In my world, people's actions reflect their values. That doesn't mean that people are infallible or undeserving of second chances or unworthy of forgiveness. For me, it simply means that the overall way people conduct themselves day to day is a reflection of what they value. Their behavior shows their true character.
I use this belief in my political choices as well. For me, character has always been more important than if a candidate had a "R" or "D" behind their name on the ballot. Whether this is common for other voters, I have no idea. I just know that I try very hard to live my life by the golden rule and want to see this trait in the leaders of my community and my country as well. This belief that a person's character matters is not something I'm willing to compromise on.
There is a quote that I see attributed to Abraham Lincoln: "Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing." The other quote I like but I am not sure who it's attributable to is: "Our character is defined by what we do when we think no one is looking."
Good character and actions from our leaders not only serve as examples to citizens but they also matter in how the rest of the world views us and reacts to our leadership around the globe. I want elected officials whose character mirrors my own values, who are serious, smart and know how to motivate people to get results. When you're considering who to vote for this year in the primaries or in the congressional mid-term elections, I encourage you to consider the character of the candidate more than their political party. Let's all demand better of our leaders.
Friday, March 30, 2018
Wednesday, March 7, 2018
The Never Ending Controversy
Fair warning--this article is about gun ownership and safety. If you have an extremist viewpoint, i.e. you believe that all gun owners are gun-crazed rednecks OR you believe that all people advocating for gun regulation are nut job liberals that want to take away your rights, then this is not the article for you.
Here is the personal disclosure: I am not particularly a gun enthusiast. My spouse of almost 34 years however is a responsible gun owner. He isn't a big hunter but does enjoy target shooting and owns 2 rifles (a .22 and a .30-30), a shotgun and hand gun. All of these are safely tucked away in a locked gun cabinet. He was a member of the NRA when he was a teen but is not a member now.
Can we all agree that too many people are dying in our country in mass shootings? Can we agree that we all want our children to be safe in their schools? Can we agree that we do not want to take away rights from responsible gun owners? Can we agree that extremist viewpoints in this, as in most controversies, are not productive to finding solutions?
There are loads of statistics that show how much more prevalent gun violence is in this country as opposed to other countries where gun ownership is not as common or is highly regulated. It is my understanding that the U.S. government cannot study gun violence because of a law, known as the Dickey Amendment, which passed in 1997 that removes all funding for any gun violence prevention studies. Further, I believe that the ATF cannot track firearms that are used in a crime with an electronic searchable database. The Tiahart Amendment (per Todd Tiahart of Kansas) prohibits the use of these databases for our law enforcement officers. They are forced to use manual paper records. The fear was of creating a gun database. How can we reduce gun violence if we can't study it? How can we track criminals if we can't utilize modern search methods?
When my now grown children were in school, reasonable attempts were made to keep the schools safe such as keeping doors locked and having all visitors check in with the office. Those were the days before all of the school shootings we are experiencing now. I personally do not want to see schools turned into "prison" like facilities with metal detectors and security at every door but our kids must be kept safe. There are many valid concerns about arming teachers. This doesn't seem like it would be a solution that many communities agree on. And it doesn't seem like the "more guns=more safety" theory is working for us. We must do a better job in our communities of keeping guns from those who shouldn't have them. There is discussion about Red Flag laws that 5 states have currently enacted. These laws create a due process to remove guns from people who are proven to be a danger to themselves or to others. Would more of this type of legislation help prevent another school shooting? Doing nothing is simply not an option. We must protect our children.
It is my belief that having a gun enthusiast for a spouse gives me a fairly balanced perspective about gun owner rights. This is a hobby he enjoys and as a responsible firearm owner he should not be penalized for crimes that others commit. I am not a fan of assault type weapons. Personally, I can see no use for them except in war. While I know that these weapons pose no more risk than other guns in the hands of responsible owners, they are much more deadly in the hands of those who shouldn't have guns. I'm not sure how to reconcile this. The Supreme Court in the Heller case in 2008 upheld the right to own guns but it never said it was an absolute right. Meaning regulation is still allowed. We have a right to freedom of speech but we still cannot yell "Fire" in a crowded movie theater. Common sense regulations help us all. While I would prefer to ban all of these high capacity weapons, I certainly recognize that there may be other ways to keep achieve safety. The right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness certainly hinges upon LIFE.
