This is NOT an Anti-Gun or Anti 2nd Amendment Article...
I know....
I get it....
You come here for an escape from the crazy news of the world, you click on our site for a reprieve from the state of our society......you come here to avoid the war crimes in Ukraine as much as Johnny Depp and Amber Heard's psycho trial;
I enjoy being your shelter from the storm on a daily basis....
But now, after over 200 shootings in 2022's first 5 months and 44 in May alone, including a racially-motivated shooting in Buffalo killing 10, as 20 children are murdered at Uvalde Elementary by an 18 year old, enough is enough.
When it comes to protecting the welfare of our children, my gloves come off...
This 18 year old murderer in Uvalde, who I won't name, committed these atrocities only minutes after killing his own grandmother. After an investigation, it is now confirmed the young man bought two rifles & 375 rounds of ammo on the day of his 18th birthday....no background check, no waiting period....no ammunition caps....
Sadly, when you hear about 20 children being murdered during a school shooting, you think this must be the worst we've ever seen, right?
No, it's still second behind Sandy Hook.....a merciless evil which happened clear back in 2012....has anything changed since then?
Actually yes.....times have changed.......the problem grew far worse as political schism and vitriolic anger filled every newspaper or online forum, from the NYTimes to Facebook, Reddit, YouTube or 4chan; Spanning 2012-2022, Americans became divided by the click, triggering 2016's political insanity before descending into our darkest ever era as a people in 2020.
Proof that our country are not only willing to step up to the ledge to protect guns, but jump off into the abyss, "prophet of bullshit" Alex Jones called the Sandy Hook shootings "a hoax", claiming it to be an elaborate plot consisting of "actors", all to "take away guns and gun rights from Americans"....
Right now in 2022, I'm actually shocked mass shootings don't happen more with our passive gun laws, massive gun availability, heartless reactions to the slaughter of innocents and current divisions across economic, racial and lifestyle lines....
We just turn the page, ignore, bury, rinse, wash and repeat....almost as if the truth is too hard to stare down....we keep looking away because we can't stand the sight of what we've created....
When you really look at how sickening Washington's corporate political interests have become, where dollars are valued over lives, there's no need to wonder why devastating mass shootings continue to happen:
When you have a hotly contested, bitterly divided election year ahead, then you know we'll be electing scores of politicians, both Republican or Democrat, who quietly refuse to do anything about the gun issue for fear of hurting their campaigns....
But let me ask you this question:
After these politicians win re-election, with no imminent jeopardy as to their future electability, have they ever given a damn about passing common sense gun control legislation aimed at preventing children, the mentally ill, persons with domestic violence records and other violent offenders from purchasing guns???
No they haven't............but why?
Because it's not even about winning votes from center-right / right wing voters, it's about dollars from gun manufacturers.
Back in 1999, Columbine changed everything....before that day, no one brought guns to school to commit mass killings....it was almost completely unheard of; After Columbine, it became a terrifying trend our politicians stared in the face, responding with a shrug & a yawn while counting their money.
We thought Sandy Hook (December 14th, 2012) would've changed things, an unthinkable tragedy where 20 children were murdered alongside 6 adults....Instead, Washington remained gridlocked on control legislation; Due to the "Just Say No" war between the Republican congressional majority & President Barack Obama, pride took precedence over progress at the time.
Parkland was another awful shooting, taking place on Valentine's Day 2018 and claiming the lives of 17, a story this very site covered here in a must read piece involving LSU QB Matt O'Dowd.
Though Parkland's own students made their voices heard all over the globe, advocating for some sort of common sense gun control legislation, they were met with stern political opposition, ranging from online bullying, defamation or even death threats.
We couldn't even protect the victims long after the shooter's weapons were silenced.....instead, these teenagers were attacked for never wanting to watch another friend shot & killed.
However much these Parkland students tried to change our hearts and minds, the same political machine which sustains this current American bloodbath was always ready to beat them back into the periphery of American consciousness.
Now, in May 2022, 44 mass shootings have already occurred over just 25 days, which equals 1.76 deadly mass shootings per day in this country....basically 2 daily mass shootings in America.....May also had 4 days of 4 or more separate mass shootings, with a high of 6 on May 10th.....
