I’ve been getting a ton of posts from you lately. I think we come from the same place in terms of outlook on life and values.
This post was extremely interesting and well-written. I agree with most of it. But I’m not so optimistic that your bullet list would get at anything but the symptoms.
I was a teacher for nearly a half century and routinely observed that kids who really act out come from a terrible place. The problem is deeply embedded where “Hurt people hurt” here in Canada where I live just as in America. Guns of course are the force multiplier. We just don’t have them in the numbers America does. We have the occasional spat about them, but it always dies down. Guns are a religion of sorts in America and there aren’t enough atheists.
I’ve thought about America a lot and have concluded that there is virtually no hope for it to regain its sanity.
I am brutally and fully pessimistic. And the saddest thing is that in the 40 or 50 times I’ve been there I’ve met the nicest, most open people. (Canadians are far more reserved.) As a country, you don’t deserve this.
The root cause of the problem, I believe, is loneliness, which all too often descends into anger. There’s far more to it than that of course, but I think that’s at rock bottom.
It’s a history of America from the Fifties onward with emphasis on the development of a series of changes to America which contribute to its current dire situation.
It’s called Frayed. Splintered. Shattered?
It’s free. There are ~50 essays posted. I have reached the Eighties. You might be interested.
I was born in Canada Eric. I completely agree with "hurt people hurt" and I intend to unpack the psychology of that in future essays. Gun control is one issue, and the way society/culture deals with mental health in another, and the two are intertwined.
Loneliness, a sense of powerlessness, a toxic culture, and bullying. The right continuously paints targets on certain groups. It weaponizes people who are psychologically vulnerable.
Guns are a religion in this country. You are right about that. I will check out your writing shortly.
Thanks Penfist. You hit a nail on the head with the mental health issue - another exceedingly sore spot. We in Canada have a slight advantage because our health care system is free, though it is coming under tremendous strain and is in dire need of reform. But mental health issues have exploded in number in the last twenty+ years and, when left untreated, are the direst of agonies for the sufferer. I read a few posts back that you have found yourself with a catalogue of problems over the years and you have my deepest empathy. I’ve had depression for two decades, and it is for me honestly best treated by the physical distraction and pain of long distance running. No physical pain (and I’ve had meningitis) comes close to touching the blackness of feeling lost. I wish you well.
A second point I would add that might sharpen this discussion is the absolute stranglehold that capitalism has on America. Americans take everything to extremes and capitalism and guns are the country’s true drivers. This naturally creates and then sharpens to the finest of points a winners/losers mentality. That in turn is corrosive and reductive. I believe that the base characteristic of humanity is its endless variety - the same country nourished a Bach and a Hitler.
I ramble. Thank you for subscribing. I will reciprocate your kind gesture and recommend you. I’ve been reading your pieces and like your breadth greatly.
Warning:
My subscription base is very small, so not much may come of it.
Finally, I have been lamentably slow in using Substack’s many features. I pretty much just research and write. I much admire how you have taken the bill by the horns, using so many features.
I agree with your position and am deeply saddened by this harsh reality. We’ve also seen them weaponize vehicles, driving them into crowds of people. Free speech is one thing but prolific lying shouldn’t count as free speech. More than 2 mass shootings per day ought to shake everyone’s core confidence... but apparently not.
Two of your sources exhibit extreme bias (right). NewsWars and JihadWatch are far more right-biased than the ADL is left-biased. Real Clear Investigations leans right but is mostly factual. The Megan McArdle opinion piece does have valid points. Not all white supremacists murder for ideological reasons, but the murders are still murders, and that's still a national issue. The article from Real Clear Investigations seems to argue that murders are a problem primarily caused by large cities? And you wrapped up your response with: Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious People. Which seems to me to indicate that you believe non-Christians are the root cause of American mass murders. Is that accurate?
I’ve been getting a ton of posts from you lately. I think we come from the same place in terms of outlook on life and values.
This post was extremely interesting and well-written. I agree with most of it. But I’m not so optimistic that your bullet list would get at anything but the symptoms.
