Arguments Against Gun Violence: Why Do We Bother?
Commentary By Steven A. Smith
The Second Amendment for the 21st Century: “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed. Nor shall the people’s right to senseless slaughter and bloody victimhood be denied.”
Why do I bother? Why does anyone bother?
The senseless rampages that continue to claim dozens of victims, including children, go on and on. It is clear the country simply does not care.
We are a nation of the armed. Gun sales continue to rise. And there is no meaningful effort to stem the tide. In point of fact, it really does not matter. There is no going back now, no return to sanity. Even reasonable restrictions on gun sales or ownership will not help. The genie is out, and the bottle tossed aside.
So why do I bother? Why does anyone bother to complain about the ongoing slaughter?
Gun Violence Inevitable?
It is appallingly clear now that no matter the death toll, Americans will continue to fall victim to senseless gun violence.
The latest slaughter occurred Saturday. A gunman opened fire at a mall in Allen, Texas, killing eight before he was killed by a police officer who was present only by chance. The dead included children. Several others were injured, some critically. It was the second mass shooting in Texas in 10 days.
The gunman has been identified as Mauricio Garcia, a 33-year-old Dallas resident. He appears to have been a white supremacist, although police have not officially released a motive.
Motives Hold No Weight in Curbing the Violence
Of course, none of that matters. We have seen all the possible motives before, and that knowledge does not change anything.
Mentally disturbed and dangerous? Trundle down to Walmart and buy a gun. A racist homophobe with a record of violence? Get your Glock at the corner pawn shop. Pick up an assault-style rifle while you are there, perfect for hunting your human prey.
Guilty of domestic abuse? Does not matter. Go buy a gun and take care of your troublesome partner.
Mad at your teachers? Your co-workers? Your neighbors? Your friends at school? Buy a gun and take care of business.
If you have the guts, stand and take your punishment at the scene or inflict it on yourself later.
Otherwise, plan to spend a life in prison with a bed and three squares. You will even have TV and library privileges, and walks in the yard, pleasures forever denied your victims.
So Why Do We Bother?
Why do we bother to keep track of this insanity?
Of course, some do keep track. While the definitions of a mass shooting vary depending on the group keeping score, the most reliable tracker reports 192 mass shootings in the United States so far this year, including the Allen, Texas, slaughter.
The number of victims — about 115 since the beginning of the year, according to another tracker. So far in 2023, mass shootings are occurring at the rate of one every five or six days.
The carnage makes headlines for a day or two then fades from our national memory.
Maybe you have noticed, maybe not. But in the last couple of years, we have stopped hearing so much of the “thoughts and prayers” nonsense that often followed every mass shooting.
Even those who advocate for an armed society without regard for public safety must be bored with suggesting we send thoughts and prayers to grief-stricken communities. It gets tiresome. And if people really paid attention, they would see easily enough that prayers for victims do absolutely nothing to stop the next madman.
‘Guns Do Not Make Any of Us Safer’
We know all the arguments in favor of strict Second Amendment interpretation.
My favorite: We arm ourselves to defend our families from violent predators. That’s a good one. How many of these mass slaughters have been stopped or even slowed by a civilian with a gun? Look it up. At the same time, the number of accidental in-home shootings or mistaken shootings — “a black stranger knocked on my door” — has grown exponentially.
Guns do not make any of us safer. They simply kill people, and for no rational reason.
So, what is to be done?
It is obvious. Nothing.
There is no national will to fix the problem. No unstoppable public outcry. No discernible legal action. And anyone who thinks successful state efforts to reasonably control guns will withstand a challenge before the current reactionary Supreme Court is delusional.
So, we must go about our business. Go to work. Go to the mall. Go to school. Walk in the park. And hope the next madman strikes somewhere else, murders the next guy and his family, his kids.
This is life in an armed America.
Why bother to complain?
This is so heartbreaking. The violence goes on and on. Just sickening. I agree – what can we really do to stop it? Reasonable gun control laws may help somewhat, but they won’t put an end to the violence.