24 Rounds in Nine Seconds

Last updated on: June 17, 2016 at 12:00 am by Jason Mankey

24 Rounds in Nine Seconds 2016-06-17T00:00:10-06:00 Jason Mankey

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

24 rounds in nine seconds. No civilian needs a gun capable of discharging 24 rounds of ammunition in nine seconds, and yet that’s what the Daily Mail reported a few days ago. I did not run into that particular article until late this morning and those numbers have been haunting me ever since.

I don’t hate guns. I have friends who are gun owners, and they are responsible gun owners. I don’t think every person with a gun is an asshole or a threat to society. The majority of gun owners in the United States are good people. They are our neighbors, our family members, and often our friends. There are liberals who own guns as well as conservatives. There are even many Pagans who own guns. I don’t hate guns.

“Eternity” by Vincent Van Gogh. From WikiMedia.

But I do hate how easy it is to get certain kinds of guns. Did you know there’s a waiting period for handguns in the state of Florida but not for assault semi-automatic rifles? This is from Rolling Stone:

In addition to the .233-caliber assault weapon that helped Mateen carry out the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history, he had a 9mm Glock 17 handgun as well. He could have left the store immediately with the former, but needed to wait three days to pick up the latter because Florida law imposes a mandatory waiting period on any firearm “capable of being carried and used by one hand.” The waiting period does not apply to guns that you need two hands to hold, like the Sig Sauer MCX. Some additional caveats apply: You don’t need to wait three days if you trade in one handgun for another, or if you have a permit to carry a concealed weapon. Mateen, who worked as a security guard, did, but the owner of the St. Lucie Shooting Center said he observed the waiting period nonetheless.

In my mind that’s just messed up. We make people jump through more hoops for boner pills than we do certain types of guns. When the US Constitution was written a solider with a musket was able to fire three shots a minute, so twenty seconds a shot. There’s no way the framers of the Constitution ever imagined 24 rounds in nine seconds.

When my friends from the UK and Australia read about American gun culture they often seem perplexed by it. I’ll admit that I am too, but guns are a part of our national story. Part of that is probably because our country is so damn new, it’s hard to romanticize the sword when your soldiers and Presidents never used one. We were born in the age of gunpowder and have never overcome it.

There’s no way America is ever going to ban guns, and I’m not sure I’d ever ask anyone to. However, we can (and most definitely should) stop throwing guns out like candy. Would I love to see weapons like the AR-15 banned? You better believe it. No one’s using that protect their house or family, or to go hunting. And if you need such a weapon for you hunting trip you are most likely an awful shot and should just stay home.

But if we are going to continue to sell weapons like the AR-15, maybe there should be some hoops? If you are a wife beater then you don’t get a gun. If you’ve been investigated for terrorist sympathies maybe you don’t get a gun for a little while. If you are a law abiding citizen what’s there to be scared of? (And don’t bitch to me about this on Facebook, if you were truly worried about your “privacy” you wouldn’t be on social media.)

“Liberals” aren’t hysterically trying to take anyone’s guns away, but many liberals do want to keep guns out of the hands of potential terrorists, the violent, and the mentally ill. If there’s ever a “no gun buy” list will it contain mistakes? Of course it will, we are far from perfect. But mistakes can be fixed, we can’t bring people back from the dead. Being inconvenienced for a few days or a few weeks is nothing compared to a parent losing their child.

Are guns strictly to blame for Orlando? Of course they are not. Tragedies are nuanced, but if Sunday morning’s shooter had gone into Pulse with just a handgun and a knife there would not have been 49 dead that night.

On social media, I keep reading from my “no restrictions or lists ever” friends how their civil liberties might be eroded if there were a “no buy” list. Living in America requires compromises. You can’t legally drive 120 miles an an hour in your car or drop acid at your local bar. As a nation we agree to certain rules that will most likely help everyone. We don’t always get it right, but we try.

If you need an AR-15 then you should be prepared to jump through several hoops and wade into some red tape. If that’s not enough perhaps you can simply keep one at the shooting range? If it’s that important to some of you, I want you to have options. But you’ll understand if I want to at least try and keep that same gun away from a murderer.

There are no easy solutions when it comes to these issues. A “no buy” list will not end mass murder in the United States, but what we are currently doing is obviously NOT WORKING. I don’t want to hear about your civil liberties I want to hear about solutions to this problem, and if you can’t offer me those I don’t want to hear it.

24 rounds in nine seconds. No civilian ever needs to do that again.

Our thoughts, prayers, and activism are with the victims of Orlando, their families, and the LGBTQ Community.

Uncategorized

Previous Post

June 15, 2016

A Somber Solstice

Next Post

June 20, 2016 The Witch's Guide to Doreen Valiente

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Editorializing Gateways to Paganism Guest Posts Holiday Histories Led Zeppelin News and Views Occult Pagan Pagan TV Club Paganism polytheism Ramble On Reviews Ritual Strange Days Uncategorized

Select a Month August 2026 March 2026 February 2026 November 2025 September 2025 August 2025 April 2025 August 2024 April 2024 February 2024 December 2023 October 2023 August 2023 June 2023 May 2023 January 2023 October 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 April 2012 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Where does Scripture say, "do not let the sun go down on your anger"?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Proverbs Luke Genesis Ephesians