Our Love Affair With Guns And Violence

Copyright 2012 VVeasey Publishing]

08/13/12

The, various mass murders, that have occurred over the years, here in the U.S. got me to thinking about, why they seem to be, an increasing occurrence. I think, it’s tied up with, our love affair with guns, violence and, the second amendment in this country.

This country was founded on violence starting with the revolutionary war. Rich plantation, slave owners, (this includes most if not all of the founding fathers), who owned vast plantations with free slave labor, were the real power in the original thirteen English colonies. They actually, owned the land therefore and the country. They had the say so, about the goods, services, and exchange of money and business transacted, on the land they owned and controlled. They, were English citizens, under the authority of King George, the ruler of Great Britain, at that time. All of the lands, “discovered” by British citizens, under King George’s rule, belonged to King George. Anything, of value produced, or found there naturally, was to be shared with the King.

The rich plantation slave owners, controlled their individual colonies, but King George had authority over all of the colonies.The rich plantation owners, had to pay a tax (a portion of their goods and valuables), to King George and had no say so, about the matter or others matters, when it came to, King George’s authority.

They, refused to pay taxes, if they no say so about paying the taxes (taxation without representation). So, King George, sent an army to subdue them and teach them a lesson.

The. rich plantation owners. were able to rally the common people to fight to protect their properties, by convincing them. they were actually fighting to protect their own "rights", leading to the revolutionary war and the founding of the United States.

I’m, not making any judgments, about whether this was good or bad, just giving my view of the history of violence in this country.

There was the mythologizing of the Old West outlaws and killers, like Billy The Kid, Jesse James, John Wesley Hardin, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and old west lawmen, like Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, Wild Bill Hickok, Pat Garrett and others. They were idolized and hundreds of books, movies and television shows were created about these, gun-toting and badge wearing killers.Many of the old west lawmen were at one time outlaws themselves or worked both sides of the law when it suited their purposes.

We had the Civil War. Thousands killed, maimed, and wounded! People are still mythologizing and admiring the "heroes" of all that bloodshed. Many, Civil War buffs, are still obsessed with reenacting this bloody event.

After, the civil war, the racist, domestic terrorist group, the Ku Klux Klan, was formed.They beat, burned and hanged thousands of black men, and terrorized and killed any whites, who openly, opposed their racist activities, during their reign of terror.

The, Klan, became so popular, that it was reported that President Warren G. Harding, President Woodrow Wilson, President McKinley, President Calvin Coolidge, and President Harry S. Truman, as well as Supreme Court Justice, Hugo Black, were at one time, members of the Klan. (Amazing!)

We had the genocidal Indians wars against native Americans ,where whole tribes were wiped-out and where Civil War hero, and Indian fighter, General Phil Sherman, coined the term "The only good Indian is a dead Indian!"

Then there was the worshiping and idolizing of the prohibition and depression era gangsters, bank robbers and mobsters, like Bonnie and Clyde, John Dillinger, Al Capone, Baby-Faced Nelson, Lucky Luciano, Bugsy Siegel, Machine Gun Kelly and others. Hundreds of books, movies and television shows have been made about the stored lives of these mobsters and killers.

During world wars one and two, news reels and movies, showed all the killing being done as a heroic and admirable thing. The opposing countries were showing the same thing to their citizens from their point of view.

There was the violent, hateful attacks on civil rights marchers and workers. The assassinations of Medgar Evans, Dr Martin Luther King, President Kennedy and his brother, presidential candidate, Robert Kennedy, during the fight for civil rights era.

I

n 1968, during the During week of the Democrats presidential convention, Chicago police brutally, beat young antiwar protesters, who were protesting America's involvement, in the Vietnam war, At Kent State University in 1970, Ohio National Guardsmen fired sixty-seven rounds at unarmed student protesting United States war polices, killing four students and wounding nine others.

In the 1960s, violence starting being portrayed more graphically in movies, showing more blood and gore. Now graphic violence is being shown in kid's video games, showing heads, and arms being chopped off, etc. Let’s not forget slasher movies, showing blood, gore and guts are a prime feature of these movies.

The ass-kicking hero movies became popular, showing the very macho, masculine, hero killing bad guys, making jokes about killing them, and never showing any concern or remorse about what they’ve done. The bad guys’ families are never shown weeping for their dead sons, who are shown as expendable and of no concern or worth at all. Their funerals are never or rarely if ever shown. The killing and violence in these films, is very casual and cavalier.

There, was the popularizing of Gangster Rap, during the nineteen nineties with some rappers actually, trying to live the gangster lifestyle.There, were actual hip-hop culture, drug dealing gangsters, fighting drugs wars, doing drive by shootings, creating and controlling, illegal drug markets, in, immolation of the gangsters of old.The deaths of popular rappers, Tupac Shakur and the Notorious B.IG. Biggie Smalls, were two of the high profile victims of that era.

I'm, not saying, that all of these things are the sole cause of the increasing, violence and mass murders being committed. But I do think that this may cause some kids, teenagers and adults to become more desensitized to violence and violent acts, and see gun violence as a valid way of dealing with their frustrations, anger and disappointments. Couple, this with the increasing frustration and fear, about the economy, world situations, the increase in racial, gender, political and cultural intolerance, and you have an explosive atmosphere, for increasing incidents of gun violence and mass killings.

Violence is an instinctual, survival and self-defense attribute, of human nature, rooted in the emotion of anger. It's not all bad. No emotions are all good or all bad, they're there for the survival of the individual, and are only bad when they are out of balance or used wrongly.

A lot of the violent movies, video games etc, including the old west dime novels, are driven by the over the top concern about making money and increasing "the bottom line" at all costs. Many corporations, venture capitalists and investors, who fund these endeavors, main concerned is making as much money as they possible can non stop, by any means possible!

The don't really seem to give a damn about how these investments may affects people, kids or society, in general. It's all about the money! As their hero, Gordan Geckle, said in the movie, "Wall Street", "Greed is good!"

I read, yet of another shooting report of shooting, this time near the Texas A&M campus.Three people, were shot to dead. The shooter and a police officer were among those killed. Four others were wound including three police officers. The, shooter, was arrested by police, but later died from his wounds.The shooter fired on a law enforement officer, with an automatic weapon, as he was being served with an eviction notice, at his home.

Doesn’t, it seem that since this country has had such a long history of using gun violence, to deal with various issues and problems, that maybe, that’s why we’re seeing more incidents of massive gun violence. Because, people are frustrated, about the economy, jobs, social security, angry about the election of the first black president, gay marriage, etc, etc?

I'm just asking...you tell me what going on.