Sensible Gun Safety

[runrussellrun]

Expel kids from public schools, and that power, will rest with whom? And, what actions, or repeated actions, will constitute "expulsion" ?

Would repeatadely wearing t shirts with swazsticka's on them, be reaseon enough to "expel" someone?

The folks that called the father of a rape victim, who's daughter got RAPED in that public school, is labeled a demostic "terrorist". Are THESE the types that will enforce any "expulsion" laws ? Or create them?

Where do the "expelled" kids go. What IS their daily routine like?

Nothing abusive about singling out a young person, and the mental "abuse", perhaps, that was bestowed upon this young man.

Your own private entrance and procedure, sounds welcoming and nourishing, as a place of "learning"

"anything disruptive".......is the vague way of making things about US vs them.

again.......you telling us that if seacoaster or judge smales wouldn't expell students for repeataded offenses, like wearing MAGA apparell.

The same crowd that hated the Covington kids who were just chilling on the Lincoln steps, listening to a vile group, (Black Isrealites, who also mocked racially belitteled the Natives )......they gonna be in charge ?



It is like that stoopid WOKE movie, maverick/top gun.

If folks don't see the WOKENESS and stereotyping of the angry white male, vs the world (the other top gunners, who collectively HATE the white jockFrat pilot ) call sign "yale" and "harvard", with a person of white european distent (spain or Portugal ), which is now called "latinox or hispanic, and an Asian . The only thing missing from the gang was a Trans "top gun" pilot.

Tom, we think, in hindsite, would have had the "civilian" teacher, be a trans person.........maybe everyones favorite bartender, for the bar scenes.

[Seacoaster(1)]

An article for C&S. Stolen Gun source: the car --

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/25/us/i ... -cars.html

"On a Sunday in January 2022, a Glock 9mm pistol, serial number AFDN559, disappeared from a Dodge Charger parked near a Midtown Nashville bank after someone smashed in the rear driver’s side window.

Ten months later, Nashville police officers arrested three teenagers suspected in a series of shootings, and discovered a cache of weapons in a nearby apartment. Among them was AFDN559. Forensic analysts would later tie the Glock to three shootings, including an attack in August that wounded four youths and another that wounded a 17-year-old girl in September.

In a country awash with guns, with more firearms than people, the parked car, or in many cases the parked pickup truck, has become a new flashpoint in the debates over how and whether to regulate gun safety.

There is little question about the scope of the problem. A report issued in May by the gun-control group Everytown for Gun Safety analyzed FBI crime data in 271 American cities, large and small, from 2020 and found that guns stolen from vehicles have become the nation’s largest source of stolen firearms — with an estimated 40,000 guns stolen from cars in those cities alone.

In some cities, organized groups of young people have swept through neighborhoods and areas around sports arenas, looking for weapons left under car seats or in unlocked center consoles or glove compartments. Their work is occasionally made easier by motorists who advertise their right to bear arms with car window stickers promoting favored gun brands, or that declare “molon labe” — a defiant message from ancient Sparta, which roughly translates as “come and take them.”

Increasingly, thieves are doing just that. The Everytown researchers found that a decade ago, less than a quarter of all gun thefts were from cars; in 2020, over half of them were. The researchers say more study is needed to understand the shift, which has occurred as more states have adopted permitless carry laws and messages in gun-industry marketing have encouraged Americans to take their weapons with them for personal protection.

And as the problem has grown, public health officials and lawmakers, including some in Tennessee, have proposed a rather prosaic solution: encouraging or mandating that gun-toting drivers store their weapons in their vehicles inside of sturdy, lockable gun boxes.

Gun control advocates are hoping that the adoption of the boxes in cars will come to be seen as a solution that both sides of the gun debate can accept, much as both sides encourage the use of gun safes and trigger locks in the home.

“I do think that safe storage is where we find a lot of common ground,” said Christian Heyne, vice president of policy and programs at Brady, the gun-violence prevention organization.

But some experts say widespread adoption of the boxes may require a dramatic cultural change akin to the revolution in seatbelt use. And it may prove to be even more polarizing than seatbelts ever were. The National Rifle Association and other gun-rights advocates believe car lockbox mandates to be an onerous burden — a reflection of how the avalanche of guns is creating new sources of conflict.

Many lockboxes are relatively cheap. Simple versions that can attach to the underside of a car seat with a cable can be found for about $40, and some cities have even begun developing programs to give them away. In Houston, where more than 4,400 guns were stolen from cars last year, the police have given away roughly 700 such boxes this year, according to Houston Police Sgt. Tracy Hicks, and have plans to give away 6,300 more.

Some skeptics doubt even widespread use of the boxes would make much of a dent in gun violence in a nation with more than 400 million firearms in circulation. “It’s like peeing in the Gulf of Mexico,” said Peter Scharf, a criminologist at the Louisiana State University School of Medicine in New Orleans, which had one of the nation’s highest homicide rates in 2022.

