Humans have a way of falling into routines. People find something that works, then they keep doing that thing until there's a compelling reason to change (see: RickRolling, planking, Gangham Style remixes). The recent string of horrific shootings has evinced another routine:
1. Individual with likely mental illness decides to inflict his pain on others.
2. Media reports mostly-false information in the early moments of a developing tragedy.
3. Media jumps to conclusions about potential motives of individual.
4. One side of the country screams "BAN ALL GUNS NOW!"
5. The other side of the country screams "IF EVERYONE HAD A GUN THIS WOULD NEVER HAVE HAPPENED!"
6. A community is left in tatters with empty beds, heavy hearts and questions that will never be answered.
Each turn around the carousel brings its own nuances, but the end result is typically the same: Nothing happens, nothing changes, and the divide between the sides grows deeper. I've noticed that the conversations tend to be centered around the same thing: laws. One side demands stricter gun laws, one side demands less-strict laws while encouraging that more people carry guns. As someone that has experienced tragedy in two places I consider home, I've had plenty of time and motivation to consider my position on the issue.
At the end of the day, all the talk about laws is political theater. Shooting up a classroom is already against the law - a super-serious law is not going to save lives. Yes, we should be careful to not hand tools of destruction to anyone that asks, but we've also seen enough examples to know that determined people find a way. The issue here is not changing the laws; indeed, the issue here is changing the culture.
Pro-gun folks will cite studies where more guns lead to reduced gun violence. While the studies are not completely conclusive, I can follow the logic. Second Amendment proponents will discuss the right to defend oneself - that, too, I support. The US is not the only place that deals with gun violence, but the US seems to stand alone when it comes to gun "culture". People love guns. They celebrate them. They flaunt them. They bring guns to political rallies. They have gun slogans and bumper stickers. There are places on earth where people live in actual war zones - this isn't one of them.
While I don't like guns, I'm not naive enough to think they aren't in some way necessary. What I don't support is the near-erotic obsession that so much of our country has with guns. People shouldn't be proud to own a gun. It's not a badge of honor. It should be a serious and somber occasion, a silent admission that the world is fucked up and that you're not willing to roll the proverbial dice. That some people seek to harm others is one of life's saddest truths, and a gun is a physical representation of that, humanitiy's greatest weakness.
Owning a gun is a form of risk mitigation. Celebrating guns and gun ownership isolates one of our greatest flaws and glorifies it. Until we're able to treat gun ownership like the unfortunate but necessary evil that it is, we won't be able to have a real discussion about gun violence in this country.
