How did Guns get this bad?
A perspective on the issue of gun violence in the United States.
desensitisation
accessibility
stigma
Guns guns guns. Gun control laws are some of the most divisive and controversial political issues, especially in the United States. It is easy to align with the “pro-gunners” or “anti-gunners” and call it a day, but how did it get this bad?
Considering some factors, even those that may not seem directly relevant, and taking some personal experience into account can reveal how these pieces of human technology which are lethal, dangerous, useful, thrilling, impressive, having the potential to keep people safe, yet facilitate too many killings and criminal activity have become such an issue in the United States. Featuring an exclusive perspective from Missouri (of course).
Micheal Robins on Guns in America. 27 July 2020:
‘ You see, I have been trying to give you a perspective of Boone county Missouri, where you and I came from, and I have spent a majority of my life – at least 3/4 of it and 16 years for you.
With some of these half-Ozarks half-St.Louis/Kansas City mentality, really parts of the city as well as the rural areas of Missouri are more dangerous than Syria.
Most of my Israeli friends who are heavily trained special forces as well as just basic infantry and/or people like [our family friend] Arie – who has 25 years special forces experience in 3 different wars, not to mention was an Israeli policeman for 15 years, still the go to security man in Arad at 70 years old – are flabbergasted when they come visit us in Missouri, the crazy state of America, where one state is completely the opposite of another, where you can drive endlessly across the “United” states for 1000’s of kilometers, where you can be in an area police will absolutely not go and there is nothing but anarchy, to a beach in Malibu where you can get fined 150 U.S.D. for walking your friends dog off leash.
I took Arie to the PowderHorn gun shop and bought a Glock 43 baby 9 mm pistol and walked out with it start to finish 15 minutes. As a matter of fact we went to go shooting for a few hours when he and Leah came to visit and I said, “hey guys you wanted to see the gun shop before we went shooting”, so we went to powder horn and they were amazed at all the rifles unlocked that you can just randomly pick up.
I introduced Arie and Leah who both served in the I.D.F. Arie for 25 years as S.F. And a policeman for 15 more years, we talked than I said, ”Arie, how long does it take someone like you to buy a pistol now that your retired from the I.D.F. and Israeli police force?” He said at least 8 months maybe a year. I said “oh yeah well welcome to America my friend check this out ...” I turned to Kelsi and asked, ”Kelsie do you guys have a baby Glock 9 mm with a fiber optic front sight with tritium outline in orange and a tritium rear sight in with a green outline?She said, “I think so let me check!” She brought one up and said this is what you want its the latest generation, gen 4 with the upgraded barrel, deeper texture on the grips, back strap is a bit thicker more handle to get a purchase on with the hands since its such a compact pistol. I said, “wrap it up I will take it.” 15 minutes later were on our way to Dave’s to meet Paul and Pamala and gas off a bunch of different firearms Ari, and Leah are good shots like Sima and Shiran but Paul and I ace the cake on shooting Gaza or anywhere in the Middle East ain’t got nothing on the Mid west around here we have already been around guns by the time...how old were you? 4 1/2 or 5 years old when you shot the Fn 5.7 by 28 pistol with 30 round mags...just saying People live and die by the gun in Missouri St.Louis ,Kansas City,St.Joe,Springfield,Columbia people were packing living with guns dying by gun violence around here since the state was formed. We are a shoot first ask questions later mentality. Now I believe personally I have evolved but helping Jon with this surety bond recovery work in the past years has given me a clear unfettered concept of the brutal violent threads sewn deep within the soul of Missouri, a state ruled by the gun in the beginning, a state born of massive violent slaughter of natives and their food source with via firearms, fire water, Cholera Typhoid and Syphilis.
But hey I still love this state and the Mighty MO going paddling for sunset tonight.Monday hardly anyone will be there.
The friends like them that visit cannot believe how easy it is to get a fire arm ammo and how unregulated training requirements are.They are totally amazed by America from one end to the other. The police are ridiculous to them. The groups that we let run rampant, the immense amount of freedoms we have that we use in a negative instead of positive productive manner astounds them. The lack of training of our police force, the lack of a code of uniformity is something everyone that visits me talks about when they tell me of their American adventures across the country. Most folks that visit from overseas are taken aback by the frequent random violence that we inflict upon ourselves here in America the “land of the free” ‘
As loud and long as I sigh when I receive a text message from my father that is this lengthy, I must say he speaks quite a bit of truth. Throughout his writing, I underlined the portions that stood out to me most relating to the issue of guns in America. At the beginning of this piece, I also listed three of the factors that I feel best encapsulate the issue; they are reflected in my father’s sentiments as well.
