The US Will Benefit the World by Solving Shootings

On July 20, the serious shooting incident at a Batman movie screening in Denver resulted in the appalling tragedy of at least 12 dead and 38 wounded. The event was quickly identified to be unrelated to terrorism, but this bloody slaughter is heinous.

It is very regrettable that this type of gun homicide continues to emerge in highly developed American and European societies. These countries are often seen as role models by underdeveloped societies, but the recurring vicious shootings and bombings show that a society, no matter how highly developed, still has its own weaknesses, and in some cases, these are very severe. Debates surrounding firearms and weapons regulations have been long drawn out in the West, but United States and some other countries are still undecided. A lot of fresh lives have been taken away during the debate.

Perhaps we should also call to mind what would happen if less developed Eastern societies were to implement similar gun control standards as the West. It is very difficult to perform this kind of validation in China, but in some Asian countries vendetta or physical elimination of political opponents is indeed endless. Due to these factors, social order is very difficult to maintain.

It appears that every country has its own scripture to read and difficult ridge to step past. Countries need to learn from each other by exchanging experiences and lessons to focus on solving their own problems.

The United States has the highest number of shootings, but over the years it has made little progress in addressing this issue. It could be a setback that serves as warning to other nations worldwide. It shows that sometimes, we may see a problem and a solution that seems obvious, but truly solving the issue requires rounds and rounds of reiteration. Societies have many loopholes, dead ends, and dim resistances that impede the solution.

After all, the United States is highly developed; when some of its frustration is put in undeveloped societies, it will be magnified many times, bringing more pain. This is probably why social governance in many undeveloped “democracies” is a mess.

China must adhere to strict firearms and explosive management. In recent years, there have been very few violent terrorist attacks, and events in China that use violence to vent anger involve standard firearms and explosives; the scale of damage is therefore limited. Other regulations in China also need to adhere to a principle that seeks truth from facts through rigorousness. The complexity of Chinese society is much higher than that of the United States. The flexibility of social management must not use the standards of the United States as reference.

Globalization is opening the world’s vision and stimulating material and mental well-being comparisons between people, which is a long-term challenge to social management for all countries, especially those relatively backward countries. Promoting and calming public opinion is therefore a long-term task for these countries.

The Denver shooting is sad. I hope that the United States will make a real breakthrough in overcoming this difficult problem by accumulating modern experience to balance between freedom and public security, and thus provide a new reference for the world. Because the United States is in the upper stream of soft power, its appearance and action in this aspect will be of world significance.

The author is a commentator of the Global Times.