Gun Regulation, Mass Shooting, & Mental Illness. We Need Change!!
Okay, I’m going to go there. In this country, more so than any other country, we experience mass shooting crimes or crimes by deadly force at an alarming rate. Every time it occurs, there is an accelerating idea by the media and outspoken groups for both sides raising the volume on whether guns are the reason for crime or the criminal. My answer is always the same, always! I believe the answer lies in the middle of the debate. Do we have certain types of guns that have less use than others? Of course, there are without a doubt. Do we have gun regulations that are ineffective and need to be revamped to target more needed regulatory areas of gun control? The answer, again, is yes and we need to address issues that are protected. Do we need better gun laws? I say yes, tentatively, as I believe there are certain laws or possible laws that do and could make effectual change and there are some that would be pointless to expand or enact. Let’s do a little breathing and explore what we are all saying under our breath. This is the real heart of my opinions mumbled mind.
Current laws and regulations generally do nothing to deter mass shootings. They seem to have some effect on crime via deadly force, but even that seems limited. The one thing I know for sure, this country with all the guns that are out there and the huge advocacy for legal and responsible gun ownership, that banning all guns or even some guns will be almost impossible. Even a targeted approach, such as assault weapons, because of the incredible number of users and use for recreational purposes, will be near impossible to pass regulation or ban altogether. The experts can’t even come to consensus on what constitutes as an assault weapon. You have the unknowledgeable people about guns that just want to ban all guns. Those that never grew up in a house with responsible ownership and certainly have never been taught to use one responsibly, those “they just scare me types” and therefore should scare everyone. You have those that want to ban assault weapons. You also have those that want to ban all semi-automatic guns. Would those wanting to cause injury to others find a way to hurt as many as they could before killing themselves no matter the weapon of choice? I believe yes, but maybe they might kill less or be easier to overtake by others. It’s an argument that is being used. One gun I do not own, but numerous friends and family do, is the AR-15 type rifle. The semi-automatic .223 rifle and seemingly the weapon of choice for many mass shooters. I’ve seen lists of semi-auto weapons and they tend to be narrow and certainly not all-inclusive on the attempts to ban, but at the top of every list is the AR-15. For instance, about not being all-inclusive, not on any list have I ever seen is the Ruger Ranch rifle. It is a .223 semi-auto rifle that has been around for years in the back of many truck windows used to control predators and varmints on ranches and farms. There is absolutely no difference in performance characteristics versus the AR-15, except for maybe weight. It is probably a pound or so heavier and has been used by police for years. I own at least five types of pistols that are all semi-automatic. Heck, I even have one shotgun widely used in waterfowl hunting that is a semi-automatic. It doesn’t have the shell capacity as my Sig pistol, having more than ten cartridge capacity, but surely could do far more damage in the same situation. So, my thought here was without any hope on consensus to what constitutes as an assault weapon, there will be no hope for a ban. If that list didn’t have every type of semi-auto weapon ever made, it would be ineffectual. I have revolvers that I own speed loaders for and in the hands of someone that has practiced, can reload a revolver in less than two seconds. I still don’t see numerous people running to stop a person with this weapon. But this type weapon or recreational gun, maybe even just for home protection, is never on a ban list. Why, because there isn’t a quorum of consensus in any advocacy group that can come together on how to ban any weapon. Unfortunately, we still have to listen to the hysteria every time a mass shooting occurs. In my opinion and certainly my opinion is supportive by this website (duh, it’s mine), we will never see a ban occur on any gun, much less using a targeted approach to ban any assault style semi-auto weapons.
