The tragic school shooting in Florida on Wednesday, brought forth a wave of emotion and opinion. Some of it very constructive and helpful, some of it not.
Take for example, this tweet from former ESPN personality and current Professor of Sports Journalism at Northwestern University, J.A. Adande. After hearing news of the shooting while covering the Winter Olympics in South Korea, Adande said he feels safer standing in a country that is still technically at war with its nuclear-armed northern neighbor, than he would standing in an American school:
South Korea is still technically at war with the nuclear-armed neighboring country just a few miles from where I am now, yet I feel safer than if I were in an American school. I feel so sad for the parents who lost their kids today, and those who fear their kids are next.
— J.A. Adande (@jadande) February 15, 2018
Of course, the only reason why Adande feels a sense of security standing in South Korea despite the ominous threat from the communists, is because Adande is standing behind tens of thousands of men with guns. In fact, the only reason why there’s a South Korea for Adande to stand in at all, is because the great-grandfathers of those men with guns used their guns, to drive the invaders out.
A fact which should suggest to any objective mind that guns, while sometimes used for evil, can also provide a tremendously good service and ensure the freedom and liberty of millions. So maybe, other factors, such as revolutionizing school security and finally addressing the problem of mental illness in our country, should be looked at instead.
In fairness, Adande did not call for gun confiscation or Western European-style gun laws in this tweet. Though, the sentiment expressed in this tweet will be used by some to do just that. Plus, just on general principle, the farther away you are from North Korea, the better.
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