Alison O'Connor: Even slaughter of school children can’t change a polarised America

The divisions in US society are strong and are reflected in the population's political affiliations

Police officers near a makeshift memorial for the shooting victims at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. Picture: Chandan Khanna/AFP/Getty

It is impossible to understand a so-called civilised society tolerating the mass shooting of little children while they are attending school.

How mind-bending to think the latest atrocity at a primary school in the US — where 19 primary school children and two teachers were killed by an 18-year-old with a semi-automatic rifle and wearing body armour — may generate little or no practical response.