Parkland students have been bussed to the state capitol in Tallahassee, will meet with President Trump and plan a march on Washington. They are shocked and saddened and are demanding action, and that action seems to be centered on banning various firearms. It is ironic that we are told to "listen to the children," because the school authorities in Parkland assuredly did not "listen to the children" when they were trying to warn how dangerous the shooter was.
Some of the angriest voices are blaming the Junior ROTC program, to which the shooter once belonged. The JROTC at Parkland trained with air rifles, and at least three of its members performed heroically during the attack. Two used the JROTC’s kevlar mats to protect potential victims, and a third, Peter Wang, held open a door so others could escape. That selflessness cost Peter Wang his life, for he was shot to death – as he was wearing his JROTC uniform. He had dreams of attending West Point, and the US Military Academy honored him with a posthumous honorary appointment. Two other JROTC members, Martin Dugue and Alaina Petty, also were among those murdered. The first of the victims whose name was released, Aaron Feis, was a concealed carry gun owner, who could not legally carry his weapon on the school campus, and he did not. Nevertheless, he ran toward the gunfire, tried to save lives and confronted the shooter, and was killed. Some of the students say that if Mr. Feis had his weapon, there might have been far fewer people shot. We will never know – but we do know this – the shooter should never have been inside the school that day, and had the only weapon in the entire building – and he knew it.
The declarations against the NRA, President Trump, and the Republican Party are passionate, bordering on frenzied, and even a bit hysterical. They may cost a few Congressmen their seats, but remember that the shooter was the only one who pulled the trigger, and he legally had a weapon, despite ample behavior and evidence that he should not have had one, not because of lax gun laws or the “Gun Lobby,” but because the authorities did not “listen to the children” who warned them how dangerous the shooter might be.