Most of us by now have read countless stories about the tragedy in Connecticut.  And if you can get through an article without weeping uncontrollably, imagining the horror felt by the students, teachers and parents, then you would realize how many lives were lost and how many people will forever be affected by this tragedy.  It’s heartbreaking.

All of us asking “What if it were my kid?” “Why did this happen?” “How did he get so many guns?” “Who could do such a horrible, violent thing to so many innocent people?” … It is absolutely unfathomable to think that this kind of atrocity could happen, right here in our backyard, yet it does time and time again.

We are almost desensitized to it at this point because bad people do bad things all the time.  And with the power of the internet now, we hear every sordid detail as quickly as it’s happening, we see every graphic image as the act is unfolding (subway tragedy in NY comes to mind) and then we all become politicians, analysts, psychologists and investigators as we try to rationalize a totally irrational situation.   Time and time again.  Why?  When will it stop?

If only …. “We didn’t systematically remove God from schools” is what Mike Huckabee had to say about the breaking news out  of Newtown, Connecticut.  Hours after the country is reeling in pain and anguish – he blamed the lack of presence of God in schools, to answer the question of “Why?”  I say, “Too soon Huck, too soon”

“We don’t have a crime problem, a gun problem or even a violence problem. What we have is a sin problem,” Huckabee said. “And since we’ve ordered God out of our schools, and communities, the military and public conversations, you know we really shouldn’t act so surprised … when all hell breaks loose.”

 Really?  That’s where we are going to go with this?

“We ask why there is violence in our schools, but we have systematically removed God from our schools.  Should we be so surprised that schools would become a place of carnage?

I truly wanted to understand his argument … and I just couldn’t get there.  It doesn’t matter what any of our religious beliefs are:  believing in God or attending church/temple doesn’t make any of us immune to violence.

People who are god fearing, do bad things and even use religion as the reason why it’s OK.  (Dr. David Gunn, ran an abortion clinic and was shot to death by a religious zealot).

People who lead us in church, do bad things – just ask the thousands of kids abused by their religious leaders.

Lots of crimes are committed in “gods name” – I mean, my goodness – isn’t that why we are at war, because of the Jihad and protecting “one nation under God”.

Yes, I have read the articles and the statistics about people who are connected to something or that believe in a power greater than themselves are “less likely” to commit a crime – I am sure there is truth to that, but it is not a given.  Believing, discussing, practicing, preaching in God doesn’t shield you from harm.  Just look at our history as a nation.  Removing discussions about religion from school is not the reason we have violence – school is not where we go to be spiritual, at least I don’t think it is.  And by the way, we had violence LONG before we “systematically removed God”; just ask the families of the Kent State Massacre of 1970.

Unless he left a detailed letter explaining his actions, we will never know the exact reasons why Adam Lanza killed 27 people on December 14, 2012 and then took his own life. We don’t know his spiritual beliefs, his agenda, his emotional state, his state of mind or health.

So for today can we choose not to be politicians, analysts, psychologists and investigators?  Can we just be kind, compassionate humans?  Can we just have a moment of silence and remember and honor the lives lost and celebrate the heroism demonstrated by all of the survivors?  I am taking a wild guess, but I think that is what GOD would want from the country.