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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsThe Shame of America
It is the shame of us all. It is an epidemic that affects each and every one of us. It has become a mental illness.
We have failed to protect the children and innocent people from this scourge. It is not enough to blame others. As our children are torn to shreds, we have done nothing but talk and point fingers. Our message has been too weak to even defeat the guilty politicians at the polls.
As children are ripped to shreds, beyond recognition, by these weapons of destruction, we shrink the debate to whether or not it is a 2nd Amendment right. There is no "well-regulated militia". There are only sick people with guns. Guns are the only thing in the world that empowers them.
Once a society is willing to surrender the lives of their children to guns, or anything else, they have surrendered their right to a future. They are rotting from within.
Politicians that defend these weapons in the hands of anyone that wishes to have them, are not deserving of representing anyone, especially in the halls of Congress. They should be defeated and branded as murderers. They are a disgrace to our nation.
It is a shame that we have come to this point.
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FalloutShelter
(14,456 posts)This is soul sickness.
raccoon
(32,384 posts)
TheRickles
(3,376 posts)
LittleGirl
(8,999 posts)
wnylib
(25,956 posts)damage that assault rifles do to people, including children. Such a film could interview medical examiners about the remains that they process after a mass shooting and interview first responders about what a shooting scene looks like when they arrive. There might be some survivors willing to talk about their experience and how they deal with the trauma and PTSD afterward.
Parents might be willing to talk about the day their children died - getting through breakfast and the conversations that morning, the child's plans for the day, sending them off to school and going about business as usual until news of the shooting broke. Listen as they tell about dropping everything to get to the school, waiting for word about their own child, and finally learning that their child had been killed.
Such a documentary, shown on TV and made available on social media, could take the discussion out of abstraction and into reality.
Another possibility would be a disaster film, a fictionalized movie based on fact regarding what mass shootings are like from the perspectives of victims and survivors, and of relatives, friends, first responders, the shooter and people who know the shooter, the impact on the community, the responses of politicians, etc.
The goal of a fictionalized movie would be to present the reality of mass shootings in a narrative form that people can relate to. It would have to be well researched and accurate regarding all facts relating to what a shooting scene looks like, the damage done to human tissue and organs, the disruption of lives for people too traumatized to work, go shopping, be in crowds, etc. For children, show the survivors' fear of school afterward, their nightmares, parents trying to cope, parents' fear of sending their kids off to school again. A movie could incorporate a scene of children who have never been in a shooting learning about them and practicing drills at school, worrying of it will happen to them, too.
Make mass murders REAL, through documentaries or through fictionized narratives based on facts.
ExWhoDoesntCare
(4,741 posts)Images are quick and to the point. Make them into placards and bring them to all of the places where politics is done--legislatures, county commissions, city councils, school board meetings, and etc. Put it in their faces that this is what their gun-humping has wrought.
LoisB
(13,006 posts)DENVERPOPS
(13,003 posts)The media, owned/operated by almost exclusively uber wealthy republicans would never print them or show them in broadcasts.
Fox would NEVER show them, and the 70 million who only watch their station, would never see the horrors of why the coroner in Uvalde needed DNA to identify the children.
You can get an idea by going up on YouTube and watch what happens to a Water Melon that is hit by many of the weapons out there...
LoisB
(13,006 posts)DENVERPOPS
(13,003 posts)anyone whose thinking in aligned with someone who is a classic psychopath, is probably at least borderline psychopathic themselves.
colorado_ufo
(6,251 posts)The "rot within" comment in the post actually sums up the problem.
ExWhoDoesntCare
(4,741 posts)And take them to where politics is done.
It's not like we don't have the means to make people see what gun culture is doing to the county, even when our traitor media refuses to do it.
DENVERPOPS
(13,003 posts)buy the voter records in every state, separate the Republican names, and send to their homes and businesses, color postcards with the pictures of the children killed............................
On the address side, in the area for a message, you could write: Want to see why the Coroner in Uvalde required DNA to identify the children?????????????
