Musings for 2/18/2018

I have been pondering things for a few days and, well, ok I ponder things all the time. Usually multiple things at once. Sometimes I get an “aha” moment and other times it comes months or years later.

But I got a good aha about the arguments for and against gun control, and hell, lots of other things too. And you are going to think I’m going to say be kind and loving. Nope, but do that anyway. Do that in everything you do, and things will change and turn out fine with that as a guiding principle. But not what I was going to say.

I actually do not mind guns. In fact, to save mine or your life, I would kill someone else in a heartbeat with few regrets other than the obvious taking of a life. I do not have a need for an automatic weapon and neither do you, despite what you may think. So I’m also ok with laws that prohibit the general public from obtaining those. But on the other hand, I’m not so naive that I think that you can’t otherwise get a gun. You can go to any criminal anywhere and buy them. You can have them passed down in your family. Don’t think anyone you know inherited an automatic weapon? I bet you do know someone. I do. And nope, not divulging names.

And that’s also not what I was going to say. All of these arguments FOR and AGAINST are born out of fear. Let me capitalize that – FEAR. The people against gun control are afraid that they will lose their rights. People for it are afraid of losing their lives. It doesn’t matter which side you are on, it’s all about fear.

I find myself confused about this, but I can sort of understand it so I have empathy for it. I also see how both sides play out in a historical context. But more importantly, I see a systemic problem in our world and culture that promotes both fear and violence. Until we change that, nothing really changes.

I do feel that we need to stop the bleeding for safety reasons, and risk management. That’s my parent and manager perspective and both are compatible so I can wear them concurrently. I mean think about it parents – if you have two children and one hits the other with a model train repeatedly, you take the train away until they are mature enough to not do that anymore. It’s a safety thing right? If you have an employee who needs a buffer from an air vent, you either fix the vent or move the employee. Neither the model train nor the air vent is inherently bad or even causing the problem, but you’ve gotta do something right now. These are things you can do right now, and so you do them. Why is it so hard when we talk about major issues?

Well, it’s fear. So I ask you today – what is it that you really fear? And who do you fear it from? And why? These are fantastic things to ponder, and to ponder honestly. So go forth and ponder my loves, and if you want to talk about it during or after, I’m here for you.

Hugs, blessings, and #missingerin <3