Thanks to Pat Corcoran for weighing in on the “Do Guns Kill People?” post. I appreciate hearing from readers (don’t think I’m forgetting you, Chris Casselman), and his comments were right on.
I think the problem with the gun control debate is that both sides are so blinded by their preconceptions that they miss the point entirely. They focus on guns as they relate to violent crime. The fact of the matter is guns are inanimate objects and therefore CAN”T CAUSE VIOLENCE. Yes, guns are often used as a means to commit violence, but they cannot of their own free will do harm. The widespread violent crime in our country says nothing about the need for more or less gun control (as demonstrated by Switzerland and Japan). But it says everything about our degraded cultural values.
America is a self-serving, hedonistic, morally numbed society. There are a number of different reasons for this which are easy enough to point the finger at. We could say the consumer-driven, capitalistic advertising industry is to blame. This force pounds it into us that our personal pleasures are the only thing worth living for. It tells us that we need need need, and no cost is too great. But in truth the advertising industry is reactionary. It does whatever is working to sell a product, and what is working is based entirely on our tastes. So the industry is only telling us that pleasure is the ultimate goal because that is what we want to hear.
It’s also easy to blame the increasing violence in music, movies, TV and video games for our cultural immorality. It’s argued that this barrage of violence is desensitizing us to its effects. I’m not buying it. I don’t believe that a moral person could possibly become so numbed by witnessing a fictional murder on television that they would go commit a murder in real life. It just doesn’t make sense. As human beings we have an instinctive capability for compassion. We can relate to the pain and suffering of other human beings. But violence in the media does make a convenient scapegoat.
So what is to blame? Tune in on Monday to find out…
Thanks for reading.
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1 comment:
Yes, it is easy to blame the media and I do believe that this does happen way to much, but I also think that it shouldn't be something that is brushed aside as only a minor influence...
When artists glorify things such as gang violence and murder and you see all these things on TV and and in the news, it begins to have an effect on your subconscience. If it isn't a direct cause, I do feel that it at least desensatizes (sp?) us to a point.
For example, when I was younger I would hear swearing from time to time and it would be this huge ordeal, now I don't decifer a "swear word"during normal conversation with my buddies.
It also feels like the same process for violence on TV, in music, etc. It just becomes normal after a while.
Again, I'm not sure what role these influences play, but I am hesitant to brush them aside.
I am excited for Monday to hear your thoughts Grubs... maybe I opened a couple more doors or took it where you were not planning on going with it, but I do want to know the real reason behind this all!
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