Mother-of-two Paetongtarn will hold a press briefing at the hospital on May 3 as the public awaits her views on her father Thaksin’s post to return to Thailand and on election campaigning.
Paetongtarn Shinawatra, the candidate for Prime Minister and leader of the Pheu Thai Party, announced at the press conference that she and her husband Pidok Sooksawas gave birth to their child Pluenkthasin Sooksawas on 1 May. She will also talk about the party’s readiness for the election. The press conference will be held on 3 May at 10 am in the Grand Hall Assembly Room, 5th Floor, Building A, Rama 9 Hospital.
instagram ingshin21
The public expects her to talk about the last phase of the election campaign, as the election date is May 14. It has been reported that the Pheu Thai Party has lost popularity to the second-largest opposition party, Move Forward.
Paetongtarn is also expected to speak about her father, Thaksin Shinawatra, who recently posted the blessing for his 7th grandchild and announced that he will return to Thailand to raise his grandchildren, sparking public debate.
instagram: ingshin21“I will turn 74 this July. Please excuse me. See you all soon,” Thaksin posted.
Srettha Thavisin, another candidate for prime minister from Pheu Thai, said it was Thaksin’s right and he understood Thaksin as he himself was a father and grandfather. He refused to talk about the concerns someone had raised that this post of Thaksin might have a hidden agenda for the election. He said he would concentrate on his election campaign.
When asked about Thaksin’s post, Gen. Prayut Chan-o-cha refused to answer but gave the reporters a smile, an unusual response from him. When it comes to Thaksin, he is usually frustrated.
Paetongtarn Shinawatra, Pheu Thai party’s top politician and youngest daughter of exiled former deposed Thai leader Thaksin Shinawatra, April 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)instagram: ingshin21
The Thai Minister of Tourism and Sports, Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, said that the ministry is gradually taking measures to develop the coastal areas of the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Islands, which cover a total of 3,000 kilometres and generated 1.2 trillion baht (35,100 billion U.S.dollars) in tourism revenue in 2022. The project consists of 5 clusters as follows:
The first area is the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC), which consists of Chonburi, Rayong and Chachoengsao. The project will cover 2 more provinces, namely Chanthaburi and Trad, making a total of 5 provinces. This cluster is expected to bring in 340 billion (9.94 billion U.S.dollars) in revenue, with an average expenditure of 3,081 baht (90 U.S.dollars) per person per day.
In 2020, the total number of visitors, both Thai and foreigners, is recorded at 31 million, as the area is close to Bangkok and many ex-pats live in the area. The ministry wants to develop the area on the model of Industrial Tourism so that visitors have the opportunity to visit factories, similar to the city of Yokohama, where there is the Kirin Beer Plant and the museum of the instant noodle manufacturer Nissin.
Thailand Riviera, located between Petchaburi, Prachuap Khiri Khan, Chumphon and Ranong, is the second destination cluster. In 2022, this area had a total of 18 million people generating 85 billion baht (2.48 billion U.S.dollars) or an average of 2,362 baht (69 U.S.dollars) per person per day. This cluster has both mountains and sea. The ministry wants to develop more roadside stations and community complexes to sell products.
Koh Tukon Lima or “Koh Haa” Krabi Province
The third cluster includes 5 provinces in the south of Thailand, namely Phuket, Phang-nga, Krabi, Trang and Satun. Last year, a total of 29 million people visited the area, resulting in revenue of 600 billion baht (17.5 billion U.S. dollars), almost twice the money generated in the EEC area, with an average expenditure of 4,800 baht (140 U.S. dollars) per person per day.
It is the highest spending area among the 5 clusters and the ministry wants to make it the ‘Premium Andaman’ as it can be sold more expensively and focuses more on quality.
The Gulf of Thailand cluster, which includes Surat Thani, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Phatthalung and Songkhla, is the fourth cluster. In 2022, a total of 18 million people visited these provinces, resulting in a turnover of 180 billion baht (5.2 billion U.S.dollars), which is an average of 2,861 baht (83.6 U.S.dollars) per person per day. The main selling points for this region are faith tourism and nature tourism.
