Over the years, I’ve written about this subject far too many times. With deep regret, here we go again, another school shooting. Yesterday at Oxford High School on Oxford Road, in Oxford, Michigan, it could easily have been Oxford, North Carolina, a gunman shot and killed three teens, wounding eight others. The three decedents were a 16-year-old boy, and a 14 and 17-year-old girl. Of the eight wounded, one is believed to be a teacher. Two of the eight required surgery, the remaining six are in stable condition, despite having been shot.
Gun Violence Archive (GVA) is a nonprofit research group with accompanying website and social media delivery platforms which catalogs every incident of gun violence in the United States. Their database contains known shootings in the U.S. gleaned from 6,500 law enforcement entities, the media, and government sources. GVA, frequently cited by the press, defines a mass shooting as firearm violence resulting in at least four people being shot at roughly the same time and location, excluding the perpetrator.
Applying those parameters, there have been 2,128 mass shootings since 2013, or roughly one per day. The United States has the most mass shootings in the world. This, of course is not surprising since, the country has more guns than people. Among the motivations for school shootings are depression, revenge, and bullying,
The suspected shooter, a sophomore at the school, was armed with a semi-automatic handgun and several magazines. He was taken into custody without incident, about five minutes after authorities responded to the incident, according to Oakland County Undersheriff Michael McCabe. His parents hired an attorney, and he has not been permitted to talk to police.
This event will surely jumpstart another round of discussions about the need for reforming gun laws. Opponents will insist it’s too soon, officials across the spectrum will render thoughts and prayers, and gun law reform advocates will make another run at the ever-elusive goal to make the events of yesterday more difficult to execute.
I wish I could be optimistic. But at some point, it’s time to admit, doing the same thing and expecting different results is the definition of insanity. That time has come…And Another One!
I’m done; holla back!
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https://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com/2021/12/and-another-one.html
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