In Nashville, the number of guns reported stolen from cars there increased nearly tenfold over the last decade, to a record 1,378 in 2022 from 152 in 2012, according to police data. The city’s rate of gun thefts from cars was the 15th highest in the country in 2020, based on FBI figures. The situation was even worse in Memphis, Tennessee’s second-largest city, which had the highest rate of gun thefts from cars in the nation that year, according to the Everytown analysis.

It is difficult to know how many stolen guns are used in crimes, in part because only 15 states have laws requiring the reporting of lost or stolen guns. “We don’t ask enough where guns used in crime come from,” Mr. Heyne said.

Tennessee’s Republican-dominated state legislature is considering a pair of bills with bipartisan support that would explicitly outlaw leaving a firearm in a motor vehicle or boat unless it is “locked within the trunk, utility or glove box, or a locked container securely affixed.”

The only allowable punishment, under the bill, would be enrollment in a court-approved firearm safety course. It is a purposely mild approach engineered to help create buy-in, rather than another culture-war battle, said Representative Caleb Hemmer, a Nashville-area Democrat who sponsored the House bill.

“We’re likening it to a speeding ticket,” Mr. Hemmer said. “We know we’re in a conservative state, and we’re trying to convince people to be responsible gun owners.”

Mr. Hemmer believes there is a relationship between the spike in the number of guns stolen from cars in Nashville and the loosening of state gun laws, including a 2021 permitless carry law.

Mr. Hemmer’s bill is supported by John C. Drake, the Nashville Police chief, who on Tuesday wrote a letter to legislative leaders in which he mentioned that the high-profile robbery and killing of a local country musician, Kyle Yorlets, in 2019 was carried out by youths using a pistol stolen from a vehicle.

“With gun ownership comes serious responsibility on several fronts, including securing guns, particularly in motor vehicles, so that they do not come into the hands of thieves/violent criminals,” Mr. Drake wrote.

The Tennessee lockbox legislation is already generating controversy, an indication of how steadfastly gun-rights advocates oppose nearly any laws that might restrict gun owners.

The legislation is opposed by the N.R.A. Amy Hunter, an N.R.A. spokeswoman, called Mr. Hemmer’s bill “feckless” in a statement and said it would discourage theft victims from reporting the stolen guns to the police.

“This law can only be enforced if someone’s gun is stolen, the victim then reports the theft and admits the gun was unsecured — at which point the theft victim is charged with a crime,” she said.

In Chapel Hill, Tenn., a small town about 50 miles south of Nashville, David Henley, 51, the owner of the gun store Tennessee Armory and Outdoor Supply, had a similar view.

It would be better, he said, to increase penalties for the thieves. “If you’re at your house and a package is sitting on your porch, and a criminal comes and steals it, it’s the same thing,” he said. “Who’s the criminal?”

Representative John Gillespie, a Memphis Republican who co-sponsored Mr. Hemmer’s bill, was frustrated by such arguments. “I’m more than willing to increase the penalties for people stealing a gun,” he said. “But are we really that burdened by asking someone to properly lock up their gun in a vehicle so it can’t be stolen?”

Laws mandating that guns in cars be locked away are already on the books in some states, including California, Oregon, New York and New Jersey.

A number of similarly themed bills are under consideration in other states including Hawaii and Florida. A Virginia bill, introduced by a Democratic senator in that state’s Republican-controlled upper chamber, did not survive the 2023 legislative session, which ended in late February.

Cities are also taking action. In January, the Atlanta City Council passed an ordinance seeking to create a lockbox giveaway program. In New Orleans, Tulane University’s Violence Prevention Institute has begun giving away gun boxes with biometric thumbprint locks at a local hospital.

“The hard thing is, when you talk to people about why they carry guns in cars, it’s about safety and protection. And when you talk about lockboxes, the rebuttal is, ‘Well, I don’t have quick access to my gun,’” said Julia Fleckman, co-director of the Tulane institute.

In St. Louis, police have recently begun actively enforcing a five-year-old law that mandates that guns be stored in locked containers. Nick Dunne, a spokesman for Mayor Tishaura O. Jones, noted that judges are giving people the opportunity to have their cases dismissed if they show the court that they have purchased a lockbox.

Mr. Dunne said that of 192 citations written last year, roughly three-quarters of them were issued to people who did not live in St. Louis — an indication of how the political and cultural differences between cities and rural and suburban areas help fuel the problem.

Houston Police Sgt. Hicks says that part of his job involves trying to get the word out to people who come in town for big sporting events.

Sgt. Hicks said that it is not just out of town visitors who are targeted by gun thieves, although he said that they know to look for clues that suggest a gun is more likely to be in a car.

