Uvlide Aftermath

Before we all become passengers on the gun control train, perhaps we should ask some pertinent questions before we punch the ticket. Unlike President Biden, for example, who had a chance to be unifying and presidential but instead chose to deliver shrill partisan talking points before he had all the information. For example:  how exactly did an eighteen-year-old purchase two assault rifles with what appears to be a holographic sight on one of them, a fore-end grip, and 375 rounds of 5.56 ammunition?  And I’m not talking about the red flags that should have gone up when the gun dealer noticed this kid creating a small arsenal on the first day he could legally buy them. Further, I want to know how this kid plopped down what would probably be $2000 for the rifles and accessories and, even if he bought the cheap bulk stuff, would have paid over 50 cents a round, or nearly $200, for the ammunition. Plus tax. Paper routes must pay better than they did when I was a kid. And where exactly are the parents of this little psychopath?  Two long guns and 375 rounds of 5.56 don’t exactly hide in your sock drawer. Didn't anyone notice?  What was his home situation, and who exactly was responsible for supervising the little cretin?  Medications? Drug use? And in this day of the ubiquitous cellphone and the intrusive internet, a world where you can’t trip in public without having it captured by some purple-haired, pierced, tattooed, cellphone wielding Gen Z influencer, why were none of this kid’s online rants, harassment and gun posts brought to the attention of law enforcement?  Wake up children; it’s not all about what will get you hits on tik-tok. We keep talking about how we need the FBI to monitor the internet for signs of these miscreants going off the rails, when in fact we have an entire generation that does nothing but scours the internet in search of clickbait. Millions likely saw his screed but chose to ignore it in favor of the latest Kardashian dating scandal. Face it, kids, you have to develop some societal responsibility because you are the new neighborhood watch. As more information leaks out, we will get a better idea of what we are dealing with. Gun bans are like putting a bandaid on a tumor and more often punish the law-abiding, whereas evil will always find a way. This will continue to grow and morph. More effort is needed on identifying these tumors before they grow and metastasize. A pattern is developing: the lone wolf, the social outcast, a teenage male, threatening internet posts, exposure to violent images, and often mental health issues. And they always strike the soft targets, the most vulnerable. Identify the source, harden the most likely targets, protect the vulnerable and treat the disease. Gun bans will be popular, especially in the blue states, but beyond being expedient, and allowing politicians a platform on which to grandstand, they will do nothing to solve the problem.