5 shootings occurred in Louisiana alone since April 29th, ranging from Lafayette, Baton Rouge or New Orleans (4 in May).
I know the exact reason why I'm writing this.....
I simply had to....
I write to navigate my way through the turbulence of life, I write to capture the unsaid, unthinkable & intangible, that certain unspoken feeling on the tip of the mind....the shared look in the eye, that comical cosmic understanding....
Last night, I stood up in the dark of our bedroom, staring out at the twinkling lights of the city below as my fiancee slept, wondering how it would feel holding my son for the first time....Immediately, I began dwelling on what had happened in Uvalde, Buffalo.....Sandy Hook....Parkland: how would I feel if my future son experienced a mass shooting while going to school and there's nothing I could do about it? Wondering if he's alive for hour after painful hour in the aftermath???
Feeling that helplessness is when I started writing.
I'm writing this because I'm a human being, I'm about to be a first-time father to a son in August....I see the pain on the faces of mothers as they beg for their children, fathers shaken in powerless, helpless disarray, I watch these traumatized children, their eyes wide & emotionless after witnessing their classmates murdered in front of them, their very survival now a haunting daily reminder.
In the face of those affected, certain debates become trivial. The argument has always been "guns don't kill people, people kill people. The people are the problem."
While that's a ridiculously rudimentary way to look at a very complex issue, I will say this:
"To the NRA, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer & Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, President Joe Biden, Browning, Lockheed Martin, the entire military industrial complex, if people are the problem, not guns, then why can't we make the purchase of guns or ammo impossible for violent offenders, domestic abusers, any mentally ill person who's been institutionalized and of course, anyone under the age of 21? Can we enforce these background checks stringently, to the level where if a gun shop is selling without checking, they're shut down without a single argument or word?"
I bet if that legislation (H.R.8) were passed, the rate of these shootings would rapidly decline.
In fact, had this happened immediately following Sandy Hook, maybe Parkland doesn't happen....perhaps Buffalo and Uvalde don't occur either......
If mass shootings can happen in Uvalde, Buffalo, Sandy Hook, Parkland....it can happen at LSU, it can happen where your kids go to school.
There's no more time for us to think about this situation any other way.....
These bullets are a lot faster than the decision making of our politicians.
DEDICATED TO:
THE CHILDREN OF UVALDE,
THE PEOPLE OF BUFFALO,
THE PARENTS OF SANDY HOOK,
THE STUDENTS OF PARKLAND & COLUMBINE,
& THOSE WHO INSPIRE OTHERS TO SPEAK UP
by LONN PHILLIPS SULLIVAN
@LonnPhillips
Copyright 2022 Uninterrupted Writings Inc
I have been entirely focused on this tragedy and prayer and sympathy for those decimated by it. This is an unbelievably complex situation. My wife and I possess gun, we went through a background check and vetting process. I did not mind. Also, this country is in the dark ages when it comes to dealing with mental health. They spend money on bs while so many need help, we have also backed law enforcement into a corner in many areas where our cities have become killing zones. I don’t have every answer, but this is going to take a comprehensive seismic shift in the country. We must start valuing life again, from the womb to the tomb.
I have enjoyed being a subscriber to LSU Odyssey for the last 2 years. I look forward to the insight and passion that Lonn has brought forth. With that being said, I would like to unsubscribe to both the website and emails moving forward. I too feel heartbroken for the lives lost in all these horrific acts and can not begin to imagine trying to move on with life after such a loss. As a society we blame guns for the action,instead of holding ourselves accountable for the mindset of the monster. The old saying ….guns don’t kill people, people do…… is the hard truth, as much as we don’t like it. I come here for the sports not t…
I understand people want to think they could prevent this type of evil by banning guns but the reality is you can’t. The sick coward who shot these kids could have just as easily ran over 10 kids in the parking lot with a car or ignited a propane tank in a cafeteria. Evil people can find many ways to do evil things. This guy and the Sandy Hook shooter obviously had mental health issues but they also reflected a sick part of our culture that is amoral.
It is heartbreaking for kids to die. Someone very sick in the mind could only do this. The Right to Bear Arms though is a different conversation. We are protected by the Constitution to have that right. Sick people will find other ways to hurt people if they do not have guns. Your Government is sending Billions of weapons to other countries right now. Unfortunately Evil will always exist as History has taught us.