Days after a shooting incident at a Michigan school left four students dead and reignited the debate over gun laws in the US, a photo of a GOP member and his family posing with rifles for their Christmas greetings card has gone viral and triggered a backlash online.
US Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky tweeted the pic saying “ps. Santa, please bring ammo.”
The photo drew flak from all quarters including politicians and members of other school shooting victims’ families. While many urged him to take down the post, others lashed out at him saying it was “tone deaf”.
Merry Christmas! 🎄
ps. Santa, please bring ammo. 🎁 pic.twitter.com/NVawULhCNr— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) December 4, 2021
Although many wondered online if the firearms seen in the image were automatic weapons for which licenses are needed, according to Reuters, the Massie family was holding weapons resembling an M60 machine gun, AR-15 semi-automatic rifle and a Thompson submachine gun.
“Some semi-automatic weapons are made to look nearly identical to fully automatic weapons like machine guns. Under U.S. law, weapons like machine guns are restricted to the military, law enforcement and civilians who have obtained special licenses for weapons made before May 1986,” the agency said.
The photo drew flak from all quarters including politicians and members of other school shooting victim’s family. While many urged him to take down the post, others lashed out at him.
If a Black family posted something like this a SWAT team would raid the house and any family members who survived would be permanently added to a gang database. https://t.co/5F37OJxPCr
— Samuel Sinyangwe (@samswey) December 4, 2021
Idk who this guy is or his power/place in US politics (I’m Canadian) but I increasingly see images like this presented like a righteous brag or something. Why do some Americans think this is cool? Other countries looking at you like you are absolutely psychotic. https://t.co/ed1ZmWnUqF
— Cristine with no ‘H’ 💿 (@nailogical) December 5, 2021
In all seriousness…
What kind of true Christian celebrates the birth of Christ this way, @RepThomasMassie? https://t.co/OQGOmgwmQX— ken olin (@kenolin1) December 5, 2021
The USA is a very normal, healthy country, and it’s very normal and healthy for a family to pose with military-grade weapons in a Christmas photo
(Note how little the US has changed since when settler families were armed like this to ethnically cleanse the Indigenous population) https://t.co/j2ddCEmYJg
— Ben Norton (@BenjaminNorton) December 5, 2021
I say this as a libertarian: When people are confused & ask why I don’t like gun culture, I should just show them this photo. They’re not handbags. They’re machines used to kill people. Necessary in certain situations, yes, but I’m tired of folks acting like this stuff is cutesy. https://t.co/0TftLZtizr
— Billy Binion (@billybinion) December 5, 2021
after 9/11 did you and your family pose for a Christmas photo holding box cutters? https://t.co/o6FBnor8Pt
— Matt Oswalt (@MattOswaltVA) December 5, 2021
It’s difficult to imagine just how weak, insecure and broken these people must be. https://t.co/KbfT9mwh05
— richroll (@richroll) December 4, 2021
I’m old enough to remember Republicans screaming that it was insensitive to try to protect people from gun violence after a tragedy. Now they openly rub the murder of children in our faces like they scored a touchdown. Disgraceful.
— Rep. John Yarmuth (@RepJohnYarmuth) December 4, 2021
Oh look, it’s Y’all Qaeda
— Walter Shaub (@waltshaub) December 4, 2021
.@RepThomasMassie, since we are sharing family photos, here are mine. One is the last photo that I ever took of Jaime, the other is where she is buried because of the Parkland school shooting.
The Michigan school shooter and his family used to take photos like yours as well. pic.twitter.com/MsQWneJXAp
— Fred Guttenberg (@fred_guttenberg) December 4, 2021
Nice family Christmas pic to post after four children were just murdered in their school. But I suppose as long as they’re someone else’s kids, right???
— Sheila ☘️ 🍷🍸🇮🇪🇺🇸 (@mondavi1184) December 5, 2021
Here’s a photo. It’s my home town in mourning. I live in Oxford Michigan. pic.twitter.com/wiV82NSTIK
— Pauline Criel (@pecriel) December 4, 2021
His motto….’The family that slays together, stays together’
— WhatWorldDoYouWant? (@troublingtome) December 4, 2021
4 families lost children to a gun Christmas present, either insensitive or stupid?
— Merle Greene (@BinxMerle) December 4, 2021
— Rhonda Harbison (@rhonda_harbison) December 4, 2021
Justin Shillings, one of the four teens killed this week was an organ donor. These people gathered so when his body was moved for surgery his family could see love and support.
Your family gathering shows callousness and disdain. Shameful. pic.twitter.com/kGqebR8ufU— Jeanne Lambkin @🧶☕️ 🌈 (@JeanneLambkin) December 4, 2021
Great message there, right after the Crumbleys attitude about guns resulted in 4 kids being gunned down and 7 more in the hospital.
You realize Ethan was caught “looking for ammo”, and his mom joked about it, right? RIGHT?
How to show the world you don’t care about life.
— dac (@dac37799066) December 4, 2021
I remember it well. I went to Dunblane High with a lot of the survivors, who were in my sister’s year. Cannot fathom any country that can have a massacre of children like Dunblane or Sandy Hook and not do SOMETHING to stop it happening again.
— Pandora (@YerPalPandora) December 4, 2021
On Tuesday, 15-year-old Ethan Crumbley opened fire inside Oxford High School, killing four students and leaving eight others injured, including a teacher. He was charged with murder, terrorism and other crimes for what authorities said was premeditated, based in part on a “mountain of digital evidence” collected by police. In a rare move, parents of the accused teen shooter too were charged in the school shooting case.