Republicans, the Second Amendment and gun violence: Will the GOP ever return to sanity?
"Second Amendment purists have pandered to our worst instincts for years. Will they ever face the consequences?"
- Bob Cesca
Having been born and raised in Northern Virginia, I can clearly envision the not-yet-sweltering June morning on the baseball field in Alexandria — the humid, hazy mid-Atlantic air synonymous with D.C. summers not quite oppressive enough to chase people indoors, the fresh-cut grass of the field, the crunch of the infield dirt and the metallic ping of softballs against aluminum bats punctuating an otherwise normal day. All that was shattered Wednesday morning when a gunman opened fire on a congressional softball practice involving, among others, the House majority whip, Steve Scalise of Louisiana.
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As with most of these mass shootings, we can practically recite the details by memory, as if reading from a script. Thoughts and prayers. Calls for legislative action. Finger-pointing. Even a few wild conspiracy theories tossed in to underscore the digital democratization of journalism. We all have our pet issues and our own ways of dealing with catastrophes like this, even me, and other than the knee-jerk, loony conspiracy theories, there’s nothing wrong with acknowledging the tragedy then moving on to considering how best to prevent another one from happening. As David Frum wrote in the wake of the Alexandria shooting: There was a massive apartment fire in London yesterday, but is it too soon to talk about fire prevention and safety? Nope. Having lived through two house fires myself (long story), I assure you, it’s never too soon.
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It’s difficult to wade through a gun debate without more than a few radical gun hoarders popping into the fracas to warn us about protecting ourselves from would-be tyrants — just as Napolitano and Paul stupidly did last year. You might remember how the Kentucky senator filmed a campaign commercial in which he shoots the U.S. tax code with an AR-15 — the same kind of rifle used at Sandy Hook Elementary and, according to some witnesses, the same type used in Alexandria. What kind of message does this send — that firearms are acceptable tools for political change? Maybe. Is it inconceivable to someone who might have mental health issues that the shooting of political targets might be digested as a real-world solution?
Among many sensible, rational changes that are long overdue, this kind of frivolous gun usage and pandering to our worst instincts has to stop. We’re talking about for-profit retail products that already enjoy constitutional protections crafted during an era when there wasn’t a standing army or active police departments to protect and serve citizens. However we may continue to justify the language and meaning of the Second Amendment, Americans have long since abandoned any sort of reason when it comes to debating gun laws and how to best keep firearms out of the hands of people like James Hodgkinson who don’t know how to behave responsibly when granted open access to deadly weapons.
http://www.salon.com/2017/06/15/republicans-the-second-amendment-and-gun-violence-will-the-gop-ever-return-to-sanity/
Bob Cesca says it much better than I ever could in his closing paragraph:
"Nevertheless, my thoughts and positive vibes (I don’t pray) go out to the victims of the Alexandria shooting. And without apologies, many of my thoughts and positive vibes include yet another perhaps futile demand for a return to sensible talk when it comes to regulating consumer products that are manufactured, marketed and sold for the sole purpose of harming other living beings, be they animals, ordinary citizens or, once again, elected officials of our federal government. And it’s never too soon."
"manufactured, marketed and sold for the sole purpose of harming other living beings..."
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