Where do we start?

Where do we start? Will the Parkland shooting finally be the wakeup call our dysfunctional country needs? Those kids, teachers, and coaches lost their lives because we were so busy fighting with each other that we failed to protect them. How did we not strengthen our communication systems and put in place checks and balances for this after Sandy Hook, Orlando, Las Vegas, and Sulpher Springs? How did we miss this?

After 9/11, the worst act of terrorism in our nation’s history, we came together and put in place procedures to prevent terrorism. There are many long term issues that absolutely need to be addressed but how did we get to a place where our agencies who are designed to protect us failed to heed the most blatantly obvious signs of trouble? I do not believe pointing fingers will solve anything. No one entity is at fault. This is systemic.

You will not agree with everything I say but my core belief is that we have to be able to work together and create solutions. Our country is divided. People are so adamant about their beliefs that they fail to respect another’s viewpoint. Our government is the greatest example. But our government alone cannot solve all of our problems. Our community leaders, religious leaders, celebrities, and average citizens need to be able to have a civil conversation that can actually promote common sense change.

We need to be able to address gun control/gun rights without panicking. There are points most Americans can and do agree on. Let’s start by fixing what went wrong leading up to this latest mass shooting. Implement a better system for background checks, especially for people with mental illness. Close the communication gaps between law enforcement officials. Implement proper procedures where necessary for addressing terroristic threats. Improve the system that flags high risk individuals purchasing weapons. We have laws and regulations on the purchase and storage of explosive materials. We monitor communications of suspected terrorists. We take our shoes off at the airport without complaining in the name of national security. In this circumstance there was strong reason to believe that the Parkland shooter, Nikolas Cruz was a threat. No laws or regulations are ever going to 100% guarantee anyone’s safety and there are bigger issues that need to be dealt with to improve the value system of our country, BUT that does not justify ignoring basic procedures needed to protect our citizens. I am not talking about banning assault rifles or arming our teachers. Those are topics that absolutely need to be a part of a larger conversation. I am talking about correcting mistakes. That’s where the conversation should start.

And mental health? That conversation is long overdue. The U.S. spends $200 billion dollars treating mental health issues every year (some say more than any other condition) and only a fraction of our research dollars are spent on mental health. We need unbiased people at the table. We need to address why mental health problems are so wide spread. We need to research safe and effective treatments, not just new medications. And we need to pay attention to warning signs of mental illness.

But today we need to protect our citizens and most importantly our children. The students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School are speaking out and we need to listen. They don’t feel safe and we need to listen. Just this morning I watched an interview with some of these amazing, intelligent students one of whom stated “At the end of the day, our mission is to get people talking, and we don’t expect results right away.” They’re not asking for radical legislation. They’re asking for our leaders to talk about logical solutions to protect them.

Enough partisan bullshit. Enough of the blame game. Enough about upcoming elections. Let’s have a conversation about commonsense actions and make a difference today.