Like this young hunter with a legal firearm, we are all looking for solutions to a complex problem.
Like this young hunter with a legal firearm, we are all looking for solutions to a complex problem. (PHOTO COURTESY OF KAREN WOLF)
When something horrific happens, we look for someone or something to blame. In this case, the shooter at the Sandy Hook Elementary School.

Of course, his choice of weapon - not a sporting arm - was what has been labeled an assault weapon. The immediate response is that we must ban them entirely or limit the capacity of the clips used. In this case one or more that held 30 rounds of ammo.

Another factor now widely reported was the response time of the local police department - 20 minutes. The deceased mother has also been blamed by some. How could she, knowing her son was unstable, allow him anywhere near a gun?

Stricter gun laws are now being asked for, although the shooter in this case had been reportedly turned down when he tried to purchase a handgun, only three days before the incident, offering some sort of proof that gun laws now on the books do work.

We have gun-free zones across America that have proven not to work in many cases, the same as we have drug-free schools and workplaces. Prohibition of alcohol didn't have a fighting chance and in fact brought wealth to some to "enterprising" individuals.

The war on drugs has been a dismal failure despite our best efforts. Video games are as violent as they can become, and some blame them as an influence on our youth.

Top-ranking television shows almost always include both a good guy and a villain with a gun. The graphics are often gruesome, complete with blood and morgues with bodies cut and stitched - nothing like the shows of the past; are they influential as well?

And then there is the judicial system. After all, how could a convicted felon, who had killed his mother with a hammer set a fire and then shoot firemen who responded, ever be released from prison? His guns did not come to him through legal means.

The press has also been blamed for sensationalizing the happenings that some believe have led to a rash of copycat rampages. Somehow, these people, without respect or regard for human life - even their own - want their names printed in the press and scrolled across a television screen.

You will note that I have not provided a single name of any shooter and for good reason. They simply don't deserve any publicity.

A 2011 Gallup poll estimates that 47 percent of US households own a gun. The National Rifleman Association's 2010 estimate states "Privately-owned firearms in the U.S. are approaching 300 million, including nearly 100 million handguns. The number of firearms rises over 4 million annually."

However, since the Newtown shooting, guns, clips and ammo sales have now surpassed what is normally sold during a 3-year period, and there is no end in sight.

I'm afraid what we have yet to answer, or address properly, is the kind of individual who finds human life worthless and why. Most of us can't rationalize why individuals would think that by taking lives it would help whatever circumstance they found themselves in.

And why do they most often shoot themselves after shooting innocent people? What is it that provokes them into shooting people they don't even know?

The NRA has irked many by stating that all schools should have armed guards. But we may have reached a time in which it may be a necessity, born not out of guns but out of an individual's intent in harming others.

They are so many unanswered questions, like from those in the mental health field who have also been accused of not doing their jobs to the fullest extent. Without profiling certain individuals, how can they prevent another disaster?

To believe that we can ban guns from this country is close to absurd, and gun trafficking would most likely bring some of those who ignore the laws more wealth through yet another "black market." An individual's right to keep and bear arms is our second amendment right, and eroding that freedom would only lead to another freedom taken from us.

Some tend to believe that the government can take care of us, and that we can rely on them for our safety. Others feel that they can't count on them to be there when they need them most and protecting oneself is a necessity.

The reactions have been overwhelming, from a high tax on ammunition to doing away with hollow point bullets. I personally doubt that either will curb violence on our streets, in our cities or homes.

I do know that twice in my lifetime, having a gun with me most likely saved my life. No, I didn't point it at anyone, nor did I fire a single shot. But I did let the possible assailants know I was armed. In one instance they ran, and in another, they backed away and allowed me to pass.

I'm sure many of us remember bomb threats, even instructions on the Internet on how to make them. Let's face it, if someone wants to inflict bodily harm on another, they'll find away to do it.

As a hunter, I own guns for hunting and self-protection. I've taken courses to allow me to carry for security positions. In doing so, I gave a lot of thought to how I would feel if I was forced to use any weapon in self-defense. I can tell you I hope and pray I never need to.

I, too, understand why everyone is upset, and that includes anti-gun and pro-gun activists. As a society we mourn. All are searching for answers, and it will take a lot of thought, research and a large dose of common sense.

Believe me, I want our social ills cured. I want my family, children and grandchildren to live in a safe world. I also want no one to go through what they have at Newtown.

Like most Americans, my heart and prayers go out to the families of the victims.