More than 25 people, mostly male, mostly African-American, were shot to death last weekend. Here’s a summary, followed by a summary of a few political events related to gun violence that also happened over the 48 hours between 12:00 a.m. Saturday and 11:59 p.m. Sunday.
- Atlanta, GA: Police shot and killed a man who was threatening some hunters with a pistol. They shot first with beanbag rounds, but after the man shot back with live bullets, injuring two deputies, they switched to live ammo and killed him.
- Washington, DC: Two robbers attempting to pillage a liquor store were shot by police. One was killed, the other escaped but is currently in custody.
- Pleasantville, NJ: A man was found dead of a bullet to the heart before dawn Sunday. He’s the second gunshot homicide victim this week.
- Patterson, NJ: A man was shot in the neck outside of a liquor store, the result of an unknown altercation. He made it to the hospital, but died in surgery before he could give any testimony.
- Bamberg, SC: A man was shot and killed in his home on Sunday morning; police are uncertain if the shooting was related to the shooting and injury of four individuals late Saturday night at a local pool hall.
- Nashville, TN: A woman was shot and killed answering the door of her home, leaving two children behind. Police believe she knew her killer, but no suspects have been named.
- Duarte, CA: A man and a woman who did not know each other were both shot by an unknown gunman as they passed near each other walking through the city, around 7p.m. The man was killed, the woman is in the hospital.
- Sioux Falls, ND: A 21-year-old man (who had already been arrested once this year for firing a gun into a vehicle) accidentally discharged a rifle, killing a close friend. Alcohol and marijuana “were involved,” but police have not stated whether the man was significantly drunk and/or high at the time of the shooting.
- Kenai Peninsula, AL: An Alaska State Trooper shot and killed a man who became violent during a routine traffic stop. The officer is hospitalized in stable condition.
- Chicago, IL: 5 people were killed and 26 wounded over the weekend, including one man shot in the head, a 45-year-old woman who was the victim of a stray bullet to the chest, and one man found dead of “several” gunshot wounds to the abdomen.
- Cleveland, OH: A 15-year-old boy was shot several times and killed while playing in Wade Park. No suspects have been identified, but it is the latest in a rash of child/teen shootings in Cleveland over the past few months.
- The Bronx, NY: A 45-year-old deli worker was shot and killed by an angry customer. The two had a yelling match, the customer left the store, returned with a gun, shot the deli worker, and ran. He has not been caught.
- Marina del Rey, CA: A man was shot and killed at 4:30 a.m. No suspect has been named.
- Charlotte, NC: A man was shot and killed as part of a domestic violence incident. The man who shot and killed him was also shot and injured with the same gun as part of the same incident.
- Akron, OH: A man was shot and killed in a parking lot at 4:30 a.m. on Sunday. No suspect has been named.
- Henderson County, NC: A toddler suffered a 20-gauge shotgun blast to the chest late Sunday night, killing her instantly. The police are calling it an “unintentional shooting.”
- Houston, TX: A man was shot, killed, and then robbed outside of his own apartment by three men late Sunday.
- Los Angeles, CA: A man was approached by two strangers who asked him who he “ran with.” Witnesses didn’t hear the response, but it was wrong: they shot and killed him on the spot.
- San Antonio, TX: A 25-year-old man was killed in a drive-by shooting of a middle school. Police claim the shooting was random.
- Akron, OH (again): A 60-year-old man was found in a bush, dead of gunshot wounds and with his bicycle beside him, Saturday morning. Police have no leads.
That’s more than 25 dead people over a 48 hour period this weekend, and those are only the ones that made it beyond their local news coverage into a national story. None of these gun violence stories caused so much as a batted eyelash from those who weren’t right next door and could hear the echoes. It’s not a surprise to anyone anymore. It’s just “how things are.”
Instead, we get a weekend news feed full of facts like these:
- Ben Carson saying:
“When we put [the 2nd] amendment in place, you know, [a] state-of-the-art weapon was what? A musket? But the principle was that the citizenry should have, you know, access to whatever they needed in order to protect themselves from an overly aggressive government.”
- The Washington Post published a poll wherein 63 percent of the 1,001 people polled believed that it was more important to focus on the mental health of gun purchasers than it was to enact gun control laws.
- Mike Huckabee outright told gun sellers to ignore the (planned) Executive Order that President Obama intends to sign that would mandate background checks on customers who order from high-volume gun dealers.
Because we need our guns to protect us from either the government, or from bad guys with guns.
Never mind the fact that the government, if it wanted our guns, would have them by now. Your high-capacity full-auto “hunting rifle” isn’t going to cause a moment’s hesitation to a Ripsaw UGV or a flyby with a Sniper ATP.
Never mind the fact that studies show that the only category of fatal injuries more common in the United States than gunshot wounds is automobile accidents, or that a study comparing Seattle with Vancouver, B.C. proved that guns enabled far more crimes than they prevented (noted by a professional actuary whose job is crunching data like this).
Gun violence is part and parcel of our culture. If we don’t have our guns, how would we even manage to be Americans? I guess 25+ dead over a single weekend is a small price to pay so that the rest of us can continue maintaining the illusion of control.
Featured image courtesy of Ibro Palic at Flickr, available under a Creative Commons license.
