Psalms 8:2 tells us: “From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger.”
That is occurring with the demonstrations and pleas from young people, who seek a corrected path for a society to prevent school children and others from being wantonly slain, one that values human life over gun sale profits.
The killing of 17 students and teachers in Florida may well have been the flashpoint that finally leads to a cultural sea change in these United States.
That was driven home to me in a conversation with my 16-year-old granddaughter, Alayna. Frankly, I thought the outcry would pass as quickly as it surfaced, and would go nowhere.
Her thought, it being the right thing to do, to try to effect change, resonated with a part of my brain that apparently had been comatose. I don’t pay much attention to the national media these days, it being so rife with innuendo and political sarcasm. Consequently I wasn’t fully aware of how determined the kids are in asking for gun control.
I strongly believe in Second Amendment rights, but I don’t think they were conceived with the idea of putting military style weapons into hands of private citizens. On the flip side, I don’t think we should evolve into anything resembling a police state, but there are things that can be done to help ensure mass shootings, and many others, are a thing of the past.
Stronger and more effective background checks would be helpful, to stop sales of fearful weapons to people who shouldn’t have them because of a history of nefarious deeds or mental illness.
AR-15s are designed for suppressive fire, to kill enemy combatants. As gruesome as it is, they’re just as effective against kids scattered in a hall or classroom. Outlawing their sale to the public, through an assault rifle ban, would be a very big plus on the road to safety for our kids and congregating adults — for everyone.
Prohibiting sale of clips holding a gazillion rounds also would be an advantage. If a person wants to use a rifle for target practice, having a magazine holding five or six rounds is sufficient. Sports shooters are under no pressure to reel off 30 or 40 shots in quick succession.
Finally, the worn-out excuse that people not guns kill people is totally unacceptable. Of course people kill people, but their opportunities can be severely limited by banning rapid-fire military style rifles that easily spew forth so much death and heartache.
Ultimately, we must do whatever is necessary to stop the killing that leaves families devastated, often for a lifetime, and strikes down young folks before they have an opportunity to contribute who knows what to society.
Whatever it takes, is what we should do.
At Week’s End: Listen to what the kids have to say
