STOP TREATING SYMPTOMS; SHUT OFF THE SOURCES

14) Enact the death penalty for any violent crime, which I hereby define as child sexual abuse “and up.” Federal law. No plea bargains, no deals, and an appeals process of one year maximum. Period. The legal merry-go-round that exists today sends the message to criminals that we as a nation are not serious about punishing those who commit the most heinous acts against others; and the cost of keeping killers and the other worst offenders housed, fed, and cared for medically is draining federal and state coffers. It has also, in the most bizarre instances, created a sick semi-celebrity status for some of these criminals (and I will deal with that issue in a moment). The other benefit of finally getting serious with the worst criminals will be to remove them from the gene pool forever. Evidence is mounting that killers are wired differently mentally and physically. Whether or not that is true, the nation simply cannot afford to continue to perpetuate through future generations whatever it is that enables them to kill.

15) Make families (core family: mother-father-children) financially responsible for restitution to victims if any immediate family member ever commits not just a violent crime but any crime. Federal law. The criminal apologists, and a lot of others, will rush to the defense of families: “They cannot be responsible for everything children and other family members do.” Great. So this law will send the message that people whose idea of “parenting” is the act of conceiving children, with little thought to actually raising them, should think twice before rushing to conceive. Those who do take parenting seriously will take it even more seriously. No one in the immediate family will be allowed to walk away from mass killings because “it’s not their fault.” That’s what the family of the Newtown gunman — who never really dealt with his mental illness and then thought it was a great idea to bring high-powered weapons into the home where he lived — is going to be allowed to do. This has got to end, and the core family (although I apologize for not presenting this provision until #15) may be the most important part of the solution.

16) Eliminate or supersede laws enacted in recent years prevent the state from helping the mentally ill if they or their families “don’t want to be helped.” Federal law. These laws came about because in some instances the government was locking people away without enough consultation, in dark, sad places where there was little or no actual treatment. There is no guarantee that can never happen again, but there is so little privacy anymore, and so much media access, social and otherwise, that abuses are much more likely to be brought to light. At some point, the community must protect itself. It is about the greater good. “The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. Or the one.”***

17) Ban movie or book deals, or any form of compensation that originated from a violent crime, to both the criminal and his or her immediate family. Federal law. No one should be committing these crimes against humanity, and no one should profit from them. However, victims of crime and their families are free to do whatever they wish. They’ve suffered. They’ve earned it. Accordingly, victims and their families are free to do anything they want, earn any amount of compensation that originated from them being a victim of a violent crime, without restriction.

Last Thoughts For Now, and Call to Action

It seems as if everyone with an opinion on this ongoing national nightmare has one easy answer for what will fix it, one pet cause or group they blame. I wish it were that simple. It is not. I have laid out the specific actions I believe it is going to take to truly put an end to this madness, and to start healing this country.

Think about it in the quiet of your heart: you know the only way we have a snowball’s chance in hell of changing this hell on earth we have collectively created is to pull together as hard as we can and support each other through this. If that is not the currency you deal in, as my generous Italian relatives said more times than I can count: “You’re money’s no good here.”

I welcome your thoughts. And better still, your action. Contact me today at any social network where I am active. I’m on plenty, and they’re all listed on the Connections page right on this site. Or email me at jeffcotrupe@icloud.com.

*** Thanks to Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities, and Leonard Nimoy as Spock in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

“Newtown calls for new answers” is a five-part blog series, each of which focuses on specific areas I believe we must address, together, to help stem the rising tide of violence in America.

Introduction & Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 & Conclusion

RESPECT FOR LIFE…AND WOMEN

11) Enact a ban on partial-birth abortion, except when the mother’s own life is in imminent danger. Federal law. We cannot sow rampant disrespect for life in one area when it suits us without reaping a bitter harvest of death and destruction in other places where it doesn’t. Abortion saddens me, but I do not think there is a national will to change it beyond banning the partial-birth procedure. What I always hear, and I respect it, is that a woman has the right to do what she wants with her own body, and I agree it is wrong for men, starting with me, to be making decisions about that. Got it. There is also nothing right or just about forcing a woman to carry a child resulting from rape or incest — which some way out on the fringes have actually suggested — so those situations justify abortion without question. What I think almost no one “gets,” though, because I’ve never heard anyone else say it, is that while abortion is indeed a women’s issue, in a great many instances it is also, and maybe more so, a men’s issue.

