I offer my own thoughts. Guns have been legal in our nation since the beginning. We have the right to bear arms. But mass shootings seem to be happening more often lately. So, what has changed? I would argue that it is our national attitude in general, where our kids are raised to believe lies. There was a time when people carried guns in their vehicles to school because they would go hunting after school. This was normal. I'm still in my 20s, and while I'm far too young to have been a part of that, I have always carried a pocketknife with me since I was a young boy. I had one in my pocket at school every day. This was a normal thing. The thought of stabbing someone with the knife never once came to my mind. A pocketknife is a tool. I had it on me because you never know when you're going to need to cut something, or whittle a stick. Sure, it can be used in self-defense as well, but if the person attacking you has a gun, you're out of luck. But that's not my point at the moment. My point is that if I was in elementary school today and a teacher saw me with a pocketknife, I would be in serious trouble. You can't carry that tool to school anymore. It's apparently a weapon now. That's how we're being trained to view it.
You can't play dodgeball at school anymore either. You get suspended for fighting instead of reprimanded. Touching a fellow student in a non-sexual way is sexual harassment. Anything you say can be construed as sexual harassment. You can't say anything that's not politically correct either. You can't hurt anyone's feelings. If a teacher touches you, he or she could be fired. Remember how teachers would pat you on the shoulder when you were a kid or even hug you on occasion? That can't happen anymore. But instead of physically showing that they care for students, they teach lies instead. You can do anything you want. You can be anything you want. If you try hard enough, you will reach your goal, whatever it is. Nothing is impossible. Bullshit.
Meanwhile, no one plays outside anymore. Your parents could be arrested if you walk a few blocks away to the local park unsupervised. Besides, why would they allow that anyway? You might get kidnapped or worse. We all interact less in-person. Even phone calls have declined. We text instead. We communicate through Facebook. Sometimes we video chat. You want to ask a girl out? Text her. Want to break up with her? Text her. Want to know what an old friend is doing? Look at their online profile. We are losing our ability to interact.
A teenage boy a few towns over from where I live asked a girl to prom a few years ago and got rejected. He couldn't just move on to the next girl. Yes, there was something psychologically wrong with him, but he grew up being taught that he would have whatever he wanted in life if he really wanted it. He was shielded from anything that could possibly hurt his feelings. He was never taught how to deal with the inevitable problems that will happen in life. He stabbed her to death in the stairwell at the school. A boy barely older than him stole his mother's gun, killed her, and shot and killed more than 20 people in an elementary school less than an hour away, before killing himself. Connecticut responded to this by enacted gun control legislation that effectively did nothing, nor would it have prevented such a tragedy had it been on the books when it occurred.
Our President talks about how he is in favor of more gun control, because if new legislation saves the life of one child, it's worth it. Well, unless it saves the life of an unborn child. It's perfectly alright to kill them and sell their organs. Our President talks about how armed guard at schools is a bad idea, yet there are armed guards present when his daughters go to school. They're more important than other children. Our President talks about how gun allowances are excessive for self-defense, yet everywhere he goes, he is surrounded by secret service agents with high-powered firearms. When he spoke at Wesleyan's commencement in 2008, six months before he was elected president, there were snipers on the roof of the library, just in case. His self-defense is more important than yours.
I have never shot a gun in my life. I don't own a gun. I plan to get one soon, to keep in my house in case I ever need it. I live in a relatively safe area, and it's on my list of things to do, but it's not a huge priority for me. My dad hated guns. He was a Chief in the Navy. He had to pass a shooting test, which he did, although he wasn't a particularly good shot. In the latter part of his life, he did not own a gun. His father was in the military as well, and once had his gun stolen in Bridgeport, Connecticut. My dad never fought in a war, and he never had to shoot anyone, but he simply did not like guns. Yet he was a proud member of the NRA.
Chicago has strict gun control laws, and a sad and disturbing rate of gun deaths. Pretty much everyone in Switzerland owns a gun, and the number of people killed by gunfire is very low. Violent crimes (and shootings) have gone up in the UK since guns were banned. More gun control usually means less safety. If you want more facts on the issue, here's one place to check them out: http://www.gunfacts.info/gun-control-myths/guns-in-other-countries/
Increasing gun control means that law-abiding citizens will have decreased access to guns. Criminals will still get guns. This is a problem. If I wanted to get a gun illegally, I can head to downtown New Haven and get one quicker and cheaper than doing it legally. Do we really think that's going to suddenly change if new gun control laws are passed? Yeah, there have been a lot of shootings, whether suicide, gang or drug-related, hate crimes, mass murders, or whatever, but there have also been a lot of lives saved by citizens or police officers using or simply having guns. And speaking of police officers, based on recent events in this country, a lot of the same people pushing for more gun control are very skeptical and distrusting when it comes to police officers. Do you really want them to be the only people with guns? And even if the vast majority are trustworthy people, certainly some percentage are not.
Ultimately, every citizen has the right to bear arms, and can decide whether or not to exercise that right, but except in cases where someone is a violent threat, that right itself must always remain.
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