The final point I would like to make is in regard to extremist views. Social media and all of it's ills is fueling a war between differing views on the gun safety issue. Pictures of billboards that have been spray painted with graffiti that say "The NRA is a terrorist organization" or "Kill the NRA" are fuel for sowing anger and discord among us. Conspiracy videos saying that student victims from the Florida school shooting are paid agitators are sowing anger and discord. Speeches saying "time is running out" or stories showing screaming and fighting protesters are sowing anger and discord. Whenever any of us click on, share or comment on stories that do not promote reasonable fact-based discussions then we are guilty of sowing anger and discord as well. Shame on all of us.
Surely the safety of our children demands that we be reasonable adults and find solutions to this epidemic.
Here is the personal disclosure: I am not particularly a gun enthusiast. My spouse of almost 34 years however is a responsible gun owner. He isn't a big hunter but does enjoy target shooting and owns 2 rifles (a .22 and a .30-30), a shotgun and hand gun. All of these are safely tucked away in a locked gun cabinet. He was a member of the NRA when he was a teen but is not a member now.
Can we all agree that too many people are dying in our country in mass shootings? Can we agree that we all want our children to be safe in their schools? Can we agree that we do not want to take away rights from responsible gun owners? Can we agree that extremist viewpoints in this, as in most controversies, are not productive to finding solutions?
There are loads of statistics that show how much more prevalent gun violence is in this country as opposed to other countries where gun ownership is not as common or is highly regulated. It is my understanding that the U.S. government cannot study gun violence because of a law, known as the Dickey Amendment, which passed in 1997 that removes all funding for any gun violence prevention studies. Further, I believe that the ATF cannot track firearms that are used in a crime with an electronic searchable database. The Tiahart Amendment (per Todd Tiahart of Kansas) prohibits the use of these databases for our law enforcement officers. They are forced to use manual paper records. The fear was of creating a gun database. How can we reduce gun violence if we can't study it? How can we track criminals if we can't utilize modern search methods?
When my now grown children were in school, reasonable attempts were made to keep the schools safe such as keeping doors locked and having all visitors check in with the office. Those were the days before all of the school shootings we are experiencing now. I personally do not want to see schools turned into "prison" like facilities with metal detectors and security at every door but our kids must be kept safe. There are many valid concerns about arming teachers. This doesn't seem like it would be a solution that many communities agree on. And it doesn't seem like the "more guns=more safety" theory is working for us. We must do a better job in our communities of keeping guns from those who shouldn't have them. There is discussion about Red Flag laws that 5 states have currently enacted. These laws create a due process to remove guns from people who are proven to be a danger to themselves or to others. Would more of this type of legislation help prevent another school shooting? Doing nothing is simply not an option. We must protect our children.
It is my belief that having a gun enthusiast for a spouse gives me a fairly balanced perspective about gun owner rights. This is a hobby he enjoys and as a responsible firearm owner he should not be penalized for crimes that others commit. I am not a fan of assault type weapons. Personally, I can see no use for them except in war. While I know that these weapons pose no more risk than other guns in the hands of responsible owners, they are much more deadly in the hands of those who shouldn't have guns. I'm not sure how to reconcile this. The Supreme Court in the Heller case in 2008 upheld the right to own guns but it never said it was an absolute right. Meaning regulation is still allowed. We have a right to freedom of speech but we still cannot yell "Fire" in a crowded movie theater. Common sense regulations help us all. While I would prefer to ban all of these high capacity weapons, I certainly recognize that there may be other ways to keep achieve safety. The right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness certainly hinges upon LIFE.
The final point I would like to make is in regard to extremist views. Social media and all of it's ills is fueling a war between differing views on the gun safety issue. Pictures of billboards that have been spray painted with graffiti that say "The NRA is a terrorist organization" or "Kill the NRA" are fuel for sowing anger and discord among us. Conspiracy videos saying that student victims from the Florida school shooting are paid agitators are sowing anger and discord. Speeches saying "time is running out" or stories showing screaming and fighting protesters are sowing anger and discord. Whenever any of us click on, share or comment on stories that do not promote reasonable fact-based discussions then we are guilty of sowing anger and discord as well. Shame on all of us.
Surely the safety of our children demands that we be reasonable adults and find solutions to this epidemic.
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