“You’ve got a Prius with a unicorn sticker or a big F250 with a Glock sticker,” he said, referring to the popular Ford pickup truck. “Which one is more likely to get broken into?”

You make a very solid case against people who keep a handgun in their car. My son is a federal agent and always keeps his personal weapon on him at all times. He has a gun safe in his Suburban bolted to the floor under his seat. If he can't carry it on him it is secured in the safe with a fingerprint release lock. He can have access to it in 5 seconds if need be. If someone breaks into his vehicle they will not be able to steal his weapon. Leaving an unsecured weapon in your vehicle is not something a responsible gun owner should ever do. That being said I don't believe the vast majority of illegal weapons make their way into circulation in that manner. The vast majority of illegal handguns come from very sophisticated gun runners who know their prospective clients will pay top dollar to get their hands on their merchandise. You can get of jail at 10 am and have a Glock in your hands by 5 pm. No need for any background checks or pesky waiting for a concealed carry permit that kind of nonsense is only for people who obey and respect the law.

Yes, I assume you are correct about where and how most of the "illegal" guns get into the hands of the bad guys. But this is, to me anyway, another case of the balancing of interests (with which, I think, you for the most part agree) pursuant to which the Gun Owners need to respect the rest of us, do what is prudent and reasonable, and acknowledge that there can be a penalty for falling short of what is prudent and reasonable. And remember: I'm really not after seizing guns or anything like that. I live in a state in which there is a deep rural heritage, two major gun manufacturers and the concomitant jobs that go with that, and a lot of neighbors with guns.

[cradleandshoot]

An article for C&S. Stolen Gun source: the car --

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/25/us/i ... -cars.html

"On a Sunday in January 2022, a Glock 9mm pistol, serial number AFDN559, disappeared from a Dodge Charger parked near a Midtown Nashville bank after someone smashed in the rear driver’s side window.

Ten months later, Nashville police officers arrested three teenagers suspected in a series of shootings, and discovered a cache of weapons in a nearby apartment. Among them was AFDN559. Forensic analysts would later tie the Glock to three shootings, including an attack in August that wounded four youths and another that wounded a 17-year-old girl in September.

In a country awash with guns, with more firearms than people, the parked car, or in many cases the parked pickup truck, has become a new flashpoint in the debates over how and whether to regulate gun safety.

There is little question about the scope of the problem. A report issued in May by the gun-control group Everytown for Gun Safety analyzed FBI crime data in 271 American cities, large and small, from 2020 and found that guns stolen from vehicles have become the nation’s largest source of stolen firearms — with an estimated 40,000 guns stolen from cars in those cities alone.

In some cities, organized groups of young people have swept through neighborhoods and areas around sports arenas, looking for weapons left under car seats or in unlocked center consoles or glove compartments. Their work is occasionally made easier by motorists who advertise their right to bear arms with car window stickers promoting favored gun brands, or that declare “molon labe” — a defiant message from ancient Sparta, which roughly translates as “come and take them.”

Increasingly, thieves are doing just that. The Everytown researchers found that a decade ago, less than a quarter of all gun thefts were from cars; in 2020, over half of them were. The researchers say more study is needed to understand the shift, which has occurred as more states have adopted permitless carry laws and messages in gun-industry marketing have encouraged Americans to take their weapons with them for personal protection.

And as the problem has grown, public health officials and lawmakers, including some in Tennessee, have proposed a rather prosaic solution: encouraging or mandating that gun-toting drivers store their weapons in their vehicles inside of sturdy, lockable gun boxes.

Gun control advocates are hoping that the adoption of the boxes in cars will come to be seen as a solution that both sides of the gun debate can accept, much as both sides encourage the use of gun safes and trigger locks in the home.

“I do think that safe storage is where we find a lot of common ground,” said Christian Heyne, vice president of policy and programs at Brady, the gun-violence prevention organization.

But some experts say widespread adoption of the boxes may require a dramatic cultural change akin to the revolution in seatbelt use. And it may prove to be even more polarizing than seatbelts ever were. The National Rifle Association and other gun-rights advocates believe car lockbox mandates to be an onerous burden — a reflection of how the avalanche of guns is creating new sources of conflict.

Many lockboxes are relatively cheap. Simple versions that can attach to the underside of a car seat with a cable can be found for about $40, and some cities have even begun developing programs to give them away. In Houston, where more than 4,400 guns were stolen from cars last year, the police have given away roughly 700 such boxes this year, according to Houston Police Sgt. Tracy Hicks, and have plans to give away 6,300 more.

Some skeptics doubt even widespread use of the boxes would make much of a dent in gun violence in a nation with more than 400 million firearms in circulation. “It’s like peeing in the Gulf of Mexico,” said Peter Scharf, a criminologist at the Louisiana State University School of Medicine in New Orleans, which had one of the nation’s highest homicide rates in 2022.