The last cluster is the coastal region in the southern border provinces, located in Pattani, Narathiwat and Yala. In 2022, 1.6 million people visited the area, resulting in revenue of 7 billion baht (204 million U.S.dollars), an average of 2,264 baht (66 U.S.dollars) per person per day. The ministry will give the provinces a new image and is ready to help the young generation of locals build their towns.
Jack Ma. (Photo courtesy of the University of Tokyo)(Kyodo)
Jack Ma, the founder of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., has joined a research institute of the University of Tokyo as a visiting professor, the university said Monday.
The announcement came as the entrepreneur has kept a low profile for a few years since criticizing Chinese financial authorities in October 2020, after which Alibaba and its affiliate Ant Group faced regulatory obstacles.
According to the university, Ma, whose contract as Tokyo College professor runs until the end of October, will conduct joint research and projects with University of Tokyo researchers, focusing on sustainable agriculture and food production.
He is also expected to share his experience and knowledge on entrepreneurship, corporate management and innovation with students through seminars, it said.
In this Oct. 12, 2018, file photo, Chairman of Alibaba Group Jack Ma speaks during a seminar in Bali, Indonesia. (AP Photo/Firdia Lisnawati, File)
Ma, a former English teacher, founded the Alibaba Group in 1999, growing it into one of the world’s largest e-commerce businesses. He served as its executive chairman until 2019 when he left.
While largely disappearing from public view in recent years, he has been spotted in various countries, including Japan. The Financial Times reported in November that he had been living in central Tokyo for almost half a year amid Beijing’s crackdown on the country’s technology sector.
Tokyo College was founded in 2019. Its activities include research collaboration and knowledge sharing with researchers and intellectuals from inside and outside Japan.
A deer ran in front of a Mercedes Benz and was hit and killed on Borommaratchachonnani Road inbound before Gate 1, Mahidol University, Salaya Subdistrict, Phutthamonthon District, Nakhon Pathom Province on May 1, 2023.
This deer is a male, has beautiful horns, weighs about 80 kilograms.
Mr. Worapot Sae Lim, 55 years old, a native of Nakhon Pathom Province, said he was driving to go to Bangkok in the left lane, something suddenly unknowingly ran across the lane and crashed into the car in front of the car. He stopped to look and found that it was a big deer, which was very confused, there should be no deer around here. His wife was also shocked.
Police suspect the deer may have escaped from one of the farms, or there may be animals being transported down the road causing deer to fall from the car. But local people and rescuers gave information that it was probably living in the area of Salaya, Phutthamonthon Sai 5 and Sampran District and nearby.
People had tried to catch him several times in the last 1-2 years but couldn’t because there was a wide grassy forest that he could escape.
Police officers have collected evidence to investigate the origin of the deer. Now no one has come to show themselves as the owner.
On the occasion of National Labor Day on May 1, Montri Mahaplerkpong, the vice-chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI), revealed the 28th FTI member survey (FTI poll) on the topic of “Industrial Sector Perspectives on Employment and Workforce Adaptation in the Future” in April 2023, .
It was found that a majority of the FTI executives, 48.6 per cent, believed that the current employment rate has returned to pre-COVID-19 levels. Meanwhile, 24.8 per cent expected the employment rate to increase by 10-20 per cent, while 19.3 per cent anticipated a decrease in the employment rate by 10-20 per cent.
“The majority of FTI executives, 50 per cent, expected that industrial sector employment trends will remain stable this year. Meanwhile, 35.3 per cent believed that employment trends will increase, while 14.7 per cent anticipated a decrease in employment trends.”
In addition, FTI executives proposed that the government accelerate support and promotion to increase labour efficiency, especially by supporting a skill-based wage payment system and raising workers’ skill standards to international levels.
They also suggested expanding tax incentives for spending on labour training to improve the skills which would qualify for the same level of the 250 per cent tax deduction for advanced skills training certified by the Office of National Higher Education Science Research and Innovation Policy Council, which would encourage the private sector to upgrade labour skills.
“Looking at the skills that the industrial sector needs most, at the top of the top 3 skills are technical skills, followed by digital skills and data analytics skills.”
Thanawat Polvichai, the President and Chief Economic Advisor of the Thailand Trade Representative Office, he said that the labor force sees that the Thai economy has recovered, but it is still fragile due to insufficient income to pay for living expenses. There is still a continuous household debt problem, resulting in an increase in household debt value this year, reaching a maximum of 272,528.15 baht, the highest in the past 14 years.”
