How Do We Beat the Violence Epidemic?

A horrible act of violence…A mass shooting…What appears to be terrorism shook our nation last week. And this time terror struck close to home with 14 murdered and 21 wounded in right here in San Bernadino California.

How do we best respond? Do we finally implement gun control laws in America?  Will the all too common bloodshed trump the big bucks of the gun lobby at last  and force the creation of sensible laws in harmony with overwhelming public opinion?

Or do we arm ourselves to fight back? Almost every day callers on my talk radio show say they do not want to give up their weapons because they feel they will be left defenseless against terrorists, criminals and even our own governments intrusions. To which I respond, do you really think you can outgun any of the above? (And by the way if you get your gun legally you can still have it.)

Do we close our borders and keep refugees out? In a global society where ideas, rumors and information circle the planet in a heartbeat can borders really keep violence in check? Is there a fence tall enough to stop a mindset? #ConsciousMindsMatter

Do we point the finger at domestic terrorism from the KKK to Dylan Roof and the Mother Emmanuel Shootings? Is violence worse when we call it terror? And who decides what terrible acts deserve that label? Are we as a society addicted to violence and caught up with its glamorization? And if so, how do we detox?

Is it really about mental health care? Profiles of mass shooters often reveal a history of mental illness? Would widespread, affordable health care help turn the tide?

Do we blame it on one religion? The San Bernadino shooters were Muslim as were the people behind the recent Paris attacks. But do we know the spiritual beliefs of the recent Planned Parenthood shooter? And wasn’t the young man who shot church-goers in the sacred sanctuary, in fact, a Christian?

How can we root out extremism wherever we find it? We must never again sacrifice our civil liberties in the name of security.  But how can we remain safe while defiantly refusing to give up the freedoms that should be guaranteed by our democracy?