After yet another school shooting that left 17 students dead, one could be forgiven for thinking that, like the too many others (one already being far, far too many!) that the furor over the student’s deaths and the calls for gun control would, as they have the previous times, work themselves out.

As typical, the NRA went silent on twitter following the latest massacre but politicians this time around weren’t being let off the hook as they’ve been before.  The (frankly) stupid “thoughts and prayers” issued by these politicians for the victims and their families weren’t being tolerated this time around and pointed questions were finally being asked of them, especially in light of their ties to the NRA.  In fact, the exact amount donated to various candidates by this organization was plastered throughout the internet.

Yesterday there was a town hall meeting in Florida.  The Governor, Rick Scott, didn’t show up.  Neither did the President.  Senator Marco Rubio did show up, and he was grilled for his ties to the NRA and about his views of gun control… no more so than by Fred Guttenburg, whose daughter Jamie was one of the victims of the Parkland killings last week…

I’m going to be blunt here: I don’t like Marco Rubio.  Just about everything about him rubs me the wrong way, from policies to the way he comports himself.  I feel it was good he was dressed down as he was here.

Having said that, I will do a quick 180 and give him considerable credit: He, unlike many others, at least showed the hell up to this meeting.

Unlike the Governor.

Unlike the President.

Unlike the too-many other pro-gun lawmakers who, in the face of massacre after massacre, offer their already mentioned “thoughts and prayers” and hope the whole thing blows over.

So Mr. Rubio: we differ on many things, but I will not only give you credit for showing up, I will thank you for having the guts to do so.  Maybe, just maybe, seeing those who suffered from some of the too lax gun laws in this country might, just might, make you change your mind, if only a little.

In this one instance at the very least, you did good.