Greeson: PC double standard, Merry Christmas, Anderson's ethical dilemma


              Chaplain Chuck Bender, right, prays with Michael Davila at a makeshift memorial honoring the victims of Wednesday's shooting rampage, Friday, Dec. 4, 2015, in San Bernardino, Calif. The FBI said Friday it is officially investigating the mass shooting in California as an act of terrorism, while a U.S. law enforcement official said the woman who carried out the attack with her husband had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group and its leader on Facebook. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Chaplain Chuck Bender, right, prays with Michael Davila at a makeshift memorial honoring the victims of Wednesday's shooting rampage, Friday, Dec. 4, 2015, in San Bernardino, Calif. The FBI said Friday it is officially investigating the mass shooting in California as an act of terrorism, while a U.S. law enforcement official said the woman who carried out the attack with her husband had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group and its leader on Facebook. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

All of our hearts ached for San Bernardino this week.

Sadly, San Bernardino, a midsized California community, was the most recent locale for the all-too-familiar mass shooting storyline.

More than a dozen dead, close to two dozen seriously injured. It's become a tragedy that is too close to becoming a trend.

Behind it come the emotional questions that start with why and are followed by the outrage of a country that is tired and angry over the endless run of senseless carnage.

photo Staff Photo by Dan Henry / The Chattanooga Times Free Press- 4/15/14. Staff Mugs

To this, expect the next round of screaming about gun control. It is not without some merit.

I believe in the Second Amendment and the right to own a gun. But there have been too many incidents and too much evidence not to explore better restrictions and tighter regulations about getting and owning a gun.

There is no way to end the will of crazy extremists willing to trade their lives for those of others. What if they had used a homemade explosive? Or a gasoline cocktail?

Still, if there are more steps to take or tougher regulations for gun ownership, then they should be explored. It's time to make this a priority. If voting is a right that can be restricted and limited for various reasons, so too should be the right of owning a gun.

That said, why is there such a double standard in the public outcries in a tragedy such as this? The morality Internet mob raises the volume about gun control and a large collection of our society wants to condemn anyone who owns a gun.

Does it matter that millions of Americans own guns safely and wisely? Of course not, because that does not fit their narrative.

Those same groups demand tolerance for the millions of Muslims in this country, and demand we listen. OK, because there are millions of Muslims in this country who are not part of the killing trend here.

So millions of responsible gun owners do not deserve the same respect and acceptance as a worldwide faith that produces a small number of killers, right?

Merry Christmas

If you say "Happy Holidays" or what have you because you do not want to make anyone feel uncomfortable, well, you have full permission to turn the page and enjoy the rest of this fine paper.

Quite simply, how can you celebrate Christmas without realizing the reason for the occasion is Christ?

There are regional and even national figures apparently trying to distance themselves - for politically correct reasons - from the real reason for Christmas.

Shame on all of them, including UT Chancellor Jimmy Cheek, who apparently approved an official university statement of guidelines on how to "ensure your holiday party is not a Christmas party in disguise."

Say what? (Deep breaths, deep breaths.)

Here's betting the bend-over-backward PC patrol would do everything possible to ensure the rights of our Jewish friends and neighbors as they start to celebrate Hanukkah, which starts Sunday. Here's betting they in a million years would never try to marginalize any other tradition or occasion - especially one this big - of any other major religion from around the world.

Conflict of interest

Community activist Helen Burns Sharp leveled a conflict-of-interest complaint against Chattanooga Councilman Chris Anderson this week.

photo Chris Anderson, District 7 candidate for Chattanooga City Commission, answers questions during a meeting with the Chattanooga Times Free Press editorial board.

Sharp pointed out that Anderson voted for a downtown zoning change that would benefit developer Mike Price, who is listed as a member of the "Host Committee" for Anderson's Sunday brunch to kick off his re-election bid.

Anderson is a sharp dude who knows how to play politics. In fact, there were many who believed Anderson would try to take the next step in the next election cycle and run for a state Senate seat.

"I have had many contributors over the course of my political career," Anderson said in a statement, "but the only things that guide my judgments are the concerns of my constituents and the well being of our city."

At best, this seems like a very naive mistake for a skilled politician. At worst, and the names of the folks supporting Anderson according to Facebook include some heavy downtown types, well, you can be the judge of that.

Saturday stars

We have a bunch of great schools in our coverage area, and they handle a variety of challenges. All too often their shortcomings become big news.

Well, here's some good news.

Fairyland Elementary School on Lookout Mountain finished seventh out of 1,178 elementary schools in the new Georgia Milestones Assessment System testing. The tests were administered last spring and the results were released this week, and Fairyland finished well inside the top 1 percent across the state.

Way to go, Fairyland teachers and students.

Until next week.

Contact Jay Greeson at jgreeson@timesfreepress.com. His "Right to the Point" column appears on A2 on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

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