On the morning of March 27th, a deranged 28-year-old shooter took the lives of 6 individuals at a private Christian school in Nashville, TN before being put down the police. First and foremost, our hearts go out to the families of the victims of all involved as this event tragically disrupted what should have been a routine and uneventful day in a safe environment. School shootings, with terror in mind, are perpetrated to shaken communities by going after their most vulnerable and unsuspecting victims. It is from these tragedies that we as protectors of liberty, our communities, and our families must reflect and act on to better deny actors of hate from repeating again.
Already the issue of mental health and firearms are thrown into the limelight, with opportunistic legislators foaming at the mouth to pass pre-written legislation or reignite the kindling under old agendas, without genuinely solving the problem of protecting the vulnerable. As the father of a young girl my priority is to keep her safe, and I understand that no politician truly holds that responsibility, nor will their proposed anti-freedom legislation act in any way that would have prevented or stopped the calamity. These opportunists breed fear, hatred, and manipulation in order to build political capital, they exist on all sides of the political spectrum, and seethe for attention, do not give them what they want.
In the free marketplace of ideas, individuals, communities, and institutions ought to come together to drill into root causes and find solutions to these complex and then suddenly simple issues. When someone has crossed the line from disturbed to willing to commit violence, there are only two solutions, de-escalation or elimination of the threat. The police in Nashville acted valiantly in stopping the tragedy from continuing further using the same tools offered to citizens. Unlike the cowardice actions of the police in Uvalde and Broward, where the government tasked with our protection failed and even prevented parents from intervening when willing. As Libertarians we are tasked to strike at the root of issues, bypassing propaganda, and working within our communities as private citizens as well as using our political influence to enact solutions.
This can only happen in a free and open society, where freedom and liberty are respected and preserved. All societies since the beginning of time have had to look inwards and study themselves in order to advance, this can not happen in societies with carefully crafted narratives towards issues and uni-expert opinions. Your sophistication and determination are valued as Libertarians do what we always do well, provide actionable solutions. As Chairman of the Libertarian Party of Florida, I shall continue to fight for the privatization of education, more local control of schools, and more diversity in educational institutions. I shall also continue to fight for the decentralization of health care, opening it up to competition that makes healthcare cheaper and accessible to more communities, and cutting out government mandated middlemen. I shall then fight for your freedom to protect yourself how you choose, your freedom to be protected as much as government officials, and how and where you choose to carry those tools.
Together Libertarians are fighting to make Florida a freer and more prosperous place, by taking personal responsibility for our communities and actions we lead the way in setting the tone for solutions.
As Libertarians we believe in private charity and voluntarism, please consider giving to the victims of the Covenant School at cfmt.org/story/support-
Steven Nekhaila is Chairman of the Libertarian Party of Florida.
Glad to see a libertarian voice actually getting amplified. Thank you.