For the rest of us, however, looking at a loved one in a
hospital bed who’s been shot (in the shoulder, chest, back, leg…doesn’t really
matter where), those words are of
little comfort to us. Those words won’t
take away any of the pain we’re feeling at that moment, or afterwards. Those words won’t heal any of the wounds inflicted by those bullet(s).
There are
appropriate times when those words can and should be used: the passing of a loved one of natural causes,
the passing of strangers of a natural disaster, the passing of a beloved
author, movie star, painter, poet, and so on.
Those are the times when
“thoughts & prayers” are appropriate.
That said, however, yes, there are appropriate times to
speak out about gun violence, gun laws, gun use/abuse. When?
Please sit down for this as it will come as a complete and utter shock to
you:
ANY TIME.
Now, yesterday, tomorrow. Morning, noon, night. Weekdays. Weekends.
Any time is the right
and appropriate time to talk about issues surrounding guns.
Sounds simple. And
guess what? It IS simple.
Hold on there, pardner!
I know what you’re thinking.
I know exactly what you’re
thinking:
If we talk about gun
issues, ANY gun issues, there’s a chance that those “left-wing, tree-huggin’,
nut-job liberals will take away our
guns. We NEED those guns for protection,
and you’ll get our guns when you pry them from our cold, dead hands.
While there is a speck of truth in there, mostly it’s fear
of the unknown for these people. They
actually believe that someone out
there, some phantom person/group, WANTS to “take
away our guns”. No, quite the opposite.
We, those people out there, want to strengthen gun laws for
law abiding citizens, remove loopholes in gun laws, strengthen background
checks, and basically keep people from losing or somehow forfeiting their
Constitutional rights of gun ownership.
The recent shooting in Las
Vegas brought to light a device that turned a
semi-automatic weapon into a fully-automatic weapon… the “bump stock”.
Many in Congress and the Senate of the U.S. had never heard of such a device. In my mind, if fully automatic weapons are
illegal, then a device that makes a weapon fully automatic should be illegal. Washington D.C.
is still debating this issue. Why?
And the people killed in that Las Vegas shooting, around 58 or 59, thoughts and prayers couldn’t save
them. They were just in Vegas for an
outdoor concert, trying to have a fun time listening to some amazing music. Thoughts & prayers. Thoughts and prayers.
No, the right time
for “that talk”, the one about gun related issues, is NOW, not later.
What will it take to have “that talk”? The President of the United States
getting shot?
Would that be the
appropriate time?
(And NO, by the way, I'm NOT suggesting ANY sort of violence against our leader.)
Nope, once we even suggest
“that talk”, the NRA, the Republican Party, gun owners across the country will
explode because they are worried, really
worried, that someone will take
away their guns. Wow.
NO ONE is making the suggestion, and it’s only a suggestion, that your guns be
taken away.
I leave you with this:
When did ‘thoughts & prayers’ ever save a victim of gun violence?
