Many recent op-eds in our newspapers have openly questioned whether the freedom to own a firearm will ever be balanced by our right to live in freedom from fear, especially by parents and children victimized by violent shootings in our schools. University professors, psychologists, and sociologists now often argue that we should ban firearms, or even repeal the Second Amendment, but curiously never seem to provide an intellectual, psychological, or sociological analysis of the root cause of spree shootings.

Psychology and sociology are powerful academic disciplines, and can provide a profound analysis as to why we are experiencing such an overwhelming number of mass shootings in our society. In fact, prior to 1986, the number of Americans who legally owned bona fide machine guns was staggering, such as Thompson sub-machine guns and German weapons brought back from the war. Yet, with all the angry protests for Civil Rights, and the Vietnam War, we rarely witnessed a series of spree shootings by anyone.

Given all the racial anger and divisions in our society during the late 1960’s, and the prevalence of so many legally owned automatic weapons, why were there not more mass shootings? It had a great deal to do with the values of society at that time. In fact, a ban on machine guns did not take place until 1986, and only after a massive surge of urban spree shootings by drug gangs. So, what changed between 1968 with all those peaceful protests, and 1986 with all those shootings? Surprisingly, the answer is found not with firearms, but in economic and social changes in society.

The passage of civil rights legislation during the 1960s, followed by women’s rights in the 1970s, legally ended the economic exploitation of a permanent underclass in American society, forcing corporations to pay more for workers. This curtailed profits from the largest corporations, and their wealthy investors on Wall Street, who immediately began pressing politicians for the possibility of moving jobs overseas. Henry Kissinger, as Secretary of State, diplomatically opened the door to China, and then started a company to assist American corporations move jobs to China as well.

Thus, by the early 1980s, many Americans saw their middle-class jobs in manufacturing suddenly disappear overseas. The first to lose their jobs were often Blacks working in inner-city factories, leaving them few options other than to apply for welfare, and wait for a job opportunity. But soon, working-class Whites also felt the “big suck” overseas, too. Just look up the lyrics of the Billy Joel song “Allentown” from 1982. Detroit is a perfect example of how our most productive real estate was turned into an inner-city ghetto, with few good paying jobs.

As our experts know, poverty and crime go hand in hand. As corporations and investment banks lobbied politicians to move jobs overseas, the resultant poverty and crime changed America — permanently — at a profoundly psychological level. Joblessness fostered dependency, poverty fostered crime, and together they fueled anxiety, desperation, and drug addiction. It was then that all those guns, which had previously been of little regard, suddenly came into play. The poverty that fueled inner city drugs also fueled violent gun crime and spree shootings.

As Americans faced a loss of sovereignty to the political buying power of corporations and banks, and rural areas turned into rustbelts, we were forced to move into cities with higher costs of living and housing, and stressors such as crime, congestion, noise pollution, and poor schools. Teachers had to teach larger classes, even if students fell behind, while politicians passed laws removing corporal punishment, or even physical contact with petulant or violent students. As parents had to work longer and harder, for less, was it any surprise they were never around to parent, or instill values in all those children who now shoot up our schools?

Thus, a sovereign nation with a once strong work ethic, solid social values, and sense of national pride, now finds its kids lazy, socially and sexually confused, and lacking the skills to survive in a global economy. The current economic policies passed by Congress pit Americans against foreign labor overseas, or against millions of undocumented immigrants here at home, who are exploited for wages that working Americans will never accept. And that is what fuels all the financial stress, anxiety, depression, drug addiction, and psychotic spree shootings in what is now a toxic society.

The guns were always there. The racial and political divisions were also always there. The spree shootings were not. What changed? The people changed. Why did the people change? Because people are a product of their society, and if that society if filled with financial stress, anxiety, depression, suicide, and drug addiction, you can be sure the end is not far off. More Americans buy assault rifles every day because psychologically a weapon represents power, which a growing number of our citizens feel we are losing, both politically and financially, with each passing year.

The election of Donald Trump, and the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, are harbingers of a horror that is yet to come, but it is coming. The writing is on the wall for anyone who cares to read it.

Joseph Mazgaj is a former West Virginia Homeland Security operations officer.