More than once in high school I heard guys say things like, “We’re doin’ it, and if she gets pregnant, it’s up to her to take care of it.” In other words, either become an unwed mother — a young mother unsupported by the deadbeat dad — or have an abortion. Men across the age spectrum have been putting women in tough positions here (no pun intended) forever, and there is no excuse for it. Too many men operate as if “all the way” is the only way, then compound the felony by…how to put this delicately…being in a hurry to take care of their own needs with little or no regard for the woman. That sucks for the woman (again, no pun intended) and increases the probability of pregnancy. If both parties agree to sexual intercourse, options for pregnancy prevention abound. Yet all the way is not the only way. Creative and pleasurable options abound. This writer is happy to convene a class for fellow members of the male species who still think one option is all there is.

PROTECTING PUBLIC PLACES

12) Hire expert marksmen/sharpshooters for all schools, malls, movie theaters, and other currently unprotected public venues. Federal-state-local action, public-private partnership. Gun rights advocates make a common sense point: “If a bad guy with a gun enters a school or other public place, the only thing that’s going to stop him is a good guy with a gun.” Yet the notion that we should arm teachers and principals is ridiculous and will invariably lead to more suffering through accidental shootings. (I know some teachers and principals are expert with guns. I applaud them, but in my view “a gun in every classroom” is simply a bad idea.)

Airlines put air marshals aboard planes. Federal, state and local government buildings, as well as banks and many other private companies, have armed security. It is time we extended the same importance and protection to schools, malls, theaters and other public or semi-public venues to stop the horror.

This part of the plan also has the potential to yield economic benefits. If the trend toward mall and theater shootings continues, shoppers are going to begin staying home in greater numbers and do even more of their shopping and media consumption online. Getting serious about protecting people in public venues is essential if bricks-and-mortar retailers (and yes, their customers) are to survive. Another economic issue is how to provide employment for returning military personnel. Given the high level of weapons proficiency among the men and women in this nation’s fighting forces, many would be qualified to serve as sharpshooters protecting the public from the gutless few who are currently perpetrating these mass shootings.

13) Install metal detectors at the doorways of schools, malls, theaters, and other currently-unprotected public venues. Federal-state-local action, public-private partnership. If the number of access points makes this too expensive, close off some doorways. Metal detectors would instantly alert security to the presence of weapons. Of course, these detectors could also potentially inconvenience the public, who would have fewer access doors into public places, and who could potentially be “caught” by improperly calibrated detectors. Yet as we have adjusted to radically increased security procedures in and around airports, so, too, will we adjust to security as a way of life — one that helps protect and preserve our lives.

“Newtown calls for new answers” is a five-part blog series, each of which focuses on specific areas I believe we must address, together, to help stem the rising tide of violence in America.

Introduction & Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | NEXT: Part 5 & Conclusion

SCHOOLS

7) Return freedom of voluntary (not mandated) prayer to the schools and all public places. Federal law. Erasing God from the public square has not worked. It has created a void that greedy interests have filled with shallow values and outright sleaze. Further, while comedians may think it’s funny to talk about, for example, “no prayer in schools…but the University of Michigan is building prayer rooms for Muslims,” as was announced in 2007;** or, “no public prayer…but they’re building prayer rooms for one faith at the airport”…I don’t. Of course there is nothing wrong with letting people express religious beliefs — in appropriate settings and without mandating that anyone else do or believe the same — in public settings. Now we must extend that same courtesy to all faiths, including the Christian faith tradition that was at the core of the founding of this nation. As a bonus, by allowing voluntary expressions of religious expression we will potentially be providing a spiritual haven for someone who would have become the next mass killer.

