Blood is on everyone’s hand in America, because we have the power to stop horrendous acts of murder with guns, yet nothing is done. In 2015, Americans believe they need a gun to protect themselves from criminals, but the majority of mass shooting comes from young white men who live next door. It makes no sense for an individual to own 15 different guns and no one questions the purpose of an arsenal.
Mass killings have been identified as four deaths or more by one or more shooter. There has been a mass shooting every calendar week of President Barack Obama’s second term, according to the Washington Post, and Americans think this behavior is normal. There are over 300 million guns in circulation, and the president feels powerless when it comes to gun control.
Americans have a sick obsession with guns, but on Oct. 1, President Barack Obama was given the responsibility to announce to the cameras again that another community had been traumatized by a mass shooting. This time it was at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Ore., where a gunman went on a spree, killing nine people. This incident is another massacre that will force family and community members to relive this experience for the rest of their lives.
It is time for Americans to repeal the Second Amendment and control gun sales and use. It makes no sense for a 26-year-old to own 15 guns unless he is getting ready to go to war. Police have the ability to control every aspect of an individual’s life, yet they refuse to keep a record of how many guns an individual purchases.
Gun ownership should not be a constitutional right, and guns should be regulated like any other consumer product. Guns are deadly weapons, and they must be strictly regulated, controlled and subject to federal and state laws. In countries all over the world, guns are controlled, and there are very few mass shootings because the citizens care.
Americans have the ability to stop mass killings, but it must start in our thinking about guns. Nothing is going to change with mass shooting until voters hold their representatives accountable for creating strict control and regulation of guns. Americans must stop pretending and ignoring citizens who walk around with guns and think guns are a constitutional right.
Guns are weapons, and it was evident that Chris Harper-Mercer, 26, had mental health issues, and he was preparing for a sick experiment with guns. It is time for Americans to open up their eyes and start asking questions when an individual has an arsenal of weapons and they are a college student or just a regular hardworking individual.
Everyone should understand that the Second Amendment was intended to ensure that an armed militia could be assembled, but that time has passed. Gun ownership as a constitutional right is a tragic historical accident, and representatives must be held accountable for fixing this mistake.
Americans can continue to pretend mass shootings are not an epidemic and there is nothing we can do. With courage, we can start a movement to control guns and repeal the Second Amendment. When there has been a mass shooting every week of Obama’s second term, it is time to stop pretending.
Mass killing should not be routine, and it is time to repeal gun ownership as a constitutional right. The only way we can get rid of the blood on our hands is we take action, hold our representatives accountable with our vote, and show we care.