(VOVworld)- In the wake of recent gun attacks which killed or injured dozens of people in the US, the New York Police Department on Wednesday asked Twitter to identify one of its members who threatened to attack the audience in a Broadway theater, mirroring the staging at a Batman 3 screening in Colorado a few weeks ago. The world public is greatly concerned about the chronic gun violence in the US and whether it is an unavoidable consequence of the American people’s rights.

Less than two weeks after a bloody gun attack in a theater in Aurora, Colorado, which killed 12 people and wounded 59, the US was shaken Monday by a gun attack at a Sikh Temple in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which killed 7 people. These were just the two most recent of the gun tragedies which seem to be spreading throughout the US.

Gun attack in Sikh temple, Wisconsin

After gun attacks in public places, Americans organize memorial services, analyze the shooters’ motives and debate gun control. Yet, the violence keeps recurring and gun sales have risen after each gun attack. Last January, gun sales in Arizona rose 60% following a gun attack that killed 6 people and injured dozens. Last week, the Colorado Investigation Agency approved gun checks for nearly 2,900 people who registered to buy weapons, up 43% from against the previous week. Sturm, Ruger & Co, a Connecticut gun manufacturer refused to take more orders after it received 1 million gun orders in the first quarter of this year. Nearly 11 million guns were sold in the US last year and the figure will certainly increase dramatically this year. A non governmental organization in the US recently launched a campaign to prevent gun violence. According to this organization, every minute, a dozen guns are sold legally in the US. At present, nearly 300 million guns are owned by private individual, roughly one gun for every American. 4 out of 10  families in the US own guns, often owning a collection of different types of guns. The rate of murders committed using a gun in the US is 19.5%, much higher than that in other developed countries. Among the world’s 23 richest countries, 80% of deaths caused by gunshots are of Americans.

Gun attack in a cinema in the US

With mass shootings becoming more common in the US and the right to possess a gun guaranteed by the Constitution, the dispute over gun control is becoming heated. Gun control advocates warn that it’s essential to limit the sales of guns to protect public safety. Opponents insist that people need to buy guns to defend themselves. President Barak Obama, who is running for re-election, can’t press for stricter controls without losing voter support in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia, where groups lobbying for gun rights led by the National Riffle Association are very rich and powerful.

Despite the recent mass shootings, the US remains unwilling to control gun ownership. During his presidency from 1977 to 1981, Democrat Jimmy Carter persistently called for a ban on assault weapons. Former Democratic President Bill Clinton in 1994 signed 2 bills banning assault weapons, but these bills expired in 2004 and efforts to renew them have failed. According to a recent public poll, 49% of Americans support current gun rights, while only 45% support tighter controls. Many people insist that guns don’t kill people, people do.