I serve as a local elected official — Township Trustee.
Last Saturday night we were at a concert by VOCES 8, a British a capella singing group on tour. One of the singers wished us a pleasant and safe travel home at the end of the concert. I thought that was touching.
I later realized that as we were actually driving home, the killer was shooting his victims at the Seelye KIA dealership.
The last two days have been a mixture of the mundane and the disorienting, as we try to come to terms with yet another mass shooting, this time right here in our own community. Anyhow, tonight was our Township Board meeting, and there is always time for member comments. Once in a great while, I use my time for a comment that verges on the political, and this was one of those times. Here is what I said, earlier this evening:
For those who want no change in our gun laws, it is never the right time to talk about it. In between mass shootings, why talk about it? And if you try to talk about it in the aftermath, as now, you are somehow being disrespectful to the victims. “We should be mourning now, no politics”
Well, I was at the prayer service last night at Centerpoint Church, so I’ve done my share of mourning, but I also want to talk about some basic truths, with no disrespect.
The shooter in this case is a poster boy for the NRA – married, two kids, lives in the suburbs, no criminal history, no history of mental illness. In other words, a good guy with a gun. Until he wasn’t, and then it was too late.
Some say this is a mental health issue, not about guns. But mental illness is part of the human condition. It will always be with us. We don’t come with labels as to who will end up being violently mentally ill. It could be you – it could be me. Other countries have mental illness, but they do not have these mass killings, at any rate comparable to us. The only difference is the US has more guns than people. We are alone in the world in that respect. In fact, we have 112 guns per 100 people. Japan has 0.6 per 100 people.
How do we get to fewer guns? I have no idea. We are so conflicted on this issue as a people that it seems impossible. But I know that unless we do, these events will continue, over and over again.