England is a cup of tea.
France, a wheel of ripened brie.
Greece, a short, squat olive tree.
America is a gun.
Brazil is football on the sand.
Argentina, Maradona’s hand.
Germany, an oompah band.
America is a gun.
Holland is a wooden shoe.
Hungary, a goulash stew.
Australia, a kangaroo.
America is a gun.
Japan is a thermal spring.
Scotland is a highland fling.
Oh, better to be anything
than America as a gun.
Paul Millicheap, who writes as Brian Bilston, is a British poet and author. Born in Birmingham, he studied at the University of Wales, Swansea, before entering the publishing industry as a marketing manager, notably for John Wiley in Oxford. Wikipedia
[Note from BenIndy: This post was first published on Stephen Golub’s blog, A Promised Land: America as a Developing Country. There, Steve blogs about domestic and international politics and policy, including lessons that the United States can learn from other nations. If interested, you may sign up for future posts by subscribing to the blog.]
Benicia resident and author Stephen Golub, A Promised Land
By Stephen Golub, July 15, 2024
The Trump assassination attempt and its possible aftermath are so horrific on so many levels. For what it’s worth, here are two excerpts from my interview with the Indian TV station WION (World Is One News) a few hours after the attack. As you might imagine, they capture just a slice of my views on the matter. The American woman who’s also contributing is WION’s U.S. correspondent – with whom, you might note, I disagree on a couple of points.
In one of the clips, I refer to a Washington Post article that ironically appeared earlier in the day, on Trump-supporting, violence-advocating Christian nationalists. In its own way, it’s just as frightening as the shooting.
The days just seem to be getting darker lately. But let’s not give up on our creating light down the road.
Court holds technical issue more important than saving lives
In her scathing dissent, liberal justice Sonia Sotomayor accused her conservative colleagues of ignoring bump stocks’ ability to transform semiautomatic firearms into much more powerful and deadly weapons….A bump-stock-equipped semiautomatic rifle fires ‘automatically more than one shot, without manual reloading, by a single function of the trigger’.… Because I, like Congress, call that a machine gun, I respectfully dissent…..The majority’s artificially narrow definition hamstrings the government’s efforts to keep machine guns from gunmen like the Las Vegas shooter.”
Public reaction was so strong after the Las Vegas disaster that even the National Rifle Association joined the call for the add-ons to be taken out of circulation.
Oh how times have changed – on the Supreme Court, that is. Today, the 6 rightwing justices took issue with the technical definition of a machine gun and ignored the fundamental intent of the 1930’s machine gun ban AND the 2019 bump stock ban – to eliminate the massive threat of high volume military style weaponry on our streets. Reporting by the New York Times and others follow here.
NYT Editorial: The Supreme Court’s Bump Stock Decision Will Prove Fatal
New York Times, by David Firestone, Deputy Editor, the Editorial Board
There was nothing abstract about the 6-to-3 decision issued Friday morning by the Supreme Court to permit bump stocks to be used on semiautomatic rifles. It is one of the most astonishingly dangerous decisions ever issued by the court, and it will almost surely result in a loss of American lives in another mass shooting.
Bump stocks attach to the back of a rifle and use the gun’s recoil to enable shooting hundreds of bullets at a very rapid pace, far faster than anyone could shoot by pressing the trigger multiple times. The device is the reason the Las Vegas shooter in 2017 was able to kill 60 people and wound more than 400 others so quickly in the nation’s worst mass shooting in modern history.
Bump stock devices were banned the next year, just as all fully automatic machine guns are banned for public use, but the six conservative members of the court seemed entirely unbothered by their deadly potential. The opinion, written by Justice Clarence Thomas, parses in a ridiculous level of detail whether bump stocks truly fit the precise mechanical definition of a machine gun. Because the court feels the need to give the greatest possible deference to the ownership of guns, however they might be used, the court concluded that they are not really machine guns, as they do not allow firing multiple rounds “by a single function of the trigger.”
The opinion, full of lovingly detailed close-up drawings of a gun’s innards (provided by the Firearms Policy Foundation, a pro-gun nonprofit group), says nothing about the purpose of a bump stock. Why would someone buy the device and use it? Only to fire a lightning burst of rounds. In the hands of an angry shooter — and there are so many of them — it would produce far more carnage, which is why even the Trump administration banned it.
But Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in a dissent laced with astonishment at what her colleagues had done, didn’t hesitate to explain what was really happening. “When I see a bird that walks like a duck, swims like a duck and quacks like a duck, I call that bird a duck,” she wrote, and in this case, the duck is an illegal machine gun. (Which, by the way, is not typically used for killing ducks.) Skilled shooters using an AR-15-style semiautomatic rifle can fire 180 rounds per minute, she wrote, but a bump stock allows them to fire 400 to 800 rounds per minute, which is the ordinary understanding of a fully automatic machine gun.
“Today’s decision to reject that ordinary understanding will have deadly consequences,” Sotomayor wrote. “The majority’s artificially narrow definition hamstrings the government’s efforts to keep machine guns from gunmen like the Las Vegas shooter.” And when the next Las Vegas happens, it will not be enough to blame it on the madness of a single deranged individual. There are so many others.
David Firestone, a former reporter and editor for the Washington bureau and the Metropolitan and National desks of The Times, is a member of the editorial board.
[Note from BenIndy: We know that words can sometimes fail us, but numbers don’t always fare so well, either. Lewiston, Maine’s mass shooting, in which 18 people lost their lives horrifically, was the 36th mass shooting of 2023. This year alone, we have lost at least 190 people to mass shootings, defined by the FBI as incidents in which four or more people (not including the killer) have died within a 24-hour period. We live in a country where statistics have shown us time and time again how truly deadly our lax gun laws are, and how gun violence disproportionately impacts people of color, children and teens. Gun violence is an epidemic with roots so deep and tangled in American culture that even the slaughter of children doesn’t stir us to think boldly.]
A teen bowler, a shipbuilder and a sign language interpreter are among the Maine shooting victims
This week’s mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine, was the nation’s deadliest of the year.
Eighteen people were killed in the attacks on a local bowling alley and bar, and 13 others were injured.
Law enforcement announced on Friday that suspect Robert Card had been found dead.
The 40-year-old was the only person suspected in the deadly assault at the Just-in-Time Recreation bowling alley and Schemengees Bar & Grille on Wednesday.
This announcement, made late Friday night, marked the conclusion of a pursuit that left residents seeking shelter and led to the temporary closure of businesses and government offices. State and federal law enforcement agencies conducted an extensive search across multiple towns for Card.
The Maine Department of Public Safety released the names, ages and photos of the victims at a press conference Friday.
Before then, some families had publicly shared the news they had been given, taking to social media to update their friends and neighbors on an unimaginable reality now settling in.
Here is what we know about the victims:
Tricia Asselin. | Family photo.
TRICIA ASSELIN, 53
Tricia Asselin was one of the victims of the mass shootings in Lewiston on Wednesday night, ABC News said. She was an accomplished athlete, a volunteer, and on the day of her death, a hero, her mother, Alicia Lachance, told NPR.
Lachance, 75, said her two daughters, Tricia and Bobbi-Lynn Nichols, 57, went bowling at Just-In-Time Recreation, where Asselin worked.
Asselin and Nichols were talking near a center lane in the bowling alley when the shots first rang out, though due to the noise in the venue, the sisters didn’t realize they were shots until they rang out a second time. As Nichols began running toward the exit, she thought Asselin was behind her, but Asselin stopped to call for help and was shot.
Lachance, who lives in Florida, said she was watching Celebrity Wheel of Fortune when she saw the news break on the screen. She said she recognized the bowling alley immediately, as it is the only one in Lewiston and was started by a family friend.
“I know Tricia is there, and Bobbi, as they were going bowling. I call both their phones – nothing and no answer,” she said.
Nichols tried to go back into the bowling alley, but was denied.
In high school, Asselin played baseball and softball, and was offered a softball college scholarship, but turned it down because she was getting married.
She also was skilled in golf and fishing, which she did often with her son Brandon, 25.
In her free time, she went on cruises with her son and volunteered with several charitable organizations, including the Make-A-Wish Foundation and Susan G. Komen for the Cure. She had raised $900 for the upcoming Susan G. Komen breast cancer walk in her area, Lachance said.