In Nashville, the number of guns reported stolen from cars there increased nearly tenfold over the last decade, to a record 1,378 in 2022 from 152 in 2012, according to police data. The city’s rate of gun thefts from cars was the 15th highest in the country in 2020, based on FBI figures. The situation was even worse in Memphis, Tennessee’s second-largest city, which had the highest rate of gun thefts from cars in the nation that year, according to the Everytown analysis.

It is difficult to know how many stolen guns are used in crimes, in part because only 15 states have laws requiring the reporting of lost or stolen guns. “We don’t ask enough where guns used in crime come from,” Mr. Heyne said.

Tennessee’s Republican-dominated state legislature is considering a pair of bills with bipartisan support that would explicitly outlaw leaving a firearm in a motor vehicle or boat unless it is “locked within the trunk, utility or glove box, or a locked container securely affixed.”

The only allowable punishment, under the bill, would be enrollment in a court-approved firearm safety course. It is a purposely mild approach engineered to help create buy-in, rather than another culture-war battle, said Representative Caleb Hemmer, a Nashville-area Democrat who sponsored the House bill.

“We’re likening it to a speeding ticket,” Mr. Hemmer said. “We know we’re in a conservative state, and we’re trying to convince people to be responsible gun owners.”

Mr. Hemmer believes there is a relationship between the spike in the number of guns stolen from cars in Nashville and the loosening of state gun laws, including a 2021 permitless carry law.

Mr. Hemmer’s bill is supported by John C. Drake, the Nashville Police chief, who on Tuesday wrote a letter to legislative leaders in which he mentioned that the high-profile robbery and killing of a local country musician, Kyle Yorlets, in 2019 was carried out by youths using a pistol stolen from a vehicle.

“With gun ownership comes serious responsibility on several fronts, including securing guns, particularly in motor vehicles, so that they do not come into the hands of thieves/violent criminals,” Mr. Drake wrote.

The Tennessee lockbox legislation is already generating controversy, an indication of how steadfastly gun-rights advocates oppose nearly any laws that might restrict gun owners.

The legislation is opposed by the N.R.A. Amy Hunter, an N.R.A. spokeswoman, called Mr. Hemmer’s bill “feckless” in a statement and said it would discourage theft victims from reporting the stolen guns to the police.

“This law can only be enforced if someone’s gun is stolen, the victim then reports the theft and admits the gun was unsecured — at which point the theft victim is charged with a crime,” she said.

In Chapel Hill, Tenn., a small town about 50 miles south of Nashville, David Henley, 51, the owner of the gun store Tennessee Armory and Outdoor Supply, had a similar view.

It would be better, he said, to increase penalties for the thieves. “If you’re at your house and a package is sitting on your porch, and a criminal comes and steals it, it’s the same thing,” he said. “Who’s the criminal?”

Representative John Gillespie, a Memphis Republican who co-sponsored Mr. Hemmer’s bill, was frustrated by such arguments. “I’m more than willing to increase the penalties for people stealing a gun,” he said. “But are we really that burdened by asking someone to properly lock up their gun in a vehicle so it can’t be stolen?”

Laws mandating that guns in cars be locked away are already on the books in some states, including California, Oregon, New York and New Jersey.

A number of similarly themed bills are under consideration in other states including Hawaii and Florida. A Virginia bill, introduced by a Democratic senator in that state’s Republican-controlled upper chamber, did not survive the 2023 legislative session, which ended in late February.

Cities are also taking action. In January, the Atlanta City Council passed an ordinance seeking to create a lockbox giveaway program. In New Orleans, Tulane University’s Violence Prevention Institute has begun giving away gun boxes with biometric thumbprint locks at a local hospital.

“The hard thing is, when you talk to people about why they carry guns in cars, it’s about safety and protection. And when you talk about lockboxes, the rebuttal is, ‘Well, I don’t have quick access to my gun,’” said Julia Fleckman, co-director of the Tulane institute.

In St. Louis, police have recently begun actively enforcing a five-year-old law that mandates that guns be stored in locked containers. Nick Dunne, a spokesman for Mayor Tishaura O. Jones, noted that judges are giving people the opportunity to have their cases dismissed if they show the court that they have purchased a lockbox.

Mr. Dunne said that of 192 citations written last year, roughly three-quarters of them were issued to people who did not live in St. Louis — an indication of how the political and cultural differences between cities and rural and suburban areas help fuel the problem.

Houston Police Sgt. Hicks says that part of his job involves trying to get the word out to people who come in town for big sporting events.

Sgt. Hicks said that it is not just out of town visitors who are targeted by gun thieves, although he said that they know to look for clues that suggest a gun is more likely to be in a car.

“You’ve got a Prius with a unicorn sticker or a big F250 with a Glock sticker,” he said, referring to the popular Ford pickup truck. “Which one is more likely to get broken into?”

