The Column I Never Want to Write Again

Another Way for week of June 3, 2022

The Column I Never Want to Write Again

I do not want to write this column.

None of us—Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, or “Whatevers”—ever want to get the kind of news again we got on May 24 out of Uvalde, Texas. It was a place most of us never heard of.

My heart—and all good hearts—break for the children, their friends, their families, and their teachers whose lives will be forever stained and stricken. And not just Uvalde. Everywhere.

You may have noticed I rarely take sides here or get into politics or write about too controversial of topics.

But on this we should all agree: no more shootings. And that takes guts for me to write. Other countries of the world do not have this same problem to the same degree that the U.S. has experienced for the past 10-20 years. Too many kids have died. Too many college students. Too many police officers. Too many teachers. Too many first responders. Too many families have had their lives and hearts ripped apart.

What can we do? We can ask that school doors are locked and supervised. That parents (or grandparents raising grandchildren) demand unlocked bedrooms for the children. That guns in homes, if any, are locked, secured, put away. That gun shops and gun shows which sell guns live up to their citizenship and make sure all buyers go through background checks, even wait periods. Other countries have extremely tough gun laws—and have very few shoot outs like the ones we’ve become way too accustomed to. We can ask that gun shop owners do right by their position in the community, and put the holds on sales until backgrounds are checked thoroughly.

We can be more vigilant about reporting kids or grown-ups who are acting—or announcing on their phones and other electronic media—their hatred, instability, intentions. We can urge that they get mental health help if that is the problem. We can beg Congress people, too worried about re-election to save the lives of innocent children, to pass stricter gun laws. Until recently I had not realized that the second amendment was put there essentially by the Founders because some Southern states refused to join the fledging new country in order to keep “militias to protect against uprisings by enslaved Africans,” according to columnist Leonard Pitts, Jr. and other historians.

We need to work to ban assault rifles for ordinary citizens: who needs an assault rifle except soldiers, police officers working to protect us, or perhaps bodyguards if you’re the president? With fewer weapons of that type floating around, gangs and drug cartels will perhaps have fewer weapons to turn to. What 18-year-old should have the right to buy an A-15 semi-automatic rifle? They’re not even allowed to buy alcohol, as it should be.

The problems are big and I don’t claim to have answers but we must work at reducing and eliminating active shooters at our schools. Right? We must stand up for children. We must come together or we will come apart as a country.

My grandfather was born on June 3, 1872. He was a good and decent man who I loved dearly. We were very close in his last years. My father was a good and decent man who I loved dearly. Mother and grandmothers too. I assume most of us had good and decent families. Let us unite as good, loving, people to do what we must do to end the carnage, to end the war over our children.

This is perhaps more controversial than usual. I am sorry/not sorry. My heart is bleeding, yes. Is yours? 

P.S. I’m sending this to a few congress people, as one step. Feel free to copy or use.

Comments are welcome here or write to me at anotherwaymedia@yahoo.com or Another Way Media, P.O. Box 363, Singers Glen, VA 22834.

Another Way is a column by Melodie Davis, in syndication since 1987. She is the author of nine books. Another Way columns are posted at FindingHarmonyBlog.com a week after newspaper publication.