“She was just a great person,” Lachance said. “Anybody that knows Tricia is devastated today.”
In addition to her son and mother, Asselin is survived by two brothers, Mark Johnson, 54, and Jason Johnson, 51.
The family has not yet been able to see Asselin’s body.
“We just don’t know what to do,” Lachance said. “There’s nothing we can do. As soon as I find out when they’re going to release the body, I want to fly home and I want to hold my daughter in my arms and my heart. I’ll hold her in my heart forever, but I want her in my arms one more time.”
Tricia was fatally shot at Just-in-Time Recreation as she ran to call 911.
Bill Brackett. | Hearst-owned image.
BILL BRACKETT, 48
William “Billy” Bracket was an avid sports fan with a natural athletic ability, according to close friends and family.
He was killed at Schemengees Bar and Grille, playing in the cornhole tournament alongside Joshua Seal, Steve Vozzella, and Bryan MacFarlane.
Karen Hopkins, executive director of the Governor Baxter School for the Deaf, where Brackett attended classes, said that the deaf community is devastated by the tragic losses.
“Our staff is struggling because they are our friends,” she said, according to The Associated Press.
Owen Horr, a close childhood friend, posted a tribute to Brackett on Facebook. In it he described him as a kind and shy friend who was an avid Longhorns fan and obsessed with nearly all sports from a very young age.
“He had natural-born athletic skills,” Horr recalled, adding that Brackett was usually picked first. “He was the best soccer goalie, playing baseball and basketball. He made more than 1,000 points during his senior high school years. Also, he was the outstanding baseball player in the league in Auburn/Lewiston, ME.”
The Lewiston Sun Journal reports that Brackett met his wife Kristina through mutual friends in the Deaf community. They celebrated their third wedding anniversary in August, and share a 2 1/2-year-old daughter named Sandra.
Bill was part of a gathering of deaf people playing cornhole at Schemengees Bar & Grill when he was fatally shot.
Peyton Brewer-Ross. | Hearst-owned image.
PEYTON BREWER-ROSS
Peyton Brewer-Ross, 40, worked as a pipefitter at Bath Iron Works, a local machinists’ union shared in a statement. He loved cornhole, wrestling, comic book heroes and helping others, his colleagues said.
Peyton Brewer Ross, a new father, died in the shooting, according to the Maine AFL-CIO. They add he was loved by the community.
It is unclear what location Peyton was Wednesday when he was fatally shot.
Tommy Conrad. | Hearst-owned image.
TOMMY CONRAD, 34
When the gunman entered Just-In-Time Recreation, several men attempted to take him down. Thomas Ryan Conrad, a manager at the bowling alley, was one of them.
Conrad, who’d served in the Army, including tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, made the ultimate sacrifice, friend Adam Stoddard told the Lewiston Sun Journal.
“He was great with all of the bowling community kids,” Stoddard told the newspaper. “They all loved him. He loved them so much he put his life in harm’s way to charge the gunman and save the children who were there. He died a hero.”
The 34-year-old had returned to Maine to live near his daughter, Caroline.
“My nephew loved his daughter more than words can say.. We love and will miss You Tommy.. We will all help take care of Caroline,” Conrad’s aunt, Holly Mireault, wrote on Facebook. He is survived by his 9-year-old daughter.
Tommy was in Just-In-Time Recreation when he was shot trying to rush the gunman.
Joshua Seal. | Hearst-owned image.
JOSHUA SEAL, 36
Joshua Seal was a husband, a father of four and a tireless advocate for the Deaf community.
A skilled sign-language interpreter, Seal was widely known as the ASL interpreter for Dr. Nirav Shah’s pandemic briefings. He was among several members of the deaf and hard of hearing community in Lewiston who regularly went to Schemengees Bar & Grille to play cornhole. On Wednesday, the father of four was participating in a cornhole tournament for the deaf, along with Steve Vozzella, Bryan MacFarlane, and Billy Brackett, who were also killed.
In many ways, Seal was the conduit for the deaf community, especially during times of crisis.
“For so many in the deaf community in Maine, Josh was the voice of COVID and the face of COVID,” said former Maine Center for Disease Control director Dr. Nirav Shah, who is now the deputy director at the U.S. CDC.
