Since America’s latest school carnage the debate on gun control has flared anew, as every time a mass shooting rocks the nation. The arguments are well-rehearsed, the rival positions seemingly irreconcilable.
On one side of the debate are gun rights activists who invoke the Second Amendment to the US Constitution to oppose any attempt to restrict access to guns or to control where they can be taken.
On the other side are the outraged gun control advocates, who have lost hope of passing meaningful national reform through the Republican-controlled Congress.
At the heart of the matter is what Joan Burbick, WSU professor emeritus of English, describes as the nation’s “hard-wired belief in guns.”
“I do not think that many Americans want change,” said Burbick, author of Gun Show Nation.
“Every mass shooting only reinforces their belief that the world is a dangerous place and that their gun protects them from these dangers. They believe the gun is necessary.”