Letter: The danger of gun violence becoming so common

Posted 5/18/23

To the editor:

During a recent trip to the grocery store I ran into a friend who was also shopping, and because it was the day after our country's latest mass shooting at a similar venue in …

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Letter: The danger of gun violence becoming so common

Posted

To the editor:

During a recent trip to the grocery store I ran into a friend who was also shopping, and because it was the day after our country's latest mass shooting at a similar venue in Texas, our conversation quickly turned to that subject. And while we have had numerous conversations in the past regarding mass shootings, my friend was somewhat taken aback by my lack of outrage and sorrow regarding this horrific event.

Unfortunately, my response was that mass shootings have become so common in our country that they no longer elicit an emotional response from me, and I went on to list my reasons why these incidents have become so prevalent.

I explained to my friend that the number one reason for the gun violence epidemic in our country is the Republican (and a few Democrat) legislators who are bought, paid for, and beholden to the NRA, the gun manufacturers, and the gun loving MAGA types who pour millions of dollars into their election coffers. The next reason would be the ridiculous argument by many gun advocates that the passage of common sense gun control legislation would allow our government to confiscate all guns and turn our country into a modern day Nazi Germany, which is simply preposterous.

And the final reason for this bloodshed is that we as a society have become so accustomed to mass shootings that they no longer cause shock and outrage among the populace, which is an absolute shame.

Before we ended our conversation, I warned my friend that without the passage of comprehensive federal gun control laws, I predicted that mass shootings in our country are soon going to become just as commonplace as buying a loaf of bread at the grocery store, and while I doubt it, I hope that my prediction does not come true.

Mike Proto
Bristol

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