Why the horror from weapons used in mass killings won't lead to them being banned

Yet another massacre is yielding horrific descriptions of body-shattering carnage from the killing machines of choice for America’s mass shooters.

The now familiar rituals of these tragedies come with a new dimension – physicians describing exactly what such weapons do, which are details that were previously unmentioned out of respect for the dead. This coincides with a wave of fury and incomprehension among victims’ relatives and Americans who want to change the easy availability of rifles that can claim multiple lives in seconds. And there are new calls for a renewal of a long-expired assault weapons ban that Republicans, claiming infringements on constitutional rights, refuse to contemplate.