In a world shrouded with misinformation and controversy, is ignorance really bliss? Should we not be informed in the goings on around us to make the best choices not only for ourselves, but those around us and those who will succeed us.
As many may know, there are a lot of movements on gun control especially after the tragedy of Marjory Stoneman Douglas on February 14, 2018. Mr. Andrew Pollack who lost a daughter in the shooting said, "9/11 happened once, and they fixed everything. How many schools, how many children have to get shot? It stops here, with this administration and me." If you can't take a water bottle through an airport but can get a gun to school, what does that say about our society? Lorenzo Prado, a surviving student from MSD said, “Nikolas Cruz was able to purchase an assault rifle before he was able to buy a beer."
Now this post isn't going to be about gun control. This is about our right and privilege to access information and to form our opinions about issues that affect our lives. No matter what your opinion on gun control, you are allowed to have that opinion because we live in a world where silence is ludicrous and ignorance is insanity. Because of our freedoms, high school students can confront their legislators and representatives and scream in their faces "BS!" We can call out "Never again!"
As much as our rights give us, we need to realize that not using them to their full potential is dangerous. With controversy comes multiple view points and perspectives. When researching topics we have to listen to all sides of a story and all the solutions or advice given from those we don't agree with because sometimes, guess what? They might say something that either a) you can refute or b) you might actually agree with! And that is what so many people have a hard time coming to terms with is the idea that someone else might have a better idea than you and although you may not agree with them, their opinion is just as valid as your own. The way to keep your opinion valid is to stay informed.
As I am sitting here typing this I can hear people discussing this very problem. An "out of sight, out of mind" attitude will no longer propel our country, our world, in the direction towards progress. I myself with gun control have watched hours of videos from both sides including Wayne LaPierre and Dana Loesch at CPAC who both represent the NRA and then the CNN Town Hall with Marc Rubio and other Florida law-makers answering the albeit brutal justifiable questions stemming from hurt, anger, fear, and a range of other emotions many of us will never understand because we have not lived through what they have lived through.
So maybe at this point it is safe to say I lied, and this did end up being about gun control. You probably can tell which side I am on, although my opinions are not radical. Originally, when I began with the idea of going against ignorance as bliss, there were other things going on in the world but it has been a year since this post began and the first paragraph sat in cyberspace, a blinking "I" beam waiting to move across the screen to capture the words of a girl who wants the world to be a better place. As many of my generation have said, this is not about left or right, Democrats and Republicans. This is about making a change in our world together.
What would you do if the world you grew up in was as dangerous as this? All those words from the many books we have been filling our minds with are coming true. The world is collapsing. Chaos is ensuing. What are YOU going to do?
Stop the ignorance. Do your research. Stay informed. Make the world a better place.
Thank you.
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