Lisa_Holloway
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 p.7 #10 · p.7 #10 · My Stunning Daughter - an experiment in contrast and juxtaposition | |
ICE B1 wrote:
Sorry about the rant here folks, (and a special apology to Lisa Holloway) but I feel the need to clarify some issues for some of the more strident posters in this thread.
I've largely remained out of this fray out of respect for the photographer who started the thread, but after considerable thought, I'm going to reply to your post, Elliot, because there are a number of folks who have posted in the thread with good intent; but with misguided ire.
You said in an earlier post: "I hate guns." It must be awful living your life hating objects. Doorknobs, cars, guns... whatever. The fact is that they're inanimate. None of them are intrinsically good or bad, threatening or benign. They are merely objects. It's how they're used that dictates how they're seen.
People, on the other hand, are dangerous. Most are followers. People are negligent, gullible, paranoid, frightened, superstitious, addicted, overbearing, and threatening. Very few really think for themselves. Most parrot the views given them by others. Some are nice. Some care. Some are prey, and some are predators. Some are mentally ill. Some are violently mentally ill. Some are just plain violent. Many are afraid, but aren't sure of what. They should recognize and fear people who want to do them harm. They should recognize people who need help. There's an old saying among those who professionally interact with dangerous, violent people on the street: "The eyes may be the window to the soul, but it's the hands that'll kill you. Watch their hands."
The term "gun violence," at least in the U.S. is misleading. It tries to connect violence to guns. It intimates a causal relationship: that guns cause violence. Nothing could be further from the truth. Objects do not cause behaviors. I am proof that guns do NOT cause one to be violent. I have carried a firearm professionally every day since 1975. Despite my proximity and familiarity, I have never harmed another person with a firearm, nor were my three (now adult) children ever at risk.
Objects may remind of us incidents, but the objects don't cause the incidents. We in the US have seen a slew of violence with mass victims in the past ten years. Firearms have been used in many of them, but the kinds of firearms have varied widely, and the accursed "assault rifle" has only been used a handful of times. The ONLY thing that all of those incidents have in common are people with a mental illness and a propensity for violence. Think about that for a moment if you're looking for causality. Mentally ill, violent people.
How do we identify them? Once identified, how, exactly, does one seek treatment in the U.S. for a friend or relative who is mentally ill? How do we deal with people who show violent tendencies? How do we find treatment for them?
My point is that rather than being fixated on "guns" as wicked, inciting objects, perhaps folks like you, Elliot, who abhor the violence that is so prevalent in our country should change your focus from hating objects to the more useful pursuit of identifying causes of violence of all types, and looking for solutions to stemming that tide of violence. What has caused our society to believe that violent confrontation is a legitimate way to solve problems (the recent Nevada incident comes immediately to mind?) As long as violence is seen as an appropriate problem resolution tool by people our safety is in question. As long as there are untreated violent mentally ill, mass murders will continue; the availability of firearms notwithstanding.
I could go into the total cost to humanity of autos as well, not only in terms of traffic deaths, but in terms of environmental harm, economic loss, and health impacts... but that's a topic of discussion for another time.
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Thank you. Much truth here and eloquently stated. You are awesome.
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Archive 2014 · My Stunning Daughter - an experiment in contrast and juxtaposition