Shah worked alongside Seal for almost two full years during the pandemic. Seal, an American Sign Language interpreter, had been brought in to communicate the latest updates on the virus and vaccines to people who needed to know about them, but often can’t.
His translations of mRNA, monoclonal antibodies and other pandemic vernacular were high energy and helped make him a star among the deaf and hard of hearing.
The killing of Seal, Vozzella, MacFarlane, and Brackett appears to be the deadliest mass shooting of deaf people in U.S. history.
Seal was also the director of interpreting services and coordinated summer camps for deaf and hard of hearing kids to keep them engaged and not feel isolated.
At approximately 7:08 p.m., Seal and his three friends were hit by the bullets of the gunman who had entered the billiards hall after first attacking the bowling alley. All four of them were killed. Three of them — MacFarlane, Brackett and Seal — had been students at the Maine Education Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, according to director Karen Hopkins.
Joshua was killed at Schemengees.
Arthur Strout. | Family photo.
ARTHUR STROUT, 42
On Wednesday night, Arthur Strout was playing pool at Schemengees Bar and Grill with his father. The pair were planning on leaving together because the 42-year-old hadn’t driven that night, his father, Arthur Barnard told CBS News. But instead, Strout decided to stay behind.
“I said, ‘OK,’ and he said ‘I love you,’ because all my kids tell me that every time we see each other,” Barnard told the news outlet. “Ten minutes later, I get a phone call.”
Strout’s wife, Kristy, described the 42-year-old as a Christmas person, who sometimes started preparing for the holiday as early as Halloween. Taken by the spirit of the holiday, she told the Lewiston Sun Journal, he’d gather their large blended family of five children, to decorate the tree just so.
“If it wasn’t perfect, he’d go back to make sure it was perfect and looked like one of those pictures out of a magazine,” Kristy said.
The pair had been married for nearly seven years, but they began dating 16 years ago. Together, they share a 13-year-old daughter, Brianna, whose birthday is on Halloween. Both Arthur and Kristy also had two children from a previous relationships.
Maria Wilson, a close friend, told the newspaper that Strout had an infectious, silly laugh. She also described him as a generous person, who was willing to share all he had with others.
“He looked out for anyone and everyone. It was a ‘here you don’t have a shirt, take mine,’ kind of mentality,” Wilson said.
Arthur was fatally shot at Schemengees.
Bob and Lucielle Violette. | Family photo.
BOB & LUCIELLE VIOLETTE, 76 & 73
Friends say Bob Violette should be remembered as a wonderful person who died trying to protect children. Bob Violette was a dedicated volunteer coach for a youth bowling league. He was killed at Just-in-Time while trying to save those around him, his daughter-in-law told Maine Public on Thursday. Violette’s wife, Lucy was also shot at the bowling alley.
“I have no doubt that he was protecting those kids til the end. He is just such a good man, that he deserves people to know about him and what he meant to everyone,” Brandon Dubuc said.
Lewiston schools superintendent Jake Langlais described Lucielle as “one of the kindest people I have ever met.”
“She supported youth, their development, loved bowling, a good laugh, and was a valued member of the business office at Lewiston Public Schools. Lucy served the public for over 52 years. Lucy was a mentor providing various levels of guidance and care to many from youth bowling, life mentoring, and so much more.”
The couple was fatally shot at the Just-In-Time recreation center.
Steven Vozzella. | Family photo.
STEVEN VOZZELLA, 45
Steven Vozzella was part of a gathering of deaf people playing cornhole at Schemengees Bar & Grill, ABC News reported.
On Wednesday night, Steve Vozzella was playing in Schemengees Bar & Grille’s cornhole tournament for the deaf, Maine Public reported.
The sport was a big part of Vozzella’s life — he was an active member of the New England Deaf Cornhole — and he was quite good at it, with several victories to prove it.
“With sadly and heavy hearts, NEDC has lost a member of our community,” the group wrote in a Facebook post, adding that the 45-year-old had won several games and was eager to play more. “He will be missed on and off the courts.”