The Republicans have been walking all over us Dems for decades with their utterly horrific propaganda and lies. Fair is fair. Fight fire with fire.
I for one am not seeing any results what so ever for taking the "high road"............
SouthernLiberal
(408 posts)Some guy, I don't know who is was, actually said that having some innocent people killed is just the price we have to pay for our freedom.
They literally don't care. Their guns are more important than children's lives.
area51
(12,688 posts)TheRickles
(3,376 posts)It's easy enough to skip past his commentary to see the actual shots being fired. Pretty gruesome even though it's "just" meat.
JanLip
(862 posts)Needs to be shown everywhere!! Why in Gods name would anybody need one of these guns. Our law makers should be required to watch this video.
Jan 
Paladin
(32,354 posts)
Larissa
(793 posts)I thought that Sandy Hook would have been a turning point for change in the legacy of mass shootings in America. It was not. What hope is left when even the massacre of innocent children won't dent this country's lust for destructive firearms. It's a toxic sickness: the number one use of firearms in America are for suicides. Unfortunately, it's not uncommon now for the armed suicide to take the innocent with him: co-workers, family members, random strangers, ecetera. Advance warning that you are about to lose your job may not be such a great idea in a culture where people are packing easy to obtain assault rifles. Look at the sickening new "trend" of the deadly perpetrator live streaming their massacres of grandmothers doing after school food shopping with their grandchildren.
Every time there's a mass shooting, the fearful run to the gun shops. In this culture of insanity, soon nearly everyone will be armed. Are we safe yet?
We've got the most advanced military in the world, while being incapable of saving ourselves from within at home. As Pogo said, "We have met the enemy and he is us."
********
Pew Research: What the data says about gun deaths in the U.S.
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2022/02/03/what-the-data-says-about-gun-deaths-in-the-u-s/
"Though they tend to get less public attention than gun-related murders, suicides have long accounted for the majority of U.S. gun deaths."
Redleg
(6,916 posts)and it makes me shudder. The anti-choice people have been doing the same for years.
SYFROYH
(34,214 posts)Sure, we haven't publicized photos of dead maimed children yet, but I don't think that's the issue.
They know.
betsuni
(29,062 posts)
lastlib
(28,239 posts)Russians channeling money to them through the NRA.
Delmette2.0
(4,501 posts)Accept bribes and promise to keep guns available. This informal agreement keeps the gun manufacturer in business so the business man can offer a bigger bribe to keep guns available. The endless cycle never ends.
dlk
(13,245 posts)There is no unlimited right to own all guns in all circumstances. This is a fiction built on the blood of our children. In this dystopian world, no one’s life matters.
czarjak
(13,637 posts)Something about NOT killing. But…
Ray Bruns
(6,341 posts)ExWhoDoesntCare
(4,741 posts)There is no difference in textual knowledge of evangelicals vs other christian sects. If even 10% of the entire membership has read their book all the way through, I'd be shocked. It's the rare christian who knows what it says outside of the tiny bit they've bothered to notice.
That's why I can guarantee that a higher percentage of atheists have read the entire thing compared to christians. Then again, atheists routinely score the highest on knowledge about *all* religions than even practitioners of the individual religions. From the simple basics that the laity know, to even the arcane knowledge that usually only theologians know about their religions, atheists tend to be on equal or better footing in religious knowledge.
Being part of a religion rarely means that you know anything worthwhile about it. Most people belong to the religion because their parents dragged them to church enough to build tribal loyalty into them. That indoctrination process saves the priests and ministers tons of time and effort because they don't have to go into the weeds about the reasoning behind the tenets of the faith, never mind going into some of the thornier passages in the book. And I can assure you the book has a great many of those.
Because, like many atheists, I've read all of it. My copy looks about like this:
?
That's what happens when you read something for comprehension and analysis. If you don't have one that looks close to this, then you haven't read it. You've scanned. You've picked and chosen from it (what all of them do, even if they've read all of it).
