The Truth Is Worth More Than Just This Picture

Humanity and empathy is lacking in the people who attack our children. The children will be forever changed by this tragedy. Proud to see them standing strong together.

As human beings, we are incredibly judgmental – that’s what we do. I wish that everyone would just stop and listen with an open mind to what the children from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School are trying to communicate to us. These children are not politicians, or media experts and they will make mistakes in delivering their message. Their message is that they are pleading for us adults and the politicians in our country to protect them. As adults we have a responsibility to make our communities safe for all our children.

I am constantly saddened and then encouraged as I read about the young people of America using their voices to secure their "blessings of Liberty". I only disagree with David on one point. He said that "as we age our sentiment, understanding, and compassion may subside." I believe, that if anything our experiences in school, community, work, and play should make us more understanding and compassionate as we get older. If you cannot believe that students who have gone through the horror of seeing their classmates maimed and killed by gunfire can organize to try to do something about making their communities safer, then you do them a great disservice. If you say that you support the students, but the "liberal media" and the Democratic Party are feeding on the events you still do the students a disservice. If you say that you support the students, but the "conservative media" and the Republican Party are minimizing the students' efforts, you still do the students a disservice. Each time a statement about the students is followed up with a "but", more weight is given to whatever follows. The one thing that (I hope) we know in this country is that both the "liberal media" and the "conservative media" and their highly paid commentators (millionaires) will latch on to any story that supports the goals of either the Democratic or Republican parties. As an educator, I have seen that young people may understand this better than us because they have grown up as consumers of information. They see constantly how the game is played. Please don't confuse the message of the children with the rhetoric on the right or the left. The great majority of the students are not asking to change the Second Amendment. They are not asking to outlaw handguns, shotguns, or hunting/match rifles. They are asking to live reasonably safe from the fear of having a student or adult come in with military grade weapons for maximum destruction. Weapons that should only be used by our brave men and women in the military and law enforcement. I'm sure that someone will disagree with me and say that I don't understand what's at stake. However, I ask you as a father, an educator, and a veteran to consider the actual event that spurred this movement. If you believe these young people are doing something admirable and timely; say so - and figure out if you want to help and how you will assist them. If you believe that the young people don't know enough about life and how things work; say so - and figure out if you want to help and how you will assist them. Whether it is focusing on available mental health care, increasing security in the schools, enforcing current laws, making new firearm laws, or some other option or any combination - do something. Even writing a letter to our elected leaders is action. Leave the pundits, the political party spokespersons, and the 24-hour news outlets out of this. (We can. We have the power to turn them off.) They get too much attention anyway. Put yourself in the shoes of American students. If you have children in school think about how they are feeling when they have to do lockdown drills once a month. Whether you watch Fox News or CNN, read the Washington Post or the National Enquirer one thing is a fact. The United States, the most democratic and prosperous republic in the world is actually contemplating putting more armed people in schools because death by military grade firearms has become a common feature in American education. Do you believe this is wrong? What are you willing to do?

David, clearly several of the people commenting here completely missed your point. I am saddened and discouraged by the way many people are treating our country’s kids. The kids are speaking up and whether or not we agree with their points, we should be celebrating their commitment to participate in a national discussion and mentoring them about how to make clear points and use democracy as it was intended. I am disgusted by many of the comments. What does this have to do with American manufacturing or whether or not a person was aborted?! While the adults on here and in other social media outlets act petty with hurtful, insulting and unrelated arguments , these kids are focused and on point.

Thank you. People all over may say what they want to say about the article or news. I heard it from my son, 15, "We just want to live."