A different look at the violence blame game
A different look at the violence blame game
What has happened to our communities?
Lost among the Culture War arguments about gun laws is a terrifying truth staring us in the face.
Had you seen a picture of the Highland Park shooter before the incident happened, how many seconds would it have taken you to realize this was one messed-up, scary-looking dude?
Most of these mass shooters are leaving calling cards a mile wide. A guy drives around the neighborhood with a van plastered with pictures of crosshairs over political figures. Who do we think he is, Fred Rogers? Someone has tattoos running up his neck and face, is antisocial, depressed, is threatening his family and praising mass shooters online. Are we mistaking him for Wally Cleaver?
This is just one reason why the Culture War is so tragically misguided. We keep arguing at the national level about things we can’t change while our families and communities fall apart.
Just think of all the people around you who look weird, act weird, seem mentally ill, threaten people, talk about how much they hate the country, are withdrawn, spew hateful political rhetoric, have violent histories and/or are obsessed with guns and violence.
Adam Kinzinger released this audio on Twitter that contains some of the threats his office has received. Keep in mind while listening to it that politicians and media figures across the political spectrum are continually receiving similar threats. This is a large part of what we have become.
Our institutions would be overwhelmed if they tried to investigate the millions upon millions of Americans exhibiting the signs of mass killers. The road out of this mess can only start by straightening out our families and communities.
If the vast majority of us acted decently, those with warnings signs would stick out. Law enforcement, school officials and mental health experts would then have a chance to differentiate the harmlessly unique from those who present legitimate threats to themselves and others.
So I will make the plea once again. Enough with the Culture War hatred. We would all be better served spending our precious time on this planet helping to build strong, healthy communities and families.
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