Another mass shooting. Nine black innocents slaughtered. This time a church serves as the killing field.
Another community grieves. The nation shakes its head in sympathy.
The outrage rings anew. The chattering class searches in vain for context. Voices are raised. Fingers are pointed. Guns…mental illness…racism are to blame.
Another community grieves. The nation shakes its head in sympathy.
The NRA says that this incident is not about guns. The killer used a handgun purchased through a loophole in the law.
The Wall Street Journal says this is not about racism. The killer engaged in racially charged rhetoric, frequented racist websites, adorned himself with racially charged symbols, entered an iconic black church and murdered nine black individuals.
The mental health industry says “We’re doing all we can.”
Another community grieves. The nation shakes its head in sympathy.
The president offers his condolences. He says that mass shootings like this do not happen anyplace else in the world. “At some point” he said “we as a country will have to reckon with the fact that this kind of mass violence does not happen in other advanced countries. It doesn’t happen in other places with this kind of frequency.” By one account it is the fourteenth time that he has expressed his condolences in the wake of such violence.
Another community grieves. The nation shakes its head in sympathy…
...and then?
Today the healing process begins. The community will bury its dead. Families and friends will forever mourn the loss of loved ones. The nation will move on until the next senseless mass killing when the outrage will begin anew. Between now and that next tragic day...nothing will change.
A top the South Carolina State Capitol the American flag and South Carolina state flag wave in the breeze. Today they fly at half-mast in honor of the nine dead.
On the public square in front of the South Carolina State House there flies another flag…the Battle Flag of the Confederacy. Today the “Southern Cross” proudly flies at full staff.
No, nothing will change.
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