Orlando mass shooting divides America over gun control, immigration

The aftermath of yet another deadly mass shooting in the U.S. city Orlando had brought about furious debate on gun control and immigration policy, putting the nation into a polarizing disarray.

GUN CONTROL

Armed with an AR-15 assault rifle and a handgun, Omar Mateen opened fire early Sunday at a packed dance floor in the Pulse nightclub. Both guns were purchased legally.

With 49 people killed and 53 others wounded, it was the worst mass shooting in U.S. history and the deadliest terror attack since 9/11 in 2001.

"This massacre is therefore a further reminder of how easy it is for someone to get their hands on a weapon," said U.S. PresidentBarack Obama in his speech after the shooting.

During his two-term presidency, Obama had made speeches on a mass shooting incident not once, not twice, but a whooping 17 times.

The manufacture for civilian use of certain semi-automatic firearms was banned in 1994. However, when the ban expired in 2004, the U.S. Congress refused to renew the ban.

"Reinstate the assault weapons ban, make it harder for terrorists to use these weapons to kill us," Obama said on Tuesday, challenging the Republican-controlled Congress with a warning that without such a ban, "these kind of events are going to keep on happening."

In the State of Florida where Orlando is located, gun laws are known to be lenient -- so lenient that the state's nickname has been jokingly changed by many from "Sunshine State" to "Gunshine State."

In a gun shop just 10 miles from downtown Orlando, a similar AR-15 style assault rifle sells for 799 U.S. dollars -- even cheaper than a mid-range iPhone.

More perplexing is that Florida gun laws are more lenient in regulating assault rifles than handguns. There is a three-day waiting period to buy a handgun, but there's no waiting period to buy a rifle. Handgun buyers have to be 21 or older, but one only needs to be 18 for a rifle.

What's more baffling is that Mateen had been investigated twice in the past for terrorism-related issues by the FBI, but it never made it on his record when he made the purchase of the weapons that took so many lives.

"Semi-automatic rifles do not run in the hands of American people," said Eileen Simoneau, a volunteer at a vigil held for the victims on Monday.

"I' m supporting gun elimination ideally, because guns kill people, and I don't want people dead. Let's talk it out, not fight it out," Eileen added.

"The assault rifles should not be in the hands of anyone that is not law enforcement or military," Kissimmee City Commissioner Jose Alvarez told Xinhua at a memorial event held by Orlando's Latino community. Kissimmee is a city just south of Orlando.

The shooting has also set off a new round of debate over gun control between the two opponents in the 2016 race for the White House.

"In Orlando and San Bernardino, terrorists used assault weapons like the AR-15 to kill Americans. We should make it harder for them to do so," presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton tweeted.

In a speech from her campaign trail on Monday, Clinton talked about the need to tackle terrorism, but emphasized what she billed as a need for more gun control.
Source:XINHUA