American gun violence: 'Trying to contain the uncontainable'

The mother of the youngest victim of the Sandy Hook massacre wants the world to know that assault weapons ruin lives. More than that, they destroy the human body.

Veronique Pozner's 6 year old son Noah was shot eleven times by Adam Lanza, who was armed with a semi-automatic Bushmaster AR-15. That same weapon is in overwhelming demand across America right now.

She spoke just after President Obama announced his sweeping proposals for reform of America's gun laws.

Mrs Pozner fears it is too late to change the trajectory of gun violence in America. She compares it to a tsunami and says it is like "trying to contain the uncontainable."

The President can take some minor steps through executive orders and he has duly signed 23 measures into law.

But the crown jewels of meaningful gun reform is the banning of semi-automatic weapons and high-capacity magazines. Those steps require Congressional approval.

And make no mistake about it. Congress is not interested. The President's proposals will probably not even reach a vote on the floor of the House of Representatives or the Senate.

Blame the power of the National Rifle Association (NRA), the difficult politics of gun control and the cynicism of America's lawmakers.

You might think that Veronique Pozner's shocking portrait of Noah's wounds might wake up politicians to the nightmare of having military-style assault weapons on America's streets.

Not a bit of it. They are engaged in the same sterile arguments about the Second Amendment while this country remains in the grip of an epidemic of gun violence.

There were twenty-six victims in Newtown.

In the four short weeks since the massacre, a further 900 Americans have died in gun-related violence.