The Second Amendment is an outdated provision in the U.S. Constitution that makes no sense in today’s modern world and hasn’t for some time. Any governmental action watering down the power of this outrageous right is a step in the right direction.

The 27 words of the Second Amendment written to authorize the creation of militias will always be detrimentally less important than a single life that it has stolen.

Headlines like “There have been more mass shootings than days in 2023” are common yet entirely devastating. Every American regardless of current attitude towards gun control needs to deconstruct any existing insensitivity and face this issue realistically.

Guns are dangerous and lead to so much violence. The regulation of these weapons is necessary to keep the country’s schools, homes and streets safe.

On Sept. 12 Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor rejected gun dealers’ lawsuit to block New York’s brand-new background check law for ammunition purchases one day before the law went into effect.

This was an unsuccessful attempt at the removal of one of the several measures under the Empire State’s Concealed Carry Improvement Act, which was enacted into law by Gov. Kathy Hochul.

The new law requires purchasers to pay background check fees that help operate background checks and fund the new program that is overseen by the New York State Police Department. Purchasers will pay $2.50 for the sale of ammunition and $9 for guns.

Hochul’s new law is a response to the Supreme Court’s ruling that New York’s concealed carry law was unconstitutional in June 2022, when Justice Clarence Thomas struck down the 108-year-old law that controlled who could carry a concealed handgun in public.

“The constitutional right to bear arms in public for self-defense is not a second-class right, subject to an entirely different body of rules than the other Bill of Rights guarantees,” Thomas wrote.

Oswego County Today agreed with Thomas, complaining that Hochul’s introduction of fees for background checks targets gun-owners, putting yet another financial burden on already overtaxed businesses and individuals.

“It’s not hard to look at this as anything more than a punitive fee for access to the Second Amendment,” NY Assembly Minority Leader William Barclay wrote.

Hochul’s law presents a fantastic example that other states should promptly mirror. The newly added fees for ammunition and guns represent a small cost for a ghastly practice.

There should be greater monetary fees for people who wish to own a gun. The wishes of an individual who likes to hunt for sport or requires self-defense pale in comparison to every person’s right to live a life that isn’t cut short by a firearm.

Around the world, guns are mainly a privilege to own. No country contains fewer roadblocks to own a firearm than the U.S..

In Austria, residents who wish to own a gun must prove they are in serious physical danger.

In India, South Africa and Canada, citizens must prove they are part of an approved group at a shooting club or range.

In Mexico, locals must travel all the way to Mexico City, where the only store in the country authorized to sell guns is located, to obtain a gun after passing a long application process.

Guns are too accessible in the U.S. considering that there are 50,000 retail stores where firearms and ammunition are available for purchase.

A prevailing solution to gun violence in the U.S. is to heavily impair the Second Amendment.

Referencing the rights of the Second Amendment is a cowardly and insufficient response to any remark regarding gun control, evading the lives stolen at the hands of machine weapons.

States such as New York set a good example but must continue to enact even stricter practices so that the country’s schools, homes and streets can be safer.