Police believe that prior to going to the school, Lanza shot to death his mother, 52-year old Nancy Lanza, at their home, then drove to the school in his mom's car with at least three of her guns; all of which were purchased lawfully. Authorities say Lanza then forced his way in to the school, bypassing security measures, by breaking a window. Within minutes, he had murdered 20 children - 6 and 7 years of age - plus four teachers, the principal and the school psychologist; spraying each with multiple bullets. Lanza then turned one of the guns on himself; shooting a single bullet into his head.
My intention for this composition is not to report on the crime itself. I will leave that to the broadcast and cable networks, to newspapers, magazines and journalists elsewhere. Instead, I will ask certain questions, provide my thoughts, and hope that others will agree with me that we must do something in this country to get guns out of the hands of people who are unconscionably evil and/or mentally unbalanced; and who are capable of performing indescribable violence on others.
This is a sad, sad time in our nation. In an emotional response to the catastrophic carnage, a tearful President Obama last Friday told Americans, "As a country, we have been through this too many times."
Must we live in fear - everytime we go to a mall, to a movie theatre, or anywhere for that matter - that we could be killed by a madman with a gun? Must every parent now think to himself or herself - when they kiss their child goodbye - as they go off to school in the morning - will my child live or die today because a sinful psychopath could storm in to his or her school carrying assault weapons and enough ammunition to kill hundreds of pure and pristine children?
When is enough enough? How many people - how many children need to die before our politicians can unite and agree on a law that would prevent these mass murders? We must not tolerate this sort of despicable destruction anymore. We must reinstate the assault weapons ban and make it and other gun laws even stronger.
I understand that we, as Americans, have a Second Amendment right to bear arms. However, I am certain - yes certain - that the founding fathers are turning over in their graves to think that anyone would believe that the United States Constitution would include assault weapons as part of that right.
The U.S. Supreme Court says "reasonable restrictions" are consistent with the Constitution. No amendment is absolute. Think about it. The First Amendment gives us freedom of speech. But you can't run in to a crowded theatre and scream "fire" - unless there is one.
I have heard some people over the last few days say we need police officers - or, at the very least, armed guards - patroling the campuses of our schools. Others have said that public school principals and college deans should carry concealed handguns. Is this really the way we want America to go? I definitely hope not. More guns will not keep people free from harm and out of danger.
There is no doubt that our children need to be protected - but schools need to be safe sanctuaries for our kids. We must have stricter gun laws. If 20 dead children isn't reason enough to change our laws - then I don't know what will.
Why are background checks not tougher? Why don't background checks investigate not only the person wanting to buy the gun, but any other people living in the same household? The guns used by Adam Lanza were legally owned and registered in Connecticut by his mother, Nancy Lanza; and Connecticut has one of the most stringent gun laws in the United States. However, if a background check was done on Adam Lanza - who lived in the same house with his mother - it's quite possible that Nancy Lanza would not have been granted any gun permits; and she, her son and 26 other people may be alive today.
We must make it harder to purchase guns. The guns used by Adam Lanza are generally carried by police officers and federal agents. There is no need for civilians to own such weapons. Furthermore, we must also reduce the size of the ammunition clips that can be purchased by the public, so that massive amounts of rounds cannot be bought by non-law enforcement officials. Weapons of war need to be taken off the streets.
The National Rifle Association (The NRA) cannot be feared by Democrats or by Republicans in the United States Senate and House of Representatives. President Obama has stated that "We're going to have to come together to take meaningful action to prevent more tragedies like this - regardless of the politics."
President Obama needs to quote President Andrew Shepherd, a character superbly portrayed by Michael Douglas in the magnificent motion picture, The American President. 
Brilliantly written by Aaron Sorkin, President Shepherd says in a speech from The White House press room, "I'm writing a law that makes sense. You cannot address crime prevention without getting rid of assault weapons and handguns. I consider them a threat to national security - and I will go door to door if I have to, but I'm going to convince Americans that I'm right. And I'm gonna get the guns." I implore Congress to have some common sense. Get rid of these deadly guns that have no business being available. And just as the fictional President Andrew Shepherd - I hope the real-life President Barack Obama will convince Americans that he's right... and that he...will get the guns.
We are grief-stricken as a nation. The precious, young lives of 20 little boys and girls have been stolen from their parents; and the lives of six brave and courageous educators - six wonderful women - were also taken too soon - because of the nightmare in Newtown. As President Obama said Friday, as he wiped tears from his eyes, "Our hearts are broken today."My heartfelt thoughts and prayers go out to the parents, the families and the friends of those who lost loved ones - young and old - and to those who were injured physically and/or emotionally because of the death and devastation at Sandy Hook Elementary School. As President Obama said Sunday night when he spoke to the nation from Newtown, "Newtown...you are not alone."
America mourns the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School. I hope that President Obama and Congress can, as the President said, "come together" so that no other Americans will perish in such a horrifying and cataclysmic way. I pray there are no more bloodbaths - no more shooting sprees - and that we never again have to speak the words, "Oh my God...not again."
And that's The Controversy for today.
I'm Gary B. Duglin.
Copyright 2012 Gary B. Duglin and TheControversy.net. All Rights Reserved.
No comments:
Post a Comment