True story. There’s a waiting area for parents on sight when there is a school shooting. Can you imagine that? It’s like taking your kid to the doctor, but the doc may have a gun. You just have to wait.

A shooter in South Florida today walked into a high school and killed “many” students and injured at least 14 others. There wasn’t a reason or warning given prior, or one to be found after the horrible tragedy.

There never is a reason. The only explanation will be that the human species is capable of bad things, and we will be left wondering when it will happen again.

The superintendent for Parkland High School said there were cops positioned outside the school, but the shooter still managed to unleash chaos on the school. Many, including myself, have asked for stronger security at schools to prevent these attacks. Today, it didn’t work.

As a parent, all I can think about are the parents of the kids lost or injured. I imagine getting that phone call while I am out and about, or at home. I can imagine my heart clenching up and the need to call my wife and parents. I would be instructed to stay home and wait by the phone by police, because the shooter would still be at large.

Obviously, I would disobey those commands, and drive to the school. I’d park a few blocks away and get as close as I could on foot. Sooner or later, I would probably be restrained. Thinking about it makes me mad and sad at the same time, like a person trying to run through quicksand in his or her own mind. How do you stop this crazy? Gun control is the first idea. Limiting the ownership and availability of weapons. You could reevaluate the gun laws and how easily they can be attained. Something tells me people will still get their hands on them. There’s simply too many ways these days.

We’ve already covered school security and police force. There was officers on the ground today to prevent an attack and the shooter got through somehow. I know there is a lock on the front door at my son’s school. However, all the shooter has to do is appear normal, mention a student’s name, and he will be in. How this person got past security or police force will be an interesting thread to follow. I am sure parents will. Ordinary citizens turn into Columbo or Paul Kersey when their family is harmed.

Maybe we can try to understand what drives people to do this madness in the first place. This is the hardest and most far-fetched option. One that will be dismissed. A place where psychologists could explore and attempt to come to a realization about the driving mechanism that makes a seemingly normal person walk into a school and open fire.

Gun control isn’t enough. Somehow, we must try to understand the evil more intently. How we do that is another conversation and one likely above my pay (and think) grade. I just know it has to happen.

I’ve said many times, usually to a rolling eye reaction, that when aliens or other extra-terrestrial forms fly over our planet to see if there is anything useful down here, they will simply keep going.

They will see a parent beating his infant child to death because it wouldn’t shut up. It will see another parent barreling into a car to purposefully hurt their toddler. They will see a parent drive a car into a lake in order to drown their kids. All of these things happen every week in our world.

Sure, the aliens could see the good in our species. Doctors, nurses, teachers, charity warriors, etc. In the end, I don’t think it would matter. They’d be covered up by the evil.

How do you stop evil? Take away their guns and hope they don’t find any laying around? Lock any suspicious minds up before they do harm. There were reports that the school knew this kid was a problem, and they didn’t let him bring a backpack to school as a result of threats to harm other students.

Can you break into civil rights in order to stop a future tragedy, though?

Do you try to understand the evil and dissect it? There are no sure answers.

All I can do right now is hope and pray (I am religious, but I find myself looking up from time to time) this doesn’t happen to my son. I hope it doesn’t happen to anyone’s kid, but at times like these, all you can do is worry about your family. Keep them safe and hope the world turns with you.

They run school shooting drills these days in an effort to prevent a high number of deaths when these situations develop. No one knows if these tactics will help when an actual shooter opens fire, but there are efforts.

In the 1960’s, there were 1.6 school shootings per year. In 2016, it was 47.

I can comprehend evil and violence. Living in the most dangerous city in the United States will do that to you. There’s plenty of violence I can unfortunately understand.

I’ll never be able to comprehend someone walking into a school and taking the lives of teachers and kids.

Here’s an idea, and it may sound sappy and far-fetched. Let’s treat each other with more kindness. Let’s show some humility even when it’s hard. By doing this, somehow, these catastrophes could be avoided. Too often, I see people treat others like the enemy, like it’s impossible to be nice or show some love. The truth is none of us are making it out of here alive, so maybe preserve life while we are here. It’s crazy to imagine, but all I can do right now.

Thanks for reading these rambling thoughts.