I was born September of 1998. Since then, 738 lives have been lost in mass shootings. I'm not even 21, which means about 36 lives per year have been lost due to people refusing to own up to the sheer danger of not putting limits on the purchase and management of firearms.
Now, before you go on a tirade about the importance of the second amendment, yes, yes I know, let me leave you with a concept my teacher showed the class in 8th grade. It had nothing to do with gun control, but I think some parallels can be drawn. He stood at the front of the class swinging his arm. He said "I retain the right to swing my arm like this, but" *stepping forward* "I lose my right to swing my arm when it starts infringing on your right to not get hit in the face"
It's all fine and dandy to retain the rights to guns until it starts to regularly infringe on people's right to live.
Before you jump to conclusions about my personal or political beliefs, I'm from a southern, gun-owning family. I've grown up around firearms, so I've seen firsthand that they can be used properly and safely. But I also live in a world where I could go to Walmart after writing this article and buy a gun with little to no effort.
We haven't gone a year without a mass shooting since 2002, and, before that, 1985. It's not a rare occurrence so much as it's a given at this point that, it's only a matter of time before another one occurs. That fact alone is TERRIFYING. Not in the sense that I'm never going to leave my house (as that's wholly unrealistic to living life), but moreso in the sense that there's an underlying feeling of "What would I do if someone just started shooting right now?" It's clear from speaking with friends and perusing social media that I am NOT the only person who feels this way.
I understand that, at this point, it would be logistically impossible or at least highly improbable for guns to be ban effectively from the US. That being said, basic steps like limiting the size of cartridges and rifles on the market could be a massive jump in the right direction.
It isn't immigrants. It isn't video games. It shouldn't be the norm. Political leaders shouldn't be using this to further their careers or bring up battles between groups. Children are losing their lives in school, movies, concerts, and even grocery shopping. No matter what we do, we need to do SOMETHING!
