I’m an optimist by nature, so this has been a hard post to write. And I’m sorry for getting off the writing track here. But the senseless killings at the movie theatre in Aurora, Colorado this past week stopped me in my tracks. I, like many, wanted to make sense of the tragedy. How something like this could occur in civilized society was unfathomable. Families and couples, excited fans of Batman, eating popcorn, enjoying a show, their lives abruptly ended by a mad man. I can’t imagine the havoc he’s caused, the pain. I’m not mentioning his name here, as a serial profiler said on TV, this is what, in her words, the scumbag wanted. Attention.
Since this tragedy, Americans have been talking once again about their right to keep and bear arms. The NRA wields a lot of power. It’s always a back and forth debate, and it’s emotionally loaded, like their guns. Which is why, there shouldn’t be such easy access. It’s because we, as people, are emotional creatures, and we can’t control our emotions all of the time. We are capable of impulsive acts, ones we regret later. In the heat of the moment, triggers are pulled, and there’s no turning back.
Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart in The Big Sleep
When I was kid, my mother and father would take me to the movies. We didn’t have a TV back then, so whatever was playing on the cinema was entertainment for my parents. So, as a small child, I was exposed to all sorts of films, including film noir. Anyone who carried a gun was either a cop or a bad guy. There were no in-betweens. By the way, I had nightmares for years after that, because I’d seen men with guns in films murdering someone, but that’s another story.
Later, in the 60s, when my husband and I drove down from Winnipeg, Canada, to Minneapolis, USA, for our honeymoon, I saw a policeman on the street, with his gun visible. It scared me, seeing a gun, openly displayed. From what I’d seen in film, guns could kill, easily. People standing in the way could get hurt. It was that simple.
Since then, there seems to have been a gun explosion. The homicide rates keep going up. Shootings in stories on TV, film, and video games, have become very graphic. Filmmakers keep upping the ante. The gore of it all is numbing. It’s so much in our faces that it doesn’t compute. It doesn’t seem real. And yet, a gunshot in life is very real.
As for violence as entertainment, it’s another topic coming out of this tragedy. I just watched a powerful film called Incendies, a Canadian film about a troubled family amidst the horrors in Chad. There was violence, but it wasn’t glamorized. There was killing (even of innocent children), but I didn’t see arms flying through the air, or heads cut off. A rape scene was suggested; it wasn’t acted out. An extremely powerful film, and I was left with the understanding of how brutal the culture has been and yet, somehow, the filmmakers were able to communicate some hope in all that chaos. They showed the complexities of man in all his shades of grey.
I’m not in favor of censorship, but there has to be some responsibility for what is put out there. One man’s pleasure is another man’s poison. The mind can be corrupted, we all know that. So, why aren’t there some checks and balances? Have we gone too far? What messages are we giving our children? I’d love to hear your opinion on this.
Hi Diana:
I am saddened every time things like this happen. My father grew up in the Netherlands during WWII and didn’t like guns. He had to use one on the farms he worked on as a new immigrant but he always said to us, “guns are not toys.” He also could not and still can’t watch movies, tv shows with gun violence ie war movies. My father-in-law has the same attitudes. When my husband and I were raising our kids we didn’t allow our kids to have toy guns or watch movies with a lot of violence. (Our sons still used there fingers as pretend guns though.) I don’t understand the “gun” issue in the States any more than I understand their attitude toward universal health care. The United State really is a foriegn country in many ways. I am also saddened by the recent gun violence in our country as well. Sometimes I read or listen to the news and think “this is Canada?” I agree guns should not be easily accessible, it is just too easy for some people when angry to pick one up and shoot. I don’t understand, we need a licence to drive, we need to take lessons and be tested three times to get that licence because cars are dangerous, why not the same standards for owning a gun?
Ruth, you’ve said it well. Guns are not toys. When I was 7 years old, I had a Dale Evans gun. Why? I had gone to the movies and saw this cowgirl, who was really nice and she had one. We played Cowboys and Indians (politically incorrect game) as kids, but what did we know? I also remember a family event out on a farm, there were plenty of other neighbors and friends. People got drunk, next thing we knew, someone got a rifle. In the end, no one got shot, but the threat was there.
Every time something like this happens we discuss gun control. The issue is difficult. Those people prone to acts of violence will find a way to commit them with or without gun control. I don’t know what the solution is or if a solution exists.
Unfortunately there are crazy people out there who seem normal and these crazy people have access to weapons.
Horrible tragedy.
