N.B. I posted this in my other blog because I thought at first it's not related to India, but I'm not so sure of that, and also, I want to reach as many readers as I can (I don't have many!). I first read about this from an online site here in India, so don't kid yourself that these events don't effect the way that we as a nation are perceived abroad. I have a lot that I criticize about how many things work (or don't) here in India, but I must say that those criticisms seem quite trivial in comparison to the tragedies created by our inaction in the face of the continuing problem of gun violence in the U.S.. I feel a real sense of shame that these types of events continue to occur in my country.
In our compound a young mother worries about her 2 year-old with a slight fever back in the U.S. in the care of his dad. Iowa Guru and I anxiously await the arrival of our quite adult and capable daughters: just two drops in an ocean of concern and love that parents hold for their children. And then I read the new flash here in India about the shootings in Connecticut. I could not bear to look at the list of names and ages on the front page of the NYT this morning as I glanced at it.
So horrible, so awful. President Obama's comments, here in video, display the common anguish that we all must feel. But after the shock and horror, which has become all too common, we must do something.
Garry Wills in his blog post following this outrage puts our plight in biblical terms: we have our own Moloch--the gun. His refection on the outrage in Newtown, and repeated too many times before, captures my sense of despair at the idolatry that we practice in this country towards guns (among other things). We as a nation need to repent.
This article by Nicholas Kristoff provides some thoughtful reflection about this issue, and he suggests changes that should prove politically feasible. I hope that he's only one of a flood of voices that creates a groundswell of action to address the issue of gun violence. I've set forth my opinions here and here. But I will not stop because this is too crazy.We, as a body politic, are crazy not to take practical and reasonable steps to limit gun violence.
So as I write this and listen to Christmas music playing the background that celebrates the Nativity--the human joy of a new beginning with the birth a child-- let me suggest a Christmas gift for me, you, and all of us: write the President, your senators, and your congressman, and tell them in no uncertain terms that we need to regulate firearms in an effective and reasonable manner. Let them know that you will hold them to account until we has a nation and as a state enact legislation that will truly work to prevent these all too common occasions of murder and mayhem.
In our compound a young mother worries about her 2 year-old with a slight fever back in the U.S. in the care of his dad. Iowa Guru and I anxiously await the arrival of our quite adult and capable daughters: just two drops in an ocean of concern and love that parents hold for their children. And then I read the new flash here in India about the shootings in Connecticut. I could not bear to look at the list of names and ages on the front page of the NYT this morning as I glanced at it.
So horrible, so awful. President Obama's comments, here in video, display the common anguish that we all must feel. But after the shock and horror, which has become all too common, we must do something.
Garry Wills in his blog post following this outrage puts our plight in biblical terms: we have our own Moloch--the gun. His refection on the outrage in Newtown, and repeated too many times before, captures my sense of despair at the idolatry that we practice in this country towards guns (among other things). We as a nation need to repent.
This article by Nicholas Kristoff provides some thoughtful reflection about this issue, and he suggests changes that should prove politically feasible. I hope that he's only one of a flood of voices that creates a groundswell of action to address the issue of gun violence. I've set forth my opinions here and here. But I will not stop because this is too crazy.We, as a body politic, are crazy not to take practical and reasonable steps to limit gun violence.
So as I write this and listen to Christmas music playing the background that celebrates the Nativity--the human joy of a new beginning with the birth a child-- let me suggest a Christmas gift for me, you, and all of us: write the President, your senators, and your congressman, and tell them in no uncertain terms that we need to regulate firearms in an effective and reasonable manner. Let them know that you will hold them to account until we has a nation and as a state enact legislation that will truly work to prevent these all too common occasions of murder and mayhem.
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