I do love The Economist, it gets to the meat of an issue in a few succinct words. Discussing gun control in the United States:In many states, it is easier to own a gun than a dog. That is absurd.
I shall say no more about that. Do not live in the USA, not going back there to live, nor even to visit. But the logic of the article impels me to quote more. “The motives for mass murder vary. The teenager in Buffalo who on May 14th shot and killed ten people, most of them black, was driven by racial paranoia. The 68-year-old who killed one and injured five on May 16th in a Californian church hated Taiwanese people. What impelled Salvador Ramos to kill at least 21 on May 24th in and around a school in Texas may someday become apparent, though Mr Ramos is no longer alive to explain himself.”
The article does discuss though, what all of this carnage has in common. “What these horrors have in common, though, is the murder weapon. Guns are simple, reliable tools for killing. A man with a gun and plenty of ammunition can kill more people, more quickly and with far less physical effort than he can with a knife, a blunt object or his bare hands. The weapon Mr Ramos used—a military-style assault rifle with high-capacity magazines—allowed him to keep shooting until someone shot him. That most of his victims were children makes the crime unusually horrific. But it resembles countless other American tragedies in that the easy availability of guns made it deadlier than it might have been.”
Here is more. “A robber who carries a gun is more likely to kill. Domestic quarrels are more likely to end in death if a firearm is handy. Suicide attempts with guns usually succeed. Police in England and Wales shot and killed only two people in 2021; American cops killed 1,055. The main reason for this vast disparity is not that English cops are gentler or less racist. It is that American police face a heat-packing public. Most of those they kill are armed; many of the rest are mistakenly believed to be so. The abundance of guns is also the main reason why the murder rate in America is four or five times higher than in a typical rich country. By one estimate, Americans own 400m guns. If they were evenly distributed, each family of five would have six. In 2020 more than 45,000 people in America died from firearm-related injuries. Guns now kill more young people than cars do.”
The article ends powerfully. “Hence the steady loosening of rules in places like Texas, where 21-year-olds can carry a handgun in public without training or a permit (both of which are needed to cut hair); and where 18-year-olds can buy a handgun if they come from a violent home (to defend themselves against abusive relatives); and where almost any adult can buy a rifle with minimal hassle. Mr Ramos bought two assault rifles legally as soon as he turned 18, and shot his grandmother before heading for the local elementary school.
This is not what most Americans want. Hefty (but dwindling) majorities favour some commonsense curbs, such as denying weapons to the mentally ill, creating a database to track all gun sales, and banning both assault-style weapons and high-capacity magazines. Congress is unlikely to deliver such things, thanks to the Senate filibuster. So cities and states should step in, though guns will always flow illicitly from lax jurisdictions to stringent ones. Voters should reward politicians who think a gun licence should be at least as hard to obtain as a driving licence. Not all gun deaths are preventable, but many could be.”
The entre article may be read at Why America should make it harder to buy guns
https://www.economist.com/leaders/2022/05/25/why-america-should-make-it-harder-to-buy-guns.
Even more from The Economist: “President Joe Biden pleaded with the nation to “stand up to the gun lobby”. “Why are we willing to live with this carnage?”, he asked. “Active-shooter” incidents have increased by nearly 97% since 2017, according to new data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation.”
Active shooter incidents up 97% since 2017 – that is beyond shocking. President Biden calls it a carnage. Such an excellent word to use: slaughter, massacre, mass murder, mass destruction, butchery, bloodbath, indiscriminate bloodshed, bloodletting, annihilation, destruction, decimation, havoc; holocaust, pogrom, ethnic cleansing; shambles. But it seems that those in the USA will allow these slaughters, massacres, bloodbaths and programs continue while they busily concern itself with the unborn. Those unwanted children will serve as target practice for crazed, crazy mass murderers.
This dismal blog will be accompanied by cheerful uplifting photographs. One photograph taken by a wonderful Vietnamese woman working at the Chateau Lacombe. The others of the temporary home found for my stuffed animals, duckie and prayer rug. I found an amazing condo which will house me for awhile. It is equipped with everything, a kitchen with dishes, pots and pans, a refrigerator, stove, sofa, big bed, chairs and lovely paintings on the wall. Thank you Cruel Chateau Lacombe, you did me an enormous favor and this haven is mine for a fraction of the cost. Also thank you Allah, who guides me, loves me and cares for me. All praise to Allah.
Allah did speak to me. “Alexis, just find an apartment to rent. You know you want to live in Edmonton.”
Me: Great idea Most Merciful, All-Knowing God. I shall look into that immediately.
So I went to Craigslist, there seems to be more than one opportunity out there- All,praise to Allah.
