Let the Finger Pointing Begin

I suspect that nail salons everywhere in the country are now in the "standing room only mode." You see, nails have now become like every other part of the human body and require special attention to make them look their very best. This is particularly true when that particular nail is attached to a particular finger which has become involved in the practice of pointing to a particular person and/or subject matter that they happen to particularly disagree with. The use of another finger has also become most popular in a more vulgar manner than general finger pointing, but that is for a later conversation.<br /> <br /> At any rate, all fingers that can be used will be out in force wiggling and waggling with the recent tragedy in Arizona that resulted in several deaths and many injuries including the shooting of Congresswoman Gabrielle Gifford at a political meet and greet outside a retail establishment. You know the story very well by now. A young man with a nine millimeter hand gun did all he could to shoot as many people as possible. He basically shot until he had to reload and was subdued by others at the event. He was arrested and has been charged with the crimes. No particular motive has been established by way of the defendant offering a confession.<br /> <br /> But, never fear in lieu of an explanation from the actual killer the finger pointers have rushed out with neatly manicured fingers and have pointed them in every direction as to why this tragedy occurred. Finger number one has been pointed toward media personalities who are accused of creating hate through political rhetoric and that their irresponsibility and abomination caused this man to go off. Finger number two has been pointed toward the availability of guns and extended magazine capacities in this country and that if the defendant had not been allowed to possess a weapon the shooting would not have occurred. Finger number three is pointed toward how we, as a country, deal with persons who have mental issues and that if we had faced this problem head on, this incident might have been prevented. <br /> <br /> So, if you believe the finger pointers, this incident would have never occurred if we would have prevented free speech, especially when it comes to political opinion, and if we had prevented the ability to possess a firearm, and we had a different method of identifying, treating, and dealing with the mentally ill; particularly those who could pose a real threat to others.<br /> <br /> The first two are problematic as they happen to have a little document known as the Bill of Rights which causes their elimination to be difficult. The third may be the most difficult of all to come to grips with. Suppose we did eliminate free speech, whatever the topic, and if we eliminated the right to bear arms it could be argued that the incident may not have happened, at least not in the same manner. And, even if it did, we probably would not be allowed to talk about it. There still could have been senseless deaths and injuries, but they may not have been the result of a firearm. The assailant could still have been absorbed in political rhetoric, but it would not have come from a media pundit. It could have simply been a tragedy that resulted from an unstable person, who had been consumed with outside opinion from someone like a neighbor, friend, or family member and reacted with violence by means of any weapon known to man other than a firearm such as a knife, a sword, a club, an incendiary device, a Molotov cocktail, a vehicle driven into the crowd, or whatever his or her choice might have been. And, the truth is that the results would have probably been the same.<br /> <br /> What we can do, however, that might make a real difference is to look at how we as a country deal with our citizens who have mental issues. Time after time, we release them back into the general population when we know full well that they are a ticking time bomb just waiting to go off. It happens in the courts and in institutions every day. It happens because we have no options other than lifetime institutionalism which some officials are reluctant to use.<br /> <br /> So back in the streets they go, until something sets them off, and we have a tragedy. We have had them before this incident and we will have them again. When it happens again, we will extend our pointed fingers at every reason in the world as to why it occurred except the one that we should be pointing toward. The opportunity is just too good to let it go. The pointing has little to do with what caused the pointing and everything to do with getting what is being pointed at back in the spotlight. And so, the finely manicured digits are waving in every direction except where it should be pointed. This incident is an excellent example of why we must reevaluate and reform the ways that we deal with the mentally ill.<br /> <br /> Our current method of "ah, he's harmless, he's just crazy as a bedbug," apparently is not working. The majority of those people who suffer from mental maladies are not dangerous. But, some of them are. A few of them are very dangerous. We must come up with a way to protect the innocent, which in this case included a nine year old child, from those who are far more dangerous than any bedbug. Until we do this, we will continue to wiggle our fingers to the far left and to the far right and the majority, who are somewhere in the middle, will continue to be threatened by some other fingers, which just happen to be attached to the hands of some very dangerous and very ignored people, who have those fingers and hands firmly around our nations neck.<br /> <br /> A finger can be a very useful and excellent tool when pointing out a direction or solution. It can be a totally useless tool when pointing to an issue that has nothing to do with direction or solution. Let's hope that this time when the pointing begins, there is also a solution in the hand attached to the finger of the one pointing. A solution about the real, and not peripheral, political issues. Anything less is truly and literally nothing more than the rest of us just getting the finger from those who put their special interest above the actual issue at hand.<br /> <br /> The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and are not those of the Gwinnett District Attorney's Office.