Violence anywhere is a threat to peace and safety everywhere. And so, as the National Rifle Association (NRA) proposed today, every school in America would to be assigned an armed police officer as a solution to gun violence. I wonder how does this address gun violence in workplaces, places of worship, movie theatres, shopping malls, athletic fields, homes, on college campuses...? My point is not to blame the NRA for the horrific violence that occurred in Newtown, Portland, Aurora, Chicago, Baltimore or anywhere else. I do believe the statement made today by Wayne LaPierre of the NRA that “The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun" is irresponsible and shallow, bordering on arrogant and insensitve, given the complexity of the problem of gun violence in our society. My question is simply, where does the NRA'a proposal to place armed police officers in every school lead us in addressing the root causes of gun violence - whether it occurs in cities, suburbs or rural areas? It does not seem to me that arming more people in more places is the answer to moving us toward becoming less violent and ultimately toward becoming a nonviolent society, but does seem to move us closer to becoming a police state under marshall law. I wonder if the writers of the Second Amendment had this in mind.
No comments:
Post a Comment