It's the guns, but it is not just the guns.
I have no problem laying blame at the feet of the weapons industry and it's face, the NRA, and support any legislative and enforcement measure to reduce the number of weapons in the general population. However, there is something wrong with this culture we live in. Very wrong. I was just listening to a story about a couple of 13 year olds who tried to poison their math teacher. Every week we hear of horrible senselessly vicious crimes committed by juveniles and young adults against peers and elders alike. And all we've addressed is the guns.
What is it that contributes to the notion that the way to solve your problems is to pick up a weapon of any sort and just rid yourself of the source of your frustrations? I keep hearing about how juvenile crime is decreasing, but I would point out that in many states, like my own, records crimes committed during the juvenile years are sealed and most are generally forgiven so they do count against a young person entering adulthood. Couple this with systems that are simultaneously being defunded and understaffed, then you can count on kids falling through the cracks. This I lay at the feet of overzealous politicians and those whose libertarian dogma tend to see all as islands and of equal skill and resources.
What about parents and home? Where are the values? How well do parents police their youngsters? In an economy where guaranteed profits for business with every spiraling costs to maintain a household while wages stay stagnant, we all know many people who are barely running in place. Yes, the business community deserves its share of the blame. Unwilling to pay living wages and be citizens of the community they draw upon for their labor and consumers, they add to the difficulty of maintaining stable homes.
The media has its share of blame. It's not to say that any fevered young imaginations wouldn't stumble onto disturbing and morbid images on their own. We live a society where media actively and copiously markets all manner of violent and explicit images and then whines when dissent arises. The video and gaming industries do contribute images and memes to our society. Look no further than Columbine where two boys dressed up in the ultimate video game shooter costumes. These images mean something and contribute to how people conduct themselves. Constantly reflecting back to us ever escalating viciousness has the same effect that we have so vociferously complained about when discussing the effect of the rightwing hate radio shows on political discourse. Movies and games are replete with in your face bullying and violence and sometimes those images are not balanced with consequences for such behavior. It is not even logical to dismiss the importance of media to reining in violence in our culture.
Bottom line is we need to addressing all areas. Guns, media, unethic and immoral business practices, corrupt policies driven by a corrupt political system and the unrealistic and bigoted notions of an overly righteous minority of the population which has been given excessive deference and power.
What I most want to hear from the left is a willingness to step up and address all aspects and not just cherry pick some and give a pass to others.