Warning: Rant Alert
We awoke to the news this morning that there had been a mass murder in a club in Orlando Florida. The initial reports had the numbers at twenty dead and many wounded. The figures were later revised to fifty dead and fifty-three wounded. Throughout the news reporting, the perpetrator of this atrocity was referred to as the 'shooter'. He was more than that. He was a murderer, pure and simple. He murdered fifty innocent people who were doing nothing more than having a good time on a Saturday night. He also attempted to murder fifty-three others during his spree.
A young man in the breakfast room at the hotel was commiserating about the tragedy of it all when I responded with the comment, "Are you surprised? This guy was able to buy a semi-automatic rifle and a handgun with large capacity magazines, even though he had been investigated by the FBI.?"
He responded with the comment, "Now they'll try to take away our rights." I suspect that he was talking about his Second Amendment right to bear arms and that 'they' would try to stop him from owning guns. Since then I have thought about the fact that this murderer's 'right' to own weapons with high capacity magazines trumped the rights of fifty people to their right to life, and they certainly no longer have the right to liberty and the pursuit of happiness. The fifty-three who survived to this point will be imprisoned by the memories of the terror of that night, for the rest of their lives.
It seems to me that the original intent of the Second Amendment is tied up with the phrase "...a well-regulated militia...". This murderer was not a member of a militia or even the National Guard and other than personal desire, there was no valid reason for him to have a rifle that is the civilian model of rifle that was designed for the US military and originally became the M-16. The rifle that this murderer used had a greater capacity to inflict injury than the rifles that any soldier in World War II had available to them.
It and the handgun, a semi-automatic pistol have no other real purpose other than to kill people, and yesterday we saw how effective they could be. One hundred and three lives have been directly affected forever, while those who know and love them will also bear the burden, in some part, of this tragedy as well. All for what? The 'right' of one person to own something that has the capacity to kill people when in the wrong hands We regulate, alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, the right to drive vehicles, the right to belong to professions, and even the right to free speech. But somehow it is anathema to even suggest that the ownership and use rifles and handguns be regulated in any fashion whatsoever.
The immediate reaction is typical. The murderer - I refuse to call him the 'shooter', will be called deranged or mentally ill, as if the problem is an individual's mental health, rather than the easily and widespread ability of these weapons under the guise of a 'right' in the Constitution that the framers never intended, but which has been created in the last twenty-five or so years by the gun manufacturers and their mouthpiece, the NRA, along with some conservative appointees to the Supreme Court, one of whom recently died.
Right wing politicians will respond typically. They will first say the murderer was deranged or mentally ill. That puts the onus on the individual, rather than on a system that allows the unchecked proliferaton of these weapons in a society that already has one gun for each citizen.Then, when pressed to take action to deal with the recurring problem of mass murders, will say that it is too early and emotions are running too high all the while offering their 'prayers and thought's' to the families of the victims as if their prayers and thought make any difference to those families. then they will continue to do as they have always done, wait until this tragedy leaves the public consciousness, only to be replaced by the next 'shiny object'. And nothing changes. If the murder of twenty grades one and two children at Sandy Hook wasn't enough to force change, what is?
When President Obama calls for some regulation of firearms he will be accused of being a dictator who wants to confiscate everyone's guns. Meanwhile, the 'ammosexuals' will see in this conversation the necessity to buy even more guns before they can't get them any longer, and gun and ammunition sales will spike, pleasing the large gun and ammunition manufacturers, and giving the NRA a further reason to exist while they funnel large amounts of money to legislators who do their best to block any meaningful change. What happened in Orlando, at Virginia Tech, in Aurora, Co, and in so many other place will continue to happen unabated. There have been one hundred and thirty-four mass murders in the US in 2016. This is a national tragedy. And I'm writing this as a Canadian who loves the United States but who is deeply troubled by what is happening in this' last best hope for humanity'. End of rant.
Or ride today began in a very leisurely fashion. Our task today was to ride from St. George, UT, to Ely, NV, a distance of about 260 miles (about 425 km) without stopping for attractions. As is our wont, we stopped at the nearest Starbucks before leaving St. George. And as it was yesterday, the Starbucks was tucked away and almost impossible to find, but we prevailed and successfully located it so we could have our morning start me up.
We awoke to the news this morning that there had been a mass murder in a club in Orlando Florida. The initial reports had the numbers at twenty dead and many wounded. The figures were later revised to fifty dead and fifty-three wounded. Throughout the news reporting, the perpetrator of this atrocity was referred to as the 'shooter'. He was more than that. He was a murderer, pure and simple. He murdered fifty innocent people who were doing nothing more than having a good time on a Saturday night. He also attempted to murder fifty-three others during his spree.
A young man in the breakfast room at the hotel was commiserating about the tragedy of it all when I responded with the comment, "Are you surprised? This guy was able to buy a semi-automatic rifle and a handgun with large capacity magazines, even though he had been investigated by the FBI.?"
He responded with the comment, "Now they'll try to take away our rights." I suspect that he was talking about his Second Amendment right to bear arms and that 'they' would try to stop him from owning guns. Since then I have thought about the fact that this murderer's 'right' to own weapons with high capacity magazines trumped the rights of fifty people to their right to life, and they certainly no longer have the right to liberty and the pursuit of happiness. The fifty-three who survived to this point will be imprisoned by the memories of the terror of that night, for the rest of their lives.
It seems to me that the original intent of the Second Amendment is tied up with the phrase "...a well-regulated militia...". This murderer was not a member of a militia or even the National Guard and other than personal desire, there was no valid reason for him to have a rifle that is the civilian model of rifle that was designed for the US military and originally became the M-16. The rifle that this murderer used had a greater capacity to inflict injury than the rifles that any soldier in World War II had available to them.
