It is always dangerous and wrong to ascribe responsibility 100% to any person or group; there is always shared responsibility. It is as true in ending gun violence as it is anywhere else. “It is all about the guns,” is just as wrong as, “It is all about the criminals. With the current emphasis being on it is all about the guns, this episode will add a strong pitch for tough gun crime penalties.
The announced purpose of various levels of proposed additional gun control laws is to reduce gun crime. The ten of thousands of gun laws on the books are obviously not doing much to reduce gun crime, which is why we need more. And the proposed and recently enacted laws will also accomplish little. Here is a different approach: enact and enforce tough gun use laws. The point here is to attack the criminals doing the crimes: To take a whack out of gun violence, take a whack out of the criminals.
That is the subject of today’s short-form episode.
N.B. This is a summary, acting as a signpost, pointing you to this episode on both the new Revolution 2.0™ YouTube channel, and where you enjoy your podcasts, e.g., Apple, Google and Spotify.
Continuing:
Take Ten With Will Luden reminder: We believe in finding the Common Goals everywhere. And they exist. Try this: Reduce gun violence as much as possible with the least amount of restrictions on law abiding citizens. Discuss. Or something similar; what are your thoughts here?
Enact and enforce:
Possess a gun illegally, 30 days prison time, or minimum $10K fine.
Be part of a group where a gun is present during the commission of a crime, 1 year in prison. If you carried a gun during that crime, 3 years in prison.
Be part of a group where a gun was discharged during a crime, 3 years in prison; if you discharged the gun, 5 years.
Be part of a group where someone was injured during a gun crime, 5 years; if you were the one causing the injury, 10 years.
Be part of a group where someone died from a gunshot, 10 years; if you did the killing, mandatory life sentence.
All sentences are mandatory, and no parole.
Enough is enough, right?
Change the environment, e.g., shoplifting, progressive DAs.
And you can hear the impassioned cries of “Racist!” even now. They will scream that minorities are disproportionately imprisoned, so adding prison time to crimes is inherently racist. They ignore two key points:
Prison time is directly proportional to the offenses; when you see any negative racial disparity, don’t go for the racist gun, and
Their ardent claim that mass killings are perpetrated by “white supremacists.”
Combination with other gun laws including raising the minimum age, expanding and strengthening background checks, and adding a waiting time, and volunteering on-site armed and trained personnel–first line of defense.. Shared responsibility.
Change the times suggested, but focus on the criminals. Do the crime, do the time.
Pause: What is your goal? Attacking gun violence, or simply getting rid of other people’s guns?
We all have the personal responsibility to be well informed on every subject, including this pne. Speaking of personal responsibility, this principle does not stand alone; the two main and interdependent principles at Take Ten With Will Luden™ are:
1. Personal Responsibility; take it, teach it and,
2. Be Your Brother’s Keeper. The answer to the biblical question, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” is a ringing, unequivocal “Yes.” There is no other answer.
Where do you stand? What are you going to do? Remember, it does not matter where you stand if you don’t do anything. You can start by subscribing to these episodes, and encouraging others to subscribe with you.
As always, whatever you do, do it in love. Without love, anything we do is empty. 1 Corinthians 16:1.
Contact
As we get ready to wrap up, please do respond in the episodes with comments or questions about this episode or anything that comes to mind, or connect with me on Twitter, @willluden, Facebook, facebook.com/will.luden, and LinkedIn, www.linkedin.com/in/willluden/. And you can subscribe on your favorite device through Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify and wherever you listen to podcasts.
This is Will Luden. We’ll talk again soon.
The core, driving principles at Revolution 2.0, are:
1. Personal Responsibility. Take it, teach it.
2. Be Your Brother’s Keeper. Taking care of our brothers and sisters.
If we apply those two core principles simultaneously, we will inevitably be on the right path.
- Ending Gun Violence: Punish The Criminals (EP. 405) - July 15, 2022
- How To Get Good Government: The Formula (EP. 404) - July 1, 2022
- The Candy Bomber Lives: Is It You? (EP. 403) - June 24, 2022
One Response
My question is, “How many folks who commit gun violence actually consider the penalties if caught, and will throwing them in jail significantly reduce the number of folks on the street (or rooftop) who are would-be gun criminals?”
We have, over the past 50 years or so. created a self-oriented society containing many individuals willing to kill or injure in order to meet their financial, political, or emotional objectives. We need to fix the problem from the ground up, not through more laws. Better family lives, identification and treatment/isolation for those with emotional issues, and general reorientation of our society from the self-esteem/pride value to a sense of community obligation would be a start. I expect it will take another 50 years to get things back where they should be, assuming we start today. In the meantime pass and enforce laws that keep firearms (although, remember Lizzie Borden used an axe) out of the hands of the disturbed and criminals.