Thanavath Phonvichai, president of the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce (UTCC) and chief adviser of the UTCC Centre for Economic and Business Forecasting, said that although the Thai economy has recovered, it is still vulnerable due to insufficient income to cover the cost of living. Household debt remains problematic and has resulted in household debt reaching a high of 272,528.15 baht this year, the highest in the last 14 years.”
However, the Bank of Thailand has found that the household debt-to-GDP ratio has decreased from 90 per cent to 86 per cent, and it is expected to decrease further as the Thai economy continues to recover strongly. Moreover, the proportion of informal debt in the labour sector has continuously decreased to a record low of 20.2 per cent in the last 14 years, mainly due to the increased availability of quick loan products from financial institutions.
As for this year’s labour day, it is expected to be more active than the previous year due to the increased income from the minimum wage hike at the end of last year, which is estimated to have a ripple effect of 2.067.2 billion baht, an increase of 29.8 per cent over the previous four-year period.
A scene from "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" featuring Mario (L) and Princess Peach (C).(Copyright 2023 Nintendo and Universal Studios)(Kyodo)
NEW YORK (AP) — It’s still Mario Time at the box office.
“The Super Mario Bros. Movie” led ticket sales for the fourth straight weekend in U.S. and Canadian theaters with $40 million as the global haul for the Universal Pictures release surpassed $1 billion, according to studio estimates Sunday.
The Nintendo videogame adaptation dominated the month of April in theaters, smashing records along the way. Over the weekend, it faced little new competition, though that will change next week when Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” kicks off the summer movie calendar and is expected to move Mario to the side. Studios spent the last week at CinemaCon in Las Vegas promoting coming blockbusters and promising big returns at the summer box office.
The Japanese poster for “The Super Mario Bros. Movie.” (Copyright 2023 Nintendo and Universal Studios)(Kyodo)
“The Super Mario Bros. Movie” was estimated to easily cross $1 billion in worldwide box office Sunday, making it the 10th animated film to reach that milestone and the first since 2019. With a domestic total thus far of $490 million, international sales are even stronger. The Illumination-animated release took in $68.3 million overseas over the weekend, pushing its international haul to $532.5 million.
According to Kyodo News, in a film the video game’s creator says has given the iconic character a more human personality.
“The Mario who was puppet-like in the games has become humanized, and with his varied expressions and flashy movements, he’s become a ‘person’ now,” said Shigeru Miyamoto, representative director and fellow at Nintendo Co., in a recent interview with Kyodo News.
Shigeru Miyamoto, representative director and creative fellow of Nintendo Co., known as the creator of “Super Mario,” gives an interview in Kyoto on April 12, 2023. (Kyodo)
The animated film starring Mario, who made his video game debut in 1981 and appears in numerous titles, including the “Super Mario Bros.” series, has already been a huge financial success.
Devised in a collaboration between Nintendo and California-based animation studio Illumination, known for its “Minions” film series, the Super Mario movie has seen the 70-year-old Miyamoto get hands-on as one of its producers.
“It’s got a storyline that’s easy to follow, like video games usually do,” the game designer at the Kyoto-based computer gaming giant said. “We’ve made something that parents and kids alike can see at the theater without getting bored.”
It was also a moment for Miyamoto to reflect on how his character has developed.
This image released by Nintendo and Universal Studios shows Mario, voiced by Chris Pratt, left, and Luigi, voiced by Charlie Day in Nintendo’s “The Super Mario Bros. Movie.” (Nintendo and Universal Studios via AP)
“At first, I drew him as an eight-bit character. Then, with “Super Mario 64,” he became 3D and puppet-like. Now with this animation, he’s become much more like a real person and this great character,” he said.
The film also features scenes from action games that Miyamoto has worked on, including the “Mario Kart” racing series.
“Mario is basically an action movie, so we’ve made something for the screen that allows people to enjoy it with the kind of movements you’d see in a video game,” Miyamoto said. “We did a lot of camera work that has never been used in animation before.”
There have also been deviations from the original material. Princess Peach, a mainstay who has typically been relegated to a supporting player in need of Mario’s rescue, has been reinvented as a spear-wielding fighter.
