There was another mass shooting last night. Another random act that defies reason. Defies logic.

An act that fills our hearts with dread. With fear. With outrage. With questions.

These random shootings are increasing in frequency. In Pittsburgh, we’ve seen random knifings in the past two weeks that have injured and killed as well.

Random! That word is terrifying to me when used to describe killing. Not committed during a robbery. Not committed in an act of passion. Random. As in the people who are ultimately injured and killed had no association with the person committing the heinous acts.

We all want to solve this problem. We all want to stop this senseless slaughtering of innocent people. We are all emotional about it from all sides and all beliefs. We want to live in a kinder, gentler world. If there is such a thing. But will emotion solve the problem?

Based on the fact that these acts are not slowing down or disappearing, I would have to say that the facts show that emotional reaction to these events is not solving the problem.

Let’s look at some of the talking points. Gun control. Guns were first created in China in the 10^th century. Guns have been around for 1100 years. The first semi-automatic rifle was designed in 1885 and by the early 20^th century, many manufacturers had introduced semi-automatic rifles, shotguns, and pistols. The first mass produced repeating rifle (more than one round of ammunition loaded into the gun to be fired in succession) was produced in 1779. The first detachable box magazine was created in 1908. The look has changed, but as we can see, the availability of these types of guns has been around for literally hundreds of years.

Okay, let’s look at knives, since knife attacks seem to happen around the world in large numbers as well. Cutting instruments are dated to the same periods as the oldest human fossils ever recovered – close to 1.5 million years old. I think we can safely say that knives are not new. And yes, knives have been used to kill and maim for probably as long as they’ve been around.

People like to say that those that are mentally ill are the problem. Sure, the people that do this have to have something inside that isn’t right. But what? How do we figure out what makes a small amount of people act this way, while the majority do not? How do we predict this? Sometimes we hear that people aren’t surprised that it was a person they knew. Other times, it comes as a complete shock as the person appeared to be living a normal life based on outside observations.

If we were to look at this problem scientifically, we would have to create hypotheses and then validate or invalidate them based on research to determine facts. We now live in an instant society where we want instant results. Facts be damned, fix the problem. And fix it now!

I think if there were a simple solution, we would already have found it. When humans are involved, there is never a simple solution. Humans are complex. I don’t know what the answer is, but I know it isn’t a simplistic one. Do I believe the people who commit these horrible atrocities are mentally unstable? Yes. But in what way? And what is the root cause of that? Is there a chemical imbalance created by something in our food supply? Or some medication we’ve been giving young people for one or two generations that is creating horrifying results as these people become adults? Is it the government and media constantly fighting and giving a sense of despair and hopelessness? Is it something learned? Or something genetic? Is it medical? Is it physical?

In my mind, I cannot fathom going on a shooting rampage and killing innocent people. I cannot imagine a scenario where I would take a knife and randomly slash people I encounter on the street. I cannot imagine these things. Nor can most people. But obviously there are people out there that not only can imagine doing it, they are actually going through with it. What has happened to these people? Were they born this way? Was there something in their childhood that caused this callousness? Has something chemically altered their brains so much that they cannot control themselves?

What do we do about it? Where do we start? This helplessness is probably the worst feeling of all. The not knowing what to do leaves us feeling vulnerable and not in control. For humans, that feeling of not being in control is probably the hardest to accept. To know that things happen outside of our control that can ultimately lead to life or death in an instant.

It is important for us to come together and insist that each of these individual’s lives be looked at holistically. That they stop being sensationalized to support one side or the other. That the government agencies tasked with researching this start analyzing the facts and putting together the statistics that may ultimately start to save lives. We as Americans, as humans, as people – deserve to know the true facts. I do not doubt that this research has been ongoing. What I do question is what they have found and are not telling us.

Until then, I urge you to take whatever precautions you feel necessary to ensure your own safety as you go about your daily lives. Only you can decide what those measures are. I would like to look through rose colored glasses and say that hopefully someday we will all be safe. But as I look at the history of humans, there has never been a time where humans did not kill each other. I have no hope that there is a future like that when humans have been on this earth for more than a million years and we still have these problems.