Commentary: Be alert and be safe

Mike Nelson
Mike Nelson

As my wife headed out with the kids to hop on the ferry, I texted her to warn her to “be alert.” I immediately stopped short and asked myself “why?” Why was I worried about my family just riding on a ferry? While I understand, it is normal to worry about your kids when they go to the movies, out for dinner, to school, to a friend’s house or to the mall, what is not normal is to fear that when my children are just going about their day, they could become the next victims of gun violence.

This is not normal. But it is becoming so.

But Mike, “we are in Edmonds and Edmonds is safe.”

You bet, and the kids at Marysville Pilchuck High School were safe until one day they weren’t. The kids in Mukilteo thought they were safe at a house party, until they weren’t. Shoppers in Burlington this weekend thought they were safe too.

No city or state in our country is safe from gun violence. In Washington state, a child or teen is killed by a gun every eight days. Over half of suicides among children and teens are the result of guns from inside their own home. And the rate of school shootings in Washington state was 2.2 times higher than the national average.

I have to tell you, these days I feel pretty angry and helpless. What can you or I possibly do against a lone gunman, a jealous boyfriend, or a depressed son from gun violence?

Turns out, there is a lot we can do.

Just ask Nicole Hockley, a mother who lost her baby boy to gun violence at Sandy Hook Elementary. She started Sandy Hook Promise and teaches how we can each actually help prevent gun violence. That, “Every gun death is a preventable death.” Here are just two (of many) things Nicole says we can all start doing:

1) Keep it Safe and Secure

When your firearm is not in use, store it safely and securely so that only you and those you authorize have access to it. We can make sure our guns are not accessible to our kids, their friends or unwelcomed visitors who come to our home when we’re away. We know that keeping firearms locked and unloaded, and storing ammunition in a locked location separate from firearms in the home has been proven to save lives.

2) Say Something

Over the last 25 years, research shows that in seven out of 10 acts of gun violence, a friend was told that an act of violence would be committed or may take place. Unfortunately, no one took action with this information to stop the violence before it started. We need to learn the observable warning signs that are often present in behavior that could lead to someone hurting themselves or others. We need to look out for one another and report possible threats of violence when someone sees, reads or hears something (especially within social media).

Additionally, in Washington state, we need to report when our guns are stolen or lost. There are approximately 971,000 Washington gun owners who keep their guns unlocked in their homes and cars. And in just one year there were at least 5,053 guns stolen or lost in our state, with 96 percent of them owned by private citizens. Sadly, many stolen guns are not reported and will be used in violent acts against us and our loved ones. If your gun is stolen, you should notify law enforcement immediately to help prevent it from being used in a crime.

The right to bear arms is a constitutional right and with that right comes a duty to be responsible and safe with the arms we bear.

Each of us has the power to prevent gun violence and promote gun safety.

— By Mike Nelson
Parent, Edmonds City Councilmember and Responsible Gun Owner

  1. “There are approximately 971,000 Washington gun owners who keep their guns unlocked in their homes and cars.” Where did you source this information?

  2. seems 2 of the most important items were not mentioned

    1 – be AWARE, period. i always hear about teaching kids how to become addicted to the latest greatest – technology

    i’ve never heard of schools teaching kids, to just be . . . aware. make it a habit, a game

    wherever you are, be aware of emergency exits – could be earthquakes or fires, or ??? be aware of what could be used for protection, if needed; what if the lights go out and it’s pitch dark? learn to make a game out of it

    2 – i once spoke with someone that always kept his guns loaded, period! EVERYONE in the home knew the guns were always loaded – as he said, you don’t hear of people, of any age, getting shot accidentally – with a gun that is known to be loaded!

    if you have guns – make sure everyone learns how to use them SAFELY! not to be afraid of them! EVERYONE in the family! any child that is brought up watching you handle them safely will, when mature enough to handle them, already know about gun safety!

    3 – there is no such thing as complete safety, the best anyone can do is to pro-actively improve their probabilities

  3. Great Article Mike. I hope we can continue to keep this dialog moving forward; there is much we can do as a community to educate and yet, still attempt to let everyone live their lives. I shop at Macy’s often and to see such random acts of violence occur makes me want to see what I can do to help. Promoting gun safety is a good start. While someone in a gun-owning household can ensure all members understand gun safety, it’s the friend or acquaintance that may not have the training. I don’t know the difference between a locked or unlocked gun or one that is loaded or unloaded. So, it is more than just the folks that are gun owners – it is everyone.

  4. “What can you or I possibly do against a lone gunman…”

    Arm yourself. The Secretary General of INTERPOL, Ronald Noble, stated, “There are really only two choices for protecting open societies from attacks like the one on Westgate mall where so-called ‘soft targets’ are hit: either create secure perimeters around the locations or allow civilians to carry their own guns to protect themselves.”

    https://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/exclusive-westgate-interpol-chief-ponders-armed-citizenry/story?id=20637341

    “We know that keeping firearms locked and unloaded, and storing ammunition in a locked location separate from firearms in the home has been proven to save lives.”

    Not necessarily, and it makes that firearm useless in a home invasion. One size does not fit all in firearms safety, and if I don’t have children in or visiting my home I shouldn’t have to keep my firearms stored as if I do. Additionally, there have been many instances of children and teens using firearms for self-defense against home invaders. When I was in intermediate school I went shooting with a friend after school.

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2163785/Phoenix-boy-14-shoots-intruder-pulled-gun-babysitting-siblings.html

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=psz-pi8uy-k

    https://web.archive.org/web/20070504040741/https://www.khou.com/news/local/stories/khou061228_ac_crosbyshooting.547846d3.html

    https://www.ksla.com/story/10741492/child-shoots-intruder-during-home-break-in

    https://abcnews.go.com/US/kendra-st-clair-oklahoma-girl-12-shoots-intruder/story?id=17524438

    https://www.wral.com/news/local/story/10553140/

    https://www.msnewsnow.com/story/27146637/mother-describes-traumatic-home-invasion

    https://www.postandcourier.com/article/20151110/PC16/151119940

    “If your gun is stolen, you should notify law enforcement immediately to help prevent it from being used in a crime.”

    Of course a lost or stolen gun should be reported, but making such a report does nothing to prevent it from being used in a crime. If this is so than please explain how.

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