You make a very solid case against people who keep a handgun in their car. My son is a federal agent and always keeps his personal weapon on him at all times. He has a gun safe in his Suburban bolted to the floor under his seat. If he can't carry it on him it is secured in the safe with a fingerprint release lock. He can have access to it in 5 seconds if need be. If someone breaks into his vehicle they will not be able to steal his weapon. Leaving an unsecured weapon in your vehicle is not something a responsible gun owner should ever do. That being said I don't believe the vast majority of illegal weapons make their way into circulation in that manner. The vast majority of illegal handguns come from very sophisticated gun runners who know their prospective clients will pay top dollar to get their hands on their merchandise. You can get of jail at 10 am and have a Glock in your hands by 5 pm. No need for any background checks or pesky waiting for a concealed carry permit that kind of nonsense is only for people who obey and respect the law.

Yes, I assume you are correct about where and how most of the "illegal" guns get into the hands of the bad guys. But this is, to me anyway, another case of the balancing of interests (with which, I think, you for the most part agree) pursuant to which the Gun Owners need to respect the rest of us, do what is prudent and reasonable, and acknowledge that there can be a penalty for falling short of what is prudent and reasonable. And remember: I'm really not after seizing guns or anything like that. I live in a state in which there is a deep rural heritage, two major gun manufacturers and the concomitant jobs that go with that, and a lot of neighbors with guns.

My dad was an avid hunter. He owned a bunch of rifles and shotguns. He built his gun cabinet that he kept downstairs in the basement locked with one drawer he kept locked that held all his ammunition. Im a huge advocate for gun owners that understand the danger of their weapons and treat them with the respect they deserve. It boggles my mind that some gun owners would keep an unsecured handgun in their car tucked under the front seat. If you have jumped through all of the hoops to attain a concealed carry permit you aught to know better. I think most gun owners understand this. If they don't then they should not have the privilege of carrying a concealed weapon.

[Kismet]

Another school shooting - this time in Nashville TN at a religious elementary school - so far three students, three staff and the shooter are confirmed deceased.

But nothing to see here, so please move along

[Typical Lax Dad]

[youthathletics]

Another school shooting - this time in Nashville TN at a religious elementary school - so far three students and the shooter are confirmed deceased.

But nothing to see here, so please move along

Reading that it is a female with multiple guns, certainly a rarity to see female in this role. Isn't it also premature to say female, what if the their pronouns where he/him?

[Kismet]

Another school shooting - this time in Nashville TN at a religious elementary school - so far three students and the shooter are confirmed deceased.

But nothing to see here, so please move along

Reading that it is a female with multiple guns, certainly a rarity to see female in this role. Isn't it also premature to say female, what if the their pronouns where he/him?

For starters, try not to be a d*ck.......
28 YO female armed with two assault-type rifles and a handgun.

[Typical Lax Dad]

Another school shooting - this time in Nashville TN at a religious elementary school - so far three students and the shooter are confirmed deceased.

But nothing to see here, so please move along

Reading that it is a female with multiple guns, certainly a rarity to see female in this role. Isn't it also premature to say female, what if the their pronouns where he/him?

[Seacoaster(1)]

"I check for escape routes, where ever I go." Some thoughts from your neighbors.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/202 ... tings.html

"Michelle Allen is still learning how to cope nearly three years after her only child, Nicholas Isaac, 23, was shot and killed inside a Brooklyn bike store.

Her son, known to his friends and family as Nico, was a painter and tattoo artist who had recently purchased his first electric bike, Ms. Allen said. On a hot day in July, he got into an argument with a man at the bike store. The man eventually left, but later returned — this time with a gun. He shot Mr. Isaac multiple times.

“It’s hard,” said Ms. Allen, who was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and now prefers to avoid social gatherings. “I just feel like being in my home is safer for me.”

Her story is one of more than 600 responses we received after asking Times readers whether the threat of gun violence has affected their mental state or the way they lead their lives.

Some readers said the sheer number of shootings in America has left them numb or resigned. A more sizable group described feeling frustrated, angry and helpless. Some said they now avoid crowded events and public transportation, scan public venues for nearby escape routes or stay at home more often. A handful said they had moved to different cities or even to another country to try to escape the threat.

Fear was a unifying thread, regardless of whether someone had directly encountered gun violence. “At work, I wonder if my desk would provide enough space for me to hide — or should I just make a run for it?” asked one reader who lives in Palm Springs, Calif.

In 2021, homicides and suicides involving guns reached their highest rates in three decades — deaths that disproportionately affect Black and Hispanic communities. Mass shootings, though only a fraction of the number of gun murders nationwide, are also on the rise. And guns are now the No. 1 cause of death among American children and teens.

