Enough is enough

Last week, a 17-year-old boy in Ohio was shot and wounded in the arm by a man who feared that the boy was trying to steal his McCain/Palin sign. This is absolutely insane. When did it become acceptable to shoot at a person because you think that they are going to steal or vandalize your campaign sign?

According to Kenneth Rowles, the shooter, the youth jumped out of an SUV and yelled, "This is for Obama." Rowles then proceeded to fire three warning shots in order to scare the youth away. One of these shots ended up in the minor's arm. Whether Rowles was aiming for the boy or not, it is completely unacceptable to shoot a gun at or around a person because of a campaign sign.

I agree with standing up for a cause and supporting what you believe. One way of showing your support is to post campaign signs in your yard. However, it is common knowledge that kids do dumb things, such as stealing signs from yards. So why would a person think that shooting a rifle, even as a scare tactic, is acceptable retaliation?

Rowles' behavior is only reinforcing the stereotype of the gun-loving Republican, and the stigma attached to people labeled this way. His behavior only supplies fuel for the argument about how guns are bad. His behavior reflects poorly on those who support McCain, because it says that McCain's supporters are willing to take a chance at wounding people over miniscule things.

It was only a sign. People need to get a grip on reality. You don't fire a gun at another person, unless that person is threatening your life or livelihood.

This election is a pivotal one, and we all need our voices to be heard, but that doesn't justify the fact that a man shot someone over his campaign sign. Instead of allowing the police to do their job by detaining the teen for vandalism, Rowles took matters into his own hands and ended up shooting him. Now Rowles is facing felony charges - what good does that do McCain?

If convicted, Rowles will lose all voting rights for future elections. Good job, Rowles. I hope his fanaticism will teach everyone that enough is enough. There is a line that should never be crossed, and shooting someone because you fear that your campaign sign is going to be harmed is not in any way acceptable.

All I have to say is; I am so glad this election will be over today. The faster we find out who won, the faster people can get mad or get glad and get over it!

This writer can be contacted at opinion@theeastcarolinian.com.