Photo for Headline Surfer® / EDGEWATER, Fla. -- Upon rising this morning, the headline screaming from Mom's copy of the local morning paper was “A Nation Grieves,” in reference to the the South Carolina church massacre.
My first thought was that this nation has been grieving way too much lately. It seems we continue to escalate bigotry and hate on a daily basis because of the loners like 21-yar-old Dylann Roof, a white man accused of gunning down nine African-Americans, incl.uding the preacher, during a bible study in their church.
It escapes me why people hate one another for the color of their skin, where they come from or who they marry or whatever reason they use to justify their actions.
No doubt this has been going on for a long time, but I don’t remember it being a part of my childhood. I was raised to not judge others, and, no, I was not part of any special religious organization. That was just common sense to my parents. They treated others as they wished others to treat them.
No doubt this has been going on for a long time, but I don’t remember it being a part of my childhood. I was raised to not judge others, and, no, I was not part of any special religious organization. That was just common sense to my parents. They treated others as they wished others to treat them.
As I was channel surfing last night I came across a discussion on Fox News. The commentator told viewers they chose not to show the perpetrator of the South Carolina church massacre because they felt that he was looking for publicity and they were not going to give it to him. They urged their competing media channels to do the same.
It is true that many of these psychopaths do these atrocious things to become media stars. I have to agree with that station’s ideation.
As I went to the next media channel I saw they did not agree because they were remarking on the smirk on the alleged perpetrator’s face as he was taken into custody and showing it as they spoke.
The next station was showing a church service of all races and genders coming together in the name of peace and went outside to speak to the people after the service.
It was impressive to see a white woman between and holding hands with two black women speaking about peace, putting differences aside and working together to stop this violence.
That was heartening to see.
The next was back on the gun control issue. I do not believe in gun control, but I do not own one either.
I know nothing of guns or how to use them. It seems to me if everyone had a gun and people who want to rob, rape, and kill knew they were likely to come out on the wrong end of a gun they might just think twice before acting.
It evens the playing field in my eyes. In any case there has to be a better way to ferret out these people who are mentally ill enough to want to massacre others.
Even the mentally ill can plan such things and carry them out. I think we underestimate their abilities to do so.
I have no answers here just questions. I am afraid of the future, which I see as only getting worse and worse until we never feel safe at home or out in the streets.
That’s not a world I want to live in. Shouldn’t we all be working together to try to stop this hatred?