I was a teacher for nearly a half century and routinely observed that kids who really act out come from a terrible place. The problem is deeply embedded where “Hurt people hurt” here in Canada where I live just as in America. Guns of course are the force multiplier. We just don’t have them in the numbers America does. We have the occasional spat about them, but it always dies down. Guns are a religion of sorts in America and there aren’t enough atheists.
I’ve thought about America a lot and have concluded that there is virtually no hope for it to regain its sanity.
I am brutally and fully pessimistic. And the saddest thing is that in the 40 or 50 times I’ve been there I’ve met the nicest, most open people. (Canadians are far more reserved.) As a country, you don’t deserve this.
The root cause of the problem, I believe, is loneliness, which all too often descends into anger. There’s far more to it than that of course, but I think that’s at rock bottom.
I write on Substack.
eodonnell.substack.com.
It’s a history of America from the Fifties onward with emphasis on the development of a series of changes to America which contribute to its current dire situation.
It’s called Frayed. Splintered. Shattered?
It’s free. There are ~50 essays posted. I have reached the Eighties. You might be interested.
Eric
I was born in Canada Eric. I completely agree with "hurt people hurt" and I intend to unpack the psychology of that in future essays. Gun control is one issue, and the way society/culture deals with mental health in another, and the two are intertwined.
Loneliness, a sense of powerlessness, a toxic culture, and bullying. The right continuously paints targets on certain groups. It weaponizes people who are psychologically vulnerable.
Guns are a religion in this country. You are right about that. I will check out your writing shortly.
Thanks Penfist. You hit a nail on the head with the mental health issue - another exceedingly sore spot. We in Canada have a slight advantage because our health care system is free, though it is coming under tremendous strain and is in dire need of reform. But mental health issues have exploded in number in the last twenty+ years and, when left untreated, are the direst of agonies for the sufferer. I read a few posts back that you have found yourself with a catalogue of problems over the years and you have my deepest empathy. I’ve had depression for two decades, and it is for me honestly best treated by the physical distraction and pain of long distance running. No physical pain (and I’ve had meningitis) comes close to touching the blackness of feeling lost. I wish you well.
A second point I would add that might sharpen this discussion is the absolute stranglehold that capitalism has on America. Americans take everything to extremes and capitalism and guns are the country’s true drivers. This naturally creates and then sharpens to the finest of points a winners/losers mentality. That in turn is corrosive and reductive. I believe that the base characteristic of humanity is its endless variety - the same country nourished a Bach and a Hitler.
I ramble. Thank you for subscribing. I will reciprocate your kind gesture and recommend you. I’ve been reading your pieces and like your breadth greatly.
Warning:
My subscription base is very small, so not much may come of it.
Finally, I have been lamentably slow in using Substack’s many features. I pretty much just research and write. I much admire how you have taken the bill by the horns, using so many features.
I agree with your position and am deeply saddened by this harsh reality. We’ve also seen them weaponize vehicles, driving them into crowds of people. Free speech is one thing but prolific lying shouldn’t count as free speech. More than 2 mass shootings per day ought to shake everyone’s core confidence... but apparently not.
It hurts to contemplate all those lives cut short because of toxic culture.
Illustrative of the hypocrisy of the pro life crowd... it’s beyond irony... it is hypocrisy and it is damaging.
What outrageous assumptions have I made, exactly?
By the way the ADL, a far left activist organization, regularly publishes data that has been shown a complete fraud.
Sources that prove your assertion?
Two of your sources exhibit extreme bias (right). NewsWars and JihadWatch are far more right-biased than the ADL is left-biased. Real Clear Investigations leans right but is mostly factual. The Megan McArdle opinion piece does have valid points. Not all white supremacists murder for ideological reasons, but the murders are still murders, and that's still a national issue. The article from Real Clear Investigations seems to argue that murders are a problem primarily caused by large cities? And you wrapped up your response with: Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious People. Which seems to me to indicate that you believe non-Christians are the root cause of American mass murders. Is that accurate?
Good luck! Fare well.