Nightmare on Main Street
Below is an an article I wrote in October 2017 after what I called “The Las Vegas Nightmare.” Since then “Mass Killing” figures have increased: In 2018, 387 human beings were killed. In 2019, 517 human beings were killed. In 2020, 614 human beings were killed. In 2021, 703 human beings were killed. So far in May, 2022, 223 human beings have been killed, counting the murders of 10 human beings in Buffalo, N.Y.
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The Las Vegas Nightmare: Dark Times and Dark Money
Is there a magic finite number of people who will have to be killed by a deranged or fanatical person before we ban the sale of military-style weapons? Is there a tipping point? A critical mass? Would the massacre of, say, five hundred people do the trick? A thousand? More?
I think not. The reasons are fairly simple to understand. Money, cowardice, and gullibility.
The firearms industry in this country is prosperous and powerful. They routinely sell about two million weapons per month, according to bearingarms.com. After the “Trump slump,” sales have spiked dramatically thanks to the Las Vegas massacre. Whew! The NRA can breathe a little easier now, as can the cowards in Congress whose tenure and livelihood largely depend on the largesse of Wayne La Pierre and the larger gun lobby.
As for gullibility, why have so many otherwise sane and thoughtful individuals bought into the fiction that liberals are coming after their guns? Hunters and homeowners are not – repeat not – ever going to have their legitimate weapons for sports and protection taken away from them. Guns are as American as BBQ. Not even a liberal would step on that cow pie. But so many legitimate gun owners have been conditioned by the NRA, FOX News, and their political pawns to react in reflexive predictable ways when confronted with the simple proposition that handguns, rifles, and military style weapons that can fire dozens of rounds in seconds should be kept out of the hands of people who are insane, people who have criminal records, and people (possibly terrorists — foreign or domestic) who have not been vetted properly.
The problem is that only a major conversion of these thoughtful gun owners can shift the political balance toward sensible gun restrictions. Will it happen? Could it happen? Jason Aldean, onstage in Las Vegas when the shooting began at the Las Vegas concert, has changed his view on gun restrictions. He said, pointedly that “Something has changed in this country.” He added that this world is becoming a place he is afraid to raise his children in. Yes indeed.
Without some concessions or conversions from gun advocates, the same painful rituals will follow every massacre: tears, anguish, spontaneous floral memorials, candlelight vigils, flags at half mast, passionate liberals calling for strict gun controls; passionate conservatives arguing that only people, not guns, kill people; the NRA pronouncing that only more armed citizens can stop bad guys; Pat Robertson blaming the massacre on God’s anger at gay marriage. Then, after a few days, some other flashy headline will siphon the passion and energy for debate and with it any prospect for meaningful change. Attention diverted, we become absorbed in some other kind of crisis.
Until the next massacre.
So, I repeat, is there a magic finite massacre number that would move us to modify our gun laws? If we are truly honest with ourselves and take a cold, hard look at the catatonic state of our nation right now, we would have to say “No.” Absolutely not.
We have not historically been a pessimistic people, but we have crossed a threshold into a terrible, dark place. So, let’s be clear. This murderous situation is hopeless. We need to face the grim fact that many more families and communities will continue to be brought to needless pain and desolation for the foreseeable future.
William Butler Yeats describes this moment in “The Second Coming”:
Things fall apart; the center cannot hold
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned.
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.
So too, here: The special interests are too powerful and entrenched; the politicians are too cowardly and corrupt to challenge their big donors, even to protect their constituents. And, too many gun owners are gullible — shamelessly (or willingly) duped by the devious gun lobbyists, FOX propagandists, and the cynical politicians who mock our intelligence by proclaiming that more, not fewer, guns are the solution.
God help us and the U.S.
You just broke my heart, but not my resolve. God help us indeed.