Our local newspaper’s headline this morning quotes Trump as saying the Las Vegas massacre was an “act of pure evil.” And for once the president and I agree on something. But he neglected to point out that the shooter isn’t the only “evil” player in this horrific tragedy.
Surely, the National Rifle Association is complicit? And what about the Republicans in Congress?
To me, they are even more evil than the shooter. They created the environment in which such an atrocity could occur. And while the shooter is surely insane, they are not. The NRA, which fronts for the gun industry, is driven by greed. The politicians are motivated by self interest and cowardice.
A mass shooting occurs almost daily in these United States. And military-grade weapons are usually involved
I am sure every member of Congress knows these weapons do not belong in civilian hands. But Republican representatives speciously cite the Second Amendment to protect the profits of the powerful gun industry.
These craven politicians must know their Second Amendment arguments are absurd. They must know the Founding Fathers could not have envisaged submachine guns when they included the right to “bear arms” in the Constitution.
But the NRA is a major contributor to the campaigns of “gun rights” candidates and a savage opponent of candidates who advocate common sense gun control.
And for generations, this strategy has blocked all attempts to curb civilian sale of military-grade weapons.
After every mass shooting, gun sales soar. And, with the help of their political pawns, the gun industry isn’t going to let anyone endanger their blood soaked profits.
If that isn’t “pure evil,” I don’t know what is.