This image released by Nintendo and Universal Studios shows Mario, voiced by Chris Pratt, left, and Princess Peach, voiced by Anya Taylor-Joy, in Nintendo’s “The Super Mario Bros. Movie.” (Nintendo and Universal Studios via AP)
“For the last 20 years or so, American movies have involved women in the action,” Miyamoto said. “I wanted to make Princess Peach a stronger woman,” he said, adding that he discussed with Illumination CEO Chris Meledandri about having a version of the character that fights.
The creator, also known to be behind the popular “The Legend of Zelda” series, hinted at the plumber’s future film forays, saying, “We’ve been making Mario video games for 40 years, so there’s still a lot of assets.”
“Just by constructing something from what we’ve amassed so far, we can make something new,” Miyamoto said.
One of the weekend’s biggest successes was a familiar box-office force. The Walt Disney Co.’s rerelease of “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi” grossed $4.7 million in just 475 theaters. Disney put “Jedi” (the 1997 special edition version) back into theaters to commemorate the 1983 film’s 40th anniversary.
“Star Wars: Return of the Jedi”
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore.
1. “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” $40 million.
2. “Evil Dead Rise,” $12.2 million.
3. “Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret,” $6.8 million.
4. “John Wick: Chapter 4,” $5 million.
5. “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi,” $4.7 million.
6. “Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves,” $4.1 million.
Just 0.8 percent, or 15, of the 1,836 companies listed on the top-tier Prime Market on the Tokyo bourse were headed by women as of the end of January, according to credit research firm Teikoku Databank Ltd., reflecting the struggle among major businesses to embrace diversity in management.
The small number of women in positions with representative rights at top-tier firms compares unfavorably with a record high 8.2 percent of approximately 1.19 million businesses in Japan reporting they had a female president in 2022, the research found.
Japan is “extremely slow compared with other countries,” in promoting women to prominent positions, Shintaro Yamaguchi, a professor specializing in labor economics at the University of Tokyo, told Kyodo News.
The findings match those released by British magazine The Economist in March, which ranked Japan second-from-last among developed nations regarding the role and influence of women in the workforce.
Among the 15 female presidents leading a Prime-listed company as of the end of January were Nobuko Nakajima of food manufacturer Imuraya Group Co., who became chairman in April, Takako Suzuki of chemical manufacturer S.T. Corp., and Takayo Hasegawa of power cable maker SWCC Corp., previously known as SWCC Showa Holdings Co.
Just 51 women, or 1.3 percent, held representative-level positions in the total 3,801 listed companies including the lower-tier Standard and Growth markets, which cover midsized and up-and-coming firms, respectively. A total 22 were in Standard-listed firms, with 14 in Growth.
Women wait for crossing a street in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan’s Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm Thursday, April 27, 2023, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
From February 2023 onward, at least four women were promoted, or were expected to be promoted, to leadership positions at Prime Market-listed firms from February 2023 onward, Kyodo News found.
Shigeko Okazaki became president of bottle labeling machine maker Fuji Seal International Inc. on March 1, while Yuko Seimei will assume the role of president for financial services firm Monex Group Inc. in June.
“Companies that don’t have diverse decision-makers will not be able to innovate or meet the various demands of their customers,” Yamaguchi said.
As of April, there were a total 3,811 firms listed on the Prime, Standard and Growth markets.
Over 50 percent of respondents in the second round of general election online survey organized by Matichon Group X Daily News chose Move Forward Party as the most preferred Party that they will vote for in the party-list ballot paper.
Pheu Thai Party came second but far behind at 33.56% in the survey in which 78,583 took part between the period from April 22-28.
The survey first round, starting April 8-14, 2023, Pheu Thai received 38.89% while Move Forward Party with 32.37%, followed by United Thai Nation Party at 12.84%.
This second round, the United Thai Nation Party came third with 6.05%, Phalang Pracharath 2.46%, Chart Pattana Kla 1.6%, Democrat 1.05%, Thai Liberal Party 1.01%, Thai Sang Thai 1.01%, followed by 0.96% undecided and 0.70% for Bhumjai Thai Party.
When asked from which party will you vote for the constituency-based MP, Move Forward Party also came first with 47.97%, followed by Pheu Thai with 35.78%, United Thai Nation Party 5.75%, Phalang Pracharath 2.69%, Chart Pattana Kla 1.56%, undecided 1.33%, Democrat 1.18%, Thai Sang Thai 1.05%, Bhumjai Thai 1.02% and 0.56% saying they won’t vote for any candidate.
