2015 is coming to a close. And as of December 2, there have been more mass shootings than there have been days this year. 334 days have passed, and there have been 351 mass shootings; that is more than one shooting a day. A mass shooting is categorized as any event where four or more people are injured or killed by gunfire. 2015 already has more mass shootings than all of 2014, and it is extremely close to surpassing 2013 where there were 363 shootings.
We are coming to a point where shootings are a part of our daily lives. If we continue at this rate, it will only get worse. America has a deadly obsession with guns, and this year the obsession has reached an all-time high. This year on Black Friday, the FBI had to do a record number of background checks to purchase guns, over 185,000. And as gun purchases rise, gun related violence has also risen. It has been reported, that as of 1968, gun violence has claimed more lives than every American war in history combined. The Washington Post compiled all the data of mass shootings per day, and there have been as many as five shootings a day.
The most recent shooting took place on December 2 in San Bernardino, California. That same day, there was also a shooting in Savannah, Georgia. In San Bernardino 14 people were killed and 22 were injured in an Islamic extremist terrorist attack at the Inland Regional Center. The attackers attended an event in the Center, and after spending a few hours there, they opened fire on everyone in attendance. They left the scene before the police arrived, the entire shooting took place in less than four minutes. Police later found three explosive devices around the Inland Regional Center, which were meant to be used on emergency responders. One of the attackers even pledged her allegiance to ISIS on Facebook. This attack was the deadliest shooting in the United States since the 2012 shooting in Sandy Hook. When will these senseless acts of violence end? What do we have to do to make it stop?
There are 365 days in a year. As of December 2 there have been 353 mass shootings. This is an epidemic and it needs to be stopped. It is time for America to put its opinions aside and come together to make a difference. We need to take action together. You can start by making small changes in your life, and from there make larger ones, eventually we may be able to stop these shootings from happening, we may be able to prevent more lives from being lost. So far, in 2015, 455 lives have been lost in the United States due to mass shootings, let's not let that number rise.
