I went to bed with news of the most recent mass shooting in America. While writing this, It crossed my mind that another may have taken place before I published this story, making the Maine shooting the second or perhaps third most recent. Maine was recently rated the “Safest State in the Country” in current rankings by U.S. News and World Report.
Early reports said there were 22 people killed, and as of the following day, the death toll was reduced to “at least 16,” and dozens of people were injured. The suspect, 40-year-old Robert Card, is still loose and capable of more death and destruction before being caught. He was armed with an AR-15-style rifle, the weapon of choice for mass shooters. According to The Washington Post, before the start of 2023, ten of the 17 deadliest U.S. mass shootings since 2012 involved AR-15s.
I’m not hearing asked, “How did this happen?” We know how it happened: a man had access to a weapon of mass destruction and decided to use it. People immediately pointed to Card’s history of mental illness and his recent commitment to a mental health care facility after threatening to shoot up a National Guard base. He was on the record as “hearing voices,” yet he still possessed the weapons, allowing him to walk into a bowling alley on “youth night” and a bar and shoot everyone he could. Maine doesn’t have a Red Flag Law allowing officials to remove guns from people not considered safe. They have a Yellow Flag Law with enough restrictions to make them unworkable. Maine viewed their law as a “model for gun control.”
“We can do this and still have due process,” — David Trahan, Executive director of the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine
Maine reviews all deadly force incidents involving police officers. A review of a recent event where an officer shot and killed a man brandishing an AR-15 was revealing. The suspect was legally prohibited from having guns due to a past felony conviction, but a lengthy mental health record didn’t disqualify him. The report noted he had “easy access to AR-15 style weapons.
Robert Card is ex-military and a trained firearms instructor. He’s believed to be a member of the Army Reserve. Even had a Red Flag Law been in place, there’s little doubt Robert Card would have had easy access to the type of weapons he used on his mission; they’re everywhere.
The inevitable discussion will be focused on why this particular shooter fell through the cracks and not why he had the capacity to kill so many people. The National Shooting Sports Foundation, a firearm industry trade group, calls an AR-15 a “sporting rifle.” What sport do you use an AR-15 for, and what animal do you hunt? Why do alleged collectors have a right to own weapons with such destructive power? This happened because politicians have deemed it acceptable for Americans to possess weapons of mass destruction individually, with a few mass shootings here and there being acceptable losses. (The death toll in Maine has now risen to 18).
The same politicians, hostage themselves to the NRA, will offer their “thoughts and prayers” for the victims and their families, doing nothing to eliminate what they can’t acknowledge is part of the problem. In 1994, Congress passed an assault weapons ban with the provision it had to be renewed every ten years. The NRA led a huge backlash, and by 2004, politicians were in no mood to continue the provision, as you might suspect. Gun deaths showed a decline after the implementation of the ban and almost tripled after the ban expired.
The cover photo for this story depicts a moose at a lake, a scene that brings Maine to mind. Had I chosen to show the type of gun used in the massacre, various social media algorithms would have blurred or blocked the photo as a picture of a weapon of mass destruction is too dangerous to unleash on American citizens. Actual weapons of mass destruction are welcome. Any discussion about the new assault weapons ban will trigger a run on guns and ammunition from those fearing their loss of the right to commit murder and mayhem. They may well have empathy for the families impacted in Maine and beyond, and they’ll offer thoughts and prayers. In a battle between weapons of mass destruction vs. thoughts and prayers, the guns will win every time.
—
This post was previously published on The Polis.
***
You may also like these posts on The Good Men Project:
White Fragility: Talking to White People About Racism | Escape the “Act Like a Man” Box | The Lack of Gentle Platonic Touch in Men’s Lives is a Killer | What We Talk About When We Talk About Men |
Join The Good Men Project as a Premium Member today.
All Premium Members get to view The Good Men Project with NO ADS.
A $50 annual membership gives you an all access pass. You can be a part of every call, group, class and community.
A $25 annual membership gives you access to one class, one Social Interest group and our online communities.
A $12 annual membership gives you access to our Friday calls with the publisher, our online community.
Register New Account
Need more info? A complete list of benefits is here.
—
Photo credit: iStock