There have reportedly been 250 mass shootings in the U.S. so far this year, and most, if not all of them, were in retaliation for a perceived offense or harm.
The last four days have resulted in four reported mass shootings, with one in Atlanta, Georgia, where one person was killed and 10 others injured at what is described as a nightlife neighborhood at 1:30 A.M. In Reno, Nevada, on July 29, gunshots left three people dead and several wounded at a resort and casino. And, right here in D.C., two people were injured and another killed in an incident in Congress Heights on Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, S.E.
This is not about mass shootings, which are defined as where four or more people are shot or murdered in a single incident. It’s about the extreme lengths one will resort to in retaliation for a perceived harm or threat. It’s also about the weapons that are so readily accessible to people who believe retaliation is the only method of hurting someone who has done them harm.
Retaliation is a normal human response to a perceived harm. In a study conducted by the Association for Psychological Science, researchers confirmed “what the scorned have been saying for years: Revenge is sweet.”
However, “the actual execution of revenge carries a bitter cost of time, emotional and physical energy, and even lives. That minute before revenge is savory…but what about the days and weeks that follow?”
In the most recent mass shooting in New York City that left five dead, including the gunman, and one injured, Shane D. Tamura, 27, of Las Vegas, used a high-powered rifle to retaliate against the NFL, whom, in a suicide note, he blamed for his traumatic brain injury.
Reports say that Tamura had been suffering from mental illness for quite some time, and many question how or why he was legally allowed to own guns. But Tumara is not alone, and for the hundreds who have fallen victim to gun violence, it almost goes without saying that most of them also experience some sort of mental illness. Today, most Americans are confessing how stress is influencing their lack of clarity and thoughtful responses to the stresses they are experiencing.
We know that hurt people hurt people. We also know that public policy steered by a select group of policymakers who support the gun manufacturers continues to deny the impact that easy access to weapons has on Americans. They are being shot and killed unnecessarily.
The push for stronger gun laws must continue. There are too many hurt people who will hurt people with a weapon in their hands.