CORRIGE DE LA SYNTHESE CCP – 2 MARS 2016 [Title] –9 w.
Reforming U.S. gun laws : why this isn’t done.
[Introduction] –103 w.
With mass shootings regularly grabbing headlines, America’s inability to reform gun laws appears ever more obvious and frustrating. Understanding why is what brings this set of documents
together.
Documents range from 2013 to 2015, chronologically starting with a satirical cartoon taken from the Times Tribune dated early 2013 (anticipating President Obama’s difficulties at gun reform), a BBC interview (recapped by the National Public Radio [NPR]) of the same president saying how
‘frustrated’ he’s been, and two late Aug. 2015 press articles from the New York Times [NYT] and the Daily Mail, focusing on reactions to the latest killing to date – the Roanoke, Va. shooting of two reporters.
[1. Guns. How frustrating this gets] –115 w.
A brief overview of gun violence is a convenient starting point. Gun-related massacres are all too common, occur all over the place (from Columbine, Virginia Tech, Tucson, Newtown, to the latest Virginia one) and in all kinds of places (schools, movie theaters, even live television).
These repeated mass killings have led to a growing sense of frustration. And whether it is public opinion (as stated in the NYT by a gun-control advocacy group), gun-bereaved families and communities, or liberal politicians, like Virginia’s Governor McAuliffe quoted by the NYT, or Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton (whose Virginia speech is transcribed in the Daily Mail), or even the U.S. president himself quoted by NPR, all are calling for action.
[2. What action means] –99 w.
Action would mean better gun legislation. Which isn’t easily done, since gun rights are part of the country’s founding document –the U.S. Constitution. What’s needed is legislation improving applicability of this 200+-year right, ‘balancing’ it –as Clinton puts it– with effective gun-control measures.
Indeed, what’s lacking in the U.S. are what Obama and McAuliffe call ‘common- sense’ (Hilllary says ‘sensible’) gun laws. Far from overturning the Second Amendment, they only intend to limit gun availability (which is too great, according to Clinton quoting evidence backing this up), and make sure gun buyers are mentally stable enough to handle a gun.
[3. What’s blocking reform] –114 w.
Such legal steps were taken nationwide (Obama’s 2013 gun bill) or statewide (Governor McAuliffe’s 2014 initiative) but eventually failed. And what’s holding this up is political.
Guns are a tense, sensitive political issue ‘turning’ many people ‘away,’ says Clinton – something the Times-Tribune cartoonist or Virginia victim’s dad, Andy Parker, both express quite plainly. The former identifies the gun rights’ camp with the Republican party (represented by the traditional political imagery of the elephant), while the latter directly points to political lobbying from the National Rifle Association (NRA). Both are blamed for holding America hostage, whether it is Republicans symbolically ‘defaulting’ Uncle Sam or the NRA bullying politicians into inaction &
cowardice through its infamous ratings.
–440 w.
