Only In ‘America’

Posted on by under education, guns, History, Law and justice, Political commentary, Rants, Social commentary

Yesterday afternoon, just as I was beginning to work on a good people post for this morning, the breaking news update jumped onto my screen …

Texas school shooting leaves at least 2 dead

I stopped what I was doing and went in search of information … turns out that, as you all know by now, 19 students and one teacher, Eva Mireles, were killed … or let’s call a spade a spade … they were brutally murdered while in school, the one place our children should be able to feel safe!  The death toll may yet rise if some of the students taken to the hospital don’t survive, or if students still missing are later reported to have died.  Plus, the 18-year-old shooter shot his grandmother, who is in critical condition in the hospital, before setting out for Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas.

This, my friends, is what Texas Governor Greg Abbott proudly said just one year ago …

No license or training is needed. 🙄 YOU, Greg Abbott, have the blood of these children on your hands and you will never be able to wash it off!  Senator Mitch McConnell, who has an A+ rating from the National Rifle Association (NRA), claims to be “horrified and heartbroken” and yet time and time and time again he has had the opportunity to pass meaningful gun legislation that might have prevented the 18-year-old shooter from getting his hands on a gun.  YOU, Mitch McConnell, and every other Republican legislator who has blocked gun regulations, also have blood on your hands!!!  And U.S. Senator from Texas, Ted Cruz, sent thoughts and prayers and said he disdains any discussion on gun legislation.  YOU, Cancún Cruz, also have blood on your hands!!!

Days like today, I am so very thankful for a President who is compassionate and caring.  President Biden gave a speech yesterday evening where he said …

“Another massacre at a Texas elementary school. Beautiful, innocent second, third, fourth graders. As a nation, we have to ask: When in God’s name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? Why? Why are we willing to live with this carnage? Why do we keep letting this happen? Where in God’s name is our backbone, the courage to do more and then stand up to the lobbies? It’s time to turn this pain into action. I am sick and tired of it. We have to act. And don’t tell me we can’t have an impact on this carnage. For God’s sake, we have to have the courage to stand up to the industry.”

And former President Barack Obama issued a statement …

“Nearly 10 years after Sandy Hook — and 10 days after Buffalo — our country is paralyzed, not by fear, but by a gun lobby and a political party that have shown no willingness to act in any way that might help prevent these tragedies. It’s long past time for action, any kind of action. And it’s another tragedy — a quieter but no less tragic one — for families to wait another day.”

I cannot help but share the pain of the mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, grandparents and friends of those 19 children tonight.  Picture being a parent at work, getting that phone call …

Eleven days ago, ten people were murdered in a supermarket in Buffalo, New York.  Yesterday, 20 people, 19 of them children, were murdered in school, just two days before the end of the school year.  Where are all those ‘pro-life’ people???  Probably out there carrying signs that read “You can’t take my guns!” or some such drivel.  My granddaughter, when I told her about the school shooting, asked what kind of country this has become.  Not a very nice one, I’m afraid.

Just as I was finishing this post, I saw one from John Pavlovitz that I hope you’ll take a moment to read, for he said it far better than I ever could.  I hope you can understand why this post replaced today’s ‘good people’ post.  I will try to get one out later this week, but if not, there’s always next Wednesday.

81 thoughts on “Only In ‘America’”

  1. This has to be so hard for any kind, sensitive and good person in not only the USA but also the entire world. I am glad there are few televisions in my ‘world’ – only one that I can recall in a restaurant where I sometimes dine. The only contact I have with world events is when I am online – and those small doses can be quite intense. I think of friends in the USA who keep their televisions on all day – as background noise perhaps? – and it is surely toxic to have that habit right now.

    I was happy to see that Beto crashed the governor’s news conference and said, ‘Enough!’ – and equally happy that he did not punch anyone. There is a time to speak up – and I admire him for that – as silence allows for no change.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Well I’m home again and see that many people in the news stories are not pleased with the way Beto expressed his disgust. A priest once counseled me to deal with an acute problem while the wound was still open. This certainly applies to now – not only with the gun problems but with so many issues that are ripping our country apart. I hope that out of the grief and sadness, new solutions are implemented.

      Liked by 1 person

      • Ha ha … I LOVED what Beto did and I’m hoping enough others will love it as well … enough to vote him into the Governor’s Mansion in November! Like you, I hope that all the trials and disasters we are experiencing now translate into changes in November.

        Liked by 1 person

    • It is, indeed hard, and made harder by the politicians who defend the insane gun culture in this country, who are willing to put the lives of our children in jeopardy in order to feed their enormous appetite for power and profit. I never watch television, but get more than my fill of the news from the 20+ news sources I subscribe to online. It is overload sometimes, but at least I can turn it off when I need to and at least I am seeing news, not the faux news offered by the likes of Fox.

      Yes, I gave Beto a thumbs-up for that! I hope the people of Texas do the same in November!

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  2. This guy…smh. I couldn’t even make up half of the crap that spews out of his or DeSantis’ mouth anymore. This situation reminded me of how my sister got her little pea shooter. My sister is retired military, and when her ex-husband was threatening to kill all of us, she went to get a revolver after several failed protection orders. I am not sure how it is in other parts of the country, but she had to wait her time before she could bring her weapon home. She is trained to use assault rifles, but she still had to wait either 15 or 30 days. That is how it should be for every normal citizen. Assault rifles belong with the military, not citizens. There is no excuse that this shooter could go buy two guns in two days. Texas gun laws are way too lax, and this country should never allow the sale of military weapons. Abbott just wants to put it on mental health rather than their guns. It’s atrocious, and I am so glad that voices are coming out, like Stephen Kerr with the Golden State Warriors and Beto O’Rourke. I never thought there would be another incident of this in my lifetime in a grade school after Sandy Hook. All those innocent babies 😦 #IStandWithUvalde

    Liked by 1 person

  3. Gov Abbott said the Uvalde school shooter sent three private messages via FB. The first saying he was going to shoot his grandmother. The second saying he had shot her. The last one said he was going to shoot up an elementary school. So sick. The guns didn’t do it. He did.

    Liked by 2 people

  4. “How much NRA money backed Republican candidates. In 2012 the NRA spent $9 million in the presidential election, and in 2014 it spent $13 million. Then, in 2016, it spent over $50 million on Republican candidates, including more than $30 million on Trump’s effort to win the White House. This money was vital to Trump, since many other Republican super PACs refused to back him. The NRA spent more money on Trump than any other outside group, including the leading Trump super PAC, which spent $20.3 million.
    The unfettered right to own and carry weapons has come to symbolize the Republican Party’s ideology of individual liberty. Lawmakers and activists have not been able to overcome Republican insistence on gun rights despite the mass shootings that have risen since their new emphasis on guns. Even though 90% of Americans—including nearly 74% of NRA members—support background checks, Republicans have killed such legislation by filibustering it. “

    Liked by 4 people

    • I’ll be working on a post soon about exactly who is taking money from the NRA and other unconscionable organizations, but I don’t have answers to your questions at this time. Stay tuned!

      As for the unfettered gun ‘rights’ … these were never … NEVER what the Founders of this nation, the drafters of the U.S. Constitution, envisioned. Military assault rifles were designed only for the military and never intended to be in the hands of civilians, and yet today people screech like banshees that it is not only their constitutional right, but their “god-given” right. This nation is turning rapidly into a banana republic, a third world style nation.

      Liked by 1 person

  5. Seeing all this from the other side of the pond it also seems to be a mental health catastrophe. I assume the 18-year old had mental health problems but no help whatsoever. I work at a mental health hospital and know how little control patients have over their actions when they are in a crisis. Together with no or hardly any gun controls this seems utter madness. Ah, I saw Mr Abbott drivel something about Chicago having gun controls but people still get shot in the streets. Duh?! Firstly, no-one should have to be afraid to be shot anywhere and secondly surely a school should be a safe place? Sigh. Whom do I tell this? You know it. I know it. But the greedy and money-hungry so-called leaders obviously not… 😪

    Liked by 2 people

    • Like you, dear Bee, I’m guessing the killer had mental health issues for no sane person would enter a school and simply shoot to death an entire classroom of 8-9 year old children. This nation has almost no gun laws to keep this from happening. Why? Because the gun industry pays our members of Congress lots of money to ensure they won’t pass gun regulation. Sigh. Texas Governor Abbott is proud of Texas having the most guns, or 2nd most, of any state. The lives of 19 children mean nothing to him. I despise this nation more than I ever thought possible. Sigh. Hugs, sweet Bee.

