Everybody Look What's Going Down

Earlier today a police officer in Texas was shot to death while serving an eviction notice. An innocent bystander was shot and the man that killed the officer was eventually shot and killed as well.

Every single time a shooting hits national headlines the gun supporters always launch a preemptive strike (something that's becoming the M.O. of the right wing) against the liberals that want to take away their 2nd Amendment right.

For me, when a shooting occurs I don't think to myself that we need to eliminate guns in this country. I do believe there would be a lot less deaths if we did but I accept reality for what it is and try to work with it to the best of my abilities. I would even be very concerned if our government actually took it upon themselves to change the 2nd Amendment at this point in the ball game. But I confess I do find myself troubled with the discussion that takes place around this topic. It seems very shallow and never really addresses the concern of those in the middle.

I've scoured over some of the recent posts and comments regarding the latest killings that garnered national attention. The only solution provided by those on the right that rail for more guns is, "this wouldn't have been so bad if more people were packing." I'm not suggesting those on the left that call for tighter gun laws have a perfect solution. But I am suggesting that they have concerns that go unanswered, even not addressed, when the debate surfaces.

Again, I'm not siding with those on the left; I'm simply pointing out that what motivates them is the fact they don't like to see people die. Whether or not I agree with their solution, I do share their sentiment. Not to be unfair to those on the right and imply they aren't concerned about human death. I give them the benefit of humanity and assume they don't like it either. But what strikes me is when something like this incident today happens it demonstrates that sometimes the end result is undesired no matter the amount of weaponry.

Don't think I believe the Aurora shootings and the shooting of the Texas officer today are the exact same scenario, I don't. That, however, doesn't mean I don't share a common concern about these killings. The thought that races through my head is "Now What?".

The police officer was killed in the line of duty. That happens. He approached a house and the man inside decided it wasn't going to go down the way the law wanted it to go down and he shot and killed people. Now what? A trained officer with a weapon was killed by a citizen with a weapon. What could have prevented that?

I assume the majority of people would be resigned to believing things of this nature can't totally be prevented. I would even assume some of you would question the tactics of the officer. Others might question the background of the suspect and inquire about his gun ownership. Some might have even came up with other angles I didn't address. Whatever answer provided to the above question ... "What could have prevented that?".... I feel very confident no one thought the answer was more guns.

So there it is there, sometimes bad things happen and no amount of guns could have prevented it. I'm not asking people to do anything more than grasp that concept.