After the Pittsburg synagogue shoot-em-up, Governor Tom Wolf of Pennsylvania remarked: ” These senseless acts of violence are not who we are as Americans.”
I’m not sure if Mr. Wolf is being entirely honest with his constituents or with himself. This year Americans have been on either the bullet or the trigger end of 293 mass shootings. A mass shooting is declared when four or more people are killed or wounded and has nothing to do with the Catholic church. I guess if the Catholics are next then that event would technically be called a mass, mass shooting.
We’ve completed ten months of the year so that means 29.3 mass shootings a month. If Americans maintain that frequency for November and December then they should slightly surpass last years total of 346.
I’m sure that the Governor has access to the numbers I just quoted. So, how does he make a statement that something that occurs almost every day isn’t part of who you are as a people?
I’m just counting mass shootings by the way. Here’s a link that suggests to me that shooting at each other to resolve differences is very much a part of who Americans are.
www.gunviolence.org
I’m not even judging you America. At least not for your love affair with guns. But, I am judging you for your dishonesty. There are most certainly many Americans who could claim that individually this is not who they are, but collectively this latest shooting is about as American as you can get.
Lets just say for sake of argument that American shooters have a good November and holiday season and mange to end the year with 365 mass shootings, or one a day.
Just like the vitamin.
Vitamin Pb I guess, although Flint would likely prefer the jacketed version because they’re already getting enough Antimony in their diet. Taking a vitamin a day is so mundane that we’ve made the supplements into Gummi Bears to make the ingestion a little more memorable. An average daily mass shooting is like regular vitamins. Happens every day and not particularly memorable.
Americans are so inured to shootings that they don’t even register on the collective conscience. Unless the shooting is Gummi Bear vitamins special in some way. Children or a stunningly high body count appear to qualify as special. But there are two more distinctions about a mass shooting that seem to make the event noteworthy, and that’s a targeted or terrorist attack. Terrorist attack means Muslims were involved. It doesn’t seem to matter if the terrorists target indiscriminately, like a downtown sidewalk, or selectively, like an embassy, just so long as Muslims are involved then it’s clearly terrorism.
Targeted attacks means that all of the wounded and whacked are the same or have a commonality. For some reason eleven dead Jewish people is worse than eleven dead random people. Similarly, a church full of all black worshippers is worse than some dickbag arbitrarily shooting up a movie theater. The logic seems to be that a hate crime is involved in targeted attacks and so the motive for the killing makes the deed more dastardly than if you really didn’t have a reason.
Other than just feeling like you need a CrossFit level of second amendment exercise.
So, the Governor can ignore reality and claim that mass shootings aren’t what Americans are about and it makes about as much sense to me as claiming that Donald Trump isn’t what America is about.
Regardless of the platitudes of politicians, mass shootings are very much a part of who Americans are. The continued choices to make the weapons available make random and crime of passion shootings inevitable but what inspires the dreaded targeted shootings?
Hate is the inspiration. Hatred toward a specific group of people isn’t something you’re born with. You have to learn how and it’s a process. Along the way you’ll need mentors and encouragement. Parents are a good start but political leaders are even better.
Donald Trump is very good at firing up the hate. I find this fact amazing. I find it amazing because I can’t see anything about the man that could be described as exceptional. Well, maybe in a negative sense a person could say the man is exceptionally ineloquent, or exceptionally crude but where is the charm, the thoughtfulness, the charisma and natural leadership that I think should be qualities of an American president?
In my estimation those qualities are unneeded at this moment in American history. Donald Trump is merely a portal. An instrument that the American people are using to express themselves. A reality show racist who can’t tell the truth even if it doesn’t matter instrument.
So, I don’t believe that Americans can claim that Donald Trump isn’t who they are as a country. Again, you’re not being honest with yourselves. Even if the Russians helped they weren’t the ones who voted.
Americans voted.
The Russians didn’t invent American discord. They just nurtured a pre-existing condition. I suppose if there was any brilliance to the Russian plan it was that unlike the pollsters and pundits, they recognised Don the candidate was very much who Americans are. Not who they say they are but who they really are. Forty eight percent of the voting public demonstrated the Russian assessment was correct by throwing their support behind a Jersey Shore character.
The Russians didn’t even have to work hard at seeding divisiveness in my estimation. A few thousand bots and facebook shouldn’t be enough to sway a voting populace unless you’re preaching to the congregation. The message has been received that Don supports an America where they no longer had to stay in the closet hiding their loathing and prejudice. Donald Trumps entire presidency has been a two year coming out party for these red hat people.
The rally’s are the Red Hat parades. Loud and proud.
There’s one moment from a Red Hat rally that I can’t get out of my mind. Don had just told another blatant lie. There were so many that I can’t recall which one. Terrorists mixed in with the invasion caravan I think but it could have been that Republicans supported a pre-existing Medicare clause or that the Democrats funded the caravan so illegals could vote.
Anyway, the exact lie is irrelevant. What struck me as profound occurred after the red hats responded with applause and a lock them up chant. Don smirked contentedly at his people and after a moment raised his arms for silence. As the crowd settled down, one voice clearly shouted out, “you’re one of us.”
I guess the mid-terms will show the world if that voice is correct.