I came home tonight after a long emotional day explaining my plan to keep children safe in class. I explained this plan to 9 six year olds during our reading group time. They were comforted in knowing that I am the grown up that they can trust to protect them and keep them safe. If someone ever did anything to hurt the little people I am in charge of I would be furious. Especially if that person did so for the tenth time because some people insisted on continuing to leave the front doors open to let some fresh air into the building. I would still be devastated and sad, but I would also be angry.
Our president is human, he is sad, and he is angry. Whether or not you want gun control or to spend more of our taxpayer dollars on serving the mentally ill…. He is still the president of our country. Just because you didn’t vote for him in the last two elections does not make him less of your president. He was angry because he cares. Maybe he didn’t say what you wanted to hear… But besides being angry and upset last Thursday and letting his emotions show, what has he done to you? Really, think about it and come up with a good long list…. I would be interested. Make sure that he was the one who really did it, too…. Not acts of congress, or health insurance which has steadily increased over he past 20 years, and not the recession which was something he inherited from the previous administration. I have seen people from our town call him evil…. Really? That is who we are in the wake of this tragedy? We are a community who calls our president evil? Are we people who would not open the door to the leader of one of the most powerful nations in the world? Are we people who wouldn’t take his gesture of condolences with respect. I am embarrassed by the way some people are lashing out. When I think about those people who try to run me off the road when I am riding my bike, those people are probably the same people who are sending these hateful thoughts for this man who cares. He isn’t running for anything. He isn’t campaigning or raising money and he hasn’t once said he wants to take away your guns. I am sure that a great many of those people posting things against our president have a strong faith… I think you should ask yourself ‘What would He do?’… Would He respect the leader of our country or behave like this?
lookforthejoy 
I appreciate these comments AND respect them as your own opinions. Every one of us deals with issues in our own way and WE ALL need to keep that in mind. People in Roseburg, in Oregon and all across the world have their own reasons for loving our President, supporting him, feeling indifferent towards him or hating him with a passion. Those of you who posted a negative, accusatory or hurtful comment here towards those who bash or dislike the President are no different than those you are bashing. If you feel justified in posting your feelings regardless of the fact not everyone feels the same way, they are equally justified in stating their feelings. You’re welcome for the free lesson in respect.
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I appreciate your reminder. I tried to read each comment and there were many from the opposition that were so ugly and hateful that I did not feel they would benefit anyone. I tried to do the same for both sides…. I will have to go back and take another look. I also believe that those who held beliefs similar to mine just wanted to know that they were not alone in their feelings and so I chose to limit the negative comments. If what you read here is offensive to you I am sorry. You have every right not to read my blog.
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I live in Sisters, don’t know anyone in Roseburg, but was so embarassed for all of OR when saw the
disrespect for our President. I just hope that our many friends in other states realize it is only a few who act in such a hateful way. We love OR and especially the people in our community. All of us feel so bad for the family of the victims and everyone in Roseberg. Thanks for letting us know there are many there that are respectful, kind people.
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After a mass shooting, the vitriol shown by some Roseburg residents to the frustration expressed by our President made me think they were showing more respect to the killer and his rights to own an arsenal than they were to all the victims from their own community who lost their lives.
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Allison, I agree that we should respect the President, because he is the President. I am a Christian, and this is an important ethic embraced by the Scriptures, whether you agree or not with the person, or even think he does not have the best interest of the country in mind, which is what many think. My sense is that you agree with much of what President Obama believes about the right way forward regarding gun violence. My only wish is that people on both sides of the liberal/conservative divide would call out the people they agree with for breaches of civility. In other words, would you be as upset about the liberal castigation of President Bush if he were to visit your state in the face of such a tragedy? Would you, and those who like (I assume!) President Obama renounce the irrational criticism of President Bush who flew over New Orleans (so his presence would not interrupt the rescue operation) rather than walk through New Orleans (which would have served as a great photo op.)? When will we criticize the incivility of our own, and then truly begin to unify the nation toward civil discourse? I appreciate your blog and agree with what you say, many times, as a conservative I stand in defense of Obama, particularly his foreign policy. We need more blogs that call out the uncivil slander of those with whom they agree. President Obama, unfortunately, has done much to turn up the uncivil rhetoric. (“fat-cats on Wall Street”) These are fellow Americans who make their living on the stock exchange, and the President of the United States is their President, too.
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Hi Allison,
Your blog post showed up in my FB newsfeed somewhat coincidentally, as I’ve watched this tragedy in my hometown unfold from a distance. To be honest, I mostly followed the link because the couple in the profile photo looked familiar but hard to place. While I was reading, it clicked in my memory- your husband Paul was my high school soccer coach 20 years ago. Paul was an incredibly committed friend and mentor. He helped me develop a sense of confidence I never felt entitled to, went above and beyond by allowing me to shadow his job and learn about his design business, he helped me with my college application and even taught me to kick a football modestly well. He didn’t have to do any of that.
That’s what community and integrity are about. Taking care of one another with no expectations, just the request that it’s paid forward. Please tell Paul thank you and let him know that his support helped to give me a foundation I wouldn’t otherwise have had.
Roseburg is lucky to have people like both of you, speaking and living your truths honestly in a way that reflects true community. And for what it’s worth, I’m doing my best to do the same and keep paying if forward.
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Thank you so much for taking the time to write this comment! I will certainly pass along your thoughts to Paul!
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Thank you! Just Thank you!
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Gun free zones = Mass murder by nut jobs ban gun free zones not guns.
Some people that have an agenda to hurt or kill others always find a way, if not guns they make bombs use knives ( like in china where a mass murderer killed many) or even a car. were in the top 4 in the world in gun violence . but if you remove Chicago , DC ,La and New Orleans these four cities and we would be in the bottom four in the world. If you notice these cities also have the strictest guns laws and yet the solution is to make the citizen pay not the criminal by letting the citizen not be able to defend themselves. Ask yourself how many mass murderers have attacked a venue where a citizen was carrying and followed through. I can’t think of one can you.
What it boils down to is guns aren’t the problem people with mental illness are that’s where we really need to start not more laws enforce what we already have.
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Thank you for your comment. I believe that we need to make many changes to fix this problem. Your idea could be part of that solution. Please tell me where I can look up similar statistics. I appreciate the opportunity to read more research on this matter.
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This seems to contradict what you’ve asserted: http://www.mythdebunk.com/us-3rd-in-murders/
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look up cities with most violence and then check cities with strictest gun laws and you will see the crime rates with gun violence runs highest, even the fbi statistics have info on the subject matter also check to see that gun violence throughout the u.s. has declined not increased thru the last 10 years not increased as the news projects it to be. http://journal.ijreview.com/2015/10/248814-dont-believe-the-media-there-is-no-epidemic-of-gun-violence-in-the-united-states/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=owned&utm_campaign=journal&utm_term=ijamerica
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http://www.justfacts.com/guncontrol.asp
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