?-r >- “ " >"' Mark
ALBRACHT
Guns out of control
iVo freedom in a country armed with fear
V.4,r
I must stand awhile on a side of
the political gulch opposite the one
I’m used to occupying (that being the
conservative bank), to take a liberal
view on an issue that has waned as of
■ i late but in light
oi a recent
tragedy, will
certainly return to
the forefront of
blistering debate.
The
shooting death of
I Penn State
I student Melanie
Spalla once again
calls to attention tne need tor gun
control in this country. The Second
Amendment will never justify the
fact that Spalla can never obtain the
degree for which she stepped on that
fateful campus. Whatever her
aspirations, I merely need to consider
my own hopes and dreams to realize
the waste in ending life so young—
all because a brain went psychoti
cally loopy in a society that has
firearms as ready to serve as Big
Macs are at McDonalds.
A sizable segment of Americans
believe that gun regulation will never
result in lower crime rates in this
country. In fact, they argue, gun
control will only serve to make the
hordes of criminals even more
menacing to law-abiding citizens
who are left defenseless to their
whims.
But the facts do not coincide with
that mentality. Homicide rates in
European countries with weapons
bans and countries with serious gun
regulations such as Canada arc
significantly lower than America's ;
it-—
The shooting death of Penn State
student Melanie Spalla once again
calls to attention the need for gun
control in this country.”
murder rate. A study illustrates this
occurrence by comparing Seattle,
Washington with Vancouver, British
Columbia. Demographically and
geographically the two cities are
nearly twins. They are of virtually
equal size, equal racial make-up and
equal median incomes. But
Vancouver averages half the number
of murders that occur in Seattle in a
given year. A lode at the instruments
used in each of the cities* murders
showed that the number of non-gun
killings (i.e. knives, poison, etc.)
were nearly identical in the two
cities, indicating that the number of
Seattle's gun-murders alone was
more than the number of all of
Vancouver’s murders combined.
The difference between these
cities’ murder rates can be traced
directly to Canada’s strict gun control
laws, which have resulted in gun
ownership by a mere 12 percent of
Vancouver households as compared
with 41 percent in Seattle.
I spent an afternoon some years
ago out shooting things. This
recreation was at the insistence of a
friend and, more adamantly, his
friends. Meeting these new acquain
tances, I wondered how I could
possibly contain a link to them. My
friend seemed nothing like the two
—not in dress, not in manner of
speech. The only common thread
they held was the fact that they all
really liked to shoot their guns.
As we traversed a secluded grass
field, the three armed men destroyed
everything the came across: an
abandoned car, tin cans, bottles and a
water barrel.
My friend and I tended to lag
behind, conversing, as the other two
scurried about like playground
toddlers looking for their next
ground-zero. At the end of my
involvement in the escapade, they
found something lying in the tall
grass and excitedly called my friend
over. I continued toward them at my
own pace. Once my friend was with
them, one blasted a shot into die
ground where, as 1 learned upon
arrival, had been a quail. There were
no remnants of the bird left in the
spot, just a red and black crater in the
grass. No remnants except a plume of
feathers that, 15 seconds later, drifted
down on our heads in a macabre
avian snow—to which the good ol’
boys laughed to no end, doubled
over, almost killing themselves for
lack of brpa|h., ^ ^
It is for this; reason that people so
vehemently oppose gun control.
They don’t give a damn who else is
allowed guns, they shout constitu
tional rights for the single purpose of
protecting their own access to the
grisly fun of destroying things.
Studies show that reducing the
number of guns in a community does
not lower the frequency of such
crimes as burglary or assault, but it
does reduce the overall number of
murders, accidental deaths and
suicides quite significantly.
Guns are impersonal weapons,
they allow for mistakes made. They
make killing physically effortless and
anonymous as in the case of a family
of tourists that, last year, made a
wrong turn down a Los Angeles
street. They were ambushed by a
street gang that didn’t bother to
check if they were shooting up the
car they had intended.
Incidents like this and any of the
various gun-crazy massacres perpe
trated in modem America are reason
enough to disallow the pleasure a
minority of Americans get from
lawfully using firearms. Bid I don’t
advocate that. These people must
realize, though, that a country of 250
million people has no use for 200
million guns. This massive availabil
ity of weapons is the sole reason for
having the highest murder rate in the
industrialized world. America
reputes to be the land of die free, but
a society in which a young woman is
senselessly shot dead at the cusp of
adulthood is no society in which
anybody can live freely.
