
Reeling from the pure evil and horror wrought by a single 20 year-old boy at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, America is searching for answers, meaning and ways to prevent this horror from being repeated. As we predicted the day of the incident (Thinking Right), Obama and the anti-gun forces are attempting to use this tragedy as an impetus to implement restrictions limiting our Second Amendment going as far as naming Vice President Joe Biden Chairman of an anti-gun task force.
Unfortunately this kind of overreaction has become typical of modern American society – a tragedy or significant event becomes the rallying cry for more government with the idea that with just enough government regulation or government intervention these tragedies could be completely prevented. After every one of these sad and horrible events the media launches into a rabid discussion of what could have been done?
The sad truth is that pure evil will always find a way to inflict death and damage regardless of any preventative steps taken. In a country struggling with the concept of personal responsibility and looking for government intervention and regulation to fix everything, that is a truth many will find difficult or impossible to accept. The truth is that nothing short of a total ban and complete recall of all privately owned guns could have prevented the Newtown tragedy. Even that draconian and unconstitutional measure probably would not have prevented the crazed and irrational Sandy Hook Elementary killings. A determined Timothy McVeigh killed 196 people using fertilizer. In Newtown, none of the guns used or taken by the gunman are even in the gun ban discussion and none of them were even owned by the gunman. There is nothing that can EVER be done to always stop crazy people from doing crazy things.
What is even more dangerous though is the slow and gradual surrender of our personal freedoms and liberties under the guise of added safety. Does ANYONE actually feel safer after the billions of dollars that we have spent on airport security and airport safety following 9/11? We have spent a lot of money and allowed ourselves to be subjected to ever growing invasion of our own personal liberty while creating the perception of safety without actually doing anything to make flying safer. We did it in response to the instant cries of “we can never let this happen again.” Flying has now become such a pain that many people carefully consider driving to avoid shorter flights that might actually take longer because of all of the security involved, and we have done little if anything to prevent the recurrence of terrorism.
The model for this unfortunate overreaction is our legal system which tries to assign fault and blame for every event that happens. We have warning signs at the top of waterfalls because some idiot fell over the falls and his estate sues the government claiming that he should have been warned about the risks of going over the falls. We have signs warning people not to cross airport runways at international airport because some idiot was killed running across the runway and his family sues the government alleging that he should have been warned about the dangers of crossing the runway.
The simple answer is that we can’t legislate away stupid or crazy. We have plenty of laws on the books to handle virtually every situation you could imagine. Savvy politicians understand that if they enact some useless measure in reaction to tragic events they can create the perception of “action” regardless of whether the “action” actually provides measurable safety improvement. The media will hound the politicians demanding action be taken to prevent recurrence of the tragedy because it is much more interesting to blame someone for failing to prevent the tragedy than it is just to admit the truth that sometimes bad things just happen. Meanwhile our rights and liberties slowly erode as we increase our “perception” of safety.
What is it about the US that creates so many more “pure evil” and “stupid and crazy” people than any other industrialized nation?
5% of the world’s population, 50% of the world’s guns.
USA, USA, USA, USA, USA, USA, USA, USA!!!!!!!!!!!!
And you are WRONG about legislation preventing future shootings. The gun used in the Aurora shooting would have been banned and clips would have been limited to 10 bullets if the Assault Weapons ban of 1994 had been renewed (it wasn’t, thanks to the NRA). Most gunmen are taken down while reloading, the Aurora shooter had a “drum” with 100 bullets allowing him to kill 12 and injure 70.
Using your idiotic reasoning; “there is evil and we can’t stop it” why then have any laws at all?
The 100 round drum jammed before many rounds were fired for the aurora shooter. The carnage was a result of the other weapons. He purchased the weapons, even though he was being treated for mental health problems and being prescribed medication for the problems. Both are a clear violation of federal firearms law. The sale should not have cleared the NCIC check, but it did clear- the current law did not work.
The therapist was required to report this patients treatment to NCIC, either she didn’t do her job or the FBI that maintains the files didn’t do theirs.
Either way current law did NOT work.
According to John Lott, more people are killed in the European union with guns than the entire USA every year. Also they have a much higher rate of home invasion and robbery. It stands to reason that if only the bad guys have guns any house they want to rob wont have a gun to defend themselves.
If i remember correctly a person needs to remove suicide from the stats to get an actual comparison, of firearm deaths . In the USA we blow our brains out, in Europe they jump.
Doing nothing isn’t an option.
Yes, sometimes in the wake of great tragedy there is overreach motivated by irrational fear. Illegal, warrantless wiretapping of citizens. Torture of persons in contravention of established treaties. But doing nothing in the wake of 9/11 wasn’t an option.
