A Hokie. Now I have another reason to appreciate you and your work. VTCC’73 here. We lived through the craziness that accompanied Vietnam and Kent State and the civil rights movement and…. the crazy never really stopped. We just got used to it while never learning the right lessons.
I thoroughly enjoy your articles, including this one addressing gun violence. However, by including your reference to contacting politicians about gun violence legislative action, and the policy interventions promoted by the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions, there is an implication that adopting new legislation that would restrict gun access would have prevented this horrible outcome. Based on the reporting, this was a shooting carried out by a veteran with mental illness. He made several prior cries for help with suicide threats, but declined assessment. He had no known criminal record. He did not purchase or own any firearms. The firearms used in this tragedy belonged to his father and were stored securely. Even if there were Red Flag laws in GA, it is unlikely that they would have been enacted, unless you support the confiscation of lawfully owned and stored firearms from family members of those with mental illness. The real issue in this case seems to be the ineffective intervention for a known mental illness!
We have a public health crisis related to gun violence. However, the overwhelming majority of deaths and injuries attributed to firearms are caused by criminals who have a gun illegally or one that was obtained unlawfully. In New York, we have among the most restrictive gun laws in the country. These laws restrict and punish law-abiding citizens and have not addressed the lawless individuals responsible for the majority of crime and human morbidity. Laws that have forced me to wait until the following day to complete the purchase of a single box of shotgun shells for shooting in a trap league, and then pay a 20% surcharge to support a background check, are overly restrictive. Laws that restrict my kids from possessing a slingshot in my backyard are unnecessary. Laws that require an unloaded hunting shotgun to be under lock and key in my truck, while I am in the vehicle, are overreaching. I could go on and on, but let's address the overwhelming root cause of gun violence by addressing criminal behavior and the mental health crisis!
Well crafted Dr Rivers! The reference to the John Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions is very helpful. Their website is very informative and inspiring!
I am alarmed about the amount of disinformation, misinformation, and lying that we are awash in. We have a king tide of falsehood upon us! And it is promoted by people in positions of power.
I'm so glad to live in Australia - I can't comprehend teaching kindergarten-level children how to 'run, hide, fight'. Nor the number of school and other mass shootings. What kind of world is this?
Australians do not have the 'right' to bear arms, few of us own any kind of gun and machine guns are illegal. Farmers and gun club members need a permit to own a gun, there are strict rules about the types of guns that can be sold and where they are kept (basically under lock and key with ammo held separately). We do have some gun violence - often featuring organised criminals removing each other, but nothing like we see in the US. I do hope you can find a solution.
I recently was working on a first aid curriculum for a large nonprofit that works with teens, among other activities. I was basing this on the lowest tier oh the military’s Tactical Combat Casualty Care training. I received pushback because of the term combat in the title. My response was to point out the number of mass shootings in schools and public places where kids might normally be. Amazingly, the criticism was reduced to background noise. TCCC Tier 1 teaches you to evaluate scene safety before rushing to help someone because if you’re also injured the workload of the next responders is markedly increased. What you’re describing is something that the public has become numb to. And in the aftermath of a school shooting, “thoughts and prayers” don’t help, and ring hollow. We need definitive steps to reduce these events to as close to zero as possible. This means holding our politicians responsible, something they are not used to happening.
Thank you for writing this. It is important, and we need to keep sounding the alarm.
It's horrifying how normalized this has become in our culture. Thank you for speaking out on this.
As a Canadian I feel so much pain and fear for you all when I hear of shootings. I can’t imagine this.
Agree. It is largely preventable but there needs to be the political will behind it.
A Hokie. Now I have another reason to appreciate you and your work. VTCC’73 here. We lived through the craziness that accompanied Vietnam and Kent State and the civil rights movement and…. the crazy never really stopped. We just got used to it while never learning the right lessons.
Politicians have no will to go up against the NRA. Follow the money and you will know why there is no will to ban guns.
Thank you for this link!
I thoroughly enjoy your articles, including this one addressing gun violence. However, by including your reference to contacting politicians about gun violence legislative action, and the policy interventions promoted by the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions, there is an implication that adopting new legislation that would restrict gun access would have prevented this horrible outcome. Based on the reporting, this was a shooting carried out by a veteran with mental illness. He made several prior cries for help with suicide threats, but declined assessment. He had no known criminal record. He did not purchase or own any firearms. The firearms used in this tragedy belonged to his father and were stored securely. Even if there were Red Flag laws in GA, it is unlikely that they would have been enacted, unless you support the confiscation of lawfully owned and stored firearms from family members of those with mental illness. The real issue in this case seems to be the ineffective intervention for a known mental illness!
We have a public health crisis related to gun violence. However, the overwhelming majority of deaths and injuries attributed to firearms are caused by criminals who have a gun illegally or one that was obtained unlawfully. In New York, we have among the most restrictive gun laws in the country. These laws restrict and punish law-abiding citizens and have not addressed the lawless individuals responsible for the majority of crime and human morbidity. Laws that have forced me to wait until the following day to complete the purchase of a single box of shotgun shells for shooting in a trap league, and then pay a 20% surcharge to support a background check, are overly restrictive. Laws that restrict my kids from possessing a slingshot in my backyard are unnecessary. Laws that require an unloaded hunting shotgun to be under lock and key in my truck, while I am in the vehicle, are overreaching. I could go on and on, but let's address the overwhelming root cause of gun violence by addressing criminal behavior and the mental health crisis!
Excellent piece, well written. Thank you
"They came home talking about what to do if there is a bad guy at school."
This line stabbed at my heart
Trying to get politicians to do the right thing is like coyotes howling at the moon.
Well crafted Dr Rivers! The reference to the John Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions is very helpful. Their website is very informative and inspiring!
I am alarmed about the amount of disinformation, misinformation, and lying that we are awash in. We have a king tide of falsehood upon us! And it is promoted by people in positions of power.
I'm so glad to live in Australia - I can't comprehend teaching kindergarten-level children how to 'run, hide, fight'. Nor the number of school and other mass shootings. What kind of world is this?
Australians do not have the 'right' to bear arms, few of us own any kind of gun and machine guns are illegal. Farmers and gun club members need a permit to own a gun, there are strict rules about the types of guns that can be sold and where they are kept (basically under lock and key with ammo held separately). We do have some gun violence - often featuring organised criminals removing each other, but nothing like we see in the US. I do hope you can find a solution.
I recently was working on a first aid curriculum for a large nonprofit that works with teens, among other activities. I was basing this on the lowest tier oh the military’s Tactical Combat Casualty Care training. I received pushback because of the term combat in the title. My response was to point out the number of mass shootings in schools and public places where kids might normally be. Amazingly, the criticism was reduced to background noise. TCCC Tier 1 teaches you to evaluate scene safety before rushing to help someone because if you’re also injured the workload of the next responders is markedly increased. What you’re describing is something that the public has become numb to. And in the aftermath of a school shooting, “thoughts and prayers” don’t help, and ring hollow. We need definitive steps to reduce these events to as close to zero as possible. This means holding our politicians responsible, something they are not used to happening.
Thank you for writing this. It is important, and we need to keep sounding the alarm.