RE: 22,000 Virginians in Richmond: Gun Control and the Bigger Issues
So. Complicated.
My $.02: I live in Canada where gun control has resulted in very few shootings and I'm not afraid for my children to go to school. The situation in the States is tres fucked up. But not just because of the gun control issue. The corruption goes so deep it's got me to the point where I'm not comfortable visiting my family there. My parents are likely going to have to meet me in Toronto this year, because I don't want to bring my kids into a situation where there are that many people carrying firearms, and the political arena is so charged I'm holding my breath for all-out war.
This makes me sad for so many reasons. I love the founding principles of the USA (many of which are being blatantly disregarded), the beauty of the land, the people... but I've partied on streets in New Orleans and then read the paper the next day to learn that I narrowly missed witnessing or being caught up in a shooting. Scary stuff. For many, that's a daily reality.
I got out of the country. So did you. But there are way too many people who don't have that possibility. And don't get me started on the downright horror of ICE separating children from their families and putting people in detention. I can only hope things get better, and count my blessings as I watch things unfold from afar.
Well said, Katrina, as always. I agree with you on every single point. I am quite patriotic and, like you, love the founding principles of the USA. But they're long gone. It's a place barely recognizable anymore. Realization took a while to dawn on me after I left, but England with its kings and queens and whatnot is more American than America these days. France is in a mess, but I think the people will prevail, and I still feel a thousand times safer here than in the U.S. I dread having to come back to the States later this year to tie up some loose ends there. If what I'm afraid might happen happens, I guess I won't. Maybe ever. Sooooo hard to even think about.
I'm also left to consider the militant border control the U.S. has for incoming flights, how even Americans are treated like shit by border police (at least I have been,) when other countries do their jobs but don't make travelers feel like criminals. And I see now that all those tight security measures were in vain, because the biggest threat to America came from inside America...its own people. Heartbreaking.