Story by: Lucilla Phoenix Reporter
Columbine, one of the worst school shootings ever. Fourteen people dead because of the shootings. Two of these 14 the gunmen themselves., who took their own lives also. It’s so sad talking about this subject, but I still wanna put my opinion in here too. Everyone seems to have their own opinion on why these two teenage boys could do such a thing. Some people say it was the parents, some say it was bullying from other students, some say it was music and media. Out of the few things I listed there I think the two main ones that caused this tragedy, is of course bullying, no one likes to be made fun of. And if you make fun of the wrong people one day they might snap, and Columbine is a perfect example of that. And the other one that I think caused the shootings is the neglect from the parents. Where were they at when these kids were planning this and getting the guns they used? I mean, I think you would notice if your kid was going to buy a gun. “Uh…mom, I’m going to go somewhere with Bob.” “Oh honey, where you going?” “Uh… we are going to buy some guns.” “Oh ok honey, have fun!” *laugh* I mean, there had to be some neglect in those homes.
I’m not saying that the parents had to go everywhere with their kid, but you should know when your kid is acting a little strange around you. But I’m not saying that it is entirely the parent’s fault, they just should find some more time to spend with their kids. And they should have told them more about guns and how they could kill and ruin lives horribly. Because these kids obviously didn’t know what they were getting into until they pulled the trigger. They obviously didn’t know, because if they did, they wouldn’t have killed themselves also.
But I hate it when people blame the music, like for example Marilyn Manson. It wasn’t his fault these kids went psycho. People shouldn't always take what a music artist’s lyrics say seriously. Like if it says, “Get a gun and shoot your foot.” *laugh* (Sorry, that’s just a stupid example) Are you gonna go and shoot your foot? No!! I’m not. You should have that sense of what you should take seriously and what you shouldn’t take seriously.
Bullying, though, I don’t think was entirely the problem because if it was, don’t you think that they would go after those who were doing the bullying? Instead of killing others also, that didn’t do anything. They were innocent. Like those two shooters killed a girl because she believed in God. What kind of reason is that? These kids had to be messed up even before the bullying, if they killed someone for their religion. And they also killed a guy because he was black. That’s no better reason to kill someone.
What happened at that high school was sad, and should never happen again. No kid should feel unsafe at school and no kid should ever see their friends being shot around them. When will the violence stop? We’ll never fully feel safe at school ever again, thinking and worrying about if it will happen at our school.