I don’t know how the mentally ill are treated in the USA, but here in Canada, there are many who go undetected or have been released from institutions and are left to their own devices. Perhaps, the answer lies there somewhere, or as you say, if there is an answer.
As for gun laws, I understand what you’re saying. If the intent is there, the disturbed one will find a way. On the other hand, if it’s difficult to get the kind of guns that do this kind of massive damage, then maybe what it does, is buy time. Time for someone to notice the crazy person in our midst. And maybe then, there’d be less homicides and less injuries. I was so saddened over the news, that I was compelled to at least raise some questions.
Hello again,
Likewise I’ve wondered why. The Art Instinct by Denis Dutton makes, for me anyway, an enlightening point about the prevalence of violence and sex in drama and literature. As well the continuum of art imitating life imitating art. While I recommend the whole book and not cherry picking; the chapter The Uses of Fiction provides an interesting answer. I won’t butcher it by paraphrasing here.
Having worked and lived in what some describe as nasty places all over the world, the common denominator always seems to be easy access to guns. A global surfeit of handy killing machines and their profound potential colors every aspect of social and civil interaction in every country I’ve visited. The U.S. is no exception.
Sadly,
JG
Julia, thanks for the book suggestion. I’ll look it up. I’m with you on this one. The Daily Beast and The New York Times have some thoughtful opinions on the tragedy. Most seem to be pointing to the need to review gun laws. It’s also curious that both Obama and Romney are avoiding talking about the gun laws. The NRA and other gun advocates have way too much power. If it was one of their loved ones killed, then maybe there would be action of a different kind. Also, it’s interesting that gun sales have spiked since the tragedy, for fear that gun laws will be tightened.
Guns don’t worry me, the hard-core drugs do. We lose more folks, spiritually and physically to those rotten demons. I bet that a lot of the gun killings are drug related. It’s the best weapon an evildoer could have. Education starting in elementary school would be where I would start to teach our children well and make a world that we can live in…
Libby, you raise a good point. Many killings by guns are drug related, all the more reason to have some laws re: purchasing automatic weapons. If the rules applied right across the board in the USA, then those who are apt to pull the trigger would not have such easy access. They wouldn’t be able to buy it from a neighboring state. The internet is also a problem. There’s easy access to bullets, and other ammunition including bulletproof vests. And yes, education would help and social programs for those who don’t have the family support and need the help to stay on the right side of the law. This is a multifaceted problem which needs to be tackled from all sides.
I wondered when you would right about this topic, unfortunately it took this horrible act to push that button. As you probably know I have quite a few firearms and lets just say lots of ammunition locked up in my gun room and like thousands of other owners in Canada, none of it is harming anyone. While I’m glad the useless long gun registry is gone I’m also glad I have to be licensed. Unlike the USA I have to pay and take two courses to prove I can safely handle a rifle or pistol. I obviously have to go through various checks by the RCMP and my wife is called every time I renew my license just to make sure everything is okay. I then have to join a hand gun club before the RCMP will give me a one year permit to take it to the club to compete or practise. Finally there are all kinds of storage and transport laws regarding my firarms, ammo and reloading supplies and I have no problems with them because they just make sense. These controls had they been in the states would have made no difference because none of the checks involve any doctors that are being seen, and that is a problem.
Bob, thanks for visiting and leaving your comment. Just to clarify, at the end of your comments, you mention that “none of the checks involve any doctors that are being seen”. I’m not sure I understand. Are you saying that there should be a medical check for anyone having a gun? I don’t think you meant this.
Actually I would have no problem with a gun owners mental state being looked into. How many recent mass killing in the USA all involved someone who was also seeking help with a mental condition. Up here it is mainly gang bangers shooting each other and hurting innocent by-standers because they learned about guns on TV not the range. I’m an owner who is in a very small minority and would have no problem with this a part of my back ground screening if it means I can then be left to enjoy my sport.
Whether it be target shooting, IPSC, Tatical 3 Gun or trap and skeet the one thing I can gladly say is you will never see a parent swearing and screaming at the range officer or contestants beating each other up or an offical as in the more popular sports. The sport is civilized and quiet like lawn bowling, as no other sport requires such concentation especially when your looking through peep sights and trying to hit a 24″ bullseye 1000 yards away.
I still don’t think I explained it right, I have no problem with the government looking at my exsisting medical records. But I do have a problem with them pulling me into a room and fishing for a reason to deny me a license.
Hi Diana,
My name is Vladimir and this is my first visit to your blog.
Your good article on this “heavy” event, gave me the wish to say this to US authorities:
“There is a LOT to blame on US gun control laws. A lot !
