Happy Sunday BaddaBing BaddaBlog readers! Just like last Sunday, this segment is dedicated to bringing you news and my opinion regarding current political issues. Once again, any and all views expressed here are entirely my own and should in no way be thought of as a representation of any groups that I have been, currently am, or someday in the future am associated with. Now that that’s over with, here we go!

Guns, and issues relating to guns, are arguably the most controversial topics in American politics. I actually know a bunch of people who’s voting habits are solely based on a candidate’s position on gun control. The reason I bring this up is because two individuals were recently arrested on the charges of planning to commit a mass shooting at the Pokemon World Championships. If these men are found guilty of plotting to shoot the many Pokemon fans at the event, in my opinion they will be some of the most deplorable people on the planet. I also want to commend the Boston Police force for handling this incident so quickly and professionally.

The reason guns are so controversial in America is because they have a deep and varied history in the American culture. On the one hand, guns were distributed to civilians on an widely during the country’s genesis so that ordinary people could fight for the country’s independence. Since then, firearms have been seen by many people as symbolizing ideas such as freedom and personal protection. On the other hand, guns have been used by American’s to inflict tremendous amounts of pain and suffering; both upon enemies to the nation and innocents withing it. Due to this, firearms are seen by many as instruments of senseless violence.

These conflicts of opinion have made it almost impossible to create any kind of reform regarding firearm issues. As someone who agrees with the latter view and as someone who lives in the state with perhaps the loosest firearm regulations, I find this detestable. By not making it any harder for people to commit mass shootings, we are creating an environment that says that Americans are okay with mass shootings, so long as we are still allowed to keep our guns. This is what those terrorists want, and by continuing to leave the situation as it currently stands, they are winning.

Well it is clear that this situation needs be changed and that laws and regulations need to be put into place to fix this problem, the question of how to go about doing that arises. The immediate answer is to elect politicians to create and enact laws, but that is easier said than done. Gun issues have created such a divide that any politician who says they are going to limit gun ownership in any fashion, that it will become tremendously hard for them to get elected. Moreover, if anyone in any position of power does try to place new regulations on guns, they will most likely either be unsuccessful in their venture or not be reelected.

The reason why politicians who try to limit the purchase or use of firearms have difficulty continuing to work in politics is because there is a ground dedicated to making sure that all Americans have easy access to guns and convincing people that guns are not dangerous. This group is called the National Rifle Association, also known as the NRA, and they are kind of evil. This group has continued to propagate the idea that guns are synonymous with freedom and have fought to keep gun laws unchanged after events like school shootings. This group claims that they fight for the rights of gun owners, but in reality they do far more good for gun manufacturers than for firearm owners. It is incredibly sad that this group has so much lobbying power and such a large financial backing.

Personally I believe that things will only get better when people stop making gun ownership such a large part of their identity. There are currently way too many people who are way too into guns for any reasonable amount of change to occur. Which sucks a lot. I could go into way more detail and list off a bunch examples of preventable gun related violence, but you’ve probably heard them all ready and this article already has me far too bummed out. I will end this with one final remark, though. Ancient civilizations used to sacrifice men, women, and children alike to their god so that they could have or maintain power and influence. People like to think that we as a society have outgrown that practice and today label it as barbaric or inhumane. We have not. The only difference today is that instead of a god, it is a gun that we are sacrificing lives to.

On that sombering note, thank you for reading. I promise that tomorrow I will post something much more upbeat and funny, and also related to anime/manga. If you found this post to be thought provoking or interesting, please like it and leave a comment down below. You can subscribe via email in the drop down menu to the right, or you can like/follow the BaddaBing BaddaBlog Facebook Page. You can also follow me on Twitter, I’m @LucasDeRuyter. Have a great week.