Ethan
Crumbley was convicted last year and sentenced
to life without the possibility of parole. His
parents, James and Jennifer Crumbley, were
convicted in separate trials and this week
received 10-15 years in prison. Ethan went
down in history as a mass shooter, killing
four students and wounding seven others at his
school. His parents also made history when
they became the first parents to be held
accountable for their child’s actions. The
cherished gun culture in the United States was
also on trial as an invisible co-conspirator.
At
the crux of the trials was how a kid with
obvious mental health issues could have a
weapon in his position - a weapon purchased by
his parents. Ethan, like many of the youth who
evolve into mass shooters, cried out many
times for help. Those cries were ignored by
the two people closest to him: James and
Jennifer Crumbley.
There
have been nearly 400 school shootings in the
U.S. since Columbine in 1999. It is estimated
that nearly 500 millions guns are in
households across the country. For reasons I
can’t explain, gun sales doubled during the
COVID-19 pandemic. White America have been
unapologetic about its fetish for weapons. It
has been brazen in the defense of guns whether
used by police on unarmed Black citizens or in
suicides or in mass shootings.
School
shootings are different. They involve children
as the victims. Somebody’s baby. How long
would a nation put up with seeing its future
splattered against classroom walls?
Well,
it has taken a generation and many school
shootings, but public opinion is finally
swaying against the biggest perpetrator of gun
lust - the National Rifle Association (NRA).
This past year has confirmed that the NRA’s
extremist agenda, along with gross
mismanagement of its funds, took a big hit on
its influence and power. Membership is on the
decline which means revenues follow suit. NRA
CEO Wayne LaPierre was exposed as being more
committed to his extravagant lifestyle than to
the goals of the 150+-year-old organization.
“Wayne’s Kingdom” is crushing underneath the
avalanche of lawsuits, investigations
and media exposés.
I
count the NRA as a big-time co-conspirator in
mass shootings because of their absolute
refusal to entertain even the most
common-sense gun regulations. Not even in the
face of the carnage produced when automatic
bullets hit the body of a six-year-old. This
sociopathic behavior became clearer over the
years with the NRA doubling down after each
shooting.
The
other big-time co-conspirators are gun
manufacturers whose marketing of fear is the
driving force for selling military guns in a
domestic setting. To protect one’s home, does
one really need an assault rifle that fires
20-30 rounds at 800 rounds per minute?
Elected
officials are the lackeys of the gun
manufacturers and the NRA who have spent
billions electing and re-electing candidates
who support their nihilist agenda. They also
bear responsibility for the mounting body
count due to the manufacturing and
accessibility of high-powered guns to
citizens.
The
Crumbley family is collateral damage. They are
in prison. They thought they were following
the script for gun-toting loyalists. They know
by now that their prosecution has set a
precedent of unknown repercussions.
Our
civilized society needs to have a sobering
discussion on its passive approach to mental
health and the availability of automatic
weapons. Then maybe we can establish a humane
strategy that is effective and not vindictive.
Then maybe, just maybe, we can save some
lives.
