After the horrific shooting in Las Vegas, many people ask: Why is gun ownership so high in the U.S.?  That's an honest question.  Maybe you've asked that of yourself or have had it posed to you by a liberal friend, as I have.  There are many reasons, and I'd like to touch of a few of the less mentioned ones.  And no, they have nothing to do with hunting and target shooting.

One reason for high firearm ownership is that people realize that the country is swimming in cultural waters that are like a sewer.  Look at the toxic filth coming out of Hollywood and the music and entertainment industries.  Many of their products are riddled with violence, gratuitous sex, vulgarity, and a glorification of shallow physical appearance.  When traditional religion appears, it is often there to be mocked and belittled, as is patriotism. 

Another factor is the public schools.  Not that long ago, objectives of the schools included teaching an appreciation of America and her history and imparting an understanding of civic responsibility to the students.  As a matter of policy, the schools also sought mightily to blend immigrants into the American mainstream. 

But not so much anymore.  The mantra is now "diversity is strength," as if constantly repeating this slogan can make it so.  Far too often, immigrant children are spared the "indignity" of being Americanized and allowed to stay comfortable in their subculture and language.  Worse yet, even native-born kids are not spared alienation from their own culture, as Western civilization is degraded with the constant drip, drip, drip of multiculturalism.  This is especially so at colleges and universities.

At times, it seems as if the traditional motto of the United States, E Pluribus Unum (out of many, one), has been turned on its head to now be "out of one, many."

Americans stand bewildered as the elite, in a direct refutation of biological science, push new definitions of gender into the public domain and enforce such radical postmodern concepts in law and the schools. 

People also see things like drug gangs roaming the streets in places like Chicago, their personal and financial information being hacked, astounding illegitimacy rates, a high acceptance of illegal immigration by the powers that be, racial tension, intolerance for free speech on college campuses, and an opioid epidemic.  Citizens have lost trust in America's political establishment to solve problems.  This is evidenced by the election of the ultimate outsider, Donald Trump, to the presidency and the low approval rating Americans continually give government in general.

So how does this collage relate to gun ownership?  Simple.  All these trends act as a solvent to dissolve the glue of unity and trust that heretofore held society together as a cohesive whole.  Individually and collectively, the fruits of the various liberal initiatives have spread confusion and disorientation throughout society like cancer metastasizing throughout a human body.  Accordingly, Americans are fearful.  They fear that their country, its culture, and its government are being stolen from them by an out-of-touch cultural elite, weirdos in Hollywood (like Harvey Weinstein), and fat cats from Wall Street and Silicon Valley with bags of money.  Whether it's consciously or subconsciously, people have a foreboding that chaos could be upon us.  They intuitively sense that if that happens, it will be coming to a nation that no longer coheres.  To put it in the words of the Irish poet W.B. Yeats, many Americans wonder if the center can hold.  

In my opinion, such a concern is far from irrational.  Rather, it's a sign of prudence, and the result is what you see – high gun ownership.  As Bob Dylan sang, "you don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows."