The Facts
Six people were killed and one injured during a stabbing at a kindergarten on Monday in the city of Lianjiang in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong. Local police arrested a 25-year-old man surnamed Wu 20 minutes later.
This attack, which reportedly claimed the lives of one teacher, two parents, and three children, allegedly stems from a vehicular incident as an anonymous source stated that one of the adult victims had hit the suspect's child with a car before, never providing him with any compensation.
The Spin
Narrative A
Gun-free China, as has been the case in European countries, has seen a spike in mass killings with non-firearm weapons for decades now. While guns are certainly capable of more destruction, knives, swords, and meat cleaver attacks have resulted in several deadly killings of adults and children alike. Though their violent crime rates are lower than the US, these countries must work to stem this novel jump in random violence.
Narrative B
As violent crime was historically nonexistent in the PRC, the only societal change in recent decades has been the increase in social collapse and mental health deterioration. This has hit the mainland and territories such as Hong Kong, showing the spread of cultural decay and violence is connected to a social contagion and lack of mental health treatment rather than just access to weapons.