Many atheists became atheists because they read the bible from cover to cover. Read it yourself, and maybe you'll understand why that is.
barbtries
(31,306 posts)we are a sick nation.
Joinfortmill
(21,120 posts)
The Grand Illuminist
(2,038 posts)but to assert the last resort.
Irish_Dem
(81,189 posts)Ray Bruns
(6,341 posts)Irish_Dem
(81,189 posts)It is about the failure of American adults to protect the schoolchildren of America.
It is about the failure of the American people to act in a responsible manner
and to fulfill their obligations as American citizens.
The Grand Illuminist
(2,038 posts)Let's just say there are people that are legitimately getting slapped in the face one too many times.
ShazzieB
(22,568 posts)
ShazzieB
(22,568 posts)Personally, I would LOVE to see that amendment repealed, but I just don't think it's an achievable goal. Maybe someday, who knows. But for the foreseeable future, we need to focus on solutions that are more realistically attainable right now.
Irish_Dem
(81,189 posts)American adults not just allowing, but supporting the murder of school children.
Pretending there is nothing they can do.
Depraved indifference.
The Jungle 1
(4,552 posts)A minority in our country are controlling the policy.
Our democracy is failing.
The mutilation of children will continue because the cowardly minority wants it that way.
Repeal the 2nd.
Irish_Dem
(81,189 posts)We need to hang our heads in shame.
At this point it is no longer even about the 2A.
It is about the moral cowardice of the American people.
The Jungle 1
(4,552 posts)I have presented my solution many times. I want a concerted effort to repeal the 2nd. That effort will cause change. IMO
What do you think we should do. We all point fingers and cry. I see very few solutions put on the table.
How do we force the issue? We are presently at a stalemate. A stalemate with mutilated children.
Pointing fingers and calling names will not solve this shit show.
We are at the point that some kind of national action must take place. Is TN the start?
Irish_Dem
(81,189 posts)The Jungle 1
(4,552 posts)The ideas are solid and I agree with you.
Emmett Till's mother showed America her child who racists had mutilated and it had a huge impact. She was a brave woman who was trying to fix America. We need more mothers like her.
I would love to hear ideas of how we can help grieving parents to agree. Perhaps telling Mrs. Till's story would help.
I have also suggested that the mutilated pictures of the children be published. It is a good idea and America needs this shock therapy.
Repeal the 2nd!
Irish_Dem
(81,189 posts)I get a lot of pushback sometimes so your words are good to hear.
Yes Mrs. Till was a brave woman.
A profile in courage.
Ligyron
(8,006 posts)Not even necessary really if we pass enough laws actually controlling who can use them and under which conditions. The fact is, the vast majority of gun owners are fine, these mass shootings are done by an incredibly small percentage of people who, after they commit the slaughter, could almost always have been easily identified beforehand.
The rest and vast majority are handgun crimes robbery, murder etc. which admittedly are way more hard to effect but there are steps which could be taken, the discussion of which would require chapters, but just background checks alone are a huge step in the right direction.
All we can do is make an effort and hope to get those cut way down because I’m afraid the 2nd amendment will never be repealed or even interpreted correctly. Sucks I know but here we are and all we can do is try.
The Jungle 1
(4,552 posts)The effort to repeal the 2nd would be where the power lies.
former9thward
(33,424 posts)There are 535 members of Congress and a President and VP. Plus 50 Governors. Not all are Democrats but f there is such a large majority who want to repeal the 2nd I would think at least one of that number would support repeal.
The Jungle 1
(4,552 posts)I am offering my solution you have offered no solution. All I ever hear is what won't work.
We need solutions and ideas.
Ray Bruns
(6,341 posts)The Jungle 1
(4,552 posts)The effort to repeal the 2nd would be where the power lies.
The Grand Illuminist
(2,038 posts)for that to happen.
pazzyanne
(6,759 posts)
UpInArms
(54,950 posts)They could spend a fortune on mental health care.