And doing nothing in the wake of Sandy Hook isn’t an option. So you’ll pardon us while we ATTEMPT–not guarantee–attempt to find ways of stemming the carnage unleashed by mass gun murders.
Why is doing nothing not an option? The gunman is dead. He violated laws that would have resulted in life in prison if he hadn’t survived. He murdered his mother to get to the guns. The school had a video system in place that required someone to be buzzed in and he only got in because he was recognized Its knee jerk reactions like yours erode our liberties without achieving anything.
And you’re certain that if action is taken it won’t achieve anything because…??
What specific change would you suggest that if implemented would have prevented the actions at Sandy Hook?
Sorry, but I don’t truck in absolutes and guarantees like you do.
No, you just want more government control of everything even though you have no idea what you are trying to fix.
Evading answering a question by posing another question.
I’ll hvae to remember that “technique”.
Fact-check.
Entry was gained by shooting out the front door, not “buzzed in” because “it” was recognized. Research – or have an assistant do it – before posting falsehoods, please.
And I don’t see any “knee-jerk” reactions from anon. I do see his word “attempt” (debate/discussion?) to find ways, which I wouldn’t consider “knee-jerk” reaction.
Didn’t I read in another of your comments, GW, that you agreed the kind of guns people can own should be debated and that “it is a topic [which] has not been as well or widely debated as it should be.”
http://thinkingrightblog.com/at-least-27-dead-in-tragic-school-shooting-depersonalizing-and-desynthesizing-america/#comment-22468
Now that debate/discussion has begun, it’s “knee jerk reaction”? I know…let’s not even talk about it and it will go away. LA LA LA LA LA (hands to ears).
Do you consider Pepe’ LePierres’s push to force citizens to allow gun toting concealed carry holders on private property if they don’t want guns on their property acceptable? Gun owners “rights” supercede personal property rights? Really, Pepe’?
And aren’t we told that the CCW holders are the “best of the best” law-abiding gun owners?
http://www.vpc.org/ccwkillers.htm
GW, are you a Constitutional purist that agrees with the framers’ intent to limit gun ownership to “well regulated militia”? Militias, were, after all, the source for regional protection at the time and allowed citizens to “bear arms” for that purpose. Rights have exponentially been “expanded” since to the point where we now have a militarized citizenry.
I’m looking forward to the first fat, retired former cop school “guard” being overpowered by a couple pissed off/bullying (entitled conservative) high school jocks and wreaking havoc with his gun. Great idea Pepe’! At least the geeks and nerds won’t be their sole targets any more.
If only we could legislate away stupid or crazy right wing bloggers.
GW has been waiting for the right wing to “settle” on their response to Sandy Hook. Obviously his first thoughts about having a debate about guns didn’t square with what the rest of the crazies are saying, hence the backtracking.
GW is a regurgitator NOT an original thinker.
Hey GW, how about those gun clips, can we even talk about limiting the number of bullets?
I know you’ll have to consult your right wing brethren to see where they stand, we don’t want you to go out on a limb again and have to pretend you never wrote what you wrote. How embarrassing that must be for you.
Y The supreme court ruled in Heller that the militia portion was separate. That ownership of a firearm was not limited to members of the militia.
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/District_of_Columbia_v._Heller
In the first reports the shooter gained entry by being buzzed-in they didnt know by whom, then they said he was let in by the principal, she was among the dead. Then the story changed to he broke-in, now they say he shot his way in.
Having been in many secure entrances, the shooting ones way in is a little far fetched. Bullet resistant glass and a two way lock, meaning you cant brake the glass and un-lock the door, it wont open from either side, unless the buzzer is pushed. So he would have to break the very hard glass enough to climb in. That would be hard to do, it would take a long time several minutes at least. Plus he shot the principal when she was giving the morning announcement.
If he shot his way in the gun fire would have given cause to stop the morning announcement. Unless gunfire is common at this school?
No they are lying, i think he hid the weapons and ammo at a fire exit, went to the front got buzzed-in, from the inside rigged the alarm switch and opened the exit, to get the weapon. The rest is history.
They have to lie, they cant tell the nation they let the shooter in.
In the past 10 years 110 school children died from school bus wrecks, in the same time less than half as many children died from guns at school.
How many children has our country killed and maimed in the wars of the last ten years? 200,000? A million? Or more than that?
For many years I have heard it said that you may have the right to free speech and free expression but that you still cannot yell ‘Fire!’ in a movie theater. Who would have thought the reason turns out to be because then everyone would start shooting?
Lets not forget the most violent school disaster 45 dead 38 were children no assault rifle needed…….
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bath_School_disaster
Thinking-right-blog is suck-suck-sucking
All these faceless cowards just-a cluck-cluck-clucking
Chickenheaded Snoopy-dancing spineless mindless big mouths prancing behind a coward’s veil
Take two of the yellow pills and one of the white pills.
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