Making it through January

After the holidays, January is always first restful then a long slog.Though we may feel bored, tired and sluggish, those of us on the west coast can't ever complain when we hear of the winter weather in the East. That makes us even more tired and bored!

Still, the entire nation must be having a January slump and fighting it with unusual gun violence. What on earth- even in Port Orchard (now don't roll those eyes) a gunfight erupted at Walmart between  the police and a man on the run with a kidnapped teen!?! Why is anyone carrying a gun to Walmart? And this is just one of many stories reported each week in the local environs. I, of course, have a course of action to change things.

I think we should have a law making any crime committed with a fire arm a federal offense. Anyone committing a crime involving a fire arm should immediately be sentenced to 20 years in prison without parole.

We will never pass legislation to limit gun ownership in this country but no one seriously believes in the right to commit crimes with guns! Those who will argue about the cost of incarceration should consider that anyone using a fire arm while committing a crime will by statistics have a high rate of recidivism, costing the state much money in legal fees on both sides of the court as well as continual social service costs and the eventual cost of life when just one of those crimes goes wrong.When the person cost of gun-toting crime is realized, criminals will re-access the cost-return and the casual carrying of guns to Walmart will be affected.

Crazy people will always find guns to kill. Hard core killers, professional criminals and mobsters will find their guns and their paths. But the misdirected deserve a bit of unsolicited help. The spontaneous stupidity needs a chance to think and society needs to be a little bit safer and saner.


So there is another "big idea from small person". Take it and run!