He LEGALLY acquired weapons that are made for serious warfare, not self defense for sure.
Let me just say, that in my small country in south-eastern Europe, there is NO WAY an average citizen can legally acquire such a weapon, and if I want to own a pistol (for instance), beside the usual permit issuing procedure, I also must speak with the police psychiatrist (he will test my sanity and motives of owning a gun), and also (believe it or not), police in civil clothes will be asking questions about me to my neighbors. And if I pass all that, I am allowed just 60 bullets per year – everything above is illegal.
USA should SERIOUSLY reconsider its laws in this area.
I understand it is in the constitution , and the American tradition…. but I ask – how many more “Theater 9″ horrors is enough?”
Thanks Diana, hope to come again, kind regards.
Vladimir, you raise some good points. As well though, the internet seems to be the wild west when it comes to accessing weaponry and ammunition. The murderer did buy guns in a pawn shop, so that was a transaction that took place under American law. As for the bullets and bulletproof vest, it came through the internet. It seems everyone lost in this case, including the sick man who did the evil deed. I am still surprised that the leaders have not stepped forward and pushed for change. It’s never too late to address a wrong. That old saying fits here, where there’s a will there’s a way.
Diana,
Thank you for this post.
Our gracious society slips-slides away…
Phil E.
Phil, that’s what I’m so sad about as well. You have a wonderful way with words. It’s true, “our gracious society slips-slides away” and along with it, many wonderful people are taken on a ride they haven’t chosen.
I think most of you are missing the real reason that guns exist in the US. Guns exist to ensure that no government can force it’s will over an unarmed and vulnerable population of sheeple who wait quietly for slaughter. We have the right to bear arms because we have the god given right to be free. No government gave those rights to us, because they exist naturally for all of us, and therefore, no government has the right to take them away. No invastion of the US homeland from without or within will ever be succesfull because as one observer wrote – there is a gun behind every blade of grass in that country.
In the case of Aurora, it was the gun laws the PREVENTED trained users like the military people in the audience from carrying, as well as the private carry citizens. These are not “military” weapons. The vast majority of even the most heinous incidents are caused by small handguns. Even the Colorado shooter used a handgun when his primary weapon jammed because he was an untrained, and unstable fool.
Our gun rights are not primarily for hunting, nor are they solely for home and property defense. They serve as a symbol and a warning to those that would restrict our rights, and perhaps take our lives. Register my weapons? Why would I give the government that advantage? Get a “permit” from the government to defend myself? No thanks.
Two other small points. We read about these incidents and we are indeed sad. They are tragic and unimagineable. But they do not happen frequently. They happen on an infintessemally small level. If you had a product deficiency rate of 1 in 1 million – you would be happy. If it was one in 10 million you would be amongst the best manufacturing entities in the world. The number of idiots and defectives that perpetrate these kinds of heinous crimes are once a year – maybe twice – which is a defect rate of say 1 in 200 million. Little solace for the families, but you get my point about how infrequent these “mass” incidents are.
12 dead? That is a slow weekend in Detroit or Chicago….
We are so fortunate to live in democracies where we have freedom of speech. You can have your opinion and I can have mine. Where I have difficulty is when someone else’s opinion puts me and my family at risk. I understand what you’re saying, but these gun control laws were enacted in the 1700s. Now, it seems they remain, fueled by fear–an irrational fear. As Michael Moore has pointed out, the number of deaths by guns in the USA far outpaces other countries by an extraordinarily huge margin.
Many people argue that gun control laws interfere with constitutional rights. We must remember that the constitution was written in the 1700s. It’s the same constitution that didn’t allow women or black Americans to vote. It was necssary to make a change with that and it’s necessary to re-assess gun control before another tragedy happens. When will we learn?
An excellent point, Peggy. It’s one that I’ve heard Michael Moore make. The gun control laws were written into the laws at the time it made sense, and before the access to such powerful weapons.
I don’t feel that there is much the USA can do to curb gun control anymore. The only I see is to educate the young people from a very early age the dangers of having, using or owning a gun, not to mention the consequences of any aftermath.
I understand how drugs can be an issue, but also there is the fear factor. As soon as you feel threatened you whip your gun out. I also believe in self defence to a certain extent but some countries justify you shooting dead a person who enters, or should I say trespasses your home turf. Complex I guess.
I went to America a while ago and felt absolutely sick to the stomach at the amount of guns I saw on the police. I think partly because I was not use to it, and partly because I imagined finding myself in the middle of some wild west shoot-out (watched too many films) or was my thoughts justified? I just could not relax knowing there was a big cop standing around me with a live gun on him.