The emotional toll is hard to quantify. One survey, conducted by the Harris Poll for the American Psychological Association, found that more than seven in 10 adults cited gun violence as a significant source of stress. Women, Latinos and Black people were most likely to give this response.

The quotes below do not represent the full picture of how Americans feel today, but they tell a story of people who are grappling with a weighty threat, both real and imagined.

What happened in Uvalde, Texas, had me losing sleep for weeks.

I have two small kids. One is in school. What worries me the most is gun violence happening at her school. To cope with those thoughts and feelings, I talk with my family, cry sometimes and just try to move on with my day.

TESSA MARTINEZ, 27, PHOENIX

Luckily, our town hasn’t experienced a mass shooting. Yet. In the last week alone there were two instances in which students brought guns to my sister’s school with the intent to “shoot it up.” Multiple schools in the county went on lockdown. I’m absolutely terrified, and our quaint little country town is forever shaken. Every morning I wake up and ask, “Am I next?” or even worse, “Is my little sister next?”

HALEY D’OLIER, 15, SANTA ROSA, CALIF.

I used to pray that my sons — who are young Black men — are healthy and happy. I don’t do that anymore. Now I pray only for safety for my sons, my family and myself. I can only pray they come home at night and are not victims of a shooter at the grocery store, in their school classroom, driving to the movies, sitting in the car at the stoplight.

I speak with my sons every day about where they go, even if it’s an evening jog, and I don’t move forward until I know they’re safely home. ‘Be safe, be aware’ is my mantra, even though I know it’s no kind of shield because there isn’t one.

LORI MATHEWS, 44, CLEVELAND

Gun violence is no longer on my mind because we left the U.S. The reality of gun violence was a primary motivation to leave.

We lived in Tucson when the mass shooting occurred and had personal connections to those victims as well as to first responders. We also have family in El Paso who had connections to the victims of the shooting there.

Since Sandy Hook, I have developed a sense of apathy. I am not proud of this. And if nothing changed to protect our children, then nothing will change.

SHARI GOETTEL, 59, BOMBARRAL, PORTUGAL

When it comes to gun violence, we often see or hear about the victim and the person who did it, but not much more. I think we need to be looking more at the root causes.

REV. GEOFFREY GUNS, NORFOLK, VA.

I view the potential for gun violence as just another potential hazard in life. For example, I bike to work each day, about 11 miles each way. I know that I am at risk of colliding with a car or bus and that if I do I will end up the loser. I view this as a risk that I am willing to take.

ROBERT KUCHTA, 65, LAFAYETTE, COLO.

worry about gun violence every single day. I’m a mom and a teacher. I hug my child in the morning and wonder if one of us will be shot by the end of the day. I worry about how I will safely get me and my students out in the event of a gunman on campus. I am afraid to go to the movies, grocery shopping — I pretty much check for escape routes everywhere I go. I’m even afraid to go and get a massage.

I’m also a Black woman, so I have that extra worry about police brutality. I really pay attention to the way I drive on the road and behave in public. I cope by volunteering for gun safety organizations and teaching people how to own and store a gun safely. Meditation helps.

LILA H., 47, LOS ANGELES

I always leave the area when I see someone open-carry a gun. I’m not going to risk it since I know nothing about that person. But I also attend concerts, enjoy the theater and strongly feel that I will not allow the threat of gun violence to ruin my life.

TERRI GWINNER, 62, HEBRON, MAINE

I own a gun to hunt, and need to routinely shoot it to stay in practice. I only go shooting with close friends I trust, usually on a lunch break in the middle of the day. The first time I went to our public range I was nearly shot with a stray bullet from an irresponsible gun owner. I’ve showed up to the shooting area before and left, because of too many people with high caliber and automatic weapons.

MADELEINE CAREY, 31, SANTA FE, N.M.

I am consumed by the worry and threat of gun violence. As an Asian American psychologist, and with the rise of anti-Asian hate, it has been a very personal concern but also a professional one. Scores of my Asian and Asian American clients have experienced racial-bias-related verbal and physical assaults. I am also a mother of a 19-year-old, and so my worries are even more compounded.

I have been more overtly protective with my child and have role-played what to do if suspicious people are encountered. My husband has been thinking of the possibility of buying Mace as our child studies in N.Y.C. now.

NICOLE BENEDICTO ELDEN, 51, WESTCHESTER COUNTY, N.Y.

As an international Asian student, a father and a husband, I feel worried about my family’s safety. I live in a white-dominant place, so I often feel insecure and I do not approach my porch or door if there are people or cars around my home. If I decide to leave this country, gun violence is the biggest reason.

JANGHEE CHO, 36, BOULDER, COLO.

I think about it every day. Not only because I work as a teacher, but also because my students are so very deeply impacted by gun violence in their communities. Several of them have been murdered. Our school has been on lockdown. It’s daily for us.

