A National Tragedy

The Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre was the worst thing I’ve witnessed on par with 9/11.  The innocence of children can’t escape the evil of the world.  In WWII we learned people were willing to fly their planes into ships, in the war on terror we learned people are willing to blow themselves up in public areas, and we are now seeing that domestic murderers will kill themselves after killing all in their sight.  It’s scary to think that in this day and age some Americans don’t value their lives and don’t value the lives of others. 

Our generation is not the generation of our parents and grandparents.  I believe, that as a whole, we are less mentally mature as our parents were when they were our age.  I doubt any one reason can be proved over another, but in my opinion there is one definitive reason.  We don’t have a draft.

In WWII and in the beginning of the Vietnam War, the country came together to support a cause.  Men were drafted, women worked in factories to assist in the war effort, and children had to grow up quick to not be burdensome to their families.  Men from 18-30 who had the possibility of being drafted had to mentally prepare themselves that they may go to war.  This type of looming event changes you.  Your problems become smaller and less significant, your worries are trumped by an ominous future.  You see your friends and family shipped away, and your left to console the family left behind.  Holistically the country was stronger. 

After the war, the troops returned and they were hardened by their experience.  A new appreciation for life was found that couldn’t have happened if they didn’t tread so closely to death.  This type of mental maturity can’t be taught, it can only be learned through experience.

Look at us now.  We are still at war, but it’s an afterthought for most.  If you choose, you don’t even need to acknowledge that there is a war.  Your interest is your choice, and unfortunately the amount of people interested is dwindling.  This I believe is the problem with our society.  Because we don’t know how easy we have it, we don’t care, and we take everything we have for granted.

Tragedies like Sandy Hook, Aurora, Virginia Tech, and Tucson are examples of our weakest links acting out and showing how weak they really are.  The murderers in all four shootings were of similar background.  Loner types in which we are told they were brilliant, reclusive, misunderstood and mistreated.  I simply don’t buy this.  These were men w/ the mental maturity of a child that were playing with guns.  Not understanding reality and channeling unwarranted hate outward onto innocent people.  You have to be ill to shoot innocent people, but I don’t believe the context of mentally ill is appropriate in these types of crimes.  We are too quick to diagnose people, because it’s difficult for us to accept that there isn’t always an answer for why people do terrible things.

The 2^nd amendment requires a level of maturity and responsibility in the population.  Unfortunately, I don’t think we can handle this responsibility anymore.  The level of competence across the country is questionable and allowing firearms to be accessible to people who can’t handle this type of responsibility is a recipe for disaster. 

No legislation, reform, or ban on firearms will fix the problem of violence in America.  Banning military grade weapons must happen, but rifles shotguns and handguns will never go away.  There is nothing we can do to bring back the victims of Sandy Hook, but this type of tragedy requires us to realize that we have a problem and it must be addressed.

The problem is us, and there is no easy fix.  We need to have interest and compassion for people.  We need to set a societal precedent that heinous acts will not be tolerated.  And we need to teach others the great responsibility of owning a gun.

As a man, I know I’m tasked to protect those around me.  All men should know and embrace this reality.  Women are not the problem, because they are not pulling the trigger.  The killers in the aforementioned crimes are all men, who obviously never felt any need to protect anyone.  This is what worries me the most, who is the next murderer to fall between the cracks?  Any why are there some that just do not care?

Nevertheless we owe it to the victims of Sandy Hook to improve and try to improve our fellow man.  It won’t be easy, but it is needed.  When listening to the debate about policy for new gun control, bans, and laws do not pull out the outdated argument of why we have guns.  The idea that we could overthrow the government if they become tyrannical simply is outdated.  So really the debate needs to be aimed to prevent shootings like Sandy Hook.  Who are we giving guns too?  What type of guns do they own?  And who has access to these weapons?  This will infringe people’s privacy, but frankly I don’t care.  We have lost that luxury, actions have consequences.  The indiscretions of the few will lead to consequences for the majority.  The indiscretion has occurred, and like it or not we will live with the legislative consequences.

 

Do not stand at my grave and weep,
I am not there. I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow,
I am the snow on the mountain's rim,
I am the laughter in children's eyes,
I am the sand at the water's edge,
I am the sunlight on ripened grain,
I am the gentle Autumn rain,
When you awaken in the morning's hush,
I am the swift uplifting rush of quiet birds in circled flight,
I am the star that shines at night,
Do not stand at my grave and cry,
I am not there, I did not die.

-Unknown Author

God Bless the victims of Sandy Hook.