The Power Of Gun Control In The United States

Ever since the inception of this country 240 years ago, guns have been an integral part of the American identity; a sense of lawlessness, individualism, personal autonomy and freedom. They were the tools that liberated us, and gave us independence over a tyrannical, unrepresentative empire. However, in more recent years, these tools have been used more and more frequently in mass shootings, some of which are occurring at schools, targeting teachers and children. Since the infamous shooting at Columbine High School 19 years ago, we have had several shootings at schools, and we tend to get “thoughts and prayers”, a gesture with good intentions, but little actual progress made. This problem can be contributed to the increasing power of guns, and a lack of mental health coverage, gun control and school safety. When the 2nd amendment was established, the most complex guns we had were muskets, and we needed to defend ourselves from what we felt was tyranny; the American Revolution was still in the rearview mirror for all Americans to consider. Ever since those words were written, however, gun technology has dramatically increased – despite fully automatic weapons being banned from the public, bump stocks that simulate a fully automatic weapon can be purchased with relative ease. Most Americans feel we can do better when it comes to gun control; in a Washington Post article by Scott Clement and Emily Guskin, 77% polled said more effective mental health screening could have