KRISTINE WILBER, 51, CHICAGO

Our office building is shared by multiple businesses, so the front door stays unlocked all day. Anyone can enter, and during business hours the door to our space stays open as well. Maybe I’m overthinking it, but what if there’s a disgruntled ex-employee that comes back? I was assigned to a desk where my back was to the door. I moved desks so now I can see the front door clearly from where I sit. Whenever someone walks in, I look up. It’s distracting and I feel on constant alert, but my open office floor plan with one entrance makes me anxious that there’s nowhere to go in an emergency.

AMELIA, 25, HOBOKEN, N.J.

When traveling or vacationing in states with lax gun laws, my behavior is more circumspect and I avoid confrontation, as someone might be carrying a weapon. I am going to encourage my high school senior grandson not to attend college in an open-carry state or where gun control laws are virtually nonexistent.

RICH T., 76, MONROE, N.Y.

I don’t go into Kansas City anymore unless I absolutely have to for medical care. I am very conscious in stores. I travel with a handgun on my trips back and forth to our second home in Colorado. I have biometric gun safes in several places in my home so I can safely access a gun without fear of my grandkids gaining access to it.

ROBERT CARL BRENNAN, 64, LOUISBURG, KAN.

As a gay man, the Pulse nightclub shooting greatly affected me. I never have been much of a bar person, but ever since then, when I am in a gay establishment, I look for the nearest way out in the event of a shooting. Even at work, I wonder if my desk would provide enough space for me to hide — or should I just make a run for it?

PATRICK HAMILTON, PALM SPRINGS, CALIF.

My beautiful niece was killed by a school shooter. She was held hostage first, for hours. Our family was traumatized.

When our children were school-age, we weren’t the best at setting boundaries because of this idea that life could be so abruptly ended. Our extended family is very, very close, and we went to lengths to be together more. Both me and my spouse were terrible at saving and planning for retirement. I was completely unwilling to deny our family an experience now in favor of retirement later because I am never sure later will come.

ANNE-MARIE STODDARD-WHEELOCK, 60, MADISON, WIS.

My family and I were in a mass shooting this summer at the Highland Park parade.

I never thought our family would be in a mass shooting, but here we are, 33 weeks later and still processing it. Right after the parade, I went to webinars and read so many articles trying to figure out how to parent for this. Turns out there’s a lot more information on how to parent kids who heard about a shooting and were worried, but not a ton for what to do when it’s your child who was there for it.

KIM V., 44, CHICAGO

I’m a high school teacher. I talk with my students on the first day of class about what our options are if there is an active shooter. I let students ask any and every question they have, including about things that aren’t clear or practiced — what if you are in the hall, the cafeteria, the bathroom, in an assembly. I have them walk into our designated safe space — how would we get all 25 of us, all 37 of us, in there, depending on the class? What will we have to do with our own bodies so every last one of us is safe? How would the bathroom situation work if we are there for hours in that space? I don’t mince words.

ERIN DAVIDSON, 44, CEDAR CITY, UTAH

My 23-year-old son was shot and killed in broad daylight in a commercial business. Coping is difficult, and I am still figuring out my triggers. I feel helpless, like how come I couldn’t save my only child? And why is his killer not caught? I also feel guilty if I am laughing or just having a good day.

Sadness, anger and depression are daily battles. I was diagnosed with PTSD, so daily activities are hard to complete. I struggle to fall asleep and have gained weight by finding solace in food. I rarely leave the house and will just leave to go to work or participate in a community event to bring awareness to gun violence. I no longer care about my appearance. Most of the time I just wear my son’s sweatpants or his T-shirts.

MICHELLE ALLEN, NEW YORK CITY

I live in Texas, so it’s not an exaggeration to say I think about gun violence every time I leave my home. I doubt I’ll ever go to a very large gathering ever again. When I go to church, I think about the safest place to run or hide in the sanctuary.

JULIE, 65, AUSTIN, TEXAS

I worry about my friends getting mowed down at a gay bar. Just last week a balloon popped in the gay bar I was at, and the whole place went silent. I ended up leaving shortly after. I didn’t leave my house for several days following the Club Q shooting in Colorado Springs. Most or all gay bars in Denver now have pat downs and metal detectors to keep us safe, but that doesn’t stop someone from sitting across the street and opening up on us.

STEVE SCORSE, 31, DENVER

I worry daily. My daughter is a senior at Temple University in North Philadelphia, which is the epicenter of gun violence in Philly. I am terrified that my daughter or her friends will be accidentally shot on their way to or from campus, or while out simply running errands like buying groceries. How do I cope? Mostly I bury my feelings until the next shooting is announced. Then I call to make sure she is OK.

