public schools.
Whoa. Blew your mind, right there, didn't I?
The same education that I received from my father, a Responsible Gun Owner, nearly every child in America received, in school.
Why are we not still doing this?
Probably for the same reason "Under God" was taken out of our pledge (which is ok...since it wasn't IN the pledge until 1954, anyway); probably for the same reason there's no morning prayer in our schools, anymore...probably for the same reason our children aren't allowed to play tag, or hold hands on the playground...and the reason they all get Participation Trophies...(don't even get me started on that BS).
This country has become a group of whiners. We're all too afraid to offend someone, so we decide to offend everyone, instead. We walk on eggshells. We don't speak our minds. We've learned to fear the truth, unless it's told by reporters...at which point it is no longer TRUE. It's spun and it's got an agenda attached to it and it just crap, as soon as the media gets a hold on it.
It's a sad state of affairs...
We're all cowards and unless someone (by that, I mean everyone) stands up to the bullies, the degenerates, the assholes, and the politicians, we're going to die a coward's death: on someone else's terms.
The Telegraph's article: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/10516913/Interactive-graphic-the-23-US-mass-shootings-since-Sandy-Hook.html
Note: The opinions expressed in this blog are my own, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Blogger, Google, The Telegraph, or any other sites/companies mentioned herein.
Take that lawyers! :P
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