Something inexcusable happened over spring break. A mass shooting took place in New Zealand Friday, March 15. The terror attack killed 50 people and left 50 more injured.
The fact this kind of stuff happens today just blows my mind. It took police 36 minutes to arrive at the scene, where the mass murderer was arrested immediately.
The suspected killer is a 28-year-old man from Australia. He has been described as a white supremacist and a member of the “alt-right.”
The worst part? There had been signs of this happening prior to the event. The killer supposedly took interest in terrorist attacks committed by Islamic extremists in 2016 and 2017. He had been planning this attack for two years and chose his victims three months before it happened.
There were five guns discovered on the scene, including two semi-automatic weapons, two shotguns and a lever-action firearm. Here’s what’s even more sickening: the guns and magazines used were covered in white writing that referred to conflicts between Muslims and European Christians as well as the names of far-right attackers and some victims of recent Islamic terrorist attacks.
If you didn’t think this man was sick enough, he broadcasted a live video of the shooting on video streaming services like LiveLeak and YouTube. I watched the video while it was still up, but anyone who didn’t see it doesn’t have to deal with that trauma.
On top of this, he was asked: “Were you taught violence and extremism by video games, music, literature, cinema?” His response: “Yes, ‘Spyro the Dragon 3’ taught me ethnonationalism. ‘Fortnite’ trained me to be a killer and to floss on the corpses of my enemies.” Good god people.
For all that don’t know, the “floss” is a dance where you swing both your arms and hips the opposite way. I read that and was absolutely dumbfounded. You wonder if Epic Games, the makers of “Fortnite,” is going to take some heat for this one.
Although people will blame “Fortnite” and/or “Spyro,” I don’t believe that’s the real blame here. This was just someone that must have had a rough past accompanied by these so-called “beliefs” that made him do what he did.
One problem was the ease of getting guns in New Zealand. I’m not talking just your average pistol, either. Military-style semi-automatic weapons are legal in New Zealand, and the killer used at least two of them. They had been banned in Australia since 1996 after the Port Arthur Massacre.
Why would you not ban these kinds of weapons in New Zealand at that point? They’re so close geographically, and if Australia doesn’t need them, then why does New Zealand? That’s what I don’t get.
When it comes to gun laws, I think people should have a valid and legitimate reason for owning a firearm. I don’t think they should be sold to just anyone who walks in with a license.
The Prime Minister of New Zealand said the time is now for a change in the gun laws. I mean that’s exactly what you want her to say, but it makes you think maybe this change should have happened before 50 people were killed. It’s easier said than done to predict stuff like this, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.
President Trump spoke on the situation. When Trump was asked if he thought white nationalists were a growing threat around the world, he replied, “I don’t really. I think it’s a small group of people that have very, very serious problems. It’s certainly a terrible thing.”
I agree with Trump. Not all white nationalists are terrorists, so it’s unfair to discriminate against that group. It is just a small group of people that have serious problems, whether it’s a scarred childhood, PTSD or whatever it may be. The bottom line is, we can’t allow firearms in the hands of people with these intentions.
This whole situation is just sad and maddening. Mass shootings seem like they are becoming more common as the years go by. It’s not completely clear what needs to be done to stop it altogether, but I think there are measures that can be taken to reduce the chance of something like this from happening.