Monday 2 April 2018

Trigger Warning

Jack and Lucy sit at the back of the classroom during maths, talking, Jack looking up every ten seconds to check that the teacher was still busy writing on the board. "I hate maths, it is soooo deadly boring," Lucy whispered. He winked  at her just as the door banged open with a deafening crash. The teacher dropped her piece of chalk her mouth forming into a perfect 'O' shape. A wide-eyed man held a rifle in front of him finger resting on the trigger. Lucy screamed. It was the last sound Jack would ever hear come out of her mouth. She fell to the ground with a crash never to complain to him about maths ever again. Never again.

In the USA citizens are allowed to carry guns as part of their everyday lives as declared in the Bill of Rights. Anyone can walk into a store such as Walmart (like K-mart for Australians) and buy a gun, yes just like that. Living in Australia, this notion seems completely ludicrous however in the USA it is considered completely normal. On February 14th 2018 a horrific school shooting took place at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. Seventeen people were killed and seventeen more were wounded, making it one of the deadliest school massacres that had taken place in the USA. It is upsetting to think that something of such extremity has taken place on multiple other occasions. Seven-thousand pairs of shoes were placed outside the US Capitol to remember all the children that were killed by gun violence since the Sandy-Hook Massacre in 2012. Seven-thousand kids is too many, such a dramatic loss of lives for something that can be so easily fixed if these people hadn't pulled the trigger.




This must be stopped! But what seems like a simple change to the law is actually much more complicated. The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution protects the right of people to keep and bear arms. It was adopted by the American people on December 15, 1791. That was centuries ago and the law was made in the context of that time. An unwillingness to step back and consider significant changes to the law is resulting in the loss of innocent lives. It doesn't have to be this way, although it may seem impossible to change from the inside. The NRA (National Rifle Association) were and still are big supporters for the campaigning of the US's current president Donald Trump. Their influence in the presidency of Donald Trump is significant, they spent over 11 million dollars in donations to the campaign and invested a further 19 million to oppose Hillary Clinton. Their power and influence play a significant part in this debate.



Approximately 3534 people have been killed by 
guns so far THIS YEAR [2018] in the USA!  


However, there now seems to be a mood for change. Students all over America are walking out of their schools to protest and fight against gun laws. 'March For Our Lives' is a group of young people who oppose these laws and want change. So many young people all over the country are standing up and saying enough and I am joining you. I am not a student in the United States, but even though I may not be there, even though you can't see me, I want you to know that I am walking alongside you. I am only 14. The children that were killed that day were around the same age as me and to put myself in that situation, in their family's situations, makes me cry. My thoughts are with all the families and friends of the children that were killed that day and I want you all to know that my heart goes out to you and I hope that you can find strength in such a dreadful time.

You may think that I have no right in voicing my opinion because I am not a US citizen, however I am a human being and from the outside all I can see is a stubborn argument, self interest and far too much unnecessary death. The idea that children attending school are regularly shot at is mind-blowing to anyone outside of the US. We are scared to step foot inside your country. The government says that citizens need guns to protect themselves, however if there were no guns in the first place they wouldn't need to protect themselves. In 1996 Australia had a mass shooting where 35 people were killed. That was it for us, gun laws were immediately put in place to restrict gun ownership and unsurprisingly, we are all functioning well without our guns. 

To conclude, I would say to the American government; I hope you realise that this should not be about power, but rather it is about protecting your citizen's lives rather than their right to have guns. To the school kids; Keep fighting and stay strong. This is something that must be stopped now because so many innocent people's lives are at risk. I may only be a child, I may not live in America, I may (luckily) not be affected by this problem, but I am a person, a citizen of this world who wants to see a brighter future. We all stand together and everyone needs to speak up for change.

 I have thought long and hard about writing this article but in the end I felt that as a young person it is important to have a voice in things that matter. If I have offended anyone, I'm sorry. 


~Fizzy~xo

Monday 5 March 2018

I'M BACK!!!! and a Quirky Quote

First off, I'm sorry that I have been soooo inactive lately, I will try to be better in the future. I just though I would share a quote with you, so here it is...


I love this quote and I think that it is incredibly important that we realise that we have to work for what we want to achieve in life. I am entering the stage of school where heaps of assessments come flooding to me so I may not post much. I know that by putting time in to my studies now and working hard, it will pay off when I try to achieve my dreams later on in life.

I hope to post on the holidays because I hope to be doing some interesting things. Just before I go I thought I'd show you this picture I took of a cloud recently. I think it looks kind of like a chicken, let me know what you think in the comments.


Anyway, I hope to be posting again soon, and remember it is not too late to send me your interview answers. 

~Fizzy~xo


Friday 5 January 2018

Interview with Liz from 'Home With Hummingbirds'

Hi again everyone, I have yet another interview from Liz from 'Home With Hummingbirds'. I hope you enjoy it. 


About Liz:

Hi, I'm Liz, a home schooled girl living in California, my blog is Home With Hummingbirds

1. What was your inspiration to start blogging?

I was reading one of my favourite books and the girl in it started a blog. I thought it looked really fun so I decided to try it!

2. What message do you hope to share through your blog?
Well my blog is mainly for fun but I guess I just want to brighten up people's day a bit and make them happier. ☺

3. What do you like about blogging?
I love interacting with people and talking to them through comments and sharing my photography with them.

4. What do you want to be when you grow up? What are your dreams for the future?
Honestly I have no idea what I want to be when I grow up. I'll cross that bridge when I get there. ðŸ˜œ Dreams for the future? I hope to grow my blog a little bit and keep blogging.
5. If you could change one thing about our world what would it be?
That's a really hard question, there's so many sad things in the world right now. Maybe if I could change one thing it would be to take away homelessness, it's always so depressing to see people like that.

6. What is your favourite hobby?
I really enjoy blogging, that's definitely one of my hobbies, but I also like baking and reading, but I don't know which is my favourite. I also play piano and have been for 6 years.

7. What have been your highlights of 2017?
Well I started blogging, that was definitely big, I also went to LA over the summer!

* * *

I really hope you guys enjoyed this interview and remember it is not too late to send your own answers. 

~Fizzy~xo


My Interview on 'A Happy Little Bookworm'

I was recently interviewed by Mia from 'A Happy Little Bookworm'. If you are interested in reading the interview be sure to visit her blog.

You can read the article here.


If you'd like to read my interview with Mia you can check it out here on Quirky Girl Studio. Don't forget if you'd like to be interviewed for this blog send me an email or comment below.

~Fizzy~xo