My Turn to Chime In

As a mother, daughter of a teacher and aunt to a kindergartener, I’d like to share what I think we need to do to stop future incidents like the CT shooting. My ideas aren’t original, but let me be one more voice calling for change.

First, we need to reinstate the assault weapons ban. There is absolutely no legitimate reason for anyone to possess such a thing, and the creators of our Constitution certainly didn’t have those weapons in mind when they drafted the second amendment. This recent shooting could have been much less severe (and perhaps prevented altogether depending on which weapon he used to shoot his way into the school) if the shooter hadn’t had access to semi-automatic weapons.

Second, we need to improve our mental health services. Many troubled kids lose eligibility for help when they turn 18, and even most insured adults don’t have coverage for anything considered “mental health”, from mild anxiety to full-blown psychosis or schizophrenia.

Third, the media needs to stop. Stop making us relive the horror every hour of every day on every program. Stop asking scared children to describe the gunshots. Stop turning these killers into sick heroes by letting them go out famous, in a blaze of glory. What is appropriate? Report there was a shooting, honor the dead, and move on. We don’t need to know the killer’s name, see his face or discuss for days on end what he might have been thinking.

I feel strongly that more guns are not the answer.