We as a people need to accept the
deep-seated social malaise that plagues us, if we are to ever resolve the issue
around gun violence in America. It goes
deeper than the fact that murderous weapons are widely dispersed within the
general population.
There are many individuals within
the fabric of this culture that suffer needlessly. There are many men, women and children who
live without a home and find themselves without sufficient resources to live a “normal”
life. There are many who are stricken
with severe mental illness and have no recourse to adequate and sustaining
care. There are many people of color who
feel the constant weight of intolerance; who bear the burden of unequal
treatment under the law; who endure the unrelenting pain of racial
prejudice. There are many women who are
subjected to derision simply because they seek to exert control over their own
bodies.
As a society, we have chosen a path
where the individual has been elevated to predominant position while the
commons is being dismantled and those aspects of living that are essential to
successful living such as access to adequate nutrition, shelter and health care
are denied on a regular basis to so many in need. We have, in essence, become a people without
the necessary degree of compassion that would lead to an alleviation of this
degree of suffering.
We have allowed the voices of
ignorance, intolerance and in many cases sheer and unmitigated stupidity to
secure a hold on the national psyche. For
example, in the face of unrelenting gun-related violence, there are suggestions
– taken seriously – that the real solution to this issue is for everyone to
carry guns. This idea is absolute
madness; for, it envisions a future where the social contract that is a
necessary component of a sane society is completely obliterated.
We have permitted illogical and
spurious ideas to come to the forefront of serious national debate without
being sufficiently challenged. The most
of egregious of these is, in my opinion, the contention that climate change is not
real and of no consequence.
In essence, if we do not
collectively use reasoned judgment and a basic trust in reality-based
information to fashion public policy grounded in compassion and a view towards
a sane and sustainable future, we will effectively rob the future of possibilities
for our descendants.
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