The truth is that a number of us have been saying for quite some time that it was only a matter of time until someone went to a gun show, bought a military-like semi-automatic assault weapon with a large capacity magazine, and did enormous damage.
Interpretation
The quote highlights the inevitability of violent events resulting from the availability of powerful weapons.
David Petraeus emphasizes the alarming reality of gun violence, particularly involving semi-automatic weapons. He suggests that many have foreseen the danger posed by these weapons and the devastating consequences they can bring, indicating a pressing need for change in gun laws and societal attitudes toward firearms.
In practice
In a discussion about the prevalence of gun violence in the United States, this quote can be used to underscore the urgent need for reform.
There is nothing I can do to undo what I did. I can only say again how sorry I am to those I let down and then strive to go forward with a greater sense of humility and purpose, and with gratitude to those who stood with me during a very difficult chapter in my life.
I considered our British comrades to rank with the finest men and women of any armed service in the world. And I know that my fellow American soldiers - and those of the other coalition countries under my command - valued very highly the professional expertise, capability, courage, and determination of our British partners on the battlefield.
In the 101st Airborne Division headquarters in Mosul, we had a sign on the wall. It was a question that we would ask ourselves before every new operation or policy initiative. It asked: Will this policy or operation take more bad guys off the streets than it creates by its conduct?
The idea is to go to bed every night with fewer enemies than you had in the morning.
We periodically note that there are no silver bullets, there are no magic formulas, there's no single action or component of the overall... comprehensive civil-military approach.
At least from a national security standpoint, none of the problems the U.S. and U.K. face will become easier to solve if the U.K. is out of the E.U.; on the contrary, I fear that a 'Brexit' would only make our world even more dangerous and difficult to manage.
We must not, in trying to think about how we can make a big difference, ignore the small daily differences we can make which, over time, add up to big differences that we often cannot foresee.
Any business today that embraces the status quo as an operating principle is going to be on a death march.
You don't need to invade a place or install a new government to help bring about a positive change.
The only permanent and constructive changes you can make in the world are the changes that you make in yourself.
From this vision of the role of the United Nations in the next century flow three key priorities for the future: eradicating poverty, preventing conflict and promoting democracy.
The earth does not need new continents, but new men.
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