Violence

There are those in Illinois – my state of residence – that believe we are experiencing a large increase in violence, shootings, and death. They claim this is the fault of the current governor and mayor of Chicago. They make this argument to create political discord and pressure for a return to republican leadership. Of course, this is wrongheaded.

First and foremost, nearly every state, county and city has experienced a surge in violence over the last several years. In fact, decades. Public spending has expanded police numbers, tools, and programs to battle the violence. Universities are studying the root causes of violence. Pundits step forward to air their latest ideas and opinions on these issues, too, usually to no helpful end.

The truth of the matter is complex. There are many causes of today’s violence. Here are some just for the record:

1.      Massive gun ownership in America. The number goes up year after year; not down; up. The tools of violence are omnipresent. Add public anger and incivility and violence is a natural result.

2.      Gun laws are pitiful. They are so watered down police can rarely enforce the laws and reduce violence at the same time. The gun laws are without teeth.

3.      Poverty drives discord in most communities. Fix poverty and violence will drop.

4.      Desperate people lose their self control and ignore the social contract that maintains calm. They spin out of control and hurt themselves or others in rampages. With a gun the spree turns to death.

5.      Injustice and racism foment desperation. Violence soon follows.

6.      Misguided political movements roil people who think they have been wronged and their turn to violence springs to life. That is essentially the story behind the January 6^th attack on the US Capitol building.

7.      Social unrest feeds on itself and pushes people into behavior they ordinarily would not think of. Violence is readily at hand in such situations.

8.      Violence is emotional, not tactical. Spur of the moment action creates mayhem and mass shootings.

How to fix these items? It takes research, study, analysis, clear thinking, and discussions among broad populations seeking peaceful outcomes. However, Congress does not allow research into gun ownership or restrictions. Understanding cause and effect of guns is outlawed by Congress. Hard to believe this is true, but the National Rifle Association made this public policy many years ago. It remains in place.

A good start on the right path is to abolish all gun laws on the books, and rewrite a sensible public policy supported by workable laws with teeth. By the way, the Second Amendment has nothing to do with public ownership of guns; it deals with a well ordered militia because, at the time of writing the Constitution, no standing army was provided. That is it. Second Amendment rights to gun ownership has been a misnomer all this time. Best we deal with that reality honestly and forthrightly.

Understanding racism is another repair long overdue. This is uncomfortable for white people in the majority to face. They refuse to believe they are racist while at the same time celebrate their whiteness and majority status. Let us watch what happens in a few years when white is minority. Inexorably that is the reality in America. Best we settle this essential point beforehand so guns are not then the issue.

Until then, uncontrolled guns and gun ownership remains in the center of violence in our society. It is not the cause; it is an effect. The causes are many. It is not guns; it is not racism or poverty or political spoils alone. They all contribute to the result of violence. Then too, they are all the result that leads to more violence.

It is time that we recognize commonsense and fix what is clearly very broken.

June 22, 2021