A Kentucky mother stepped outside of her home just for a few minutes, but it was long enough for her 5-year-old son to accidentally shoot and kill his 2-year-old sister with the .22-caliber rifle he got for his birthday, state officials said.
The shooting that took the life of Caroline Sparks in southern Kentucky has been ruled an accident, Kentucky State Police Trooper Billy Gregory said.
"It's just one of those nightmares," he said, "a quick thing that happens when you turn your back."
Young children in the area are often introduced to guns at an early age, Gregory said.
Ferguson: Irresponsible humans, not guns
"In this part of the country, it's not uncommon for a 5-year-old to have a gun or for a parent to pass one down to their kid," he said.
The reader can go to the link for more details. This is as much as I need to see.
I'm starting to understand how the populations of Germany and Japan allowed themselves to take part in the mad sequence of events that became World War II. The same human characteristics are as apparent today as in the past.
Gun abuse is as prevalent as substance abuse, but unlike other destructive, toxic human behaviors, no one wants to call it for what it is -- a social sickness crying out for correctives. But those of us calling for more effective gun safety and abuse controls are demonized as unpatriotic, ignorant, stupid and worse by others who in historic terms are as misguided as the well-meaning Germans and Japanese who watched fellow-citizens, neighbors and family members shape the politics of pre-war Germany and Japan.
A garrison state is being built to protect what is now an American Empire.We have several armed forces -- Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Coast Guard -- replacing the historic two: army and navy. And that "well regulated militia" referred to in the Second Amendment, which we now call the National Guard, is now as numerous as the number of states. And that does not include actions of the CIA, Special Forces and other ancillary covert operations.
We also have multiple police forces and sheriff's departments in most places in addition to the police. Additional law enforcement functions are in every town, county, parish, township and state. Yet for many, all these protections are not sufficient, despite the fact that they are composed of other Americans, often serving in a part-time reserve capacity while maintaining their civilian jobs and identities.
And despite all this, for many it will never be enough. I no longer find it puzzling. It's just sad. I feel the same helplessness I feel watching others destroy lives with drugs, gambling, even sometimes a well-meant dedication to career-building, for which they pay a bitter price.
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