The Santa Fe High School Shooting Is A Reminder Of Just How Much We Need To Strengthen Gun Laws | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Politics

The Santa Fe High School Shooting Is A Reminder Of Just How Much We Need To Strengthen Gun Laws

Gun laws need to be reinforced, and what better time to start than right now?

396
The Santa Fe High School Shooting Is A Reminder Of Just How Much We Need To Strengthen Gun Laws
Jamal Smith / Twitter

The Santa Fe high school shooting was just one of the 300 school shootings that have occurred in the United States since 2013, and it is necessary to recognize the fact that the measures that are being taken to prevent incidents like these simply don’t prove to be enough.

And now, the minds behind the violence have not been pursuing ordinary facilities to terrorize, but have found a new target — schools.

9/11 served as a wake-up call for American citizens to the threat of imminent attacks against the heartland, and what once seemed like the safest and most prosperous country in the world took a new, vulnerable light in the eyes of foreigners and Americans themselves. Even with the ample amount of time that has been granted to the American government to stop shootings and other acts of mass violence, the numbers of these horrific acts have not been going down but instead have been following an upward trajectory.

On May 18, students at the Santa Fe high school scrambled for safety subsequent to the sound of gun shots echoing through the hallways. 10 were found to be wounded and 10 were killed; of them a Pakistani foreign exchange student and a substitute teacher. As authorities searched campus to find more evidence of the shooting after its conclusion, more explosive devices were found to exist.

17-year-old Dimitrios Pagourtzis, the identified shooter, was later detained by authorities on accords of capital murder and aggravated assault of a public servant. He was a typically quiet student, and some have reported to say that he was in fact helpful. He admits to killing those he didn’t like in particular and wanted to commit suicide following the shooting.

But what is most heartbreaking of all is that incidents like these are common now.

Hearing about another school shooting is plain to all of us, because on average one takes place every week. It is simply not enough to recognize patterns of shooters such as loneliness or exclusion or strengthen school safety measures in order to prevent shootings. To effectively eradicate them, we must recognize the underlying issue that is the root cause of the violence: guns.

Pagourtzis allegedly used his father’s gun and revolver to carry out the shooting, a feat he would not have been able to so easily accomplish without the use of a gun.

First, take note of the facts. America is home to about 300 million guns, more than any other country. Its gun death rates top those of almost every country — on the other end of the spectrum, Japan has less than 1 gun per 100 people and has fewer than 10 gun deaths a year for the entire nation.

Nobody is saying that guns should be banned completely — that would go against everything our country stands for, including raw freedom. Instead, stronger gun control needs to be implemented, because the fact stands that more guns equals more deaths. If guns were out of the equation, a downfall in the amount of deaths due to gun violence would definitely be seen as well. This approach would include lengthy background checks, a ban to those under 21 from buying a gun, safe storage, tighter enforcement of the law on straw purchases and ammunition checks.

While lax gun laws make it effortless for good guys to get guns, they also make it strikingly simple for bad guys to get guns.

In the “wise words” of President Trump, mass shootings have been “going on too long in our country.” So in my words, president, what exactly are you doing to stop this phenomenon?

President Trump, you receive $30 million dollars from the NRA as your personal form of hush money, but you choose to ignore the fact that disbanding the NRA will cause your country to prosper greater than ever before. So, instead of listening to an organization that will rip your country apart, listen to Paul Ryan, a member of your own party who wants to keep guns out of the wrong hands, and listen to the millions of people that want you to take action against guns and do something; anything to prevent gun violence.

As teachers, parents and peers of these shooters, let's do our part to be aware of the warning signs of someone inclined to gun violence.


Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
ross geller
YouTube

As college students, we are all familiar with the horror show that is course registration week. Whether you are an incoming freshman or selecting classes for your last semester, I am certain that you can relate to how traumatic this can be.

1. When course schedules are released and you have a conflict between two required classes.

Bonus points if it is more than two.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

12 Things I Learned my Freshmen Year of College

When your capability of "adulting" is put to the test

3220
friends

Whether you're commuting or dorming, your first year of college is a huge adjustment. The transition from living with parents to being on my own was an experience I couldn't have even imagined- both a good and a bad thing. Here's a personal archive of a few of the things I learned after going away for the first time.

Keep Reading...Show less
Featured

Economic Benefits of Higher Wages

Nobody deserves to be living in poverty.

302223
Illistrated image of people crowded with banners to support a cause
StableDiffusion

Raising the minimum wage to a livable wage would not only benefit workers and their families, it would also have positive impacts on the economy and society. Studies have shown that by increasing the minimum wage, poverty and inequality can be reduced by enabling workers to meet their basic needs and reducing income disparities.

I come from a low-income family. A family, like many others in the United States, which has lived paycheck to paycheck. My family and other families in my community have been trying to make ends meet by living on the minimum wage. We are proof that it doesn't work.

Keep Reading...Show less
blank paper
Allena Tapia

As an English Major in college, I have a lot of writing and especially creative writing pieces that I work on throughout the semester and sometimes, I'll find it hard to get the motivation to type a few pages and the thought process that goes behind it. These are eleven thoughts that I have as a writer while writing my stories.

Keep Reading...Show less
April Ludgate

Every college student knows and understands the struggle of forcing themselves to continue to care about school. Between the piles of homework, the hours of studying and the painfully long lectures, the desire to dropout is something that is constantly weighing on each and every one of us, but the glimmer of hope at the end of the tunnel helps to keep us motivated. While we are somehow managing to stay enrolled and (semi) alert, that does not mean that our inner-demons aren't telling us otherwise, and who is better to explain inner-demons than the beloved April Ludgate herself? Because of her dark-spirit and lack of filter, April has successfully been able to describe the emotional roller-coaster that is college on at least 13 different occasions and here they are.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments