Gun Ownership Day

Ladies and gentlemen! We are on the eve of the inauguration of a new government, and normally, at this time, we would be discussing and preparing to hold the country accountable for the promises made during the campaign and hoping that something better will be presented for the country. As I said: we would be. The future government, I believe for the first time in the history of the new republic, does not even allow us to delude ourselves. To dream, then, is synonymous with nightmare.

First, because the president-elect has not presented any proposals or projects to improve the collective well-being. Not for the economy, not for health, not for education, not for the most basic public utility service. Second, because he and his team have no idea what they will do from now on. And this becomes evident when they announce the measure they consider a priority for the first hundred days of government: issuing a decree allowing gun ownership for any citizen without a criminal record. A bombshell. Bang!

Some say we should pray that God enlightens him and that he will have a good government. That rooting against him is not wanting what's best for the country. Such optimism and argument don't hold up. As is already the norm in everything said by Bolsonaro or most of his supporters. It's as if they wanted a voice and guitar show at their party, and hired someone who couldn't sing or play. Will praying and asking God for everything to go well make the "artist" they chose succeed in their mission? That's expecting too much from chance. And, in this case, paraphrasing that Titãs song, chance won't protect you as long as you keep walking distracted.

Releasing gun ownership by decree only confirms that Bolsonaro's government will attempt to impose itself by force and the power that the pen will guarantee him. This obsession that the president-elect has with firearms should be a cause for concern for our society. Those who support such a decree have not yet reasoned enough to realize that justice is not done with one's own hands. The problem is that the Minister of Justice himself is endorsing this decree and promises to expedite the procedures for it to come into effect as quickly as possible. This means that the state will be transferring its responsibility for ensuring everyone's safety to the citizen.

The question that begs to be asked is this: Don't we have other priorities? This whole rush to loosen gun control laws has as its main objective the "defense" of large landholdings. If the poor or middle-class citizen believes that this measure aims to guarantee their right to defend their humble home, they are mistaken. This decree aims to guarantee farmers and large landowners the right to shoot at landless workers, indigenous people, quilombola communities, and others who are in the "way" of our illustrious feudal lords, "threatening" their properties. All under the guise of legitimate self-defense.

Furthermore, gun ownership will make it easier for other unbalanced individuals, in a fit of rage, to unleash their most primitive instincts against anyone who contradicts their truth and their concepts of citizenship. It could be a neighbor, a Black person, a homosexual, a woman, a fan of another club, an ideological opponent, or even their own family. Not having a criminal record doesn't characterize anyone as honest or fit to own a gun. It's insufficient. It's applauding a madman's killing, I mean, dancing. This proves, once again, that it's pointless to root for a government whose reckless actions can endanger civilization.

Bolsonaro wants, by all means, to institute barbarism in the country. It seems that such a task has been given to him as a kind of special mission. His hate speech will be converted into decrees, provisional measures, and other actions aimed at instigating social chaos in the name of guaranteeing order and law. Don't doubt that his fascination with weapons will lead him to institute a day of purging, in which every "good citizen" would have the right to shoot to kill anyone who represents a danger, whether real or imagined. And we know how fertile the imagination of these people is, don't we?

Thus, they would gradually decimate the less fortunate, ideological opponents, and all those whom the fascism that will come into force does not consider human enough to coexist with them in society. Perhaps this is the very subliminal intention of such a measure. It's no use telling the enthusiasts of the idea that such a debacle would increase violence and the death rate in the country. They will say that guns don't kill anyone. It's the bearer who kills. A logically natural and inherent line of reasoning for most Bolsonaro voters. Which makes the scenario of this horror film, which premieres on January 1st, even more somber.

In the artistic world, when someone is about to debut or perform a show, the people wish them: "Much good luck!", which is the same as wishing them success. For the future government, such wishes are completely unnecessary. You can already smell "success" in the air. 

Good luck to us!