Away from the cornhole boards, Vozzella was a father of two who was preparing to celebrate his one year anniversary with his wife Megan next month. He also worked as a letter carrier for the U.S. Postal Service and was a member of the National Association of Letter Carriers.
NALC President Brian Renfroe said in a statement that he was heartbroken to learn that Vozzella had been killed in the mass shooting.
“He had much more life to live before it was stolen from him in an all-too-common senseless act of gun violence,” Renfroe said. “We mourn the loss of Stephen and all the innocent victims of this tragedy. Our hearts are with Stephen’s loved ones, all of those affected and the entire town of Lewiston.”
Vozzella, as well as Billy Brackett and Bryan MacFarlane, who were also killed on Wednesday night, were stalwart members of Maine’s community of deaf people who died in the shootings, according to the Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing.
Joseph Walker’s family was frantically trying to track him down after news of the mass shooting spread.
His father, Leroy Walker, a city councilor in Auburn, Maine, told WGME news that he was unaware of his son’s condition for almost 14 hours. He eventually learned that his son, who was a manager at Schemengees Bar and Grille, had died at the scene of the horrific shooting.
“My son was a great son,” the elder Walker told the news outlet. “Never got in any trouble, and he did a lot of good things for a lot of good people.”
Maine State Police said Walker had grabbed a kitchen knife and was apparently running toward the shooter to stop him, when he was shot twice in the stomach.
When asked if he was surprised to hear his son attempted to run to the shooter, his father – Leroy Walker Sr. — said: “No, not at all. I know he would have done that to protect his people.”
According to police, the final moments of Joseph Walker’s life were some of his most heroic.
“Picked up a butcher knife and went after the gunman to try and stop him from killing other people,” Leroy Walker recounted. “And that’s when he shot my son to death. He tried to save some more lives, and he ended up losing his life.”
He added: “I know if my son were here with me, he would say that he’s sorry for all the others that were lost.”
Joseph was fatally shot at Schemengee’s.
Aaron Young. | Hearst-owned image.
AARON YOUNG, 14
Aaron Young was only 14 years old. He and his father, Bill, were both killed at Just-In-Time in Lewiston Recreation on Wednesday night.
“I knew it would hit me when I got here, and he wasn’t here to greet me with a huge smile and a hug when we got in,” Aaron’s sister, Kayla Putnam, said. “My mom just keeps saying, ‘He gives the best hugs.'”
Aaron was a son, brother and beloved classmate. Both he and his father were killed in the deadly rampage.
“He was an honor student there. He was really proud of his grades, and his friends really miss him,” Putnam said.
Bill Young, 44, and his 14-year-old son, Aaron, were at Just-in-Time for the youth league night, a family member confirmed to The Associated Press. Bill was a “man dedicated to his family” who was “always trying to be a funny guy.” Aaron was an avid bowler, the AP reported.
Aaron was fatally shot at Just-in-Time Recreation.
Bill Young. | Hearst-owned image.
BILL YOUNG, 44
Bill Young was a father and an auto mechanic.
He and his son, Aaron, were both killed at Just-In-Time in Lewiston Recreation on Wednesday night.
Kayla Putnam, Bill Young’s step daughter, said he was the rock of the family.
“He’s going to be very missed,” Putnam said. “It’s going to be very hard for the family right now to deal without him because he was kind of the center of the family and everything. We are going to have a lot to deal with and plan and make sure everyone is taken care of.”
Bill was fatally shot at Just-in-Time Recreation.
Bryan MacFarlane. | Family photo.
BRYAN MACFARLANE, 40
Bryan MacFarlane was playing in the cornhole tournament for the deaf at Schemengees Bar & Grille when he was killed, his sister Keri Brooks told CNN.
Brooks later told The Daily Moth, an online news outlet featuring news for the Deaf community, that there were nine deaf people at the bar that night.
MacFarlane, who was 40 and would have turned 41 in December, was on the same team as Billy Brackett, Steve Vozzella, and Joshua Seale, the Lewiston Sun Journal reported. Brooks said the men all knew each other through the Governor Baxter School for the Deaf.
She told the paper that MacFarlane grew up in Portland, Maine, but had only recently moved back to the state to be near his mother. She described him as an outdoorsy man, who lived camping, fishing and riding his motorcycle.