Regulatory laws, licensing, or general restrictive gun laws always hold some promise if you could get a large number of political minded representatives, senators, and president to come together on what could be done. I used to think if they could just make it mandatory for social workers, therapists, and psychologists to identify into some database those that are being treated for mental illness. But lately, I have been reversing my thoughts on that. I see more and more media and Hollywood types talking about and making shows that talk about how wonderful of thing it will be for more and more people to come forward with their mental issues and that the world will be a better place in doing so. I certainly think treating those with mental illness is important and it saddens me when I see someone that does have a legitimate illness. I want to help, but how? Most of us ask that but have no real knowledge about what could make a difference. However, we all have an opinion while in our living rooms. My point is that the more that mental illness is diluted into the thought that everyone has a mental illness, the harder it would be to create a requirement of our mental health officials to document potential people that could commit a crime with a weapon. Jen and I were having a discussion about this and I said something to the effect that with all this awareness and outspoken good to recognize mental illness that it seems we all are being called out to speak about our problems and issues. She responded that she felt everyone has a mental illness or issue of some kind. I thought, how could we ever come to some definitive definition of someone capable of a mass shooting or even a murder-suicide until after it happens? I would like to know with all of the mass shootings that have occurred, how many have been treated for mental illness? I know the Sandy Hook shooting, I heard somewhere along the lines of media reporting that the young man had a documented mental illness, but I don’t remember anyone else. So, much like the what is an assault weapon? What mental illness definition would be needed to define who would be reported to some governmental website that would feed whatever enforcement agency is used by the state to do back-ground checks? They one thing I would like to see happen is no more car trunk deals at gun shows or selling person to person without requiring background checks for at least a felony criminal background. Seems the least we could do. With Texas just passing a law that removed the requirement of a permit for concealed carry, this even with the knowledge that fifty-eight percent of Texans would have voted no if it was a ballot issue. The politics of self-serving political agendas has and is destroying America. This isn’t just the republicans and is not just the democrats, they are both guilty of pushing very slanted agendas and not giving ground to some common ground of hope. They won’t do it because they would lose financial support in their efforts to maintain their political position. This is a local, state, and federal issue, do you honestly think this is ever going to come to any resolve? I hold no hope, and certainly not in the near future, for any effectual change. Besides, what really seems to get people riled up on this topic is mass shootings. Do you really think toughening gun laws or making criminal sentencing tougher is going to impact those that take their own life in the process of taking others? What would they give a crap about that for? Frankly, by the time someone reaches the point of the mass shooting, they have given up all hope in dealing with whatever problem exists in their mind that has now led them to the point of doing such an evil deed. I have no idea what that dark place looks like, much less have an answer on how to stop it.
Initially, I said laws should be revamped and more targeted laws created. And I said yes to identifying those that could cause harm to others in the senseless acts or as we see it as senseless acts. Has the person that commits the crime come to some rational explanation in their mind to doing the crime? Of course, they have, but I also don’t feel it’s something anyone could ever fix. We could address all kinds of things that might lead to change such as bullying, racial abuses, and inequalities. Those would be promising things for mankind, in general, but can we do anything to stop it? Unfortunately, I become a Negative Nellie and have to say no. But I do say yes to continuing to try to make change. We have to for the sake of us all! So many of us stay silent on all the issues that face us, especially those that have sensitive outcomes and strong opposition from a flip-sided political group. We tend to wait and voice our opinion through the vote, but as I just saw in Texas, sometimes the government doesn’t give us the opportunity and instead they try to tell what is good for us, but really it is what is good for their own political agenda. This country has lost its vision of government by our founding fathers that declared government was by the people and for the people. What today looks like is what does Nancy Pelosi and Donald Trump want? And everyone else in government picks a side and stands in line to be blessed worthy by one or the other. But when we get on our soapboxes and shout to the world about our feelings to the atrocities of the world, we get in response, questions of “who are you? And you must be crazy” for shouting at the top your lungs. I love this country; I love the opportunities available. It is why people from all over the world want to come here, they want to experience the land of opportunity. Everyone in this country sans Native Americans and many of Mexican heritage, are from immigrant ancestors. The ridiculous notion to stop immigration or be selective in the process is just another form of racial biasing and to cast all of our problems on Muslims and those south of the border is ludicrous. Should all coming do it legally? Sure, because it is how we assure those wanting to be here are doing it for the right reasons. I don’t like those coming for the work, but not contributing to the social security money pot. I’ve gotten off topic, but there are those in government that actually try to tie those immigrants to most of our criminal problems in America.
Time for change is near if not already in our rearview mirror, but we have to come together on sensible and meaningful governmental change. Term limits and true constituent representation are a must. A better understanding of the dark place that mass shooters go to before killing others might give some insight on where we need to focus change, but so many kill themselves and leave no clear understanding of why. I certainly don’t have the answers, but I have hope. Unfortunately, hope has been a place of silence and the farthest place from making change. We need sensible regulatory measures for guns and owners that allow for the recreational security of shooting sports, but make it more a deterrent to commit crimes. I know some of you will disagree, but if any crime committed with a weapon made you subject to the possibility of the death penalty, it might actually have some effect. When we try to be compassionate to the criminal mind, we show that we are weak and that weakness is exactly is what is preyed upon by those we are being compassionate for. This country needs help. We need to throw out the kooks representing us and stop making it a career for those in government. People kill people, it is just guns are loud and cause the greatest amount of damage in the hands of the sick. We need to be sensible, compassionate, and strong in mind to find solutions. I don’t have the answers but can certainly see the problems pretty clearly. I’m not non-biased enough to make the right changes needed but I know we have young minds that are. I so hope they come forward and make the idiots in government look to be the idiots they are. Come forward please!!