Latest shooting the latest in a long American tradition
Oct. 5, 2015It is a dance we Americans have familiarized ourselves with and have become pretty good at since the Columbine High School massacre: One or more distraught gunmen and several or more victims. A school or theater in sanguinary peril. A storm of grief that floods the community and ends up briefly affecting the whole nation. Trivial debates on whether to mention the killer’s name or pretend he is (because, yes, it is always a he) Lord Voldemort. The urge to have the memory of the victims take precedence over the memory of the perpetrators. The manning of the battle stations as pro-gun proletarians exchange fire with those burghers who demand more regulation. A speech from the governor, and if the stars are aligned properly, a head-nodding indie-pop hit about the massacre. In the end, no change in policy occurs, and the timer is reset to mark the seconds from the last blasting till the next one.
