Strategic or Poor Timing?

On February 14, 2018, there was yet another school shooting in America. The attack took place in Parkland, Florida at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. The aftermath of the shooting left 17 announced dead with 14 others wounded. The shooter, Nikolas Cruz, is 19-years-old and had been expelled from Douglas High School recently for disciplinary reasons. Students told news reporters that they weren’t surprised to hear the Cruz was the shooter.

The shooting took place at approximately 2:15pm, a little before school was done for the day. Douglas High School had a fire drill earlier that morning; Cruz pulled the fire alarm again later that day to lure people out of the classrooms. Some teachers kept their student in the classroom due to suspicion of a fire alarm being pulled the same day as a fire drill. Cruz shot students who fled into the hallway after the fire alarm being pulled, as well as shot into classrooms and attempted to unlock them.

Cruz ditched his rifle in a stair well, blended in with other students, and fled the scene. He went towards a Walmart, just as other students were doing, ordered a drink at Subway and sat there. As he slipped away, law enforcements continued their attempt to locate the shooter unaware that he was already gone. Cruz then walked to a McDonald’s, past a bank, an elementary school and towards a quiet road before being spotted and captured without resistance. He was taken to the hospital to be examined and was then charged with 17 counts of premediated murder.

School shootings are slowly becoming a normal occurrence. Since 2013, there have been nearly 300 school shooting; this averages about on per week. There are many arguments about these statistics and how to handle the rising issue. Our country is constantly compared to other countries who do not have this same problem. As our country grieves over theses school shootings, one school in Ohio has released some news with the world: BGSU is one of the safest colleges in the U.S.

Bowling Green State University tweeted out an article titled “BSGU is One of the Safest Colleges in the U.S.” just one day after the Parkland shooting. The article is short, talking about how and why they are ranked as the 32^nd safest college in America in 2018. Was this strategic timing, or poor timing to release this article on February 15, 2018? It can be argued as insensitive to those who have experienced school shootings; however, it could also be argued as reassuring for those looking to feel safe upon entering higher education.

Whether the article about BGSU being tweeted out a day after a major shooting was strategic or poor timing is ultimately up to people individually to decide. We are stuck living in a country where school shootings are becoming a part of our daily lives. Can you blame a school for wanting to point out their safety features? Are they putting a target on their backs by doing so? Nothing is guaranteed in life and I would argue it’s best to be aware of that regardless of what media says or does.