sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/commentary/fl-morlino-guns-oped1213-20091210,0,3119158.story
By John J. Morlino, Jr.
December 13, 2009
When Paul Michael Merhige allegedly shot six members of his own family
after their Thanksgiving dinner, it marked America's second consecutive
holiday season marred by mass murder. The tragedy in Jupiter, which left four
dead, including Merhige's 6-year-old cousin, was one of five multiple-victim
shootings over the long weekend, capping a horrific year of gun violence.
The Jupiter rampage was frighteningly similar to the 2008 "Christmas Eve
Massacre" in Covina, California, when Bruce Pardo, dressed as Santa Claus,
walked into a party hosted by his ex-in-laws and opened fire, murdering nine
people, before setting the house ablaze and then killing himself.
Were it not for an historic economic collapse, coupled with the political
firestorm known as heath care reform, 2009 might be remembered as: "The Year
of the Gun." What else to call a twelve-month span in which there was an
average of one high-profile mass shooting in the U.S. every third week?
The sheer volume of carnage was overwhelming, with many shootings coming in
bunches. Earlier this year, eight separate incidents left 58 people dead in
one month's time. Between late summer and early fall, a similar number of
shootings resulted in 75 more casualties, nearly half of them fatal.
The victims of these sensational headlines, however, amounted to only a
fraction of the estimated 30,000 people killed by gunfire in our country this
year — an average of 80 people (including 9 children) per day.
In the vast majority of these shootings, it was reported the gunman acted
alone. Technically, this may be so. But it is also true the rest of us play
a role in enabling these real-life nightmares to unfold.
The segment of our population that believes in the efficacy of gun control
typically responds to these cases by calling for tougher laws — such as
closing gun show loopholes and reinstituting a ban on assault weapons — as
well as vigilant enforcement of statutes already on the books.
Fierce advocates of gun ownership frequently counter by quoting the Second
Amendment, while advancing the notion that upstanding citizens can escape
peril by outdrawing the bad guy. This, despite the fact a homeowner's firearm
is exponentially more likely to be used to maim or kill a family member than
successfully ward off an armed intruder.
Yet if there is anything to be learned from this unrelenting bloodshed, it is
that both of these blueprints for safely co-existing with guns are full of
holes.
The primary reason is that it is impossible to predict anyone's future mental
health.
Registered or unregistered, borrowed or stolen, automatic or semi-automatic,
handgun or rifle — none of it matters as much as the state of mind of the
handler. And since one's psychological condition, as well as the myriad
factors that can influence it, can drastically change at any time, the
standing of a "responsible gun-owner" is subject to the same rules as Russian
roulette.
Not a comforting thought. However if we truly wish to end the onslaught of
senseless shootings that occur each day across the nation, we need to confront
this stark reality, once and for all.
Granted, we are still a long way from accomplishing many of the things that
could temper the violence in our communities — such as providing quality
physical and mental health care to all; reforming our dehumanizing prison
system; and meeting the specialized needs of our growing population of at-risk
youth and traumatized veterans of war.
But while we continue to address these critical issues, there is one thing we
could do to make it far more difficult for individuals to commit murder.
We could decide — together — to get rid of guns.
John Morlino is a California resident and former social worker who founded The
ETHIC (http://www.the-ethic.org) to promote peace, nonviolence and compassion.
Copyright © 2009, South Florida Sun-Sentinel