Guns Aren’t Violent, People Are.

It’s true. So many people are against guns and truthfully, I never liked being around them either for the longest time. Then my ex just wouldn’t stop with all his threats and innuendos. I know that he’s had a gun…whether he has one now, I don’t know but I would be foolish not to prepare myself. So, I got past my discomfort and went to the range to learn how to handle one.

I’ve been handling them for a while now and am getting more comfortable with it. It’s a powerful weapon and definitely not one to fool around or get cocky with, but I understand it and know how to handle it. Had anyone come to me years ago and suggested I get a gun in the house, the answer would have been a flat out NO. I still believe that if one has kids, guns have no business being there unless you’re an extremely responsible individual who knows the extreme importance of keeping guns locked up at all times. Otherwise, don’t even think of bringing one around kids.

Today with my daughter nearing adulthood and proving herself to be a mature person, I have changed my views on owning a gun. My ex stalks me and threatens to “do something” to me. I’d be silly not to at least learn how to protect myself. Take the very thing that so many people are afraid of and so many others use to main and kill with, and understand it. Know how to use it. And that’s exactly what I’m doing.

If anyone comes to me and tells me that their view on owning guns is that no one should have them, I wouldn’t argue with them. It’s a very personal choice and one that’s influenced by life experiences. I just don’t want to be caught with my pants down – so to speak – and not be able to defend myself.

All moral and ethical issues aside – I’m not a bad shot. I hit my target with just about every shot I take. This surprises me because I never expected to be as accurate as I’ve been with a gun. I’ll keep practicing because I actually do enjoy going to the range and shooting. I do, however hope and pray that I will never, ever have to use it in any situation.

The Coveted Cover Photo

Getting one’s face on the cover of a magazine is typically considered an accomplishment. It says, “Look at me, I’m known, I’m famous, I’m somebody!” Especially on fashion and entertainment magazines. So why on earth would a magazine like Rolling Stone put a picture of the man responsible for destroying hundreds of lives at the Boston Marathon on its cover? It’s beyond comprehension to me.

They say that it’s an in depth look at a troubled man. It’s a hard hitting story that they include as well as their entertainment stories. Fine, have the article but instead of putting his face on the cover, why not put the faces of the brave victims who are struggling to get their lives back together? Have his story in the back after the survivors.

Seems to me that our newspeople, magazines and books tend to sensationalize people who have done especially horrendous deeds. As we all know, with the number of reality shows out there, there are a lot of people willing to go to any lengths just to get their faces known. I find it very hard to believe that the couples featured on the “Bridezillas” show are really that rude and obnoxious and still get married after all that drama. “Wife Swap” is another one, why would any self respecting person allow themselves to be put through that type of humiliation that I see so much on there. This leads me to believe that there are a tremendous amount of individuals who are desperate for recognition and fame, however short it may be.

With that being said, how many sick individuals do you guess there are out there who will look at the fact that a bomber who killed and maimed hundreds of people, actually got his face on a cover of a magazine, a huge magazine at that too, and think that might be a way to get famous?

I’ve often wondered if the media did more stoic, straight up reporting on these killers instead of glorifying and sensationalizing details of these people, if the violence rate would go down? Maybe I’m being too idealistic, but anytime there’s a huge story out there about murder, violence or any other sort of awful thing it seems that they just want to play and replay the horrific details over and over again. They take the person who was responsible for the act and just spend so much time talking about them, their lives. Speculating on why, how and what their thought processes may have been before, during and after… blah, blah, blah. I say just report the story as we all have the right to know what is going on around us, but stop there. The media stories will do SO much talking and dissecting of the person committing these acts that I can’t help but wonder if these individuals enjoy it in their own sick way.

