Janine di Giovanni is executive director at The Reckoning Project and a columnist for The National
July 15, 2022
For one week in the US, even in the sleepy seaside town on the east coast where I am spending the month of July, the flags were at half-mast to commemorate those who died in a mass shooting in Highland Park, Illinois on July 4.
Like many Americans, I am bereft about the state of the country. Gun violence and the root cause of it are among the main concerns.
According to the Gun Violence Archive, a database, more than 220 people were shot and killed over the July 4 holiday weekend alone. Gun violence has spiked in nearly every state. At least 11 of the July 4 incidents were classified as mass shootings. Around 315 mass shootings have taken place since the beginning of this year, and more than 23,000 deaths have occurred by forms of gun violence.
Twenty-three thousand deaths is a lot. It is more than the number of civilians killed at Srebrenica in 1995, and so far in the current war in Ukraine – combined. What's more, America is meant to be a country at peace, not war.
Unfortunately, most of my adult life has been spent in conflict zones, steeped in guns. As a result, I hate them. Missiles, rockets, AK-47s and bullet shells of every size. All are heartbreaking props of war time. But America, again, is not at war. And it certainly should not be at war with itself.
How does it go about reforming? First, Americans must end the impunity surrounding this gun violence epidemic and make it the subject of an intense education campaign. The US must also reduce easy access to guns, making it impossible for those who are not psychologically fit to have one. It should also be impossible for parents to buy their children guns.
The community of Highland Park, Illinois saw a mass shooting on the July 4 holiday. AP
Twenty-three thousand deaths is more than the number of civilians killed in Ukraine
Background checks are essential. We can have restraining orders for those suspected of doing harm. We can have community checks, and also get in the habit of reaching out to the most vulnerable members of community who are left behind.
Personally, I would certainly rather live in a country without guns. But America is never going to be without guns. They are written into the Constitution, and they are fixed in the culture.
But the culture can also evolve to one of "safety first". How? Mandatory licences, training and secure gun storage are a good start. Some states do not, by law, require any of these things. So communities must focus on ensuring a stronger prevention infrastructure, and on healing themselves.
One urgent message is to explore the links between anger and gun violence. American society can take a closer look at harmful norms about masculinity, power and privilege.
Most of all, it must re-examine its terrible, systematic inequality. Inflation has hit the US hard – gas prices, food prices, car prices. Social justice has done so much to reduce discrimination based on race and sexual orientation, and new waves of feminism are empowering women like never before.
But this is interpreted by some as the alienation of another large group of people in American life: white males, especially those in non-urban areas. After mass shootings in recent years, they have often been described in media and the popular culture as "incels", meaning "involuntarily celibate". The New Yorker writer Jia Tolentino has described them as feeling “unwanted – invisible, inadequate, ineligible”, with "a violent political ideology". One prominent legal blog called them “America’s newest domestic terrorist threat”.
Not all incels become shooters, of course, and not all shooters are incels. But the common thread is alienation and anger and guns. At the heart is the terrible injustice in America, wider and stronger than ever.
We must examine this anger, and also treat the mass shootings in the way we would treat a public health disaster, as gun violence researcher Garen Wintemute has proposed. Wintemute, a physician and director of University of California Davis's Violence Prevention Research Programme, has studied gun violence for more than 30 years and is one of the few researchers to approach the matter as an issue of public health. His view is that we have to understand where it comes from, how it gets amplified and who is at risk for developing this problem? How do we treat it, in the way we treat a pandemic?
It is shocking to me to think that more than 23,000 people are no longer alive since January began because of guns.
America must – no, it has to – do better.
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
1.
United States
2.
China
3.
UAE
4.
Japan
5
Norway
6.
Canada
7.
Singapore
8.
Australia
9.
Saudi Arabia
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The lowdown
Badla
Rating: 2.5/5
Produced by: Red Chillies, Azure Entertainment
Director: Sujoy Ghosh
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Taapsee Pannu, Amrita Singh, Tony Luke
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023 More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Ms Davison came to Dubai from Kerala after her marriage in 1996 when she was 21-years-old
Since 2001, Ms Davison has worked at many affordable schools such as Our Own English High School in Sharjah, and The Apple International School and Amled School in Dubai
Favourite Book: The Alchemist
Favourite quote: Failing to prepare is preparing to fail
Favourite place to Travel to: Vienna
Favourite cuisine: Italian food
Favourite Movie : Scent of a Woman
RESULTS
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m
Winner: Omania, Saif Al Balushi (jockey), Ibrahim Al Hadhrami (trainer) 5.30pm: Conditions (PA) Dh85,000 1,600m
Winner: Brehaan, Richard Mullen, Ana Mendez 6pm: Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 1,600m
Winner: Craving, Connor Beasley, Simon Crisford 6.30pm: The President’s Cup Prep (PA) Dh100,000 2,200m
Winner: Rmmas, Tadhg O’Shea, Jean de Roualle 7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup (PA) Dh70,000 1,200m
Winner: Dahess D’Arabie, Connor Beasley, Helal Al Alawi 7.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m
Winner: Fertile De Croate, Sam Hitchcott, Ibrahim Aseel
Also on December 7 to 9, the third edition of the Gulf Car Festival (www.gulfcarfestival.com) will take over Dubai Festival City Mall, a new venue for the event. Last year's festival brought together about 900 cars worth more than Dh300 million from across the Emirates and wider Gulf region – and that first figure is set to swell by several hundred this time around, with between 1,000 and 1,200 cars expected. The first day is themed around American muscle; the second centres on supercars, exotics, European cars and classics; and the final day will major in JDM (Japanese domestic market) cars, tuned vehicles and trucks. Individuals and car clubs can register their vehicles, although the festival isn’t all static displays, with stunt drifting, a rev battle, car pulls and a burnout competition.
Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley
Director: Rupert Wyatt
Rating: 3/5
UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), EsekaiaDranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), JaenBotes (Exiles), KristianStinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), EmosiVacanau (Harlequins), NikoVolavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), ThinusSteyn (Exiles)
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
If you go
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Seattle from Dh5,555 return, including taxes. Portland is a 260 km drive from Seattle and Emirates offers codeshare flights to Portland with its partner Alaska Airlines.
The car
Hertz (www.hertz.ae) offers compact car rental from about $300 per week, including taxes. Emirates Skywards members can earn points on their car hire through Hertz.
Parks and accommodation
For information on Crater Lake National Park, visit www.nps.gov/crla/index.htm. Because of the altitude, large parts of the park are closed in winter due to snow. While the park’s summer season is May 22-October 31, typically, the full loop of the Rim Drive is only possible from late July until the end of October. Entry costs $25 per car for a day. For accommodation, see www.travelcraterlake.com. For information on Umpqua Hot Springs, see www.fs.usda.gov and https://soakoregon.com/umpqua-hot-springs/. For Bend, see https://www.visitbend.com/.
