Comments about ‘In our opinion: Again, a tragedy leaves us mystified’

It can't be explained. But it will provide even more fuel for some among us to strap guns to their hips and go forth in public with fantasies of how they will some day become a hero and prevent a tragedy like this.

Who are the insane among us?

Perhaps most of us.

These are all perfect thoughts for a nation in shock. No one can argue with anything said in this essay. But what is missing is any mention of the culture of our nation that promotes violence as a solution to differences and laws on the books that still remain helpless in protecting our citizens from harm, whether from those mentally disturbed or those bent on destruction and mayhem. Too often after these tragic occurrences soft words of consolation are spoken by public officials and even found on the editorial pages of the nations newspapers, but when we all step up and say "Enough!" When will we start to talk about how we can change our gun laws without violating the rights of our citizens?

The gunman is this case was likely mentally unstable but what about Jovan Belcher, the NFL player who killed his girlfriend and then took his own life? They are dead and a three year old girl no longer has parents simply because Mr. Belcher had a gun. How many deaths in this country each year come about simply because a gun is available? When will we stop fooling ourselves about the sanctity of guns?

An excellent comment, ECR. Thanks.

Wondering about those people who may recently have wrapped up a toy gun for a child this Christmas.....
Today, are they unwrapping that package and disposing of that toy gun?
Yes, a wise decision.

A criminal will get a gun no matter what the gun laws are. I appreciated the words of the editorial. Teaching everyone love and kindness will go farther than restricting laws.

@ ECR: According to reports, Mr. Belcher was suffering from depression which he has been battling for years. Depression is a mental illness.

Kalindra and Meadow Lark Mark - Can I assume from your remarks that you are included in the crowd that assesses the damage done yesterday and so many times over the past few years and just throws their hands in the air and says "There's nothing we can do"? The free availability of guns to the wrong people is what caused this tragedy and all the others. Oh yes, people kill people, not guns. I've heard it too many times and every time a tragedy like this happens it's one of the first things that people say in addition to those who promote even more freedom in carrying guns. But why can't we explore, just briefly, why this tragedy happens so many times in this country and hardly ever happens in other countries. Yes, it is because their gun laws have been effective in stopping, or at least limiting, this kind of thing happening.

The Second Amendment guarantees our right to bear arms. But we, as a nation, have abused that right. Isn't that obvious? And when rights are abused, they are lost, or should be.

Mystery?
This is no mystery.

Check what meds he was taking.

Mystery solved.

I don't think now is the time to start casting blame around but since previous posters have then I think I'll get my two cents in. First of all, if we're going to toss God out of schools and out of the public square then I don't know why people are shocked when the Devil walks through the front door. Also, when we have a culture that devalues human life by allowing abortion on demand then why are people surprised that some people do not understand the preciousness of life? When we have a society that glorifies immorality and scorns morality then why are people surprised when someone commits an immoral act?
I know my reasons cannot explain an inexplicable act but neither can the prevalence of guns in our society.

I suspect we will find out more in the days to come. I would be surprised that if there weren't symptoms of mental illness leading up to this. I have had students who had problems with schizophrenia. Apparent most never become violent but it does happen sometimes. It might be interesting if the Deseret News did a follow up specifically on the research into this disease. Certainly learning more about what motivates such madness would appear to be the most important thing we can do to prevent future tragedies.

@red state dogma

5 questions...

So, non-believers are devils?

As a result, your non-believing neighbors invite the devil through their front door?

Your neignbors know you feel this way?

A believer has never had an abortion?

People commit immoral acts because of society?

ECR since you seem to have all the answers, when we restrict the gun laws so no one can get a gun, how do we stop criminals from getting a gun?

ECR doesn't have the answers for keeping guns out of the hands of criminals. He makes ordinary citizens more vulnerable by restricting their ability to protect themselves from criminals.

MLM and Sal - The only answer I'm claiming to have is that we need to take an honest look at how we can change our culture and our laws to prevent or at least hinder the chances of this thing happening again. There is a huge casm between "no one having a gun" and responsibly changing our laws to keep guns out of the hands of the wrong people. But nobody wants to talk about it, not even after a tragedy like this happens for the umpteenth time. In fact if someone does talk about it they are usually labeled "unAmerican". So let me ask you, is it an American trait to stand by and watch innocent children die and then simply shrug our shoulders and say "Too bad but there's nothing we can do."?

And what is your answer to this issue? What ideas do you have to stop the carnage? If your answer doesn't include making some change to the access people have to automatic firearms, please explain what will stop others, meaning the wrong people, from getting those weapons?

Mystified? Really? Have you seen what passes for a popular video game these days? It's not baseball, that's for sure. And the nanny groups don't seem to mind how badly people mangle one another on tv as long as they don't get past 'darn' in the dialogue. We label health care as a socialist entitlement, but let military spending run amok. What kind of message does that send? Finally, we craft a society where the only way we can apparently be safe is if we're all prepared to kill one another, all the time. I'm many things when one of these events occurs, but never am I mystified as to why.

@ ECR: In your first comment, you state that this gunman was most likely mentally ill and then mention Mr. Belcher and claim he was able to commit murder and suicide simply because he had access to a gun.

I point out that he also had a mental illness and from this you assume I am throwing my hands up in the air declaring there is nothing that can be done?

Lots of people have guns, but there only seem to be problems when mental illness is involved. Perhaps, instead of focusing on the guns, we should focus on removing the stigma of seeking treatment for mental illnesses? It seems to me that making sure people who are mentally ill get the help they need is the best way to prevent future tragedies like this.

Re: "How many deaths in this country each year come about simply because a gun is available?"

Zero. As we all know, it's not the gun, it's the evil and/or diseased mind, that perpetrates evil.

But we also know that at least 26 people are dead because an heroic principal had the fortitude, but not the tools to stand up to evil. She was reportedly killed lunging, unarmed and empty-handed at the crazed gunman who went on to kill 25 more, mostly children.

This incident would have had a happier ending if she and other willing teachers and staff had been trained and permitted to come to work packing.

Or, more likely, would not have occurred at all, if evil, cowardly gunmen were not guaranteed, by law, access to unarmed, unprotected victims.

Kalindra - "Lots of people have guns, but there only seem to be problems when mental illness is involved."

Last year over 9,000 people lost their lives to gunshot wounds in the United States. Are you suggesting that everyone of those deaths was caused by someone with mental illness? If that were the case then who is it that is getting convicted of murder and sent to prison? Their lawyers must be inept if they can't get them off for being mentally unstable.

Every aspect of our lives in America is dominated by violence and violent images. As Hutterite points out above, the video games advertised on TV and purchased freely by the youth of the nation are based on violent acts. And that violence is celebrated. We are a culture of violence. Over 25% of the people incarcerated in the world are incarcerated in the United States. Part of that is because we have better law enforcement but part of it is because we have more criminals. All I'm asking for is a conversation that includes the possibility that too many guns are made available too easily. But so far, that conversation has been stilted by the gun lobby.

Morgan Freeman made a statement which makes sense to me. They kill people because they will be famous. His idea is to forget their names and to remember the names of the victims.

A 60 year old with forty seven guns and $100,000.00 in ammunition was just arrested for planning to kill people at elementary school in Indiana. A rifle or weapon for home defense or hunting does not correlate to allowing crazy powerful weapons and military capabilities.