It and the handgun, a semi-automatic pistol have no other real purpose other than to kill people, and yesterday we saw how effective they could be. One hundred and three lives have been directly affected forever, while those who know and love them will also bear the burden, in some part, of this tragedy as well. All for what? The 'right' of one person to own something that has the capacity to kill people when in the wrong hands We regulate, alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, the right to drive vehicles, the right to belong to professions, and even the right to free speech. But somehow it is anathema to even suggest that the ownership and use rifles and handguns be regulated in any fashion whatsoever.
The immediate reaction is typical. The murderer - I refuse to call him the 'shooter', will be called deranged or mentally ill, as if the problem is an individual's mental health, rather than the easily and widespread ability of these weapons under the guise of a 'right' in the Constitution that the framers never intended, but which has been created in the last twenty-five or so years by the gun manufacturers and their mouthpiece, the NRA, along with some conservative appointees to the Supreme Court, one of whom recently died.
Right wing politicians will respond typically. They will first say the murderer was deranged or mentally ill. That puts the onus on the individual, rather than on a system that allows the unchecked proliferaton of these weapons in a society that already has one gun for each citizen.Then, when pressed to take action to deal with the recurring problem of mass murders, will say that it is too early and emotions are running too high all the while offering their 'prayers and thought's' to the families of the victims as if their prayers and thought make any difference to those families. then they will continue to do as they have always done, wait until this tragedy leaves the public consciousness, only to be replaced by the next 'shiny object'. And nothing changes. If the murder of twenty grades one and two children at Sandy Hook wasn't enough to force change, what is?
When President Obama calls for some regulation of firearms he will be accused of being a dictator who wants to confiscate everyone's guns. Meanwhile, the 'ammosexuals' will see in this conversation the necessity to buy even more guns before they can't get them any longer, and gun and ammunition sales will spike, pleasing the large gun and ammunition manufacturers, and giving the NRA a further reason to exist while they funnel large amounts of money to legislators who do their best to block any meaningful change. What happened in Orlando, at Virginia Tech, in Aurora, Co, and in so many other place will continue to happen unabated. There have been one hundred and thirty-four mass murders in the US in 2016. This is a national tragedy. And I'm writing this as a Canadian who loves the United States but who is deeply troubled by what is happening in this' last best hope for humanity'. End of rant.
Or ride today began in a very leisurely fashion. Our task today was to ride from St. George, UT, to Ely, NV, a distance of about 260 miles (about 425 km) without stopping for attractions. As is our wont, we stopped at the nearest Starbucks before leaving St. George. And as it was yesterday, the Starbucks was tucked away and almost impossible to find, but we prevailed and successfully located it so we could have our morning start me up.
Then it was on to the road. All things considered, the scenery was once a gain great. Different but great, with colourful rock formations near St. George, but as we rode north we ran through farm country with hay being mowed and baled and fields full of Angus cattle.
Soon, however, we climbed about 6000 feet and the land opened up, alternating between short stubby pines and open country covered with sagebrush. In one section we could smell the delightful aroma of alfalfa, sagebrush and pine as we rode.
Garry & Jim checking for snakes in the rocks.
Roadside rest stop
We stopped at the town of Pioche, which was established as a silver mining town in the 1860s. according to an article on the town it was 'badder than Tombstone, badder than Dodge City and the rest.' The cemetery has a 'murderers row' which has more than 100 graves, mostly unmarked. It is fenced off from the graves of the respectable people. The remains of the old mine are above the town and a tramline with ore cars still hangs above the town and crosses Highway 93. From a high of about 8000 in the mining days, to a population of 900 now, Pioche, NV, probably qualifies as a ghost town.
Ore car from the tramline
Remainder of the silver mine pithead
Pioche, NV, main street
Pioche, NV, main street
We carried on toward Ely without any major interruptions except for the occasional rest stop. After turning on to Highway 50, 'The Loneliest Road in America' we topped the pass at more than 7600 feet. As we approached Ely we saw dark storm clouds as we had previously before the turn to Highway 50. This time though, there were several lightning strikes so we pulled into a gas station to refuel, found our hotel and got off the road, just before a light rain began.
Storm clouds in the distance
Along the highway
Storm clouds
After a late lunch I went into the casino to try my luck, and it was good today. I walked out of the casino with one hundred and ten dollars more than I went in with. A good day for me.
My winnings!
As I downloaded my video for the day, I found that my camera is having problem. It shoots video, goes into stop action made, then returns to video. I have contacted GoPro, but I expect that I'll have to pay to have it repaired and the cost will probably be more than it is worth. That part is not so good. So, it looks like there might not be much video for the remainder of the trip unless something miraculous occurs.
Tomorrow, on to Reno, NV,a riding day of about 325 miles (550 km). The weather is supposed to be goos, in the high 70s without rain so it should be a good day. Now if that GoPro would just work properly.
We're gobsmacked by your winnings in American $$$. It was a nice follow up to the rant. I agree with you wholeheartedly and when speaking with Susan, my sister, a chill went down my spine. Her take was someone will try to beat the new "record". Teresa got shivers, she didn't even want to see the photo in large view just in case there was a snake. Good luck in Reno.
ReplyDeleteOh, and there's even more I could say. I refused to eat in a restaurant in Austin, because there was a huge Trump - Make America Great Again hanging out front.
ReplyDeleteGood post, I completely agree with what you wrote. I tend to think we should also regulate religion. Not in an ignorant Trump-style, but with regular "why this is bullshit" public service announcements.
ReplyDeleteAnyhow, I am going to forward your blog to a friend of mine out east who I think will enjoy it as well. The pictures of the old mining boom towns are amazing!
B.