News of mass shootings, regardless of circumstance, location or motivation, are always devastating, and something which the vast majority of us struggle to comprehend when forced to faced the grim reality of gun culture.
Unfortunately, these incidents are all-too-prevalent a feature of modern-day society in the United States and are something which President Barack Obama said he desperately hopes to confine to the realms of the past while outlining new steps on gun laws this week.
Surrounded by relatives of shooting victims, the president and father-of-two became visibly moved when he paid tribute to the young victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown which took place in December 2012.
Eyes filling with tears after listing a number of high-profile shootings in recent years, President Obama addressed those present and expressed his particular devastation at the senseless loss of young life in Connecticut four years ago, admitting: "Every time I think about those kids, it gets me mad."
Wiping tears from his cheeks, President Obama, who tried and failed to persuade Congress to strengthen gun laws following the shooting which claimed the lives of 28 people, attempted to maintain his composure while recalling the effect the tragedy had on him as a person.
The president, who is currently in his second and final term in office, admitted he had hoped that the devastating incident, which made headlines all over the world, would act as an incentive to change the public's attitude to the possession and use of firearms.
"That changed me, that day," he revealed yesterday. "My hope earnestly has been that it would change the country."
This is an incredibly moving piece of footage.
