Why Mass Shootings in the U.S. Will Never End

Tldr: it’s because conservatives believe this country is, always has, and always will be on the brink of a holocaust.

“How many deaths is enough?”

I’ve been asking myself that question since Columbine rocked my world when I was in high school; the OG of mass shootings sending shockwaves through the entire country in a time when this sort of thing actually surprised and outraged us.

Those times are gone. Sandy Hook, Virginia Tech, Uvalde, all the horrifying events in between, and now the latest incident in Georgia can barely stay in the news now for more than a day. We shake our heads, we sigh, the tributes pour in, the politicians make noises and raise money, and then We the People move on to the next outrage. It’s really all you can do to stay sane when the American dream has been washed away by an endless tide of historic, terrible events.

New Zealand moved quickly, decisively, and famously on gun control in response to its first mass shooting. Meanwhile in the land of the free and the home of the brave, we simply made room for the guns: solutions ranging from putting more cops in schools to arming teachers, all while 1st graders now learn reading, writing, and active shooter drills.

It wasn’t until I moved to a rural conservative county in Virginia that I…