We don’t know a lot about Thomas Matthew Crooks the 20 year-old who attempted to assassinate Donald Trump a few weeks ago and killed another man in the process. We certainly don’t know why he did it, whether it was a political act, a cry for attention or help, or if he just wanted to see if he could pull it off.
Here’s what we do know: Thomas and his dad were deep into gun culture. Crooks’ father, Matthew, sold Thomas the AR-15 used in the assault. There were a total of 14 guns in their home. Matthew and Thomas regularly went hunting and to the gun range together.
Now Thomas and another man are dead and the family — and the family name — are scarred forever.
I don’t know the elder Mr. Crooks but my heart goes out to him and what he has to live with. I’m sure if he had a crystal ball the day he introduced Thomas to guns he would have never put that first gun in his son’s hands.
While Thomas is an extreme case the risks are known. Gun dads have to consider that they are greatly increasing the chance that their child will be among those who die from a firearm, the leading cause of childhood death. A gun in the house doubles the risk of death by homicide and quadruples the risk of suicide which accounts for 40% of childhood gun deaths.
On a personal note, my first wife’s teenage brother committed suicide. He had an argument with his parents and, instead of getting past that relatively minor incident, he grabbed his father’s shotgun and killed himself. That shotgun ended a good kid’s life and created ripples that contributed in major ways to the breakdown of my marriage. Obviously his father deeply regretted having that gun in the home.
There are fantastic alternatives. My recommendation is golf. You get to spend quality time together in nature. It teaches you life lessons about persistence, achievement and even anger management (you golfers will understand). On a good day you even get to shoot birdies. Who knows, your son or daughter may get a college scholarship or make gazillions of dollars from it.
If golf isn’t your bag, get your child a good camera, go into the wilderness and have them shoot photos of the beautiful creatures nature provides. Put those photos up as trophies happily knowing that those magnificent beasts still live. Or try baseball, bowling or boating. How about fishing? Anything but guns.
And when your child complains that all their friends go hunting or shooting with their dads explain that you just love them too much to put them at so much risk.
Guns are a choice. Papas — and Mamas — steer your kids toward far less deadly but equally enjoyable options that will keep you from experiencing the regret, guilt and bottomless sadness that the Crooks family will bear for the rest of their lives.