• About
  • Who’s Who
  • Contributors

The Write Side of 59

~ This is What Happens When You Begin to Age Out of Middle Age

The Write Side of 59

Tag Archives: Bits Blog

Want to Make a Gun? It’s a Piece of Cake

12 Wednesday Dec 2012

Posted by WS50 in Opinion

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

3-D printers, Bits Blog, Gun control, Julie Seyler, opinion, The New York Times, The Write Side of 50

Drawing by Julie Seyler.

BY JULIE SEYLER

On October 7, 2012, The New York Times ran an article discussing how 3-D printer technology is allowing us to make guns at home.  This flipped me out, because really, regardless of where one stands on the Second Amendment (the right of the people to keep and bear arms), and gun ownership laws, it does seem somewhat crazy that we are moving into an era where guns, like cakes, can be whipped up at home with a little push of the button. Talk about the Wild Wild West!

So I brought the article up with a couple of my colleagues at work – neither of whom were particularly bothered.  One guy said, “If a person is intent on killing, it is very difficult to stop them.  They will find a means to do so with whatever technology is available at the time.” And another guy said that you still need to understand how to assemble the gun, so we need not worry about our ten year olds readily printing a gun for a fun game of cops and robbers.

Well, great!

But what does it say about where we are going as a society?  The simple fact that homemade guns are coming to your local neighborhood – it just blew my mind.  I wrote the above, did a fast drawing that reflected how I saw the situation, and figured one day we’d post my thoughts on the blog.  But last Friday I was talking to a different colleague, and he said, “Do you know what one of the most watched YouTube videos is?” I wouldn’t know since I forget YouTube exists. He said there is a video online that directs you how to make a paper gun – a usable, workable device to kill someone, and it is one of the most popular, watchable, and shareable videos within the small domain of YouTube entertainment.

He shook his head in utter disgust and resignation, and then asked me if I had heard of the University of Colorado dormitory that is specially designated for college students. You know – 18-21 year olds. That own guns. (Hate to be there on a night of too much drinking.)

Wherever you look, the liberalization of gun laws, coupled with the constant progression of technology, is not making us safer. It is just making our society scarier. I grew up knowing a gun was a company-manufactured device sold through regulated retail outlets. There were laws that governed accessibility. I may not have been any “safer” than I am today, but it sure felt that way.

So how does this relate to being on the right side of 50?  Only that I have more years behind me to feel sad about the years ahead.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Email

Like this:

Like Loading...

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 294 other followers

Twitter Updates

  • @lisamurkowski PLEASE PLEASE commit to NOT voting for her on the Senate floor. 4 years ago
  • Diane Feinstein "How could we possibly conclude that [Sessions] will be independent?” nyti.ms/2jReX6q 4 years ago
  • Check out these beautiful earring trees at etsy.com/shop/TheNestin… https://t.co/QZMGsBu4MU 5 years ago
  • It's the little things that keep the wrecking ball at bay. thewritesideof50.com/2014/11/17/the… 6 years ago
  • Nothing like a soulful pair of eyes. Check out thewritesideof50.com 7 years ago

Recent Posts

  • The Saturday Blog: Rooftops India
  • The Saturday Blog: The Heavy Duty Door
  • Marisa Merz at the Met Breuer
  • The Sunday Blog: Center Stage
  • The Saturday Blog: Courtyard, Pondicherry, India.

Archives

  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012

Categories

  • Art
  • Concepts
  • Confessional
  • Earrings; Sale
  • Entertainment
  • Film Noir
  • Food
  • Memoriam
  • Men
  • Movies
  • News
  • Opinion
  • Photography
  • politics
  • September 11
  • Travel
  • Words

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com

The Write Side of 50

The Write Side of 50

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 294 other followers

Blog at WordPress.com.

Cancel

 
Loading Comments...
Comment
    ×
    loading Cancel
    Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
    Email check failed, please try again
    Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.
    <span>%d</span> bloggers like this: