Guns and the Root of America's Problem With Them

Our problem is not with guns. Guns are merely inanimate objects. If a demented person is bent on destruction and murder, they will find a way to accomplish their goal.

Our problem goes much deeper than the mere weapon used to carry out the crime. No one has ever seen a gun and then decided that they would like to kill someone with it. It has never happened. The decision to cross that line happens much sooner.

Make no mistake, the heart is where these problems come from. The shootings, the murders, the violence, it all begins and ends with the individual’s heart. The reason government is impotent when it comes to actually preventing these kind of crimes is that it cannot govern the heart.

If every single gun and sharp object was confiscated from every single resident of the United States, are we really naive enough to believe that murder would suddenly cease? I certainly hope not. However, if you listen to the proposed solutions to these tragedies, one would think that we do believe that. Banning certain types of weapons, or the number of rounds a certain type of weapon can hold, extensive background checks and mental health screenings, or gun buyback programs are not going to solve this problem.

When you break it down, we as a country have become utterly and completely, desperately dependent on the government. Every time tragedy, of any kind, strikes, where do we turn? Uncle Sam. A new regulation, a new law, that’s what we need. And every time our government is happy to oblige with said law or regulation, nibbling away at freedoms that our forefathers fought and died for.

More strict, more abundant laws are not the answer. If they were, then the Federal income tax code, tax regulations, and explanations of more than 70,000 pages, would have completely stopped all tax fraud. But it hasn’t. If laws were the answer, then we would have little to no illegal immigration. But we do. If laws were the answer, we would pretty much live in a perfect country because we sure have enough of them. But we don’t live in a perfect country.

So what is the answer?

Ronald Reagan said, “We must reject the idea that every time a law's broken, society is guilty rather than the lawbreaker. It is time to restore the American precept that each individual is accountable for his actions.”

What goes on in my heart and subsequently manifests itself in my actions, is my responsibility. Whatever happens as a result of those actions is my responsibility. We live in a society where responsibility is shirked, made light of, and generally disregarded as “raining on our parade”.

A correct worldview, however, will see responsibility as the necessary and important thing that it is. A strong person will embrace responsibility and ensure that their actions result in things for which they are willing to take responsibility. If this is the kind of mindset we are instilling in our children I firmly believe we will see a change in this nation unlike anything we could dream.

Jonathan Paine

@painefultruth76

painefultruth1776@gmail.com