Fifty dead and 53 wounded in Orlando. And on this morning's radio news, we hear about grief management in Orlando; a candlelight vigil in Philadelphia tonight; speculation about whether the killer was homophobic, ISIS affiliated, or both... and of course how a week ago he was able to legally buy an assault rifle and a Glock. And, of course, the President decries the Congress's lack of action on gun control. Einstein got it right.
Let's accept some givens:
1. As the population grows on this planet, the percentage of nut cases grows exponentially.
2. With hundreds of millions of guns circulating in the US, no amount of gun control is going to get weapons out of the hands of these crazies.
3. And, anyway, even if Hilary Clinton wins in November --- by no means a certainty --- the chances for such meaningful national legislation to pass Congress, reach the President's desk, and then withstand Supreme Court scrutiny fades to zero in any realistic assessment.
So isn't it time to give "concealed carry" a serious second look? Among all the questions I heard being asked on NPR this morning on my way into work, the one that was never asked: What if the bar tenders --- or some of the patrons --- or perhaps even a paid and trained security guard or bouncer --- had been armed at the Orlando club on Saturday night... might 103 lives not have been shattered?
If you agree with me that this is a question worth asking this morning, you may want to check out the website of the Concealed Cary Association. Additionally, Wikipedia has a pretty good overview of the status of concealed-carry in the US today. And, additionally, here's the latest out of Texas on the issue.
All I'm saying this morning is:
1. Nothing we've tried so far has worked.
2. Realistically our options are limited and Obama's wishful thinking won't change that.
3. So maybe it's time to accept the reality of too many crazies, too many guns, and the need to protect ourselves and our loved ones.
All I'm asking this morning is that "concealed carry" become a serious part of the conversation, once the hand-wringing and speculation about Orlando dies down.
That's all.
On "nothing we have tried has worked": when has the US ever committed to a significant attempt to enforce stricter gun control? It hasn'the worked because we haven't tried! This guy was able to buy an ASSAULT RIFLE in a store. Whether or not security is able to carry, it shouldn'the be that easy to attain a weapon designed to wipe out masses of people, and one that out matches any guard's "peacemaker".
ReplyDeleteOn "nothing we have tried has worked": when has the US ever committed to a significant attempt to enforce stricter gun control? It hasn'the worked because we haven't tried! This guy was able to buy an ASSAULT RIFLE in a store. Whether or not security is able to carry, it shouldn'the be that easy to attain a weapon designed to wipe out masses of people, and one that out matches any guard's "peacemaker".
ReplyDeleteI received the following anonymous comment this morning:
ReplyDeleteUnknown
8:10 AM (14 minutes ago)
to me
Unknown has left a new comment on your post "Isn't it time to try something different?":
On "nothing we have tried has worked": when has the US ever committed to a significant attempt to enforce stricter gun control? It hasn'the worked because we haven't tried! This guy was able to buy an ASSAULT RIFLE in a store. Whether or not security is able to carry, it shouldn'the be that easy to attain a weapon designed to wipe out masses of people, and one that out matches any guard's "peacemaker".
My point exactly, anonymous writer: let's accept the political reality that we cannot expect a serious commitment to gun control by this Congress and this Supreme Court. If I'm right about that --- and nothing you say suggests you disagree --- then it seems to me that politics is the art of the possible. Let's try a direction that might be possible.
ReplyDelete