School shootings in the United States have made me numb, almost with a sense of hopelessness. Recently, this country has been reduced to the wild west because of senseless acts of violence.
Just a few weeks ago in Florida, mothers lost daughters, fathers lost sons and siblings lost each other. The shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14 was a sad day in American history. The shooter was 19-year-old Nikolas Jacob Cruz, who killed 17 people with a gun he purchased.
Samantha Fuentes, a senior at the high school, said she will not be returning to complete her senior year. She will instead take online courses to graduate.
“I want to live out the rest of my high school career normally,” she said. “But there’s no such thing as normal, anymore.”
So, it seems that the word “normal” is no longer a part of the lexicon of some young people these days.
These school shootings all have one thing in common and that is the purchase of firearms without much difficulty. At some point, which I hope is sooner rather than later, we must make it tougher to purchase a gun. Right now, it is too easy. Will there be more stringent gun laws implemented? It depends upon whom you ask.
It appears this latest shooting may have swayed the thinking of some previously not swayed. Legislators have pretty much given an array of answers to the problem. I believe constituents, over time, will push them to be more definitive.
