March

My grandfather was a farmer. He was also a strong believer in voting. And I can tell you that we all knew one of the reasons.

It was election day. Grandpa was working in the fields all day and it was getting late. He barely made it to town in time to vote. In fact he was the last one to vote.

There was a very close race for mayor of the little town. The winner won by one vote... Grandpa's.

Every vote counts.

This is not going to be a political post. I have the right to vote any way I see fit. You may not agree with me and that is fine. You also have the right to vote as you see fit.

What this post is about is young people.

I watched as they marched all over the world demanding that something be done about all the school shootings. I am so impressed and proud.

Instead of going home and accepting their losses and hiding away they decided to do something. These amazing youngsters called for and organized events like the walkout and then the March for Our Lives. Both are unmitigated successes.

Before I go further I understand the Second Amendment. I know that we have the right to protect our homes and persons from threats. The reason we adopted this amendment was to protect ourselves from unfair government practices. There is no need to repeal the Second Amendment.

I like to shoot. Target practice is my limit. I cannot imagine killing living beings.

Some people enjoy hunting. As long as they do so within the parameters of the law they have the right. I perssonally find trophy hunting repulsive but I suppose it is a choice.

I taught my children when they were small that guns are for killing. If you point a gun at anything live you are expecting it to not be alive after you pull the trigger.

Back to the March.

According to news reports hundreds of thousands of people attended. I did not hear of any violence at any of them.

Young people spoke. They were eloquent. They were forceful. Some cried. One of the victims was so emotional that she was physically ill in the middle of her speech. Then she bravely conitued her speech to the end.

There were a few counter demonstrations by people who are afraid their right to bear arms will be afringed. They have the right. No one attacked them; they attacked no one.

Circulating through the crowds were people to explain how to register to vote. There were even places to resgiter if you fulfilled the qualifications.

I strongly believe in the electoral process. Watching low voter turnout bothers me. If politicians knnow people are not voting They know that people are not watching them. I want them to know that I am watching what they do. If they want my vote they have to agree with my views. They also have to pay attention to the way they treat people, both their loved ones and the rest of us.

The young people who were marching are soon going to be voting. They are serving notice that they are watching.

Another thing I noticed. These young people do not necessarily agree on how the schools should be made safe. Some want teachers to be armed, some do not. Some want guns gone completely, some want restrictions on gun ownership. But they all agree that they are tired of being shot at.

When it comes down to it these are still children. It will be up to the adults to do something about this. I am not sure what the answer is. I want it fixed.

Of all the signs I saw from the March the one that sticks in my head is a small boy all bundled up to stay warm. He was holding a sign with a gun in the bottom left corner and a peanut butter sandwich in the top left. It said, "I'm not even allowed to being peanut butter to school."