While many folks generally have passing thoughts about Florida, it’s usually because the weather down there is much warmer, and we’re wishing we were down there.

However, our thoughts of Florida have gone from envy of endless beaches and warm winds to sorrow and anger as yet another school shooting has taken place, this one taking 17 lives.

In the last few days since Wednesday’s carnage, tears have turned to shouts and demands for action. The suspect is in custody, charged with 17 counts of murder. Even if the United States were to televise Nickolas Cruz’s execution, it wouldn’t be enough to satisfy some people, because this went beyond a simple crime.

Cruz might have pulled the trigger, but there are signs the system failed. Most of the sound bites on television are calling for more gun control, but reports show that there were plenty of warning signs that the 19-year-old shooter was a powder keg ready to blow, and no action was taken to contain him. Signs were there, but steps were not taken.

The FBI received a tip about Cruz posting on YouTube that he planned to be a “professional school shooter,” but agents apparently interviewed only the person who provided the tip and did not do so with Cruz. Signs were there, but steps were not taken.

More than three dozen calls to were responded to by the Broward County Sheriff’s Department, but no arrests were made. There were reports about angry outbursts that included punching a hole in the wall. Signs were there, but steps were not taken.

 

There were plenty of signs about Cruz to go around—being expelled from school, fighting with classmates, previous treatment for mental health issues. Any one of these signs would be enough to incarcerate or commit someone, but instead of taking steps, the signs were ignored.

 

Previous incidents saw people scratching their heads and questioning whether there were any warning signs. With this incident, the signs were all there like flashing red lights on a school bus, but it appears authorities ignored the lights and just blew on by, and now there are 17 dead people—most of them never even getting the chance to experience life.

I have two nieces, one in high school and the other in middle school. I worry for their safety in the wake of this shooting, even though they attend school in Wittenberg, Wisconsin. It’s not something I should need to worry about, but that is the reality of America today.

The shooting incident in Parkland, Florida has people mad, and rightfully so, as no loss of life in this fashion should be considered acceptable. The surviving students are on television venting their anger at lawmakers for doing nothing in all the years there have been school shootings. One student I saw on CBS pointed out he shouldn’t have to be the one asking for change, pointing out that “Our job is to go to school, learn and not take a bullet.”

The anger we’re seeing nationwide comes with demands for change, including gun control. My question is whether any change will have teeth to close up any loopholes. If we succeed in banning AR-15s, will the law be airtight with no wiggle room. Existing laws don’t seem to have been effective, as Wednesday’s shooting proves.

Everyone is looking at the gun as the sole cause of this massacre. It is one piece. Another piece is the failure to act when Nickolas Cruz lashed out in anger previously, and until we can figure out how to stop perpetrators without infringing on the rights of those of us who follow the laws, this will be a vicious circle that will go on and on.

If there’s going to be change, it’ll come from action. Not just any action, but action that doesn’t allow for ignorance. Any law that allows for broad interpretation and contains no consequences for authorities that take no action will do no good. We’ll be right back where we are now—cradling young corpses, crying out in anger and making demands for change.

The signs are there, but will steps be taken?