Pilfering, a potential threat, fleeing from a ticket… many of these reasons provide no justification for the police to shoot a victim dead. The State of Nebraska recently announced the abolition of death penalty, and became the 19th state to do so. Those who applauded this "good news" may never actually see the number of killings carried out by the US police. What an irony that many who have committed unforgivable crimes are allowed to live, while innocent people lose their lives to the police.

To put it bluntly, the profound contradictions of US social structure and the countless defects of its system seem beyond redemption. Half of the victims of police shooting cases were unarmed, and 2 out of 3 of them were minorities. Intensive conflicts such as the shootings in Baltimore and Ferguson reflect the serious consequences resulting from polarization between the rich and the poor, and ignorance of or even discrimination against ethnic minorities in US society.

How to protect its own citizens is becoming a puzzle that the US is finding hard to solve. The ordinary citizen’s sense of security is fading away. Last week, the State of Texas passed a bill allowing concealed handguns in college classes and in public places – it is now the state with the largest population in the US that allows guns to be carried in public places.

All the facts and statistics indicate that US problems are following a rising spiral. The United States should stop promoting its "human rights template", face up to its flawed internal system and policies, and find solutions to its problems. 

This aticle is edited and translated from 《安全感缺失折射美国制度困境（钟声）》，source: People's Daily