Gun control matters!

I was appalled by yet another school shooting in the United States. I was even more appalled when I was confronted yesterday with the words, "You were brought up Presbyterian. See this? It's the sort of thing you Presbyterians do." 

The speaker had more to say. He was standing there right where I had parked my trike and he went on to try and tell me that "your religion is responsible for this sort of thing". 

I reached for my bag - intending to pull out the phone and push the emergency button. He was too close for comfort and...well, he frightened me. 

Thankfully I did not need to do anything because someone came running up the ramp and stopped him by saying quietly, "That is enough. That's assault. Move right away now. There are two police down there. If you don't want to get arrested...."

And yes, for once, two police on the far side of the car park. They were both carrying coffees.  My "attacker" stormed off. 

He is mentally ill and it is not the first time he has done something like this. It is not the first time he has shouted at me. There was a day when he let fly with a string of obscenities on the railway station platform at myself and two other women. He threatened to push us off the platform in front of the train. Fortunately the train was delayed and one of the women did call the police who happened to be watching the stop sign nearby...a favourite place to pick up a fine or two.  He was taken off complaining that we had been "name calling".  I don't know how many times they have had to deal with him. He can often seem completely normal.  

Yesterday I wondered what would happen if he lived in the United States and had managed to get a gun. It is not impossible to imagine that he would be able to get one fairly easily there. He isn't "stupid" at all. I suspect he may even be quite intelligent but he has episodes where he does not seem to be able to control himself. He "hates women" and "religion".  It could be a fatal combination if a gun was involved.

Gun control does matter. I know there have been concerns here that we have become a bit lazy about it lately. That won't do. The vast majority of people do not need guns. If someone does own one without good cause then I would question why. There are hobbies apart from target shooting. 

I don't know about the new (and much more radical) style of Presbyterianism in this country but I do know that the old style did not encourage gun ownership. Nobody in my extended family has ever owned a gun. We have been fortunate never to need one to protect others. 

I would not even have hit the man who confronted me yesterday. His behaviour was technically assault. I didn't need to add battery to it. Violence doesn't get us anywhere. It's why gun control matters.