Q: "Where you been, old dude?"

A: Procrastinating, mostly.

Don't mind admitting, after the Aurora, CO shooting this summer, I did wonder "who cares about what movie you watched or what tune you heard?" Some of the stuff I wanted to post seemed pretty shallow.

So, we go from Aurora to shootings in Texas, Wisconsin and now Connecticut in a matter of months. People all over are asking "what can we do differently to prevent this in the future?" or "how do we explain it to our kids?"

I wish I had answers.

I do have a few thoughts, though. One, let's stop with the "we never thought it would happen in this neighborhood" mindset. The proof has been long evident that this kind of horrific attack can happen anywhere.

Let's also stop with the "he didn't seem like the kind of person to do this" view. Any of us are capable of great evil in a specific circumstance.

You want to explain it to your kids? Tell 'em evil has always been a part of life on earth. Tell 'em not to add to the evil that exists. Tell 'em the value of every life.

My bigger concern is "why do so many people feel that when they are hurting, it's appropriate to inflict hurt on innocents?" As much of a opinionated windbag as I am, I can't get my head around this fact. When did this perspective seemingly explode and pollinate virtually every corner of the globe?

Am I advocating increased gun control? No.

I advocate for increased "people control". In our society, we need to change the nature of discourse. I don't think we're asking the right questions. I was talking with some friends yesterday, and we all agreed that hearts need to change. The sanctity of life needs to be reaffirmed. Our approaches dealing with mental disorders or even personal challenges need to be re-evaluated.

Will I post about movies, music and other goofy stuff in the future? Yep. But, I can't shake this feeling that with all we have in this nation, we are falling apart faster than most are willing to admit.

Part of the recovery after heartbreak or tragedy is the desire to re-connect with some semblance of normalcy. It's tough, but we are compelled to pick up the pieces and go on.

See ya somewhere down the road...