Batman

The victims of insane violence in a Colorado movie theater comment that they thought the initial shots of the mass murderer were part of the Batman film they had come to watch at a midnight premier. Isn't that the kernel truth of that experience? A society in love with media violence recoils in horror when the very same violence occurs in reality. This is insane.

As a humanist, I am committed to non-violence in my life. If films and video games portrayed an alternative universe where gun violence is the norm, then the public enthusiasm for them could be assigned to a vicarious venting of violent impulses. Perhaps this could be viewed as a healthy sublimation through that fantastic universe.  This is not the real situation here in the U.S. in 2012. 

A lunatic with an automatic weapon is a common  reality in the the U.S.. Guns, mixed with a deficient mental health system and poor law enforcement, is a simple equation equaling inevitable massacre. It is just a matter of where and when. 

Living in non-violent peace is no guarantee against aggression from others. Any urban driver in Massachusetts would testify to the truth of this statement. However, creating a process of peaceful and truthful coexistence as part of a daily humanist practice is one simple way to contribute to the general peacefulness of society. Abstaining from a regular diet of media violence is essential to creating this personal process.