Comicomment: Tragic wave of mass shootings set grim U.S. record

(ECNS)--The year 2023 is coming to an end, yet the sound of gunfire never stops. Americans, once again, have lived a year full of bloodshed and insecurity. From Texas to Washington to Nevada, a week of relentless shootings has propelled the nation to a "gruesome milestone."

As of December 7, more than 40,000 people have died from gun violence in the U.S. this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive. The tally of "mass killings with a gun," where four or more people died, excluding perpetrators, stands at 39—a record high since at least 2006.

Gun violence is a chronic disease in the U.S., entwined with gun culture, interest groups, and partisan politics. It has persistently afflicted American society, starkly violating the right to life and tarnishing the nation's human rights record. The public image of the U.S. as a self-proclaimed "human rights defender" is now in tatters. Day after day, year after year, the U.S. government's prolonged failure to address gun control issues will only perpetuate a tragic cycle of gun violence, ensnaring its society in an unending quagmire.