Download
As more details of the Colorado shooting tragedy that killed 12 and wounded 58 were released over the weekend, the debate over gun control heated up in the United States, a country known for its gun culture.
Though US President Barack Obama was scheduled to travel to Colorado on Sunday to visit the families of victims, few expected the discussion about guns to yield tangible progress, due to the strength of gun-rights advocates.
Holmes, the suspect, had planned the movie theater massacre in the Denver suburb of Aurora, authorities said.
The dead included a 6-year-old girl, two members of the US military, a woman who escaped a mall shooting in Toronto last month, a man celebrating his 27th birthday and two men who sacrificed their lives to save the women they were with.
All but one were under the age of 32, and eight were in their 20s.
Police said Holmes planned the attack with "calculation and deliberation", receiving multiple deliveries of ammunition by mail for months before the attack.
The suspect bought at least 6,000 rounds of ammunition, an AR15 assault rifle, a Remington shotgun and two 40-caliber Glock hand guns.
His apartment was rigged with jars of liquids, explosives and chemicals that were booby-trapped to kill "whoever entered it", Aurora Police Chief Dan Oates said.
All hazards have been removed from the apartment.
Police took Holmes into custody on Friday in a parking lot behind the cinema. He is expected to make his first court appearance on Monday.
All of the major studios in Hollywood said on Saturday they were joining Dark Knight Rises distributor Warner Bros in withholding their box office numbers for the weekend, out of respect for the victims and their families.
Obama, who called in his weekly radio address for prayer and reflection following the rampage, was scheduled to travel to Colorado on Sunday to visit the families of victims.
A vigil was scheduled for 6:30 pm on Sunday in front of Aurora City Hall.
Republican presidential challenger Mitt Romney also scaled back his campaign schedule in the wake of the massacre and called for unity.
However, in their initial comments on the Aurora shootings, neither Obama nor Romney mentioned gun control, which is considered politically toxic in an election year.
"If there's anything to take away from this tragedy, it's a reminder that life is fragile. Our time here is limited and it is precious," the president said in his weekend address.
Speaking on CNN on Friday, Harvard University professor Laurence Tribe blamed the impasse on powerful gun rights defender groups, mentioning "the National Rifle Association and all of the people who, frankly, make a living out of restricting the political possibility of gun control".
Tribe said: "We have to do something about it. I don't know how many killings, how many slaughters it's going to take before the nation wakes up to the need to address the problem."
According to the website of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, named after James Brady, who was shot and permanently disabled during the 1981 attempt to assassinate former US president Ronald Reagan, there are an estimated 283 million guns in civilian hands in the US, almost one gun for every man, woman and child in the country.
Current federal law requires criminal background checks only for guns sold by licensed dealers, which account for just 60 percent of gun sales, meaning that two out of every five guns acquired in the US are sold without a background check.
This includes guns bought at gun shows, between individuals and even through the Internet.
Colorado law does not force residents to register guns and follows a "shall issue" statute for carrying concealed weapons, which means that local law enforcement is required to provide licenses to citizens such as Holmes who want to carry concealed weapons as long as they meet certain criteria. The authorities have only limited data on active gun owners.
Questions:
1. How many were killed in the Aurora shooting?
2. The shooting occurred at a midnight screening of which film?
3. Which company was the film’s distributor?
Answers:
1. 12.
2. The Dark Knight Rises.
3. Warner Bros.
About the broadcaster:
CJ Henderson is a foreign expert for China Daily's online culture department. CJ is a graduate of the University of Sydney where she completed a Bachelors degree in Media and Communications, Government and International Relations, and American Studies. CJ has four years of experience working across media platforms, including work for 21st Century Newspapers in Beijing, and a variety of media in Australia and the US.
英语口语主题:交际英语热门话题47个(21--生日派对)
实用英语:如何用英语砍价
地道英语口语:关于“apple”的英语俚语
疯狂口语要素精选 7
2011年实用口语练习:In the library 在图书馆
实用口语情景轻松学:老外和菜农砍价时的地道英语对话
英语流行语:你跟谁“合得来”?
奥运会实用英语口语200句:这是一个非常受人欢迎的目的地
地道口语:“小气鬼”怎么说?
实用盘点:赞美他人时必备口语
口语:“血肉之躯”用英语怎么说?
地道口语:用21句表达沮丧
美国生活必备口语:租房英语大全(1)
新东方英语口语开口篇:描述外貌(4)
大学新生常用口语:熟悉校园和同学
你会各种各样的“敲竹杠”吗?
实用口语情景轻松学:你这儿卖内存吗?
20条地道实用英语句型(2)
学会用英文的感叹句
新东方英语口语开口篇:询问称呼(2)
口语情景对话:一个真正的斯图尔特家的后代ACT 1 - 3
实用口语情景轻松学:你知道怎么申请赴美签证吗?
实用口语情景轻松学:你最喜欢哪个季节?
新东方英语口语开口篇:打招呼(3)
奥运会实用英语口语200句: 我经常用互联网学英语
英语口语-各种各样的问题
节日英语口语:十一句话搞定圣诞礼物
2011年实用口语练习:今天你“团”了吗
老外“精神不好”时会说些什么
实用英语口语:“熬夜”的各种英文说法
不限 |
英语教案 |
英语课件 |
英语试题 |
不限 |
不限 |
上册 |
下册 |
不限 |