After watching and reading about the massacre in Connecticut, I have found the responses people are having to be even more tragic.
We live in a society that not only promotes, but also enjoys violence. We throw children in cages with animals and begrudge them for acting like tigers. Parents are too busy or simply chose not to spend time with their kids. They let them play violent video games to keep them busy. Schools generally cater to the popular, well-off kids. The ones struggling often fall between the cracks.
How do we respond?
We blame an inanimate object for inherent human nature. Blaming guns for what just happened in Connecticut is like blaming cars for drunken driving. Banning cars to stop drunken driving is no less ridiculous than banning guns to stop violence. Banning cars to stop global warming would make sense.
We are skimming over the real problem, which is the violent nature of people. We are a disaster reactive society. We only react to issues when they have become a disaster. Regardless of where you are on the nature-nurture issue, there is something to consider:
Maybe if we put down the iPhones and turned off the football games, we could address some of these problems before the disaster strikes.
JAMES NEALON
Saratoga Springs
