more crazy ideas

I've heard another crazy idea and assignment of blame... if only the men in Norris Hall hadn't been such wussies. Then, they would have attacked and subdued Cho. And the variation on this - all US young people should have two years of compulsory military service and every household should have at least one person trained in the use of firearms. Then, some well trained macho guys could have stopped this. Dr. Laura went so far as to volunteer that her paratrooper son - presumably without a gun on campus - would have attacked and subdued Cho, using his military training.

Well, maybe... but I've seen enough episodes of Alias to know that it takes only a second or two to change a clip in a semi automatic pistol and that long before Dr. Laura's son would have tackled the gunman, he would have been dead.

And as for compulsory military service... what about those of us who have religious objections to the military. As the Anabaptist bumper sticker says - "Loving your enemies probably begins with not killing them." What does it say about a society when we mark adulthood for our young men by training them to kill? What do we expect young people to do when the model they see in our leaders is that we pre-emptively strike the we see as threats and when the threats turn out to be imaginary, continue the course of violence?

Over the last day we have learned that this was a very troubled young man who had been flagged a number of times and evidently was even declared by a court to be an imminent danger to himself and others. That is where we must begin. The mental health system failed him and the rest of the community. The law failed when a young man who had been declared dangerous by the court and at least twice had been reported to the police by young women for menacing actions can go out and legally purchase guns and ammunition. Our leaders failed him and us when the president followed his condolences with a reminder that actions like this won't effect our rights to bear arms and virtually none are calling for even the most measured of gun control laws.

what now?

It didn't take more than a few hours before the blaming began. In the best cases, it quickly turned to serious analysis - what could have been done differently or how do we keep it from happening again.

In what strikes me as the most bizarre line of reasoning, I have heard and read a couple of folk argue that it was restrictive gun laws that caused this. If every student at Virginia Tech had been carrying a handgun, no crazy could get away with killing 32 people.

While that may be true, the number of deaths both purposeful and accidental would be much, much higher. Think of the places in the world where virtually everyone has a gun (Iraq for one). Does that make people safer? Remember the Wild Wild West where people carried guns and became laws unto themselves. Imagine the next weekend frat blow out only this time, put guns in the hands of all of the guys, drunk way past good judgment and filled with testosterone.

Yes, people kill people, but it is a lot easier with a Glock 9 than with one's bare hands. And once the trigger is pulled, there is no turning back.

But what about the law? The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence gives Virginia a C- for its gun laws (ahead of 32 states that get D's or F's). Cho showed a state driver's license and a checkbook with the same address on it along with an immigration card. The gun shops did an instant background check were the police verified that he was not convicted of a felony, involved in a domestic restraining order, convicted of a domestic misdemeanor, or had a dishonorable discharge from the military. When he passed these criteria, he purchased one handgun in a 30 day period and ammo and walked out. He was not checked for mental illness, other serious misdemeanors which may even have involved use of a gun, or even if he was on a terrorist watch list. The guns he purchased were semi-automatic with clips between 10 & 15 bullets. So he could shoot at least 20 times, as fast as he could move his finger, reload in a second or two and begin again. The guns themselves are not designed for hunting deer or rabbits but are good only for shooting at targets... or people.

The second amendment says,

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

It is an interesting amendment. It is conditional. The reason that people have the right to bear arms is to form a "well regulated militia." What does owning a semi-automatic handgun have to do with a well regulated militia?

I have no problems with hunters or even target shooters. In either case, the guns involved are very different from those used solely against people. Assault rifles, automatic pistols, and semi-automatic pistols should be outlawed. They are not used in hunting and they are not necessary for target shooting. Waiting periods should be put in place for all purchases. Ammunition should be regulated. The size of clips should be regulated. We must end this love affair with weapons whose only real purpose is to kill people.

a day of horror

My son is home from school today because of illness and turned on the television at about 1:30 pacific time only to get the news of the horror at Virginia Tech. As I watched the news conference, more than once my eyes filled with tears as I thought of the student's families, some of whom are wondering what has happened and whether their loved ones are safe, others have gotten word and are relieved, and some have gotten the worst news possible. The potential of each of those young people is forever gone...

At this point we don't know exactly what happened or what led a young man to such unspeakable violence. What we do know is that it is not uncommon... 33 killed at random is a typical day in Iraq. 33 dead for no reason is a good day in Darfur. Children traumatized by violence around them is normal in many areas of our world (today's USA Today reports a study that shows 70% of Iraqi school children suffer from traumatic stress).

I pray for comfort for the families of the victims, for healing for those injured and those who will never be able to erase the memories of the day. I pray for a culture, a world where violence is the easy answer to problems. I pray for peace.