It's Just a Fact Of Life

 

            In the years I've been writing this column, I've tried to steer away from politics.  There are enough spaces for people to argue political views that I didn't feel I needed to provide another. However, certain statements from some candidates for office have left me unable to stay silent. This is one of those times. If you disagree with me and wish to tell me so, I don't mind. I do ask that any comments be respectful.

   Several days ago a candidate for national political office said that as much as he hated to admit it, school shootings are a fact of life. Something we just need to live with. On one hand, he isn't wrong, school violence is not a new thing. When I was in school in the mid 1980s I remember at least two bomb threats where the school was cleared until no threats were found in the building. I remember at least one bomb threat when I was in college. He's also not wrong about school shootings getting a lot of attention. No one cared about bullying until Columbine.

   I have a hard time believing that there is nothing outside of arming teachers (Wouldn't that give a student easier access to a firearm at school?  Are all teachers going to be good shots?)  or requiring schools to have security similar to prisons are the only way to keep students safe in schools. There must be something else we can do besides hold vigils.

  The first step is to get rid of some stereotypes. Not all gunowners are crazy survivalists or people who look out their windows gun in hand to make sure no one is is encroaching on their land. Not everyone who owns a gun dreams of being the hero that saves innocent people by whipping out their gun and saving the day. Many gun owners like to target shoot or hunt. Some of them see reports on the news and conclude that a firearm is needed for safety.

  Not all people on the other side of the gun debate are crazy lunatics hell bent on depriving people of their God given Second Amendment rights. Some of them have lost someone close to them in an act of violence in which a gun was used. Some of them have been victims themselves. Some of them see reports in the news and conclude that the problem is too many guns.

   It might be a good idea for everyone to calm down and talk, get to know each other. Attempt to see thing from their point of view. Stop making assumptions about people or a group you know little about.

   The next step is to figure out what we can do to keep people safe. What rules are on the books but not enforced? Are there other laws that could be passed. What could be done to make it harder for someone who isn't allowed to own a gun to get one? What other resources do we need to help people?

   I care about this not just because I want all children to be safe in their schools. I care about this because mass shootings happen outside of schools too. I found a government report from February 2022 that compiled 50 years of data on mass shootings. The two places mass shootings happened most are workplaces (30%) and retail establishments (16.9%) (nij.ojp.gov). As someone who works in a retail establishment this is also personal.

   This isn't the time to throw up our hands and say that nothing can be done. That's not who we as a culture should be. I believe that we can do something about the challenge of mass shootings in this country, but we need to work together and we need to leave the extreme views behind.