Reevaluating the Second Amendment: Modernizing Gun Control

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The Second Amendment The 2nd amendment “The Right to Bear Arms” has not been brought up to date in over 200 hundred years and it is time that we make the necessary adjustments. Handguns and assault weapons are to blame for many mass killings in America. Each year, more than 30,000 people die in the United States in firearm-related incidents. Handguns and semi automatic weapons have been used in these massacres. The choice of rules such as exercising the right to further background checks and limit the availability of automatic weapons should be the first and foremost concern of both federal and state legislators. When this amendment was added to the constitution the majority of men ages 16 and up were part of the militia (military) and did …show more content…

Miller argued that the National Firearms Act violated their rights under the Second Amendment. The Supreme Court disagreed stating that the Second Amendment does not guarantee the right to keep and bear such a weapon. Since the conception of the 2nd Amendment federal judges evenly understood that the right protected by that sentence was limited in two ways: First, it was for military purposes, and second, while it limited the power of the federal government, it did not impose any limit on the power of states or local governments to regulate the ownership or use of firearms. Our Founding Fathers did not intend for the average citizen to have the right to carry sawed-off shotguns or assault weapons when they added the 2nd amendment. This amendment was to help the government protect the citizens against threats. In 2008, the Supreme Court decided in the case of, District of Columbia v. Heller that the Second Amendment protects a civilian’s right to keep a handgun in his home for the reason of self-defense. In Chicago the case of McDonald v. Chicago the court decided the due process clause of the 14th Amendment limits the power of the city of Chicago to ban the possession of handguns by private citizens. In my opinion both decisions misinterpreted the amendment completely. …show more content…

The massacres and killings that seem to be more of the norm may not have happened. if this amendment was adjusted properly as society evolved. The Columbine massacre, Sandy Hook, and the horrific use of guns in Chicago can easily be prevented in the future. Modifying the 2nd amendment and making it clear to all citizens the true nature of the meaning “the right to bear arms” will help alleviate some of the senseless killings in our world. Guns should not be the first resource we use they should be the last; George Washington himself thought that the use of guns should be the last resort and resource

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