Bacon Bits: Gun control out of control

Religion and race fall among many things taking the blame for unspeakable acts that we, as a nation, are becoming numb to. (President Obama described the situation as “hopeless” in his address after the tragedy at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon that left nine dead.) Mass shootings are something we have become much too comfortable with, and we need options to stop these tragedies from occurring.
One side of the argument states that there must be more restriction on gun sales, but the somewhat surprising truth is that almost half of the weapons used in mass shootings are obtained legally, and according to statistics found by CNN, a high percentage of the gunmen were equipped with three or more weapons.
Gun restrictions may not be the answer, however pro-gun laws also will not solve the issue. Many people believe that mass shootings occur in places such as schools because they are gun-free zones. But, the state of Oregon is one of the few states that allows students to carry concealed weapons. Chances are that there was at least one student present with a concealed weapon. Why would students carry a weapon if they didn’t have the intention of stopping such an event?
Of particular interest is a petition signed by 180 professors at the University of Texas who do not wish to have firearms in their classrooms. From a pro-gun standpoint, a classroom full of armed youth might be a good idea, but we do not know what is in everyone’s best interest. This questioning of what people are thinking, and who they are looking out for, is what makes guns so terrifying and mass shootings so real.
There is one true fact, a mass shooter will not kill anyone else after being shot, but, if we put guns in the hands of everyone to watch for a potential criminal, aren’t we arming potential criminals? We do not know what people are thinking.
I recently looked into the case of a seemingly promising young man from Hollywood who was angered because he wasn’t as rich or good looking as the people around him and he always felt like he was on the edge of being great. Isn’t this something that would make everyone feel kind of down? Well, yes, but not enough to kill six people and injure 14 others. This is the gray area that needs addressed, the area between the weapon and the killer, the mind of a potential criminal.
The world puts so much emphasis on being “normal” that people focus on being prim and proper rather than noticing others who are not developing as they should and who feel confined within themselves. In many of the recent tragedies, the shooters were described as loners, full of emotional pain and who, at times, were blatantly antisocial. Most of society simply ignores those people, further marginalizing them.
Another question that is raised after a mass shooting is “Should the parents receive any blame?” Of course they should. Many of the killers get their weapons straight from their parents and it is the duty of the family to not only teach children proper weapon etiquette, but to make sure that kids are developing correctly and learning social skills that will help them deal with everyday life. Without these skills people turn to violence and nobody wins.
We are not helpless, but helping others is often so much of a burden that we just ignore the issues around us until the news reports remind us of what a cruel world we live in. Help someone and you may be helping a lot more than one lost soul.