Episode 12 - The Speech I Would Give if I Were President

The Speech I'd love to see the President give.

 

My fellow Americans,

 

There is a crisis in America.  A cultural crisis.  One manifestation of this problem is the number of senseless mass killings we have seen over the last few years.  Whether it's a school shooting, a synagogue attack or workplace violence, each new incident brings into painfully sharp focus something that most of us have felt for some time: that there is something very wrong in our culture. The mourning and soul-searching that follows these tragedies is normal and necessary, and should lead us to ask the hard questions, and seek substantial changes in order to put a stop to the senseless murder of innocents.

As the leader of this great country, I have the solemn responsibility to shepherd our people through times of crisis, and this is a duty I am determined to uphold to the best of my ability, so help me God.

We need solutions, not rhetoric... and so that is what I come before you today to offer: a real solution that, with your participation, will put a stop to these demonic mass killings and begin to heal our culture.

 

Many have tried to lay the blame for these killings on the tools used to carry them out – Guns or knives, or what are commonly called “assault rifles.. I believe, however, that the problem goes much deeper than tools, to the heart and soule of every American.  and the solution won’t be as easy as simply banning any particular weapon. Because making good people more vulnerable never made them safer.

 

If I thought passing a law banning firearms from this country would put a stop to these senseless acts, I would be advocating the destruction of every firearm in America. Unfortunately, this has been tried in other places - London and Venezuela come to mind, and it's abundantly clear this is not a solution, but a mad wish, a pie-in-the-sky panacea that would never accomplish our goal so long as EVIL exists in this world.

 

The sad fact, my friends is that evil does exist. There are twisted and sick people who live among us; people who regularly take advantage of the liberty guaranteed our citizens in order to sow chaos in our midst. Whether they are deranged, demonic or just ill, the reality is that they are here, and sick men will pursue sick ends with NO regard for law or justice. Passing laws only limits the abilities of the law abiding, not the law breaker. 

 

So No, more laws are not the answer. Fortunately, I believe that for every depraved criminal in our society, there are tens of thousands of good decent people. 

 

This will be the secret to solving our problem.

 

Instead of legislating, I intend to lead. I hope you will give my ideas a chance.

In the past few years, millions of you have purchased guns and applied for permits to carry them in order to protect your homes and families. I understand your concern and applaud you for doing something active in order to take responsibility for your own safety. It is my sincere belief that if every law-abiding citizen who owned a gun were to actually carry that gun, within the limits of their state’s statutes, the cumulative deterrent effect would be overwhelming. I encourage each of you to get trained on how to handle a firearm safely, and to carry your weapon with you wherever you go.

 

In addition, today I am calling for the formation of a new National Volunteer Police Reservist corps who will help keep America’s streets safe. As you are no doubt aware, our country is in the midst of a budget crunch. Rather than spend more of your money on this program, I am asking the states to partner with the National Rifle Association to implement a thorough training program to enable this new classification.

 

Initially this program should be open to retired law enforcement, military veterans, teachers and flight attendants who can pass a basic physical fitness and aptitude test and complete the training and qualify with a handgun. These reserve police officers will be asked to carry their weapons at all times, and will be granted very limited and specific powers to stop active shooters and other criminals they encounter. They will be there to support and augment our traditional law enforcement agencies, that is all.

 

Next, I intend to sit down with the leaders and CEO’s of our fourth estate- the media, and will ask them to make a commitment to America to stop glamorizing and making celebrities out of mass murderers and criminals. If they will agree to never again report the name or likeness of a murderer, I am convinced that much of the impetus that drives these suicidal cowards to seek glory on the way to hell will be removed.

 

Finally, I am going to call for a national conversation on violence in media. My mother used to say “you are what you eat.” I believe that concept holds true not just for what goes into your mouth, but for what goes into your mind. Parents, I am begging you to stop allowing your children to consume copious helpings of mayhem and meaninglessness through their movies and video games. While many call it simple entertainment, it is difficult to see how these hyper-violent forms of media add anything positive at all to our culture.

 

Ultimately, what we have is a heart problem. We have spent years teaching our children that they are nothing more than an accident of billions of years of evolution, then we wonder why they have no self-respect. We have pretended that right and wrong were like flavors of ice cream – whichever truth suits you is okay, but nothing is actually true or false. Then we wonder why these kinds of tragedies occur. We’ve created a culture that glorifies violence, whose heroes on the big screen regularly steal, kill and destroy. Then we wonder why some take those lessons literally.

 

The book of Proverbs, chapter 14, verse 34 says this: Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.”

 

I’d like to see America exalted again, wouldn’t you? Then how can we continue to glorify sin and mock righteousness, and then blame the result on guns – inanimate objects that cannot hurt anyone on their own. Perhaps it is because we aren’t willing to look in the mirror and then take the responsibility on ourselves.

 

But I believe there are good men and women across america who are willing to stand in the gap and save this country.  If you are one of them, please go to volunteerforamerica.com and apply for volunteer police reservist in your state.

 

God Bless you all, and God bless America.