Many Americans have an abnormal obsession with guns.
People are killed and injured by gun shooters in multiple states, including Hawaii, merely for some innocent mistake, like going to the wrong address.
Some gun owners are trigger- happy, mentally ill, white suprem- acists, or deluded by conspiracy theories.
Stronger gun regulations have proven helpful. However, some shooters purchased their weapons legally. Laws can be insufficient.
The uniquely American epidemic of regular mass shootings has deeper cultural roots, reflecting a history and glorification of violence since the country’s beginnings with Indigenous genocide, African slavery and recurrent warfare.
One way to help reduce violence is through far more training for children in schools with calming meditation, critical thinking and nonviolent conflict resolution like mediation. New generations could develop with a healthier set of values and attitudes about violence, thereby helping to change the culture.
Children are society’s future. It can be less violent.
Leslie Sponsel
Hawaii Kai
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