Please read the updates at the end of this post. There have been 2 more mass shootings within the last 24 hours.
That patriotic song came to mind this past week as mass shootings took the lives of many Americans from one coast to the other and in the middle:
At least eight people were killed, and 46 were injured, in mass shootings that spanned the country from Washington, DC, to Kennewick, Washington, according to the Gun Violence Archive’s tally. The organization defines a mass shooting as a single incident in which at least four people are shot not including the gunman.
The numbers follow a trend seen every summer in America — as temperatures heat up, killings become more likely.
An analysis from The New York Times last year found that more than twice as many people were shot in northern cities such as Chicago when it’s hot as when it’s cold.
“Summer time an’ the livin’ is easy……”
The mass shootings happened in just a few days’ time. Shooting is easy in America.
At the Gilroy Garlic Festival 3 were killed and 12 injured by bullets when a 19 year old with an assault rifle cut his way through a security fence to inflict carnage on innocent food fair attendees. Two were children. He bought his gun in Nevada where the minimum age for purchasing a rifle ( even an assault rifle) is 19. In California, where the shooting occurred, he could not have bought that same rifle until he was 21. One can argue that no one should be able to buy an AK-47 weapon meant for war.
Only in America can we find people who have survived 2 mass shootings in the span of less than 2 years as was highlighted in the linked article above:
After surviving the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history, three friends were not expecting history to repeat itself two years later.
In 2017, Christopher and George Cook were in Las Vegas during the Route 91 Harvest festival, an outdoor country music concert, when a gunman fired into the crowd killing 58 and injuring more than 500. They managed to escape with no injuries. (…) Sunday, the brothers attended the Gilroy Garlic Festival when a gunman opened fire. Three people were killed and 12 injured.
Physically the Cook brothers escaped unharmed, however mentally, Christopher told CNN he’s been dealing with a wave of emotions.
“You think you’re grateful for everything you have until something like this happens,” he said.
America the beautiful. An American tragedy.
The first linked article goes on to list the mass shootings all over the U.S. including:
4 shot and injured in Washington D.C.
4 injured in Chicago
4 injured in Uniontown, PA
1 dead, 5 injured in Philadelphia
1 dead, 3 injured in Wichita, Kansas
1 killed, 11 injured in Brooklyn, N.Y.
1 killed, 3 injured in Kennewick, WA
The article missed a shooting in Wisconsin when 5 were killed and 2 injured in Chippewa County, WI.
And yet, no action on passage of a federal assault weapons ban, criminal background check bill or Extreme Risk Protection Order bill.
Where is common sense?
And no action in the MInnesota Senate whose leadership refused to take up any gun safety reform bills.
Where is common sense?
It is true in our America the beautiful that 8 children a day are shot (some injured, some dead).
It is true in America the beautiful that 100 Americans a day die from gunshot injuries. Hundreds more are injured daily.
From the Brady site: ” Every year, 113,108 people are shot.“
The chart above comes from Gun Violence Archive. Why do we need a site to keep track of American shootings? What a sad state of affairs. We have had 248 mass shootings so far this year according to Gun Violence Archive. It is August 1st and day 213. Let that sink in.
It doesn’t have to be like this. Americans are demanding that leaders stand up and do their jobs to keep us all safe so we can enjoy going to festivals, state fairs, schools, work, concerts, movies, etc. without fear of being shot.
In my state of Minnesota officials of the Minnesota state fair are ready to take more precautions realizing that with the crowds who attend every day, because anything can happen:
Katie Galioto at the Star Tribune checks in on local event officials and law enforcement following the recent shooting at the Gilroy Garlic Festival: “A State Fair spokesperson said Minnesota’s famed get-together, which attracted more than 2 million people last summer, involves the coordination of federal, state and local agencies.
The gun rights advocates have tried to convince Minnesota State Fair officials that they should be allowed to carry loaded guns at the Fair. They have been turned down. Just imagine the chaos if someone or many armed citizens started shooting bullets around in a crowd of running people. I can’t , but they must imagine themselves as heroes. They are wrong.
This is America the beautiful. This is the America where just about anyone can get their hands on a gun of any type to inflict mass carnage, pain and grief on innocent families all over our beautiful country.
This is America- the land of the free and the land of the armed.
I don’t find this beautiful. I’m sure you don’t either. Please contact your elected officials and demand action. That is the only way we can make America safe again.
Update:
As you are reading my post I am adding yet another deadly mass shooting happening right now. El Paso, Texas is the scene of the latest carnage on a beautiful summer day. A Walmart store to be specific where at least one has died and 18 or more are injured in a mass shooting with an AK-47 rifle. Do I have to mention an assault weapons ban?
Another update about the El Paso shooting– it appears now that 20 are dead and 26 injured. The type of rifle has not been definitively identified but some reports say it was an AK-47. With that many dead, it is likely:
20 people were killed in the shooting.
Officials are exploring capital murder charges.
Authorities are investigating a manifesto in connection with the shooting.
Hospitals and emergency workers are treating victims.
Witnesses described the violent scene.
Who knew that I would be writing about a 2nd mass shooting within a 24 hour period. Dayton, Ohio was the scene for the latest one leaving 9 dead and others injured. As more information becomes available I will write more. But here is what we know so far:
Unconfirmed eyewitness accounts indicated a person who was denied entry at a bar opened fire. Police said the shooting took place after 1 a.m.
Anger and guns don’t go together. Why did this angry man have a long gun as it was reported in another article? Why would he shoot people at a bar because he couldn’t get in? Why did he have a gun in the first place?
Defying the gun lobby talking points, he was most likely not mentally ill. He was angry. And because we have such easy access to guns in our country, this is possible.
THIS IS NOT NORMAL.
commongunsense 