The Right to Bear Arms--No Matter What?

Americans love their guns.

So much so, the right to bear arms is one of the most sacrosanct of American freedoms, preserved in that most cherished of American documents, the Constitution.

Aaaah, freedom.

We are free to buy and sell guns to our heart's content, with few restrictions. We are basically free to shoot anybody and anything we deem shoot-able.

Of course, violent offenders risk imprisonment, if they don't shoot themselves first. And increasingly, shooters are shooting themselves--after first killing any number of innocent victims, of course. Murder-suicide is all the rage.

One can simply walk into any number of venues--be they public or private--and just aim and shoot. Some choose their homes, while others have a preference for post offices, immigration centers or shopping malls.

Plus, now that President Obama has signed into law a provision to carry concealed weapons in national parks and wildlife preserves, can these peaceful refuges be far behind?

And let us not forget about churches and museums.

Yesterday, an 88 year-old man, a white supremacist, opened fire inside the Holocaust Memorial Museum in the nation's capital, killing an African American security guard. (I'm guessing this was on his "bucket list," no?) And last weekend, the abortion provider, Dr. George Tiller was slain while he worshipped in a Kansas church.

This has long been a problem in America, but it seems to be happening more and more.

And more and more, the shooters are very young, as are the victims. Perhaps this is one of the most devastating legacies of Columbine. And Virginia Tech.

Looking back to those tragic mass shootings--and to the innumerable shootings that occur with alarming frequency around this nation, particularly in the Black community--one has to wonder what it says about American culture.

It also raises a number of difficult questions, among them these: How did we become so violent? Why are our children so prone to violence?

When looking for the culprit, many point to the media and to the prevalence of violent fare on television and in films. Or perhaps, it is the pervasive violence in video games.

Whatever the case, one need only look to the numbers to know that we have a full-blown national crisis on our hands. The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence reports that, on average, 23 African Americans die from gunshots every day.

Every day.

Tragically, according to the Brady Campaign, after car crashes, the second leading cause of death among young people under 19 is firearms. Further, children under 14 years old are 12 times more likely to die from a gunshot "than in 25 other industrialized countries combined."

Just this week a 9-year-old Mississippi boy was killed during a struggle with his 11-year-old brother when a 12-gauge shotgun reportedly went off accidently during a struggle. The Associated Press reports that the younger brother retrieved his father's gun from the closet after his big brother beat him at a few video games.

And this past weekend a 13-year-old girl was gunned down in a drive-by shooting at a block party for a local city council candidate in New Jersey. According to BET.com, police Captain Joe Juniak told the Times of Trenton that "it was automatic gunfire, definitely automatic gunfire."

Not to mention the rash of shootings ravaging Chicago in recent months. In one 24-hour period last month, 7 people were killed. A few weekends prior there were 36 separate incidents, leaving 9 people dead. And Chicago is only the latest urban graveyard.

So, whose fault is it?

This is another question that no one really wants to confront. That is, are the guns the problem, or is it the shooters who bear the blame? I mean, is this a matter of failed parenting? Or perhaps this is a clear case of those proverbial chickens coming home to roost, in a nation born of violence...and hate, yes?

More importantly, what do we do about it?

Concrete action is needed. Our lawmakers, encouraged by President Obama, must begin the difficult task of trying to un-ring the proverbial gun bell. We must insist on gun control laws that close the gun show loopholes, and that limit the availability of automatic and semi-automatic weapons on our streets.

Further, parents must do all that is humanly possible to limit the exposure of our children to violence-for-the-sake-of-entertainment. Speaking of which, we must find a way to make the entertainment industry accountable for its violent productions.

Ultimately, of course, it is a matter of shared responsibility. People who shoot other people make a conscious decision to do so, but what brings them to that point? This is, as they say, the heart of the matter.

Of course, just the very mention of gun control will elicit a pitched battle in some circles, but it is a fight well worth fighting. We can no longer allow the National Rifle Association and its lobby to drive gun legislation. We must do this for our children. Otherwise, we will continue to pay the horrific cost of this peculiarly American freedom.

Oh, but were freedom free...