Is The Second Amendment Right Still "Right"?

As days go by and everyone had time to learn more about the horrific events that took place last Friday at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut. We now start questioning; How did this happen? Could that be avoided? Is the second-amendment right still “right”?

It is especially difficult to think about the implications that a change to our current laws about gun control (or decontrol if you ask me) will bring to our society. There are as many defenders of the right to bear arms as there are people wanting a change in the laws that control more strictly the sale of guns.

As for that, there are some retailers already taking action about this; Dick’s Sporting Goods (NYSE: DKS) has put out a statement saying that “…during this time of national mourning we have removed all guns from sale and from display in our store nearest to Newtown and suspended the sale of modern sporting rifles in all of our stores chain wide.”

Some other articles I read were stating that Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) was also taking down the Bushmaster Patrolman Carbine M4A3 Rifle from its web listings but I did not found any evidence that Wal-Mart had sold that rifle online before or any other for that matter. However, while visiting their website I was able to see that you can still find guns at their store and they even direct you to the closest one to you where it can be found.

 Another question that rises from this tragic event, is if violent videogames such as Call of Duty® an Activision (NASDAQ: ATVI) trademark, have an influence on our society that affects an individual so much that causes him or her to see a false reality and act irrational enough to shoot someone. I personally don’t think this is the cause of this problem, but, do believe that parents should be more aware of what their children are playing.

Guns on the other hand, have a deeper influence in this kind of situations. Although is totally understandable that bearing arms for self-defense is necessary and a constitutional right for Americans, I question myself if assault-like weapons are really necessary in a home, or should be even allowed by the constitution. Those kinds of weapons, in my opinion, should be of the exclusive use of the military and law enforcement and no other.

This week, the so-called “gun companies” are taking a hard hit in their stock price after the tragic events. Shares of Smith & Wesson (NASDAQ: SWHC) plunged from $9.54 on December 13 to $7.74 at the closing of December 18 representing a loss of 18.34% on the stock. Sturm, Ruger & Co. (NYSE: RGR) is also trading lower, falling from $47.73 on Thursday before the shooting to $40.60 on Tuesday’s closing for a loss of $7.13 or 14.94% per share.

There’s no question about the fact that we need a better gun control policy, and I appeal to our Congressman to work on this quickly and diligently. It’s not an easy task but one that must be taken if we want to leave a better world to our children. I also want to remind you that education starts with everyone at home. We, as a society, are responsible for everything that happens in our communities and if we do our job at home, educating our children, teaching them right from wrong, good from evil, we will be at least on the right path to a better civilization.