We Should Focus on Violence, Not “Gun Violence”
There are a bunch of anti-gun groups out there of which many of the people following them and participating in them truly are afraid of guns. Living in America it is their right to feel however the hell they want. On the flip side we have groups out there of which many of the people following them and participating in them truly love guns. Living in America it is their right to feel however the hell they want. Pretty simple, right? Not so much. People in today's world cling to groups, they need something to fight. They need purpose. Many choose to go after guns. They are scary to people without knowledge of them, they can kill things, they are loud and some people see them as just something for war. So I guess they are OK with killing people in war? So some killing and injuring with guns is OK for them? Either way, can the 100,000+ people who are killed or injured by others or themselves with guns each year be stopped?
We have to look deeper than just guns. Guns have only been around for a short period of time in relation to human history. Before that and still swords and blunt force objects existed. People were killed and injured with those as well. The great constant in human history is people are killed or injured every year. It could be with a sword, gun, bomb, bat, poison, etc. The varied ways in which one can be killed or injured are endless. In many of these anti-gun discussion it is always brought up about how America has tons of “gun” violence. Gun, gun, gun, gun! The super crazy thing is they focus on guns being used to kill or injure and turn a blind eye to violence in general. For instance in the USA the violent crime rate is 372 per 100,000. Yet in a place constantly praised by anti-gun individuals like the United Kingdom there is a 1,800+ per 100,000! So are they fighting violence or violence when people use guns? I would much rather have the USA’s violent crime rate than the UK.
So now back to the main point. Sticks turned into swords, which turned into guns, which will turn into lasers or light blasters. Hell, maybe even light sabers! The item used to kill or injure is not the thing to focus on. The violent acts themselves and mindset is the items we need to stop if anything. In America 99.95% of all the guns “on the streets”, which is more than 265+ million, are not used to kill or injure. Only 0.05% of the guns in America are used to kill or injure each year. In almost any industry or school you would take a 99.95%. A 99.95% first call closure rate in customer service, 99.95% chance of not getting ill from food prepared at a restaurant, 99.95% return on your investment or a 99.95% grade in school! A 99.95% is perceived as excellent in almost every circle.
So why are we not looking at the positives in the USA? Our violent crime over the last 25 years has dramatically changed for the better. Which is interesting given the assault weapons ban expired 13 years ago! Now AR-15’s and the like are purchased by the thousands each year. Yet these anti-gun groups fail to provide the accurate data to their followers. I am not sure. I personally am a “gun violence” survivor. I had a gun pointed at me one day at work. My boss came in one day and murdered the director of our department, then contemplated killing others and ultimately committed suicide. I know first hand how it feels to be helpless. Being without a gun to protect yourself, or in my case my co-workers. If I had a gun I could have handled that particular situation. Not saying every situation is solved with a gun, it is not, but that one could have been.
We cannot stop gun violence because in the future it will be light saber violence. We must focus on reducing violence in general. Of which will always exist and we must understand it’s relation to human kind. Without mind control violence is an ugly part of human existence.
