This vision/blindness theme really has a hold on me.
My last post got me thinking about one of my all-time favorite stories, The Country of the Blind. H.G. Wells wrote this tale of a man who finds himself trapped in a village that has been physically cut off from the outside world for centuries. Over the years, the villagers have evolved a brutal congenital defect.
They’re blind.
All of them.
Completely.
Blind like—they’re born without eyes—that kind of blind.
In Iowa, it is legal for a blind person to carry a gun.
Just…let that soak in for a moment.
Now, I’m a big supporter of the Second Amendment, and I’m certainly against discrimination based on physical disabilities, but…seriously? A blind person with a gun? Immense power in the hands of one who has no means of directing it accurately or effectively could have significant and terrifying ramifications.
I’m sure there’s a political aspect to this, but we won’t go there today. (more…)