Sigh
Ray Bruns
(6,341 posts)UpInArms
(54,950 posts)and at my wit’s end
Butterflylady
(4,584 posts)But they only do what their constitutes want so they should be branded also.
The Jungle 1
(4,552 posts)I send at least one a week.
sinkingfeeling
(57,808 posts)restrictions enrage me. Let's have domestic abusers armed to the teeth and the more bullets in the gun the better!
LeftinOH
(5,648 posts)claim that "only criminals would have the guns" if there were restrictions on certain weapons. Which ignores the fact that most mass-shooters are enabled by the market of unrestricted, easily obtainable weapons.
Zeitghost
(4,557 posts)But not for mass shootings as a whole, most of which are related to criminal street gangs and the drug trade.
LoisB
(13,006 posts)
randr
(12,646 posts)Emmett Till's mother made the choice to show the world what the monsters had done to her child. This was the turning point for many people to do something about the atrocities committed throughout the south.
It is a hard call and probably will never happen but the world needs to see what these weapons do to bodies before they have an clear understanding of what the choices are.
debm55
(60,454 posts)The Grand Illuminist
(2,038 posts)They can make it themselves. If someone found a way to make bombs that can basically destroy a 15 story building out of the chemicals from simple everyday items, ammunition powder would be a piece of cake.
Response to kentuck (Original post)
Chin music This message was self-deleted by its author.
sellitman
(11,745 posts)America loves it's guns more than they do their children.
It's sickening.
marieo1
(1,402 posts)Kentuck..I agree 150%...........someone should have had the courage to do something about this a long time ago.
infullview
(1,128 posts)I do have to say that it sickens me to see these political assholes in KY dance around but never say GUN CONTROL If it were me, I'd be screaming it at the reporters and making sure to compare the shooter to the sick fucking republicans who who value power and money over social conscience. Who's more insane?
Tots and prayers.......
spanone
(141,560 posts)
bluboid
(845 posts)
samplegirl
(13,982 posts)Your always so precise!
Prairie_Seagull
(4,682 posts)Thanks kentuk.
Evolve Dammit
(21,766 posts)onecaliberal
(36,594 posts)wendyb-NC
(4,685 posts)We cannot allow, this insanity of gun worship determine our lives, our children's lives or the meaning of freedom for this country.
kentuck
(115,401 posts)...is that it is never too late. It's about Public Safety.
WVreaper
(675 posts)kentuck
(115,401 posts)That might be a start?
We cannot drop parts of the Amendment, or add parts to the Amendment, to fit the wishes of one group or another.
What does it mean when it speaks of "well-regulated militias"? Would that not be a militia to protect our country? Regulated by our "government"? Paid for by the US Government? In my opinion, that is what the 2nd Amendment should have said.
But it doesn't.
All gun-owners should be required to sign up for the "militia" and swear allegiance to our Constitution, in my opinion. They could be the front line in protecting our communities and our country. If they were "well-regulated". (We cannot overlook the words we don't like)
It may be only a wishlist but we have to believe.
summer_in_TX
(4,165 posts)of positive change.
But the NRA was focus testing messages, I'd guess. The word that turned it around? Freedom. Once they started to talk about the personal freedom issue, things quickly swung away from controlling guns in spite of the horrific killings. Americans are primed to value freedom. Polling shows freedom ranks 22 points above the value of justice.
Guess which party knows that and which one doesn't. (I knew you could.)
Knowing that, what freedoms can gun control advocates claim? How about the freedom to be safe in our schools, banks, movies, concerts, churches, streets? Freedom to live in a society that is not the Wild Wild West without the rule of law.
Better than the justice argument on abortion, how about keeping the freedom to decide what our own lives are going to be like, freedom to decide whether and when to be a parent, freedom not to be forced to carry our rapist's baby, freedom to create the life we dream of?
Old Crank
(7,041 posts)Doesn't seem to apply to GOP women when kids are being torn to shreds by gun fire.
Why not?