You may have extremely strong feelings about the incidents in the last week regarding gun control, the second amendment, school safety, etc. Just this morning, a 7th-grade student at a middle school just 10 minutes from me brought a gun to school and shot himself in the parking lot. Communities across the US have been destroyed by incidents like Sandy Hook, Stoneman Douglas, and Columbine. These names have been fuel for the politicization of school shootings. Remember that the discord that fuels the public outcry, and online arguments are rooted in the true sadness we feel for the loss of life in these communities. We may disagree on the solution but every person across the aisle or on the other side of the computer wants safe schools. Many feel helpless in response to these events. What we can do in response to this helplessness is take two minutes for the truth.
Take this photo from a Facebook page with 7.2 million likes for example. There is both truth and inaccuracy in this image. The Florida House of Representatives did vote down legislature to ban assault-style weapons. The inaccuracy is subtle. The NRA is a 501c3. It doesn’t have profits.
Images like this are only made to polarize and discredit arguments. Posts like these are designed to be divisive to enhance virality but they are a hindrance to any discussion, especially if the discussion is the future of the second amendment and the safety of our children. Don’t share something if it’s not the truth. It may take an extra minute or mean that you don’t share something that you may like to but if we want to effect positive change in the world, we need to start with the truth.