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Lynette Kennison: Real peace is not purchased by carrying a weapon

Lynette Kennison
Guest columnist
Law enforcement officials carry 19 white balloons to Robb Elementary School after a tearful woman dropped them off in Uvalde and asked DPS troopers to place them on campus, each balloon represents one of the student victims.

My area of specialty is trauma therapy and grief counseling; sadly, there is a greater need for both these days. 

The NRA touts infringement of the right to bear arms by citizens as sacred and any modification as a slippery slope. This country has already gone down that slope and we are now sailing off the cliff. Does anyone feel safer? How many assault rifles does it take to give one a sense of power and safety? How many high-capacity magazines should one hoard? And just who is the enemy we are arming ourselves against? 

When I was a university professor it was almost considered rude to bring your cell phone into your classroom … until the 2007 Virginia Tech shootings. Professors were not demanding to arm themselves to protect their students, though legislators thought it was a good idea. Teachers in public schools do not want the responsibility of a lethal weapon in their holster or desk in case they might have to use it against a student or unknown intruder.  

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Legislators now want to have armed teachers and safety personnel. They are considering turning schools into armed fortresses in the name of protecting children. Deacons in churches are not blessed to “carry” inside their locked churches and places of worship against an unknown enemy. More guns do not equate to a better world.  

How does this turn around? Wake up America. Wake up Jacksonville. Learn from success stories such as New Zealand and Australia or even the original Brady Bill.  

Kennison

I don’t hate guns. I took riflery in college and am a retired officer of the Florida Army National Guard who enjoyed shooting targets with the M-16 or a 45. I respect guns, but I don’t worship them.  

I want all assault weapons, high-capacity magazines and ghost guns banned. I want red flag laws, background checks for every sale, a waiting period prior to purchasing a gun, the age of owning a gun or rifle raised to at least 21 and all guns registered. In addition, conduct a “buy back” program for assault weapons and send them to Ukraine or somewhere they can be used in war. Or just destroy and bury them.  

I want to stop hearing about gun violence every single day. I want real peace that is not purchased by carrying a weapon.  

Col. Lynnette Kennison, Ph.D., APRN, Florida Army National Guard retired, Jacksonville