The Q Club Tragedy

Members of the alphabet mafia and allies,

I know this post is late; however, I had to decide if I wanted to write from anger and sadness or from a place of logic.

The Club Q shooting, another attack on the community, and five lives senselessly lost. How many more mass shootings need to happen before we see change? We know that hate is an issue we face in our community. Discrimination is based on a lack of understanding or inability to think for oneself.

But when are we going to take the discussion away from the guns, away from the hate crimes, away from the individuals, and talk about the real issue - the accessibility of getting a gun?

Before I get misunderstood, I believe in the second amendment right; however, just as our constitution has been amended with freedoms, it can be amended with some restrictions or updates to accommodate the changes and technological advances. I don’t believe that our founding fathers saw too far past their single-shot rifles and handguns that took time to reload.

No, I do not want to remove guns from Americans' hands; However, regulating firearms is imperative. We must take a test and learn how to drive to get a driver's license. Why then can we not regulate the purchase of guns the same way? First, background checks need to be expanded to be more in depth, there should be mandatory safety classes with a test at the end, and finally, all individuals looking to purchase a firearm should need to pass a psychiatic evaluation. Next, the types of fireams that are available for personal ownership needs to be limited. There is no reason that a citizen should be able to puchase guns that are capable of the mass destruction that we have seen occur.

If we look at other countries, we see that thee are limits to the types of guns that are available for citizen ownership. Militaristic weaponry and personal fireams are not equivical to eachother. The second ammendment was written with the intent for an individual to protect their land, family, and property within reason. Hunting rifles, shot guns, and hand guns fall into this category in my opinion. So we need to take the time to ammend the constitiution to define "arms" suitable for ownership by an ordinary citizen.

Thoughts and Prayers are no longe enough. Action is needed to circumvent the issue and move us forward awway from fear.

No one should fear going to work. No one should fear sending their children to school, and no one should fear going to the bar to have a drink and spend time with fiends.

Love &. Light

-Joey
ToGayOrNotToGay.Net