Huff’s Posts: ‘And So This Is Christmas, And What Have We Done’

Published 9:58 am Friday, December 19, 2025

One of the first stories I ever wrote as a professional journalist was about gun safety. It was in 1989 and there had been a rash of accidents, of children finding their parent’s guns and accidentally shooting their friends or family members. I was a young mother of three pre-schoolers at the time and I remember how horrified I was at the thought of something like that happening to my own children.

So I wrote a story about how to keep guns safe, locked away, bullets in one place, guns in another.

That was before gun violence became so ubiquitous in our U.S. culture. Before Columbine, before Sandy Hook, before oh so many episodes of gun violence at countless gathering places — schools, universities, malls, restaurants. So far this year, from Jan. 1 to Dec. 19, 14,104 people have died from guns, according to gunviolencearchive.org and over 25,000 have been shot in non-fatal shootings. There have been 393 mass shootings.

It just doesn’t make any sense to me. It doesn’t matter which side of the gun equation or hill you stand on, for or against — are you gonna die on that hill?

While I’m writing this, part of me wonders, why am I even? What does it matter? It’s not gonna make any difference. What can I do? What can you do? And yet … .

After all the violence that happened this past week I am physically sick to my stomach and I’m heart sick to the core. Two more instances of nonsensical gun violence left 16 dead in Australia, 40 more injured? Two dead at Brown University, nine others injured?

And then the horrible, tragic news of Rob and Michele Reiner murdered by their own son Nick, himself a victim of drug addiction for decades plus mental health issues.

And to top things off, the responses from our leader on social media, mocking death and speaking ill of the dead and murdered has just left me reeling. … I really don’t know where this column is going. It’s mostly just a ramble of sadness and despair and futile frustration. And just a sense of disbelief.

But getting back to the gun matter. I don’t have anything against people exercising their Second Amendment right to bear arms. To hunt or shoot skeet for sport. Or to keep a gun at home for protection — safely, taking proper precautions.

I guess what I am against is giving people free reign to purchase weapons that have no other purpose except to kill or harm another human being. Assault rifles, AK-47s, weapons that only belong in the military.

So no, it doesn’t matter which side of the gun equation you’re on. We can all agree that guns are killing machines. That’s a fact, Jack, and whether you think that it’s the gun’s fault or it’s the person‘s fault is really kind of a moot question. If you remove the gun from the equation that is.

But now we’re back to why am I saying all of this, what makes me think that pouring my sick heart out on the page is gonna make a difference at all?

But what if it does? What if just one person stands down and turns away from gun violence. Or helps to enact more laws restricting the ability to purchase an assault rifle? Or writes one letter to their congressman asking them, pleading with them to do the same?

You may ask what gives me the right to say anything at all? Why don’t I just go back to telling you all about how I moved out here to live out a dream and — just keep my damn mouth shut?

I’ll tell you: I’m saying something because I can. Agree, disagree. It’s the beauty of us being human beings. We can have opinions and sometimes we can even agree to disagree.

I will ask you to do one thing when you get up in the morning. Look in the mirror and don’t look away. We’re all a part of this mess. Guns aren’t the answer. Violence is not the answer. Hate is not the answer.

This is the strangest Christmas column I’ve ever written, but I will end on a high note. The highest note of all and the answer to everything: love. To quote those bearers of peace and goodwill towards all from the ‘60s: “Love is all there is.” (Yes, I just finished re-watching “The Beatles Anthology.” Highly recommend.)

My hope for all of you, dear readers, is to embrace the true meaning of this holiday.

Peace and love to you.

For all who celebrate: Merry Christmas, happy Hannukah, happy Diwali — and happy Festivus for the rest of us.

Jeanne Huff is the editor of The Astorian and lives in Astoria.