The Issue the Media is Ignoring About Gun Violence in America
I refuse to go on a rant about gun control verses the second amendment. I could go blue in the face and change not one opinion. Instead, I will speak about a much bigger problem that the gun violence is one of many side effects of.
Lets look at how people have responded to gun violence.
Media Glorifies the killer.
NRA pushes for more guns.
Peace Activists push for less guns.
People rush to blame mental illness.
No one talks about the victims.
No one talks about how horrible it is that innocent people died.
These are the issues I will address today.
In Australia, when a single shooting like the countless ones in America occurred, they banned guns. The violence stopped. I do not think this would work in America. Once again this is a result of a key cultural difference in this country.
In the USA, we have this thing called the American dream. On the surface, its the idea that anyone who works hard enough will have a better life. Deep down though, its far more sinister. The idea becomes “I will succeed at any cost. I will do whatever it takes, cheat whoever I can, steal from whoever I can, and take advantage of anyone I can.”
You may notice that the word “I” is used frequently in the paragraph above. That is my problem with Cutthroat Capitalism as I call it. This philosophy is also what is the underlying cause of these shootings. Even worse, it is the reason behind our entire countries’ disregard for human life in general.
In Cutthroat Capitalism, Humans are rivals. They are nothing more. The “I” mentality has led to a complete disregard for all life that isn’t our own. You will not hear about how horrible these deaths are, except from people directly connected to them. In the minds of most, death is nothing more than a statistic.
Ban the guns, people will find other ways to kill. Keep the guns, people will keep killing with them. So long as we view success in a cutthroat light, we will continue to see our fellow humans as obstacles instead of as people who should be respected.
Until then, the weapon does not mater, the killings will continue.