America Should Have Stricter Gun Control

The scene is all too recognizable. A troubled person pulls out a gun in a school, an office, or a shopping center, and he or she slaughters innocent men, women, and children. Recently, mass murders have occurred at Columbine High School, Virginia Tech University, and Omaha’s Westroads Mall (Schwartz). These tragedies are not inevitable, so people wonder one question. Are guns in our society getting out of control? Four out of every ten Americans own a gun; which leads to the perception that America has returned to the Wild Wild West. In fact, it is to be assumed that where guns are present, there is a higher risk of drug abuse, crime, and accidents. About 31,224 people died from gun violence in 2007. In just one day, 268 people were shot in murders, assaults, suicides, accidents, or by police intervention (Grunwald). Not only do four out of ten Americans have gun ownership, but an additional three out of four Americans believe that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual the right to carry a gun. Hypothetically, these people believe that they have a right to bear arms and that right should not be infringed. Part of the reason why there are such outrageous statistics is because there is lost momentum towards gun control (Schwartz). People are discomforted by the fact that a ridiculous 15 years have passed since there has been an urge for gun legislation on the federal level. In the 2008 presidential campaign, neither Hillary Clinton nor Barack Obama talked at all about gun control. In fact, Obama received an F for leadership on gun control to prevent gun violence from “A Brady Campaign” (Grunwald). However, Barack Obama did acknowledge the gun control dilemma only enough to make it seem unimportant in comparison to other issues he takes on. Obama stated “We essentially have two realities when it comes to guns in this country. We can reconcile those two realities by making sure the Second Amendment is respected and that people are able to lawfully own