Americans make a left turn
The recent high school massacre has evoked a lot emotions on both sides of the gun issue. Progressives like myself (with full disclosure a gun owner) want to institute universal background checks, raise the minimum purchase age to 21 (if you cannot buy a beer you should not be allowed to purchase a weapon), ban assault rifles, enact proper storage regulations, education and training requirements, registration of all weapons and of course insurance.
The Republicans call these measures erosion of freedoms and limitations of rights, and continue to blame everyone and everything but the actual problem: gun access. Today the President went on to blame movies, video games, poor parenting, mental illness, FBI, Media and Democrats. But this is not about accountability but purely about Republican politics. They are nowhere as a party if guns are not an issue.
They want to arm teachers to sell more guns, they want armed guards in schools to sell more guns, they want additional billions for already over inflated defense budget to sell more weapons. They claim that stopping a bad guy with a gun takes a good guy with a gun. What a bunch of hog! In 1981 when Reagan was shot there were seven Secret Service officers with guns. There were hundreds of armed guards in Las Vegas, yet fifty people died. The Republicans are not pro-life, they are a Pro Death Party and we the people are sick of it.
Happy to say that with all this public outcry the President has shifted his position to the left today, signaling that with all that pressure there is room to maneuver. With time we will see how much resolve he really has on this issue but this is not going away. As citizens we no longer will accept pathetic excuses for continuing the status quo and will make elected officials accountable for taking blood money and vote them out of office. A sea of change in America is upon us!
Marilyn is an immigrant, artist, painter and writer, passionate advocate for equality and human rights. Loves history, politics and travel. Resident of Colorado.