Shootings, threats, explosions, stabbings. When was the last time our country has gone a week, sometimes even a day, without some sort of multiple casualty situation? Looking at gun violence alone, there has been a mass shooting almost every day since this year has begun.
Simply in the past weekend, there were 25 people shot in Philadelphia and six of them died according to a tweet from accredited journalist Jim MacMillan.
Also over the weekend, there were two intentional bombs planted within the northeast, in New Jersey and New York. In Seaside Park, N.J., on Sept. 17 a pipe bomb went off shortly before a charity run for Marines took place in which thousands were involved. In this situation, none were injured. Other bombing devices were later found in the area but did not go off.
Later that evening, another bomb went off in neighboring state New York in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan. This bomb injured 29 people and is still being investigated. There are still conflicting accounts as to whether or not it was an act of terrorism.
Still in the recent past, one of the deadliest terror attacks in U.S. history took place in Orlando, Fla., at Pulse Nightclub. This shooting took the lives of 50 people on June 12 while injuring many more.
With the sheer amount of innocent lives that have been taken over the past year, how are citizens supposed to feel safe leaving their homes? Movies theaters, schools, public streets, office buildings, nightclubs and restaurants are just some of the types of places where these attacks have occurred, where will they take place next?
Not all of these attacks are terrorist attacks, either. Many hate crimes and domestic crimes continue to occur throughout our country as well. An analysis of all of the mass shootings between January of 2009 and July of 2015 showed that more than half were related to some sort of domestic dispute, yet acts of terror tend to be the most covered in the media.
Why is that? Why do we only tend to focus on the violence that occurs from terrorists, when we also have our fellow Americans committing the exact same acts even more frequently? We also all need to show real concern for the violence that is occurring within our own borders by our own citizens.
At the same time, do we even notice the amount of violence and terror going on around us at this point? With so many attacks taking place, both acts of terror and not, it is hard to even keep track of all of them anymore.
Some people are now becoming numb and desensitized due to the sheer volume of death happening around us. How much thought do you now put into a shooting when you hear about it on the news? Do you mourn for those lost lives, or do you tweet, “Another shooting, this world is a mess” with no real thought behind it?
According to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, each day 91 people are killed by guns in the United States. In 2015, there were more days with mass shootings (four or more casualties) than there were days without.
Globally, the United States make up for about four percent of the population. At the same time, we make up for 82 percent of the global deaths by gun violence. According to the Crime Prevention Research Center, the U.S. murder rate is fifth highest out of all developed countries.
National Public Radio has reported that data is showing a projected increase in violent crime and murders in almost all of the country’s 30 largest cities.
The United States is in trouble. We are not the only country that suffers from terror attacks, accidents and of course death. However, it is becoming far too common to turn on the news or head to Twitter and learn about another attack on innocent citizens. It is time to open our eyes to what is really happening within this country.
