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canyonwalkerOn Monday Abigail Zwerner, a teacher in Newport News, Virginia, was shot by one of her students. A six year old pulled out a gun he brought to school and shot her, once. The teacher, whose immediate action was to get the rest of her class to safety before caring for herself, is recovering from her injuries at a hospital.
There are so many things wrong with this situation I'm not sure where to start. There are so many things wrong I'm not even sure I can get to them all in a single blog entry.
First, a 6 year old should not have a gun. Of course, the student didn't buy the gun. Children can't buy guns in the US. (Yay?) The child's mother bought the gun, legally. I'm not sure if it's known exactly how the gun got into the boy's hands, but clearly there's responsibility for that on the part of the mother and/or other adults in the house. Guns should not be stored where children can take them.
Beyond even the question of access, many have raised the question of how a 6 year old knows how to shoot a firearm. It strains belief to imagine a case of "The child was just playing with it and it went off". The boy carried it to school in a backpack, drew it, aimed it, fired a single shot, and struck his teacher with that shot. I know from personal experience: knowing how to load a weapon, ready it to fire (disabling the safety, cocking the hammer, etc.) and then actually firing a round requires a certain level of familiarity. As crazy as it is to commit this to writing: I think this child, this 6 year old child, was taught how to use a gun. 🤯
Authorities are saying the shooting was intentional. Uh, how do you determine a 6 year old's intentions?
"This is a troubled young man," the police chief said during a news conference.
Uh, no, this is not a "young man". It's a 6 year old child. He is closer to the moment of conception than he is to being a man. He is closer to infancy than he is even to becoming a teenager.
"Because of his youth he's unlikely to serve jail time," a news article this evening informs me. Good— because what jail is set up for a 6 year old?? But even if he gets probation— How do you enforce probation on a 6 year old, anyway? Enforced naps after lunch? No chocolate milk? A strict, 1 hour limit on screen time?
I want to see charges filed against the parent(s). Children, especially young children, should never have access to guns. Parents with guns need to be held responsible when children who are way too young to be responsible get hold of them.
There are so many things wrong with this situation I'm not sure where to start. There are so many things wrong I'm not even sure I can get to them all in a single blog entry.
First, a 6 year old should not have a gun. Of course, the student didn't buy the gun. Children can't buy guns in the US. (Yay?) The child's mother bought the gun, legally. I'm not sure if it's known exactly how the gun got into the boy's hands, but clearly there's responsibility for that on the part of the mother and/or other adults in the house. Guns should not be stored where children can take them.
Beyond even the question of access, many have raised the question of how a 6 year old knows how to shoot a firearm. It strains belief to imagine a case of "The child was just playing with it and it went off". The boy carried it to school in a backpack, drew it, aimed it, fired a single shot, and struck his teacher with that shot. I know from personal experience: knowing how to load a weapon, ready it to fire (disabling the safety, cocking the hammer, etc.) and then actually firing a round requires a certain level of familiarity. As crazy as it is to commit this to writing: I think this child, this 6 year old child, was taught how to use a gun. 🤯
Authorities are saying the shooting was intentional. Uh, how do you determine a 6 year old's intentions?
"This is a troubled young man," the police chief said during a news conference.
Uh, no, this is not a "young man". It's a 6 year old child. He is closer to the moment of conception than he is to being a man. He is closer to infancy than he is even to becoming a teenager.
"Because of his youth he's unlikely to serve jail time," a news article this evening informs me. Good— because what jail is set up for a 6 year old?? But even if he gets probation— How do you enforce probation on a 6 year old, anyway? Enforced naps after lunch? No chocolate milk? A strict, 1 hour limit on screen time?
I want to see charges filed against the parent(s). Children, especially young children, should never have access to guns. Parents with guns need to be held responsible when children who are way too young to be responsible get hold of them.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-12 09:26 am (UTC)Only in America (and only from one part of the political spectrum) is the solution to gun violence said to be MORE GUNS!
no subject
Date: 2023-01-12 02:53 pm (UTC)Even my family didn't start teaching me how to use guns until I was eight!
And I would never, ever have been allowed to even put a hand on one without one of my parents right there!
no subject
Date: 2023-01-13 03:36 pm (UTC)The parents must be investigated for this lapse.