It’s like raising kids, when a child misbehaves you don’t give them attention. You impose consequences for the bad behavior by putting them in a corner, taking something away from them, restricting activities, but you don’t go on and on to glorify what they’ve done. It only teaches them that it’s a way to get attention. To ensure that everyone is talking about them. Regardless of whether it’s negative talking or not. They’re just enjoying the attention. Why can’t the media industry realize that they could be doing the same thing for those aggressors that do awful things. They do not deserve attention. They do not deserve to bask in the limelight, however negative it may be. The story should be reported and then tucked away into the background for the courts to deal with.

Keep the public informed, but stop making them the center of attention. And for goodness sakes, why put their faces on a cover of a magazine?

Zimmerman Trial

They just announced the verdict in the Zimmerman trial. “Not Guilty”

How is it that a young 17 year old boy loses his life simply by walking home after purchasing a few items at a convenience store and there’s no justice?

I have not been following the trial closely although I’ve been aware of the story since the whole thing happened. I realize that there may have been many factors that the jury had to take into consideration to lead them to the conclusion that they did, but I just can’t get past the fact that a young man at the beginning of his life journey lost his opportunity to live due to an overzealous neighborhood watchman.

The only people who really knows what happened that night would be George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin. It may have all been a tragic mistake, but had Zimmerman simply stayed put after calling 911, Trayvon would most likely still be alive today. I think that Zimmerman was within his rights to report what he may have thought to be suspicious activity, but when he got out of his vehicle to follow Trayvon and with a loaded gun, he became the aggressor in my mind. As I said, no one will ever know the exact details except those two and sadly one of them isn’t around to share his side of the story.

I’m not going to sit here and judge. It’s not my place to do so, but my heart goes out to the Martin family for the loss of their son.

A Kinder, Gentler Society (is it possible?)

A kinder, gentler society. Is that too much to ask for?

When I read the news on the internet or watch it on TV, I see so many instances of violence. We’ve become so immune to the very mention of a violent act that we’ve started taking it for granted that the news is going to have a lot, and I do mean a LOT, of violent and negative stories. I’m old enough to remember a time when hearing about a local murder on the local six PM news was cause for head-shaking and discussion among the adults of how on earth could something like that happen?

Now, and this is truly the sad part, we see murder being broadcast and we kind of take it for granted that these are the kinds of stories that will show up. Most of us read or hear the story and simply move on to the next. Only the truly high profile ones give cause for people to talk anymore. The man who got murdered in his house by a couple of burglars may only get a passing glance in the news. Rape…it’s not even shocking anymore. It’s happened so much that so many of us read about it, say hmm, that’s awful, and move on to the next news story.

I’m not saying that the majority of us condone that type of behavior, but that it’s become so commonplace to hear about it that it no longer has any shock value. And it should. We should be shocked, outraged and angry to hear that anyone has to suffer through a violent act of any kind.

It also makes me wonder if being inundated with information from the internet and news channels about violence has created a generation of impartial, passive individuals who just can’t identify with the pain and suffering the victims are going  through as a result of what happened to them. And worse – is it giving ideas to people?

With a teenager in the house, I try to always look at the teen social sites, the video games they play online, Facebook conversations, etc. An astounding number of them seem to think that talking smack, bullying and just being plain mean is acceptable. It’s typically their first initial response to anything anymore. Each one seems to need to outdo the other just that much more. Where does it stop? It doesn’t. That’s why we have gotten to the point we are in society today. What will it be like 50 years from now – 100 years?

Maybe too much information? Sure, we all want to stay abreast of what’s happening in the world, but is it possible that all it’s doing for some individuals is giving them ideas and/or providing them with a desire to top the news by surpassing the latest horrible deed?

I’m only one individual, but I try to be nice to everyone, to treat everyone the way I would want to be treated. I will continue to do so and if that kindness can rub off on just one person, then I’ll have been successful in making a small change. Imagine what would happen if there were a million people that do just that? If we reject the idea that violence is a commonplace happening in our society and give it the true outrage that the victims deserve, could we actually make a difference in someone who maybe on the fence of seeking attention through violence? That perhaps that person would realize that contributing positively to our society could actually reap more attention and approval from the majority of us?

Wouldn’t hurt to try, would it?