Change Laws Change Lives | Teen Ink

Change Laws Change Lives

November 20, 2014
By ehdeetah BRONZE, Glendale, California
ehdeetah BRONZE, Glendale, California
1 article 0 photos 0 comments

Over two hundred years ago our forefathers wrote the constitution of the United States and made our right to bear arms in the second amendment. However, many things have changed over the years and what seemed to be a great idea then, doesn’t work now. The government should make gun laws tougher and make it harder to own weapons. Certain laws should be in place to make it harder to obtain weapons. Stricter gun control laws will ensure drop in violent crimes, prevent household firearm accidents, and create a more peaceful society.


                  Some would argue that people create violence and not the guns but we can’t help to see the role of a gun when it comes to violence. Guns create a lot of violence in our world and nowadays almost everyone has weapon, whether they obtained the weapon through legal or illegal ways. The use of guns has greatly increased and drawn on the innocent and aftermaths are irreversible. The world has changed a lot and laws should reflect those changes. Now all that it takes is one push of a trigger to end a life. There are approximately 11,000 deaths a year through the use of a weapon only. Reducing the guns and making it difficult to own a gun would reduce the violence and crimes with a use of deadly weapons. For example, criminals and gang members would have a hard time trying to get a weapon therefore less deadly crimes would take place. Only the police should have the right to guns and people who are emotionally stable and responsible enough to obtain guns through the background check system.
Guns are the major cause of accidents, especially with children in American households. “Over 7,000 children are hospitalized or killed due to gun violence every year,” said Dr. John Leventhal, a pediatrics professor at the Yale. Most people do not secure their household firearm or disclose it from their children. Proper precautions such as keeping the gun unloaded, putting the safety lock on and keeping the weapon well hidden will prevent household accidents. Many reports show that children get hold of the gun and accidentally kill themselves or other family members. Over years of surveys and experiments, researchers have found out that 45% of people leave their firearm in reach and unprotected. According to an online article about gun safety, 34% of children in the U.S. live with a firearm in the household. While reading “Kids and Weapon Encounters,” I came across this part about a twelve year-old boy and how he managed to get a hold of a weapon and started to play around with it. He didn’t know that there was one bullet in the magazine. He looked inside the weapon barrel and accidently fired, leaving his parents without a son and guilt that would live with them forever. This was one of many very tragic stories related to guns and children.


  Weapons should be reduced from the hands of people and off the streets. I watched The Purge and there was much more violent than I expected it to be. Weapons were used to kill the innocent instead of protecting civilians. I believe that common people should not have the right to weapons and only higher forces should be able to. There would be less slaughter and no one would be afraid of getting shot. Street gangs would become weaker and the crime level will drop making it a peaceful society. It would be easy to defend self with fists or bats and the results won’t be fatal. For example, trying to rob a bank with a knife would be nearly impossible with today’s security system. Children would not become the victims and their families would be at peace because their children won’t die in a tragic accident. The fear would be reduced from people’s minds and they could lead a peaceful life.  


  The government should make gun laws stricter and amend the constitution to fit the needs of society now. Tougher gun laws will lead to less violence, less household firearm accidents, and importantly, more peaceful world to live in. Tougher regulations will ensure that not everyone can get hold of a gun and misuse its power.



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This article has 2 comments.


xqqme said...
on Nov. 27 2014 at 9:18 pm
Yes, indeed...  The weak will not be preyed upon by the strong, because that isn't within human nature.  (And evil men NEVER, EVER beat their wives.)   The innocent will remain pure and unsullied.  (Child abusers will simply ignore their predeliction to take advantage of the little ones around them.)  Street gangs would revert to chess clubs.  (They wouldn't take clubs and baseball bats to the elderly in lieu of firearms.  After all, they're just misunderstood youth seeking for direction in life.)    This opinion piece, like my response just MUST be sarcasm... right? 

RLEmerysgt said...
on Nov. 27 2014 at 2:54 pm
It amazes me how pathetic the schools have gotten that kids dont have a clue about civil rights, laws or common sense!