      Liked by 2 people

  6. Pingback: ONLY IN ‘ AMERICA ‘ . |jilldennison.com | Ramblings of an Occupy Liberal

  8. ‘Murica luvs it’s guns, drugs & dirty politicians. It would take a miracle (unified collective effort) for ‘we the ppl’ to step up and clean out the trash.
    Whatever happened to those powerful societal changing PROTESTS of the 60’s?
    Jill, dear readers of WP, are we up to the task?

    Liked by 1 person

  9. Thank you for sharing!!… again, it goes back to the people… the politicians, etc follows the will of the people they represent… in the case of the Republicans, a percentage of the people they represent are a closed minded element of society and for the most part thinking only of themselves (sometimes out of fear) caring little for others, out of sight, out of mind… 🙂
    Confronting the leadership will not accomplish much, one has to communicate with the people… change has to start in the neighborhood, then the town, then the state, and so on… “Change will not come if we wait for some other person, or if we wait for some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” (Barack Obama )… 🙂

    Good people, like you, are still doing good things and until we meet again…

    May love and laughter light your days,
    and warm your heart and home.
    May good and faithful friends be yours,
    wherever you may roam.
    May peace and plenty bless your world
    with joy that long endures.
    May all life’s passing seasons
    bring the best to you and yours!
    (Irish Saying)

    Liked by 3 people

    • the politicians, etc follows the will of the people they represent

      I’m sorry, my friend, if you believe that then I believe that you’re deluding yourself. Most politicians follow their own avaricious path; they accumulate wealth and use it to pervert society to enable them to gather more, and, worse, hoodwink ‘the people they represent’ with lies and false promises… and on, and on it goes in a spiral down to hell. See for instance my post ‘Even the pessimists got it wrong, revisited‘.

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    • You are so right, my friend … it takes a wave of angry, fed-up people refusing to vote for the idiots who are working for the wealthy and have long since forgotten about the other 99% of the nation. I’m always puzzled, though, how people can be so blind that they don’t see the many ways in which their elected officials are working against the best interest of the people. Is this nation really so under-educated in matters of history and governance? Or just so wrapped up in their own little lives that they don’t bother to look outside their windows? Thank you so much for your kind words and for the lovely Irish Saying, dear Dutch!

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  10. As a devout atheist and anti theist I shall spend ten minutes ten seconds
    praying to Jesus in the hope that he will give these kids the opportunity to piss on all pro gun people who end up in Gehenna,so help me Yahweh who I don’t believe in.
    Perhaps it might simply best to arm all the teachers and also arm kids from the moment they enter kindergarten?
    And the janitor, and the ground staff, school sports coaches and the ladies in the canteen, and especially all resident pastors and priests and R.E. teachers.
    Oh…and don’t forget armed guards at the school entrance and arm the lollipop person who helps kids cross the road.
    And because the US is a Christian nation all future depictions of the fictitious bible character Jesus of Nazareth should portray him holding, not a lamb, but an automatic rifle with laser sights wearing a large NRA badge and a “USA is MY country” T-Shirt.

    Gotta lurv them gun tottin’, freedom luvin’ Christians, right?
    Ye Haw?

