THE TEXAS SCHOOL SHOOTING

The United States continue to surprise. They are often the best and occasionally the worst of places one can imagine. Onlookers remain spellbound because they are always reinventing their story. Dealing with this paradoxical country is like looking at the visible face of the moon while the other side is hidden from instant scrutiny. One only gets part of the reality albeit by accident or because the unsavory facts are camouflaged.

The cult of the gun is not as hard to understand as it is difficult to tolerate. The long conquest of the Western Territories gave rise to the myth of the cowboy. The Southern states gave the impression of gentile living with a paternalistic undertone. The country was built on a quest for freedom of thought and sharing Thanksgiving with the locals. So goes the storyline.

The reality is different and altogether still miraculous. The indigenous were murdered, the slaves were imported and the cowboy/migration myth only helped to herald the rule of the gun. Nevertheless, the ideals of some were able to reign in the murky intentions of the rest.  Racism and violence are still part of a package which is unable to hide prejudice and hatred. The permanent invocation of God doesn't wash the sins of the many.

The United States finds itself in an internal culture war marked by rising or retreating tides. This creates an unstable weather pattern wherein opposing forces compete. The difference with other large countries is that given their lack of alternative they are spared from too visible tensions or fractures. The fake tranquility shouldn't fool anyone. America's turmoils are inexcusable but they are not insurmountable. Russia under Putin and China under Xi are countries under house arrest. As long as they remain in the grip of the ankle restraint, they are impervious to change. America is an emotional country that can swing either way and return both to the better intentions or the less desirable incentives.

In the short-term however, to do nothing (yet again) and let the bribes of the National Rifle Association take over the hearts and minds of the people would amount to surrender to all that undermines the hopes of the majority. The Republicans mostly must come clear on their intentions. It is too easy to make decrees on reproductive rights (in 2022!) while doing nothing about the killing fields in all parts of the land wherein bibles and guns are allied.

Europeans who struggle with the contradictory emotions regarding immigration and mounting violence should hold sway over hasty comments and stick with the many in America who cry for change. It is time to halt the free pass which benefited  the guilty by association for too long. The NRA should be seen like the KKK, a transit camp not worthy of Congressional largesse.