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 You might get tired of hearing about people killing people with guns. 

I know I do.

But in this crazy mixed up world where the problems of two people don't amount to a hill of beans, sometimes proximity is enough to tweak even the hardest hearts. 

Last week in Oakland there were two shootings of note to me. The first one took place up the hill from me at Skyline High School. If you need a reference point beyond the immediate visceral one, this is Tom Hank's high school alma mater. A fifteen year old student was shot in a bathroom. He is expected to survive, and two suspects are in custody. This is the third shooting connected to this school in the past two years, but since it's Oakland and part of the conflict resolution program in our city seems to involve firearms. 

The next day the Athletic Director of Laney College and former football coach for Laney, and before that Skyline High, was shot in the back of the head. He died early the next morning. A suspect was taken into custody in this shooting as well. The killing of Coach John Beam, the subject of an episode of the now ironically titled Netflix series "Last Chance U" pushed the shootings in Oakland into the national spotlight. 

Since people tend to kill people with guns in Oakland without writing manifestos or making grand schemes for killing as many other human beings as possible this trend often goes unnoticed. In 2021, there were one hundred thirty-four homicides in Oakland. The following year there were one hundred twenty-six. There was relief in 2024 when the total number of murders dipped below one hundred for the first time since 2019. In round numbers, this suggests that there are two murders for every hundred people in Oaktown. 

City leaders tend to promote all the other wonderful aspects of life in the East Bay. The diversity. The art. The history. All of which is very real. But for far too many residents it seems that life is cheap, even if it is diverse. 

Guns. You don't need an advanced degree to see the source of the problem. And maybe this most recent ugly flurry will make us all pause and reflect on increasing the peace. I would love to make the news for doing something really unique: a ceasefire.