When I first started writing for The Odyssey, it was about the same time that the Las Vegas mass shooting happened. My first article was titled, "Don't Just "Forget" About Las Vegas; Take Action" but what did we do? We forgot.
Now, it's a mass shooting in a Florida high school. But that happens all of the time, right? It's normal for kids to go to school and have the fear of getting shot.
I remember when the Colorado shooting happened in a movie theater. Never before would I have thought that going to see a movie could be dangerous, but now every time I go to a movie theatre I get the overwhelming thought that someone could have a gun.
The thought of being killed had never crossed my mind when going to a concert to have fun, but now it will.
I would never have thought that just going to school, like every kid in America is required to do, could potentially put our lives in danger.
But just a couple of weeks ago, a kid brought a gun and ammunition to the high school of my hometown, where I had just graduated a year earlier. Two days after 17 people were killed in Florida. Luckily, he didn't have the time to do any damage before he was taken into custody. Not everyone gets that lucky.
I graduated with a class of just 100 people. I had seen many school shootings on the news, but I would have never thought that my small-town would EVER have that issue. So, now what? No one was harmed, but they'll be scared to go to school every day? Why should we fear for our lives when we do something as simple as going to school?
My Facebook feed is full of school shootings or kids bringing guns to school since the incident in Florida happened, and not just there either. Cities in Missouri, including my hometown, Baltimore, Michigan and Texas.
Since when did it become a "normal" feeling to be scared when going to school? When going to a concert? When going to the movies?
Don't worry, I'm not trying to take away your precious gun laws. I am fully aware that guns aren't COMPLETELY the problem. It's the people who have access to guns. It's the mental health crisis. It's loneliness. It's child negligence. It's our culture where drug use and violence are celebrated in video games and movies. It's the "cool" thing to do.
I don't have an answer on how to solve this. Taking guns away will not fix the problem, as drugs are illegal and people still have access to them. Why not make it harder to get access to those guns? Why not pay more attention to mental health instead of bypassing it? Why not change our culture?
There are so many great minds in this world and so many suggestions on how to lower this rate and make the world feel safer, so why don't we take those into account and take some action here?
