Tucson

I’ve been away from home and my computer since the day of the shootings and the commentary I’ve heard has pretty well covered the territory. Here are a few offhand thoughts, many of which are by now second hand. One concerns the Fat Man’s claim that Democrats and liberals are “overjoyed.” Whatever this says about people he dislikes, it says a lot about him and about the way he would feel if the situations were reversed.

This saga has not been a bright spot for the radical right, particularly its pop star, considered by some a potential presidential candidate, whose prospects I had previously considered nil.  “Less than nil” is an admitted oxymoron, but it’ll have to do for now.

Like most Americans I disapprove of the general public’s right to own guns that can be fired 33 times without reloading. The need to fire so many consecutive rounds for self protection could apply only to a blind person. Since such lethal weaponry is available, its dispensation should not be treated in the manner of a criminal case in which the state must prove its precautions beyond a reasonable doubt. Quite the opposite! Here the burden should be on the purchaser to prove beyond any known reasonable doubt the safety of his owning of such a weapon. Unfortunately any conceived tightening of gun laws at this time would be DOA because of intimidation by a vocal minority that speaks with equal reverence of God and handguns.

The main issue raised by this event concerns limitations of free speech, specifically the type of rhetoric symbolized by a map with cross hairs of gun sites on locations of coveted Congressional seats. While I’ve yet to hear any commentator claim that this caused the shootings, there’s no question that it could have. The motive for the shooting was apparently political.

I’ve yet to hear mention of existing restrictions on First Amendment rights of people about to board an airplane. Anyone making a comment with any hint at the implications of the aforementioned map, if overheard by someone of authority, would learn the limitations of free speech in a hurry. Many of us have had situations in which we considered ourselves unfairly treated by an airline. But we knew enough to withhold any vituperative verbiage till we’d left the airport. We’ve seen pictures of people sleeping on airport floors during major airline snafus. I suspect some harbored thoughts which, if spoken, would have led to their doing their sleeping elsewhere.

Of the silly “solutions” which come primarily from the right, my prize goes to those that favor more people, from elected officials to school children, carry guns for “defense.” The result of more guns and bullets in the possession of more people is inevitably more accidental shootings. Not everybody has as good an aim as the former governor of Alaska.