The gun is the culprit as proved by national gun incidents of the last week. A curmudgeon shoots a young man for mistakenly ringing his doorbell; another curmudgeon shoots a young woman for mistakenly turning into his driveway; an angry young man shoots cheerleaders for mistakenly sitting in his car; another angry young man shoots kids and parents for trying to retrieve a loose ball in his yard. None of these incidents would have happened if a handgun had not been at hand.
The curmudgeon's could have yelled, “Get off my property!” and shaken a fist. The angry young men could have muttered to themselves, “Those cheerleaders think they are so cute!” or “Those darn kids are so rambunctious!”
Instead, they reached for a handy handgun, perhaps, buttressed by the idea of stand-your-ground laws: if you feel threatened, shoot.
Guns in the home or car do not make you more safe. They make you less safe because they are dangerous instruments. A few years ago I got rid of all my hunting rifles. Now I don’t have to worry about an unexpected suicide or a gun accident or a gun incident.
I am not a hunter. I’ve shot two deer, two ducks, and two rabbits. The last one cried like a baby. I am not a marksman. In my youth I spent two years learning to shoot at the old gun club at the now-defunct Fancher Field. I quit because I can’t shoot. However, I am grateful for the training. In the army in the hooch next to mine, a handsome young man mishandled his weapon and shot another handsome young man dead. I heard the shot. I don’t need a gun. I have 911.
In the old movie “His Girl Friday” the storyline is that a deranged man shoots a cop. He thinks it was an accident. However, an enterprising newswoman convinces him that because he had heard a soapbox orator speak about “Production For Use” that the gun was at fault because he used it as intended. Think about it.
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