Author Archives: David's Father

On Gun Control – Mental Health and Substance Abuse Disorder Funding

Gun Control14537-guns_news

Rarely is there a more hot button topic than gun control.

Every time there is a shooting in our country, people start the roar of support for gun control.

What follows is my personal opinion about gun control.

In our home, we have had guns.  The key word is had.  With David in our home, I don’t feel safe having firearms in our home.  Too much risk for too little reward.  The guns aren’t the issue here.  Mental and behavioral health are the issue.  Criminals are the issue.  We could have the most stringent gun laws in the world, and it would make no difference on access to those guns by the people who do not abide by common sense and the law.

Regardless of the law, if people want guns bad enough they will get them.  Look back at prohibition when alcohol was outlawed.  Did the law prevent people from drinking?  Heck no.   Some will make the argument that alcohol doesn’t kill people like guns do.

Effective gun control isn’t about making laws.  It is about controlling access to guns.  It is about common sense.  We will never prevent a person from obtaining a gun even if it is illegal as long as that person feels  they need a gun for some reason.  It will never happen.  Firearms will always be available.  Reality bites.

Truly, if someone is willing to commit murder, why wouldn’t they be willing to break a few gun laws to do so?  What are we going to ban next?  Knives?  Vehicles?  Rocks?  Hammers?  Scissors?

I don’t know what the solution is.  But until we have effective mental health and substance abuse treatment in our country, nee in our world, people will continue to use guns to kill others.

In my home, gun control is all about keeping guns out of my son’s hands.  If that means not having them in my home, then that is what I will do and have done.

Let’s look at increased funding and supportive services for people with mental illness and substance abuse disorders before we spend another dime on “gun control”.

For those who like to cite statistics.  Give me something else.  Statistics can be directed toward almost any hypothesis.  Every major player in the gun control debate has their own statistics about why things should be done a certain way.  Instead, bring logic.

This is my opinion, and not endorsed by any council or board that I am a part of.

  • a not to trolls.  I will leave comments open for now.  do not get abusive to me or each other.  now is the time for a debate, not slanderous vile filled commentary.

For those with loved ones who died today, my thoughts and prayers are with you during this tragic period in your lives.  It is of little comfort I am sure, but you have them none the less.

A moment of weakness

National Disability Rights Network Annual Conference June 2015.

National Disability Rights Network Annual Conference June 2015.

I need to apologize to some people.  I had a moment of weakness last night in which I actually gave up fighting for David.

I apologize to David for doing so.  He deserves a lot of things, but he doesn’t deserve me giving up on him.

I apologize to myself.  For so long, I have been in a passionate robot like state trying to survive this life with him, and I have been doing myself a disservice in that regard.  Last night something in me just let go, and I guess every once in a while that needs to happen. It helps remind me that I am not the robot dad.  There is a part of me that forgot what I was fighting for.

So the struggle will continue.  Why?  Because every child deserves to be loved and to have someone fight for them.

I have an electroencephalogram this afternoon.  I won’t get the results until next week.  Kind of nervous about it.  But, Lord willing, everything will be okay.

Most of all, I apologize to my family.  Each of them deserves every ounce of fight that I can give them.  They are all worth it.

feeling broken down.

I have to admit.  I am struggling.

I am struggling with caring about someone who has no caring for the people around him.  I am tired of being lied to, stolen from and feeling like I am robbing my children of their childhood.

I am struggling with my health again.  I don’t want to go back to the place where heart events and strokes happen.  I am not giving up.  I am just trying to take care of me a little better.

At this point we are in a holding pattern held hostage by behaviors.  Sure we shouldn’t feel like this, we shouldn’t let the way he is control everything about our world, but what else is there?    We can’t leave him alone, because he does things and takes things that aren’t his. We can’t leave one of the boys in charge, since he would hurt them.  I don’t dare hire a sitter for him, since there aren’t many that we trust and that would ever come back again.  We get mentor support, and he is in school now so that alone will help.

I am going to take a short break from writing, as I don’t trust my thoughts right now.

I appreciate all of the support that I get from each of you that send me comments.  Those of you that write back out of concern with thoughts and ideas about things to try, your support means the world to me, to my family.

This isn’t goodbye.