KIRSTEN MACLEOD MARTIN, 58, PHILADELPHIA

[SCLaxAttack]

Another school shooting - this time in Nashville TN at a religious elementary school - so far three students and the shooter are confirmed deceased.

But nothing to see here, so please move along

Reading that it is a female with multiple guns, certainly a rarity to see female in this role. Isn't it also premature to say female, what if the their pronouns where he/him?

Try not to be a d*ck.......

Nothing to see here. The locals' politicians say so. The kids are safe from drag librarians and books their parents won't allow in the school.

The new style of Republican cares for children right up until they're born. I'm registered independent and will NEVER go back to the GQP.

[Typical Lax Dad]

Another school shooting - this time in Nashville TN at a religious elementary school - so far three students and the shooter are confirmed deceased.

But nothing to see here, so please move along

Reading that it is a female with multiple guns, certainly a rarity to see female in this role. Isn't it also premature to say female, what if the their pronouns where he/him?

Try not to be a d*ck.......

Nothing to see here. The locals' politicians say so. The kids are safe from drag librarians and books their parents won't allow in the school.

The new style of Republican cares for children right up until they're born. I'm registered independent and will NEVER go back to the GQP.

Don’t forget opioids and fentanyl coming in over the boarder.

[Typical Lax Dad]

[Seacoaster(1)]

Another school shooting - this time in Nashville TN at a religious elementary school - so far three students and the shooter are confirmed deceased.

But nothing to see here, so please move along

Reading that it is a female with multiple guns, certainly a rarity to see female in this role. Isn't it also premature to say female, what if the their pronouns where he/him?

Try not to be a d*ck.......

Nothing to see here. The locals' politicians say so. The kids are safe from drag librarians and books their parents won't allow in the school.

The new style of Republican cares for children right up until they're born. I'm registered independent and will NEVER go back to the GQP.

Bullets. But no Diary of Ann Frank (who, of course, wrote the diary when she was 11, 12 and 13 -- you know, middle school age living with the Nazis).

Mom's pissed, but the GOP doesn't care:

https://twitter.com/NoLieWithBTC/status ... 2098459668

You cannot make this sh*t up:

https://twitter.com/shannonrwatts/statu ... 0014263299

[Typical Lax Dad]

Another school shooting - this time in Nashville TN at a religious elementary school - so far three students and the shooter are confirmed deceased.

But nothing to see here, so please move along

Reading that it is a female with multiple guns, certainly a rarity to see female in this role. Isn't it also premature to say female, what if the their pronouns where he/him?

Try not to be a d*ck.......

Nothing to see here. The locals' politicians say so. The kids are safe from drag librarians and books their parents won't allow in the school.

The new style of Republican cares for children right up until they're born. I'm registered independent and will NEVER go back to the GQP.

Bullets. But no Diary of Ann Frank (who, of course, wrote the diary when she was 11, 12 and 13 -- you know, middle school age living with the Nazis).

Mom's ticked, but the GOP doesn't care:

https://twitter.com/NoLieWithBTC/status ... 2098459668

You cannot make this sh*t up:

https://twitter.com/shannonrwatts/statu ... 0014263299

It was just for Sh$ts & giggles…

[jhu72]

Another school shooting - this time in Nashville TN at a religious elementary school - so far three students, three staff and the shooter are confirmed deceased.

But nothing to see here, so please move along

.... meanwhile in Waukesha Wisconsin an elementary school administration bans Miley Cyrus - Dolly Parton duet 'Rainbowland' from being used in school spring festival. Our children are safe!

[youthathletics]

Another school shooting - this time in Nashville TN at a religious elementary school - so far three students and the shooter are confirmed deceased.

But nothing to see here, so please move along

Reading that it is a female with multiple guns, certainly a rarity to see female in this role. Isn't it also premature to say female, what if the their pronouns where he/him?

Try not to be a d*ck.......

Transgender....you can apologize now if you'd like.

[jhu72]

https://twitter.com/mhdksafa/status/164 ... 83/photo/1

[jhu72]

Another school shooting - this time in Nashville TN at a religious elementary school - so far three students and the shooter are confirmed deceased.

But nothing to see here, so please move along

Reading that it is a female with multiple guns, certainly a rarity to see female in this role. Isn't it also premature to say female, what if the their pronouns where he/him?

Try not to be a d*ck.......

Transgender....you can apologize now if you'd like.

... sure when Christians apologize for demonizing transgender people

[youthathletics]

Another school shooting - this time in Nashville TN at a religious elementary school - so far three students and the shooter are confirmed deceased.

But nothing to see here, so please move along

Reading that it is a female with multiple guns, certainly a rarity to see female in this role. Isn't it also premature to say female, what if the their pronouns where he/him?

Try not to be a d*ck.......

Transgender....you can apologize now if you'd like.

... sure when Christians apologize for demonizing transgender people

At least we know you are now on the side of violence.

[jhu72]