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Wingin' It
By Mona Lease
Hi, all!! For you die-hard readers out there (thanks, much!) - keep
reading. Right-wingers say "fight, justice, punishment, etc." The
left-wingers say "peace, disarm, find a better way, etc." I was told I
was getting a little "left-winged." But I wonder- and here's why:
Bugs Bunny was a character created by Leon Schlesinger Production's
staff and voiced by Mel Blanc. In one of Bugs' many adventures, someone
got a gun - Bugs got a bigger gun - the other person brought in an even
bigger gun - and Bugs wheeled in a cannon. Band - Bang - Bang and the
screen went black. This was in the 1960's - the Viet Nam War was in
full swing. (Did the writers know that eventually after all of the
gunfire - there will be nothing left to shoot?) I remember being maybe
4 or 5 and watching a black-and- white tv airing our soldiers returning
home from 'Nam - in body bags and caskets. Like some crazy dis-assembly
line - guys unloaded the "cargo planes" - some caskets and bags had a
flag draped over them. No one said anything - not the tv reporter - not
the guys unloading the plane - nor did my Dad or Mom utter a word.
Masada, Israel in the first century B.C.E.: Zealots: a group of people
who wanted to eradicate pagan rule in Israel. Jewish people had taken
over Masada and when Jerusalem fell, the Zealots fled to Masada. Rome
wanted Masada and sent out the 10th Roman Legion - 10, 000 soldiers.
The Zealots watched Rome steadily building a "ladder" to get to the top
of Masada. When Rome reached the top - no one was alive, dead bodies
lay everywhere. All of the wells were polluted - but one. All of the
grain storehouses had been burned - but one. In a neat row at the front
of Masada sat 10 clay jars - each bearing the identifying family mark.
In the jars were coins - or, money. The Zealot theory was that if they
were taken prisoner and sent to Rome, they would be forced to work,
worship a "god" they did not believe, or killed. It would be better to
die by their own hand - with honor and freedom.
In today's society: Sandy Hook School shooting. A lone gunman shot and
killed his Mother at their home. He then went to Sandy Hook Elementary
School and opened fire, killing 6 adults and 20 kids before turning the
gun on himself and committing suicide.
Virginia Tech massacre: A lone gunman opened fire and killed 32 while
wounding 17 others.
Columbine High School: A pretty well thought out plan executed by
two male seniors: gunfire, a fire bomb to divert the firefighters.
propane tanks converted into bombs placed in the cafeteria, 99
explosive devices, and car bombs left 12 students and one teacher
dead. Additionally - 24 people were injured trying to leave the
building. The two seniors later committed suicide.
My personal views are: About any mass-killings I've read, I've never
learned the wielder of the gun was trying to save anybody. In the Sandy
Hook and Columbine incidents - the gunmen had some sort of
behavioral/mental problem...BUT, they still knew their behavior was
wrong...there would be repercussions....prison and/or jail time or they
would not have killed themselves.
There has got to be some better way to work out our aggressions,
anxiety, disappointments, etc - other than guns, knives, and bombs. We
do not live in an uncivilized society. We live in an age of modern
medicine (in theory, you don't have to suffer from a cold for long),
worldwide travel, automatic washing machines, and credit cards (even if
you don't have money, you have money - so to speak.). What went
wrongly??
Remember the kiddies and our service people. Take good care of the
furry and feathered ones out there. Be safe and healthy. See ya next
time. Ever Toodles!! MONA
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