Dear President,

This country prides itself on its freedoms, however, should we allow these freedoms to jeopardize our safety? One specific example of this is the topic of gun control and how people, who could potentially be criminals, can purchase these potentially deadly instruments of destruction. This affects not only me as a student, but it also affects families, towns and communities all across the country. Tragedies such as the events at Sandy Hook Elementary and Columbine might have been prevented if we put a few more restrictions on gun ownership and purchase. Even with all of these events, nothing has been done to address this monumental issue. We need to take action and put actual restrictions on gun ownership and purchases before it becomes too big a beast to handle.

Assuming that people are using their guns for sport and protection as they should be using these tools, why do they need 50 capacity ammo clips? I’m sure that they will not need to fend off 50 men from robbing their house. When shooting for sport usually people wouldn't shoot more that a couple shots at a time, either in target shooting or hunting. Yet people still seem to harp on how it's an infringement on their Second Amendment right to have excessively large magazines. This Amendment was made when most firearms consisted of muskets capable of firing maybe 1 shot every minute. That differs greatly from today in which we have legally bought guns that can fire as fast as one can pull the trigger- more than 60 bullets a minute! That's an insane difference! The whole basis of our government (and all governments) is giving up some freedoms to live in safety and security. So why can't we do it again? Why can we not look to the past to help answer our problems? If we limit people’s clip sizes and ammo purchases, I would guarantee that we would see less mass shootings.

Another thing you could do to help limit these shootings is instituting more thorough background checks and stopping ex-criminals from getting guns. In an article from Tyler Tyack, he talks about how we should be, “Implementing a ban on gun purchases for people on the no fly list in the United States.” This seems to be a fair compromise; why haven't we implemented it ? Are people really going to side with people who are listed as too dangerous to fly so that they can purchase guns? This seems like such an outrageously stupid question yet we haven't taken any action. I can't say that all gun owners are mass shooters who want to start going trigger happy for no reason. I myself like to go shoot guns sometimes, it's fun! However, that same fun that I have, and millions of others have too, is ruined by people who want to cause harm and devastation to others. But if we do our best to keep guns out of their hands and only in responsible citizens hands, we can all enjoy the happiness and fun without being afraid to own these tools, or being labeled as extreme for doing so.

Next President, there is a plethora of reasons on why there is a need to enact more gun restrictions in the US. Background checks and restricting people's purchase on these items seem like a normal precaution, yet I do not see any see or hear of any legislation to keep us civilians safe. It’s your call President, protect us now, or curse yourself later that you could have prevented the next big tragedy.

Sincerely,

Colin M