Be A Man About It

Yesterday a 19 year old man ran through a shopping mall in Nebraska and gunned down 8 people before turning the gun on himself. He apparently left a suicide note in which he said that he was “going out in style.” Now I’m sure that I don’t have to explain how disturbed I am at hearing such a horrific story, but as I grow older such events seem evermore prevalent.

I’d argue that the young man failed in his attempt to die with style points. So I have a suggestion for anyone who ever gets the notion that they’d like to follow in his footsteps: instead of turning the gun on yourself after committing your dirty deed of destruction, be a man about it and face the consequences of your actions in someone else’s court instead of your own. By committing suicide you are merely going out as the biggest loser and a coward, not with style points.

Such acts of "terrorism," if you will, really bother me because they are completely and totally senseless. To take anyone’s life is disgusting, but to go out and indiscriminately murder innocent people because you can’t deal with your own personal demons makes me even more upset.

Who gave you that right?!!!

But if you’re going to take it upon yourself to play God and kill who you will whenever you will, how bout actually stepping up to the plate and facing the consequences. I mean these people, often young men, walk around and mow down people with guns and assault rifles like they’re big and tough, but they don’t even have the balls to go down in a good old fashioned gun fight with law enforcement.

If you’re so big and bad, why don’t you match wits with people who can actually fend for themselves, people who know where you are and when you’re coming, people who know as much about a gun as you do? How 'bout really demonstrating your manhood by fighting fair, because shooting unaware, innocent bystanders isn’t going out in style by any means, it only demonstrates cowardice.

Better yet, how about trying the criminal justice on for size? Yes...go to court, be convicted, and then share a prison cell with some of your diabolical equals. Oh, that’s right, you’ve probably heard what happens to some cowards when they get to prison; maybe that’s why you forego that option and go right for suicide.

Ok, I think I’ve got it now…the ultimate solution: Instead of trying to add inches to what’s in between your legs by picking up a big bad gun (pardon the metaphor), how about exorcizing your demons before taking the valuable lives of others. Think about what those lives mean to the potential victims as well as the people that love them. You obviously don’t value your life, but the least you can do is consider the value of the lives of others.

I guess what I’m getting at here is personal responsibility and accountability. And clearly these people who commit murder-suicides are trying to dodge both. So all I’m asking of anyone who one day "loses it" and thinks the best thing to do is to “go out in style,” you’d gain infinitely more “style” points if you’d just handle your problems in house, and take no lives, including your own.

-Maelstrom