Over the weekend, a bipartisan framework for “gun safety” legislation was announced. It contains four things that probably won’t make any substantive difference but are better than nothing: Encouraging states to adopt “Red Flag” laws, closing the “boyfriend loophole”, enhancing the review process for buyers under 21, and clarifying what it means to be a…
My good friend and partner, Jamil, wrote a piece for The Hartford Times called Don’t Look Away. It’s about how the horror of Sandy Hook was followed by a long period of numbness caused by exhaustion from the sheer number of preventable tragedies that happen in this country. Uvalde, however, has snapped him out of…
Every job has its tools. My first work experience was as a paper carrier when I was ten or eleven. I had a big sack that went over my shoulder to carry the papers. I also had a hat, gloves, a jacket, boots, sneakers, and rain gear. All of these tools helped me do my…
On the morning of March 14, 2018, students all over the country participated in a school walkout to protest gun violence and to honor the seventeen children killed in Parkland, FL. In a lot of ways, this was inspiring, seeing thousands of kids believe in a cause and actually try to do something about it….
The other day, I ran across this headline in The Onion: “‘No Way To Prevent This,’ Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens.” Of course, the story is about a mass shooting. This story originally ran almost four years ago, but they repost it every time it’s appropriate. I feel like I see it at…
The Bible is a very long and complex book. It is well worth the effort, though. Not only does it have plenty of fascinating and insightful material on its own, it is the primary source of religious knowledge for all Christians. Any serious scholar of religion knows that there are right and wrong ways of…
As I stated in yesterday’s post, after a mass shooting, there are always people who say that guns aren’t the problem, mental illness is the problem. This bothers me because it is just a smokescreen used to prevent any real discussion of the real issues. But it also bothers me for deeper reasons. Very generally,…
There was another mass shooting yesterday at Umpqua Community College in Oregon. I was going to write about it yesterday, but I was too sad and angry. I read that this is the 45th school shooting this year. That is shocking to me. I had only heard about a few of those. Apparently school shootings…
Today, June 2nd, is the first National Gun Violence Awareness Day. According to the official website, wearorange.org, The color orange symbolizes the value of human life. Hunters wear orange to alert other hunters that they’re there — as a way to take care of their own life and the lives of others. A couple of years…
In the news surrounding Freddie Gray’s murder and the ensuing outcry in Baltimore, one thing has shocked me. It’s really sad that only one thing has shocked me. It ought to shock me that the police would arrest someone without cause and then kill that person while transporting him to jail. It ought to shock…