8) Return the every-morning Pledge of Allegiance to schools. Federal law. Many of us grew up with this and it helped set a tone that the classroom, the teacher, the school, the NATION were all to be respected, and that we were lucky to be here. No nation on earth lets uncaring idiots control these kinds of things the way we currently do in America, and it is time for it to end. No exceptions.

9) Force schools to address, in meaningful ways, the serious bullying that has provably and directly led to a number of these shootings. Federal, state, and local action. This nation has now experienced story after story, for years on end, of out-of-control bullying of some students by others–and school administrators who ignore and deny it; who even when confronted with clear evidence, take no action to resolve it; and who instead ostracize and humiliate the victims of bullying and their families. This must come to an end because it is a primary reason schools became the preferred venue for these mass killings. School administrators must take action on bullying–or be replaced in their jobs by those who take it seriously and act accordingly.

10) End the National Education Association (NEA)’s war on homeschooling. Federal-state-local action. I was not homeschooled, but more and more families are choosing this option, and it is time the defenders of “choice” in other areas (I’ll get to them in a moment) knock it off and support whatever is best for the children. How dare you do everything in your power to force families to release their children into your care when you cannot begin to ensure their safety or the safety of teachers? When you by and large not only do nothing about bullying but ostracize and humiliate victims and their families? Do you think you somehow have the right to force families to send the most precious things in their lives, their children, off to a place where odds are high they will be bullied by a fellow student, and odds are rising that they will someday find themselves utterly defenseless in a shooting gallery? Damned right, you don’t.

** After a public outcry, the university has now made them available to all faiths

“Newtown calls for new answers” is a five-part blog series, each of which focuses on specific areas I believe we must address, together, to help stem the rising tide of violence in America.

Introduction & Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | NEXT: Part 4 | Part 5 & Conclusion

MEDIA

5) Ban assault media: get serious about banning or seriously limiting violence in all forms of entertainment from gaming to TV to movies to music. Federal law. Just as the gun and abortion lobbies won’t admit their all-or-nothing positions are indefensible, so, too, do we see big media trotting out its statistics-driven lies so it doesn’t have to change a thing, either. “Media violence has no effect on actual violence.” It’s simple, really; as media advertising sales representatives tell every potential advertiser: advertising works. The only reason the media exist is because they persuade advertisers to pay billions (total global advertising market: approximately $600 billion) for the privilege of exposing we, their target market(s), to advertising messages. As we know, they often run the same ad over and over and over. Why? Because repeated exposure to messages causes human beings to take action. In the case of media advertising, the action is most often to buy something or sign up for something.

Now consider that Nielsen — the media measurement conglomerate whose audience figures the media are happy to use when it means justifying them charging higher prices for advertising — offers these figures on televised violence:

• Number of murders seen on TV by the time an average child finishes elementary (!) school: 8,000
• Number of violent acts seen on TV by age 18: 200,000
• Americans who believe TV violence helps precipitate real-life mayhem: 79%

If repeated exposure to advertising causes a percentage of those who consume the advertising to take purchasing actions, it follows that repeated exposure to violence causes a percentage of those who consume the violence to take violent actions. We cannot continue to allow the media to continue to walk away from its part in the culture of violence. Instead, they should proud to be part of the solution. Under my plan, they will be.

6) Restrict media mentions of the names of those who perpetrate mass shootings. Federal law (Federal Communications Commission). I am not certain what precise form this law should take because I am unsure how to execute it while still allowing the media to perform its function of informing the public. What I do know for certain is that in an age where the media are careful to never show us a streaker at a sporting event, to avoid giving them attention and encouraging copycats; and where, for example, most sportscasts won’t even show us two players fighting for fear of “encouraging violence” — a solution absolutely exists with regard to not glorifying these killers. My suggestion is to allow each media outlet one mention of the killer’s name and then simply refer to him on all subsequent mentions as simply the gunman or perpetrator or whatever other euphemism they like. (In my perfect world: “the evil, murdering scum who is headed straight to hell.”)

“Newtown calls for new answers” is a five-part blog series, each of which focuses on specific areas I believe we must address, together, to help stem the rising tide of violence in America.

Introduction & Part 1 | Part 2 | NEXT: Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 & Conclusion