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What poisons have been unleashed in America? In Jewish mythology, a dybbuk is a malicious, possessing spirit, believed to be a dislocated soul. Pandora opened her jar (dubbed a box in the 16th century) out of curiosity, thus releasing all manner of evil and misery upon mortals, put into the jar by the gods to punish Prometheus for giving fire to mortals.

The non-mythical Donald Trump, via his embrace of violence and untruth, has both enshrined violence and released evil and misery across our land, and by doing so become a malicious, possessing spirit of a large percentage of the American population.

Over the three-day Memorial Day weekend, 179 adults and children were killed by shooting, 463 wounded and 17 mass-American shootings. Over the month of May 2023, there have been 259 killed and 70 mass shootings. (Gun Violence Archive). When Mr. Trump spoke before the recent NRA annual meeting he stated, “I am the most pro-gun, pro-Second Amendment president you’ve ever had in the White House.”

He then vowed to defend and expand gun-owner’s rights. (NBC News). Although bump stocks (allowing semi-automatic firearms to act as machine guns) were banned during his administration after 58 were killed by a bump stock-wielding shooter, he said at the recent meeting he is aligned with the NRA which considers their banning unconstitutional.

Two Circuit Courts of Appeals, the Fifth (which the Biden administration is appealing) and the Sixth, ruled the ban is unlawful, and in twenty six Republican states, adults can carry unpermitted, concealed weapons. (New Yorker)

To vote Republican in 2024 is to vote for more gun violence, deaths, injuries and mass shootings. June 2-4 were the National Gun Violence Awareness Days, to honor survivors of gun violence. But, perhaps, to also release the last gift trapped in Pandora’s jar, Hope.

Sincerely,

Christine Wardenburg-Skinner

Edison