[FRIAM] Firearm violence... was: Mass Shootings
Steve Smith
sasmyth at swcp.com
Wed Oct 4 15:07:53 EDT 2023
Jochen -
My reflections on "how would Jochen see this?" during my cross-country
trip this summer wasn't intended to diminish your concerns about gun
safety/violence in the US... if anything I was seeing my own "backyard"
through the eyes of others (yours) who have not been innured to the
(threat of) violence that is quite widespread here in the US across many
regions and demographics. If there is a point to be made it is that our
"casual" and onesey-twosey shootings, including those initiated by our
law enforcement is at least as much of a problem as the
multiple-shootings that seem to come with various expressions of
intolerance (racism, homophobia, etc.) and general
frustration/desperation (caused by an otherwise
dysfunctional/disaffected society for many).
The wide availability (and dissemination) of "weapons of war" (and the
ammunition for them as well as semi-auto handguns with significant clip
capacity) in this country is a huge problem in my opinion... not just
because of how often they get used (inappropriately by their nature) but
because of the general posture and tenor of interpersonal (and civic)
relations. Law enforcement has to be more suspicious of individuals in
public encounters given that any given citizen might well be carrying a
(highly) deadly weapon equal to or exceeding the capability of their own
(on their hip, or in their car). Similarly, the average citizen must
also consider the possibility that a given disagreement could abruptly
escalate to a shooting incident. It wasn't that long ago (decades?)
that interpersonal gun violence was mostly restricted to the execution
of a financial crime (including drug deals) or (sadly) domestic disputes
(often spouses but sometimes parent/child or sibling/sibling), but now
it seems that political differences have become equally popular reasons
for shooting one another.
A really good (bad) example of this is fresh in our area:
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/15/us/conquistador-onate-albuquerque-new-mexico-unrest.html
https://www.nytimes.com/1998/02/09/us/conquistador-statue-stirs-hispanic-pride-and-indian-rage.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2002/01/17/world/as-a-sculpture-takes-shape-in-mexico-opposition-takes-shape-in-the-us.html
The most recent event of less than a week ago seemed to involve a
?concealed? handgun produced and fired by a counter-protestor who had
been haranguing the (mostly) Native American "protestors" who were
rather *celebrating* a delay in placing the Onate statue. (the shooting
victim is recovering but was in critical condition after being shot in
the abdomen at point blank range). No specific mention is made of
whether the shooter had been displaying the weapon or keeping it
entirely concealed during the ongoing confrontations. My personal
observation of the videos at the moment of shooting suggests it was
specifically concealed in his waistband *under* a hoodie. The local law
enforcement had been present earlier and I believe had intervened in
earlier altercations he had generated... it seems unlikely they would
have left the scene had he been openly displaying a weapon at that
time... but who knows? Also likely that those he claimed "threatened
him" would not have been as aggressive had he been displaying a weapon
(for better or worse)...
The statue in question had been removed from a nearby location after the
2020 conflict over a similar statue in Albuquerque where another
anti-Onate protestor was shot by a "counter protestor". The very
same statue was vandalized in 1998 not long after it was first installed
by removing the right foot of Onate who is infamous for many atrocious
acts during his time as Conquistador/Governor in the area which included
cutting offthe right foot of Native men
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acoma_Massacre> that were not massacred
during his bloodiest act among many. It isn't clear if the shooter
(with an Hispanic surname) had a specific "Hispanic Pride" motive in
confronting the Native protestors, there is plenty of online evidence
that he is a proud MAGA guy and previously been "talked to" by the FBI
for threats he had made (online?)...
There is a battle underway between our Democrat Governer and a large
contingent of pro-gun legislators, industry and citizens after she tried
to supercede the State laws allowing "open carry" of firearms in *most*
public venues. She issued a temporary order trying to limit such
<https://www.reuters.com/world/us/new-mexico-mayor-calls-legislative-debate-after-gun-ban-2023-09-13/>
in one county after several children were killed in the Albuquerque by
stray gunfire... as the linked article indicates it was overturned by a
federal judge based on "2nd amendment rights".
So *yes*, the US, even/especially this sleepy little corner of the
country has a gun problem which is evidenced by the amount of shooting
going on. "Breaking Bad" might well exaggerate or hyperbolize the
drug-related violence we have in this region but it isn't completely
off-base either.
FWIW, there has been a significant outpouring of (financial) support for
the victim.
https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-jacob-johns-recover-from-terrorist-shooting
I will also admit that most all I know of violence on individuals in
modern Europe comes from watching Kubrick's Clockwork Orange and
books/movies about Nazi Germany and Stalinist-Era eastern Europe...
On 9/4/23 3:13 PM, Jochen Fromm wrote:
> Yes, the mass shooting in Norway was devastating and very painful. We
> have mass shootings here in Europe too. Thanksfully less frequent than
> in the U.S.
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mass_shootings_in_the_United_States_in_2023
>
> Overall the number of weapons and especially of automatic weapons like
> the AR-15 is lower here too. Most European countries have very strict
> gun laws and make it difficult to buy and own weapons. I don't have
> one, and I don't know anyone who owns one, except the police maybe.
> https://time.com/6278608/ar-15-rifle-assault-weapons-uvalde/
>
> For me personally the gun problem is one reason why I don't feel safe
> traveling to the US. I must admit there are even in my own city Berlin
> parks which do not feel safe because they are known for drug dealers
> and crimes. Therefore it is a bit unfair to say that a whole country
> has a gun problem while some areas are much more affected than other.
> Santa Fe for instance seems to be a nice place to live.
> https://edition.cnn.com/interactive/2023/08/us/americans-living-near-mass-shootings-statistics-dg/
>
> -J.
>
>
> -------- Original message --------
> From: Frank Wimberly <wimberly3 at gmail.com>
> Date: 9/4/23 5:13 AM (GMT+01:00)
> To: The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group
> <friam at redfish.com>
> Subject: Re: [FRIAM] Science Fiction Books
>
> I had posted a link to an article about a mass shooting in Norway in
> response to a claim that most mass shootings occur in the U.S. I
> can't find that post so I'll repeat it. This was only one attack but
> 77 people were killed.
>
>
> https://www.cbsnews.com/news/anders-behring-breivik-appeal-european-court-of-human-rights-norway-massacre/
>
>
> ---
> Frank C. Wimberly
> 140 Calle Ojo Feliz,
> Santa Fe, NM 87505
>
> 505 670-9918
> Santa Fe, NM
>
> On Sun, Sep 3, 2023, 11:13 AM Jochen Fromm <jofr at cas-group.net> wrote:
>
> I have read "Highway of Eternity" from Clifford D. Simak this
> weekend, one of the books from the golden age of science fiction
> which is comparable to "The city and the Stars" from Arthur C.
> Clarke and "The end of eternity" from Isaac Asimov. Both belong to
> my favorite books. Modern authors don't write like this anymore.
> Their books are often gloomy and depressive, and do not span
> millions of years. What is your favorite science fiction book?
> Will the AI breakthrough in large language models lead to more
> optimistic science fiction books again?
>
> -J.
>
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