'Are mass shootings really like natural disasters?'

Police officers close the road as they patrol around the street during inspection after a gunman's multiple shootings in Maine

Americans look at these massacres like natural disasters.

(Image credit: Fatih Aktas / Anadolu via Getty Images)

published 27 October 2023

'Treating mass shootings like earthquakes'

Peter Hanink in the Los Angeles Times

"No one was shocked" by this week’s mass shooting that killed 18 people in Maine, says Peter Hanink in the Los Angeles Times. Americans look at these massacres like natural disasters. "We can't prevent them; we can only prepare for them." We conduct active shooter exercises, and drill home the message of "run, fight, hide." But "common sense" reforms like background checks and assault rifle bans can save lives. "We must do better."

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Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.