Following the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting that occurred on Valentine’s Day, Democrats and Republicans have started bickering once again in an attempt to identify the fueling force of America’s mass shooting epidemic.

Although I may be an 18-year-old with no political expertise whatsoever, I think it's clear that stricter gun control legislation would decrease the frequency of these tragic events and make America a safer place for its residents.

The Second Amendment provides American citizens the right to “a well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free State” and guarantees that “the right of the People to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.”

Although the Second Amendment has remained unaltered since its ratification in 1791, I believe it is time for the Right to be revised in light of disasters that have occurred in recent past.

While conservatives contest that our Founding Fathers toiled vigorously to produce the United States Constitution with inherent visions of a free environment inhabited by respectful, independent people, this is not reality. Unfortunately, modern America possesses many flaws, one of them being its susceptibility to mass shootings.

Despite arms advocates were quick to claim that perpetrators are entirely at fault whenever one of the aforementioned mass shootings does take place, which is too often, they are blind to the fact that these shooters are equipped with deadly assault rifles capable of exterminating large groups of people in succinct periods of time.

Ultimately, I believe the Second Amendment should be reinterpreted as the right for individuals, regardless of their occupation, to obtain a low-caliber handgun (9mm) as long as proper background evaluations are conducted, as this will essentially generate a safer, more integrated society.

A lot has changed in the 241 years since the United States gained independence from Britain, including the evolution of firearms. When James Madison and Alexander Hamilton constructed the Constitution, it is unlikely that they envisioned a future nation occupied by murderers toting fully automatic assault rifles.

The Revolutionary War was fought using muskets, which fired balls individually and took from thirty seconds to a minute to reload, semi-automatic rifles, and pistols. Nowadays, firearms including the AK-47 and M16 can be acquired fairly easily.

These lethal assault rifles, which were originally manufactured for military use, have become available to the general public and have unfortunately made their way into the hands of maniacal terrorists intent on reigning terror upon innocent civilians.

The recent Florida High School shooting, which resulted in 17 deaths and 15 non-fatal injuries, is not the first instance of firearms being utilized in a disastrous manner. Over the past few decades, the United States has experienced multiple mass shootings including the Las Vegas shooting, the Orlando nightclub shooting, the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, the Virginia Tech massacre, and the Columbine shooting, to name a few.

A common thread evidently links these disasters. The perpetrators in each scenario were able to obtain heavy firearms, which supplied them with the ability to cause mass destruction.

While a lack of extensive background checks and undiagnosed mental ailments partially fueled these shootings, it is obvious that such large-scale disasters could have been avoided had assault rifles not been available for purchase in the first place.

Those who do not agree with my reasoning may claim that people who hunt for a living require high-caliber rifles in order to conduct their business. While I acknowledge this concession, I do not believe that hunters “need” rapid-fire assault rifles to kill helpless animals.

Restrictions on what types of firearms are accessible to hunters must be established, as well as a limit regarding how many firearms a hunter is allowed to possess.

Ultimately, I believe a majority of the guns being produced in the United States should strictly be allocated to military usage. When these harmful firearms are made easily accessible, they frequently end up in the possession of ruthless terrorists.

Being an agnostic individual, I always roll my eyes reading the social media posts that spawn following a mass shooting. I do not want to offend anyone, but vocalizing prayers through Twitter is not going to undo the damage that has already been performed.

What we need to do as a society is examine the situation, identify its causes, and take action so that such events do not occur in the future.

Next time a mass shooting occurs in the United States, which is sadly inevitable, I do not want people to sit around, helplessly begging for clarity. For change to truly take place, the Second Amendment must be altered, with the updated version reading along the lines of: “the right for individuals, regardless of their occupation, to obtain a low-caliber handgun (9mm) as long as proper background evaluations are conducted".

As the architect of modification, I believe this revision will transform America into a more secure, disaster-resistant society for generations to come.

The Stoneman Douglas High School tragedy is just one instance in a long history of American mass shootings. I empathize with the families affected by this incident and hope for justice to be achieved through the criminal justice process.

Enough is enough. We will not continue to watch these catastrophes transpire from an inert state.

We will make our voices heard, and we expect them to be addressed.

It's time for change.