Desensitization: I was born in Missouri, and as my Dad said, I was assembling, disassembling, shooting, and very familiar with all types of guns by the time I was 5 years old. Keep in mind that I’m not even an enthusiast, it is just the lifestyle in some states. Now, of course, this is not the case for everyone in the US. Some states have much stricter gun laws, and even within states like Missouri, there are plenty of families that would never condone such an activity. However, you can quite safely make the statement that in a lot of states in the US, the use of guns – and not just hunting rifles, but assault rifles, semi-automatic weapons, and other fancy models that no ordinary civilian needs to ever have access to – is totally normal. In my opinion, this leads to a sort of blind ignorance best dubbed as desensitization. Some people are so unaware that this kind of relationship with guns is not at all normal or necessary. Yes, perhaps shooting at ranges with family and friends is fun. Yes, you may feel safer or be better equipped to protect yourself and those you care about if you are carrying. Yes guns, although rather expensive, can make for an impressive collection to show off to people. Yes, there is something unnervingly satisfying about being a “good shot” and either nailing targets, knocking down bottles and cans from 800 meters away, or in some cases, hunting. Despite all of this, NO it is not normal for such large parts of a population to be so familiar and skilled at handling guns. Take our Israeli family friends for instance. Israel is a nation perpetually at war. They even have a two-year + 8 month mandatory military service for both men and women out of high school. Most would assume that an Israeli special forces soldier, a professional weapons handler who has made their career out of military training, would be much more adept with handling guns than someone with a mere hobby in Missouri. However, practice makes perfect, and someone in Missouri grows up with us much gun practice as they want. Israelis don’t touch a gun until they are at least 18 years old. Then, depending on their posting, they may or may not get much more use out of them. Then, unless you pursue defense positions further, you are exposed to weapons for 2.5 years before getting turned back out into the civilian population where gun-ownership is extremely regulated. If all of this doesn’t sit well with you, we are on the same page.
Accessibility: Hand in hand with this desensitization is the accessibility of firearms in certain states in the US. I completely agree with those who believe it should be extremely difficult to get your hands on a gun, and it isn’t very comforting to know just about anyone who tries hard enough can walk in and out of a gun shop and have a new Glock 9mm within 15 minutes. But the US is too far gone. There is no way to reclaim the nearly 300 million guns that are in official circulation. In America, there will always be a gun available to someone who really wants it, for better, or usually, for worse. The reasons for this accessibility take us back to the founding of the country and are rather self-explanatory. What should be emphasized and focused on is not only curbing it, but starting conversations about it. Not only who feels like they need a gun at home, but who feels like they need the ability to get a gun at the corner shop whenever, and why they still feel like this, and most importantly, besides just taking away their guns and their right to guns, what can the country do from the top down to ease them off these feelings? What efforts can be made by the professionals in the US that don’t “tread on people’s gun rights”, but alleviate the fear that accompanies the lessening gun accessibility? In this I agree also with my father that more uniformity across the different states is needed. Americans love polarizing issues and sewing divisions, and it is always much easier to attack groups on a superficial level than issues at their core. Besides, is it not in the better interest of a state or nation to provide structural, collective, security that their citizens feel confident and comfortable in?
Stigma: This last point may seem like a bit of a stretch, but on the flip side of everything I am saying is another kind of gun stigma that could be ameliorated. For the people that are extremely anti-gun, demonizing all of their fellow Americans with concealed carry permits, and after failed attempts at banishing firearms, some seem to display such an anti-gun attitude that they adopt some ignorance themselves. What is the old saying, keep your friends close and your enemies closer? If you are going to involve yourself in the gun debate, be educated. Learn to understand the types of weapons that are so heavily present around you. How do they work, which ones should be condoned for sale to the public and why, which ones are absolutely ridiculous for your neighbor to have in their closet and why? It is okay to never want to handle a gun, but try not to be angry. If you can attempt to understand someone who is pro-gun, you are better equipped to reason with them. The stigma around guns in the US is felt both ways: people feel unsafe and find it blasphemous that they are so accessible and that it is so normalized to own them. At the same time, people feel unsafe and find it blasphemous that others are trying to take them away. This stigma can also be understood as the polarization and aggression that seems to work its way into many different political issues in the US. Enlisting reason, rationality, and factuality in arguments is usually tedious, boring, and the opposite of the easy way out. But it is worth a try! Although, if you come across an unreasonable and angry pro-gunner, you should, of course, run in the opposite direction (retreating in zig-zagging motions makes you a much more difficult target).
These are merely some of my opinions and observations of gun culture in the USofA. Don’t get me wrong, I loved shooting guns with my father when I was little. Not many people can say they fired a 50 caliber that was longer than they were at the time, and not many girls my age are as good of a shot as I am. Still, I like to recognize the factors that made my experiences, the “behind the scenes” shall we say. I think this inspection is useful not only for understanding how guns got to be how they are in the US, but also rethink perspectives internationally. In fact, inspecting the literal guns themselves, and noting the prevalence in America versus other, violent, currently at-war countries, suggests that indeed, human-error is usually to blame. Unfortunately, banning guns won’t solve the issue. But that isn’t what is important. What is important is why.
