Why why why?

All the countless shootings that take place only makes me ask why why why?

Our politicians can't seem to pass a budget. There is this
pervasive feeling that we should not have to pay taxes. Our hard earned
money should stay in our pockets. No longer are we proud that our taxes
can support a good education, well paved roads or a solid infrastructure
if a crisis happens.  Instead we are all about ourselves not community
or helping our fellow man. I dont get it.

So when it comes down to the right to bear arms that is
certainly not something i see our politicans rising up to the public outcry over the endless stream of random killings of innocent victims because
anyone can obtain an uzi sub-machine gun.  it is supposedly our right.  The NRA has significant pockets
full of cash that help politicians get elected and because of that we
will continue to see tragedy after tragedy like we witnessed in
Connecticut this week. It is heart breaking.  As Bloomberg said, have we had enough yet?

Government at the end of the day is supposed to protect the
people.  The gun laws that we have in place are certainly not
protecting all the people. 

Why why why and when when when will we see change. Obama
doesn't have to worry about being elected again. He should really make his mark in the
history books so that we won't see this
happen again because if he doesn't, sadly we will witness another random act of violence killing innocent people because some lunatic took a gun and decided to kill people.  

Comments (Archived):

  1. Shripriya

    34 people per day. 200x the rate of developed countries. It’s truly appalling. An issue I feel incredibly strongly about.I was offended when, after the Aurora shootings, Obama said that it could have been his kids. It could never have been his kids. They will have a life-time security detail. But it is regular people’s children. Regular people who count on elected representatives who are failing miserably.Your last paragraph nails it – *this* is his chance. There is nothing to lose. But… congress is where laws are made. And they all don’t have term limits. So…It’s horribly sad, it’s horribly depressing. We are letting our futures be murdered in front of our eyes because we have cowards representing us.

    1. Gotham Gal

      we certainly have cowards representing us. it is pathetic.my daughter did not like the way that obama talked about his children when he spoke yesterday. she felt the same way you do. she said, he should not be talking as a parent but as a president. she said i just want to seem him get angry and do something. just do something. change something.

      1. Abdallah Al-Hakim

        ‘should not be talking as a parent but as a president’ – couldn’t agree more. The nation has enough parents, but only one president.

      2. JLM

        .The classic “emoticon” or in this instance the ultimate Emote Con.Our President is simply not engaged with the country. He is a campaigner and a speech giver and nothing more. Damn good one in all fairness.He could not wet the entire depth of a thimble with his leadership.The Nation is going over the Cliff — not really a bad thing in the end — and he is going to Hawaii.As he says — Aloha, bitches!A tad harsh, I admit.

    2. William Mougayar

      Yup, I agree on that point. I didn’t want to see him with tears and as a parent. He was elected to be a President, and should have come out stronger, angrier and used that opportunity to DO something about it NOW.Unfortunately, he was speaking like he was hamstrung by the NRA & lobbyists. But the war against guns is a war worth fighting. He needs to pick his battles.The (tragic) opportunity was handed to him.

  2. falicon

    I’m not a fan of guns. I don’t own one and never have…and I don’t think overall I would be much bothered if we had stricter gun laws. Honestly I just don’t have a strong stance on one side or the other.Because I don’t think it’s actually the (whole) problem.All stricter and more laws will do is limit access to a technology. To me, that approach doesn’t really address the problem.I think the problem is how do we identify and help (or at least stop) these people before they go over the deep end? How we do fix whatever it is that causes someone to commit an insane and random act?Because if we can’t do anything about the intent and the mindset, then no amount of limiting access to a technology is going to matter…

    1. Gotham Gal

      Very relevant and sad

    2. Wavelengths

      Yep.

  3. judy

    Its complex. Gun industry makes money from guns and ammo. Male ego often wants an association with guns. I admire Mayor Bloomberg for a very strong stand for gun control and also Sen Feinstein. What will it take for our government to say No More?

    1. patrickdh

      How complex can it be – for a mother at home to be needing and allowed to be armed in such a way? How much more fire power could she have needed for her to believe to be protected? What male ego could have influenced her to be more armed?