    Liked by 6 people

    • Dear Ark, ur sardonic repartee is aptly appreciated… if only ur words were not lost on our elected officials. Unfortunately for us, ALL politicians are pro-gun b/c the payoffs are so lucrative. Indeed they would love to see everyone, including grade schoolers, packing AR-15s, glocks, rugers, 9mms at the very least! It does wonders for their stock portfolios and campaign contributions come election time.
      Yes, i’m referring to hypocrites like Pelosi, Schumer, Biden and of course all Republican officials on the take. 😦

      Liked by 3 people

  11. Jill, your title is sadly correct in terms of numbers. We are number one. We have more gun deaths than all the other top 23 civilized nations in the world. Are rate of gun deaths is three times that of Canada, where they also like their guns. Three times the rate. Let me say this loudly, once again, we will NEVER solve this problem until our legislators act like parents and grandparents and stop acting like people scared of the NRA focused base.

    Quite sadly, this is no longer news in America. It has become routine. What shooting will come next week? How many more teens, young adults and college students will commit suicide due to access to guns? How many more adults or kids will be shot, because a four or six year old found a loaded weapon? How many more people will be shot in a mass shooting because someone with a cause, a beef, a fantasy got access to a gun.

    Thoughts and prayers will not solve this problem. They have become a trite way for a legislator to say I am sorry your loved one is dead, but watch me dribble the basketball to stall out the game clock on this episode. Keith

    Liked by 4 people

    • I wonder if the legislators are acting like people scared of the NRA base, or if they are scared of losing those NRA dollars, and therefore have convinced their base that their guns are a ‘right’ that is important to their survival. When I read that some 80% of people in this nation, including gun owners, are in favour of an assault weapon ban and stronger gun regulations, I have to wonder who the legislators are truly representing. Methinks it’s the gun industry rather than We the People.

      Even as early as Tuesday evening, the GOP was arming themselves with theories and denials. Rather than sensible gun legislation, they seek to put guns in the hands of teachers. One thing is certain … we won’t have to wait long for the next horrific shooting. Not even two weeks between Buffalo and Uvalde. Where will the next one be … a block from your home or mine? What does it take … does it take one of their children to be brutally murdered? Would that even be enough? Sigh. I’m deeply ashamed of this nation this week.

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  12. In the medical field, when a patient is diagnosed with lung cancer; the doctors do not tell him it’s ok to keep smoking while they diligently work to cure the disease with the most innovative, up-to-date medications available. This patient may not make it but, not for lack of trying by the medical professionals. The cancer is a symptom, an indicator, a warning signal about what is going on inside that persons body.

    Our society is sick and it’s terminal. In the case of our illness, instead of treating the symptoms and cutting out, medicating and trying to eradicate the disease; we not only continue using that which is harming our children and ourselves, we actively advocate for more of what has caused the initial symptoms to begin with. Forget probing deeper to decipher what has created this horrible, debilitating, murderous affliction; we want to feed it with less restrictions and education about the symptoms and the disease itself because it’s our right as American’s to continue allowing crazed, bigoted, racist, unstable people to bear arms and kill our live, breathing, productive and beloved children?

    Let’s start working to eradicate these symptoms so we can figure out how to best cure this cancer that has invaded our society. No matter how much you love your cigarettes, they cause cancer and kill and they are an addiction. No matter how much you love your weapons and your perceived right to own them; they are an addiction and they kill.

    Liked by 4 people

    • A very apt take on the situation, my friend. Sadly, it seems that far too many people have been fed a steady diet of that cancerous substance, their 2nd Amendment “rights” and it’s way past time we set aside those ‘rights’ and concern ourselves with ‘curing the patient’, or protecting the lives of every person in the nation. When it is no longer safe to go to the grocery store for a gallon of milk, or for a child to go to school in order to learn, then the gun ‘rights’ have gone way too far and it’s time for surgery!

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  13. We can preach all we want to but the sad fact is that America will never change as long as Guns control the national dialogue so we might just as well shut up and wait for the inevitable.

    Liked by 3 people

  14. Because, a lot of the people are all for their, second amendment rights, and, there’s no, tougher background checks for those who want to purchase a dangerous weapon, the accessibility, the availability of these weapons, for anybody to own, is what makes so many random shootings happen, especially, seeing how easily, people can, crack in modern day world.

    Liked by 3 people

    • Like everything else, it boils down to money. The gun industry spends millions, perhaps billions every year to keep our lawmakers from voting for even minimal gun legislation. And the lawmakers convince the more ignorant of the people that they NEED their guns, that the government is going to try to take them away and they need to be able to kill lots of people, that it’s their “god-given right”. Sigh.

