Tel-Chai Nation

According to an NBC/WSJ poll (via Big Journalism), the public considers bad parenting and the influence of movies and such the cause of gun violence, not the firearms themselves:

Americans place more blame for mass shootings on parents and Hollywood than they do on guns, a surprising new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll reveals.

Asked how much responsibility several choices might bear for the shootings that have taken place in Tucson, Ariz.; Aurora, Colo.; and Newtown, Conn., guns came in fifth.

The top choice was “parents not paying enough attention to what is going on in their children’s lives” — 83 percent said that was “a great deal” or a “good amount” responsible. Only 4 percent said “none at all.”

The second choice, selected by 82 percent as “a great deal”
or “a good amount,” was “the lack of effective treatment for mental illness.”

Next came “the amount of media coverage of mass shootings,” at 67 percent.

Fourth was “movies, television programs, and video games that portray violence and violent behavior,” chosen by 62 percent.

Tied for fifth place at 59 percent each was “assault and military-style firearms being legal to purchase,” and “the availability of high capacity ammunition clips.”

Another 49 percent blamed “the lack of security measures at schools, malls, and other places where people gather.”

There we have it, quite a lot of people seem to understand what the causes of deadly violence in the USA really are - poor parenting and when that happens, it should be no surprise that movies and games could end up being such a bad influence. If parents would just encourage their children to read literature and non-fiction books more often, plus play a game of Tetris, which I find quite absorbing, and not act as though there's no alternative to movies with mayhem, then I think there'd be a much safer environment around.

Labels: communications, Moonbattery, showbiz, United States