Gun Violence: Prevalent and Relevant

“Give sorrow words, the grief that does not speak knits up the o’er wrought heart and bids it break.”
—W. Shakespeare in Macbeth

The past two news weeks carried much gun-related violence news. A headline in the Saipan Tribune this past Monday, April 17, 2023: “DOC chief recalls service firearms.” Two editorial headlines on the Opinion page of the same date in the Saipan Tribune read: “The gun debate isn’t hopeless. Just look at Tennessee,” “We can’t be speechless about school shootings.” Find them and read them for updates on the Tennessee Three.

Some facts divulged in recent news articles and TV interviews: Some from Mr. Guttenberg, father of a daughter murdered in the Connecticut Parkland School slaughter 19 years ago: Guns are now the leading cause of death for American children and young adults.

In Akron, Ohio, eight cops shot 94 bullets at Jayland Walker, 46 bullets hit his body. He was handcuffed after he was down.

The cause for them stopping him was that a license plate light bulb was out on the rear of his car. A grand jury recently determined the eight officers were justified in their action. No charges were filed.

Nineteen years ago 2% of guns sold in the U.S. were AR 15s. In 2022 AR 15’s are 25% of all guns sold in the United States.

Please feel free to fact check any statements made in this article.

In the litany that follows I use “Call and Response” and “Voice One and Voice Two” techniques:

AR-15 Assault Rifles: American Reality
(15+ targets by American assassins, a litany of sorrow)

public elementary schools – can you name two?
Christian elementary schools – Covenant, three 9 year olds
public middle schools – can you name two?
public high schools – can you name the most recent?
colleges and universities – can you name two?
Christian churches – can you name two?
Jewish temples – remember Pittsburgh?
grocery and liquor stores – can you name two?
nightclubs – NYC ? and Florida?
banks – most recently Georgia?
public parks – can you name two?
city streets – can you name two cities?
music celebrations – Las Vegas and ?
15 places I missed – can you name two?
How many assassins used AR 15s? name two.

Call, Voice One; Response, Voice Two

Gun Deaths Second Amendment Breaths
(Sonnet in the Saipan Tribune on April 16, 2018)

Death across dark waters death throughout the land
Death despite our laws big guns in the wrong hands
Death across the oceans death on ships on high seas
Off the Horn of Africa pirates do as they please
In schools churches campuses and shopping malls
Lunatics slaughter innocents bounce bullets off walls
Teenagers lead demonstrations across the nation
Congress drags its legal feet in partisan frustration
Meanwhile where will the next gun slaughter be
Who will take the blame for this senseless tragedy
There are many different answers to this question
Which all bring up more problems and suggestions
The Second Amendment needs clarification today
Support legislation that takes assault rifles away.

It doesn’t seem like much has changed since 2018. Today is April 19, 2023. Three 9-year-olds and three adults were shot and killed last week in a Christian school in Nashville, Tennessee. Weapon?