Republicans won’t do a damn thing.

I just saw about the Dayton shooting with 10 dead. Horrible.

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If Congress won't do anything, at least we can try to do something.

This is not a mental health issue. It's a GUN issue. You can delude yourselves all you want with the mental health stuff, but massacres like this do not happen in other countries twice in 24 hours.

It's only a mental health issue for those who believe the NRA that more guns are the answer. 

We are a nation of "fuck you, I love guns." And if that means an unstable, white young man gets his hands on one (or more), so be it. Because "fuck you, I love guns." 

Absolutely this. Other countries have mentally ill people. Other countries have issues with patchy or non-existent mental healthcare. I know adult mental health services in my part of Scotland are frustratingly difficult to access. No other country has the gun issues that the USA has. It is a gun issue. 

You know, I love the US. I’m about to have my 21st trip there next month. For the first time ever, I’m actually worried about the possibility of gun violence affecting us. I’m spending two weeks in Orlando with my kids and their partners, and I feel it’s just a matter of time before someone shoots up one of the big theme parks. I know there is security, but security can be got around. 

It's a gun issue.
It's a gun issue.
It's a gun issue.
It's a gun issue.
It's a gun issue.

I don't know how many times we need to fucking say it or who else needs to hear it, but it's a FUCKING GUN ISSUE.

Listen… I am all for gun control. I’m becoming more and more in favor of very strict gun control.  But I am so disturbed and saddened by the level of hate and divisiveness  I am seeing  in this country. And I believe it is fueled by our president.  I was watching a clip from his rally… And I could not believe how much hate was being spewed not only by him… But echoed by his supporters. The  things they were chanting, and the angry looks on their faces, and the way they were pumping their fists… It was truly terrifying. 

I do not think it is a coincidence that this latest shooting is an hour away from where Trump gave his latest hate filled rally.

I think it is both. I'm not saying people who would fall under a clinical definition of a mental illness, but I do believe our youth (and some adults, mainly 35 and younger) lack strong mental health. I do not think we are allowing or helping our youth grow as social and emotional members of our society. I think between smart phones and other technology there is a disconnect between some brains and human decency.

That is not to say that guns aren't an issue and shouldn't be regulated, but there is a mental health issue as well.

This is terrible to say out loud, so please take it as productive. I struggle to find better words.

I am relieved that these shootings are happening at typical places of gathering, rather than schools. Only because when it is a school shooting, people seem to think locking away our kids is the answer. School shootings seem to change what people consider a reasonable solution to gun violence. It is sad when children are victims, but it is equally sad when people are victims. Yes, children have a right to safety in schools, but all people have a right to safety in their world. Maybe, just maybe these recent ones will make people realize that being at any everyday place that has people gathering is a danger, which includes pretty much everywhere.

There is no way around it, making guns more difficult to buy and own is a large part of the answer. Regulations should be much stricter around background checks, number of firearms, and amount of ammunition bought within a certain period, etc. Hand guns and rifles should have the same restrictions, background checks, and application wait times. I would go as far to say that all current gun owners should have to go through new application for whatever stricter laws are enacted. No “grandfather” clause. We are gun owners, we DO NOT support the NRA, and we believe there needs to be stricter laws enacted. Laws need to be the same nationwide. If that means giving up our own guns, so be it.

This has been ridiculous for over 15 years now and still nothing is changing. It is not ok.if the government can track the amount of Claritin D I buy each month and deny my purchases when my allergies are severe, something more can certainly be done for guns. This is a national health crisis for all of us and it’s shameful to our nation that nothing changes.

It’s a gun issue. No other country has the same problem. People aren’t that different around the world, but gun accessibility is.

The more I think about it… The less I think it is actually about mental health. I think what we really need to be looking at is the radicalization of young white males in America. I think the reason we’re seeing so many more mass shootings is because hate can be disseminated so easily over the Internet. Although I know there were mass shootings before Columbine, I feel like it was the beginning of this modern era of mass shootings. It’s no coincidence that that’s when the internet was really taking off.

The way young white men in America are being radicalized is no different than the way young Muslim men are being radicalized, yet I never hear anyone refer to Muslim terrorists as “mentally ill.”

The alt-right has.MASSIVE internet presence that even includes dating apps and crowd-funding for their hate-filled projects. And, make no mistake, they are in the Whitehouse, now. (I’m looking at YOU Stephen Miller.) They are in every part of our lives now. They are being given legitimate voices by our president.

ETA: But to be clear, I also think guns are way too easy to access in this country. I support a full ban on semi automatic weapons, high-capacity magazines, bump stocks. I think that guns should only be allowed to be bought in very specialized stores – not at gun shows, not at Walmart...  I think people need to have a license to have a gun. I think there should be a national registry.  I think there should be a limit to how many guns you can own. I am all for gun control.

except that to a degree that is not true. 

None of us are safe but many of us are targeted in ways that others are not.  Ironically by the ones who have declared their victims to be the "bad guys".

My DD, part of the LGBTQ+ community,  was home for the weekend.  Back with me, the brother, the dog and the cornfields.  Then this happened.  I want both my kids to go live their best life, their way, fearless!  but part of me wants them back home, middle of nowhere, home, safe(r).
This was from my instagram nearly a year and a half ago. in many ways seems like years ago.  in others, as in "same ole same ole", yesterday. 

 

http://instagr.am/p/BgzD51ujmQ9

Nothing has changed. The scared mama me still wants them home to die of old age and boredom. When the haunting memories of the kids' whining "I'm bored.....!" now sounds all too inviting.