- The surge in road rage shootings in the United States reveals the gun control problems that the country continues to experience.
- It is said that due to the coronavirus pandemic, the increase in road rage shooting incidents across the United States has worsened.
- A researcher emphasized that the existence of a life-threatening disease—Covid-19—is aggravating these events.
In May of this year, after a speeding driver suddenly stopped her on a California highway, Joanna Cloonan made a rude gesture to the car. A passenger grabbed a pistol and shot her vehicle, killing her 6-year-old son who was sitting in the back seat.
Last week, a woman in Texas was shot in the back while protecting her 7-year-old daughter from a shooting, and another driver in Kentucky was recovering from a gunshot wound after a dispute with a parking space.
According to a recent report by Everytown for Gun Safety, a non-profit organization advocating against gun violence, road rage incidents involving guns have been the cause of record number of casualties in the United States since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Data show that skirmishes involving firearms have been on the rise since 2018, and the report stated that “if current trends continue, 2021 is expected to be the deadliest year on record.”
Everytown said that the pandemic has brought many new sources of stress to people’s lives, and gun sales and shooting incidents have also seen record growth.
“Right” and “narcissism”
Ryan Martin, an angry researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, told AFP that “the mere existence of a life-threatening disease makes people nervous, and the frustration they encountered two years ago will be a little mild.”
Psychology professor Martin said that in a country where gun rights are strictly protected, the ubiquity of guns amplifies this problem.
He added:
Guns are a driving factor in many ways, because they provide you with a deadly mechanism to vent your anger. The data also shows that carrying a gun in the car will make you more irritable. This is the so-called weapon effect. The individualism we see in the United States may have exacerbated many angry reactions. The way Americans tend to think about freedom brings a sense of entitlement.
Americans’ individualistic attitudes may also be part of the reason.
Both Martin and emotional management expert Pauline Wallin agree that deep political disagreements can also lead to violence.
Penn State psychologist Walling said that because Americans are becoming more and more polarized, people who block you in traffic are more likely to be seen as “enemies” rather than “inconvenience.”
“We are more inclined to blame other people for what happened,” she said. “It’s someone else’s fault… it’s all narcissism.”
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Walling said that under former President Donald Trump, even pandemic security measures such as masks have become a framework for political debate, and the message of division has not disappeared in his government.
The psychologist said that most road rage incidents are attributed to “mismanagement of setbacks.”
“You have to take a deep breath. You have to calm yourself down, because when you are very depressed, you cannot think logically,” she said. “Ask yourself, will this matter tomorrow? A week from now?”
Martin said drivers must be aware that taking an aggressive and hostile approach “will never be a positive result.”
“Let go,” he suggested.
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