Topic: Gun Control

Chris Lugo: Time to re-examine gun control

By Chris Lugo | July 29, 2008 |

The shooting spree at the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church has resulted in murder charges being filed against Jim D. Adkisson, 58, an out-of-work truck driver charged with the killing of two people and the wounding of six others during a children’s musical at the church Sunday morning. Chris Lugo responds to that news and the issue of crime and gun control.

Many Tennesseans were stunned to hear the news that yesterday morning at 10:18 a.m. a lone gunman walked into a welcoming congregation in Knoxville and opened fire on the congregants who were gathered in anticipation of watching their children perform a scene from the musical “Annie” as part of the morning services, killing two people and shooting several more in the head before being tackled to the ground. That church, the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church, is a beacon of joy and hope in East Tennessee. Its congregation is made up of some of the most loving, kind and gentle people in the fine city of Knoxville, and the horrific tragedy which was visited upon that church is a wakeup call to good people throughout Tennessee to re-examine our approach to gun control in Tennessee and throughout this nation. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Issues, News, Opinion | 5 Comments

The Peacemaker Society

By Tom Paine | April 16, 2007 |

The shootings on this 16th of April, 2007, should give pause to us all. Yet another in a long line of senseless violence. But today was notable in a number of ways. First, there is the sheer number of victims — 33 dead, over 30 wounded. Then there is the fact that this was probably perpetrated by one disturbed individual. Finally, there is the types of weapons involved, two pistols; a twenty-two caliber and a 9 mm semiautomatic pistol.

I am not unfamiliar with guns. I lived for 5 years on a farm and owned several guns, a 22 semiautomatic rifle, a Ruger Mini14 semiautomatic rifle, and two pistols, a Ruger 357 magnum and a Colt 45 semiautomatic that I used for target practice. None of my weapons were ever fired in anger, but I had an intimate knowledge of firearms. So I was surprised when I learned that 33 lives were claimed by a single individual with two pistols. When I first learned about the shootings, I envisioned at least a couple of people roaming the campus with military style high powered rifles. Not so, just a single nut with two pistols.

We can expect to shortly hear from the gun nuts that we shouldn’t make it about guns and that guns don’t kill people; people kill people. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Opinion, Politics | No Comments