Ever since 2016 has started, there has been a terrorist attack somewhere in the world almost every day. While not all of these attacks were fatal, nearly every one of them caused injuries among its victims. Here’s a master list of every attack so far this year alone, conducted either by terrorists, or violent non-state actors (influential individuals of a higher power -- be it economic or political status -- that are not allied with any particular state or cause, but use violence to pursue their goals.) Note that, since this list is from Wikipedia, it may not be entirely accurate. These incidents are horrifying. So many innocent lives all over the world are being taken due to disputes between religious beliefs, politics, and more.
Amongst all the mourning for those who have been affected by these horrid events, these attacks have brought up several concerns between U.S. citizens, all of which have led to controversial disputes. Not only are many Americans around the country falsely blaming the Muslim community as a whole for the actions of ISIS and its supporters, but they are also conversing about whether or not gun control should be taken more seriously.
I do not believe it is right, fair, or humane to accuse a specific group of people for something that only a few of their kind have done; that is how things like genocides have happened in the past, and the reason why similar situations are happening right now in other countries. Hating on innocent civilians will get us absolutely nowhere.
As for the topic of gun control -- a controversial topic amongst most Americans, as of late -- I believe we definitely need to limit who can and cannot carry firearms. I do not believe guns should be banned, while I don’t have a particular reason for needing one, and therefore do not and will not own any of my own in the future, I know that many families like to keep guns in their homes in the case of break-in, or a life-threatening situation. I do believe, though, that the way we give out guns to other citizens should be altered, because it is frightening how easy it is to purchase a gun in our country.
I currently work at Dick’s Sporting Goods; while we dominantly sell athletic equipment and clothing, we also sell guns, ammunition, arrows, and other hunting equipment. I -- a cashier, who doesn’t know much about guns at all -- usually sell at least one gun per every two shifts. While paperwork is required, and personal information must be taken, it really doesn’t take much effort for a person to purchase a gun; and all it takes is a driver’s license and verification of citizenship to purchase ammo.
Of course, most of those who purchase firearms are doing so in order to hunt animals; but honestly, why should we trust those people? With the way things have been going, a person may purchase a gun with the motive to kill animals, but eventually, use that gun to harm or kill another human, instead; or, like most murderers, they may purchase a gun with no intention to harm animals at all. I’m not against U.S. citizens carrying firearms, but I am against how easy it is for a U.S. citizen to obtain a gun and ammunition. I understand that guns do not kill people; people kill people. But all it takes is one screwed up person, who just so happens to own a gun, for another shooting to occur.
Two weeks ago, I went to my first concert. I was seeing my favorite band, The Neighbourhood, at a popular venue in New York City. When I bought my tickets, I was ecstatic. But as these unfortunate worldly events continued on, I became more and more unsure of whether or not I even wanted to go to the concert. The night before the concert, I had a panic attack; the morning of the concert, while I was getting ready to leave, I couldn’t help but cry. I mean, a concert in Paris was shot up back in November; and just a few days before The Neighbourhood’s concert, "The Voice" and YouTube star Christina Grimmie was killed during her own meet-and-greet.
I never thought that we would live in a world where going to a concert, a sporting event, a night club, or an airport could possibly be lethal -- and that thought, as well as the thought that I could have technically and possibly died while seeing my favorite band with my favorite person -- was freaking me out beyond belief. I never thought that I would live in a world where gun-violence, terrorism, and suicide bombings, amongst other things, would be so abundant; and it’s terrifying how ignorant I am to the other horrifying actions that occur around the world, that I still have yet to find out about.
The world we live in is crumbling before our eyes. While we have been known as a violent species all throughout history, it seems like every year just induces more and more violence upon us. When will it ever end?