    2. Jeff

      I must say that it is ironic that he calls for gun control while having armed guards by his side,

  4. JLM

    .In the midst of tragedy, it is often tempting to be drawn toward absolutes — why not? I admit guilt on that score. I would like every gun in America — except mine — to be destroyed. Won’t and can’t happen. But that is where my mind is today.But let’s review the facts:The US has a total and complete ban on automatic weapons so when one uses the example of an Uzi that is simply not correct. You cannot own an automatic weapon.A reasonable person would also extend that ban to include any weapon — semi-automatic — that could be converted to allow it to be fired automatically.We used to have a Federal ban on “assault” weapons which was allowed to expire. Why the Hell did it have an expiration date in the first place?The Congress could really not agree on what is or is not an “assault” weapon and there is no conclusive evidence that an NRA type with a legal assault weapon puts society at any greater risk than a butter knife.This is an issue with the same bunch of knuckleheads that cannot manage the Nation’s checkbook. Good luck with that.NYC and New York have very strict gun control laws with a complete ban on gun ownership absent very strict licensing. This law — the Sullivan Act — was enacted in 1911. The laws are in place. They have to be enforced viciously to make any real impact.And, yet, this past week an assassin killed a man in broad daylight on Broadway at 58th St in a drug dealer related incident.More laws will not deter avowed lawbreakers. It is naivete to think otherwise.The guns used in this tragedy — a Glock, a Sig, a Bushmaster — were legally owned and are not “outrageous” weapons. A Glock is a pistol. A Sig is a pistol. A Bushmaster is a .223 caliber “plinking” rifle.The three real problems are the PEOPLE, the INFO and the SECURITY of weapons of all kinds.In every instance, these atrocities have been created by crazy people. They have not been created by NRA members. We have to keep guns out of the hands of crazy people. Someone who kills their Mother or guns down a Congresswoman or kills children, regardless of the circumstances, is a crazy person.The sale of weapons and ammunition generates a lot of information. In Texas, there is a 5 day waiting period in which a gun purchaser is subjected to a background check — a Federal requirement. Ammunition sales on the Internet generate gobs of info.When a person buys 10K rounds of ammunition and 5 weapons in a 3 month period and they are a grad student, this info has to be acted upon and someone has to go see that guy. The info exists, nobody is using it.Weapons of all kinds have to be secured under pain of penalty. They have to be locked up. People have to be punished if they let their guns lay around unsecured.Big problem is that many folks use a gun like a carpenter uses a hammer. It is a tool. They shoot coyotes, livestock predators, snakes and require physical safety. These are not the folks who are committing these atrocities.There is ample opportunity for gun “regulation”, common sense gun regulation that even the NRA can get behind. I’m an NRA member and I would support gun regulation.Gun “control” is not a high probability.We need to control crazy people. Including our own Congress which cannot shoot straight or propound and pass effective legislation of any kind..

    1. Steve Chayer

      Thanks JLM for a excellent, thoughtful response. I too understand the sense of outrage and fervent need to find a solution but, no one knows how to conceptualize repairing the mental health problems which are at the root of these tragic killings, as easily as they do the call for ‘gun control’. Where are the leaders who will get the attention shifted from the gun control straw dog to the real problem mental health?

      1. Gotham Gal

        It is easier to have stricter gun regulations than do something about mental issues. Spending money on social issues is important but there is never enough to truly avoid the shooting that took place yesterday.

    2. Gotham Gal

      there must be a serious change in our gun regulation.

      1. JLM

        .Take each of the recent tragedies and model in your mind the perfect legislation that would have prevented them.I always come back to the crazy people.The notion of gun control being the answer is a placebo. You may think it works, but it does not.Witness NY and NYC with the toughest gun control laws on the books since 1911 and yet there is a slew of violent gun crime and wholesale gun ownership by criminals.I would favor banning automatic weapons, weapons that can be converted to automatic weapons, licensing of assault style guns, banning assault style weapons absent only rigorous licensing, a 10-day gun purchase period, mandatory information gathering on all gun and ammunition purchases (we have such a thing pertinent to automobiles), mandatory gun safety training, legal requirements for gun storage and safety.None of these things — with the possible exception of storage and safety — would have prevented this tragedy.Sick as this sounds, maybe if a teacher had a concealed carry license and had a weapon she could have killed this guy and prevented a lot of the deaths..

    3. Wavelengths

      As people struggle to understand this tragedy, and make some effort toward ways to prevent more of the same in the future, I am surprised at the variety of “explanations” people are putting forth.Mike Huckabee, former governor of Arkansas, says that the cause is that “we have systematically removed God from our schools.” http://www.huffingtonpost.c… I’m guessing he has forgotten about the Jonesboro, Arkansas, massacre at a middle school on March 28, 1998. At least one of the shooters was from a strong religious background.I agree with JLM that guns serve a real and practical purpose in situations that are not familiar to many people. I have traveled extensively, and been in places where having a gun on my hip or in my car would have been a good idea. Hiking in bear country poses certain dangers. A year ago I found a rattler in my campsite; with help, I dispatched it with the sharp end of a shovel, but a gun would have been a safer option. Roving wolf packs are a danger to stranded travelers in remote areas of Alaska. In Texas, the population of wild pigs, which can grow up to 600 lbs. and have razor tusks, is estimated to be over 2,000,000. Texas highway signs warn of feral pigs, and I was told by a high school principal who lived in a particularly remote town, “Don’t drive at night, and if you have a flat tire, you may want to wait in the car for help.” http://panews.com/outdoors/…I fear that the common thread in these horrific shootings is, as JLM puts it, “crazy people.”We can look into the pasts of many of these shooters and see warning signs, but in our country presently there is very little anyone can do to stop a crazy person before a crime happens. I would rather see better access to mental health services, and a better way of keeping an eye on people who exhibit threatening behavior.

      1. Jonathan

        Living in Manhattan, there are few opportunities to encounter feral pigs or rattlesnakes. In the 30 years I have lived here I have never felt the need to arm myself either; I believe the statistics about the chances of your own gun ending up being pointed at you. I recognize that you may have a point about needing to protect yourself from that risk and a gun might be the best way to do that. But a semi-automatic? I just don’t see that. With all due respect, if you need to fire that many bullets at a pig…well, you can fill in the rest.

        1. Gotham Gal

          here is something else. Every time a President has pushed through a major change in history, we look back at that and we call it progress. It was progress when women were given the right to vote, it was progress when African Americans were no longer slaves, it was progress when Roe vs Wade was passed. These changes might have been bold but when we look back at them it is the norm. I would hope that the Supreme Court will make a landmark decision with the passage of gay marriage in the coming year. If we were no longer given the right to carry arms then perhaps we would look back at that change and say that was progress. And perhaps with that change in our constitution there would be less violence, less random killings and my gut is nothing will change out there in rural areas except for less people being injured.

        2. Wavelengths

          As JLM pointed out, “The guns used in this tragedy — a Glock, a Sig, a Bushmaster — were legally owned and are not “outrageous” weapons. A Glock is a pistol. A Sig is a pistol. A Bushmaster is a .223 caliber “plinking” rifle.”I am not advocating assault weapons. I believe in reasonable gun control. I have also lived in the NYC area and in D.C. I am quite certain that carrying a gun would never have protected me or anyone else from the Beltway sniper.My point is that what makes sense in one environment may not make sense for people in a different environment. Federal laws can be enacted by well-meaning people who are only familiar with an urban environment, and have no idea of issues that others face in the rest of the United States.

          1. Jonathan

            26 people murdered in minutes, each with multiple gunshots — one child with 11 bullets. News reports say Lanza only used the “plinking” rifle to kill, with the exception of a shot from one of the pistols that he used on himself. That sounds like that rifle was a pretty “outrageous” weapon to me.Slow it down. Don’t allow guns that can discharge dozens of rounds a second. Don’t allow people to buy guns the same day at a gun show. Lengthen out the permit process and account for every single bullet bought. If you want to have a gun, then you should, like Australia, require one gun safe for the gun, one for the firing pin, and a third for the ammo…along with the right of the authorities to inspect at will.

    4. Louis

      False. It is possible, in most states, to pay at $200 federal tax and legally own an automatic weapon. Connecticut is one of them. Clearly you know very little about gun laws.

      1. JLM

        .Under the National Firearms Act of 1834 and the Firearms Protection Act of 1986 your are correct that there is a $200 transfer fee to transfer the ownership of a “machine gun” to certain entities — dealers, manufacturers, makers.In every instance, the recipient of such a transfer must demonstrate their “need” and thereby a member of the general public is prevented from being the recipient of such a transfer as they have no legitimate need to own such a weapon.The typical need demonstrated by a dealer, manufacturer or maker is to sell them to law enforcement or the military.There is a grandfather provision as to machine guns owned by individuals prior to 1986 but that is also highly regulated. But even this ownership requires the necessity to demonstrate “need” if it were to attempt to transfer that machine gun to another individual.Bottom line — an individual cannot purchase a machine gun today.Go read the law..

  5. BillMcNeely

    The problem is not the President, Congress, the NRA etc. It’s “We the People” you and me who don’t stand up for what’s right or wrong. It’s saying we won’t have a base level of right of wrong at all.The conservatives are blaming this God being taken out of the schools. They are are saying Weneed to return prayer and Christianity to school etc.I don’t agree with all that but I do know our society is sick and we the citizens need to address it.

  6. Rohan

    Very sad. I can see JLM’s view on the situation but I just disagree. Sure, there always are crazy people. But you can’t have regulations that force people to keep the doors of their houses open to let the crazy people in.

  7. TanyaMonteiro

    this is the “news” obama should be reading, it’s time to DO something.

