My preacher's nap today was more like a preacher's catatonia. When I dozed off the first game was in the third quarter. When I regained consciousness it was the Shark Vacuum.
Then up and packing for our trip. We have a 7 a.m. flight to Seattle which means out of the house about 4:30 or so. Return Thursday evening. In between we spend time with my folks and brothers & wives to celebrate my mom's 90th. Pretty blessed to have both parents alive and into the 90's.
So if posts are irregular over the next few days it's because we're partying like only 90-year olds can party. (We have trouble keeping up with them.)
There are two kinds of people in the U.S.: those who are calling for new gun legislation and those who say it's not about guns and we should leave gun laws alone.
I agree with both of them. What happened in Connecticut (I spell that out only because I can) was about mental illness. If this event cries out for anything it's a call to look at how we treat (or don't treat) the mentally ill. I'm old enough to remember mental hospitals. Then we decided it was better to mainstream the mentally ill...and the homeless population rose exponentially. I don't know if it's time to revisit that issue, or that it would have made any difference in this case. But questions need to be asked and answers sought for.
That said, a semi-automatic weapon, AKA an assault rifle, presents risks that far outweigh its entertainment value, IMHO. We prohibit people from owning grenades, rocket launchers and fully automatic anything. Each of these victims was shot multiple times, some as many as six. Would lives have been saved if he didn't have a semi-automatic assault weapon in his hands? I think it's at least likely.
OK, I'm off to an elder meeting. We don't usually meet on Sunday evenings but it's the only time we were all available. I think for the preacher that means physically present. Beyond that...
2 comments:
Have a great trip!
Just to clarify, semi-automatic weapons are not limited to “assault” rifles. Many handguns are semi-automatic. I own two semi-automatic handguns, a Glock M17 and a SIG Sauer 229-NS.40. The Connecticut shooter was also armed with two semi-automatic pistols (one Glock 10mm, one a SIG Sauer 9mm) during his rampage. However, his assault was carried out, primarily, with the AR-15. If you restrict semi-automatic rifles, expect resistance not only from the traditional “gun enthusiast” but specifically from the many hunters who use the popular AR-15 to shoot Bambi’s relatives. The solution is not easy…
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