The Way of the Gun

The shootings at Virginia Tech have been much on my mind. My sympathies go out to all the victims' families, friends, and the students of Virginia Tech. But it's also prompted me to think about a few things.

Before the bodies were even cold, the media was awash in political discussions about the role of guns in this country. On one side, it's been almost 8 years to the day since Columbine, and little has been done to make it more difficult for anyone to acquire multiple high-powered weapons. In fact, parts of the "Patriot Act" and other legislation have made it nearly impossible even for law enforcement to know who is buying or selling guns. The event at Virginia Tech is yet another wake-up call to the problem that the US has more deaths by guns than most of the rest of the developed world combined, and that guns are more plentiful and easily obtainable than ever.

On the other side, some are quick to say that if others on the campus had been armed, they could have stopped the killer(s) from inflicting so much carnage. That this is proof we need "concealed carry" laws, and armed marshalls everywhere, and fewer restrictions on gun ownership due to the need for self-defense. And the familiar refrain of "guns don't kill people, people kill people." Plus, the fact that the shooter was an immigrant will no doubt be politicized, even though he was here legally and had lived here since age 8. And like so many who commit these sorts of attacks, he was "a quiet guy who kept to himself" so maybe society is to blame?

I don't know who's right... it seems that someone determined to get something will usually find a way, legally or illegally, but to my mind, it seems that as a country, we go out of our way to make sure anyone who wants a gun can get their hands on one... or two... or fifty. It reminds me of when Homer Simpson stormed into his local gun store Blood Bath and Beyond only to be informed of the five-day waiting period: "Five days? But I'm mad now!" And also, to my mind, the term "civilized society" is practically defined as one without guns or the threat of violence -- but when was the last time anyone suggested the US was a civilized society?

Personally, guns make me nervous. I've used them as props a few times -- usually a toy pellet gun that looks pretty realistic. One model had her boyfriend bring an actual gun to the studio -- the middle two pictures -- and even though we'd checked that the gun was empty, and that the safety was on, it still didn't feel right when I took these two shots. It's kind of unfortunate that photographers usually speak in terms of "shots" and "shooting models" and the like. As Robin Williams' character Sy Parrish in the creepy film One Hour Photo noted: "According to The Oxford English Dictionary, the word 'snapshot' was originally a hunting term." Or when I mention to Andi that I have a shoot, she usually reflexively replies "bang pow!"

The top photo here is Barbie from what we called our "NRA Porn" set where she posed with the pellet gun and the flag in a variety of positions, some rather disturbing. (Maybe I'll post those elsewhere.) The bottom image is Andrea from the same day, where she also played with the toy gun and did some dramatic role playing as well. (Ditto.) I've heard models and photographers express opinions on this issue covering the entire spectrum. Generally, I believe guns cause far more problems than they solve, but at the same time, I wonder if I'm playing into the "glamorizing" of guns to a degree with "shots" like these?