Gun Control Is The Right Answer To The Wrong Question!

Several years ago, it was bullying; this year, it is gun control. Both were precipitated by horrific incidences that ruined the lives of many, and will continue to do so until we identify the underlying problems. Bullying and gun violence are intimately related. There is a huge elephant sitting in the room, yet we continue to ignore it. The tragedy in Newtown is not an isolated incident of senseless violence or is it a case of this man developing these thoughts overnight. ( #Newtown ) Sadly, this type of violence is preventable. Violence is symptomatic of much deeper issues, which we have not begun to discuss.

As usual, we have the right answer to the wrong question. The question is: how did those thoughts get into this person’s mind? Guns didn’t put them there….

But I do get the bandwagon outcry of gun control. Gun misuse has been a problem for years, but efforts to regulate guns were stymied by the National Rifle Association (NRA). #NRA   In the wake of the Newtown tragedy, the climate is ripe to battle the powerful NRA. I get that! I support it! Unfortunately, I don’t think gun control alone will ultimately solve the problem, unless there is a cultural shift in our craving for violence in all forms of entertainment, and our recognition of mental illness as a neurological disease, and not something in someone’s imagination. In addition, our mental health delivery system STINKS! A word to politicians: be mindful of not stigmatizing and scapegoating people with mental illness by singling them out in gun control legislation.

Guns do not initiate the violence; they facilitate it and make it more lethal. In thinking about Newtown, there must have been many RED FLAGS that were missed. Was this man under the care of a mental health provider or any medical provider? If not, why? If so, what kind of treatment was he receiving? How closely was he monitored? And most importantly, what were his medications?

Medications are a double-edged sword; they help people, but they also harm people. Unlike guns, medications can put crazy thoughts into people’s mind irrespective of mental illness. Why are we not delving deeper into these aspects? More information in this area would shed light on this tragedy and possibly avert others.  #Mentalillness

Maybe the Newtown tragedy is more powerful than the NRA?