I find myself sitting here today writing about something that I really did not want to be writing about. Here we are again in the aftermath of another act of senseless violence. The media are engaging in their usual profit driven practice of turning a murderous lunatic into a celebrity thus encouraging future murderous lunatics. The anti-gun crazies and dishonest anti-second amendment politicians were immediately out in public spewing their gun control nonsense. All very predictable.
What seems to be different this time is that some people are beginning to discuss ideas that may actually make a difference. Mass shootings are a symptom of our society and are the result of a toxic stew of behaviors that we currently accept and encourage. Florida middle school teacher Kelly Guthrie Raley summarizes those behaviors nicely here.
Until we as a society are able to address the complex causes and come up with viable solutions, mass shootings are certain to continue. While we may not be able to eliminate them, we can take specific actions right now that will likely reduce the number and frequency of future events and ultimately reduce the loss of life.
Something we can do now is to end the practice of gun free zones. These zones mean nothing to criminals and only ensure a group of completely defenseless innocents will be available to any murderous lunatic having a desire to harm others. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich proposes that solution and others here. Colorado House Minority Leader Patrick Neville who was a sophomore at Columbine during that incident supports the same thing here. It’s significant that political leaders are beginning to propose this solution.
No amount of gun control or new laws will prevent these incidents. Schools and other “targets” must be allowed to protect themselves until law enforcement can arrive and control the situation. School districts in particular must have the ability to work with local law enforcement and determine the best approach for their facilities. This is an ability recently taken away from California school districts by anti-second amendment politicians.
Allowing permitted CCW holders to carry on campus would be one approach. Training specific teachers and administrators is another approach. FASTER Saves Lives is a non-profit organization that currently provides violence response training to faculty and staff at no cost to school districts.
Other options include civilian volunteers consisting of parents, veterans, or retired law enforcement properly trained to respond to the threat until police arrive. Exactly how this might look would be determined by school districts working with local law enforcement.
The point is that none of these things are possible while we insist on maintaining gun free zones. The time has come to stop turning each tragedy into an excuse to attack gun owners and the second amendment. It’s time to have a rational discussion of options that will actually make a difference and reduce the bloodshed until we can address the root causes of random violence in our society.
We can’t have the discussion when one side continues to create and distribute false information. We can’t have the discussion when the media refuses to accurately report both sides of the issue. We can’t have the discussion when politicians continue to place political agendas ahead of the welfare of all Americans. And we can’t have the discussion until we admit that imposing additional restrictions on law abiding, responsible gun owners does not address the problem.
I’m optimistic that for the first time we might actually be making progress and people may be getting closer to an honest attempt to address the problem. Only time will tell.
Please realize that each time an incident occurs, it will be used as an excuse to further restrict your rights. If you want to keep your rights defend them by joining San Diego County Gun Owners, the California Rifle and Pistol Association, and the National Rifle Association. Join the fight and help us restore and preserve our second amendment rights. Together we will win.
©2018 Joseph T Drammissi
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