Coming into yesterday I was lamenting the fact that I didn’t have much to write about. That’s always the kiss of death. There is an old Chinese proverb that says, “may you live in interesting times.” Well, there’s no denying that we live in interesting times. Two news stories intersected yesterday from different parts of the country.

 

Minnesota seems to be in the crosshairs again with another police shooting. This time, an officer says they were reaching for their taser and pulled out of their gun instead. I suppose it could happen to any of us if we were packing that much heat.

 

On the same day we had another school shooting make the national news. This leaves people like me to connect the dots. How are these events related? What if anything can be done to stop them? At the end of it all, most of us have that same powerless feeling you have when you see an accident happening in slow motion.

 

I suppose we can be thankful that there was only one victim in each case. However, I can’t help but think there is one unifying source to the problem. Guns. There are very few things that make me more angry. As a commentator, I get tired of commenting about it. We say the same things over and over again and nothing seems to change.

 

I think what’s more frustrating is the overarching attempts to be politically correct and accommodating of the gun owning population. I say I don’t want to take your guns. I say all I want is common sense gun control legislation. I say all I want are background checks and an automatic assault weapons ban. I say all of those things because I know the response I will inevitably get if I say something more. That ends today.

 

That’s not the truth though. I for one am sick and tired of hiding it. I’m tired of kowtowing to Rambo wannabes that seem to think they need to open carry their AR-15 to the florist so they safely buy flowers for their wife. I’m sick and tired of the dumb son of a bitch that thinks they need to carry their assault rifle into Wal-Mart because we need a good guy with a gun. I’m also tired of short-sighted legislatures that seem to think the answer is more open carry and fewer restrictions. I’m just sick and tired of being sick and tired.

 

I’m sick and tired of muting my own feelings because they aren’t politically popular. I hate guns. I have always hated guns and there is nothing that will change that. This isn’t assault rifles or automatic weapons. It’s not handguns. It’s not rifles and shotguns. It’s all guns. If every gun disappeared from the world I would be much happier.

 

I’ve never suggested banning guns or confiscating guns because I know it’s a non-starter. I also know plenty of people with guns that are responsible adults that wouldn’t be caught dead looking like that stupid Missouri couple. I also know that a part of this is driven on pure emotion. Sure, it worked in Australia, but I know these issues are much more complex than that.

 

I also know that situations like the Minnesota shooting are a lot more involved and a lot more needs to be said and done. I will say those things in due time. Others will too. For now, I just needed to come out and say it so I don’t have to hide it anymore. I hate guns.