Phyllis Zagano has a good piece on NCR re: gun violence:
Anger management and guns | National Catholic Reporter (ncronline.org)
She makes a good case that anger is the common element in shootings.
From the article:
"Some folks blame mental health issues for every shooting. But what mental health condition? Paranoid psychosis? Sociopathic behavior? Depression? Bipolar disorder?"
"Perhaps the crucial ingredient is anger. Anger, at whom or at what, is for the psychiatrists to determine. But anger is clearly at the root of it all."
"...So, what causes anger?"
"Yes, some people, with or without drugs, are detached from reality. Their anger erupts without warning."
"More people, it seems, are infected with anger by an imagined reality that threatens their understanding of safety. While not every gun owner is paranoid, not every gun owner is not paranoid."
"Selling anger and fear is big business. We saw what happened when QAnon exploded on the internet. Add Truth Social, Fox News and Newsmax to smaller outlets, like The Tennessee Star and NewBostonPost, and you have an electronic cauldron ready to boil over. Who, after all, can forget Jan. 6?"
"...Pope Francis seems to be the only stable voice in the discussion. The normalization of guns, he told The Associated Press after a gunman killed 11 people in Monterey Park, California, in January, has led to a "habit" of resorting to guns for every difficulty. "Instead of making the effort to help us live," said the pontiff, "we make the effort to help us kill."
"...The problem stretches far beyond rifles and pistols for sport. The AR-15 semiautomatic rifle is the mass shooter's weapon of choice. Want one? Today, you can find some 250 AR-15-style rifles for sale on the internet by an online retailer based in Texas. Prices range from $449 to $1,749; financing available."
"...New York's historical relationship with the NRA is perhaps instructive. In the late 19th century, the state's Legislature and the NRA joined to acquire some 70 acres of farmland along a rail line in Queens to create a firing range. The property, the old Creed farm, was the site of international competitions until 1891. Neighbors complained so much, the NRA relocated to New Jersey, and the property eventually reverted to the state of New York.The train stop for the property had cemented the name of the place: Creed's moor, or Creedmoor. Soon a state hospital took over the property.The irony is unmistakable. Today, that former NRA firing range is the campus of the largest hospital in New York, the Creedmoor Psychiatric Center."
Not all anger springs from mental illness. But it is a factor in some mental illness. And we all learned it as one of the seven deadly sins.
Virtually every mass shooting has anger at someone or something as a common denominator. We do a terrible job as a society with anger management.
I read the article yesterday I think. I agree that anger is one of the major issues. But neither Ms Zagano nor Pope Francis propose a solution. I fear that the barn door has been open for far too long to be able to figure out a way to make guns unavailable to angry young men( it’s mostly young men). And, sadly, there seems no way of getting American gun nuts to realize that enacting reasonable gun controls to prevent these angry young men from being able to walk into a store the days after their 18th birthday and walk out with military grade weapons of mass murder.
ReplyDeleteA majority of gun owners support measures to keep firearms out of the hands of violent and unstable people. Unfortunately, only 1/3 support a ban on semi-automatic high powered rifles. But nothing at all happens. The desires of the public are not relevant to the elected representatives. Only the money from rich donors matter.
ReplyDeleteGun control is quite popular in Illinois. But the case law, based on the Second Amendment, is more libertarian than most folks around here are comfortable with.
ReplyDeleteIn the wake of the Highland Park, IL shooting last summer at the 4th of July parade, the state passed some gun control measures. Those are making their way through court challenges and appeals. So far, the law hasn't been hobbled. But there are still a number of legal gates to get through.