Friday, July 20, 2012

Taking Back Our Lives – and the Movie Theaters


"Terrorism: the calculated use of unlawful violence or threat of unlawful violence to inculcate fear…." Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms, U.S. Department of Defense, 2005.

The early Friday morning shooting in an Aurora, Colorado, cineplex in which 12 people were killed and at least 50 others were injured was, in my view, an act of terrorism. The alleged gunman, James Holmes, 24, hurled two canisters of an unknown gas and opened fire at audience members watching the midnight premier of the new Batman film “The Dark Knight Rises,” according to The Washington Post. Law enforcement authorities took Holmes into custody in a parking lot behind the theater after the attack. He reportedly carried at least three weapons. Among the injured was a 3-month-old infant.

Frankly, I’m at a loss of what can be done about gun violence, including mass shootings such as this one and the 1999 massacre at Columbine High School in nearby Littleton, Colorado. Even if there was a crackdown on illegal guns, anyone who carries a gun legally could go nuts and do something heinous.

I won’t, however, let this incident scare me away from the movie theater and other “soft targets” where people gather. That’s what terrorists want, for us to be so afraid that we can’t or won’t leave our homes. I love the movies, especially independent films. If, heaven forbid, some shooter comes in while I’m viewing “Moonrise Kingdom” at the Tower Theater in Sacramento, I’ll go out swinging.

Writing Diva