A Virtual Church

When will enough be enough?

10:34 p.m. yesterday

Thus far in 2026 there have been 380 mass shootings. 350 people have lost their lives and 1,600 have been injured.

In the latest shooting, a father with his concealed weapon, killed the 16-year-old assassin before more were murdered. The 16-year-old had a long gun and a lot of ammunition. The blood bath could have been worse.

The number of rifles, handguns, AR-15s are in so many homes, they could arm the military. Some people reinforce their floors to carry their gun safes. Call me crazy, but that seems totally unnecessary.

Daddy never owned a gun. Tom has never had a gun. Guns do not engender the life we want to live. Seems we are in a minority.

The Second Amendment calls for a “well regulated militia.” We agree with the premise that people have a right to own a gun,  but America has gone far beyond reasonable interpretation of that amendment. Our current administration is relaxing regulations for owning and carrying weapon. There will be greater permissions given mentally ill and formerly incarcerated people.

We are unleashing and deregulating law that has protected us from any who wish us harm. In a country that deregulates weapons and underfunds mental health resources, what could go wrong?

Imagine a young teen with an Uzzi. This is not the stuff of comic books or video games, where the bad people are blown to smithereens. This is human tissue, sinew, muscles shredded beyond repair.

Trauma is a concern. PTSD is a real mental health challenge. The plague of too many guns is more than a loss of social consciousness; it is a loss of humanity. The notion of whoever has the most guns wins is a dangerous game of one upmanship.

We must acknowledge the power of money in this game. Gun lobbies fuel the gun culture. Membership encourages responsible gun ownership, but people are not uniformly responsible.

People are obviously lax in storing guns. What else would explain how young people get them. Kids who have grown up with media hyping violence don’t realize the percussive effects of actual gunplay.

Until America gets a handle on the problem, what are the rest of us to do? Kids are scared to go to school. Teachers don’t want to be the front line. Churches are locked to thwart intrusion by bad actors.

When is enough, enough? 

Malcom Gladwell is the king of the one-point book. His premise in The Tipping Point is that when people have finally had their fill of something, they change the trajectory of their actions. Apparently, we have not reached our tipping point in the gun control debate.

We are heading in the wrong direction as far as guns are concerned. America has become the new killing field. Blood is on our hands.

Buying back guns is one option. Metal could be used in automobiles or yard furniture. There are many worthwhile uses for metal.

Will is the answer. Until we will a different outcome for America, there will be no change. We might have thought the killing of Charlie Kirk would make a difference.

The grazing of a bullet in Trump’s ear did not make a difference. That shooting in Butler awakened ire and revenge in the president. He thinks might is right. It’s not.

Voting is taking place now, with a general election on November 3^rd. See how people lean to the left or right in the gun control conversation. A step toward gun control is the only course that will change our gun problem.

Lib Campbell is a retired Methodist pastor, retreat leader, columnist, and host of the blogsite Avirtualchurch.com. She can be contacted at libcam05@gmail.com. 

 

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