commentary by Patrick H. Moore
As our curious nation hurtles along the “road to nowhere” (formerly known as Manifest Destiny), the battle over rabid gun proliferation seems to be “breaking badly” in favor of the gun expansionists. There have been a few exceptions to this unfortunate trend, however, as is exemplified by the recent first-degree-murder conviction of Byron Smith in Minnesota for “lying in wait” and shooting and killing two unarmed teenagers who stupidly broke into his home, apparently hoping to find narcotic pain pills or possibly items that they could fence to buys drugs.
There are, of course, two sides to every story, and the recent Georgia home invasion where 88-year-old Russell Dermond was inexplicably decapitated, apparently by an unidentified home invader(s), does suggest that Americans do have some cause to be worried about their safety, from which it follows that being “armed and dangerous” could be viewed as a necessity.
Personally, I believe that the U.S. will remain the most heavily-armed nation on earth until hell freezes over, which could be a very long time considering that the polar ice caps are rapidly melting.
As a recent case out of Mystic, Connecticut demonstrates, however, there is an element within the firearm proliferation generation that is sick, twisted and dangerous and has no place in a civilized society.
David Moye of the Huffington Post writes:
A playground in Mystic, Connecticut, dedicated to a girl shot during the Newtown massacre, is allegedly being vandalized by “truthers” who claim the shooting never took place. (Boldface added for emphasis.)
A vinyl sign weighing 50 pounds was stolen last Tuesday from the Grace McDonnell Playground.
The sign featured a peace symbol that was based on the 7-year-old girl’s drawing. She is one of the 20 children shot by Adam Lanza at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut on Dec. 14, 2012.
In what can only be seen as an incredibly insulting slap in the face, Grace’s mother, Lynn McDonnell, found out about the theft when a man claiming to have stolen the sign called her.
In what was reportedly a brief conversation, according to CBS2, the sign-stealer allegedly told McDonnell that he took the sign because he believes the school shooting was a hoax.
This deeply offensive individual also taunted Lynn McDonnell, telling her that her daughter Grace never existed. This comment, of course, suggests that the sicko is insinuating that Lynn was part of the alleged conspiracy.
Now as anyone with even one-third of a brain is painfully aware, Adam Lanza fatally shot 20 children and six adult staff members at Sandy Hook Elementary School after killing his mother at their nearby home, in what is probably the most high-profile mass school shooting since the Columbine massacre.
According to RawStory.com, this small group of “truthers” claim the Sandy Hook massacre never occurred or was part of a ‘false flag’ operation designed to open the door to the confiscation of all guns by the government.
“Truthers” offer numerous theories about what they say really happened, but of course these half-baked fantasies are so ridiculous that it’s remarkable that anyone, no matter how rabidly pro-gun, would believe them. Thus, the fact that these so-called “truthers” apparently believe this poppycock suggests that they are either weak-mind, crazy or downright Hitlerian in their insistence on trotting out the Big Lie.
The Grace McDonnell Playground is one of 26 being built in Connecticut, New York and New Jersey by the Where Angels Play Foundation to honor the victims of the massacre. It was only opened on April 27th which means the stolen sign was only present in the park for a few weeks.
According to Foundation executive director, MaryKate Lavin, a replacement sign has already been ordered.
“We are going to keep moving forward,” she told NBC Connecticut. “This is not going to stop us, but it is heartbreaking.”
Sadly, this particular sign theft is not an isolated event, coming just days after vandals painted graffiti at a playground in Hartford dedicated to Newtown victim Anna Grace Marquez-Greene.
The police, of course, are still investigating both incidents.
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Now although like all people of arguably good will, I despise “hate crimes”, up till now I’ve never jumped on the “hate crime” bandwagon; that is, I have not gone around denouncing the perpetrators of hate crimes, perhaps assuming that the private hell of their enfevered psyches must be considerable punishment, not to mention the legal retribution they will typically receive in the event they are apprehended by law enforcement.
This defacement and/or theft of the Sandy Hook memorials and accompanying harassment of at least one of the victim’s mother’s is more than even I can bear. If I were Max Myers I would be absolutely livid. I am cut from somewhat cooler cloth (in the sense of less hot-headed), however, and therefore all I can say is that I hope these despicable excuses for human beings are arrested and prosecuted to the full extent of the law.