The Joseph Project

H.R. 8, AKA the Bipartisan Background Checks Act, passed the House.    Yes, it's a step but pressure from the NRA and pro gun activism is squeezing us into conciliatory accomplishments, rather than the overriding need to abolish guns from our modern society.

My goal is not political, but it is only through political action that anything can change.  My goal is that people don't shoot each other.   In order to move closer to this, I have had to acknowledge for myself that the United States is a gun filled country, that is unlikely to abolish the weapons completely in the near future.   This said, even though statistics show that younger people, including millennial and children of immigrants, have no love for guns in our country.

So, I turn once again to Japan, a country where you can own a gun but it's hard.   Absent of abolishment, guns should be in the hands of those who demonstrate themselves capable - not those who lack having already committed a crime.  I will continue to support and all efforts to remove guns from our streets, but I will also suppose legislation which tightens gun ownership requirements.  

I am vehemently opposed to all guns on the planet, save for sport rifles to hunt animals, for military, and with restrictions, to law enforcement. 

 The second amendment was created at a time when civilization was less developed and there were not controls and technology in place to help people defend themselves against the day to day goings on around them. 

I believe that personal use of guns is outdated and should be abolished.  There are tasers, tactical lights and pepper spray available to defend oneself.  All of the arguments about how we need more guns to keep people safe ignores the reality that these newer technologies will defend against most gun confrontations.

Guns have been a part of life for so long that we have lost sight of just how dangerous an idea it is for a deadly object to be propelled by an explosive, in a hand held device.  We recognized that a Swiss Army Knife doesn't belong in a plane or a school house, but we continually support the ownership of weapons under the guise of making society "safer".

Mass shootings are now occurring weekly in America.  I've stopped logging them because I can't keep up.  We have the technology to stun, immobilize and deter an individual without causing permanent damage, but our gun culture and lobby are so deeply ingrained, that we have placed gun ownership on par with basic human rights.

Gun ownership is no more a human right, than the right to use cocaine or to carry a box of grenades.   Yet I myself, have often gotten sucked into the desire to own one, every time I hear of others being shot.  I was in New York City with a friend, waiting for a bus, and a group of police cars came towards us.  We backed away as a swarm of cops descended on the McDonalds behind us.  And my first thought was, lets get out of here as fast as we can - thinking back of other mass shootings in fast food restaurants.

Now our problem is that America is going to become numb to the problems of gun violence, and a task which seemed hard, will get harder.   My fear is that, if what happened at Sandy Hook, was not enough of a wake up call, nothing will be.  All I can do is to continue the efforts of those who have been impacted by gun violence, to support the repeal of the second amendment and the move towards a contemporary society where people have less to defend against, and a little technology to use where needed.  Instead of spending time, effort and money trying to defend ourselves from ourselves, lets spend those resources rebuilding the economy, feeding the hungry, helping the poor to train for jobs, educating and providing healthcare to all humans in our society.