  8. ellen

    I agree with your post.What also worries me is the mental health of these individuals. Were they seeing someone or were they given psychotropic drugs that spellbound them into thinking that this was the answer to their problems? We heard that one of the Columbine shooters was on an ssri. Had it adversely affected his mind? Gun control is part of the answer. The other answer must be medical intervention before these people pick up a gun. You never hear about if these people were treated by mental health professionals and or how were they were ineffectively treated by them if they saw someone.? Learning what did not work might be insight into how we could better treat these people. We won’t ever find out because of the patient confidentiality law.

    1. Wavelengths

      A lot of psychological research has gone into assessing Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold — the Columbine shooters. http://www.guardian.co.uk/w… The general agreement is that Eric Harris — charming, able to talk his way out of trouble, well-liked — was highly psychopathic, and Dylan Klebold was his follower, an “Eric wannabe.”Eric’s very charming ways would have been a tipoff to some professionals, but, as everyone is noting, access to mental health professionals is all but impossible for the average citizen to gain. Parents, educational professionals, anyone in responsibility should be able to have some recourse if they see warning signs.

  9. William Mougayar

    As an outsider looking at the US, all I can say is the US will have to figure this out. Gun control is a very vexing and thorny issue and it is comprised of polarized views. Just as with healthcare, and dealing with the deficit, the US will need to figure these out sooner than later.The fears (psychological or real) inflected on thousands of other US schools and perhaps millions of young children in America are just too mind boggling.

  10. robert mayer

    I am also very saddened about what has happened. I am going to be a father in 2 weeks and I really feel the pain of the victims and their families.My issue with gun control – and I am 100% pro strict gun laws- is that it gives the illusion that this is a “logistics” issue. As if making buying guns harder would solve the issue america is facing.I have lived in the States, in Israel, in Hungary, in England and also in Thailand. In some of these countries – Thailand for example – it is very easy to buy any type of gun and most male citizens own one. Yet you do not see kids going into schools murdering other students, their parents and themselves.Making this issue a gun problem is like saying: “well,l we know we have a lot of sick people so lets just make sure that they can only kill each other with knives, home made bombs, sticks, rocks etc”. People – even the mentally disturbed- are creative. Creating stricter gun laws will only change the method of how the crimes are committed and not solve the issue.

  11. Jonathan

    Jeff Sachs linked to an interested article on how Australia deals with gun control. Well worth a read http://jeffsachs.org/2012/1

    1. Gotham Gal

      really good article. interesting on how the aussies deal with guns.

  12. BillMcNeely

    After darkness there seems as if there is little hope. I hope this video brings some of that back. It’s about young girls in Afghanistan learning to skateboard. http://hotmilkforbreakfast….

    1. Gotham Gal

      great piece.

  13. John Revay

    I thought POTUS did a great job tonight – lets hope and pray that he follows through.

    1. Wavelengths

      Thank you for sharing this. This mother is pouring out her heart, and yes, I believe she understands better than most the tragedy that was the life of Adam Lanza’s mother.We need to consider the many factors that lead to the devastation in Connecticut. I applaud this woman’s courage in speaking up about the difficulty of having a child who might turn out to be an Eric Harris or Adam Lanza.

      1. Gotham Gal

        Wow. What a piece

        1. Wavelengths

          I am glad you read it. The article got a mention over on Fred’s site in his post from Sunday. I am copying my response to that commenter, because I feel it is also appropriate here. My heart breaks over this whole issue.”I spent the better part of a year on a discussion board that was intended to help people whose lives had been affected by highly sociopathic or psychopathic people. There were spouses and ex-spouses, boyfriends and girlfriends, [even employees and business partners], but the people whose lives were the most tragic to me were those who were dealing with their children who were as out of control as Liza Long describes her son.”Again and again I heard stories of children who terrorized their families, tore holes in the walls, and acted out in ways unimaginable to anyone who hasn’t seen it, or heard similar stories over and over.”All “the system” offered was “classes in parenting.” No mental health treatment was offered. The parents who communicated on the site were in the US and in Canada, and the stories were the same. For the parents, they carry the legal responsibility for the caretaking of their children, and for their actions, no matter how out of control they may be.”Even when the parents knew the seriousness of their child’s disorder, there was no place to turn for help. And the children/teenagers were generally very good at turning off the behavior and putting on innocent faces when it suited them. Within my own extended family, there is an adopted child [I mention this because there seems to be a genetic component to this type of disorder, but it is not a direct indicator] who is acting out in these ways. I know the pain the parents suffer. When the system can’t/won’t offer solutions, where do we go?”And gun control is only about a side effect of the real issue.”