American obsession with guns is literally destroying us

A woman wipes tears after a shooting at the Highland Park Fourth of July parade. (Nam Y. Huh/AP)

Echo opinion letter published in Tuscon.com

https://tucson.com/opinion/letters/letter-american-carnage/article_2e53a880-fd37-11ec-b71a-e7ede84449d8.html

CNN reports: In an upper middle class Chicago suburb, seven people were shot dead, dozens more were wounded and sparked a manhunt for a gunman who fired on unsuspecting attendees from a rooftop, authorities said.  The shooting in Highland Park, about 25 miles north of Chicago, began shortly after 10 a.m., Central Time, as people enjoyed a sunny Fourth of July parade along Central Avenue.

Members of the FBI evidence response team work at the scene a day after the shooting in downtown Highland Park on July 5.
(Charles Rex)

Firearm evidence was found on the rooftop of a nearby business, police commander Chris O'Neill said. The shooter used a ladder attached to the building on a wall in an alley to access the roof, said Sgt. Chris Covelli of the Lake County Major Crime Task Force.

The gun was a "high-powered rifle" and the attack appeared to be "random" and "intentional," Covelli said.

Dear Editor: And so we add another place to the litany of locations linked to mass murder--Highland Park, Illinois.

A body is transported from the scene of the shooting on July 4th in Highland Park, Illinois. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune/AP)

I grew up in a Chicago suburb much like Highland Park and raised my children in another one. 

My son and his family live in another town nearby. We enjoyed holiday celebrations much like this. We felt safe, happy, enjoying friends and neighbors.

I grieve for the generations to come that they won't be able to fully experience this freedom and joy. The American obsession with guns is destroying us--literally.

From Karen Schickedanz in Saddlebrooke, Arizona