A list of recent school shootings

From 1996 to today. It really brings it home.

jj at Unrepentant Old Hippie:

The US has to stop kow-towing to the NRA and get serious about gun control: the country is starting to become defined by school shootings. And I say this not as a gun-hating liberal peacenik: guns are an issue where my political compatriots and I part company. I like them; I currently own two (rifle and handgun), but my little arsenal has held as many as 9 guns. As a female living alone out in the sticks, I feel more comfortable having a gun around, especially since my house has been broken into twice. I don't want to shoot anyone, but it takes the cops 45 minutes to get here and a lot can happen in that window of opportunity. And it ain't happening to me.

That said, I don't think anyone but cops and soldiers should be allowed to walk around with guns in public. And I think guns should be really, really, really hard to get. As much trouble as it was to get my most recent handgun (2 months waiting period, RCMP clearance, safety course), I was reassured that it was such a pain in the ass. Of course people can get guns illegally, but that's another issue. Why not at least control the guns we can control?

There's a reason that Canada has had 2 school shootings in the last 10 years and the US has had 36 (including today's), and it isn't because their population is 18 times higher than ours (it's about 7 times higher). It's gun control, and it's time the gun nuts grew up and started treating these things like the deadly weapons they are, instead of toys.

Update: Spocko at Spocko's Brain asks the question: Who would Jesus shoot? and shares the NRA phone number so you can get answers.