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| Chris Murphy, Senate photo |
“Just days after a shooter walked into a grocery store to gun down African American patrons, we have another Sandy Hook on our hands. What are we doing?"
Following the horrible mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, Murphy did not ask for any special proposal. Instead, he urged the Senate to take action to prevent more school shootings. It was, we recall, in Murphy's home state of Connecticut that a mass shooter killed twenty-six children and teachers at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Such horrors have become an American epidemic.
Murphy asked his Senate colleagues to find common ground and adopt simple solutions. But do we share common ground? Unfortunately, although most Americans have moderate political views about firearms, as they do on most issues, the extreme voices are having their way—especially on the right wing. Despite Murphy's impassioned plea, the opposing political sides show no signs of reconciliation.
Yet, every public speaking student learns that the way to persuade people is to find common ground: common beliefs, common values. In this brief speech, Murphy proposed common values as a premise for a persuasive argument:
“I understand my Republican colleagues will not agree to everything that I may support, but there is a common denominator that we can find. There is a place where we can achieve agreement that may not guarantee that America never ever again sees a mass shooting, that may not overnight cut in half the number of murders that happen in America. It will not solve the problem of American violence by itself. But by doing something, we at least stop sending this quiet message of endorsement to these killers whose brains are breaking, who see the highest levels of government doing nothing shooting after shooting.”
Nevertheless, in desperation, Murphy ended his speech as he began:
“What are we doing? Why are we here? What are we doing?
Senator Murphy’s previous gun control proposals include such seemingly modest ideas as to tighten background checks, to stop known terrorists and domestic abusers from purchasing weapons, and to have some sort of licensing requirement for firearms owners. He filibustered in the Senate in 2016 on behalf of these proposals, and got pretty much nowhere. So, is it even possible that we have common ground? Murphy is right that there is common ground as to the goal: conservatives and liberals agree that it is bad to murder children. For politicians, the common ground seems to stop there. It isn’t just Democrats. When former President Donald Trump spoke out forcefully in favor of background checks for gun purchasers, howling protests soon forced him to back off.
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In the meantime, is there any hope that the tragedy in Uvalde will cause the two opposing sides to reach out for common solutions? I doubt it. At the National Rifle Association convention, being held at this moment in Houston, Texas, attendees hear fire-breathing speeches claiming that the massacre was a liberal false flag event staged to encourage gun confiscation. There are people who think that the Uvalde shooter was a CIA plant. Yes, people believe that. Many people. Can Senator Murphy find enough common ground with them, or with the politicians for whom they vote?
To solve our problem, we must indeed find common ground. Murphy was right about that. To find common ground, however, can we agree on the problem's cause? Can we share a common reality? It seems that we cannot. Sadly, Senator Murphy was shouting, however nobly, into a deafening wind.
As the satirical news site The Onion repeatedly points out, “'No Way To Prevent This,’ Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens.” The solutions are so simple. So obvious. So unattainable. Common ground is so hard to find. Common chasms? No problem. But common ground?
Unfortunately, the United States’ political system, which was designed to encourage compromise while preventing any one group from gaining too much power, has morphed into a setup that encourages extremists. The system entourages politicians to polarize. I'll try to write more about that later.
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