      Liked by 1 person

    • They don’t put a stop to this because they do not want to put a stop to this. If they had really wanted to put a stop to this they would have done it after Sandy Hook. Murder by gun is part of the American DNA just the same as murder of the unborn by abortion. Americans are bloodthirsty; it is our nature; we are born with it, there is no escaping it … all we can do now is wait for the next such tragedy and then the one after that and then the one after that …on and on and on …

      Liked by 3 people

    • Because we have 5o Republican Senators holding us hostage refusing to vote on gun control bills offered by the Democratic house. These congressmen receive payoffs from the National Rifle Association in the millions . Their coffers a filled with blood money. They are complicit in the death of these children. They are and represent the well known ugly and immoral Americans.

      Liked by 3 people

    • Neither can I, my friend. Well … actually, I know the reason, but I don’t understand it. Far too many of the people who COULD put a stop to it, are in the pockets of the gun manufacturing industry and they will vote against any form of gun legislation to keep their donor dollars rolling in. What I don’t understand, though, is how they sleep at night, knowing they took an oath to act in the best interest of the people of this nation, and they are doing the exact opposite. Sigh.

      Liked by 2 people

  18. Pingback: Terror in Texa (Content Warning) – Coalition of the Brave

  19. Sigh … again… Haven’t we all been through this enough times (once is already too much!)? I still remember your posts about previous shootings, Jill, and how the non-Americans of us said we cannot bend our heads around this aspect of US tradition… Again, I only can say “I don’t understand”. I don’t understand how this is possible in this age. I don’t understand why these incidents are not seen as a wake-up call. I don’t understand how gun lobbyists can still say “guns don’t kill people” and look at themselves in the mirror without flinching. These people have kids too, right? Are they not afraid this could happen at their own school? – We do have our share of angry and derailed people here too, and sometimes they get their hands on a gun and terrible things happen. But at least we don’t make it so damn easy for them! – So, my thoughts are with those poor parents and kids that have to go through this nightmare. And I wish that all those gun lobbyists somehow get their “Scrooge moments”… Let the ghosts of past, present and future shootings haunt them during their waking and their sleeping hours!

    Liked by 3 people

  21. Pavlovitz said it well, but anyone who speaks against guns and gun violence is saying it as well as they can. America is SICK, It may be tiime to surgically remove it from this earth if Americans cannot do this for themselves. I am gladI live 1600 kilometres notth of the border that seperates Csnada from the US. EVEN THAT IS NOT FAR ENOUGH AWAY FROM YOUR CANCER TO MAKE ME FEEL SAFE.

    Liked by 6 people

    • You’re right … we are all making valid points, but before the smoke even cleared on Tuesday, the damn Republicans were accusing Democrats and suggesting such STUPID things as arming all teachers, making guns easier to get, having more guns in the hands of lunatics, etc. I’m sick and damn tired of it all. I’d like to find a little self-sufficient island a million miles from here and try to forget I ever heard of this country.

      Liked by 1 person

  22. Damn, that’s horrible.

    As today is your usual slot for a ‘good people’ post, I’m going to hijack this comment: ‡

    Happy Towel Day, my friend! Here’s a gift for you to celebrate this hoopy occasion.

    Don’t forget your towel! 🧖

    ‡ As this comment includes two links, it may end up in moderation: feel free to delete it if you consider it too insensitive in the circumstances!

    Liked by 2 people

    • Happy Towel Day (belated) my friend!!! I’m confused, though … the comment did go to moderation, I approved it, but there are no links ????? I didn’t kill the links, so I don’t know where they went! Can you re-comment and include the links again? I’m so sorry I missed towel day, but this shooting occupied all the space in my mind. 😔

      Liked by 1 person

    • No other western nation on the globe has as few gun laws as the U.S. We have approximately 330 million people and more than 400 million guns. The gun culture here is nuts … I’m so damn sick of it all. xx

      Liked by 1 person

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