Life is precious—but only if you’re one of ‘us’. 

My gut reaction to the news on yet another botched Trump assassination attempt was: “Who really gives a flying f--k?”

I hadn’t been nearly as circumspect or kind after the July assassination attempt only nicked Donald Trump’s ear—an injury that miraculously healed itself overnight. For that shocking event, I had reported a resounding voice echoing from the heavens: “Damn it; missed again!” And I’d quickly noted that Mr. Karma, while he represents a very compelling belief in equitable recompense, was a particularly poor marksman.

Sadly, my disdain for the man who has far less integrity than an alley cat—one that the hungry Springfield Haitians somehow missed—had definitely colored my ability to see things clearly.

The reality was that, however motivated, the Pennsylvania rooftop shooter did a very naughty thing.

His shot created yet another complicating physical flaw to accompany Trump’s tragic medical history: bone spurs; congenital micro-cerebrum; and now one more terrible ailment adding to his military service ineligibility. That reddened bird-peck has surely blocked his deep commitment to fight for his country, making him permanently 4-F (unsuitable for military service) and ending all hope of him ever again wearing the gilded, oak-leaf-clustered beak and stars of the official Commander-in-Chief uniform.

Yes, but that incident was two months ago. I was frightfully callous, but now I’m repenting.

In an effort to avoid flippancy, I’ve stopped to think about what our country is and means, and how killing others—even the most reprehensible and disgusting of the world’s growing pile of refuse—is an absolute no-no.

It’s one of the most basic premises of our existence, that depriving another person of life itself is, at least, very bad manners and, at most, a very real sin against humanity. We can joke about it, but it is the ultimate crime. For that reason, our nation has largely shut down capital punishment.

Personally, I feel that the death penalty should be outlawed across the board—not left up to the individual states, but banned by federal law. If our most basic and treasured documents made life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness sacrosanct, capital punishment should have been off the books years ago.

We must understand that execution—while a seemingly equitable, even possibly justifiable eye-for-an-eye consequence for capital crimes—is wrong. And certainly, just from the number of people who have been vindicated by the various innocence projects, we can fully appreciate that law enforcement and judicial errors have caused a significant number of undeserved deaths, along with the horrific effects on the families of the innocent.

Of course, imprisonment is a financial drain on society, but we must not be comfortable with the understanding that, if applied, the death sentence will end the lives of some innocent people. We must remember that it’s the one form of punishment that cannot be commuted by a governor or president’s pen. Once it’s done, there’s no course reversal.

Life and quality of life are paramount values, and no one—even those, perhaps, motivated by a real sense of love for their country—should be out there, with a trusty little assault rifle, nicking ears or ruining one of Trump’s reportedly PGA-quality, 11-under-par golf rounds. I guess we shouldn’t even jokingly comment about his golf prowess, but probably ought to focus more on how his golf games help to stimulate the U.S. economy. After all, the golf ball industry provides paychecks to more than a few Americans and, though Trump doesn’t brag about it, Titleist sells another three-dozen balls every time Trump does 18 holes.

That said, it’s a bit of a curiosity how our nation, while slowly stamping out the finality of execution, seems remarkably comfortable with the deaths of non-Americans. While good, old-fashioned notions of morality decry deaths in our own country, how can we, or the politicians who lead the way, be complacent in the face of what can only be described as pure evil? Gaza and the West Bank are just examples of how little value our leaders have placed on the rest of humankind.

It would appear that non-American lives have no value. Their deaths are just a number, one that grows by the day and one that calls into question the morality of our nation. If it were actually beyond our control, it wouldn’t even be worth mentioning. But that is not the case. A staggering number of our fellow men are being killed by U.S. armament, furnished to “rogue governments”—governments that refuse to abide by the most basic international standards of humanity.

Of course, there are some who will call America’s endless supply of military equipment merely our exercise of responsibility in helping to resolve disputes in other parts of the world. But the reality is that you and I are complicit in the deaths of 42,000 Palestinians, because our leaders choose to support a criminal who has wantonly violated international laws and acts only upon his own personal desire to avoid his day of judicial reckoning.

It doesn’t matter whether you love the Jewish people. Mass murder is not OK, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu must be held accountable for his crimes.

It's ironic that so many Americans can apparently accept the mass murders carried out by our supposed allies. My take: It seems that the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness is an inalienable right, but only for our own country and our friends.

America must see the error of its ways and act to end the senseless bloodshed of its brothers and sisters worldwide. We can’t very well make a big deal over some madman’s nicked ear, while turning our backs on the rest of mankind.

The author is a retired businessman, novelist, columnist and former Vietnam-era Army assistant public information officer. He resides in Riverton with his wife, Carol, and their adorable and ferocious dog “Poppy.”