The System Failed and 10 People Died In Buffalo
– By Ed Kociela –
On June 8, 2021, New York State Police picked up a 17-year-old male who had made threatening statements about shooting a large number of people.
The troopers did their job, taking the young man into custody. He was hospitalized for a mental health evaluation. Some 36 hours later he was released on his own recognizance.
On May 14, 2022, that same young man, now 18, was arrested at a Buffalo, N.Y. grocery store after shooting 10 people to death and injuring another three with an assault weapon he was allowed to purchase legally after being given a clean bill of mental health by “experts.” Of those he shot, 11 were African-Americans, and two were white. Despite the arguments that abound regarding examining mental health before allowing a person to purchase weapons, it is clear that the system failed miserably.
We demanded that science come up with a cure or vaccine to prevent the spread of COVID-19, Omicron, and any other variant of the disease. Yes, there were those whose politics overruled good judgment as they refused vaccination or even wearing a mask to protect themselves and others. But the majority of people remain clearheaded enough to do what it takes to try to prevent the spread of the disease.
We don’t do a damned thing to curb racism, hatred, and violence.
We feel pain in our hearts for the people of Ukraine who are being mowed down by Russian murderers, unleashed by Vladimir Putin on an unsuspecting nation that was simply trying to peacefully coexist with the remainder of the world. We haven’t blinked an eye as the United States sends billions of dollars in aid and weaponry to Ukraine to defend against its aggressors.
Yet, we don’t do a thing in the United States to keep our own people from engaging in race-baiting and murder.
That’s why, in the homeland, we prepare to send yet another round of “thoughts and prayers” to the families of the victims of the 198th mass shooting in the U.S. this year.
Through Saturday, guns have claimed 15,947 lives in the United States, about half of those deaths suicides. That’s a lot of thoughts and prayers. I hope God has enough time to sort them all out.
Adding to the trauma and disbelief of yet another mass shooting on our shores is the fact that this was clearly a racially motivated killing. The trigger man recently published a 180-page screed about what is termed “The Great Replacement,” a bit of crazed theory that posits native white Europeans are being replaced by non-white immigrants from Africa and the Middle East resulting in the extinction of the white race.
If, by chance, you are part of the Fox News bunch you know all about this from broadcasters like Jeanine Pirro, who went on record to say “Think about it. It is a plot to remake America, to replace American citizens with illegals that will vote for the Democrats.”
Or, Laura Ingraham, who said, on the air, “your views on immigration will have zero impact and zero influence on a House dominated by Democrats who want to replace you, the American voters, with newly amnestied citizens and an ever-increasing number of chain migrants.”
And, of course, what good is a racist screed without input from the most hateful, morally bankrupt player on the Fox News team, Tucker Carlson, who railed on about what he termed “Third World” immigrants coming to the United States to affiliate with the Democratic Party. “I know that the left and all the little gatekeepers on Twitter become literally hysterical if you use the term ‘replacement,’ if you suggest that the Democratic Party is trying to replace the current electorate — the voters now casting ballots — with new people, more obedient voters from the Third World, but they become hysterical because that’s what’s happening, actually. Let’s just say it. That’s true.”
The propaganda resonated with this 18-year-old who clad himself in armor head to foot.
He loaded his deadly arsenal which included an assault rifle and a number of 30-round magazines, illegal in the state of New York, by the way, and drove more than 200 miles from his home in Conklin, N.Y. to Buffalo.
He researched the zip codes in Buffalo to find a grocery store in a community with the highest number of African-American residents.
He pulled into the parking lot, exited his vehicle, and immediately shot and killed two.
He connected with the social media platform Twitch and was able to live stream the carnage for two minutes.
He strode into the store with his weapons and took aim. A retired police officer working security fired upon him, striking him in the chest. But, the body armor protected the assailant who promptly shot and killed the African-American guard.
The killer stalked the aisles for fresh prey and had a woman and her 14-year-old son in his sights, telling her she was about to die. As she pleaded for the life of her son the assailant was distracted enough for the woman and her child to escape through a back door.
Police arrived and although the assailant put the gun to his neck and threatened to shoot himself, were able to talk him into dropping the weapon and surrendering.
I cannot help but wonder what would have happened if the suspect had been a person of color.
Then there’s the matter of politics as the Supreme Court prepares to tackle a case involving the New York concealed carry law that requires those applying for a public carry permit to demonstrate “proper cause” for such a license.
The heavily right-leaning Court, buoyed by three Donald Trump appointees, is likely to strike down the law, which would also impact gun laws in California, Massachusetts, and other states that require “proper cause.”
Striking legitimate cause for granting such permits means just about any crazy could get a concealed carry permit.
That includes people like the Buffalo shooter, who was cut loose by supposed mental health experts, wannabe G.I. Joe’s whose wardrobes are filled with camo pants, shirts, hats, and boots, and, of course, the white supremacists with hatred in their hearts and violence in their blood.
Don’t bury your head in the sand and throw your hands up in despair, there are some things you can do.
First, get in touch with your Congressional representatives and demand that they pass legislation to outlaw the sale of assault weapons, greater controls over the sales of all other guns, and a set of regulations to forcefully employ background checks that deny a gun sale to somebody who should not have one.
Talk to those in your circle. Ask them why they need an assault weapon, or any weapon, as a matter of fact. Do they really feel the need for such protection? Have they lost that much faith in their fellow man? Do they really believe an armed conflict within the United States is inevitable? If so, why not join the military and do your job instead of running off to hook up with domestic terrorists who would strip the Constitution of all meaning and purpose? Or, are they so insecure in their sexuality that they feel they need an assault weapon to restore their manhood?
Ask them why they harbor hate for people who look different, have different beliefs, speak differently, or represent opposing ideas.
Until then please keep your “thoughts and prayers” to yourself because they are meaningless.
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