By Rina Watt - Year 13, Maniototo Area School
The great and powerful United States of America is a country of advanced and innovative technology.
A country of freedom movements such as the abolishment of slavery and ending of the great civil war. A country of stars of fashion, music, film and drama.
How can such a wealthy and so-called civilised country with a history of such great achievements still encourage unrestricted gun rights?
The solution is obvious. So why is the problem not yet solved?
Mass shootings - particularly in schools - in America have occurred for years with little change in the gun laws.
How is it that a country can stand aside and watch as its future generations get slaughtered before them?
Since the Columbine massacre in 1999, 187,000 students have been exposed to gun violence.
Most other countries faced with a similar tragic event immediately took action against guns and have faced no similar event since.
In America, it is believed the earliest school shooting dated back as far as the 18th century and has continued to the 21st where it has tripled in occurrences since 2011.
Many believe and would argue the roots of this problem lie with mental health issues.
In most instances in America, it is mainly the gun supporters who say so.
It is true, and institutions to assist with mental health are still necessary, but according to analysis, only 22% of the killers were diagnosed as mentally ill.
The main problem in America is the sheer numbers of guns, gun ownership, and accessibility.
The US has the highest gun ownership in the world. There is an estimated 88.8 guns per 100 Americans.
This suggests the average adult owns at least one or more.
If gun rights were more restricted and controlled, far fewer incidents would occur.
Several other countries that have had mass shootings have immediately taken action and either eradicated or significantly decreased any further offences.
Despite suffering decades of mass shootings, America still ceases to take any notice of efficient solutions offered and witnessed in other western nations.
In 1996, Australia faced its deadliest mass shooting in Australian history when 35 were killed and 23 wounded in a popular tourist area of southeastern Tasmania.
Sooner than a fortnight later, laws were immediately established through the National Firearms Agreement where semi-automatic weapons were banned.
Since this law, no mass shootings have occurred there.
One morning at the Dunblane Primary School in Stirlingshire, Scotland, Thomas Hamilton burst into the gymnasium carrying four handguns and killed 16 children, one teacher, and wounded 16 more before killing himself.
By 1997, the Firearms Act was enforced, banning all cartridge ammunition handguns.
In the five years following the tragedy, handgun offences fell by about 80%.
There's clear evidence that gun restriction is efficient. So why doesn't the US do it?
History is a factor.
''A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed,'' was the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution, which dates back to 1791.
Have they not realised that back in those days, firearms were single-shot muskets which took a considerable amount of time to reload compared to the multi-shot semi-automatic rifles of today?
A modern country still following its ancient laws suggests an unreflective, narcissistic, and arrogant society.
A more compelling reason for the persistence of outdated gun rights is the extensive profits made from the firearms industry.
The lobbyists of the firearms industry have successfully persuaded the nation's politicians of the benefits of bearing arms.
Much of this power and influence is controlled by the large financial contributions made by the gun lobby to those with the power to change the laws.
The NRA is a powerful gun lobby in the United States whose motto is: ''The only thing that can stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.''
The US seems to believe the more guns the better - for financial purposes.
For example, US President Donald Trump recently met teachers, students, and families affected by mass shootings.
Rather than consider more restrictive gun rights, Trump instead suggested arming more people, including teachers.
He said: ''If you had a teacher who is adept at [handling] firearms, it could very well end the attack very quickly.''
It seems Trump too, has been well convinced by the firearms industry that more guns is the only solution.
In fact, over $50 million was spent on promoting Trump's presidential campaign after he promised to support the NRA.
America has prioritised finance before its people.
It is very hypocritical for a country who states in the Declaration of Independence that ''life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness'' are unalienable rights to continue to support an environment when the number of guns exceed the number of citizens.
Guns are then being abused by the public, resulting in crime and death while the government counts its profits.
How do such people sleep soundly at night?
If this is really a democratic nation, what is stopping the government? If you had the power to prevent thousands of deaths, would you not do so?
Get it under control America.