Albracht is a junior philosophy
nwjpe »IMl ,
columnist tp!f; ^ ^ori wort?. !
Jessica
Ace enthusiast
Sister’s passion for volleyball is inspiring
We sat in an offset comer, the
action awkwardly off to our right To
see, she leaned her little body closer
to the rail on which she had propped
her feet. To peer around the adult
| next to her, she
pressed into my
side.
Aside
from an occa
sional comment,
die was intently
focused on the
happenings on the
volleyball court.
Most
children get caught up in the band’s
fanfare and forget about the game, lb
her, the band was a loud and mildly
annoying interlude amid the action.
The only real distractions during
the match were an 8-ounce malt, a
spilled pop and her siblings.
I had never been to a Nebraska
volleyball game before and was
unsure of the rules and the players.
But on Saturday, she answered all my
questions deftly.
I found it interesting that my 8
year-old sister was so involved in the
match. She didn't pay this much
attention to the Olympics!
While most other girls her age
watched the Olympics with dreams
of aerials, flips and Kerri Stnig, Jean,
my sister, showed little more than a
passing interest in the events on TV.
Nebraska volleyball has captured
Jean's mind and soul. And she is not
alone in her fanaticism. During the
game against Colorado State the
a
Like an ‘Ace,’my sister was hooked
in one hit. The Huskers captivated
Jean with their on-court assaults and
amazing team spirit."
stands were filled with young,
aspiring wooien athletes.
But what does volleyball offer to
young athletes that another sport
might not? Why does volleyball
reach out to my sister, when gymnas
tics or swimming does not? '
Volleyball is a refreshing combi
nation of enthusiastic teamwork and
competition. A combination well
suited to the likes of Jean.
Jean needs a sports role model.
Everyone who has ever seen her
knows she has athletic potential. The
child has no baby fat—at all She’s
solid muscle from head to toe. My
feeling is that she just needs a little
focus.
- To her credit, Jean’s tried almost
every sport and met with fair success.
She enjoys soccer, softball, swim
ming, dance and running. But none
of them ever really held her attention.
Olympic athletes cant hold ha
attention.
But like an “Ace,” my sister was
hooked in one hit The Huskers ■
captivated Jean with their on-court
assaults and amazing team spirit.
It was fascinating to watch the
dynamics of the individual payers
working, playing within the param
eters of the teams.
I*m a little ignorant about the
team—I can’t tell you most of the
players’ names or what the titles of
their positions are. But each player
seemed to have roles beyond their
titles.
Fiona Nepo exuded power and
strength. She was always at the net,
scoping the Rams’ defense and their
offense. Her playing was solid; she
seemed to have a sixth sense about
the positioning of the ball and her
teammates.
My sister’s favorite player,
Huskier All-America outside hitter
Lisa Reitsma, had an air of depend
ability and reliability. She always got
the ball.
1 think it's cool that Jean looks up
to Reitsma, an even more gifted
player in a sport filled with ranks of
talented athletes.
But one player in particular
caught my attention. She seemed to
epitomize the teamwork and enthusi
asm that are inherently required in
volleyball.
This player never actually hit a
ball during game play, never pulled
her knee pads past her ankles and
never lost her smile.
And she wasn’t a Husker, really.
Colorado State redshirt freshman
Katherine Pettit never ceased to
amaze me. From the warm “welcome
home” she was given by the crowd to
her effervescent enthusiasm for her
team to her dedicated participation in
team warm-ups.
All this despite the fact that her
father was in a wheelchair, SO feet
from her, coaching the team her
school eventually succumbed to.
In 10 years that could be Jean.
More interested in the team’s well
being than forwarding ha- own
success. Enjoying the spirit of
belonging to a team and playing a
sport that she’s still impassioned
about.
And maybe that’s what was so
neat about the game. That both teams
were visibly passionate about the
sport they’re playing and passionate
about the people they’re playing
; with.
Oh, and Coach Pettit, I think I
may have a recruit for the 2006
volleyball team....
Kennedy k an advertising and
broadcasting n^joraad a Daily
Nebraskan columnist.