Words

If not now, when? If not me, who?

   "Now is not the time" to talk about stricter gun control, the president said last November, after a school shooting in California that left four children dead.
   When is the time?
   Another 17 people died in a mass shooting at a high school in Florida this week. It was the 18th time this year that saw a gunman open fire at a school in America, killing people.
   Since 2012, there have been 239 school shootings nationwide, with 438 people shot, 138 of them fatally.
   How many more people must die before politicians decide it's time to stop the carnage?
   The day after the latest school shooting, the president spoke nationwide with words of compassion and sympathy for the victims.
   This is, of course, important, that the president of the United States speak words of  support for those affected by the tragedy. But there were no words or promises of action to stop the carnage. And no mention of gun control.
   During his inaugural address, the president spoke of the need to end the violence, and pledged, "This American carnage stops right here and stops right now."
   Words.
   He promised in August 2016 to make inner cities safer, so that "Your child isn't gonna be shot."
   He made similar promises many times during the campaign, but in the 13 months since he took office, gun violence has continued to plague the nation, with many of them children attending school.
   In the past 50 years, since 1968, more American civilians have died from gun-related violence than have been killed in military conflict since the founding of the nation in 1776.
   Yet the gunfire death toll continues to mount.
   What happened to the promise to end the carnage?
   It's time to stop with the words and start with some action.