Why we loved Matthew McConaughey's Speech at the Podium of the White House - End Gun Violence Now

It came from his heart. It came from his meeting with the parents of children who were gunned down mercilessly by a crazed killer. It came from McConaughey being born in Uvalde, TX and it was PERSONAL. His anger was real. His heartbreak was palpable in describing the children and their lost dreams. His wife Camila sat stoically near him holding the sneakers of a 10 year old girl who was only able to be identified by those shoes. The horror of that day was highlighted in his powerful words.

He spoke of common sense coming together of people on both sides of the issue of gun control. He presented some solutions that covered raising the age limit to 21 to purchase guns; a 3 day pause on purchases to prevent crimes of passion; putting more resources into mental health; paying attention to red flags, hardening of school entrances; supporting responsible gun ownership and not demanding the Second Amendment be abused by "deranged individuals." I imagine he still enjoys hunting, but hunting doesn't require machine guns.

He was appealing to the middle - those who are open to dialogue and finding common ground. After Sandy Hook, we all thought gun control would FINALLY stop the insanity of school shootings. But the sick and criminals always find a way to get a gun. We should ban all military assault weapons for all but the military. To me that would be common sense. A killer can do damage with other weapons --knives, hammers, swords, etc. but the carnage of school shootings and all mass shootings are the results of these lethal weapons of war.

Why can't we just OUTLAW them and the ammunition they come with from citizens who are not in the army? Wouldn't that be a good first step? Why is that so hard for the legislators to implement?

Matthew McConaughey spoke as a father and as a concerned American. He deserves respect for trying to unify all Americans to make a change in policy NOW before we lose one more innocent child.

All legislators should pay attention. The time for action is NOW. The U.S. should finally be seen around the world as affecting positive change on this issue. The U.S. stands alone in mass shootings. Stop future Uvalde shootings now. My heart breaks for the parents and families of those children who are gone from them too soon.

We should all contact our senators and congressmen and demand results. Americans should all be grieving for the deaths of these children and victims of other mass shootings and we need to reform gun laws now.