Sandy Hook Shooting

The devastating events that occurred at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut last Friday has shocked and saddened us all. Adam Lanza, aged 20, barged his way into the school and needlessly shot 20 children who were only 5 and 6, as well as 6 staff members. He also shot his own mother while she was sleeping.

 This shooting has sparked a serious debate in the US about the 2nd Amendment and peoples right to ‘keep and bear arms.’ First of all, the US Constitution was adopted in 1787. It is now 2012. People weren’t going into schools, or movie theatres killing people. Times have changed, and the laws need to start reflecting that. I know that it as big part of American culture, but look at the cost. There have been two serious mass shootings in the last six months alone, and it is going to keep happening unless something changes. I know people say that ‘well they will go and get them illegally’. Yes, there probably is some truth to that, but that doesn’t mean the US laws have to make it so easy for people to get access to guns! Adam Lanza’s mother, who was a gun enthusiast, apparently had up to 5 guns in her home, guns which Adam used during the shootings. Who needs five guns in their home? Obviously Americans are not going to agree with me seeing as gun sales have actually risen since the shooting. This honestly does not make any sense to me. 27 people have been shot and the response is to go out and buy the same gun the shooter used? Really?? I wouldn’t be surprised if teachers will now be allowed to have guns in school. If Obama is not going to make guns illegal (which I’m sure he won’t), then there needs to be some serious changes. Tighter restrictions have to be put in place. More background checks need to be done. At the end of the day, buying a gun should not be as easy as buying a loaf of bread!

Of course gun control isn’t going to solve the problem. The real issue lies with the person themselves. No person in their right mind would go into a school and kill 20 children. According to reports Lanza was a loner who stayed at home all day playing violent video games. He had no friends, and he hadn’t spoken to his older brother in two years. The only person he talked to was his mother, but she apparently had her own issues, and ideas when it cam to raising her son. While I agree that gun control needs to be looked at, I feel there should be a bigger debate surrounding the mental health issue. Adam Lanza obviously needed help, but was there anyone there for him to get him that help he needed which could have prevented this tragedy from happening?