Eleven people were shot, including children, near Florida A&M University’s homecoming celebration. Another person was injured while fleeing. Families traumatized, a community shaken, and another American gathering transformed into a scene of terror.

The Tallahassee Democrat calls this a *mass shooting*. By a commonly used numerical definition, it is. But according to the preliminary police account, the gunfire followed an altercation involving two or three individuals. That distinction deserves examination. A violent personal confrontation that erupts into gunfire in a crowded public space is not necessarily the same kind of event as a gunman deliberately targeting a gathering of strangers. I suspect something here, but rarely outside of spiritual discussion do I make a statement that I cannot prove. But history does hold that evidence on this.

Both are horrifying. Both can produce mass casualties. But they are not necessarily the same circumstances, and responsible journalism should explain the difference rather than allow a headline to substitute for understanding.

And where is the accountability of Congress and our state legislatures? The FL governor? Where is the sustained political will to confront the availability of guns, their misuse, and the conditions that permit ordinary disagreements to escalate into public bloodshed?

Instead, we count the wounded, express our sorrow, applaud first responders, and wait for the next shooting.

The people injured in Tallahassee deserve more than a sensational headline. They deserve answers, accountability, and a government willing to confront the epidemic of gun violence that continues to endanger American communities. The question is not merely how many people were shot. It is why we continue to tolerate a country in which a personal confrontation can leave eleven people with gunshot wounds.