It's tragic when a gunman kills innocent men, women and children, whether it's at a school, supermarket, or nightclub. But do we have any idea how prevalent gun violence is?
When a white supremacist gunman murdered 10 people at a Tops Friendly Market in Buffalo, New York last month, the store became just the latest retailer to experience a deadly mass shooting. In recent years, mass shootings have also occurred at King Soopers in Boulder, Colorado, a Weis Markets in Eaton Township, Pennsylvania, and a Walmart in El Paso, Texas. But even beyond these high-profile mass shootings, supermarkets have long been the target of gun violence, according to exclusive data from gun-control advocacy group Guns Down America. By analyzing media reports, the group found that nearly 500 incidents involving firearms have happened in large grocery chains in the past two years.
The media focuses on mass shootings, but there are many more gun related incidents that involve guns. The gunman may be restrained by bystanders before he is able to inflict carnage on the people around him. 500 incidents involving firearms in two years? That's almost one everyday!!!
This can't be the new normal. There's nothing normal about it. Children and adults will begin to be fearful every time they step outside. Please vote to elect people who believe in background checks, getting rid of assault rifles, and raising the age of gun ownership.
When my kids were young, I used to ask the parents of the children they were visiting if they had alcohol accessible to the kids, and if they had a pool, was it secured with a fence. I used to embarass my kids by doing that, but isn't that our responsibility as parents? If I had young children today I would be asking a different question of parents. Do you own guns, are they in the house, and are they locked up? I think that's a critical question to ask.
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