Jane Smiley: What I Think About Guns (and what they have to do with Georgia Thompson)

[Hissyspit]

http://www.alternet.org/rights/50697

What I Think About Guns

By Jane Smiley, HuffingtonPost.com. Posted April 18, 2007.

Americans will always have guns. But it would be nice if the gun-toting right wing admitted that there is a price we pay.

Some years ago, I was talking to a man about guns. At the time, I didn't really know anyone with guns (still don't), but he did. He had had guns himself. He said, "I gave my gun away, because when I had it, every time something happened that made me mad, my mind would start circling around that gun, and I would be thinking about using it. So I got rid of it and I'm glad I did."

- snip -

I would like the right wing to admit that guns are not "good" and that the right to bear arms is not an absolute virtue and that the deaths in the US caused by guns are at least as problematic, philosophically, as abortion. But I'm not holding my breath.

I hadn't intended to write about guns today -- my original source of outrage was the op-ed in the New York Times that related the saga of Georgia Thompson, who worked for the State of Wisconsin. In the course of doing her job, she put the state's travel business out for bids. She chose the lowest bidder, but because, unbeknownst to her, the travel agency making that bid had donated to the Democratic candidate, the Republican campaign accused her of corruption, and -- pay attention, this is the scary part -- the federal prosecuting attorney drummed up a case against her, and got her put in jail. Right before the election. As part of the Republican gubernatorial campaign.

Imagine how Kafka-esque all of this seemed to Ms. Thompson -- the Republicans (possibly at the behest of Washington) destroyed her life for no reason other than political gain, and with so little evidence that the appeals court who just released her was appalled and astonished.

But Ms. Thompson and guns do have a bit of a connection in the eyes of the right wing. Some weeks ago, I blogged about the attorneys scandal as it was just coming to light. My fear was that the federal attorneys were being groomed to either exonerate members of the Bush administration who might otherwise be convicted of breaking laws, or else to drum up show trials against opponents and get rid of them (bingo).

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[TnDem]

1. Well...

At the time, I didn't really know anyone with guns (still don't), but he did. He had had guns himself. He said, "I gave my gun away, because when I had it, every time something happened that made me mad, my mind would start circling around that gun, and I would be thinking about using it. So I got rid of it and I'm glad I did."

Sounds to me like if this guy cannot control himself or his anger enough for his mind not to "circle" the gun he owned everytime some issue came up, he is a prime candidate to give his gun up.

I often wonder that some of these people trust themselves so little with a gun that for them to trusting someone ELSE would be impossible.

[LizW]

2. This terrific sentence sums up the right:

"But that's how it is with the right wing, isn't it? Grievance is something they do, no matter how much power they have. They are shocked, shocked, that they don't have all the power, shocked and victimized and angry."

[Irreverend IX]

3. This was posted yesterday:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=103&topic_id=275461&mesg_id=275461