Day 801: Thursday, May 26, 2022

we are holding in the light the parents and loved ones of those who lost their lives in Uvalde

A SPECIAL MESSAGE FROM STARCROSS

My dear friends,

A few days ago we wept over the massacre in Buffalo. This week we join in the pain of a town that probably most of us have never heard of — Uvalde, Texas. I could vent my anger at the politicians who are attending the National Rifle Association meeting in Houston today and who will probably never vote for any type of gun safety laws.

In this country, it is harder to get a driver’s license than it is to buy an assault weapon. I would probably support most of the gun safety laws being suggested. However, I think we should not focus exclusively on the gun.

I read many columnists reacting to the horror of Uvalde. An 18-year-old who had dropped out of high school shot his grandmother, and took her pickup. He drove at a very high speed and crashed through a barrier at the grade school. An armed guard was unable to stop him. The gunman was carrying two AR assault weapons in a backpack with 375 rounds of ammunition. He went into a classroom, locked the door, and murdered 19 young students and two teachers. This was one very angry person. Was there not some way of finding him and lending a helping hand before this tragedy?

Paul Siegel, a professor of psychology who created a team for identifying distressed and potentially violent students at Winchester Community College, shared this insight this morning.

A school shooter tends to be socially isolated and incompetent. Profound humiliation over perceived ostracism is coped with by murderous revenge fantasies, which is characteristic of severe personality disturbance rather than psychotic illness or autism.

In the bright, happy eyes of the children they murder, the shooter sees all that they believe they were denied.

I don't know if Professor Siegel is correct, but I do feel strongly that he is on the right track. If we can reduce the number of children who feel Isolated and perceive themselves as dysfunctional and disrespected in some way or bullied over an impediment, then perhaps we will be able to reduce the number of times we have situations such as those in Sandy Hook, Parkland, Columbine, and probably the elementary school in Uvalde.

In the meantime, we are holding in the light the parents and loved ones of those who lost their lives in Uvalde. We also stand in solidarity with those working to see that every child born on this planet understands that they are important and worthy of dignity and respect.

Brother Toby and all at Starcross

A special request for prayers from Tom Bachelder's son and family:

So, prayer requests/positive healing energy/good vibes/… For our son Geoff and his wife Aga as Geoff is now experiencing a manic episode and has tested positive for Covid.

And also for my brother David and his family: their granddaughter who is three months old has also tested positive for Covid