Love this piece.

People always want to know, “Why?” Just listen to any 4-year-old. The problem with giving reasons is that people think that also means blame and it doesn’t have to.

My brakes failing doesn’t mean anyone is at fault for my car hitting yours. And hopefully, neither of us gets hurt. After all, I just had it in for service and the mechanic didn’t see anything wrong. Could have been metal fatigue in one of the lines and he would never know until it broke since running those kinds of tests is not normal maintenance. Reason with no blame attached.

To my mind, blame is the opposite of responsibility. I see too many people who refuse to take responsibility for their actions (or inactions.) Many people seem to think that responsibilities are the opposite of rights, but they are actually a part of having rights. My right to drive my car comes with the responsibilities to understand (proven via testing) and obey traffic laws, keep it maintained so as not to be a danger to myself or others, and carry insurance in case of accidents.

I think similar, or maybe even stricter, responsibilities come with owning a gun. The right to vote comes with the biggest responsibility of all — know the issues (not the personalities) and VOTE.