Barely a month since a deadly subway attack transpired in Great Britain, the United States finds itself mired in the worst mass shooting tragedy in American history. The shooting, which took place in "America's playground," (Las Vegas), resulted in the deaths of 58 concert attendees and the suspect, Stephen Paddock, 64, of Mesquite, Nevada.
Paddock somehow managed to fire hundreds of rounds from the thirty-second floor of the Mandalay Hotel/Casino, which is set on "The Strip" in the center of the exciting nightlife and gambling of Las Vegas. Suddenly, shots broke out and most of those present thought that the sounds of the fully automatic rounds being fired were coming from fireworks.
Time stood still
Unfortunately, for hundreds of concert fans, the realization that the "fireworks" actually were bullets being fired from above, came too late. In addition to the 58 concert-goers who were killed, over 500 people were injured. The injured parties, some of whom were critically and seriously wounded, were transported to five different hospitals in Las Vegas. Suddenly the city that never sleeps became a city drenched in a shower of tragedy and, unbelievably, time stood still in the most popular vacation "get away" city in the United States.
Melania's 'hopes and prayers'
On Monday, the day after the tragic Vegas shooting, First Lady Melania Trump tweeted that her "hopes and prayers" go out to the families of the victims of the Mandalay Hotel concert shooting.
Unfortunately, Melania's tweet did not resonate with the vast majority of Americans, especially the victims' families. The tweet was considered insincere, too "pat," and superficial. This observer agrees with that appraisal of the First Lady's tweet.
The fact of the matter is that it is time for more than "thoughts and prayers." It is time for action.
It is time for Americans to be proactive and decisive, and to change laws. Although this is hard for the radical, right-wing, NRA supporting Republicans, Libertarians and ultra-conservatives to grasp, it is time to enact and enforce the most stringent gun control measures ever conceived in American history and to stop coming up with excuses for inaction.
What will Trump do?
It is this observer's "hope against hope" that President Donald Trump, who was described by this observer as committing an act of "genocide by omission" in his handling of the situation in Puerto Rico, will support the efforts of Progressive Democrats to limit access to automatic and semi-automatic weapons. Only firm and targeted Presidential leadership will result in the kind of legislation needed to put much-needed controls on access to one man armies by individual citizens.
The 'runaway train'
The runaway gravy train to arsenals of automatic and semi-automatic weapons must be stopped in its tracks. And Progressive Democrats are going to have to solicit the help of Donald Trump and "middle of the road" Republicans to get it done once and for all.
