MASS MURDER

Ever since the shootings in Newtown and the subsequent promises by the President concerning gun control, finding a cure for the horrors of mass murder has been in the national spotlight.  Try not to get bogged down by the statistic part of this but here is what I've found.

In the last thirty (30) years, there have been about sixty (60) shootings in America where four (4) or more persons were killed by the shooter(s) in one place at one time.  Almost every one of these was in a public place.  Twenty-seven (27) shooters were over 40 years old; twenty-three (23) were under thirty (30) years old.  In all but two cases, a single shooter was involved. In fifty (50) of the cases, guns were obtained legally.  Almost all shooters carried a handgun; thirty-five (35) had assault weapons under the current definition.  The most common motive when one could be found was "workplace revenge".  Most of the shooters showed signs of mental illness prior to their action. 

There is one statistic that I omitted from the list above and it is one that I think the country should not ignore.  All but one of the sixty-four shooters described above were male; men and boys!  I suppose most of you are now saying, "Well, duh, what did you expect?" 

The question, I think, should be "Why do we expect they should be men or boys?"  Is it something born into males?  Is it their nature to kill the innocent when frustrated?  I don't think so. 

If not, then we need to ask ourselves, what is it that we or our society does to boys and not to girls to make them want to shoot people?   Surely, there are as many mentally unstable females. Women evidently choose some other form of violence to vent their frustrations.  Are men under more pressure?  Will putting women in combat situations effect all this?

Could it be the cowboy gun he gets versus the baby doll his sister got at Christmas?   How about the image of male soldiers in wars past and future that show up in all forms of media and games? 

Whatever the reasons, we need to do something about how we treat our boys or things will be worse in the future.  Right now, in our country, only about half as many boys graduate from high school as girls.  Right now, in our country, only about half as many boys graduate from college in four years as girls.  Right now, in our country, about 90% more boys than girls are on drugs for ADD or ADHD. 

The biggest current problem is lack of fathers in the household.  Boys lack a model so sports figures or entertainers or the local drug dealer are substituted.  You can't even find a good male roll model on TV, anymore - not one.  Men are depicted as buffoons or worse unless they are cops or robbers. 

Our country needs a real leader to bring us out of this malaise.  Pray we find one some day.  Until then, do your part.
\o.o/