AMERICAN TABOO

From the Huffington Post:

Bob Costas Gun Control Speech

NBC broadcaster Bob Costas used his halftime segment on "Sunday Night Football" to advocate for gun control following this weekend's murder-suicide involving Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher, causing an immediate debate on social media.

And

The online reaction to Costas' segment was swift, with many people criticizing the broadcaster for expressing his personal views on a program meant for entertainment.

More here, with video.

Judging by the internet chatter I was feeling earlier today, the reaction was predictable, with some liberal support, but with conservatives going into their typical freakout mode.  This is where we are today: in America it is deep taboo of an almost religious nature to discuss gun control.  We even have our own Taliban style enforcers to keep would-be dissenters in line--it is interesting to note that you don't hear this discussion at all these days in the mainstream news media, who are cowed by our Taliban; Costas, however, comes from the sports media establishment, where such anti-gun talk is unexpected, to say the least.

But why shouldn't Costas talk about this?  Why should he ignore the gigantic elephant in the middle of the room?  This is, after all, his beat, sports.  What is so impolite about observing the obvious?  For that matter, why the hell won't the news media discuss this issue?  When did guns become sacred instruments?

In his 2002 documentary film, Bowling for Columbine, Michael Moore makes the startling observation that gun ownership rates in Canada are similar to those in the US, but their homicide-by-gun rate is much lower.  So, okay, the gun lobby has a point when they assert that "guns don't kill people; people kill people."  Of course, people with guns kill people much more quickly, efficiently, and unthinkingly than people without guns, but it cannot be denied that there is something about American culture that is downright maniacal about gun ownership.  And gun usage, too, on human beings, for that matter.  This irrational cultural strain is what motivates the American gun Taliban.  This is why Costas is being heavily criticized for talking about what we should all be talking about, the relationship between US gun laws and US gun violence.

This makes no sense.  Just because "guns don't kill people" is a good point doesn't mean the discussion is over.  I mean, speaking of the Taliban, in most states a terrorist, an actual terrorist, can go to a gun show and buy all kinds of armament, no background check, no questions asked.  But it's wrong to talk about that.  And the whole Fast and Furious scandal happened because of lax gun laws in Arizona, but the Republican dominated congressional committee investigating it made talk of gun laws officially off-limits from the get-go.  And on and on.  There is, in fact, a lot left to discuss on the issue of gun control.  But the American Taliban always shows up with sticks in hand to beat and bully anybody who wants to do their civic duty by discussing an important issue affecting our nation.

We have a problem here.  A big problem.  And as long as the gun nuts are allowed to control the discussion, we will never solve it.  Unfortunately, I don't see that changing anytime soon: expect the senseless gun violence to continue for decades.

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