Wade thinks Trump behavior sorry, but not completely because problem is real

New Chicago Bull Dwyane Wade got himself some national media attention Friday, what with an interview he gave to ABC News where he talked about the death of his cousin – who was killed a week ago by a stray bullet fired on the South Side.

ALDRIDGE: Celebrity death due to her cousin

The death of Nykea Aldridge, who was only 32, truly is a story of how stupid and pointless life can sometimes be – she was walking along the street with a baby carriage when she was hit by the gunshot.

THE BABY WASN’T hurt. But the mother is now dead. The child is orphaned.

The sad part of this story is that nobody would be paying any attention to Aldridge’s death if not for the fact that she’s a cousin to Wade – the one-time prep basketball star from Richards High School in Oak Lawn who has played the past 13 seasons with the Miami Heat and now hopes to spend the final days of his time as a professional athlete with the Bulls.

Almost as though her life had no meaning in and of itself. Then again, that is the real problem with the homicide rate in Chicago – too many people are willing to presume that the problem only impacts people who don’t matter.

All of this got national attention last weekend when Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump used Twitter to make a comment about how a vote for him would be a vote for reducing urban violence.

HE SPECIFICALLY MENTIONED Wade by name (and managed to mis-spell it in the process).

Which led to George Stephanopoulos of ABC (and also one-time communications guy to former President Bill Clinton) asking Wade for his thoughts.

I’m sure he offered aid and comfort to the Hillary Clinton camp when he said he was bothered by Trump bringing up his family to score political points for himself.

WADE: From his days as a local prep star

But he also said he realizes that anything drawing national attention to the urban violence of Chicago is a plus. Because otherwise, we’re too likely to continue to ignore it.

OF COURSE, WADE also made a point of saying he wants tougher gun laws in Chicago – which definitely is something that the Trump types will oppose.

For Chicago has tried to pass absolute bans on firearms ownership within the city, only to have conservative-leaning courts issue rulings that have thwarted the city’s desires.

If anything, the Trump types are the kind of people who probably think they ought to be allowed to carry their firearms on their person so they can shoot first, so to speak, at anyone who gave off a menacing aura in their presence.

They’d probably argue that if Aldridge had been armed, she could have shot back at the two brothers who now face criminal charges for the incident. Of course, she didn’t realize a shot was fired until it was too late. Which makes that kind of logic completely absurd!

REALIZE THAT I have my own bias when it comes to firearms – I think they’re the equivalent of automobiles. Many government officials are quick to cite the cliché that a driver’s license is a privilege, not a right, and that such license can be revoked.

But talk about restricting firearms brings up an illogical rant about one’s right. Even though I’d argue that in daily life, one needs access to an automobile more than a pistol.

It will be interesting to see how Dwyane Wade continues to bring up this family situation; what with Aldridge’s funeral set for Saturday. Could Wade become a figure of prominence both on urban violence and on the basketball court for the Bulls?

Or is he going to be more important back in Miami, where he will be part of an event on Sept. 17 where he will bicycle for six miles with Miami police to promote public safety.

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