Friends, when I was a kid, my father and I used to joke about the profile of the lone shooter. That almost comical similarity of newspaper accounts (he was a quiet man, kept to himself mostly) that no one seems to identify until it is too late.

The murder of John Lennon occurred thirty-four years ago, but the list of innocent people killed by emotionally overwhelmed souls with firearms grows longer every day.

It isn’t in my nature to take a political stand, but as I grow older, it bothers me more and more every time something like this happens (and there have been so, so many).

As a society, we in the US are failing to deal with the trend of violence (particularly gun violence) by emotionally disturbed people who are not getting the help they need.

I finally got around to writing a song about this in 2007 (Visit the You Tube version for lyrics: Quiet Man).

Please bear in mind, the song isn’t about guns OR mental illness, it’s about guns AND mental illness. I ask you to listen to it and think about whether anyone you know may be in crisis and whether you have the opportunity to save someone you love or avert just one tragedy.

IMAGINE