I wish there was a fourth part here where I could write about how the media, the nation’s citizens and lobby groups continued pressuring our leaders to enact changes that would not delay such violence, but prevent it. Politicians argue about the complexity of the issue, the multi lateral approach that must be taken in order to offer a comprehensive solution, yet the solution never comes. Only recently, the assault weapons ban portion of a potential new gun law was removed in order to receive more support from both sides of the aisle.
What’s upsetting about this incident isn’t just the fact that dozens of children were taken away from their place on this planet at the hands of someone who could buy guns like buying candy. What’s disconcerting is that this blog post could have been written at any point within the past few years with minor variances in its specifics. Gun violence isn’t just a pandemic in the United States, it’s part of its culture. It doesn’t represent a virus that fades away after a while, it represents a parasite, thriving unabashedly, persisting and refusing to go away. Instead of looking for a cure, we as a people have decided to let those who choose to govern, those who have influence, run around Washington while making empty threats and do what politicians do best: loaf about. What we have done is absolve ourselves of any sort of enduring conscientiousness. We mourn one minute, let the news sink in the other and then proceed to become shocked when another mass shooting happens 3 months after the last one. Virginia Tech, Aurora, Oak Creek, Fort Hood and the list goes on and on. Newtown has become Oldtown.