Too Painful

I can't even read much beyond the headline.

19 Students, 2 Teachers Killed In Shooting At Texas Elementary School

I'm angry that we live in a country where one political party adamantly extols "gun rights" and doesn't give a fuck about children's lives.

Update (May 25):  Obviously we can't just get rid of the filibuster for trivial reasons. Heather Digby Parton notes President Biden's plea, "When in God's name do we do what we all know in our gut needs to be done?"

The question is rightfully asked of Republicans who consistently block all gun safety legislation and are prepared to use the courts to unleash a free-for-all of gun violence in the name of "freedom." If repeated massacres, even of tiny children, automatically evoke calls to put more guns in schools and on the streets I think we know the answer: Never.

Futility and the Onion: 

Update (May 29):  Jim Sleeper argues that gun violence is partly the result of commercial speech geared toward profit no matter the consequences.

Commercial speech is degrading our public and private lives, not malevolently or conspiratorially but for the most part mindlessly.

To renew [a] civic-republican ethos, we need first to face a hard truth that, in my experience, many Americans consider too close for comfort: Commercial speech, combined with social media, has deranged the public sphere by fragmenting, privatizing and alienating millions of us, and I don't mean only the shooters.

The accelerating danger of mass shootings and other forms of gun mayhem may not be inherent in capitalism as such, but in our long-internalized, individualistic drive to maximize personal profit and narrow self-interest, rather than reconciling what we do to "make a living" with its unintended consequences. The real danger lies in denying that a democratic polity must ultimately have sovereignty over an economy, and in pretending that wealth is anything more than a necessary support for a commonwealth.

Update (May 30):  From the New York Times:

Update (June 11):  Even the tiniest steps seem impossible.

Several House Republicans [said] that when it comes to federal law and firearms, the status quo is fine, regardless of the occasional high-profile mass shooting.

Update (June 23):  The Supreme Court has made it more difficult for states to pass gun control laws.

In a 6-to-3 ruling, with Republican-appointed justices in the majority and Democratic-appointed justices dissenting, the court determined that New York’s licensing requirement violates the Second Amendment’s guarantee of a "right to keep and bear arms".

Back in 2008, the court had said that the Second Amendment protects the right to own a gun, while allowing for certain restrictions on firearms use. With this new ruling, the court has effectively said the Second Amendment also protects the right to carry that gun in public, which means it will be more difficult to defend restrictions in court.

But, there turns out to be some small progress with "the most significant piece of anti-gun-violence legislation Congress has passed in three decades".  The Senate vote was 65 to 33.

The measure enhances background checks for people under 21, incentivizes states to adopt "red flag" laws, which help remove guns from the hands of people who have been deemed a danger to themselves or others, and prohibits romantic partners convicted of domestic violence who are not married to their victim from getting firearms.

It does not include broader restrictions sought by gun control advocates, however, such as bans on assault weapons, raising the minimum age to purchase semi-automatic rifles to 21, mandating safe storage rules at home, or requiring background checks on internet sales and at gun shows.