On who would you vote to support as the next PM, 49.17% chose Move Forward Party PM candidate Pita Limjaroenrat, followed by 19.59% for Pheu Thai’s Paetongtarn Shinawatra, 15.54% for second PM candidate from Pheu Thai Srettha Thavisin, incumbent Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha from the United Thai Nation Party with 6.52%,
Phalang Pracharath PM candidate Gen Prawit Wongsuwan with 2.35%, Chart Pattana Kla’s Korn Chatikavanij 1.74%, undecided 1.18%, Thai Sang Thai’s Sudarat Keyuraphan 1.04%, Thai Liberal Party’s Pol Gen Sererpisuth Temeeyaves 0.84% and Bhumjai Thai Party’s Anutin Charnveerakul 0.64%.
When asked if the 250-junta-appointed senators should vote to support the PM candidate from the party which gained most MP seats or not, 82.54% said yes while 17.46 said the senators can vote for whichever PM candidate.
The generational breakdown of the respondents, Gen X or those age between 42-57 were the largest group at 31.48%, followed by Gen Y or those between 26-41 at 29.85%, followed by babyboomer generation or those age between 58-76 at 22.48%, Gen Z or those between 18-25 at 15.58% and Silent Gen or those 77 and over at 0.81%.
The top 10 provinces where respondents reside are: Bangkok, Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, Chiang Mai, Samut Prakarn, Chonburi, Nakhon Ratchasima, Ubon Ratchathani, Khon Kaen and Chiang Rai
A file photo of PM Prayut Chan-o-cha talking to passengers on an airplane.
That incumbent Gen. Prayut Chan-o-cha perceives himself as an “experienced pilot” flying an airplane that is Thailand was made apparent when Prayut earlier this week asked voters to “re-elect” him because he is an experienced pilot who has been flying the Thai plane over the past eight years and not vote for “a teenager” to fly the aircraft.
“Be assured that we will arrive [at the destination] because a pilot like me is experienced and knows all the problems. If I could solve all the problems, I would have done … If you want an able pilot, get an experienced pilot,” Prayut told voters in Udon Thani province on Monday.
If you are a Prayut’s supporter, then that analogy may sound good.
“[We] have been traveling safely for eight years. Why would we risk changing the captain for some inexperienced [pilot] … when the old one still volunteers to fly?” commented one Prayut supporter on pro-Prayut media, Top News.
The same analogy led another Thai social media user to a different conclusion when the person wrote online that because of Prayut, the plane has not been flying for eight years now. To this Thai, Prayut is not even a pilot and he along with his deputy, Gen. Prawit Wongsuwan, did not know how to fly so Thailand has been grounded motionless on the runway for the past eight years now.
Skeptics can spot the flaw in such a false analogy of Prayut being a pilot almost immediately, however.
First, Prayut originally came to power through an act of power seizure during the May 2014 coup that made himself junta-leader-cum-PM. He then tweaks the rules in his favor so he could return as an “elected” PM after the 2019 elections, chiefly by making sure he has 250-junta-appointed senators to vote for him as the next PM.
That’s why Prayut made it back as PM after the 2019 general election and he is counting on them again next month although he will now have to compete for the senators’ vote with his former deputy junta leader Gen. Prawit Wongsuwan (formerly a co-pilot?), who is now also competing with Prayut among others for the “pilot” post.
Yes, the 2017 junta-sponsored charter was narrowly approved through a referendum that gave junta-appointed senators the special power to vote for the PM (along with elected MPs) for a period of five years but under a restricted junta-control environment and the threat that if the public did not endorse the charter, Prayut will remain even longer in power as a dictator.
This means Prayut is no “experienced pilot” as claimed, but leader of a rogue army which seized control of the plane and kicked the legitimate pilot off the plane. Don’t even start asking me if this imposter by the name “pilot Prayut” is qualified to fly.
Enough for the flawed Prayut the “experienced pilot.” Another common analogy deployed by anti-junta Thais is that Prayut is like a chief security guard at a condominium who have forcefully seized control of the residential building against the consent of the majority of the co-owners.
