I created this blog to talk mostly about hospice, palliative care, and end-of-life issues. Today, I have something to say that isn't closely related to hospice or palliative care but must come out of my mouth (or fingers, if you will).
The tragic shooting and killing of 20 children and 7 adults in Connecticut has shook our entire nation, and many parts of the world, to our core. I have a first grader; a beautiful, funny, cuddly 6 year old. Like so many others, I cannot begin to fathom how something like this happens. As so often happens in our grief and confusion, people are getting angry and demanding new laws to prevent future tragedies.
Whatever your view happens to be on gun control, I respect it. I love that one of our many liberties in the United States is our right to form and voice our own opinions. I'm going to voice some opinions now and I hope you can respect mine, as I respect yours.
Gun control is not what the U.S. needs right now. We have many gun laws in place that vary from state to state and I believe they are all adequate. The idea is that we don't allow dangerous, irresponsible people to purchase a gun. Ten-day waiting periods (5 in some states), criminal background checks, mandatory trigger locks -- these are all good laws that responsible, law-abiding citizens respect and follow. It is because of these laws that we rarely see legitimate gun owners committing heinous criminal acts with their guns. Crimes with guns are often committed by criminals who have stolen guns. Unfortunately, guns are often stolen from family members or friends.
The shooter in Connecticut apparently got the guns from home. His mother, who he also killed, seemed to have owned the guns. If that's true, it seems obvious to me that she was not a responsible gun owner. Her guns should have been locked away where even her mentally ill adult child could not access them. I have a mentally healthy 20 year old who knows how to safely handle a gun and wants to be a police officer and still doesn't have access to my guns. Nor do criminals, as my guns are securely locked away in safes that are bolted down. You see, I am a responsible gun owner with FULL responsibility resting on me.
Along the same lines, I'm also a responsible eater. Weird transition, I know, but try to follow me. I know how much soda I should (or really, should not) drink in a day. I know fast food will make me fat. I know that it is my responsibility to read food labels, ingredients, and the like to know what I'm putting into my body. I don't need the government dictating what I can and cannot eat. If you're still lost, I'm thinking of the law passed in NY that banned selling massive size sodas. I love my liberties in America and if I wanted to drink a massive size soda and make myself sick and fat, by damn I'm going to do it! But I won't. Because I'm responsible.
I'm responsible with my body. I don't have sex with multiple partners and pop out babies like their candy from a Pez dispenser, then expect the government to pay for my food and rent. Before you start getting all "She's heartless and doesn't support single moms!" on me, I understand that everyone's situation is different and I refrain from passing judgment on individuals. That's not my place. I'm just trying to get my point across, which is:
We, as citizens of the United States of America, have a personal responsibility to make good choices!
Bad choices inevitably lead to bad consequences. It's time, as Americans and as humans, to take responsibility for our own actions. We don't need politicians taking away more of our liberties, we need to learn how to use our liberties responsibly.
The second part of my rant concerns mental health care in America.
If we spent the money the government would like to spend on "gun control" and used it to beef up our mental health care, we could actually prevent mentally ill people from killing our children. You've all heard this before but I'll say it again: "Guns don't kill people, people kill people." Usually the people killing people, especially in large tragedies like this most recent one, are mentally ill individuals who haven't received the care they need. Most likely, if a mentally ill person were intent on killing a large number of people and didn't have access to a gun, they would find another way to carry out their mission. It is very rare for a mentally healthy person to use their legally obtained gun to commit violent criminal acts.
Focus on the mental health of our communities. Leave existing gun laws in place, perhaps even expand them (oops, that's another rant for another time), but now is the time to focus on providing help to the mentally ill and their families.
And I've said my piece. Agree? Disagree? I'm cool either way. Just remember it is America and I'm entitled to my opinion as you are entitled to yours. Let's keep things respectful, shall we?