Brooks added that MacFarlane also loved spending time with deaf friends and his dog, M&M, who was named after his favorite candy and regularly joined him on the road as a commercial trucker.
She told CNN that MacFarlane was one of the first deaf people in the state of Vermont to get his commercial trucking driver’s license.
“Many states don’t let deaf drive trucks so I’m very proud of him for achieving that. He worked as a truck driver for several years,” she said.
MacFarlane was fatally shot at Schemengees.
Jason Walker. | Family photo.
JASON ADAMS WALKER, 51
Jason Walker, a close friend of Deslauriers Jr., was also killed at the bowling alley, according to the same Facebook post. “They made sure their wives and several young children were under cover then they charged the shooter,” Michael Deslauriers Sr. wrote in the post about Walker and his son.
Walker was fatally shot at Just-In-Time Recreation.
Keith Macneir. | Family photo.
KEITH MACNEIR, 64
Unlike the other victims killed by the gunman, Keith Macneir was not a local. He had traveled from his home in Florida to Maine last week, to celebrate his 64th birthday with his son, The Boston Globe reported.
In a Facebook post, Macneir’s niece, Grace Chilton, said he had been visiting his son Breslin Macneir.
“Keith was at Schemengees (making new friends, I’m sure) at the time of the shooting,” Chilton wrote. “Keith was the friendliest & kindest guy in any room – his loss will leave a huge hole in the lives of many, many people.”
Keith was fatally shot at Just-In-Time.
Maxx Hathaway. | Hearst-owned image.
MAXX HATHAWAY, 35
Maxx Hathaway spent Wednesday night playing pool at Schemengees Bar & Grille with his pregnant wife Brenda. But by the time the shooter burst into the restaurant Hathaway was there alone, friends told the Lewiston Sun Journal.
In a GoFundMe post, Hathaway’s sister, Kelsay Hathaway, said that the couple was expecting their third child in a little over a month. She described the father as a full-time stay-at-home dad and “a goofy, down to earth person” who “loved to joke around and always had an uplifting attitude no matter what was going on.”
She added: “Growing up he would always play dolls with my younger sister Courtney and always loved to get into trouble.”
In a Facebook post, Hathaway’s other sister, Courtney Hathaway, wrote about her own devastation. “I’m feeling a lot of things right now but I’m mostly heartbroken that he’s gone,” she wrote. “Nothing really prepares you for the sudden and shocking loss of a loved one, especially when it happens in such a tragedy.”
Hathaway was fatally shot at Schemengees Bar & Grille.
Ronald Morin. | Family photo.
RONALD MORIN, 55
Ron Morin was a dedicated husband and father of two, and a gregarious man who was well-known for having jokes at the ready, several family members have said in remembrances on social media.
Case in point, just one day before the mass shooting in Lewison, the 55-year-old posted a funny quip on Facebook — apparently a near daily habit, according to his friends.
“Why do men go to bars to meet women. Go to Target. The female to male ratio is 10 to 1. And they’re already looking for things they don’t need,” Morin wrote.
Morin was among the eight men killed at Schemengees Bar and Grille. His death has left his family “torn and shattered.”
In a GoFundMe post, Morin’s younger sister Tanya Morissette described him as having “an infectious personality.”
She added: “He was an incredible husband, father, brother, uncle, son, and friend. To know Ron, was to instantly love him. He was a man who always put others before himself and looked for the humor and positivity in even the most tragic circumstances.”
In a post on Facebook added after the shooting, Morin’s son Eric called him his “best friend.”
In an interview with the Bangor Daily News, another family member, Cecile Francoeur Martin, described Morin as an upbeat and happy person.
Martin told the outlet Morin was “just one of those people that if you are having a bad day, he was going to make your day better just by his presence.”
Ron was fatally shot at Schemengees Bar & Grille.
Michael Deslauriers II. | Hearst-owned image.
MICHAEL DESLAURIERS II, 51
Michael Deslauriers Jr. was killed at the bowling alley while trying to rush the gunman, according to a Facebook post shared by his father, who goes by the same name. “I have the hardest news for a father to ever have to share,” he wrote in the post.
Michael was fatally shot at Just-In-Time Recreation.
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