Hell yes, there's a huge degree of fetishisation of violence. That dream of being the "good guy with the gun" was what inspired Rittenhouse to go running around with one, right?

I think many countries of 18-year-olds who want high quality firearms and body armour. The difference is, in most countries, they can't get them. 18-year-olds are, almost by definition, dumb. And many of them are also figuring out how to manage their aggression and emotions. Semi-automatic weapons are always going to be a problematic addition to that mix.

There probably is no solution. At least, if by solution you mean, something that will eradicate all mass shootings. Gun crime still happens in countries with extremely strict gun controls. But they hardly happen. There might not be a way to eradicate mass shootings, but there clearly are ways to decrease it. America's rates of mass shootings are orders of magnitude higher than any other developed country's.

I mean, I was actually planning to write about a different mass shooting before the news of the shooting in Uvalde came in. There was another one in Chattanooga yesterday. The solution doesn't need to eliminate all the mass shootings in America. But how there's not more will to do whatever it takes to reduce them is beyond me.