Another Day, Another Gun Massacre

Caption: On left, my husband, Jim Conzemius; on the right, Maria Houser Conzemius (me). Event, April Fools' Ride from Brandon to LaPorte City, Iowa, April 2017.

Another day, another gun massacre, and it’s still not the time to talk about gun control. I’m sick and tired of the carnage. When will it be the “right” time to talk about gun control?

Devin Patrick Kelley, the alleged Texas shooter, should not have been allowed to purchase the gun he used to kill at least 26 people, nearly half of whom were children. Twenty are wounded. At least one wounded child is not expected to make it.

Kelley was court-martialed for assaulting his wife and child when he served in the Air Force. Under federal law, those convicted of domestic assault are not allowed to buy guns. Yet a San Antonio sporting goods store allowed Kelley to purchase a Ruger AR-556 assault rifle. Some say his bad conduct discharge from the Air Force was the disqualifying factor, but the ATF official I heard on MSNBC said it wasn’t that, it was the domestic assault conviction. There seems to be some confusion about which is the disqualifying factor so far, but certainly the availability of assault weapons is far too easy.

Anti-gun control advocates say that the little church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, a community of about 400 people, should have had a security guard. Small churches usually can barely afford the pastor and church maintenance, much less a security guard. And who says the security guard could have shot the deranged shooter before the shooter shot the guard?

The parishioners should have carried guns, anti-gun control advocates say. An Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms official said if you carry guns, in church you are still facing the pastor. Your back is turned toward the shooter, who can squeeze off enough shots to kill a whole bunch of people before you even know what’s going on.

The dead range from age 18 months to 77. People are being asked to give blood. Some victims are in surgery. Some were in surgery and are in surgery again. A five-year-old was shot multiple times and has been operated on multiple times. The church may be beyond repair.

The suspect’s ex mother-in-law attended the church. The alleged shooter sent her threatening texts. She was absent the day of the shooting. That seems to be the motive.

When the alleged shooter, who is now dead, was 18, he dated a 13-year-old, who reported that she almost called the police because he wouldn’t stop calling her and stalking her.

In his past, the alleged shooter, Devin P. Kelley, hit his pit bull puppy in the head and was charged with animal cruelty. Police arrived and Kelley refused to come out of his trailer home. Animal cruelty, as usual, is a misdemeanor (it shouldn't be) and the charge was dismissed. As I've said before, animal cruelty is one of the four characteristics of serial killers. Animal cruelty in childhood and adulthood should be taken very seriously. (Click on the blue links to find out why.)

I used to be a strong Second Amendment proponent. Mostly I still am, but I hate the way it's been twisted to justify wholesale slaughter of innocents by heavily armed, evil people. I understand that when the Second Amendment was written, citizens had slow-loading single-shot muskets. Our original colony was ruled by a tyrant, so the Second Amendment makes sense. A new country depends on a citizen army. Without a standing army, you need to have citizens with muskets ready, willing, and legally able to carry arms to a struggle with a tyrant. The American Revolution was fought again in the War of 1812. The British lost the Revolution but tried again to defeat the rebellious colonials in 1812. Once again, the British lost and we won, with the help of a French pirate, Jean LaFitte, among other colorful characters.

Even today, tyranny is not out of the question. But we've reached the point where we're long past single-shot muskets. We're experiencing repeated slaughter by whatever deranged person feels like buying a rapid-firing assault weapon. People ought to be safe in church and going to a concert with friends and loved ones. If we’re not safe anywhere any time, something has to be done about assault weapons at least.

I’m going to call my legislators and tell them now is the time to talk about gun control because there’s barely time between massacres to find the time to talk about gun control. We've got to break the stranglehold that National Rifle Association (NRA) funding has on Congress by raising our voices in protest.

Iowa's Sen. Joni Ernst (R) is among the top 10 career recipients of NRA funds in the U.S. Senate ($3 million+), and she hasn't been in office that long. Iowa's 3rd District Congressman David Young (R) is among the top career House recipients of NRA funds ($770,000+), and he hasn't been in office that long, either.