On this sickening day when two mass shootings have happened in our country, I find it important to remind myself that mass shootings happen almost nowhere else but in the United States.
We cannot become normalized to the regular pace of massive, execution-style killings. These horrific events are exclusive to the United States. So if the problem is American, the solution is also American.
Reluctant to sacrifice donations from the NRA and the gun lobby, however, Republicans in Tallahassee continue to block measures that could address this public safety emergency.
But the shootings in Texas and Ohio portray an environment that has fostered not only an increase in mass shootings but hate crimes as well. The shooting is viewed as an act of domestic terrorism.
Now we learn that Florida’s Attorney General Ashley Moody is a lackey for the gun lobby. Ashley has gone to court to try to block Floridians from voting on a citizen-proposed amendment to ban high-capacity weapons.
She is not just taking a stance against the amendment and urging voters to turn it down. No, she is trying to stop it from even appearing on the November 2020 ballot.
I am fed up with Florida politicians trying to silence the voters’ voice and impede their will. I am fed up with politicians who refuse to take action when innocent people are slaughtered and fed up with their lame excuses — it’s too soon for policies; mass shootings are more about the mental health of the gunmen than they are about gun violence.
So once again there will likely be no meaningful action by our elected leaders to address the clear and present threat to our nation. It simply hasn’t been a priority of our national leaders to take the necessary steps forward. That needs to change. And when we have elected leaders like Attorney General Moody standing in the way of sensible solutions that even gun owners can endorse, we have to make our voices heard.
Teresa Jenkins
Charlotte Co. DEC Vice Chair
