The head of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives says he fears that a drumbeat of mass shootings and other gun violence across the United States could make Americans numb to the bloodshed.

The head of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives says he fears that a drumbeat of mass shootings and other gun violence across the United States could make Americans numb to the bloodshed, fostering apathy to finding solutions rather than galvanizing communities to act.

Director Steve Dettelbach’s comments to The Associated Press came after he met this past week with family members of some of the 18 people killed in October at a bowling alley and a bar in Lewiston, Maine by a U.S. Army reservist who later took his own life.

He said people must not accept that gun violence is a prevalent part of American life.

  • Varyk@sh.itjust.works
    16·
    9 months ago

    Not true, that’s a lazy conservative talking point.

    It isn’t “the leaders” and it isn’t both sides, conservatives have led a successful concerted effort to shackle the effects and rights of voters for decades precisely because of how important voting was and still is.

    You throwing up your hands and falsely implying there’s no point in voting is dancing to the tune of those who want voting not to matter.

    People voted out trump, for example.

    Skin of their teeth, but voting got it done.

      • Varyk@sh.itjust.works
        6·
        9 months ago

        You notice trump not being elected president in 2024?

        The keystone xl pipeline being canceled.

        Transgender ban in the military being reversed, funding for LGBTQ civil rights groups.

        Student debt relief in the tens of billions.

        Rejoining Paris climate agreement.

        Hundreds of thousands of government buildings and vehicles being renovated or replaced to follow sustainable guidelines.

        The largest American infrastructure update and development in history.

        These changes and many, many more happened in three years because trump was voted out.

        Voting matters.

          • force@lemmy.world
            6·
            9 months ago

            I mean that’s just the paradox of voting. One vote doesn’t “matter”, in the sense that elections with thousands to millions of voters are almost never decided by a minute number of votes, but the impact of contributing to a culture of “my vote doesn’t matter” is that people just don’t vote, enough to change the outcome of an election.

          • Varyk@sh.itjust.works
            2·
            9 months ago

            Good point about guns, Biden created the first ever white house gun violence prevention office, provided funding to focus on gun violence prevention, passed the most significant gun reform legislation in decades, launched new strike forces to combat illegal arms trafficking, begin an interagency cooperation program to combat suicide rates, and tons more for gun violence prevention.

            Dumps: “I was proud to be the most pro-gun, pro-Second Amendment president you’ve ever had in the White House” before promising to expand gun rights.

            Voting matters