The temptation to try and turn the shooting of Gabrielle Giffords into a feel-good narrative appears to have won out. Rather then use the horrific event as an opportunity to honestly examine the consequences of our fatal attraction to firearms, the focus has already shifted to daily updates about the congresswoman's progress. Incremental signs of improvement are eagerly seized upon and presented as evidence of a "miraculous" recovery. And while some of that enthusiasm is tempered with reminders of just how difficult a journey lies ahead for Giffords, the desired story line has already been established.
The other 18 people shot have been effectively marginalized, for the most part. The living, and the dead, will recede from our collective memory, and the Tucson shooting will be reduced to the story of two individuals: the gunman and his primary target. Jared Lee Loughner will be portrayed as an aberration, rather then a particular type that is all too familiar to us. Gabby Gifford has already been reduced to a symbol of "healing", both literally and metaphorically, instead of the vibrant and intelligent human being that existed before a bullet tore through her brain.
If not for an armed citizen, there would clearly have been more death and injuries on that day.
ReplyDeleteI am confused as to why the left is convinced that murderous criminals will decide NOT to procure guns if only it were illegal?????
It is already illegal to be a murderous criminal, yet there are still murderous criminals.
Laws do not prevent bad actions, they simply allow for the punishment of those commiting such acts, after the fact.
I, for one, will never give up my firearms, as I refuse to be a victim, crying to a useless police officer, while he fills out a report after an attack on me or my family.
That "armed citizen" in Phoenix, by his own account, refrained from using his pistol because of the chaotic situation. He was afraid of shooting the wrong person, which is likely what would have happened. The shooter was tackled and disarmed by unarmed citizens who took advantage of the fact that he was trying to reload his weapon. After firing off 31 rounds from a single ammunition clip. But hey, I guess every good citizen, sane or not, deserves to be armed with the equivalent of a submachine gun.
ReplyDeleteYour arguments against sensible gun control measures amount to little more then the same stale talking points, which are duly trotted out after every massacre. All you have in your favor is a constitutional amendment that has been twisted out of context in order to serve a perverse agenda.
Oh those pesky Constitutional amendments, always interfering with the Left's attempts to usurp the rights of citizens. If only the left could redefine, or better yet, simply ignore that silly old Bill of Rights, we could finally have the utopia that they have in gun controlled cities.
ReplyDeleteOh how I wish my town could boast the murder rates of NY, DC, Chicago, LA, Mexico City, and Boston.