Our daughter, Laura, did her graduate work in Connecticut. Her aunt is an elementary school principal there, a short drive from Newtown. Our eldest daughter is a musician, music teacher and mother. These are her anguished thoughts on the events in Connecticut:
I'm trying to adequately collect my thoughts... Between hugging my daughter and making latkes, my mind has been ping-ponging non-stop. I do not believe that pure evil caused today's atrocities. It certainly wasn't a lack of God in the classroom, or in the "hearts" of citizens. It wasn't that teachers weren't armed, to defend their students -- that is a hideous proposition.
A sick, sick, sick individual did this. He had access to firearms that NO ONE should have access to: "A Sig Sauer and a Glock semi automatic handgun were used in the slaying and that .223 shell casings – a round used in a semi automatic military style rifle – were also found." (ABC NEWS) I wonder if it was easier for him to obtain those guns than to obtain help for his condition ... Had he gone in with a baseball bat, he would have been stopped before he had done too much damage.
What makes me so incredibly angry, is that amidst the pain of these parents, these children, this community, is that the f-ing gun lobby, and its mouthpieces, and our Conservative politicians spout on about how it's not the time to discuss gun control, or get "political." Well, it actually is the perfect time to discuss gun control AND get political -- in a positive way. Regressive policies are constantly being shoved down our throats when we (as a populace) are in a state of shock. It's called "Shock Doctrine." Now, when a nation grieves (2 nations, actually), why not turn our shock, our horror, our outrage into positive changes? Let's teach and preach non-violence, get rid of guns, fund healthcare, de-stigmatize mental health disease.
Violence is everywhere, it's glorified on TV and in video games. It's a way of life, a cultural given. Why? Haven't we evolved beyond eye for an eye? I don't believe in God, it's not God who makes us good, we make each other good. -- Laura Z. Nerenberg
Why gun control? It isn't the gun, it's the culture. Every home in many countries has a gun and yet they don't have the problem to the extent that the US does. What does this tell us: it's not the gun, it's the culture.
It really is time for Americans to get in the streets with pots and pans or whatever it takes (not guns) to get the attention of the politicians that want to stay in power. Tell them in no uncertain terms you want 'gun control'. Tell them you don't care about the NRA and the Weapons Corporations - you don't care about them. Tell them you care about your children not profit. This is the worst event so far 'because they were totally innocent children'. If this does not get the US people out on the streets nothing will and they are truly doomed to live a life of fear - which is exactly what the weapons people want.