Thoughts and Prayers (tm)

I completely understand people sending "thoughts and prayers" (tm) after mass gun killings.  It's pretty much the most that people can do at the moment.  And people feel sickened and angry and want to do something.  But I'm long past "thoughts and prayers" (tm) as the national response to such tragedies.  For friends and acquaintances of the families offering them directly, yes, it's very appropriate as a source of comfort.  But as a national response made into the ether?  I understand it, but my own thoughts go elsewhere.

And these are indeed my own, completely personal thoughts.  I don't expect others to feel this way.  But I certainly hope they do,  Because I'm totally subjective enough to believe they'd be right.

What I mean is, if "thoughts and prayers" (tm) had a substantive meaning as a national response, it strikes me that they would be much better used before the fact.  Focusing our thoughts before the next mass gun killing occurs on what we can do to ensure that such a tragedy never happens again, and praying with all our might that it never happens again.  Indeed, it seems that if "thoughts and prayers" (tm) actually worked as a national response with the Almighty and public policy, that would seem a truly great use of them.

It's sort of like when I hear defenders of guns say that "Now is not the time" to talk about dealing with mass gun killings right after a mass gun killing.  I always respond that they're absolutely right -- the time to talk about dealing with mass gun killings is before the next mass gun killing.

By the way, adding to this "Now is not the time after a mass gun killing"  gumfummery is the reality that in 2019 (which are the most recent stats that I could find), there were 31 mass gun killings.  (For the record, the FBI defines a "mass gun killing" as one in which at least four people are shot to death -- and that's not including the shooter.)  That means there were more than one mass gun killing every other week!   So, it doesn't leave a whole lot of wiggle room for finding when the proper time is to talk about mass gun killings  I should also note that the same year there were 417 mass shootings -- that's eight every single week.  So, you start to get the idea after a while that "thoughts and prayers" (tm) don't have the full beneficial impact one is hoping for.

(In fairness, two mass gun killings in only one week, like this -- each with far more than just four dead, other than the shooter -- does throw the percentages off.)

Over time, I've gotten a sense that "thoughts and prayers" (tm) as a national response is more for salving the anguish of those offering the best wishes than it is for the recipients.  After all, as I said, people tend to want to do something after a tragedy.  But that's the very reason I think that "thoughts and prayers" (tm) are somewhat counter-productive.  After all, they do make if feel like one has done something, and so that's enough -- except reality shows there will be another mass gun killing in two weeks, every two weeks. Instead, though, even something as basic as writing to just one political representative or simply not voting for a candidate who doesn't support doing something about mass gun killings -- rather than only offering "thoughts and prayers" (tm) and leaving it at that -- may, in fact, be a step to actually help.

All this said, if one does offer "thoughts and prayers" (tm) yet also speaks out or acts to do something, anything so that there won't be a next mass gun killing, great.  I do understand people offering "thoughts and prayers" (tm).  But if a person only offers "thoughts and prayers" (tm) and figures that's good enough, they did their part...nah, not so much for my taste. 

But hey, in the end, if a person really, truly, absolutely feels they must offer "thoughts and prayers" (tm) and do that only, so be it.  My own purely-personal hope is that they will at least do so before the next mass gun killing and that their prayer is that there won't be another one ever again.