The Ball is in the Republicans’ Court

I have been wondering what I could do after the recent spate of mass shootings. Perhaps you have been, too. I have been writing about politics in this blog and wanted to continue that line of discussion, but I feel the issue of gun violence is more urgent. I will come back to voting and my ideas about how to change the way we do that later.

Janet, my wife /editor, found this in the Rome News: “Turn Your Back on Hate — a local nonprofit activist organization — is holding a Rise Up Against Gun Violence rally on Saturday, June 4, at 1:30 p.m. in front of the Rome-Floyd Law Enforcement Center at 5 Government Plaza”.

I joined this group some years ago when a Neo-Nazi group came to Rome, so I decided to don my “Turn Your Back on Hate” shirt and join them again to see what we could contribute to the cause of reducing gun violence in America.

The crowd was not large. Maybe thirty. We did not demonstrate or stop traffic or do anything disruptive. A few passers-by stopped to look at us out of curiosity, but they did not join us. We listened to speeches, most of which said all the things we are used to hearing, things that I am afraid were like “preaching to the choir.” We were encouraged to write to our elected officials, and I was able to send an urgent message to MTG, full of fire and venom- to no avail, I am sure.

The most impressive speech of the occasion was given by a nineteen-year-old whose name I did not catch.  She catalogued the incidences of mass shootings of school children that have punctuated all of the nineteen years of her life, and concluded by saying that her generation has been marked by gun violence against children.

On the way home, I remembered a piece by Margaret Mead, the noted anthropologist, who suggested that my generation had been marked by growing up under the shadow of the atomic bomb. The young lady’s remarks became more poignant for me. I had never thought of this current recurring nightmare in quite the way she put it.

I confess I have been unable to write about guns and mass shootings because I could not think of anything to say that had not been said. I am horrified, as I expect you are. But the truth is that people on both sides of this matter are horrified. Most of those who oppose gun control are not heartless people who don’t care about massacred children. They truly believe that gun control, the obvious answer to the problem for those at the rally, is no answer at all.  Saturday’s rally inspired me to say something that I think will be of value. Let me know what you think.

First, the best approach should not be to demonize those who disagree with us, but to try to take advantage of the common ground that does exist between us that might lead to the removal of weapons-that-kill from our reality. That common ground is our shared reaction of horror to what is happening and will doubtless continue to happen until we do something.

Second, we do not have to convince Democrats of the pressing need for action. They have offered a number of gun control measures for decades now.  We have to persuade Republicans and some Independents. It is they who have stood in in the way of meaningful solutions for decades. The truth is, they have blocked what Democrats want to try but offered no solutions of their own, other than condolences and prayers. (It is much like they way they approached health care, if you remember.)  My point is, we should put the onus for this situation on their backs. We should try to persuade them that this nightmare will continue until they join us in fixing the situation.  If they do not like the solutions Democrats are offering, they must pressure their representatives to offer something else instead.  We should all be demanding solutions, and that “we” includes our Republican friends who are also sickened by the slaughter. Indeed, nothing will change without their support. Democrats alone cannot solve this problem.

Recently I read of a Republican who was running for reelection and backed out of the race because he could no longer support the IRA-dominated policies of his party. Of course, that means the Republican who takes his place will. But it is encouraging that a young Republican member of Congress with impeccable conservative credentials would take this morally strong stance against his own party’s position on gun control, even though it is costing him his seat in Congress.

In the Monday, June 5 edition of the NYT, Will Hurd, the Congressional Representative for Uvalde, Texas, argued for a multifaceted approach to the gun problem that included mental health initiatives and gun control measures, including the current House Democratic sponsored measure. He is a loyal NRA member and enjoys their support, but feels that something must be done to make us safe.  Are these small signs of a crack in the solid Republican phalanx against gun law reform? I certainly hope so. In any event, they should be encouraged.

One thing loyal Republicans could do is to encourage such voices in their party and not simply kowtow to the leadership that seems to be under the thumb of the NRA. It would also help if NRA members themselves wrote to that organization, demanding a change in their position, even threatening to withdraw support from them if they do not.

In our district the majority of people support the NRA and its positions.  Many think gun control is both absurd and even anti-religious. The Neo- Nazis did not choose to come to Rome for no reason.  MTG moved to our district because she knew she could get elected.  So, our problem locally is to change the thinking of our fellow citizens, those who would not have applauded the speakers at the rally but who are horrified by the massacres.

I am hoping that our nineteen-year-old speaker may provide a clue  to how to proceed.  If she and others her age, especially young Republicans, are similarly affected by seeing the young slaughtered in defense of gun rights, perhaps as young voters and when they become parents and have children of their own to worry about, they will demand that their Republican representatives change their policies.  Young Republicans could play a significant role in effecting this policy shift.

I will offer my Republican friends a counter argument to the oft repeated claim that it is not guns, but people, who cause this problem. Mental illness is the problem and so gun laws are no help, they argue. Let’s admit that mass murderers are suffering from some mental problem.  It makes sense that anyone in this “right mind” would not shoot small children, or worshipers in a church, or shoppers in a mall, etc. But my question to you is, “If you agree with me, why then do you support a policy that makes it easy for disturbed people to obtain weapons that enable them to kill on a massive scale? That is what your Republican policies are doing. “

More to the point, if it is mental illness, why does your party not support massive improvements in support for treatment of mental illness? In the state of Texas, Republicans cut spending for mental illness significantly under the present Republican administration.  In other words, why are Republicans doing nothing except offering condolences and prayers? I would say, as some of the speakers did yesterday, the time for prayers and condolences is over! It would help if Republicans who really are disturbed by mass shootings would say the same thing very loudly to their candidates.

One argument of those who oppose gun control is that it simply does not work. But the evidence is dead against them.  In the U.S., mass shootings went down when we outlawed military-style weapons, and since that law expired, the number of such shootings has risen steadily every year. In other countries, like Australia and New Zealand, following a mass shooting, gun laws were enacted, and they have not had such horrors since.

We can find a way to legislate gun control that does not violate the Second Amendment. Afterall the Second Amendment does not allow people to buy bazookas, nor flame throwers, nor tanks.

Why should we allow military style weapons or multiple round firing magazines to be sold to civilians in the first place? These are only useful to criminals or the insane, outside of the military and law enforcement officers. Why defend their right to kill or rob innocent people under the guise of the Second Amendment?

One of the most absurd legal realities in Georgia is that a young man of eighteen may not buy alcohol and cigarettes, but he can buy an AR-15 and take it away, without a background check! Republican legislatures are totally responsible for this situation. It will take pressure from Republicans to change the situation.

In other words, Republicans, if you do not like the ideas proposed by Democrats, and you agree that mass killings in America are unacceptable, what measures will you support that would make mass shooting become a distant memory? It should be of utmost importance to you to protect our children, your children or grandchildren for that matter, as much as it is for you work to protect a citizen’s rights to gun ownership because of the Second Amendment? And nothing less than a successful solution is acceptable. The clock is ticking.  Every week there is a new horror for which your party and by extension you are responsible. What are you going to do and how quickly will you do it? We Democrats are on board with making changes to make us safe again. Won’t you join with us to make it happen.

I invite your observations.

p.s Please send my observations to any of your Republican friends. It is a conversation we need to be having. They are the key to the solution.