Imperfect World- Acceptance?

12-16-12 sad brain

Do I need to lower my expectations about life in the USA in 2012?  Am I NOT being reasonable enough?…. Like my need to lower my expectations about Madonna’s concert (see blog a few weeks back)… am I just living in the past too much?

This week on Facebook I’ve been pretty upset and vocal about the CT school shootings. Today, I had 3 hours in the car alone on my drive back home form KC to ponder without distractions. My mind went back to the sign on the VA Hospital in Des Moines which I recently visited two weeks ago.

The Price of Freedom is Visible Here.

I thought about the solders, past and present, who gave up their lives for our nation, our constitution and our freedom. Then I wondered if this same motto applies to the innocent people (children included) who give up there lives in order to protect the “out of control” 2^nd amendment.

I call this law “out of control”…. Not that I am opposed to gun ownership, and I don't want guns ban, but because I do have a problem with some of the guns out there….. assault weapons, automatic and semiautomatic guns which some people claim they need to feel safe and to hunt with. ….”Really?” Have there been wild animals, Indians or gangsters circling your house recently?   I assume not, so to me you seem to be living in fear and not living free at all.

There is the argument that guns don’t kill, people kill….. and sure school children could have been killed by a crazy person with a knife, or a car….. but a knife and car have  other purposes like buttering bread, and transportation….BUT  guns, especially assault weapons have only one purpose- to kill in large numbers.

However, I will acknowledge that I do think guns are only the tip of the iceberg. It is the visual part, easy to point to and blame first…. But there is much more ice below the surface which also needs to be examined, but hardly even does get examined.

Case in point, I once heard a preacher give a sermon on “Follow the Money”…... For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. (Matthew 6:21)… it is not surprising that our nation spends more money on the military, weapons and war than all the other countries combined.

Reference here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxYboVoiejM

And then you have the lack of money available to pay for mental health issues….

Then there is all the violence in movies, TV shows about crimes and killing, video games which focus on shooting people….  And the media’s need to broadcast, for hours on end, any tragic story of mass shootings. There is a lot more to point at besides guns…. Yet those 20 children weren’t killed with knifes or run over with a car.

Others suggest “taking God and Prayer out of our schools” caused this type of tragedy to happen. Well if you don’t want sex taught in schools why would you let schools handle something as precious as spiritual health, which is better suited for home and church?

Besides, God is bigger than that.-You can’t shut God out of schools or anywhere. God lives in every cell in our body and loves us even when we choose not to love back. God is always present and waiting for us to cry out for help.

So I guess my conclusion after 3 hours in the car was that maybe I just need to accept all the facts about life in the USA in 2012-  And the resulting consequences which follow, sad as they may be…. And in doing so, I guess the real question would be- why am I even surprised that this shooting happened? I should be shocked in the fact that it doesn’t happened more often.

So while all you gun owners out there go hug your guns tonight as you put them safely away…. I hope you will also do the right thing by thanking the innocent children and their families who made the ultimate sacrifice for your freedom to own those assault weapons.

But if you don’t think this was a worthwhile sacrifice for them to make on behalf of you and your guns, then it is time for the difficult soul searching and discussion on how to improve our nation…. Looking at the big picture of our laws, rights, and even budget- could we use better  gun regulations perhaps?

But sadly…..the acceptance of an imperfect world is probably easier for most of us rather than that kind of deep soul searching and reflection in the mirror.