Gun lobby should take blame for massacre

Once again it's mourning in America－this time for the victims of the worst mass shooting in a country where multiple deaths from gunshots is a daily occurrence. More than 100 innocent souls lost their lives or were injured in Orlando, Florida, on Sunday.

The day might have been even more gruesome if Los Angeles police hadn't arrested a suspect who told them he was en route to the city's gay pride parade where he wanted to do "harm". He certainly could have as he had multiple weapons, including one assault rifle, abundant ammunition and ingredients to make bombs. The two events don't seem linked－or are they?

Reactions were predictable. Conservatives, led by presumptive Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, said the shooting was caused by "radical Islamic terrorism". Liberals, like US President Barack Obama, said that it was due to lax gun laws. He asked "God to watch over this country that we love". Well, God has been doing a lot of watching lately given that there are more guns than people in the US.

And foolish me who thought that "one-a-day" was a vitamin but it's the frequency of armed encounters in the US last year in which four or more people were killed or injured. And foolish me who thought the AR-15 semi-automatic weapon in Orlando was a weapon of war. I must be dead wrong because according to the National Rifle Association, the AR-15 is merely for hunting or home protection.