This means Prayut is illegitimate from the very beginning, and he has been overstaying in power way too long. It would not be easy to boot Prayut out as he and Prawit still have the junta-appointed senate, the rogue army and the deep state (a credible source told me the deep state will not accept a government runs by Move Forward Party which seeks to amend the lese majeste law, BTW.).
Thais love analogy and metaphor, for better or worse, and it matters little to many of them whether it’s a false analogy or not as long as it suits their political agenda.
Away from the pilot and security guard analogies, yet another voter wrote on social media, comparing herself and the rest of the Thai voters to a woman. Then there are three men. The first man is the current boyfriend who has been around over the past eight years, aka Phalang Pracharath Party. “He talks about love but it’s all intangible … as I am suggesting a breakup, he then makes loads of promises.”
Pheu Thai Party is compared to an ex-boyfriend who wants to make up for past mistakes “but I would have to take all the risks because he might again go back to the other woman.”
Then comes the latest suitor, aka Move Forward Party, who is not accepted by the girl’s parents but keeps waiting for her with a solid promise and is also “actually handsome.”
Now, I do not want to waste more time debunking this last false analogy, but you can perhaps enjoy yourself.
This image provided by KTRK shows the scene of a shooting early Saturday, April 29, 2023 in Cleveland, Texas. (KTRK via AP)
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A man went next door with a rifle and began shooting his neighbors, killing an 8-year-old and four others inside a house near Houston, after the family asked him to stop firing rounds in his yard because they were trying to sleep, authorities said Saturday.
San Jacinto County Sheriff Greg Capers said authorities were still searching for 38-year-old Francisco Oropeza following the shooting in the town of Cleveland, about 45 miles (72 kilometers) north of Houston. He said Oropeza used an AR-style rifle in the attack, which happened shortly before midnight Friday.
“All of his rounds were from the neck up, so basically in the head,” Capers told The Associated Press.
The attack was the latest act of gun violence in what has been a record pace of mass shootings in the U.S. so far this year, some of which have also involved semiautomatic rifles.
Police respond to the scene of a shooting early Saturday, April 29, 2023 in Cleveland, Texas. (KTRK via AP)
By late Saturday morning, Capers said authorities were using scent-tracking dogs and an overhead drone in the search for Oropeza, who they believe was intoxicated at the time of the shooting and then fled toward a heavily wooded forest a few miles from the scene.
Capers said there were 10 people in the house — some of whom has just moved there earlier in the week — but that that no one else was injured. He said two of the victims, all believed to be from Honduras, were found laying over two children in a bedroom.
Two other victims, a male and female, were found by the front door and the slain child was in the front room. Capers said three other “blood-covered” children were found in the home and taken to a hospital, where they were determined to be uninjured.
“The Honduran ladies that were laying over these children were doing it in such an effort as to protect the child,” Capers said.
The confrontation followed family members walking up to the fence and asking the suspect to stop shooting rounds, Capers said. The suspect responded by telling them that it was his property, according to Capers, and that one person in the house got a video of the suspect walking up to the front door with the rifle.
Three of the victims were women and one was a man. Their names were not released. Capers said the victims were between the ages of 8 and about 40 years old.
This image provided by KTRK shows the scene of a shooting early Saturday, April 29, 2023 in Cleveland, Texas. (KTRK via AP)
Capers said his deputies had been to Oropeza’s home at least once before and spoken with him about “shooting his gun in the yard.” It was not immediately clear whether any action was taken at the time.
Capers said the new arrivals in the home had moved from Houston earlier in the week, but he did not know whether they were planning to stay there.
Across the U.S. since Jan. 1, there have been at least 18 shootings that left four or more people dead, according to a database maintained by The Associated Press and USA Today, in partnership with Northeastern University. The violence is sparked by a range of motives: murder-suicides and domestic violence; gang retaliation; school shootings and workplace vendettas.
Texas has confronted multiple mass shootings in recent years, including last year’s attack at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde; a racist attack at an El Paso Walmart in 2019; and a gunman opening fire at a church in the tiny town of Sutherland Springs in 2017.
Republican leaders in Texas have rejected calls for new firearm restrictions, including this year over the protests of several families who children were killed in Uvalde.
_____
PAUL J. WEBER reported from Austin, Ken Miller contributed to this report.
