This country experienced another devastating attack on our young people on the day supposedly dedicated to love. Seventeen victims were gunned down and 14 others were wounded when a teenager with an assault rifle opened fire in a Florida High School. Before the bodies were laid to rest, the finger pointing and blame game began. Students from that school and around the country are now pleading with lawmakers to take a stand to help stop the violence.
Unfortunately, the powerful gun lobbies and the National Rifle Association will put a stop to any attempts to limit or restrict access to weapons of war. Even such small measures as raising the age that one must be to purchase an assault rifle is being stifled. Instead, it is proposed that teachers be armed and that mental health screening be increased. These measures are without any real teeth, however; and the loss of lives will likely continue unabated.
Meanwhile, across the world, other children are being targeted in stepped up aggression in Syria. In spite of the fact that Eastern Ghouta was designated as a safe region for refugees and residents, the area outside of Damascus has come under heavy fire in the past week. Aid agencies such as UNICEF have claimed that more than 100 people were killed in a single day of heavy bombing. It was reported that an estimated 58 children and approximately 42 women died in a recent onslaught of artillery fire.
Hospitals have been targeted and four of them are no longer able to treat any patients. The area is supposedly one of the last strongholds for rebel forces and the Syrian government has stepped up its efforts to obliterate any signs of its enemies. Doctors are lamenting that they lack proper supplies and medicines and are resorting to using expired antibiotics to attempt to aid the human tide of causalities.
The world seems to be content to stand by while a city is being crushed. There has not been such a large scale assault since the alleged gas attack the purportedly took over 1,400 lives. None of the leaders of other countries are speaking out in protest and there have been no new calls for a cease-fire in order to stop the relentless attack. Thousands of homes have been destroyed and there are fears that once the ground troops move in, the remaining structures will be burned.
Aid conveys have been few and far between. It appears that the world has decided to let the Syrian government solve its own problems, regardless of the lives it costs in the end.
There is never an end to war and bloodshed. However, for those who have lost their loved ones and precious children, the endless violence is taking a toll. Human life seems to come way down the list of priorities. It comes after gun rights, waging war, profits, and selfish desires and goals. The lives lost are irreplaceable and unrepeatable.
Writer Bio: Angela Mose
I am a mom of 7 who has successfully homeschooled for 20 years. I was married for more than 25 years and have recently started my life over. I have a passion for writing and music and when the two can be combined, it is utopia. A Maryland native, I am planning to relocate north in the near future and will continue to strive to learn and experience new things on a regular basis. I am fortunate enough to be able to work from home while exploring new ways to increase my knowledge and skills and help improve the lives of those around me.
