When friends of the United States abroad enumerate aspects of our politics they simply can’t understand, I’ve found they often point to the inability of our democracy to deal comprehensively with the mass slaughter our permissive gun laws enable.
Every new outrage — including the recent incidents in Arkabutla, Miss., El Paso and at Michigan State University — is met with mass mourning, tears, prayers and anger. And legislative gridlock. What kind of country sits by while its people are mowed down by gunfire?
The answer, which extends to other issues, lies in a breakdown of our governing system’s ability to reflect majority opinion. This dysfunction is rooted in the peculiarities of our party coalitions, our flawed system of representation, the power of veto groups, and the transformation of so many issues into showdowns involving metropolitan areas facing off against small towns and the countryside. CONTINUED
E.J. Dionne Jr., Washington Post
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